For your consideration…..
Wow, this message really wants to get written. Everywhere I turn this morning, there it is. So let’s get it done.
“I quit listening to the news. First, it is rarely unbiased and secondly it is negative, negative, negative.” I have said these words in various different ways both here and to my friends and family so many times. The latter is sure to be sick of hearing it. Yet it goes to the heart of our message today.
No, the message is not saying everyone should boycott the news. But the message is saying we need to protect our heart. We need to be aware of what is changing our heart.
We are meant to love. Love is the game changer in everything. Love is the most powerful force in this world….all worlds. With love the world gets much brighter and full of HOPE. Without love is grows dark and fear takes over.
With the Boston bombings, my “no” news rule has been broken. Some of it by me. I was as appalled as most everyone was. But mostly I was seeing a lot of news because my husband has been so wrapped up in it.
Devastating, appalling, sad, tragic etc. are certainly all appropriate feelings. They come from a loving heart. And it is natural to feel some anger at the waste of it all and the threat to personal safety. Yes, it is natural.
But here is the problem and the reason we are being given this message. When anger changes your heart, a line has been crossed. When we have more feelings of anger than of love, we not only are hurting ourselves, we are hurting the entire Universe.
We simply can not let what comes from anger and hate override and change our love. We can not let darkness overcome our light. We don’t know what changed the bombers’ heart. But we do know that whatever it was, was a tragedy in of itself because we can see the tragic results. We can see what darkness it brought to so many. We can see what happens when two promising young men let their hearts be changed. And now we are seeing the snowball effect. What should this evil be called? What rights does the suspect have? Should he have rights? Where should he be tried? What government agency should we blame? And on and on and on.
What effect does this have on our hearts? It is easy to get caught up in it. It is easy to feel like we must have an opinion. It is easy to take sides. But where does this get us?
Our message today brings us this tragedy as a mirror. It is a reminder of what can happen when hearts are turned from love. It is imperative that we not let our hearts be turned from love. An empathetic heart is a loving heart. It is good and just. But it is imperative that we not let our empathy move to sustained anger. It is imperative that we keep our heart full of love. That requires forgiveness. It requires turning our anger and unanswered questions over to God for healing for the highest good of all.
Contrary to popular belief, we do not have to have all of the answers. What we do need to know is that if our hearts have been changed from love, we need to change them back. No good can come from and angry heart. We’ve known that. We’ve seen that throughout history. Conversely,if our hearts are full of love, we need to sustain it and share it. It may not make the news but we know the results of that as well.
Keep a loving heart. That is the HOPE. And so it is.
Bit by bit, piece by piece, HOPE by HOPE action steps anyone can take……
-Meditate/pray…..get in touch with your love. Let it bubble up and be your light throughout the day in whatever you do.
-Drink lots of water.
-Get outdoors and take in at least 10 deep breaths.
-Take a couple of deep breaths whenever you are feeling anxious. Breath is our reset button.
-Notice how you are feeling. If something is angering you, ask why. Figure it out and then let it go.
What made me smile yesterday…..
-Sun and warmer temps.
-A relaxing afternoon.
-Alex’s planting flowers. Obviously, she has warmer temps.
-But we are starting to see green here.
-I have a final board review date for my Angels Teach Life Coach Certification. Wahoo.
Love, Blessings and Gratitude,
Rev. Chris
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