The Global Conversation

Tag: Oneness

  • It’s All In the Context

    I was recently in a discussion with someone about a well-known quasi-religious figure who is head of one of the  largest right wing organizations in the US. This individual believes in a doctrine called “second grace”, which holds that someone who has undergone a second “moment of grace” from God is incapable of sinning ever again. Even if s/he were to willingly choose to sin, s/he could not do it because of “second grace”. In the hands of this particular individual, that is a frightening idea because in his mind, NOTHING he does is a sin! EVERYTHING he does, no matter how he accomplishes it, must be God’s will because he is unable to do anything that is contrary to God’s will due to having undergone this moment of “second grace”.

    The other person in this discussion had never heard of the doctrine of “second grace” and as I was explaining it to her, I was struck by the fact that the CwG material also teaches us that nothing we do is contrary to God’s will. However, the difference in the teachings is the context in which they’re taught: the doctrine of “second grace” is taught from the context of a separation from God and the CwG material is taught from the context of Oneness with God. And it is this difference that makes all the difference in how these doctrines operate in the “real world”.

    With the belief that we are all One with God comes the realization that we are also One with each other and that what we do to others, we are also doing to ourselves and therefore we seek to treat others with the same Love and Respect and Dignity that we want from others.

    With the belief that we are separate from God, there is the “need” to “reunite” with God, which naturally infers that there is a “right” way to do so and a “wrong” way to do so. The wrong ways are called “sin”. But the soul recognizes that we are NOT separate even if the mind says we are, so to resolve this internal conflict, the mind creates a belief that allows us to recognize that we cannot violate God’s will, although the belief in separateness says that only those who have already done enough things the “right” way can reach this point.

    This got me thinking about other doctrines in the teachings of organized religion that “mirror” the things God reminds us of in the CwG material. I realized that there are a lot more teachings in the context of organized religion that I absolutely disagree with but in the context of our Oneness with God and with each other, make perfect sense. However, like the doctrine of “second grace”, these religious teachings are “warped” by the fears instilled in us by the belief of separateness.

    Take, for example, the belief that is one of the cornerstones of the Christian faith: that Jesus came to save us and to “pay the price” for our sins with his death on the cross. In the CwG material, God reminds us that there is nothing from which we need to be saved because nothing we do lessens God’s Love for us. During his life, Jesus told us many times of our oneness with God and with each other. However, he also knew that there would be those who would hear the underlying truth of his message and those who would not.  For those who could not set aside their fear caused by the belief of separateness, Jesus’ death provided them with the hope they needed to continue to believe that they would one day be “reunited” with God. They were therefore “saved” from our fear of death because Jesus was willing to “pay” with his physical life, which also demonstrated to those who could understand that death is an illusion.

    So the next time you hear someone talking about a belief they hold dear that you simply cannot accept, ask yourself what the belief would be like in the context of the Oneness with God versus the separateness of organized religion. You will find that every religious belief that may not make sense to you makes perfect sense in the context of Oneness.

     

  • There’s No Changing Their Minds

    I have an online friend I met probably 15 years ago on a site that offered self-designated “experts” an opportunity to answer questions posted by readers. I signed up as an “expert” in more than 20 categories ranging from spirituality to divorce to GLBT relationships to death and dying. (The site offered hundreds of categories on everything from art to motorcycle repair to accounting. If you had a question, there was most likely a category for it to be asked.) Over the course of approximately 2 1/2 years while this site was in existence, this one questioner and I developed an online friendship that continued after the site closed down and we still interact on at least a weekly basis through other online venues. To say that this friend and I have opposite views on how to solve many of the issues challenging the world today would be an understatement.

    To my friend, everything is a competition with a clear winner and a clear loser. And if you’re not the winner, you’re not trying hard enough. If you are the winner and you won “fair and square” (although what’s “fair and square” is a matter of debate), then you deserve everything you “won” and you’re under no obligation to share it with anyone else, no matter how badly someone else may need it. “Winners” are hard-working, reliable, dependable, employed, self-reliant; “losers” are unemployed, those on welfare or other public assistance (which indicates they are lazy, not resourceful (“where there’s a will there’s a way!”), slackers and freeloaders), needy and unreliable (if you can’t even support yourself, how can others (like family) rely on you to support them?). To my friend, there is this black and white world where you are one or the other: there is no middle ground. There are no other options. There is no compromise. If it’s mine, it’s mine and you have no right to try to take it from me or even to ask me to give it to you. If I choose to give it to you, then I am proving I am indeed a winner because I am willing to help the losers.

