Holistic Living
Forgive my absence. It has been a busy summer. My whole life is changing and I am having some trouble keeping up with all of it! It’s all good, just a lot happening right now. What a difference a year makes. A year ago, I was heartbroken and unsure how life could look so bleak. Today, I am grateful for all the change that yesterday’s hurt has created. They were all blessings in disguise. Let that sink in, especially if you are going through some unwanted change right now. Change is always for our greater good, which explains why I am smiling today.
Have you ever been so inspired and excited about your future that you can’t sleep? This is how I have been these last few months. I should explain. As the new Executive Director of the Conversations with God Foundation, I have been given the opportunity to make a difference, much in the way my life was impacted by the very organization I now lead.
Everything changed for me 13 years ago when I began a quest to know and understand God, when on one particular day this one particular book kept insisting I read it, it kept showing up. CwG came to me three different ways on that day, and nothing would be the same after. I got the message. And upon reading that book, everything began to change in my life. Here I am 13 years later in a leadership position of the very Foundation that played such a wonderful role over the years in my life. I am teaching out of those very same books that changed everything for me…and life could not be better.
Life is the way it is for me today because I use the concepts and tools offered within the pages of CwG, and, for that matter, many other spiritual works I have been drawn to read as a result. Yet I keep coming back to CwG because of its simplicity and easy accessibility to joy-filled messages within. Sure, some of the concepts were way over my head when I first began, but I knew if I could say it, I could live it.
I wanted nothing more than to live the material I was so attracted to, so I got on with teaching it. Seven or eight years of facilitating study groups and being surrounded by the hopeful messages, and my life began to transform. Be clear, it is a process. I see myself evolving even to this very day. Yet I am still attracted to this simple and profound material as my life changes and I see the wisdom of CwG as it flows through me.
So last month, a group of dedicated professionals and I put on “A Path to Peace” retreat in Medford, Oregon. It turned out to be an even greater experience than I hoped and the feedback I received made me smile. I have dedicated my life to helping people find their truth that sets them happy, joyous and free. “A Path to Peace” is just one of the ways I hoped would do just that. My desire is to help those struggling with dis-ease recover and get free.
Inspired by that outcome, we decided to hold retreats in San Jose, California, in September and then one on the east coast in Orlando, Florida, in October. I recognize that it isn’t always easy for people to come to Medford, Oregon, to visit me, so I have decided to take this “show on the road.” I am very excited about the rest of this year’s retreat schedule. I have a very special retreat coming in November that you may not want to miss either, so if I may be so bold and use this forum for the following announcements:
SAVE THE DATES!
Sept 19 – 22 – San Jose, CA – A Path to Peace – CLICK HERE
October 24 – 27 – Orlando, Florida – A Path to Peace – CLICK HERE
ARE YOU READY FOR A SPIRITUAL ADVENTURE?
Dust off your passport, because we are headed to Costa Rica!
November 8 – 16 – Costa Rica – What God Said – CLICK HERE
That’s right, Costa Rica. Some of you know that I lived in Costa Rica where I held my Change House program. Change House was designed around the book When Everything Changes, Change Everything, and it was created to help people move through unwanted and unexpected change or on-purpose and enlightened change…or both.
My life is a living example of what a program like Change House can do, as I used every one of those tools this last year…and they work! Change House is a wonderful program and it will return in the near future, but for now we are going to take on something timely, important, and really wonderful!
On October 1st, The latest CwG book will be out. It’s called What God Said.
What God Said contains The 25 Core Messages of Conversations with God that will change your life and the world, all of the most important concepts within CwG messages brought forth in one book. This retreat will be an overview study of these concepts and how to make use of them in daily life. Who wouldn’t benefit from that?
This retreat will also launch CwG College.
CwG College has been created for those who desire to be students/teachers of Conversations with God, those who wish to deeply understand the benefits created by living the material, and who may also wish to share the good news and teach the material to others.
I call this the ultimate study group as people from all over the world will meet in different cities to take on learning and living the wisdom found in the CwG material. When people come together, the power to create positive outcomes multiplies by the energy in the room.
What God Said is the perfect book to begin CwG College with since it provides a summary of the core messages found throughout all of the books and an overview of what an in-depth study of the material will provide.
The Costa Rica retreat will be held at a hot springs and spa in my adoptive hometown in Costa Rica called Orosi Valley. Eternal springtime conditions await you there as the weather is 75 during the day and 57 at night. Located in Central Costa Rica, there is little humidity and no mosquito nets are needed for sleeping. The resort is built around a river and hot springs, and the amenities are wonderful. This will truly be a mix of fun and a life-changing deep study.
It won’t just be all work and no play, I have also arranged the possibility for those who wish to have some traditional Costa Rican adventures, like zip-lines and volcano tours. I want you to enjoy the sights and sounds of this amazing place. You are welcome to consider staying longer than our seven day retreat. I would be happy to assist you, given that I know the area well. If you want to live this material and have fun doing it, this retreat is created for you.
If reading CwG felt important and impactful to you, and if you feel like I do, that these kinds of messages could change your life and change the world, please help me get the message out. I know through my own personal experience and through using these messages to help others that if more people were given the opportunity to explore CwG, that, in fact, the world would become a more peaceful place. Peace begins with you and me. Please join with me in supporting our work and common goal of helping others. My commitment since I took over the CwG Foundation is to expand our outreach and impact the world in a positive way. I am excited to say that we are doing just that and hope you will join with us.
Do you get why I am excited now? I hope you are excited, too! I look forward to seeing and sharing with you in these amazing retreats and in many other ways in the future!
As always I love hearing from you…how can I be of service? – J.R.
(J.R. Westen, D.D., C.Ad, is a Holistic Health & Spiritual Counselor who has worked and presented side-by-side with Neale Donald Walsch for over a decade. He is passionate about helping individuals move beyond their emotional and spiritual challenges, transforming breakdowns into breakthroughs. His counseling and coaching provides practical wisdom and guidance that can be immediately incorporated to shift one’s experience of life. As is true for most impactful teachers, J.R.’s own struggles and triumphs inspired him to find powerful ways of helping others. Sober since June 1, 1986, J.R.’s passion for helping individuals move through intense life challenges drove him to also specialize in Addiction and Grief Recovery. J.R. currently shares his gift of counseling & coaching with individuals from around the world. In addition, he operates “Change House” a place where people come to transform. He also works with Escondido Sobering Services and now serves as the Executive Director for the Conversations with God Foundation. He can be contacted at JR@CWG.ORG.)
If I could show you a way to transform your life in one year or less, would you be interested? How about if you could help others do the same thing at the same time?
Intrigued?
Read on…
May I share a possibility with you, one that caused my life to alter so dramatically that it changed the course of my life forever. In fact, I wouldn’t be writing this to you today without it. You might be thinking by now that it was reading books like Conversations with God. Well you would be partly correct, but it wasn’t just reading CwG that made the difference for me.
About 14 years ago, I embarked on a spiritual quest, to find my truth about God and life. I was 12 years sober at the time, but I was missing something, as my life experience was anything but happy, joyous and free. One day in a meeting, while thinking of my challenge, I looked up at the AA 12 steps and had a realization: I had no clue what my truth about God was. It said, “God, as you understand God,” but in that moment I realized I didn’t have a clue what that meant for me. Sure, I had my ideas about it, my childhood upbringing, but clearly those weren’t working, or I would have been happy.
Later that year, after much contemplation and searching, I began a course of study which took me down the comparative religion path. All of it was really very interesting and helpful stuff as a whole new world began to open up for me. But nothing really knocked my socks off; that was, until this happened.
I was right in the middle of studying Christian history and theology at the time. I wish I remembered the date, but I will never forget the day. CwG, Book 1, showed up, not once, not twice, but three times from three different sources. I had dismissed the first one simply because my thought was that I had a stack of books at home to read, like I really needed another book on that pile? I don’t think so. Later that day, I was sitting in a Chiropractor’s office and something caught my eye. I looked up at their lending library and, low and behold, there was CwG, Book 1, on tape. I pulled it out to look at it, but once again dismissed it thinking I was just too busy. That evening, I was watching a game show, and as if God needed to hit me with a two-by-four, there was a question in the category “New York Times Best Sellers”: “Name the author of Conversations with God”… Okay, whatever!
