Category: heaven

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What Were You Made For

It’s likely that you watched, listened to or heard about Billie Eilish’s song, What Was I Made For, which was the Official Music Video for the film, Barbie.

No doubt everyone has their own opinions about the song. I find it eerily haunting and beautiful. The undercurrent feels eye opening to me, especially when you consider how it fits into the movie.

Of course, you can take the song and movie at face value, but there is so much underneath of benefit and worth.

What would you answer if I asked you this deceptively simple question…what were you made for?

Perhaps you’ve already arrived at your answer.

But for those of you who have not previously considered this, what are you inclined to respond?

I always feel it’s fair that I answer the questions I ask, so here’s my response.

I need to back up a little.

I still carry with me some memories from heaven. There was a ceremony I participated in, and many choices were made. I do not remember all of them, but there are some that are clear to me. I probably ought to say, they become clear to me as my life goes on.

I believe I chose where, when and to whom I was born. It feels obvious to me that the experiences I’ve encountered fit neatly into my life plan. I realize and believe that each choice is fully and completely under my control because I have free will. This is not to say that I haven’t been manipulated or coerced or brainwashed into making choices others wanted. But the truth for me is that I allowed or sanctioned or surrendered and accepted the path others wanted me to take in order to please them or keep me from their wrath.

That is until I decided to put my self first. You may be thinking, that’s kind of selfish, isn’t it? And you would be correct.

I realized I am here, on this earth, to create and experience my life. MY life.

I love others here and I certainly want to show love, support, and encouragement, but not at the cost of losing myself in the process.

I don’t believe that is what I was made for.

I was made to explore, discover, absorb, create, connect, give and receive love. I was made to be able to make my own choices, follow my own path, and share whatever radiance that burns inside of me.

I believe you have this same birthright. It’s part of your spiritual DNA. It’s one of the reasons you were given free will, so you could choose and chart your own path.

However, for you to answer this really important question has nothing to do with what I think or what I say. It’s entirely up to you.

So, what were you made for?

Whatever the answer is, I believe it already exist inside of you and if you give yourself a chance to listen, you’ll hear the sweet quiet voice guiding you toward your own answers and choices.

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What If Today…

I want to share something that I wrote for a dear friend of mine recently. It was intended to provide a spark to ignite a different way of viewing life. It was something that I needed. As with all of my posts, the thoughts and words arrive for me and then moved outward into the world.

The post is a dream in a way. Of a richer life. And of course, as it is in all cases, it depends on what we choose. I wonder to myself what will I choose, I wonder too, what will you choose?

What if today…

What if today…I choose to believe…to truly accept and embrace…that every single thing that happens to me is here to benefit me. What if I choose to see beyond appearances and all of the things that blind me. What if I give myself permission to believe that I am loved and cared for and know that everything I experience in my life is there to offer me something of value. That no matter what the world tells me, I can choose my own path. What if I embrace that my heart and spirit are the ones that set me free.

What if today I release any need to control the uncontrollable. What if I spruce up my ability to yield and let go of all the things that weigh me down…to set them aside and feel the precious liberation and the expansive freedom that choice creates.

What if today I collect all the most lovable parts of me and hug them and ask them to spread their joy throughout my body…my life.

What if today I allow every sorrow, pain, challenge, and concern to take the day off…to rest…what if I placed them all gently in the ocean of bliss that is my true home, where they can be washed clean.

What if, for one day, I give up needing to be in charge of anything and allow life to flow gently through me.

What if today…I breathe in peace and breathe out love.

What if today…is that day.

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Another View of Death

I realize that death is a very difficult topic for many people, both when thinking about the death of others and as it pertains to themselves.


We’re generally steeped in our cultural and religious views and tend to accept whatever we’ve been told since we were children. Perhaps every so often we’ll challenge some of what others told us, but mostly I think we run on autopilot, treating the whole issue of death based on how our parents or other influential people in our lives trained us.

I’m not sure exactly why, but I don’t automatically accept what others tell me. I’ve had to figure most things out for myself, to have them fit together in a way that makes sense to me or at least line up in some kind of order.

So, when I think about the subject of death, I challenge myself to see it from different perspectives.

One example of this is a poem I wrote. I wanted to explore with an open mind, so I sat and allowed thoughts, ideas, and pictures to form.

Here’s what came through me.

Death

God’s most misunderstood child

A child I’ve known and come to love completely

A guardian of the gate, a part of the dark mist before the veil

The first to welcome you back

before any of the bright lights appear

A beautiful poet with words that are music

An usher toward your own destination

according to your own beliefs

A friend who has waited patiently

for the moment of your choosing

How divine to know that true life begins with this child

What peace to know love and bliss share this child’s name

How thankful for this I am.