    For 15 years, this friend and I have been debating social issues. We have, at the very least, demonstrated that it is possible for those on the polar opposite sides to have a civilized discussion about the issues, even if we never reach any sort of agreement on how to resolve those issues.  But neither of us has had the least bit of success in “changing” the other’s mind about how to resolve the plethora of problems facing humanity today. Then one day I had an “Aha!” moment wherein  I realized that while our solutions may be totally opposite, our goals are the same. We both want a world in which each individual is able to live according to the beliefs s/he holds dear without undue interference from the “outside” world.

    In the CwG material, God tells us that all the problems in the world stem from the belief that we are separate from God and from each other. From this belief of separation, all the other illusions spring forth: that God requires something of us, that there is not enough for everyone and therefore we must compete with each other, even justifying killing each other to get what we need, that some of us are better than others because we are following the “right” path according to “God’s word”, etc. God also says that no matter what policies we change, no matter how we do things differently, nothing in our world is going to become what we say we want until we change one very basic thing: our beliefs about God and how we “relate” to God.

    So after 15 years, I am done debating policy and procedure with my friend. It’s pointless because we humans, when challenged about the things we believe, tend to “dig in” and believe even harder, especially when someone points to factual evidence that counters what we believe. (There is actually a name for this: it’s called the “backfire effect”.) The more I try to show my friend that the way s/he wants to do things, the way that we’ve been doing it since the mid-80’s, is not working, the more s/he believes that the way we’ve been doing it just hasn’t been given a long enough chance to work!

    But that doesn’t mean I’m giving up. Not at all. Just a change in strategies. The focus has to be on our Oneness. Those seeds have to be planted over and over and over again. Every response to those who still live in the fear that is virtually automatically generated by a “separatist” philosophy will contain the seeds of Oneness. Those seeds are plenty and are found throughout most sacred texts buried among the atrocities they ascribe to the Divine. We must dig them up from this fearful earth they have been planted in for the last two millenia and replant them, allowing them to bloom when planted in the field of Love. We may  not be able to change their minds, but we may be able “change” their hearts.

  • Jumping on the Bandwagon

    Social media is changing so much about the human condition. Because it allows us to interact with people all over the world almost instantaneously, it almost seems as if space and time really don’t exist! It allows us to share our success and our “blunders”, our joy and our sorrow, our passions and our peeves, our humor and our outrage. It allows for the amazing occurrence of a child’s wish to be a superhero to come true and warm hearts all over the world. It helps lost pets and lost people come home safely. It provides words of encouragement to those who are injured or ill from places we may never get a chance to visit. As with all new technologies, however,  that same lack of space and time can also be abused.

    I’m going to highlight tw0 recent incidents. One was recently addressed in this column by Therese Wilson. It involved a graphic that went viral around Facebook concerning stores that were going to be open on Thanksgiving.  Those displaying the graphic pledged not to shop on Thanksgiving. The not-so-subtle message of the graphic was that these stores were “anti-American” and “anti-family” and were holiday grinches for forcing people to be away from their families on Thanksgiving Day. Some of the comments suggested that these stores be boycotted throughout the holiday season to “teach them a lesson”.

    As Therese pointed out, many people need to work on holidays because of the need for money. She also noted that many families don’t want to be together on Thanksgiving for many different reasons. I personally question the appropriateness of celebrating an event that was the start of the biggest genocide in the history of humanity: the slaughter of the Native American tribes that were living here when the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock. I also work in EMS and, for us (as well as many other essential services providers), there are no holidays or weekends. I worked on Thanksgiving and I’ll probably be working on Christmas and New Year’s Eve as well. But in reading the comments that many posted to this graphic, I was taken aback by the intense anger and sometimes hatred that was oozing out of the words on my computer screen.

