The Gift of Hallelujah

The Gift of Hallelujah

In 1984, Leonard Cohen gave us a gift in the song Hallelujah.

Thought not popular at its release, over the years, especially the last dozen, it has become a recurring hit for many recording artists, featured in several television shows and theatrical films, and has been performed quite often in the New Thought spiritual centers throughout the planet - it is considered as the "baseline" of secular hymns and is one of the 500 best songs per Rolling Stone magazine. I have sung it a few times myself and as I studied Cohen's lyrics, it inspired me to dig deep into the stories that inspired its songwriter. The story starts with this:

Well I heard there was a secret chord

That David played and it pleased the Lord

….

Well it goes like this: the fourth, the fifth

The minor fall and the major lift

The baffled king composing Hallelujah

The story comes from 1 Samuel in the Old Testament. The baffled king spoken of is David, the youngest son of eight. Before he became King, David was a very protective sheep-herder that was well spoken, handsome, very connected to Nature and Spirit, a happy camper in life and evidently quite the charmer on the harp. The present King was Saul. Saul was

kind of a jerk:  forceful, willful, arrogant, tyrannical and destructive. He ruled by his head and not through his heart, pushing his rule from his consciousness of fear and lack ... taking, taking, taking. After many years of this, it started to take its toll, bringing dis-ease into his life. Saul became melancholic and at times violent, having consistent bouts of migraines, and the only panacea was music. Because of David's skill on the harp, he was summoned to sooth Saul with music. David immediately won the affection of King Saul, his music proving to be so effective in quieting the frenzied monarch, he was sent for quite often.

In metaphysical terms, David represents the beloved, the loved. He lived the essence of Divine Love individualized in human consciousness; one who daily communes with God and reflects divinity in all he thinks, does, acts on and reacts to. David may not have used these words, but he lived his life knowing the Universe has his back. He trusted Nature and Love to watch over him. Saul, on the other hand, wasn't so sure.  According to the metaphysical dictionary of Charles Fillmore, Saul represents the will functioning in the limitations of personality. Saul signifies personal will. He represents the "consciousness that is willful and stubborn, shy and impulsive, yet very brave under great stress. When first chosen as king, Saul was very humble; and true humility is one of the first qualifications for spiritual leadership. The will is a very complex phase of the mind, however, and its paradoxes often perplex the most acute."

All of this represents the power of Love (David) to harmonize the discords set up by disconnected thinking and violent consciousness (Saul). David was an innocent here.

He was just Being, he didn't think of himself or his music as magical, he was a heart-centered guy singing the Universe's praise. Which leads me to the title of the song, Hallelujah. 

The transliteration of the Hebrew of Hallelujah is:

hallalu - joyous praise in song

yah (short of yahweh) - God

Later, when he fought Goliath, King Saul offered his armor and weapons to do battle with. But David refused the armor ... he trusted his strengths and instincts (the sling)

That which is natural for him, the Truth to know he would prevail in a fight that didn't for all accounts look to be in his favor. But David knew the what, spoke his Word, and trusted the Universe to deliver the how:  Key to his success!  Interestingly, he killed Goliath with a shot to his forehead, the 7^th chakra area, the connection to Divine Intelligence

After he became king, David started believing his own propaganda. He got more and more into his head … without his heart. He began to depart from from what I call the...

Divine Matrix:  

the confluent integration of mind, heart and intuition/imagination

And that leads me back to the song – verse two:

Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
She tied you to her kitchen chair
She broke your throne and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah

Now Cohen is melding the David and Bathsheba story with the Samson and Delilah story … and that's good. Both David and Samson became dependent on the physical, the accomplishments, the ego, the head – not the Divine within.

They weren't telling the Universe, I want what he's having;” meaning the flavor, the essence of a Bathsheba or Delilah, but that woman, the Bathsheba and Delilah.  They wanted to take, not receive. They thought they deserved it - their “status” deserved it. And that was misusing the Law of Cause and Effect.  For when you demand of the Universe that which is not yours to demand (i.e. someone else's property or someone's own choice in the matter [i.e. Bathsheba and Delilah]), the Universe reads that idea in your belief system as "I want to take/steal that" because "I can't have" or "I am full of lack without..." is screaming its limited idea to the Universe. That's trying to receive your Good from a lack and limitation consciousness, not trusting the Universe will provide the best version of the “that” (her, known as Delilah and Bathsheba) for you. Also, you may think you want x.y or z; but that may actually end up being settling for what is not best for you. We all have fantasies of ... well, for example, you may think you want Brad Pitt or Bathsheba or so and so's house, etc.; but you don't know what Brad Pitt is really like - he could be the biggest jerk of them all. What "Brad Pitt' represents is what you probably desire:  the success, the looks, the six-pack, etc. Hopefully you go a bit deeper than that, but that's what you want to require from the Universe. And then let the Universe will bring you the best version of that "Brad Pitt", etc.