After I picked myself up off of the floor, I jumped into my car and drove down to the bookstore. I may be slower than some, but after the third time, I got it. I began reading the book that evening – big mistake. Who needs sleep anyway? Well, probably like you, I began to make the journey with Neale, as he asked the questions and God answered.
Yes, reading the book moved me and I had to learn more. I read all the books available, which at the time was only the first three. I had an excitement. Like a treasure hunter finding clues, I knew I was on the right path. I found out that Neale was going to be speaking in my area, so I bought a ticket. A week later, I went to Sedona, Arizona, for my very first retreat. I followed the breadcrumbs to an invitation that I knew was changing my life.
I felt there was something for me within having this whole “Conversation with God” experience. I was led to these books and retreat by a communication from God; I just wasn’t talking back. But I was paying attention to the signs that led me all the way to Sedona. I watched and listened as this regular guy named Neale, who had a boat-load of living problems, shared his story of transformation and the invitation that God gave to him. His was to be a messenger, and his invitation was for me to consider being one, too.
In that moment, I heard the call and I knew this would benefit me greatly. If I could really get a grasp on the concepts within the CwG message, maybe I could live them. If I could incorporate them into my life, I knew I would reap the rewards of living my life in that new way. Perhaps I could be happy, joyous and free. The breadcrumb trail had led me to a guy who had a conversation with God and who suggested that I help others as a way of helping myself. Oh, I got it, the 12th step of AA. “Having had a spiritual awakening, help others have one too.” I can do this!
I now pass along that same invitation to you. One very simple way of helping yourself and others transform is by starting a CwG Study Group. I did so for seven years in the San Diego area and not only was a new man born out of it, so was a new career. I continued to follow the breadcrumbs, which led me all the way here, now as the Executive Director of the Conversations with God Foundation. How do you plan for something like that? Yet there was a path and there is one who knows your heart and soul. What is God saying to you? Was this invitation written directly for you?
Here is the best part: I will help you create a Study Group if you hear that call. You must answer. I will also help you transform your life, not because there is something wrong with your life, but because like me, you wish to become a grander version of yourself. That was the call I answered — to become the next grandest version of the greatest vision ever I held of who I am. I knew within my heart that if I could be around the messages of CwG enough, that I could begin to live them. And what better way than sitting in front of the room. I heard things come out of my mouth in those meetings that were sometimes astonishing to me. I was being a vessel for wisdom to flow through and gaining that wisdom in the process.
I promise that your life will change forever.
Interested?
Reach out to me: JR@CWG.ORG
I will be offering a conference call on Wednesday, June 19th, at noon pacific time for those interested in learning more. I will show you how easy it is to do. Does it take a year to transform? No. But it will take about a year just to get through Book 1 in a study group and discussion. And you will be a different person in that year.
I was forever transformed. Let me know if you are interested and I will send you the conference call info.
Looking forward to speaking with you soon! – JR
(J.R. Westen, D.D., C.Ad, is a Holistic Health & Spiritual Counselor who has worked and presented side-by-side with Neale Donald Walsch for over a decade. He is passionate about helping individuals move beyond their emotional and spiritual challenges, transforming breakdowns into breakthroughs. His counseling and coaching provides practical wisdom and guidance that can be immediately incorporated to shift one’s experience of life. As is true for most impactful teachers, J.R.’s own struggles and triumphs inspired him to find powerful ways of helping others. Sober since June 1, 1986, J.R.’s passion for helping individuals move through intense life challenges drove him to also specialize in Addiction and Grief Recovery. J.R. currently shares his gift of counseling & coaching with individuals from around the world through the Wellness Center, Simply Vibrant, located on Long Island N.Y. In addition, he operates “Change House” a place where people come to transform. He also works with Escondido Sobering Services and now serves as the Director for the Conversations with God Foundation. He can be contacted at JR@CWG.ORG. )
Before we light up that barbecue and have a “Happy Memorial Day,” let us stop and remember why the day exists.
As a Veteran, I wish to honor and pay my deepest respects to all of my Brothers and Sisters in arms who have given the ultimate sacrifice for freedom. Dying for freedom is perhaps one of the noblest causes one could give their life for, as freedom is the essence of life and who we really are.
Freedom is at the heart of every individual’s right to be and choose the kind of life one wishes to live. God/Life grants everyone freedom, yet to this very day not everyone is free. Fortunately, there are those among us willing to stand for, serve and answer freedom’s call.
Historically, the love of power has led individuals, groups, companies, and countries alike to attempt to control human beings, as there are always those who seemed determined to undermine freedom for personal or financial gain. Oppression is alive and well everywhere in our world today, but have faith, tyranny is always met by a few courageous souls willing to sacrifice it all for the good of the many. They are everywhere, including inside of you.
Though Memorial Day is traditionally set aside to honor those who served and sacrificed in the United States Armed Forces, I also wish to remember and honor all the many spiritual warriors who have paid and continue to pay the ultimate price for freedom as well. There are those courage few who stand for peace, freedom, individual rights and civil liberties, who are willing to give it all so that others may simply live free. They are heroes, one and all.
Freedom cannot exist without personal responsibility. Freedom and personal responsibility must go hand in hand, for the truly free are responsive to other’s needs and desires, not just their own. It is only when the illusion of need turns toward manipulation, coercion and force that peace and freedom become in jeopardy.
Freedom does not trample on another’s rights in order to have its own way; that is the absence of freedom. Being free is a balance between an individual’s rights while still being responsive to other’s rights and desires as well. This is where personal responsibility plays its greatest role.
I honor all who have the courage to stand for their beliefs without the need to force them upon others. They represent themselves, their path and freedom well. These are some of the greatest challenges faced by humanity today. We all have the ability to meet the challenge of integrating the above ideas into our lives, and as we do so, it will change everything for humanity.
Personal freedom and responsibility are an essential part of the “Conversations with God” messages. One of CwG’s core messages is: “Ours is not a better way, ours is merely another way,” and it is offered to humanity as a new possibility for living free and in peace.
Peace becomes immediately possible with respect and tolerance. My Father use to say, “Respect and tolerance would heal the world today!” and he was right. It is not necessary for us to agree about anything, since we always have the ability to extend respect to one another. We can agree to disagree and we can do so respectfully. This takes great courage and insight, knowing that my path may not be your path, nor does it need to be.
When critical mass is reached on any subject, change happens. Our world is waiting, not just for the few, but for the many to stand and be counted. What do you take a stand for? Who do you choose to be in relationship to the events and circumstances going on around you? These are powerful and important questions that life presents you. What you decide about yourself in relationship to these events will determine your experience of them. Who you choose to be is creative.
My favorite question within the Conversations with God books is, “What is your next grandest version of the greatest vision ever you held about who you are?” It takes on a whole new meaning and importance when looked at through the events happening your life.
“Who am I?” or perhaps more importantly, “Who do I now choose to be in relationship to the events in your life?” becomes a powerful creative question with consequences. Choose wisely, as your answer will be creating your experience and reality.
Always remember you are free to choose, no matter what the circumstances or consequences. Your choices represent who you are and now wish to be, and those choices will be creating your real life experiences. Check in to see if your choices are in alignment with who you really are. You will know they are if they set you free.
Many that have come before us have offered grand possibilities through the choices they demonstrated. Many have given it all to be who they really are. It is why we remember their names. They have inspired us, changed us, and forever created possibilities for us that we might never have known if it were not for their courage and willingness to be who they were and act the way they did.
I think of the choice Christ made. I think of the choice Mother Teresa made. I think of the choice Martin Luther King made. I think of the choice Gandhi made. I think of the choice Rosa Parks made. I think of the choice Nelson Mandela made. And so on.
I now think of the choices I can make… and I hope you are, too. Think of those who inspire you to be a grander version of yourself and then BE it. Your demonstration may very well inspire another to become their grander self. Before you know it, we change the world.
It is the courageous few who answer freedom’s call, yet it is possible for the whole of us to do so. It is in memory of all who have given the greatest sacrifice to serve humankind who have my deepest respect and gratitude this day. I will remember you today as I celebrate my freedom and I thank you for the inspiration to be a grander version of me.
May we all be touched, moved and inspired to be grander versions of ourselves this day. I can think of no greater way to honor those who have given it all so that we could simply be.
J.R. Westen, D.D., C.A.d.