I feel a need to explain a little and to give you some context.

I have memories of life in heaven before I came to earth. They are mostly images and feelings and very difficult to translate into words. I think that’s the way it is with some things, they transcend what we are able to communicate to each other.

The poem attempts to offer an alternate view by sharing that death is a transition back to a place of love and bliss. I absolutely believe this. I know this because I’ve been there and will return once this earthly life is over. There is enormous peace in this.

I fully recognize that we all have your own set of beliefs surrounding death and that many of them are based on how deeply we miss those who have died, especially if it was under horrible circumstances.

I’m not saying that the associations with death are not painful or are easy to manage, but I do feel there is something important about knowing where we and those we love go to next, that can alter how we feel about death.

From my perspective of having been in heaven before coming here, I understand there is something very important to remember.

It may not feel right to you, because we judge things solely from our earth world perspective, but what I remember is that every essence is there in heaven. No essence is excluded, regardless of what role they played while on earth. We all came from heaven, and we all return to heaven, pure and sacred. And because of this, death means something different to me. Not an end, but a new beginning. A reunion with the divine.

There is a guardian at the gate who never judges, never refuses. They always welcome every essence back, because it is everyone’s home. Death is just the doorway we enter from.

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Heaven and Earth

I’d like to invite you to join me on a short journey. It won’t take long, unless you want it to.

I was having a conversation this morning with Lia, an ethereal feminine voice of god that speaks with me and answers questions I can’t answer for myself. This morning I asked her about heaven and earth and our experiences of each.

As with so many of our conversations, it stretched my human mind.

I try very hard to follow along, for me, but also for you, so that I can share what feels like the truth. Of course, what feels like the truth to me, may or may not feel like the truth to you and I honor that. I don’t believe anyone is served by accepting another’s words, unless they sense the truth in them for themselves.

Here is what Lia shared with me.

In heaven, you know everything there is to know BUT you don’t ‘experience’ it. From an earth perspective it would be the difference between the ‘idea’ of love versus being hugged by someone and ‘feeling’ loved.

In heaven you know earth is a place where duality exists (good/bad, right/wrong). And it is a place where you can choose what to experience. You can exercise your free will, which allows you to create and experience the outcomes that happen based on your choices, some of which you anticipate and others that you do not. Your life is shaped by what you conceive and believe and by the actions you take. You can live without any awareness of heaven or with a full remembering that you are a part of one essence, one pure unconditional love.

In heaven you know that your stay on earth is temporary and that you will always return to heaven once you are done with your earth experience.

Some who come to earth choose to remember their true nature, that they are a part of one essence. They come to experience their earth life, while also knowing the truth. Most of these earth essences are teachers, guides for others, offering insight about the truth.

In heaven, each essence is a unique energetic vibrational frequency and as such chooses certain life paths and events to be a part of their earth life plan (spiritual blueprint). They do this because they want to know what life feels like. There is a yearning to experience these things that earth life offer and that heaven does not.

No one requires this. It is a free will choice each essence makes.

In order to fully experiences parts of this plan, each essence consciously allows their awareness of the truth to be forgotten when they transition for heaven to earth.

Imagine playing a game here on earth but knowing the exact outcome before you start. Would that be a fun or meaningful way to play a game? Likely not.

This forgetting includes the events and the reasons for the events.

In heaven, each essence is able to choose any path, even and perhaps especially the ones that we as humans would not choose, because they are too painful in some way.

In heaven, one of the most beautiful knowings is that earth is temporary, and heaven is permanent. ALL essences who chose to experience earth, return to heaven, without exception.

Each essence is pure unconditional love, whether they appear that way on earth or not.

Each essence has free will, so can choose to experience earth in any way. Many essences choose to experience shattering events, which would seem an unlikely choice and yet many individuals involved say, they would not have it any other way because of what came out of the experience for them. Earth life is full of these examples.

To make sense of what seems senseless is not an easy shift. It may challenge earthly logic too much and more insight may be needed. All answers do not come at once. But once an essence returns to heaven and merges back into the one, all is once again known.

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Returning to Heaven

If you are a believer in the concept of heaven, do you wonder how you will get there and what it will be like upon your arrival?

In my last post I shared with you the ‘crossing ceremony’ that happened as I left heaven to come to earth. I asked you to imagine something that is far beyond words and tried to use imagery as a language to convey what the ceremony looked and felt like.