    As soon as the graphic appeared, people began jumping on the bandwagon and sharing it, reposting it and leaving comments about it. Hardly anyone stopped to think about the other side of the story: the people who wanted/needed to work, the people who had no family to spend the holiday with, the people for whom the holiday had a less than pleasant association (which in addition to those who feel as I do about the holiday included those who had lost a loved one near Thanksgiving or who had experienced some other traumatic or life-altering news around the holiday). I, for one, was thankful that there was a gas station open that day because we needed fuel for the ambulance and food for the crew.

    Believe me, I am under no illusion that the corporate bigwigs did this for the benefit of the workers. Big business, for the most part, doesn’t seem to care about the workers. But their motivation for staying open on Thanksgiving is irrelevant. The fact of the matter is that there are already many businesses that are open 24/7/365, either out of necessity or policy. There have always been people who have had to work on Thanksgiving (or any other holiday) and many people enjoy or want the extra pay. It is not for us to judge another’s actions! Quite frankly, if my only choices were to go shopping on Thanksgiving or sit around and watch football, I’d go shopping. (Thankfully, those were not my only choices!)

    The next incident involved a gay waitress, a former Marine,  who posted a photo of the receipt allegedly given to her by a family that had a note written on it expressing their inability to tip her due to her “lifestyle”. Within 24 hours, the picture had been reposted thousands of times and people from all over the world began sending money to this waitress to make up for the tip she was allegedly denied. Comments slamming the family and Christianity for their views on homosexuality were rampant and many of them were very ugly. The waitress promised to give a portion of the money she received to the Wounded Warrior Project and she was hailed by many as a real heroine.

    Apparently, however, the whole thing is a hoax. Reports now say that the charity has no record of receiving any donation from the waitress. The military says the woman was dishonorably discharged for not showing up for drills. Former co-workers are saying the woman has a history of lying. To the best of my knowledge, the woman hasn’t made any comment about the allegations of a hoax.

    Once again, people jumped on the bandwagon and began saying some very ugly and hateful things about a family they didn’t know. A family who was able to prove that they had, in fact, tipped the woman by providing a copy of their credit card bill and a photo of the check without the written note on it.  But there were still people who suggested that the family had forged the credit card bill and photo. Yet the family was never named in the story! So no one knew who they were. Why would they risk exposing themselves to the hatred that was being aimed at them to provide a forged copy of a credit card statement or photo? They chose to remain anonymous but they said they came forward to set the record straight. The woman has been suspended from her job pending an investigation and may even face criminal charges if it was, in fact, a hoax.

    These are just a few examples in a rising phenomenon. Sometimes the stories are warnings to motorists not to stop if you get eggs thrown on your windshield because it’s the latest way robbers are getting people to stop their cars. Almost every one of these is a hoax but they get reposted over and over. (I’d say every one but I’m sure I haven’t seen every one, but of all the ones I’ve seen, they have all been hoaxes.) Sometimes it’s a story about a parent whose child is found wondering in the streets and the parent is lambasted online as being a horrible human being for not noticing their child was not in the house. (Having fallen asleep while nursing my youngest son and wakening to find my oldest son (who was still only 3 1/2 apparently missing from the house (he was actually under a pile of blankets in the middle of the bed, but I didn’t know it at the time I went running around outside looking for him), I know that it’s possible even among caring and conscientious parents!) Sometimes it’s a story about an apparent crime and the alleged perpetrator is tried, convicted and sentenced by the jury of social media users. So much for innocent until proven guilty!

    The anonymity of the internet aids in this phenomenon of jumping on the bandwagon. We’re usually not held responsible for our words that are printed on a computer screen because many times, the “person” is just someone that’s been made up to give voice to those things we’re unwilling to allow others to know we feel or think or believe. We allow our “alter-ego” to post all the hateful and angry things that our family and friends would be shocked to hear coming out of our mouths. It’s also much easier to post a comment that gets lost among the thousands of comments on a page of someone you  don’t know, have never met and probably will never meet.  It can almost seem therapeutic to allow yourself to vent in this apparently harmless manner.

    But is it really harmless? The incidences of cyber-bullying are on the rise. There have already been high profile cases of mostly teens who have committed suicide after being bullied online.