These dorks (David and Samson) were so blinded by desire, they couldn't think straight:

    

    Samson knew that Delilah was a member of his enemies community, but that didn't stop        him. Delilah kept asking for the secret to his strength (5x), but, in his blindness and        

    arrogance, he didn't get what was going on. And we know how that story ended.

     And David:

      A. he's married, she's married and he knows it

      B. wants her so much, he sleeps with her anyway

      C. she gets pregnant
      D. David tries to hide it by bringing her husband back from battle, but they don't sleep                 together, so
      E. David sends her husband to front lines, where he was killed
      F. the son of David and Bathsheba dies in early childhood

Come on now, how dumb can a guy be? Yeah, I know, you don't have to answer. They, like so many of us, male and female, old and young, just...

Ignored the red flags

They were so disconnected to their intuition, their inner wisdom that they were deaf to the calling from the Universe:  the hints, the whispers, the repeated warnings from Divine Intelligence that a dumb mistake was being made.

Have you ever done that – ignore the red flags?

Did David and Sampson really think the Law didn't know about their lack and limitation consciousness? Do you? The Law is always at work and is no respecter of persons:

Hence, it follows that if we believe that It will not work, It really works by appearing to “not work”. When we believe that It cannot and will not, then, according to the principle, IT DOES NOT. But when It does not, It still does – only It does according to our belief that It will not. This is our own punishment [inevitable consequence] through the law of cause and effect; we do not enter in because of our doubts and fears. It is not a punishment imposed upon us by the Spirit of God, but an automatic result of failing constructively to use the law.

                                                                 ~Ernest Holmes THE SCIENCE OF MIND, p. 52-5

These boys were ruled by ego, those thoughts and actions dependent on looks, status, pretty wife, successful husband, wealth, achievements ... the “I'm gonna take, otherwise I won't have” syndrome.

The problem is not the ego itself. The problem is when the ego takes the driver’s seat of your soul. And it will. Every. Single. Time. Human existence was destined to be ego-driven. However, I also believe human existence is destined to realize that it is ego-driven and then have the greater realization that the ego is all an illusion...The only true reality is the eternal nature that is the indwelling spirit (God) inside each and every one of us. THAT spirit is both eternal and unchanging.    

    ~JOSHUA TILGHMAN - Spirit of the Scripture blog

Remember:  we have volition, we are always at choice. We choose to listen by Edging God Out or Entertaining God Only. We choose to listen to our head and ignore our intuition and heart. 

And now let's get into the third verse:

.....
There's a blaze of light
In every word
It doesn't matter which you heard
The holy or the broken Hallelujah

What Word are you speaking in your beliefs?

When the will proves inadequate to the gaining of self-dominion what does our higher judgment reveal to us as the remedy? It shows us that the heart, not the head, is the dominant factor in life. Love (David) is more powerful than the will (Saul) to direct us into the way of self-dominion. Where there is a conscious subjective unity of head and heart victory is assured. Man can overcome every enemy, and establish a great kingdom, like David, by uniting and harmonizing the spiritual forces of his being.                

~Charles Fillmore

David did this, he learned his lesson and returned to heart-centered living. This whole lesson points to the heart as the center through which Spirit rules and the best decisions are conceived, intuited and made. As it says in the Samuel 16:7...
  

Jehovah looks on the heart 

-the Law works its stuff through your beliefs-

When you find that your willful self-rule is not proving a harmonious outcome – which you will, get still and:

Treat (affirmative prayer), Meditate...

Spark a Flame in the Divine Matrix

You can always come back from the misstep, the missing of the mark, the mistake, the short dumb journey into the head...

Practice Self Forgiveness!

The above is the ho'oponopono prayer

And now, with self forgiveness intact, the last verse reveals how to live the rest of your life:

.....