(J.R. is a Holistic Health & Spiritual Counselor who has worked and presented side-by-side with Neale Donald Walsch for over a decade. He is passionate about helping individuals move beyond their emotional and spiritual challenges, transforming breakdowns into breakthroughs. His counseling and coaching provides practical wisdom and guidance that can be immediately incorporated to shift one’s experience of life. As is true for most impactful teachers, J.R.’s own struggles and triumphs inspired him to find powerful ways of helping others. Sober since June 1, 1986, J.R.’s passion for helping individuals move through intense life challenges drove him to also specialize in Addiction and Grief Recovery. J.R. currently shares his gift of counseling & coaching with individuals from around the world through the Wellness Center, Simply Vibrant, located on Long Island N.Y. In addition, he operates “Change House” a place where people come to transform. He also works with Escondido Sobering Services and now serves as the Executive Director of the Conversations with God Foundation.)
The Greatest Wealth is Health – Virgil
Having a conversation with God just makes sense when facing any challenge, and health challenges are no different. Given that most of the human race die from preventable chronic illnesses, what if anything might we wish to look at and potentially change in our lives to circumvent us becoming another statistic?
God has much to say on health and healing, and the Conversations with God Foundation is hosting an event to address recovery through holistic health. This conversation will be powerful yet practical, providing a new way to look at yourself and your life that could change everything. It will also look at common sense solutions to everyday living problems, like all good Conversations with God do.
You need not wait until symptoms appear to benefit from recreating yourself and your health anew. For example, were you aware that heart disease manifests itself for 10 to 30 years before its first symptom appears? And unfortunately, the first symptom is a heart attack! The really bad news is that 50 percent do not survive the heart attack to make the changes that would have changed everything.
Waiting for symptoms to appear makes no sense as the example above demonstrates. So what to do about it?
First, here is the top ten list from the CDC of the leading causes of death in 2012:
You will notice that all but 2 are diseases and preventable ones at that!
Heart disease: 597,689
Cancer: 574,743
Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 138,080
Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 129,476
Accidents (unintentional injuries): 120,859
Alzheimer’s disease: 83,494
Diabetes: 69,071
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 50,476
Influenza and Pneumonia: 50,097
Intentional self-harm (suicide): 38,364
Hold on though, this list is not accurate. There is one missing! A new number 3!
Every year tobacco kills more Americans than World War II did — more than AIDS, cocaine, heroin, alcohol, vehicular accidents, homicide and suicide combined!
Approximately 440,000 people die from their own smoking each year, and about 50,000 die from second-hand smoke annually!
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 22,073 people died of alcohol, 12,113 died of AIDS, 43,664 died of car accidents, 38,396 died of drug use — legal and illegal — 18,573 died of murder and 33,300 died of suicide. That brings us to a total of 168,119 deaths, far less than the 440,000 that die from smoking annually.”
While untimely deaths of any kind are sad, those related to lifestyle choices – like smoking, poor eating, and drinking or other drug use – are especially tragic!
“Three decades ago, public outrage ended a popular American automobile model – The Ford Pinto – whose design defects allegedly caused 59 deaths, yet close to 500,000 people a year die from smoking alone. Where is the outrage? Or better yet, the common sense to change our minds about what we are doing to ourselves every day.
Is it just a lack of knowledge? Or could it be that the way we look at certain issues that cause them to remain in place? Could a shift in perspective hold the keys to seeing solutions to problems that have been left unresolved in our life?
A shift in perspective always creates a new point of view, a view that sheds light on things once unseen. And the seeing of this new view presents new solutions that could change everything. (and will change everything if you use them).
Is it time for you to take another look?
Here is a place where making an assumption is actually a good thing. Assuming that you have one or more of the top 10 chronic illnesses developing within you right now is prudent, as the only real defense is prevention. Will you?
On June 23rd, I, along with a host of other holistic healers, will shed light on how to create wellness in the face of any health challenge…or better yet, as a way of life to prevent them.
Sounds like a tall order, but in truth the understanding and solutions are not that complicated. It is often as simple as taking another point of view, another way of looking at the current problem, a new view that would change everything.
While we call it a Recovery Retreat, and many who have signed up are dealing with the chronic illness known as addiction, we will show you how the same or similar protocols for dealing with addictive and compulsive disorders can also create a new path to healing for the other top causes of death on the planet today.
We will take a holistic point of view as we walk down the path of recovery from dis-ease, that is, look from the perspective of the whole being and our connection to all of life. In fact, we will show you why so many remain stuck in illness and how to begin to shift out of that immediately.
When you apply the wisdom shared at this event, you will set in motion the power of your beingness to heal the imbalances causing the problems that create the symptoms of dis-ease, which as you have seen about are currently causing so many to die prematurely.
Will that be you? Or will you answer the call within to recreate yourself anew in the next grandest version of the greatest vision ever you held of who you are.
We have a seat for you. It is waiting and you already know if you are suppose to be here.
CwG on RECOVERY
A Path to Peace
June 23 – 26 Medford Oregon
REGISTER NOW AND SAVE $100
Regular price $395
EARLY BIRD PRICE: $295 if registered before May 26
SPECIAL OFFER
The “CwG Recovery Retreat” ends right before Neale Donald Walsch’s next “CwG Spiritual Renewal retreat” held June 26 – 30. Why not consider participating in both? Come spend a life transforming week with us!
Sign up by May 26th and you can do both retreats for only $492.
LOCATION:
The retreat is held at the Rogue Regency Inn, 2300 Biddle Road, Medford, OR 97504. Hotel accommodations are not included in the price of the retreat registration. There are rooms available at the Rogue Regency at the discounted rate of $89/single or double. For reservations, please call 541-770-1234 or 800-535-5805 and request the “Conversations with God” group rate. Reservations must be made by May 25th, 2013.
The Rogue Regency features a full service restaurant offering vegetarian and non-vegetarian fare, beauty salon, barbershop, massage therapist, indoor heated pool, spa, terry bathrobes and feather pillows in all guest rooms, with optional two-room suites with hot tub and fireplace at a slightly higher price, plus free transportation to and from airport, five minutes away.
http://www.rogueregency.com/our_hotel.php
For more information contact: Will : 1-352-442-2244
or will@cwg.org
Join us in this most important conversation with God! I look forward to seeing you there. To your health! – JR
J.R. Westen, D.D., C.A.d. (J.R. is a Holistic Health & Spiritual Counselor who has worked and presented side-by-side with Neale Donald Walsch for over a decade. He is passionate about helping individuals move beyond their emotional and spiritual challenges, transforming breakdowns into breakthroughs. His counseling and coaching provides practical wisdom and guidance that can be immediately incorporated to shift one’s experience of life. As is true for most impactful teachers, J.R.’s own struggles and triumphs inspired him to find powerful ways of helping others. Sober since June 1, 1986, J.R.’s passion for helping individuals move through intense life challenges drove him to also specialize in Addiction and Grief Recovery. J.R. currently shares his gift of counseling & coaching with individuals from around the world through the Wellness Center, Simply Vibrant, located on Long Island N.Y. In addition, he operates “Change House” a place where people come to transform. He also works with Escondido Sobering Services and now serves as the Executive Director of the Conversations with God Foundation.)
We are all saddened by the recent events in Boston. Our hearts go out to those touched by this tragedy. And who is not touched? Now more than ever is a time to come together in love and light. I hope and pray that we do. I hope and pray that we have learned from other similar kinds of tragedy and that we will respond as Martin Luther King suggested to us not that long ago:
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.”
Now more than ever it is up to us to spread love and light into the world. Now more than ever it is up to us to demonstrate forgiveness, which does not mean to condone behavior, but rather to release resentment and the behavior that it sponsors, like retaliation. Have we not learned from our past? Do we not clearly see where our energy goes it grows? Have we not compounded tragedy with more tragedy, like war? It would be one thing if war solved problems, but it does not and has not. How high must the cost be before we awaken? Having a war with something only more firmly places it there…what you resists, persists.
The messages of God are clear. Now more than ever it is time for messages like Martin Luther King’s to be embraced, rather than fear. Turn off your TV and pick up any spiritual book. Commit this month to reading it. Commit this month to living its messages. Like the 34 Core Concepts that live within the pages of Conversations with God. Or take on the daily messages of The Course in Miracles. Or any other book that inspires you to be who you really are, rather than being sucked into the fear of the world being broadcast constantly through the television airwaves. Switch it off.