    Our thoughts, expressed as words on the screen, are still energy that is being put out into the universe. And what we put out comes back to us. We are still judging the actions of others. Still judging their beliefs. Still judging their thoughts. And as you treat another, so shall you be treated because we are all One! When you berate another, you berate yourself. When you condemn another, you condemn yourself. When you belittle another, you belittle yourself.

    Oneness is more than just a new thought concept: it is an ultimate reality. And when we experience our words coming home to roost in our own lives, we will finally understand.

  • In Their Shoes

    I believe that one of the secrets to a more loving world is empathy. Being able, even for just a second, to put yourself in another’s shoes in even the smallest way will enhance our feeling of Oneness while decreasing the amount of judgment we all encounter in our daily lives. It will increase our level of acceptance and tolerance and diminish the sense of superiority that allows us to justify the harmful way that we treat others at times.

    Some kinds of empathy are easier to get in touch with than others. When someone’s family member or beloved pet transitions to the “spirit world”, most of us can empathize with the sense of lose that is felt. We have no problem empathizing with those who experience great joy and happiness at the birth of a child or the promotion they’ve been waiting for or the pride that swells in their heart seeing their child perform in the kindergarten play as the third hippopotamus or score that first goal in a football or soccer game.

    But there are other kinds of empathy we seek to avoid, sometimes consciously, sometimes unconsciously. Empathy for things we have deemed “evil” or “wrong” or “bad” is often not something we are consciously willing to allow ourselves to feel. We seem to think that if we can empathize with a murderer or a rapist or an abuser or a thief that part of us becomes a murderer, rapist, abuser or thief. This is not a comfortable feeling for us: we want to think of ourselves as “better” than that, as more spiritually aware, as more “saintly” or more “pure” or simply as a decent human being. We don’t want to admit that we are the same as, that we are One with, those whose faces are plastered on the evening news or are put into jail or even executed for their actions.

    Throughout the Conversations with God material, God says that man, in relationship to God, is just as a drop of ocean water is to the ocean: the drop of water is the same as the ocean, differing only in degree. And the same is true of empathy: we have all felt the same feelings that motivate murderers, rapists, abusers and thieves: we just have not felt them to the same degree, therefore the resulting behaviors are different. I realize there are other factors governing behavior, including beliefs, past experiences (whether remembered or not), level of maturity (emotional and spiritual), etc.  This is not an attempt to make a direct and exclusive cause and effect connection between feelings and actions. It’s an attempt to demonstrate that we are all more alike than most of us want to admit.

    Have you ever gotten so frustrated with your child that you said something like “You are so stupid sometimes!” or “Stop being a spoiled brat!” or reached out and slapped their hand or their backside? Then you’ve done and felt, in a small way, the same thing a child abuser does and feels.

    Have you ever gotten into an argument with your spouse/partner and started scream at them “I hate you! You are such as idiot!” or thrown something across the room, not even in their direction or simply not spoken to them for days at a time because you were so angry? You’ve behaved, to a lesser degree, just like an abusive partner in a domestic violence situation.

    Have you ever been driving down the street and flipped off a driver who cut you off or laid on your horn at someone who didn’t go as soon as the light was green or got as close to someone’s back bumper as you could without hitting them because they did something to anger you? You’ve acted, in a small way, like someone with road rage.

    Have you ever found a $10 bill lying on the ground in the grocery store and just picked it up and put it in your pocket? Or, knowing you were out of bandaids at home, and you’re sitting in an exam room waiting to be seen by a doctor, you open a cabinet and pocket a dozen bandaids? Or you’re walking though a grocery store and you’re so hungry your stomach is growling so you pop a few grapes in your mouth or a piece of candy from the bulk foods bins? Have you ever called in sick when you weren’t and gotten paid for it? Ever called a friend to punch you in on time cause you were running late or, if you still fill in time sheets, ever pad your time sheet with 15 minutes here and there? Have you ever surfed the internet while at work even though your company policy doesn’t allow it? You have, in a small way, acted just like a thief.

    Have you ever bought a mouse trap, knowing it was going to kill the mouse it caught? Or have you ever killed a whole lot of mosquitoes or house flies or spiders that were infesting your house? Have you ever struck someone in anger or frustration or even pain? Have you ever driven home when you had had too much to drink? Then you have, in a small way, behaved just like a murderer.