I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you

And even though some things went wrong

I'll stand before the Lord of Song

With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah

Nothing on my tongue but praises and trust of that Divine within

Nothing on my tongue but the song of Love, prosperity, vibrancy and vitality

Nothing on my tongue but gratitude for my blessings and lessons

Nothing on my tongue but Truth …

!!Can I Get a Hallelujah!!

An affirmation:  I am the hero/heroine of my journey and I choose Love; I choose Grace and I choose to boldly stand before All with Divine Power and Wisdom guiding me.

SHOW ME THE GOOD

Show Me the Good

An aspiring Yogi wanted to find a Guru. He went to an Ashram and his preceptor told him, “You can stay here but we have one important rule--all students observe a vow of silence. You will be allowed to speak one sentence only after 12 years.” 

After practicing for 12 long years, the day came when the student could say his one sentence. He said, “The bed is too hard.” 

He kept going for another 12 years of hard spiritual practices and austere discipline; then came his opportunity to speak again. He commented, “The food is not very good.” 

Twelve more years of hard work and he got the chance to speak once again. This time, after 36 years of practice, he announced: “I quit.” His Guru retorted, “Good! all you’ve done the whole time is complain, complain, complain.”

Did ya ever ask the Universe, “hey, where's mine... show me the good.”

• You do what you were taught

• You do the right things

• You get the training

• You practice or rehearse

• You keep learning

• You do your spiritual practice

• You show up

• And yet it hasn't shown up

What ever your it is:  Better job, advancing career, better or continued health, a soulmate, financial freedom, more this or that, peace of mind, etc.

• We meditate, contemplate, motivate, visualize, vision or…

• ...we get a mentor, a teacher or coach...

• ...use this program, go to that workshop, get this certificate, go to this seminar or that school...

• ...we sit in silence for 10 days, take up yoga, pilates, running, swimming or high impact training…

• ...we light a candle, burn some incense, bang a gong, ring a bell...

• ...we go here, there and everywhere searching for the answer, seeking the key, looking for that secret code...

• ...in the Scriptures, the Bahagavad Gita, the Tao, the Book of the Dead, the Vedas, the Quaran, the Talmud, the Upanishads, the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Gnostics, the Toltecs, the New Thoughters, the Ascended Masters, the Arch Angels...

• ...we use alchemy, astrology, fortune cookies, the I ching, tarot cards, angel cards, affirmations & prayer...

• ...we hire psychics, a hypnotherapist, an intuitive, a practitioner, a therapist, a cleric of one type or another

We go and do and take refuge in everything but the True thing:

The Thing in You

The Divine in You

The Living Spirit in You

That which illuminates You...

The God in You!

I am not knocking all the things I listed
                  ...they are tools to use to build a consciousness and clarity
                  ...to be inspired by and transformed from or to be transcended through


However, none of those work or stick without belief and without a passion for the idea(s)
                  ...and nothing solidifies belief more than the heart

I believe there is a triune nature to the way we humans work the Law and that is: 

Mind ... Heart ... Intuition/Imagination

I find that most have the mind thing down
           ...we us our intellect and logic
           ...our synapses are firing
           ...the electro-chemical workings of the brain are in force

And we use our Word:

           I declare this in my life!

           I reveal that in my life!

I know that some have the intuition and imagination thing going strong
           ...what your it looks like, smells like, tastes like, what its texture is
          
Remember, intuition and creativity (when constructive) is a direct infusion from the Divine

But the main connection...

the one that matters most...
is the heart

The difficulty we find in our field …is the difficulty of sincerity, the heart not acquiescing to the statement of the lips; it is the difficulty of using constructive rather than destructive conversation; it is the difficulty of not being able to see reflected in each other the symbolic Christ or manifestation of the Infinite, the Spirit. That is what heals - seeing the Spirit in each other – it is the difficulty which arises from a certain form of spiritual stupidity which we all have: a lack of faith, a lack of absolute conviction that now we have it and we can use it, the absolute simplicity of it – the difficulty of surrendering the mind in complete abandonment to the idea; that is hard. That means putting the foot out, as it were, into a vacuum, into a nothingness; but if the faith and conviction is there it will be on a solid rock.    

                                                                       ~ Ernest Holmes, Unpublished Papers

Connecting to your heart can be achieved in many ways including using the tools listed near the beginning of this blog and also through a guided meditation or just listening. Stopping what you are 'doing' and just being ...listening...