Commit to being who you really are, Love and the Light, and spread your loving energy everywhere you go. Not only will your life change, but so will those around you. You heal the world by first healing yourself.
Peace begins with me. It begins by my healing all of the wrong and small thinking (fear), which creates hell within me and on earth. Love creates the opposite.
Please consider that you have a greater impact on the planet than you may believe or understand. Consider that participating in the healing of the limiting voice within you would make a greater difference than you can even imagine. You know the one I speak of. You know the voice that steals and robs your joy, passion, and freedom to be who you really are. The voice that is denying its existence in your mind right now!
You misunderstand the power of love if you believe that healing yourself would do little to heal the world. It begins with you. When you become who you really are, Love, in every area of your life, the power of your life to heal others is a thousandfold more powerful than that of fear. That is, fear ceases to exist.
The same is true for darkness. Flip the switch in a darkened room and light immediately removes the darkness. If we all commit to flipping our switch — that is, we switch our thoughts, words and actions to love — fear disappears. Today! If we all commit to being the words express by Martin Luther King, inspired by the King of Kings, we would heal the world this moment. That is what every master that has walked this earth taught and teaches to this very day. Will today be the day?
You have the power to heal the world and now more than ever, joining with others to awaken us to the truths that are attempting to reveal themselves through our life circumstances and experiences.
We not need reach a bottom in life to have access to that same kind of wisdom that became available to Neale Donald Walsch in his conversation with God. Whatever your circumstances are in life, having a conversation with God just makes sense. Paying attention to what and where your life is leading you and the wisdom that becomes available because of it is always possible to see. That’s what conscious awareness is, the ability to look and see clearly.
We all, no matter what we have been through, have access to that kind of wisdom. The only question is, will we use the wisdom the process reveals? Will we allow the circumstances of our life to consume us or will we turn to that which is always present and allow that divine process to lead us to our own salvation?
When you are caught in a riptide, attempting to swim against the power of the tide will be your demise (what you resist, persists). When you go with the flow of the energy, and use the power to guide you downstream to safe shores, you allow the experience to present wisdom that only an experience like that can bring…don’t swim against the tide, or said in the positive, go with the flow.
Looking back on any experience to see the wisdom the circumstances were attempting to reveal creates the clarity of the need for the experience itself. Only if you fail to use your experience will you find yourself in similar experiences once again. I call them God Reminders. No matter where you are in life, no matter what is happening, this wisdom and presence is available to you.
Will we use that wisdom now? Will we see clearly? Or will we allow ourselves to fall back into that old familiar pattern that resentment sponsors? Will we use fear to deal with our common human experience or will we break free of the addiction and begin to heal ourselves?
If you could be a King today, would you turn it down? Every messenger like MLK has brought the wisdom to us. Every master like Jesus has demonstrated the wisdom to us. Will you be King for a day? Just one day?
My work and the mission and purpose of the Conversations with God Foundation has never been more important. Your energy and commitment to our work is needed now more than ever, for where your energy goes, it grows. Help me spread the messages of Love and Light to the world, and help me heal the world by committing to healing the kind of thinking that robs you of your joy, peace, and freedom. Help me help others be a king for a day. One day would change everything!
Grieve for what has happened. Forgive others and yourself. And commit to a life and a world where peace is the order of the day. Peace begins with me. Choose to be a King for a day and watch what happens. The only thing you have to lose is the negative experience the old thinking sponsors.
Finally, please check out our upcoming Recovery Retreat – “ A Path to Peace” at www.cwg.org – could also be called “King for a Day”!
Until then, may the light and love of God touch you all. – JR
J.R. Westen, D.D., C.A.d
(J.R. is a Holistic Health & Spiritual Counselor who has worked and presented side-by-side with Neale Donald Walsch for over a decade. He is passionate about helping individuals move beyond their emotional and spiritual challenges, transforming breakdowns into breakthroughs. His counseling and coaching provides practical wisdom and guidance that can be immediately incorporated to shift one’s experience of life. As is true for most impactful teachers, J.R.’s own struggles and triumphs inspired him to find powerful ways of helping others. Sober since June 1, 1986, J.R.’s passion for helping individuals move through intense life challenges drove him to also specialize in Addiction and Grief Recovery. J.R. currently shares his gift of counseling & coaching with individuals from around the world through the Wellness Center, Simply Vibrant, located on Long Island N.Y. In addition, he operates “Change House” a place where people come to transform. He also works with Escondido Sobering Services and now serves as the Executive Director of the Conversations with God Foundation.)
First, thanks so much for the wonderful birthday wishes. I was so blessed to have received them from so many! I had a wonderful 50th birthday and I am looking forward to the next 50!
I write to you this week from Medford, Oregon, where I just finished attending and presenting at a CwG Spiritual Renewal Retreat with Neale Donald Walsch. These retreats are perhaps my favorite thing to do in the world, for they allow me to BE some of my most desired states of BEingness.
BEingness, as we discussed in the retreat this last week, has everything to do with creating your life experience. What I notice is that most have the formula backwards. Most attempt to create BEingness through either Doing or Having — if I do this or get that, I will then be the thing called happy. These two will not produce the long-term desired results simply because they are not the right tool for the job.
For example, a couple of my favorite States of Beingness are being helpful and being of service. Retreats are a wonderful way of allowing my Beingness to flow through me in a doingness way, called being a presenter, facilitator, helper, etc.
My recent appointment as the Executive Director of the Conversations with God Foundation has also kept me wonderfully engaged in my favored States of Beingness. I feel fortunate to have been reminded of this wisdom, what the Conversations with God material calls the “Be-Do-Have” paradigm. Choosing a State of Beingness prior to doing or having is the secret to creating a life you really love and desire.
I, like most, had it backwards. That is, I thought I had to Do or Have in order to BE. When I got that I could choose in advance what I wanted to experience, and that the choice itself would create the way to functionally have the experience, I got on with being those States of Being which have always provided me with the greatest joy.
Because I have chosen to BE helpful and to BE of service, life has provided me with so many ways to fulfill those desired states. That is, because I chose to BE first — that is, prior to Doing — life joined in with me and co-created the possibilities to BE-come those States of Being, which, by the way, have been, and continue to be, abundantly provided in the forms of Doing. And because I do so much as a result, I have so much to show for it. Yet neither Doing nor Having can ever create, with any long-term result, the experience of Beingness…that you must choose for yourself!
It truly is as Shakespeare said: “To Be or not To Be”! Remember that whatever your choice, life will comply and create the way to do and have that experience…so choose wisely!
It is so wonderful when you choose to be who you really are, for there you will find — or said better, co-create — your mission, purpose, and passion in life. Because I chose to BE the aspects of Divinity that fulfill my Soul’s desire, being helpful and being of service, the Doingness was and is always abundantly provided. This is the Law of Attraction.
There is great power in knowing and using this. That is, you can make up your life experience in advance, in the moment of now, or even in the past. I have seen many people awaken to the possibilities of recreating their lives anew just by choosing again. Choosing who you want to be is the simplest way to turn everything in life around in your favor. The universe awaits your decision and actions so that it can respond in like kind.
For example, I was literally built for the Doingness “jobs” that I currently have, like being a counselor or working for the Conversations with God Foundation. I could have never lined up the universe so perfectly to get these jobs, not even if I had tried. Being of service and being helpful created the path to this work, not the other way around.
The love that flows through me in my particular form of Doingness provides me with the experience of BE-coming the next grandest version of the greatest vision ever I held of who I am. When I am being of service, there is no greater gift I could experience. AND the way to BE that continues to show up each and every day. That is the power behind intention and choice. Try it for yourself!
If I may be so bold, may I share another form of my Doingness that could benefit your choice in Beingness? If you have never attended a Conversations with God retreat, it is an experience that I hope you gift yourself with soon. Those who take on recreating their lives anew in the next grandest version of the greatest vision ever they held of who they are find great benefit in gathering with others interested in creating similar outcomes. If you have not had the opportunity to share in that kind of joy, please consider joining me at one or both of our next retreats coming in June.