    Have you ever intentionally scared someone you knew hated being scared just to laugh at their reaction? Have you ever held someone down and tickled them even if they were yelling, “No! Please stop!” Have you ever given your partner the silent treatment because they didn’t want to be physically intimate and you did? Then you have, in a small way, behaved just like a rapist.

    Have you ever forgotten, even once, to provide food or water to a pet? Have you ever forgotten, even once, to pick up your child from a friend’s house or from an after school activity? Have you ever, even once, had to backtrack because you forgot to drop your child off at the sitter or at daycare on your way to work? Then you have behaved, in a small way, like child or animal abusers.

    When you’re watching shows like  the “American Idol” audition episodes where they make fun of some of the contestants for their abilities or the way they dress or their behaviors, do you laugh and join in from home? Have you ever made fun of someone because of their weight or what they look like? Do you use the word “gay” to mean the same thing as “stupid” or “ridiculous”? Do you ever call someone a “retard” or a “bitch” or any other derogatory term in anger? Then you have behaved, in a small way, just like a bully.

    But, I can hear you saying, those are not the same thing as being a murderer or a rapist or an abuser or a thief or a bully!

    And you are correct! It’s not the same…anymore than a drop ocean water is the same thing as the ocean….

  • A path to peace

    My family and I just spent a week in a big city that we had never been to before.  We were there to help our 19-year-old son move from where he went to school to the city where he will be looking to start his career.  Much like the drama found in reality shows, we felt the stress of having to search for a place that was available, connect with the person who was renting, get the background checks done, and move his belongings with enough time to catch our scheduled flight back to where we live, which is clear across the country.

    Our trip began with a thorough cleaning of a bachelor apartment and the packing of all its contents.  Once we were packed, it was time for our 7-hour drive to the destination where our son would pursue turning his passion into a profession.  The one-week time frame had now dwindled down to 4 days, and we had only a few leads which we found on Craigslist.  As we drove around to check out these leads, we quickly realized how precious our time was and how fast it was going by.

    The odds started to appear to be stacked against us.  We did not know the area at all.  We had a budget we had set which was a random number we had all agreed on prior to even knowing what the market value was.  We were following directions from our Smart Phone map programs and a GPS unit, all of which wanted us to take traffic-jammed freeways just to travel short distances.

    As a group, our frustration began to build.  We had been driving around for four hours and had only seen three properties.  Taking a look at the reality of our situation, we had decided it would be wise to take two cars so we could cover more ground.  Although this was not the way we had wanted our trip to go, it was not very long after this decision that it became clear things were exactly the way they were supposed to be.

    I knew in my heart that we would succeed in our mission.  This was never really in question for me.  What I failed to keep in my mind was the bigger picture that is always present.  Think small and you will surely experience little results.  The bigger picture always includes engaging all people on a deeper level than “what can I get from you.”  True happiness seems to always come from a place of mutual energy exchange.

    We had not kept in our awareness that all of our human tasks, no matter how big or how minor, revolve around one very important thing:  our relationships with others.  Our relationships with all people are the single-most important aspect of the contextual field we are here to experience.  When we bring the energy of Oneness to each and every interaction with others, the heavens rejoice and the treasure chests are opened.

    Here is what we began to do that changed everything:  We made a decision to not go it alone.  We began to engage strangers in our plight.  As we were driving around, we saw “for rent” signs and would call them.  If the person did not have a property that was suitable to us for one reason or another, we ended the phone call by asking a uniting question:  Do you know of any apartments or people we could contact that may have something for us to consider?

    This simple question seemed to bring out the best in everyone we posed it to.  Every single person took the conversation to the next level.  We had simple suggestions like “try this part of town” or “stay away from this particular area.”  A few said, “I do not, but here is the number of someone who might.”

    We had one person whose name was Harold go way above and beyond by not only giving us three great leads right away, but also called us back the next morning and gave us two more!

    Not one of those we engaged on our journey did we meet face to face, nor did we have any prior relationship with them.  They had no financial reason to help us, as they were also landlords looking to rent their own properties.  So why did they do so?  Why did they take time out of their busy schedules to help us, someone they didn’t know and would likely never meet?

