June 30--End the Resistance

Forgiveness is the act of admitting we are like other people.  --Christina Baldwin

     In case there is still any lingering resistance to forgiveness in your life, after the full month of June on this topic, I am closing the month with this quote by Bill Harris, founder of Centerpointe Research Institute:

... whenever there is suffering or discomfort, there is resistance. There are no exceptions to this rule. All suffering, all discomfort, regardless of the appearance, is the result of resistance to something. Being addicted or attached to things being other than they are is a losing strategy. You will find that when your needs and attachments are changed to preferences, you can let go of your need for control over the uncontrollable. Then, when what is is not what you want it to be, you do not suffer over it. External events and other people do not control your happiness and peace. You will escape suffering only to the degree you are willing and able to let whatever happens be okay. People who live by rules, shoulds, or have-to’s tend to suffer quite often because no matter how hard these people work to protect their rules and see that others follow them, the rules will sometimes be violated. The more rules you have, and the more inflexible these rules are, the more often they will be violated, and the more often you will create suffering for yourself.

     Let's not suffer. Let's forgive and move on to greater good. July's topic is Mindfulness.

     In Peace,

          Leta

June 29--Injustice

When you forgive somebody--when you are generous, when you withhold judgment, when you love and when you stand up to injustice--you are, in that moment, bringing heaven to earth.  --Rob Bell

     I like the idea of forgiveness being a way to stand up to injustice. Forgiveness of acts of injustice put one in a place of freedom and clarity to be able to make the injustice stop. Hatred and resentment for acts of injustice, with no forgiveness, keep one in an emotionally-charged negative state from which constructive change is impossible.
     I also like Rob Bell, a lot. He is an extraordinarily wise spiritual teacher, a former Methodist minister. He's incredibly knowledgeable about the Bible and very skilled at bringing its wisdom into modern-day context. He does an excellent podcast. Check him out at https://robbell.com/.
     Living heaven on earth,
          Leta

June 28--Free Choice

Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart.  --Corrie Ten Boom

     Hmmm.... "temperature of the heart." What an interesting concept. There could be cold, hard resentment. There could be passionate, red-hot hatred. Acts necessitating forgiveness can inspire all sorts of emotions, and yes, myriad temperatures in the heart.
     Forgiveness is a choice, a deliberate "act of the will." Truly there are no other factors involved other than making the free choice to forgive. It's a decision for freedom. The heart will go along with it, for in its infinite wisdom, the heart wants to be at peace, neither frozen nor inflamed.
     Let's be curious about the "temperature" of our hearts.
            Leta

June 27--"Flow Motion"

Charity means pardoning what is unpardonable, or it is no virtue at all. Hope means hoping when things are hopeless, or it is no virtue at all. And faith means believing in the incredible, or it is no virtue at all.  --G. K. Chesterton

     Tested under fire... Do we have charity, hope and faith under the most challenging of circumstances? Or do we "throw in the towel" at the first sign of things not going our way?
     I see many things these days that seem unpardonable and hopeless to me. Fortunately, my faith won't let me linger there for long. I watched a video by Rev. Michael Beckwith the other evening wherein he changed the phrase "living in slow motion" to "living in flow motion." He was referring to living in the divine, orderly flow of life, trusting that the Universe always has our backs. That brings freedom, joy and expansion, which may seem incredible, but I believe faith makes it happen.
     We humans are hard-wired for charity, hope and faith as divine emanations of the Infinite Source. It's our heart-felt, heart-connected, DNA-encoded essence tethering us to that from which we came and to which we return. Our heart virtues are powerful. Let's use them to the max.
     Faith, hope and love, and the greatest of these is love,
             Leta

June 26--Compassion

It is compassion, the most gracious of virtues, which moves the world.
  --Thiruvalluvar

     I'm enjoying a softer, gentler, kinder energy spreading itself throughout our world. It's happening, ever so slowly. The long-time male-dominated energy is giving way to a more balanced female-male energy, and it can't come soon enough. We are witnessing the patriarchy of old white men dying, kicking and screaming. It's ugly and uncomfortable to witness, but oh, so necessary, for compassion to blossom on planet Earth. It is compassion that moves the world. If it weren't for compassion, we'd have destroyed ourselves by now.
     In gentleness,
            Leta

June 25--Happening Now

It is not enough to know that love and forgiveness are possible. We have to find ways to bring them to life.  --Jack Kornfield

     This is happening now, wide-spread, both individually and collectively. Many things--the pandemic, racial injustice, political corruption, to name a few--are combining now to force us to find ways to bring love and forgiveness to life. Love is the answer. Clearly war, money, lies and blame are not the answers.
     There is an old proverb that states, "Pray to God but continue to row toward shore." We can have all the prayers and good intentions we want, but we also have to take action and do our part. None of us, individually, is going to save the whole world. But we can each show a little more kindness throughout our days. That brings love to life.
     Yes, we can,
          Leta

June 24--Bravery

Forgiveness is a virtue of the brave. --Indira Gandhi

     Yes, yes, it is. It takes courage to face the past, accept the circumstances, learn the lessons and then let go.
     One interesting phenomenon I see these days is what appears to be an addiction to drama. I think it can be easier and more pleasing to hang onto the self-righteous drama of past events, the familiar emotional charge and the victim role, rather than to do the internal work to forgive and let go. For many folks, a state of drama is way more familiar and comfortable than a state of serenity.
     Where is your life on the drama-serenity scale? Would it be helpful to move more toward the serenity end? Forgiveness is the key.
     Former drama queen,
           Leta