I am particularly excited about the upcoming retreats. Two possibilities exist for you to recreate yourself anew. First we take on Recovery in a practical way in our “CwG on Recovery” retreat on June 23 – June 26. The evening of the 26th, we move right into the “CwG Spiritual Renewal” retreat. It is sure to be a week of transformation for those who attend both.
Most know that one of my specialties is in the healing of addiction. Addiction is the extreme opposite of who you really are. Few in our world escape the impact of it and most are touched by it in some way. Addiction, by definition, is “The continued use of substances or behaviors despite negative consequences.” Whether it’s knowing someone or being one, addiction is one of the top causes of death on the planet today. The good news is it doesn’t have to be that way.
“CwG on Recovery,” also known as “The Path to Peace” retreat, will focus on the healing of Dis-ease, not just recovery from addiction. I, along with a host of others, will cover the body, mind, emotional, and spiritual nature of healing, and of all life, using practical wisdom and tools to create balance.
The program will offer a Body-Mind-Emotion and Spiritual approach to recovery and healing, and consists of practical tools that work. Our time together will provide the information and inspiration to remove the road blocks to Recovery and create a clear path to a life of Happy, Joyous, and Free. I hope you can join me.
For more information about this or any other way I might help you BE-come that next grandest vision, please reach out. And use the Be-Do-Have paradigm consciously from now on and watch it make a world of difference in your life. And don’t believe me…just try it! Until next time, Blessed BE! – JR
(J.R. Westen, D.D., C.A.d, is a Holistic Health & Spiritual Counselor who has worked and presented side-by-side with Neale Donald Walsch for over a decade. He is passionate about helping individuals move beyond their emotional and spiritual challenges, transforming breakdowns into breakthroughs. His counseling and coaching provides practical wisdom and guidance that can be immediately incorporated to shift one’s experience of life.
As is true for most impactful teachers, J.R.’s own struggles and triumphs inspired him to find powerful ways of helping others. Sober since June 1, 1986, J.R.’s passion for helping individuals move through intense life challenges drove him to also specialize in Addiction and Grief Recovery.
J.R. currently shares his gift of counseling & coaching with individuals from around the world through the Wellness Center, Simply Vibrant, located on Long Island N.Y. In addition, he operates “Change House” a place where people come to transform. He also works with Escondido Sobering Services and now serves as the Director for the Conversations with God Foundation. He can be contacted at JR@CWG.ORG. )
Well, I turn 50 today. March 6, 1963, sure doesn’t seem like that long ago! And it certainly doesn’t seem possible that I have spent 50 years in this body. It doesn’t feel 50, it doesn’t think 50, and, wink-wink, I am sure you will all agree that it doesn’t look 50! But the math doesn’t lie, and so today I celebrate my 50th year in this physical form. I have been reflecting a lot these past few months as this day approached. You know, if you read my column, that it has been an especially challenging time for me personally. It has also been a time of great growth and, as hard as this was to see, a time of great change…that is, change that I now see as change for the better.
Change is always for the better, whether or not you can see it in the moment. Once again, that has become true for me. Part of the reason it was hard for me to see was because it was unwanted and unexpected change. But even that, maybe especially because of that, the changes that have happened in my life have created the conditions for me to step into a larger and grander version of myself. While it hasn’t been easy, I spent the last half of last year using all of the tools (and I do mean ALL of them) that I have gathered since I began looking for deeper meaning and understanding of this thing called life. The best news is, they worked! And that has presented me its own Birthday gift.
Having wisdom and using your wisdom are two different experiences. Knowing how to move through challenging times does not guarantee that you will use your knowledge during those challenging times. Knowing vs. using knowledge have two very different outcomes. I am clear that I would not be writing to you this very day without the latter.
So many gifts have been made available to me as a result of all that has happened. I am happy to say I chose to use the same tools I would offer anyone moving through challenging times. Like for example, I didn’t go it alone. Instead, I chose to ask for help. I didn’t reject my feelings, but rather I embraced them even though they were very painful. I didn’t stuff my emotions with any kind of addictive substances or behaviors, but rather expressed them when they came up. I didn’t hide from the truth, but rather faced it and eventually accepted it, because not to do so was more painful. All of these things, and more, were the pieces of wisdom that I have gathered along the way, moving through other tough times, gathering strength and courage to face the next. Perhaps the greatest gift was the knowing that no matter what, I would be all right. Even though I didn’t feel it, I somehow knew that it would all work out. Even though my life as I knew it was falling apart before my eyes, I also knew that I could pick up the pieces that I really wanted to keep and let the others fall away with grace.
Yes, the last many months have been challenging and wonderful all at the same time. I experienced what the book “Happier Than God” offers, that happiness and sadness are not mutually exclusive; that is to say, it is possible to be happy and sad at the same time. Contemplate that for a moment. Consider it for a while. The implications of this statement could change everything for you. Think of a time when you may have experienced being happy to be sad. I am experiencing it right now. I am happy that I am sad about the losses I am moving through. It speaks deeply of who I am and who I am choosing to be. This experience has made it clear to me that I love deeply, and that when the loss of a loved one occurs, the experience I feel is a direct reflection of who I really am…love. And I wouldn’t want it to be any other way.
A new day has dawned in my life, or perhaps it has just dawned on me that all I have been through has prepared me well for the new life now presenting itself. I am not only ready for the new challenges that I face, but I am excited to “Carpe Diem,” or “seize the day”!
I have been presented with so many opportunities that I am grateful for. Gratitude is a powerful part of the recipe for transforming any experience, especially ones we might perceive as negative. All painful experience comes from a point of view or thought that “this shouldn’t be happening right now.” When you argue with reality, reality wins. The opposite possibility is, of course ,“this should be happening right now,” especially because it is. Accepting reality doesn’t mean you give up the ability to respond to it. Who you choose to be in relationship to the events in your life will create your experience and reality of them. So if it sucks right now, look in the mirror and ask, “How is this response working out for me?” If it sucks, would you be willing to change your mind, point of view, or perspective? Would you be willing to consider the possibility that more will be revealed? The revealing will change everything, including how you hold this experience currently. I hope you will, for that willingness and decision to do so will set you on a path to peace.
I am grateful to say that I am at peace today. I am grateful for all that has happened to me in my 50 years here. I look forward to what I will co-create with the universe in the next 50…and beyond. I am excited about the opportunities that have presented themselves to me as the space has become available for these new things to arrive. I understand now that only when there is space available can the new opportunities become realized. I can now accept these new things in my life because I have accepted the reality of what was and have done my part to create a reality of peace, rather than pain, in relationship to all of it.
Pain is mandatory only because it is instructive. Pain shows you the paths in life that do not work for you. Pain is the opposite of truth. It didn’t say “know the truth, it will cause you pain!” No. Truth sets you free! Pain presents the opportunity to see the truth in its opposite form. All I had to do was turn it around and move in the other direction.
There are only two choices in any moment and only two possible outcomes from those two choices. Both are instructive if you only pay attention. One is a path to peace and the other is a path of pain. The choice is always yours which path you take. When you find yourself on a path of pain, turn around, go the opposite direction, make a change in course. Pain is God and Life attempting to show you that you are going the wrong way.
It reminds me of my favorite scene from “Planes Trains and Automobiles” when the two unlikely travelers (John Candy and Steve Martin) end up unknowingly driving down the wrong side of the interstate. A panicked couple on the other side are yelling at the two, “YOU ARE GOING THE WRONG WAY!” which, just before the predictable disaster strikes, our two sarcastically say, “How would they know where we are going?” Don’t ignore your pain! Life sends you the signs if you are going the wrong way, and pain is one of its greatest tools.
I am happy to say I am not in pain on this day, my Birthday, and that I am paying attention to the signs. I hope you are, too! I hope you are feeling the joy that is you today, for if you are alive and reading this, you have much to be happy and grateful for. We all do. If not, consider reaching out. That is why I am here.
Finally, I would like to share one of the best Birthday gifts I have received this week. It came in the form of an opportunity to share my experience, strength, and hope with another. My work is one of my greatest joys in life, and it certainly is what I came here to be and do this time around. Over the years of counseling and coaching, I have received many of these kinds of expressions, which have always far outweighed any amount of financial compensation I might receive. All have touched me deeply, causing me to clearly know that what I am up to is exactly what I was meant to come here and do. I am grateful every day I get to be there for another. And when they find the answers within that change everything, well, there are no words.