    I think I know why.  I believe that we all want to help others and have an internal and eternal desire to be of service to Humanity.  I feel they were as empowered and enriched by helping us as we were by their generosity.  I know, in the core of my being, that we all want to give freely our gift, and we are just waiting for the invitation to do so.  Great joy always seems to involve doing something for another without the thought of what is in this for me.

    So how does this article end up in the Addiction in Recovery column?

    Recovery only works when we engage those who have gone before us and ask them to share their experience, strength, and hope with us.  The founders of the Twelve Step method knew right away recovery could not take place without the support of those who could relate to the plight of the addicted.

    Addiction is a solitary disease.  Many start off using in a social setting in order to fit in.  At first, the disease seems to be the cure for all of our ills.  We become social and outgoing.  Ironically and slowly, the disease progresses and takes all of that away again.  We become lonely, isolated, and avoided.  Sick, tired, and dying, we are faced with the decision:  Do I continue to use and kill myself slowly?  Or do I reach out for help and give someone the opportunity to experience their purpose, helping others?

    Would you like to be part of a group of recovering people who share a similar belief system?  Join us for the CwG on Recovery Path to Peace retreat in Medford Oregon June 23 – June 26.

    Kevin McCormack, C.A.d ,is a certified addictions professional. He is a recovering addict with 26 years of sobriety. Kevin is a practicing auriculotherapist, life coach, and interventionist specializing in individual and family recovery. You can visit his website for more information at www.Kevin-Spiritualmentor.com  To connect with Kevin, please email him at Kevin.Spiritualmentor@gmail.com or call 407-808-6431.

  • Stop that Struggle!

    Within the remaining months of high school, my senior class has turned into two very distinct directions. While my classmates seem to be content loafing every moment possible, I find myself even more busy (though it is probably not physically or emotionally possible) than ever before. It seems as though every single minute of my day must be micromanaged, in order to accomplish even half of what I set out to do. And that’s why I’m asking today’s question: Am I just that crazy, or are they just that lazy?  

    In utmost honesty, both sides can expand on their highest vision of the grandest version of themselves. When reexamining the list of The 25 Core Messages of Conversations With God, I realized that I had been stumped right at message #3: “There’s nothing you have to do. There is much you will do, but nothing you are required to do. God wants nothing, needs nothing, demands nothing, commands nothing.”

    I admit, I often stay fixated in the “efficiency” stage, where concern is placed much more heavily on accomplishing the task rather than what the task is contributing to the world wellness and wholeness. Simply understanding that the world will continue to spin, albeit a little less proficiently, when not everything is in perfect order is just another basic fact of life. Though I may have a hard time personally accepting this fact, knowing that life is good – no matter what gets done or what doesn’t – is another step towards understanding the bigger picture.

    In full regard, There is nothing we have to do. This very statement goes against all traditional form of logic and understanding of Western society, but is exactly why we should start our New Cultural Story. By placing more focus on what we choose to do, we create a much happier and healthier way of life. With emphasis on our decisions, rather than our compulsions, necessity diminishes as personal freedom increases. It’s time to recognize our conscious decisions for what they truly are, instead of what we perceive society to tell us. Even further, isn’t it time we create an entire new way of being while we’re at it?

    On the other side of the table, my classmates should also consider message #19: “The Three Core Concepts of Holistic Living are Honesty, Responsibility, and Awareness. Live according to these precepts and self-anger will disappear from your life.” If my classmates do not take responsibility for who they are, do not bring forth the awareness to think deeply about who they are, and are do not have the honesty to sincerely know who they are, then they are letting society create that definition for them. Without having control of our most basic truths, we let others define them for us. Though it may be easier not be responsible, aware, and honest, is it really worth losing that sense of self? By letting go of our self-reliance, society has made us reliant on the rules of religion and politics. Do we really want to continue that track of letting others decide for ourselves?

    Clearly, there is not the “perfect” side. All there is just a change in perspective, and if they are coupled with a change in understanding, then both sides can WORK TOGETHER to create a better way of life for all. By knowing that our work here is based off our choice, and that we can choose to have responsibility, awareness, and honest as part of our fundamental core of being, we can officially drop the struggle and decide on a new path to take together. As message #25 states: “Let there be a New Gospel for all people of Earth: “We are all one. Ours is not a better way, ours is merely another way.” No matter what direction we take, we all end up as one. If we choose to, we can be in oneness even faster. Will you choose to?