           ...if they are destructive messages coming back or doubts or confusion or alienation or separation ideas are showing up, that is your head talking - the ego that edges God out - or dumb ideas taught to us by parents, teachers, religion, society...i.e. lack, inability, no talent, our family isn't successful, too young, too old, not enough "fill in the blank"


John Prendergast, a Northern California psychotherapist wrote an article called:

Five Keys to Trusting Your Heart and Acting From a Place of Inner Wisdom

Key 1. Trust Your Heart Physically:
          ....Place your hand over the center of your chest and imagine that you are directly 
                 breathing into and from the depths of your heart area.

Key 2. Trust Your Heart Mentally:
          ....Inquire into any beliefs that obstruct your love and the acceptance of yourself and 
                 others.

Judgments or prejudices may show up as you step into listening and the onion peels of negativity begin to flake. You may find yourself screaming, "OMG, what now?"   ...see key 3

Key 3. Trust Your Heart Emotionally:
          ....Attune with that deep place in the heart that loves and accepts everything just as it 
                 is.
          ....Visualize embracing any parts of yourself that need this love. Hold them in your 
                 heart.

This is when that onion peeling of the dumb stuff we have learned or accepted start coming out. Yes, it is not fun while that is happening, however, as we learn to love and accept those negative ideas at the same time we are letting them go, the grace and ease they are let go is more prevalent and assured. And yes, there is always something to learn whilst removing those superfluous beliefs.

         ....Do the same for others—inwardly bless them and wish them well.
         ....Be generous in expressing your heartfelt love daily.

Key 4. Trust Your Heart Energetically:

Remember everything is energy ... you, me, the device you are reading this on, the planet itself ... all are energy formed into objects. If you don't believe Dr. Ernest Holmes (SCIENCE OF MIND),  try Albert Einstein, Nikola Tesla, or physicists of all sorts .... everything is just energy.

          ....Sense into the various layers of your heart including the inner sanctum at the back 
                 of the heart and that of the infinite or Great Heart

Which leads us right into Key 5:

Key 5. Trust Your Heart Spiritually:
          ....Make a deep commitment to live open-heartedly, then work steadily and                  
                  compassionately toward keeping it.
          ....Rest in and as the open heart
          ....Gaze with a spiritually oriented friend.

You don't have to do this alone. We all got stuff. Even if you don't discuss everything, find a prayer partner or a meditation partner. 

Now, there will probably be a learning curve as you begin this practice. You will enter into what is called liminal space. Richard Rohr, a Franciscan priest of the New Mexico Province and founder of the Center for Action and Contemplation in Albuquerque, describes limal space as....

...an inner state where we can begin to think and act in genuinely new ways.  It is when we are betwixt and between, having left one room or stage of life but not yet entered the next. We often enter liminal space when our former way of being is challenged or changed--perhaps when we lose a job or a loved one, during illness, engagement, or at the birth of a child. During this graced time we are not certain or in control. This openness allows room for something genuinely new to happen. We are empty and receptive--an erased tablet waiting for new words. Liminal space is where we are most teachable.

When we are in our heart space, we can be vulnerable to do just that ... be teachable, transformable and ready to transcend! 

Even through the liminal, the onion peel, the attention paid to and the healing from the negative junk in our habitual thinking, using the heart-mind and the intentional conscious Power of the Divine within, we can reconnect to the power of gratitude:

Cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude.    ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Gratitude is a heart action and a mind action

As a mind action, it is a thought that comes after the reception in reverence to the receiving. Which reminds me of a story:

Two guys are walking through a game park when they come across a lion that has not eaten for days. They can see trouble in his eyes and, of course, the lion starts chasing the two men. They run as fast as they can panning the park for a place of safety. After a few minutes, one guy starts getting tired and decides to say a prayer, "Please, oh please, please, please, turn this lion into a Christian, Lord." 

A few moments later, the one man turns to see if the lion is still chasing and he sees the lion has stopped and is on its knees. Happy to see his prayer answered, he stops his friend and heads back towards the lion. As they comes closer to the lion, he hears it saying a prayer: "Thank you Lord for the food I am about to receive."

That is mind action. Now Heart action...

Gratitude is the inward feeling of kindness received. Thankfulness is the natural impulse to express that feeling. Thanksgiving is the following of that impulse.      ~Henry Van Dyke                                                               

...is an inward journey and anticipatory.  We must begin to live consciously and from the wisdom of the heart. It is the key, it is the Divine space, it is, quoting Dr. Prendergast again, "the keenly sensitive area of feeling and knowing that is a portal to our deepest self. Heart wisdom is a blend of deep feeling and understanding."