Here was a recent note posted on the website built especially for the book “When Everything Changes Change Everything” (www.changingchange.com):
“I reached out to the Changing Change network 2 days ago trying to connect with someone who could help me understand some of the things that I am going through in life right now. I was taking Neale’s advice in When Everything Changes Change Everything to “change my decision to ‘go it alone’”. I sent an email requesting info and just a few hours later I got a reply directly from JR Westen, the lead Coach on the Changing Change site, as well as on Neale Donald Waslch’s site, and the Director of the Conversations with God Foundation. He suggested that I call his office and schedule a free consultation with him to try to find a solution to the challenges I am facing. In his email, he wrote, “I have yet to meet a problem that did not come with a solution and a gift.” So, I scheduled the consult anxious to find out what he would think the “gift” is in my situation.
The next day JR called me at the scheduled time and at first I was a bit apprehensive about telling my story to a complete stranger but before long I realized for sure that he was not going to judge me but was there to listen and help me see some things that I was missing. I am the type who seldom discusses her problems with others but I felt extremely comfortable opening up. I felt like I was talking to a friend. He really gave me some much needed insight and helped me to look at the issues from a healing point of view. In fact, before my conversation with JR, I felt that I was experiencing what could very well have been the worst day of my life; after the conversation, I could not remember that feeling and I was able to have a great day.
I will continue to connect with the Changing Change Network and use the opportunity for coaching whenever I need an impartial nonjudgmental look at my situation to help me see my way through. He understood that I cannot afford to pay the consultation fee right now and is still willing to work with me.
I am writing this post to share my experience so that all of you out there who are going through adversity and want to connect for life coaching or grief counseling or whatever will not be afraid to reach out to the coaches at Changing Change. This is one of the most powerful services offered here, take advantage of it.
Much Love…”
These are the kinds of Birthday gifts I really love and appreciate. This is why I am so excited, especially about what my life is presenting me right now. This day was made possible by the pain of yesterday and the inevitable growth and healing it birthed. I am reborn this day anew and full of gratitude. Not a bad 50th Birthday gift! No, not bad at all…
(J.R. Westen, D.D., C.A.d, is a Holistic Health & Spiritual Counselor who has worked and presented side-by-side with Neale Donald Walsch for over a decade. He is passionate about helping individuals move beyond their emotional and spiritual challenges, transforming breakdowns into breakthroughs. His counseling and coaching provides practical wisdom and guidance that can be immediately incorporated to shift one’s experience of life.
As is true for most impactful teachers, J.R.’s own struggles and triumphs inspired him to find powerful ways of helping others. Sober since June 1, 1986, J.R.’s passion for helping individuals move through intense life challenges drove him to also specialize in Addiction and Grief Recovery.
J.R. currently shares his gift of counseling & coaching with individuals from around the world through the Wellness Center, Simply Vibrant, located on Long Island N.Y. In addition, he operates “Change House” a place where people come to transform. He also works with Escondido Sobering Services and now serves as the Director for the Conversations with God Foundation. He can be contacted at JR@CWG.ORG or JR@theglobalconversation.com, or to book an appointment, write support@simplyvibrant.com.)
Regularly, I receive letters from people facing all sorts of life challenges. I am always inspired by those who have the courage to step outside of their comfort zone and reach out for help. In many cases, it is simply an act of love that drives them to look for solutions. For example, I receive letters from caring parents wanting to help guide their children who have lost their way. I was touched by a recent one and wanted to share our interaction. Of course, I have not included any personal information. These kinds of interactions are, unfortunately, very common, especially for those parents who deal with children that have become addicted. It is addiction that has become far too common and the subject of this week’s column.
Dear JR,
My two youngest children are addicted to opiates. I’ve known for two years about my son, who is in his twenties. Now I have just found out about my daughter’s addiction. She is 19. My son has been in treatment and 12-step programs and was sober, but now is using again. My daughter has been actively using now for about 6 months. She’s asking for help, wants to detox, as she has hopes of getting a job soon. I can’t say that 12 steps and counseling has “worked” for my son, and I can’t imagine how a forced 5-day medically monitored detox could cure my daughter. I’ve been reading Neale Donald Walsch’s books and the CwG Foundation newsletter for several months now. I read last week, “From the Director’s Chair” and see that you do this type of work, addiction counseling. Can you make any suggestions? Thanks – Susan
Hello Susan,
Thank you for your note. I feel the obvious care and concern you have for your children; no doubt with good reason. You may or may not be aware, addiction is the number one killer in America. Unfortunately, each year, more people die from pharmaceutical drugs than illicit drugs…an epidemic that is getting worse, not better. Often, well-intentioned medical professionals are prescribing medication and set into motion or solidify the undetected addict brain. In many cases, all one has to say is something like “I feel depressed,” and out comes the prescription pad. Not that there isn’t a time and place for such intervention and proper uses of medications for the properly diagnosed, but we are quickly becoming a nation of drug addicts.
All drugs have side effects, but for the addict, getting hooked is one of them. Giving drugs as a way to treat drug addicts has never made sense in my world view. There has to be another way. I have looked deeply at this problem, and the solutions offered and available today have little success. The reason is simple: Most do not include a holistic point of view; that is, they do not treat the whole being.
I believe that any treatment of disease, not just the disease of addiction, must have a holistic and natural approach to be successful. One must look for the underlying causes and conditions of addiction and what exists within the world of each addict. Addiction professionals must look not only at the physiology, but also the mental, emotional, and spiritual maladies that will also surely exist.
My goal in working with addicts is to remove all obstacles, real or imagined, that drive the addict to use. This includes all synthetics, as well as any other substances that can cause negative side effects in the human physiology…truly helping each addict to become clean. The chemistry in the addict brain must be managed with the proper intake of substances designed for the health of human beings…only nature provides this. Those who ignore diet for example, miss the terrible impact of things like refined sugars and how sugar negatively impacts brain chemistry and the nervous systems of all humans, not just addicts. What goes in the body affects the whole being, a far too often overlooked but simple remedy for dis-ease.
It is also important to be aware that addiction is a family disease; that is, everyone in the family plays a role in either addiction or recovery. Addiction and addicts themselves can’t survive without two things in place: Either co-dependency or enabling, or both combined, must be present for addiction to survive. Remove these two forms of survival mechanisms of addiction, and you go a long way in creating the space for healing the addiction itself. Said another way, disease can only survive in certain conditions, and the same is true for the disease of addiction.
Another essential ingredient that has to be present in order for recovery to be possible must come from the addict themselves. What is that? It’s the desire to recover. Short of lockdown, a person that lacks the desire to recover will remain stuck in their self-created hell until they become willing to change. However, with desire in place, and a willingness to become honest and follow through on the actions suggested, developing a path to sobriety becomes available. And perhaps more important, it creates the possibility of a life filled with purpose, passion, and joy, which can only be attained as a result of returning to the human being’s natural and spiritual path. This is the holistic point of view. This is a path that would benefit any human that walked it, not just those in recovery. This awakening can be seen as the gift of addiction itself; that is, the Soul uses challenges like addiction to awaken us to who we really are. That is what was true for me. Addiction was my greatest gift, for it led me here.
As important as it is to want to help your children, you must also have a support structure in place for yourself. At the end of the day, each human has the freedom and power to choose their path. All we can do is offer a way. It is attraction rather than promotion, so we must lead by demonstration. Making available a path to sobriety and a life of happy, joyous and free is what I do, first by living it. Whether or not one chooses that path is up to them.
I will tell you I have great faith in each Soul knowing exactly the right and most expedient path for their awakening. Yet, some must experience darkness before they can know themselves as the light. As CwG reminds us, our job is to be the light, to be the living demonstration of what is possible, and trust that, just as the ship lost in the storm finds its path back to port through the beacon of the forever shining lighthouse, so too will each Soul find its way home. Each Soul finds the right and perfect path, in the right and perfect time. Love and truth sets us free to be, do, and have whatever we choose as humans, but it doesn’t mean that we don’t benefit from the help of others. I was 23 when I got sober, and many earth angels have helped me along my path. I have been returning the favor ever since. I am here to help any way I can.
I see and feel your light, Susan. I am happy to join mine with yours to see if together we can’t help your children find another way. I would be happy to discuss your case with you, offer any suggestions, and look to see if any of our programs could help your situation.
