I Choose… Love
Good morning and
happy Sunday to you!
Did you know that there
are really only two emotions? One of them is Love. The other is NOT hate, as
most people think it is the opposite of Love. No.
The other one is
Fear.
Hatred, anger,
bitterness, unforgiveness, prejudice, envy, racism, the need to make others “wrong”
so that we can feel like we are “right,” any form of intolerance, blame, judgment,
etc. None of these things is a feeling
or a belief in its own right. And every one of them, and all that are included
in the “et cetera,” stems from Fear.
I first learned this
in 1999 along with a suggestion for what to pay attention to in my own
behavior, and a question to ask that always shifts things for me when I find
myself acting out of fear. If you have any interest at all in NOT getting
sucked into the mob mentality that seems so prevalent in the United States
these days (on BOTH sides), this is a practice that will serve you well.
The practice is just
this: Notice when you’re looking at another person, a group of people, another
country, a circumstance in your own life, or even your own self, with hatred,
intolerance, bitterness, blame, judgment, etc.
If you have any interest in being more powerful than your fear—which IS
the root of every single one of those feelings whether you want to admit it to
yourself or not—the next step in this practice is to ask one simple question.
What would LOVE do?
If I can do this in
the midst of a relationship in which I was getting beat up on a regular basis,
anyone can do it in whatever circumstance they find themselves in. At that time
and in that place in my life, I stopped defending myself when my abuser
attacked me (whether physically or verbally), and I applied this practice
deliberately. I would ask, “What would Love do here?” And the answer that
ALWAYS came first was this, “LOVE would recognize that HE lives a far more
fearful life than I do, and that is where this behavior stems from. I do not
have to take it personally, because—even though it is directed at me—it is not about
me. At all. This expression of hate is nothing more than his fear pouring
out of him through his behavior.” This recognition ALWAYS triggered a feeling of
compassion in me, and the actions that stemmed from compassion were always far
healthier than what would have happened if I had responded to him from my fear
of him.
That one realization
was always helpful to me, and it was during that time that I began to recognize
that I had to love myself enough to
choose not to engage with him in his drama dynamic. And this holds true today,
and that is what this week’s I Choose addresses.
I Choose… Love
This week I deliberately pay attention
to my feelings and my behaviors, and I stay in the question, “What would Love
do? How would Love handle THIS person’s behavior? How would Love handle THIS
circumstance?” This week I choose to remember that Love is FAR more powerful
than fear, and I choose to love myself so much that it is easy for me to either
disengage when I find myself sucked into another’s drama, or to not engage with
them in the first place. Because only when I’m willing to love myself that
much, will I be able to choose to really
love THEM.
And just to be clear, “engaging with them” means
giving them ANY of my energy or attention from a place of being afraid of them
in any way. This includes judging or hating them inside my own mind, and it
includes judging or hating them in conversations with others. In our current
climate of separation, judgment, hatred, and exclusion, I am choosing
deliberately to love myself so much
that I’m willing to pay attention within my own self and notice when I’m
engaging from ANY level of fear around who they
are being or what they are doing.
Fear NEVER produces real solutions. In fact, you could even say that Fear actually specializes in creating, deepening, and escalating more and more problems.
Fear NEVER produces real solutions. In fact, you could even say that Fear actually specializes in creating, deepening, and escalating more and more problems.
Love actually IS the solution to any problem.
The practice I’m describing here is one of the
most empowering practices that I’ve ever used in my life. I highly recommend
it.
Love
Sandi
Have an awesome day if you choose to!
Sandi
Have an awesome day if you choose to!
“Speak your Soul into this space.”
Em Claire
**************
It's BOOK STUDY Time!
online gatheringall
meetings will be recorded and made available to members
ll be on the same page. The isbn is shown, as well, for ordering purposes. Although if you already have a different version and you don't want to purchase this one, no worries - we can work around it as necessary.
This book quite literally saved my sanity in 2011. Actually, it wasn't just the book, it was a six-month STUDY of the book. If not for that study, it's fair to say that I was depressed and discouraged enough to consider giving up on myself and my life completely. Yes, that means what it sounds like it means.
Needless to say, I highly, highly recommend the study and the deliberate and practical application of this material in your life.
Join us if you'd like. All are welcome.
I've created a Facebook group specifically for this study. If you're on Facebook, here's the link to join the group.
Power of Now Facebook group.
If you're not a Facebook user, simply reply to this email. I'll be sending emails to share the assignments in addition to doing that on FB.
To clarify - you do not have to be able to join us for the Monday calls in order to participate in the group, so don't let that stop you!
I look forward to having you join us! :-)
ll be on the same page. The isbn is shown, as well, for ordering purposes. Although if you already have a different version and you don't want to purchase this one, no worries - we can work around it as necessary.
This book quite literally saved my sanity in 2011. Actually, it wasn't just the book, it was a six-month STUDY of the book. If not for that study, it's fair to say that I was depressed and discouraged enough to consider giving up on myself and my life completely. Yes, that means what it sounds like it means.
Needless to say, I highly, highly recommend the study and the deliberate and practical application of this material in your life.
Join us if you'd like. All are welcome.
I've created a Facebook group specifically for this study. If you're on Facebook, here's the link to join the group.
Power of Now Facebook group.
If you're not a Facebook user, simply reply to this email. I'll be sending emails to share the assignments in addition to doing that on FB.
To clarify - you do not have to be able to join us for the Monday calls in order to participate in the group, so don't let that stop you!
I look forward to having you join us! :-)
Love to you all!
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