There is nothing small about us or the Universe. Spiritual prosperity, by living through the heart-mind - that connection to the Infinite Source of All – will increase incrementally and exponentially as our consciousness grows – and nothing in life or mind or belief changes permanently until we connect through that heart-mind to our passions and the Divine. The triune nature I spoke above at the beginning is a holistic approach to manifesting your best life.

I invite you to open up your heart today, no matter what emotional pain may show up. Be brave and bold in letting that onion peel. With heart-centered wisdom and gratitude, the healing and manifesting begins.  When you connect through the heart, faith deepens, belief clarifies and you are empowered intentionally and consciously to let the Universe Show You The Good.

God speed and happy Thanksgiving!

Please take a moment and affirm with me:

With gobs of thanksgiving - soaked in a gravy of resolution and Love, 

dressed in Mind and spiced with Spirit - 

 I manifest my greatest life right here and right now!

Blessings to you and yours!

FEED A NIGHTMARE WITH KINDNESS

I'm sure you have heard the Parable of the Two Wolves, but it bears repeating:

A Cherokee elder is teaching his grandchildren about life and says, "a fight is going on inside of me it is a terrible fight, and it is between two wolves.

One wolf represents fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, pride and superiority … lies, lies, lies.
The other wolf stands for joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, friendship, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, faith and Truth.

This same fight is going on inside of you and every other person too," the elder said to the wide-eyed kids.
The grandkids thought about it for a while and then one of them asked "which wolf will win?"

"The one I feed," the old Cherokee answered, “the one I feed.”

Usually after telling this story, I might ask what you are feeding your mind because what you feed your mind is soon mirrored in your experience, yes? It's the Law of Cause and Effect, that's the way the Universe works.

Rev. Dr. Michael Beckwith said:

There is a lie that acts like a virus within the mind of humanity. And that lie is, 'There's not enough good to go around. There's a lack and there's limitation and there's just not enough.' And that lie has people living in fear, greed & stinginess. And those thoughts of fear, greed, stinginess and lack become their experience. So the world has taken a nightmare pill.

Today I want to talk about the nightmare pill we are purposefully feeding into the consciousness of race mind. In case you aren't familiar with the term, here is a definition from Charles Fillmore in his book, THE REVEALING WORD:

Totality of beliefs, thoughts, memories, feelings, and experiences of the race. Man has built into the race mind a consciousness of corruptible flesh instead of the inherent incorruptible substance of God-Mind.

...a consciousness of corruptible flesh ... that doesn't sound good or peaceful or loving?

In the last few weeks, when you turn on the television, pick up a newspaper or scan social media, you likely saw a relentless flow of, a seemingly continuous barrage of negativity. This is flooding race mind with a sense of fear and helplessness, causing the masses to see the world as only a dark, dangerous and cruel place. Yes, it happens off and on, over and over again, possibly in cycles all the time. But this time it is going deep, messing with our very core beliefs. Confusing us with emotions of hate and despair, as well as, fear and helplessness.

Anybody seen or sense that or is it just me?  It's feeling pretty cray-cray out there. I want to go back to good ole days of just worrying about the economy.  We now have the hate groups running around at what is called a peaceful rally, carrying weapons. I understand in many states that is a right to open carry, but I am confused about the idea that one would bring a weapon to a "peaceful rally" to express and use their first amendment rights.

Everyone wants to rip down statues of Confederate celebrities, which I am not against, but I am concerned that it is from hate of hate. And hate of hate is a perspective wrought with contradiction and confusion for the individual and race mind.

Now, I want to be clear that I am not saying there isn't dark, dangerous and cruel places and people in world, but what is our answer/reaction to those things … more hate?

In 1958, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., said this:

Hate begets hate; violence begets violence; toughness begets a greater toughness. We must meet the forces of hate with the power of love.

Andrew Young, the former mayor of Atlanta and lifelong African-American civil rights activist said on NPR that the Stone Mountain carving in northern Georgia, a sort of a Confederate Mount Rushmore with Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis should stay. Andrew Young said that, a man who served as a congressman from Georgia, was an ambassador to the United Nations and was with Martin Luther King Jr. the day he was assassinated. It's an interesting interview. What I got out of it was that he meant our eye is on the wrong ball. He told this story"

And, from 4-years-old I was always taught – my father use to tap me in the face to try to get me upset and if I swung back at him he would slap me upside my head. He said see, if you start getting emotional in a fight, you’re gonna lose the fight. Don‘t get mad, get smart. And that’s been serving – that served me well. And it served me walking in the midst of the Klan alone at night without a gun, without police protection, and the only reason I did it was because the only ones that were courageous enough to go there with me and who insisted that I go, were women and children. The men, you know, hide behind militant solutions, but we have to keep our eyes on the prize - and the prize is not vengeance, not getting even, but the prize is redemption.