Until then, I hold you and your family in my thoughts – JR
As I have stated in other columns, addiction is the number one killer in the US. Despite that statistics list heart disease, the larger question rarely addressed is, what actually causes heart disease? What is behind this completely preventable disease? Of course, the answer is addiction to substances that damage the heart. Heart disease and other related health issues that make the top 10 list never take into account the underlying preventable causes. This is where you will find addiction rearing its ugly head and why I say, without a shadow of doubt, that addiction IS the actual number one cause of death.
If you or someone you know is struggling with addiction, have them reach out. The Global Conversation offers an entire section dedicated to addiction and recovery, written by friend and colleague Kevin McCormack. Kevin and I regularly work together and have committed our life to recovery and the healing of addiction.
Soon the Conversations with God Foundation will be sponsoring retreats and webinars that will focus on recovery. You can learn more about that by signing up for their free newsletter here:
Conversations with God Foundation Newsletter
Until then, may you find the path to healing and health! – JR
(J.R. Westen, D.D. is a Holistic Health & Spiritual Counselor who has worked and presented side-by-side with Neale Donald Walsch for over a decade. He is passionate about helping individuals move beyond their emotional and spiritual challenges, transforming breakdowns into breakthroughs. His counseling and coaching provides practical wisdom and guidance that can be immediately incorporated to shift one’s experience of life.
As is true for most impactful teachers, J.R.’s own struggles and triumphs inspired him to find powerful ways of helping others. Sober since June 1, 1986, J.R.’s passion for helping individuals move through intense life challenges drove him to also specialize in Addiction and Grief Recovery.
J.R. currently shares his gift of counseling & coaching with individuals from around the world through the Wellness Center, Simply Vibrant, located on Long Island N.Y. In addition, he operates “Change House” a place where people come to transform. He also works with Escondido Sobering Services and now serves as the Director for the Conversations with God Foundation. He can be contacted at JR@CWG.ORG or JR@theglobalconversation.com, or to book an appointment, write support@simplyvibrant.com.)
Recently, I received a phone call from a friend who desired a safe space to share an experience of being talked at, rather than talked to. She was visiting with a family member, catching up on life, and discussing a variety of topics when an opinion-pusher invited themselves into their conversation to set them both straight about everything they were wrong about. The negative outcome my friend felt from the exchange was not so much the opinions themselves but rather the need of the other person to be right about their point of view, rather than being willing to discuss their differing ideas.
We all have a point of view, an idea of how things should be, and a right to express those ideas. Yet how we choose to communicate our intention behind what we are saying goes a long way to having our expressions received. I have observed in the world today that most feel an overwhelming need to share their opinions, whether they are helpful or not. In my friend’s case, no thought was given to how the uninvited communication would land or whether or not they would even be interested in discussing differing points of view at the time. Had the Buttinski asked to join the conversation, instead of just barfing opinion all over them, a much different outcome could have been created.
For me, real communication has nothing to do with being right; it has to do with being heard. Being right turns communication into debate or, worse, argument. Debate can be healthy, for often that is how we learn and grow. Debate causes us to think about issues, where we stand, and why we believe what we do. Being right is where communication ends and righteousness begins. At least in debate one listens to the other point of view before offering a counterpoint or a positional response. Real communication, however, has zero need to be right about its point of view. Healthy communication allows all points of view to be heard and then the freedom for the participants to agree or disagree without consequence.
For example, over the years of working with the Conversations with God Foundation, I have received some rather confrontational communications around religious belief. Because I was listed on the website as “Reverend JR,” I would sometimes receive mail from people attempting to “save my lost soul.” It is held by some that CwG is of the “devil” and those of us who find value in it would soon see the error of our ways in hell. According to a few of my concerned “soul savers,” I, as a reverend, would find myself in a “special place of hell” for leading my flock away from the one true savior.
I used to respond to these letters with the thought that surely we could discuss our ideas about God in a way that could be productive and beneficial for both of us but that the need to be right thing far too often got in the way. I quickly realized that with most of these letters, the writers were not interested in having a dialogue, but rather a monologue. There is no conversation in a monologue and no opportunity to grow if you think you already have all the answers. My interest in finding common ground and expanding our mutual understanding of God was, in the end, lost to this “need to be right” obsession.
Being a lifelong student, I love to converse with people from all over the world, from different backgrounds, religions, and all points of view. I learn so much about myself, about life, and about God from these conversations. I decided long ago that I would honor all faiths and all points of view and let go of the need to be right about anything, especially for someone else. Instead, I would trust that each person could and would decide what works for them and that there is great value in discussing ideas and listening to alternate points of view. It is amazing what a conversation can create.
It is from this place that the beginning of conversations that could change the world reside. The necessary ingredients of these conversations begins with respect and tolerance. My Father use to say that respect and tolerance would heal the world. Think about it. What would happen tomorrow if we all awoke without the need to be right?
What if no one felt the need to be right about anything they currently held as a truth? What if each of us felt secure enough within to look at our own beliefs and even became willing to challenge those beliefs by listening to alternate points of view? What if we were willing to take a fresh look at all of our deeply held ideas to see if more could be revealed through inquiry?
For example, is humanity convinced that God, if there is a God, has said all there is to say about life? If so, why hasn’t religion solved the major challenges that face humanity by now? Why are the greatest numbers of us still suffering? Perhaps there is more to be communicated about God and about life. Perhaps there is more to know, the knowing of which would change everything.
It takes great courage and strength to stand in the place of “I am willing to be wrong about that.” Freedom lives on the other side of this equation. For if you lack the need to be right, nothing needs to happen for you to be at peace.
You see, if the above statement was true for you, your happiness meter would go off the chart. It would also be the end of many of the circumstances and conditions that do not work in our world today. We are the world’s circumstances in motion. What we choose every day affects the whole of us.
Could we all benefit from letting go of the need be right? You bet. The need to be right seems to me to be one of our greatest addictions and one of the reasons we are evolving so slowly.
When I look out upon the landscape of humanity, whether historically or now, the need to be right has been the cause of so much pain, tragedy, and heartache. It isn’t just God or religion. Look at every system in the world today. The need to be right has shut down real communication in favor of positions and arguments that continue to lead to things like war.
The media is responsible for some of it, for sure, with Facebook, reality TV, and opinion-driven product blasting points-of-view content at you 24/7. But we have to take responsibility for our participation in it. Energy grows where energy goes. Stop participating in these systems and watch how quickly they will change.
The tool required to let go of the need to be right is critical thinking. Critical thinking is not a skill taught in school; it is developed by people who become willing to step back and consider differing points of view, by those willing to engage in real conversation, inquiry, and dialogue. This is the missing link in our human condition right now. This is the thing that could change everything.
Critical thinking develops this kind of communication that could and would change the world. What is required is the ability to see that what works for you may not work for another. Are you willing to consider the possibility that your way may not be THE WAY but, rather, simply another way? The statement from Conversations with God applies here perfectly: “Ours is not a better way, ours is merely another way.”
This kind of thinking applied, this kind of communication expressed, this kind of willingness to be open to new possibilities and new thoughts will be used by the people who do change the world. Why not let that be you?
PS: I’m willing to be wrong about all of it!
(J.R. Westen, D.D. is a Holistic Health & Spiritual Counselor who has worked and presented side-by-side with Neale Donald Walsch for over a decade. He is passionate about helping individuals move beyond their emotional and spiritual challenges, transforming breakdowns into breakthroughs. His counseling and coaching provides practical wisdom and guidance that can be immediately incorporated to shift one’s experience of life.
As is true for most impactful teachers, J.R.’s own struggles and triumphs inspired him to find powerful ways of helping others. Sober since June 1, 1986, J.R.’s passion for helping individuals move through intense life challenges drove him to also specialize in Addiction and Grief Recovery.
J.R. currently shares his gift of counseling & coaching with individuals from around the world through the Wellness Center, Simply Vibrant, located on Long Island N.Y. In addition, he operates “Change House” a place where people come to transform. He also works with Escondido Sobering Services and now serves as the Director for the Conversations with God Foundation. He can be contacted at JR@CWG.ORG or JR@theglobalconversation.com, or to book an appointment, write support@simplyvibrant.com.)
