Intention, Effort and Grace

...have the intent, put in the effort, and then grace will take over.

I was reading a recent question and answer session with Sri Bhagavan from the Oneness University in India, and he made this statement and it really struck a cord within me. It caused me to reflect upon my own life journey and I could see how my own life gives testimony to this statement.

I think I have always had the intent of finding out who I am and what I am doing here, though it got to be much more intense and focused when my sister died in 1986. My intent to find out why she left this plane of existence, where she was now, why I was still here, and who I really am, became very, very strong.

I put forth the effort. I searched for answers from all the outside sources I could find, such as reading every book I could get my hands on regarding these subjects, attending lectures, workshops, seminars and visiting psychics; eventually earning a master's degree in parapsychic science. I went to both individual and group therapy for the majority of my first twenty-five years of life, trying to figure out who I was.

Also, more importantly, I also went within. I began asking my higher self, my intuition questions; and then listening and paying attention to the guidance. I began praying and seeking out what I call soul food on a regular, more consistent basis. I took more time out to speak to God, my angels, guides and loved ones. I made an effort to spend more time meditating not only by myself, but with a group of like-minded people on a regular basis. I routinely seek out and receive Oneness Blessings and other energy type healing from all types of healers.

I put in the effort to change my habits and my diet into healthier ones; to treat my body more like the sacred temple it is.

And then, like Sri Bhagavan says, you realize you have done all you can possibly do and you can do nothing more, so you surrender -- you genuinely surrender to The Divine and ask God to please take over. He goes on to say "but as long as you can do something you have got to do it, you should not be looking for help. Only at the point where you say I cannot do, there you will have to pray and ask for help. Then the grace will definitely come." Grace will then take over. And it does. Grace came for me in 2013 which I wrote about here. So know that if you have the intent, and put forth the effort, then grace will take over.

Global Oneness Day 2015

Global Oneness Day is Oct.24th!

This is a day dedicated to celebrating Oneness. Global Oneness Day has become a catalyst for spiritual activism and the emerging global Oneness movement. It represents a profound new paradigm in human culture. Global Oneness Day is our day to celebrate unity in our diversity, as a community consecrated to serving humanity’s collective awakening.

Humanity's Team invites everyone to join them in their annual FREE virtual summit, where you can listen to forty-five inspiring Oneness speakers! How cool is that?! All you have to do is register and you'll receive access to it at no charge! Mark your calendar and come join us! 

Treasured Teachers

With the recent passing of Dr. Wayne Dyer, I've been thinking about other great spiritual teachers and writers and how grateful I am to have them here, now and to be able to learn from them. Another one that has made a big impact on my life is Neale Donald Walsch. And instead of waiting until after he makes his transition to talk about what a great spiritual teacher he is, I'm going to do it now while he's still physically with us!

I remember when his first book Conversations with God, Book 1 came out. It was released on my mother's birthday -- May 5, in 1995 -- twenty years ago. It was during a turning point in my life, and I was immediately drawn to his books, reading all three in the series and then most of his other books that followed, such as Friendship with God, Communion with God, The New Revelations, Tomorrow's God, Home with God, Happier than God, What God Wants, Moments of Grace, and about ten more! I love the messages so much in all of these books. They have all touched me deeply and my energy resonated with them on a level I had never felt before. I felt the words were confirming what I knew and felt at a soul level and my heart sang out "yes!" as I read them. After I finished Book 1, I immediately ordered half a dozen more copies and gave my closest friends and family members each a copy for Christmas. After I finished reading Book 2 and Book 3 of the Conversations with God books, I remember not only feeling hungry for more of this conversation and couldn't wait for the next book, but I experienced something that I had never experienced before. I ended up crying so hard because I literally felt home sick like I've never felt before, after reading this material. I just felt this intense home-sickness. This is the only way I can explain it. I have read a lot of spiritual books over the last 30 years and no book(s) had ever affected me in that way before.

I have also had the pleasure of experiencing Neale in person on five different occasions over the years, beginning in 1997. Each time he came to Unity of Houston to talk about his books. The first thing I noticed about him was his energy. He emanated such genuine peaceful, loving and compassionate energy. It was palpable. Of course I got several of my books autographed and also had a picture taken with him. His children's books are wonderful too -- even for grown-ups. I also have the movie Conversations with God, documenting his story --  about how he went from being homeless for a year to the automatic writing of these books. He also did a documentary about Indigos, which I posted about here. 

Needless to say, Neale and his books and movies have had a big impact on my life, and I know they have for many, many others as well. If you haven't read any of his books yet, especially Conversations with God, Books 1, 2 and 3, I highly recommend them!

To give you a little taste of Neale, click here to watch a series of five short (8 min.) video clips he made talking about The Soul -- Do we have one? Where is it? What is it? What is it's purpose? and more. I think you'll find it interesting.

Also of interest if you are into astrology or numerology (which I am) is that Wayne Dyer's birthday is May 10th (Taurus) and I just noticed that Neale Walsch's birthday is Sept. 10th (Virgo).