We have to save ourselves from extending the hate and fear and desperation the haters have by not vibrating with more hate and fear.  We have to think smart ... think Truth

Think the Power of Love

What is most needed is a tidal wave / tornado / hurricane / tsunami of what Charles Fillmore said ...the inherent incorruptible substance of God-Mind. We need more of the great Truth which transcends the sense of separation that is creating and feeding this nightmare.

It would be great if it was as easy as creating a new pill to combat this dis-ease in the consciousness of the planet and its people.  Well, in my research I found one ... Tolcapone is a pharmaceutical that changes the chemical balance in brain's prefrontal cortex, the area which impacts personality, social behavior and decision-making. This pill artificially produces feelings of kindness by zapping more dopamine, the feel good chemical in brain. Not being one to unnecessarily pop a pill, even in such a time as this, I encourage us all to us an old remedy.

On a Charles Fillmore kick this week, I let you read a bit of his book, THE TWELVE POWERS OF MAN, for assistance:

The beliefs that you and your ancestors have held in mind have become thought currents so strong that their course in you can be changed only by your resolute decision to entertain them no longer. They will not be turned out unless the ego, through whose domain they run, decides positively to adopt means of casting them out of his/her consciousness, and at the same time erects gates that will prevent their inflow from external sources. This is done by denial and affirmation; the denial always comes first.

Now, he is not encouraging you to deny its existence, in this case hate. Or to put on blinders or rose colored glasses. He is encouraging you to deny its power over you!

Humanity is at a critical juncture. We cannot allow ourselves to be deluded by the nightmare, by this hate uproar. It is time for those of us who are conscious, awake and aware to claim the Truth that is “superior to the condition.”

We are being called as metaphysicians to remember and live from the 

Truth of Wholeness, Love and Peace. 

Each of us is being called to be the change we want to see in the world.

Matthew 7:7 tells us:

Ask and it is given; seek and you shall find, knock and it will be opened to you.

Principle tells us as we look for kindness, we will find it.

As we embody and share kindness,

 it will grow and spread, dispelling the darkness.

If we wish to see more love, compassion and kindness in the world, we must be the embodiment of love, compassion and kindness. Margaret Mead had it right when she told us:

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has. 

Overwhelmed? So much hate, you may say? Have you heard the story about how you can transform a glass of dirty water into one of clean water? It is simple, get a glass of dirty water, stick a hose into the glass or put the glass under a faucet and turn on the water. The clean water will, of course, overflow the dirty water in the glass, but eventually it will also turn the dirty watered glass into one full of clean water. Simple, right?

Same with what is going on in our minds and heart and what eventually comes out of our mouths and shows up in our action. As conscious, creative, spiritual beings - heed the call to recognize and live from our higher nature. Even at special times, when circumstances make it hard to remember the truth of our being, let us act as Ernest Holmes said:

We must not be disturbed by the contradiction of objective experience. We shall have to know that the Truth we announce is superior to the condition which it is to change. We shall have to see that God in us recognizes God in the other person until the God in the other person recognizes God in us.

In moments when the world seems cruel, it is incumbent on us to be kind and express the Divine within, so that others may see themselves reflected in us. We must stand for compassion and kindness, even in the face of hate. 

Be encouraged by the knowledge that kindness is contagious.

Be Aware!  Don’t fall for the delusion. If you have a moment of hating the haters, that's okay. It's what you do after that moment. Let it eat at you or transform it and deny its power over you.

Be on the lookout for the kindness that is all around you! It's there. Look what is happening with those in natural disasters, helping each other, no matter race, greed, financial ability, etc. And there is kindness like that happening all the time. See it, be grateful for it, and absorb it into your consciousness.

Be Kind! It is good for the body, mind and spirit.

Spread kindness!  Share stories of kindness and thereby contribute to a positive contagion that will create a world that works for all.

Kindness and compassion, love and peace is a virus we can live with, thrive with!

Go out and give some!