Being in the midst of change anyway, we have decided to shift the title of this column from “Health and Wellness” to “Holistic Living.” Our wonderful editor, Lisa McCormack, asked me the other day if it didn’t seem to be a more appropriate title given what I am up to in the world. You see, I have a passion for helping people make simple changes to create healthier, happier lives. It is my steadfast belief, and on-the-ground experience, that there must be a holistic approach taken if positive lasting change is to occur. Whatever the challenges we may face, whether in our personal lives, or in our collective experience, we must address and shift at the level of the whole being when a symptom of dis-ease appears.
Dis-ease is nature’s way of saying that something you are doing isn’t working. While sometimes painful, it isn’t personal. It’s merely a sign that shows up to help guide us to a greater understanding of how things work naturally. If ignored, the symptoms get worse; and if ignored long enough, the system fails. If addressed in time, the system returns to its functionality, which is always about a return to balance. Balance is the key in all systems in nature, including the health of our body. When one part of a system is out of balance, it affects the whole, which is why a Holistic approach to living and healing any out of balance system is always the most effective way of returning it, and us, to our natural state…which is well-being itself.
When you realize the interconnectedness of it all, including all of us, you realize how important it is to make conscious decisions at every level in our lives…every choice made affects the whole. For example, the idea expressed in Conversations with God that “We Are All One” changed the way I viewed my world and the choices I now make in life. The realization that my choices impacted not just my life, but the lives of everyone, changed everything for me and the way I operate in the world. Conscious living was born within me as a result of the consequences of unconscious living. This is the process of life. Life informs itself through the living of life itself. I awaken to what doesn’t work and then become aware of other possibilities that might. Sometimes also called growing up, it’s that moment in a human being’s life when they realize, it just isn’t all about me. This is where the conversation of conscious living begins to challenge not only how we live, but how we live in the world as well.
With life comes freedom, with freedom comes responsibility, and responsibility literally means our ability to choose how we respond to life..the consequences of those choices create our living reality. We are free to make any choice available to us. But are we free to have our choices impact others negatively?
Smoking is a good example of this. There are consequences of smoking to the smoker and there are consequences to the others exposed to a smoker. These shared consequences have differing levels of responsibility attached to them. The smoker makes their choice, which they are free to do, but what about the effect their behavior has on others? Especially others that cannot choose their exposure to the smoke…like children.
In truth, smoking works for no one, unless ones desired outcome is slow death and diseases like cancer and COPD. It works perfectly for that. Forgive the sarcasm, but do we really need further evidence of this truth? Yet people continue to choose to smoke while they and others die from it everyday. These are the consequences of smoking. Do so at your own peril, but consider your actions on others as well. I was a smoker, so I am not throwing stones here. But if I were, they would be to awaken you before the metaphorical boulder careening down the mountainside directly at you wipes you clean off the planet. Read last week’s column for a reminder of just how delicate and brief life can be.
Conscious living, then, comes out of the consequences experienced out of unconscious living, except when it doesn’t. That is, we can choose to ignore our experience and continue behaving in ways we know do not serve us. Part of the definition of Addiction is “continued use of a substance or behavior in spite of negative consequences.” Still, every act is informative, even if it ends your physical form, for do we not learn from our collective behavior and evolve? Slower than I would like to see, but nonetheless, we do evolve, we do grow, we are awakening to the human potential through the process of living something other than our highest possibility at any given time. Does it have to be that way? Yes and no…you get to choose. That is the great secret.
It is my mission to help myself and others experience this greater possibility of beingness that drives me in all areas of my work. With my new position in the Conversations with God Foundation and our common mission which comes from the words God expressed to Neale Donald Walsch through his writings of the CwG material, “Be the next grandest version of the greatest vision ever you held about who you are.” These words drive me forward to find ways to help awaken what my Father called “the sleeping giant within.” Also known as “Christ Consciousness” and by other names as well, the spark of potential lives within us all, waiting to be tapped, yearning to be expressed. It is this very spark that is the key to ending suffering and the pain associated with the choices that do not serve us, other than to awaken us to our true potential and our truth.
The question for me is always how to make that practical so the wisdom within us can be realized and made manifest in the lives of those we have the great fortune to serve. The further mission of the CwG Foundation is “to give people back to themselves.” We also put it this way: “To remind people to remember who they really are.” When you remember who you really are, what your true nature and potential is, the questions become simple. Who will I choose to BE today? What will I choose to BEcome next? It truly is “To Be or Not to Be.” It really is that simple. That is why you are called Human BEing!
SO, what say you? We all benefit when we engage in the conversation about what works and what doesn’t work. We learn from each other and we learn from our own experience. We really benefit when we do so with respect and tolerance for all paths. Then and only then are we really communicating. This is part of the greater purpose of The Global Conversation as well, the realization that we are all connected and that our behavior has a global impact, sometimes also called “The Butterfly Effect.” Holistic living, then, beneficially impacts us all when we choose to create at every level of beingness. What is it in your life right now that appears to stand in the way of you being your next grandest version of the greatest vision ever you held of who you are? Are you caring for your body, mind, emotions and nurturing your spirit? If not, what could cause you to make a change? What, if anything, can I or the Foundation do to support you in creating a better life? This is one of the many forums for you to express yourself, but you are also welcome to contact us in person, too. CwG has a wonderful coaching staff of dedicated people who have addressed some of life’s greatest challenges using the wisdom of CwG to help. So don’t needlessly suffer. Reach out. Remember the words and first rule from “When Everything Changes Change Everything”: Never go it alone!
I may or may not be able to help you, but you will feel heard. Sometimes that is all that is required. We hear our own wisdom in the confronting of our story, in the seeking of our solutions to the challenges we face. Like overcoming smoking, or any other addiction that you may have struggled with in the past. If you are ready to finally become free, we can help. Please also use this forum to share your experience on how these and other spiritual messages have sponsored change for the better in your life. How do you use the wisdom within to transform your life? Sharing your experience helps everyone and is a great reminder to yourself of what a wonderful gift your life is. Life is a gift. And though sometimes it can be difficult, together we can make a difference, make a change for the better, make this world a better place. Yes, I just said it. And as sappy as it may sound, I really mean it. Don’t take my word for it, though. Try it out for yourself.
You have the wisdom of the ages within; life’s challenges will expose this. What better opportunity is there to know this than to be a light unto the darkness. Darkness is, therefore, a gift. What will you choose, to be the light or to succumb to the darkness? The good news is even if you find yourself stuck in the dark, you can’t live in there forever, for it is simply not who you are. And sooner or later, you will be drawn back into the light. An idea beautifully expressed in a wonderful children’s book called: “The Little Soul in the Sun” written by Neale and available for sale at the Foundation. (Like how I snuck a commercial in here!) Whether or not it feels that way right now, know truth will once again find you and set you free. Having just been through a dark and painful period, I understand this better than ever. I have great compassion for the human process and I am grateful to those who helped me once again find the light. We call them Angels and we are surrounded by them. I am grateful for mine.
When you remember who you really are, also remember you have a gift to give. Then share it freely. There is no better way than to BE it. As Gandhi said: “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”
Finally, thank you to all who sent me notes of well wishes around the loss we experienced of our beloved Patty Hammett and for my new position at the CwG Foundation. Your support is so greatly appreciated! I welcome anyone to reach out for any reason. Please know we are here to serve you. Until then, Blessed Be – JR
(J.R. Westen, D.D. is a Holistic Health & Spiritual Counselor who has worked and presented side-by-side with Neale Donald Walsch for over a decade. He is passionate about helping individuals move beyond their emotional and spiritual challenges, transforming breakdowns into breakthroughs. His counseling and coaching provides practical wisdom and guidance that can be immediately incorporated to shift one’s experience of life. As is true for most impactful teachers, J.R.’s own struggles and triumphs inspired him to find powerful ways of helping others. Sober since June 1, 1986, J.R.’s passion for helping individuals move through intense life challenges drove him to also specialize in Addiction and Grief Recovery. J.R. currently shares his gift of counseling & coaching with individuals from around the world through the Wellness Center, Simply Vibrant, located on Long Island N.Y. In addition, he operates “Change House” a place where people come to transform, he also works with Escondido Sobering Services and now serves as the Administrator and Program Director for the Conversations with God Foundation. He can be contacted at JR@CWG.ORG or JR@theglobalconversation.com, or to book an appointment, write support@simplyvibrant.com.)