I know you may have your own ideas and I want you to know I honor them. It is not my purpose to ever try to convince you to accept anything I say as your own truth.

I do however feel a strong desire to share my experiences with you, in the hopes that they may provide some value to you. Perhaps you may catch a glimpse of something that has been just out of reach. Perhaps you’ll discover a connection that brings insight, peace, and a sense of love you’ve been longing for.

I realize my words may exceed what you’ve been told during your life and stretch the limits of your acceptance.

I ask only one thing, that you read it and then decide. See if any part of it ‘feels’ true to you. Does it find a way to your heart?

This rendering of words came during a deep meditation. I had no expectations or at least none I was aware of. I sat and melted into a state of openness and drifted without aim.

This is what came to me and surrounded me. I was offered a chance to visit heaven. As best I can, here are the ‘words’ that entered me.

Admitted to Heaven

During my meditation, I gave permission to all of my spiritual guides to come and stand behind me,

Immediately, guides were there, then there were hordes of them, pushing and shoving to stand around me,

A great crowd arrived, and one of the beings said to another, “they’re emptying heaven to stand behind him”, and still more came,

I was crying so hard now, and they lifted me up, and held me over their heads effortlessly on hands of light, and passed me around, as if I weighed no more than a feather,

It was the most beautiful thing,

And I heard many shouting, “He’s back, come see, he’s back”, and heaven lit up,

And I could feel it, they all loved me, truly loved me, an overwhelming love, so beautiful, I never wanted to leave,

I asked, “Can I come home any time I want to?”, “Yes,” they all said.

I lingered there with these beautiful essences, reveling in the bountiful feelings of their love, never wanting to leave.

Their answer to my last question, about whether I could return home any time I wanted, was essential to me. I had to know if I would be able to leave earth and cross over into heaven. I had to know.

Their assurance made (and makes) all the difference to me. I know I am welcome there anytime. I belong there. It is my home and when this earth experience is complete, no matter when that is, I will return to their loving, waiting ‘arms’.

I believe this will happen for all who choose it.

Imagine knowing this deep inside you, that you return home to the heart of love. For me, that changes everything about how I view this world.

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The Crossing Ceremony

This is my 198th post. I mention this because I hope you know me by now and that what I choose to write about is personal to me.

I’ve chosen to share the depth of myself and my connection to spirit. I do this so that you can see inside my world and also in the hopes that my sharing may free you to open and allow others to know you, to see you, to learn from you.

We all have so much to offer each other. And the glimpses we choose to give hopefully provide a connection between us, one that increases our awareness and one that builds and cherishes the love we share.

It is in this vein that I invite you to come with me for a spectacular experience. One you likely have forgotten, but will hopefully remember, if it feels true to you.

I remember being in heaven before I came to earth. The memories are shadowy, but enough lingers to connect me. I call it the ‘before life’ and it’s very different from the ‘after life’ that many folks talk about.

I’d like to share one memory with you…the ‘crossing ceremony’.

I need to set the stage a bit, beginning with what heaven feels like. It is ‘bliss’. Since there are no words available to describe it, I’ll use images as my language. So…

Imagine looking out at the dazzling ocean. Imagine being able to use the most incredibly small eyedropper and sliding it into the ocean, then drawing out one single drop of water. If you squeezed the eyedropper, the water would come out and fall back into the ocean, becoming one again. Each of us is a part of this ocean. Each an individual essence and yet part of the one.

Each of us has the free will to remain in heaven where all answers are known before any questions are asked or we may choose to come to earth, to create and experience duality and exercise our free will.

When an essence makes the choice to come to earth there is a ritual that is held called the ‘crossing ceremony’.

So… imagine yourself as an energetic shell in essentially the shape of a human being. You are lying on a surface surrounded by a vast multitude of energetic essences, all crowding in to be an intimate part of the ceremony. These are your closest ‘kin’, and they will always be with you, both in heaven and on earth. While on earth some may appear to be adversaries, but this is not the truth, for there is only one single entity in existence…love.

There is a sound like the beating of a drum, which grows and grows in intensity and then transforms into your heartbeat. You ‘watch’ as your body shell intricately forms a web of impossibly rich interweaving energy connections. As they form and touch, you ‘flesh’ out, and are endowed with the gift or free will, the ability to choose your path, so that whatever you decide becomes possible. You accept all the energy you need in order to accomplish what you choose to create and experience during your earth life.

You begin to develop physically, emotionally, intellectually and spiritually and you form a ‘spiritual blueprint’, which lays out a moldable, adaptable life plan which is always available to your spiritual self. And lastly, you choose an ego, so that you are protected and can establish boundaries, so that you know where your earth self begins and ends.