    (Lauren is a Feature Editor of The Global Conversation. She lives in Wood Dale, IL, and can be reached at Lauren@TheGlobalConversation.com)

  • How to keep a sense of Oneness with people we disagree with?

    CWG says we are all one and it feels true to me at an intellectual level, but I have a hard time feeling one with people I disagree with, especially politicians. Sometimes they make me so mad! How can I keep the feeling of Oneness with them in spite of what they do? Thanks for your help … Mia

    Dear Mia… Boy, do I know how you feel! There was a certain president here in the U.S. who spent eight years doing exactly the opposite of what I wanted. I spent tons of time trying to undo all the damage I thought he was doing because they were issues that were very important to me. I didn’t feel our Oneness because I was carrying a lot of anger and resentment towards him. Looking back on it now, I realize I would have handled it much better if I’d stayed in my God-space through it all. Knowing, as CWG says, that God is always Joyful, Loving, Accepting, Blessing and Grateful, here’s how that might have looked:

    1. I could have chosen to stay Joyful in spite of the things he did that I vehemently disagreed with.

    2. I could have chosen to feel Loving toward him, knowing that we are connected as part of the One.

    3. I could have chosen to be Accepting of his actions without condemning them by working toward a different goal without resistance.

    4. I could have chosen to Bless him, knowing he was doing what he thought was right and best, given his model of the world.

    5. I could have chosen to feel Grateful for the contrast that his actions provided me, giving me the opportunity to define and refine myself.

    So here is the challenge for both of us, Mia:  Can we disagree with someone’s actions, yet stay consciously connected to them in a loving way? I believe we can, but it takes an ongoing mindful intention to do so. As you see in my model above, it all comes down to choice. It’s up to us to be the peace we wish to see in the world.

    Masters don’t let anything shake them from their calm and sense of Unity because they trust that the Universe knows exactly what It is doing and It doesn’t make mistakes. They set an example for all of us to work toward that will benefit not only the little “us” but also the big “Us”. When we stay in our joy and peace regardless of outside events and others’ actions, we stay vibrationally in alignment with all the good our Source has to offer, uplifting all of us.

    Hope this helps, Mia!

    (Annie Sims is the Global Director of CWG Advanced Programs, is a Conversations With God Coach and author/instructor of the CWG Online School. To connect with Annie, please email her at Annie@TheGlobalConversation.com

    (If you would like a question considered for publication, please submit your request to:  Advice@TheGlobalConversation.com where our team is waiting to hear from you.)

  • Missing the feeling of Unity I once had

    I have had the experience of knowing that I am one with everyone. It was a time in my life that I will never forget and would love to feel that again. I do not know if it feels better to have had this experience for a couple of years or to not have had it at all.  I feel like I am striving to “get there” again, but I understand that what you resists persists. I have to accept where I am at now and let it all flow as it will. I feel like I should be reading, having quiet time (meditation), and focusing on more positive thinking more often. I try to do this as often as I can, but sometimes it feels difficult to do this consistently because of the demands of my 3 little children. I am struggling to feel this sense of “we are all one” on a daily basis… Kim

    Dear Kim… You are incredibly blessed to have had a direct experience of Unity with everyone for two years! You have the consciousness of that now, which will make it easier to manifest again. This is true of anything you’ve had in your life. Once you’ve experienced something, you have the consciousness of it and can more easily create it again. This is why we see millionaires who lose it all only to make it all again!

    I can imagine that three wee ones are very time-consuming, but if you can carve out even fifteen minutes a day to get in touch deeply with your soul, it will help make the rest of your day feel more peaceful. “Stopping meditation” also works for busy moms on the go. Every so often, just stop what you’re doing for ten or fifteen seconds, close your eyes, and touch base with your soul. This is very refreshing! Before you know it, you’ll start to feel that connectedness again.

    (Annie Sims is the Global Director of CWG Advanced Programs, is a Conversations With God Coach and author/instructor of the CWG Online School. To connect with Annie, please email her at Annie@TheGlobalConversation.com.

    (If you would like a question considered for publication, please submit your request to:  Advice@TheGlobalConversation.com where our team is waiting to hear from you.)