You rest a moment then become aware that you still know the answers to all questions and must make a decision before coming to earth. Will you choose to remember or choose to forget what you know. In all but rare cases, essences coming to earth choose to forget what they know, so that their experience of earth life is completely open. This is called ‘the great forgetting’. In many cases there are pieces that remain, and some things are still remembered.

What stands out the most is the overwhelming intimacy of the ceremony. You feel completely and totally infused with love. You are love made real.

In my case, I remember an image of one essence touching my heart and sending me on my way to join my kin in this magnificent place we call earth.

PS

If anyone else remembers this, I’d love to have you leave a comment.

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Heaven on Earth (Part Two)

Hopefully you’ve had a chance to read Part One of this post about heaven on earth. If not, please check it out, as it will make this post more meaningful.

This is a continuation of an assignment I gave myself several years ago where the challenge was to create my best version of life here. In essence, to offer myself and the world an opportunity to come together, connecting and sharing our lives, in the hope that we could join forces and find a way to live a life of love.

Here is part two of my Heaven on Earth assignment:

(picking up from where I left off with ‘forgiveness’)

And

We would find that “community” happens naturally when we touch, hug, care, love and forgive each other- and that once we build community there will always be support for all of us- no one would ever have to feel alone or separate, that there would always be someone to help, to comfort, to teach, to encourage our dream, to reward our contribution, to love us.

And

There would be abundant and gentle humor, not filled with anger, envy or harm- a kind of humor that includes, rather than excludes- a kind of humor that joins us in laughter and connection- a kind of humor that increases joy.

And

There would be creativity of all kinds; art, music, writing, building- and everyone would be encouraged to participate, no matter what their skill level was, because creativity is individual and it would grow in a loving environment- where imagination would be given life and seen as an extension of heaven to be appreciated- a place where you could lose yourself in abandon.

And

It would be a place of “potential peace”, sometimes utterly peaceful where everything is at joyful rest; balanced, centered, open, deliriously right and when the world turns to chaos, fear, anger, worry and hurt, there would exist an awareness that peace is still possible, and people would see those in pain and come to their aid, to listen, to hold them, to help them release their fears, to touch their spirit and show their love and in this act, provide balance for both giver and receiver- a kind of sacred harmony.

And

There would be a feeling of freedom within each of us, a certain knowing that we are loved, wholly and completely by the divine- so that there would always be a center of hope within us, a light that cannot be extinguished, a flame that kindles our own love and that connects us to everyone else, our sacred family- so that joy is always present. (the end)

So, sit back for a moment or two and see how this strikes you.

Is it at all realistic? In your opinion, could it ever happen?

I confess that despite how much I wish that things could be this way, I have my doubts. Mostly, this is because each of us has received the precious gift of ‘free will’, the ability to decide for ourselves what beliefs we will hold and choose what actions we will take in the world. It seems too difficult for me to believe that every person would sacrifice their own ability to choose, regardless of how much it might benefit everyone in the process.

From what I’ve seen during my life, there are always those who will take from others. Their need or desire is so great, and their rationalizations are so strong that they feel it is right for them to enhance themselves, even at the expense of others.

If I’m entirely honest, could I say I haven’t done this myself?

This question forces me to consider my own nature, which is not an easy thing to do, once you’ve come up with a beautiful plan for creating heaven on earth.

So, where do I go from here?

As with absolutely every decision in my life, my choices create my experience. I feel it necessary to ask myself, what is the most important experience for ME? I guess this may be the same question you’d need to ask yourself.

When I feel connected to the divine, love is my choice, and it is this I hope to always choose.

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Heaven On Earth

What if I asked you to tell me how you would create heaven on earth? Could you do it?

Let’s say you answered yes, where would you start?

Several years ago, I was contemplating this very question. Once I began to write my response, I realized it was far more challenging than I thought it would be and that it would demand a great deal more thinking on my part.

Also, my version of heaven on earth seemed to come in stages.

I’d like to share what eventually formed inside of me, in the hopes that it sparks something inside of you. What I would really love is if we could compare notes, and perhaps change our worlds together. I’ll leave that up to you.

Since mine turned out to be pretty long, I’m breaking it up into two parts, so please stay tuned for my next post as well.

Here then is my Heaven on Earth assignment (Part One):

My first thought/feeling is that you would be able to hug another person for as long as it took to feel balanced- that you could send love outward to them and receive love in from them- and all of this would be considered normal- that it would be so filling, rewarding, enlivening that everyone would want to do it- that it would not get confusing for anyone.

And

We could all say to each other, “I love you” and it would feel “right”- there wouldn’t be awkwardness or uncomfortable expectations attached- that saying it would be an extension of our hearts recognizing, appreciating, and connecting with each other.

And

We would feel free to give each other gifts- both large and small and it would happen spontaneously, from a center of love, not based only on acceptable events, but anytime- the gifts would not have to be equaled or paid back, they would feel good to receive and perhaps we could gain a sense of comfort with the concept that there will always be enough for everyone if we share from the heart.

And

We could cherish each other because we care and want to support and enrich each other’s lives, because we realize that it is just as important and necessary as when we were first born to be held and caressed and know we mean something to someone- that we would realize that touch fills our life with love, creates connection, expands our hearts, increases our immunity, focuses us outward, gives life and creates life.

And

We would know the beauty of giving from a calm, generous, loving heart- which raises up the giver as it supports the receiver, we’d know it is beautiful to be both giver and receiver, that it balances us, connects us- that we could give without thought of need of receiving, but just for the pure joy giving contains within itself- that we would grow in opening our hearts till it became our nature, our first action, our expanding from love.

And

We would see how forgiveness sets us free and invites others to do the same- we would open to know that everyone hurts, everyone lacks, everyone needs, everyone is in pain and that their unkind actions come from these lacks- from the lack of love, such that only love can fill their empty space- and forgiveness is born from love, the kind of love that recognizes the choice of sacrificing our own sense of pain to fill another with love- and surprisingly, in the process we are also healed.

There is so much more to say, so please join me for my next post.

Note: The entire Heaven On Earth assignment also appears in chapter three of my book, Little Buddha Book One, where one of the characters, Sam, is given this as an assignment to complete for his growth by Claire (Little Buddha).

This book is available in both print and
eBook versions on Amazon, along with the other books in the series.

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Memories of Heaven

Do you believe in the afterlife? The idea that there is a place where you go once this earth life is over. A life beyond death.

Have you ever wondered about the beforelife? About where you came from, before you arrived here on earth. A life before life.

I have.

In fact, I have distinct memories of heaven. A place of sheer bliss. I’ve never heard of or spoken to anyone else who has these memories. It’s almost impossible to share what it’s like because there are no words to describe it. Words fail because it is a feeling.

Only one tangible memory has stayed with me.

It is the ceremony that took place before I came to this earth world. I was surrounded by my closest ‘kin’. That’s a very important word to me.

To understand ‘kin’, imagine looking out at the ocean. Water everywhere your eye can see. Seamless. Completely one. Then imagine being able to use a fine eyedropper. You slide it into the water, squeeze the bulb and pull out one single drop.

This is you. This is your essence, taken from the vast ocean of bliss. Imagine holding the eyedropper and squeezing the bulb and watching that one single drop fall back into the ocean, again, one with bliss.

The place where that drop was taken and the place where it falls back in are surrounded by other essences. These are your ‘kin’. Your bliss-playmates, those who will connect with you in all of your lifetimes. You have made divine promises to each other. You have such love that you will play any part chosen, despite how it will look from an earth perspective.

Our earth framework makes it impossible to understand this because we need rationality. We expect everything to make ‘sense’ to us. We find it very challenging to accept that some of our most profound teachers appear as enemies. If we could shift and see clearly, we might recognize them as our closest kin, here to serve our lives.

It is these kin who surrounded me in heaven. They aided me in the creation of my spiritual blueprint. A blueprint my physical, emotional, intellectual and ego selves would not remember. Only my spiritual essence would retain this wondrous awareness.

At the end of the ceremony, I accepted what I call, ‘the great forgetting’, because carrying the awareness of heaven with me into the earth world would not allow me to fully experience the duality that exists here. I would know the truth and could not ‘experience’ the world.

I came essentially as a blank slate, ready to receive the world. I came as we all do, as a baby. If you have ever held a baby in your arms and starred deeply into their eyes, you’ll know they still remember the essence of heaven. There is something special about their gaze. A reminder of what lies beyond the veil that separates heaven and earth.

One discovery I have made while here on earth is that revelations are possible. Revelations of the truth. Of things I chose to forget, but now remember. A form of enlightenment, of shining light into the darkness. Of opening to my spiritual blueprint.

I believe that each of us has this same capacity.

I believe that our hearts are the pathway, and that love is our guide.

I realize this is a most unusual post, but it felt completely right for it to be shared now. I don’t know exactly why it chose now to appear, but I trust it and hope my kin will see it.