Peace

3 Ways to Experience Peace Through the Craziness of Life

By Eric Cox

Peaceful day I am guessing you are a driven woman with a list of goals and dreams a few pages long. I know I am, and between my strong desire to feel like an awesome mom and wife as well as carrying out all of these dreams, what most often gets lost in the mix is time for ourselves and our own inner peace.

A million stressors overwhelm and distract us.

We all go through stages where bury our heads in work and family, and sometimes miss the opportunities to look up and experience the world around us. We get caught up, stuck in our heads, and miss the beauty of the bigger picture.

The idea of being peaceful often stays a “nice concept” that we don’t feel like we can afford, but it sounds lovely. We exclude ourselves from the category of deserving or being able to have a peaceful existence. It just doesn’t seem realistic considering all we have to get done.

How can we finally live a peaceful existence amidst the noise? We must start by making an effort and taking little steps each day. With practice and experiencing the positive results, you’ll work harder and harder to make time for yourself and your inner peace!

Here are a few completely doable ideas for you:

Start the day off by enjoying stillness. This may mean we wake up 30 minutes earlier than everyone else that will be rushing to get ready for school or work but this time can help set the tone for our day. I use this time to meditate, pray, and enjoy a cup of coffee. Others like to get out first thing and exercise in peace or go for a walk. Don’t use this time to make a to-do list or read the news – there’s plenty of time for that and it only clutters our mind on what there is to do rather than allowing us to clear our mind.

Take breaks throughout the day. We don’t have to jump from one thing to another. Step away from the computer, delay a scheduled trip to the grocery store – there’s plenty of time for that, too. Repeat the mantra, “there is plenty of time for everything I need to get done today.” Often, our busy-ness is simply a mindset. We all are truly busy, but it’s also a story that we get wrapped up in. Breathe. Sit back and read a book. Savor a cup of tea, Take a look around for a few minutes and let thoughts flow. Then… get back to business more refreshed, clear-headed, and mindful.

Go off-track. Spontaneously go on a walk, run an errand, call a friend for a glass of wine – do something that shifts your tempo of urgency to slow you down. Don’t rush. Take a look around, breathe, and intentionally take in the beautiful world around you. As the thoughts of, “I should be….” enter your mind, invite them to leave.

All of these actions will encourage you to develop the healthy habits of making time for yourself and taking breaks so that you can experience peace amidst the noise.

You’ll be amazed by how much more efficient you are by granting yourself the gift of peace. When we re-set our focus by interjecting peaceful moments through a day, we tend to get more done and have a calmer approach to the tasks we’re committed to fulfilling.

Live the moments – don’t let them pass you by.

Please share what you do to maintain your inner peace and joy throughout the day!

Temple Hayes Story : Author, Spiritual leader, Difference Maker

By Reverend Temple Hayes
TempleTwitter-small1 I remember when I first became involved in the teachings of Unity. I was twenty years old. What a revelation to leave the traditional teachings of the Southern Baptists where I had no choice with everything that was happening to me to a more open and broader perspective of participating with WHAT I wanted to happen with me. I moved from life is happening to me to life is happening for me then to life is happening in me and as me!

Unity was a great bridge for me and unleashed the beginning of a journey that has been profound. After learning how to focus, pray and have a vision, so many dynamic things manifested. It seemed that the grasping and attainment curve was in one direction…straight up.

What a life…up, up and away in whatever color balloon I wanted. Celebrating truth and my constant discovery of Spirit when things were going well was the easy part. Discovering sobriety, shedding weight, discovering love, discovering power (power that I could use in self awareness and realization). It wasn’t TRUTH or CONSEQUENCES; it was TRUTH AND CONSEQUENCEs…lots of them. Good Stuff!

And then I said, “I want to live my FULL potential…I wanted FULL-Fill—Me-nt. I stood in the space of declaration and stated that I wanted to discover all I could about how spirit works in this human life. I wanted to understand how Spirit works in my life. I wanted to understand this ancient pull of my soul that I had connected with at such an early age. I wanted to see how the mystery of life can transcend to a mystic awareness of knowledge that I could understand and embrace forever. I deeply wanted to heal the belief and grief that SOMETHING was still missing in my life. I wanted to do more than sing the peace song while holding hands with others, I wanted to exemplify the peace in which I believed an individual could have. I wanted to experience my life PRESENT by being PRESENT each and every moment.

And Spirit doing what Spirit does heard my plea. My integration began moving into a process on a deeper level. Moving beyond the surface of LECTURE-physics to a soul level of being created such a vulnerability in my life. I felt so out of place. I wasn’t feeling extroverted, I was feeling extremely introverted. I went from enjoying being the center of attention to longing to find the center within myself. I went from being a public person to being very private.

Retreating, retreating, retreating…space, space and more space.

They all came…the shadow selves, the child within, the wounded girl, the unresolved warrior, the insistor/resistor, the pained healer, the betrayed, the abandoned and the good Baptist…oh yes, the one that believed that if you are good, only good can happen. One after one they came…all the roles in the movies that I had played throughout the course of my life.

Then came the other aspects of my spiritual development, the dark night of the soul. The days of the dreary and the weary, the times that you feel no matter what you do, or how you do it, the outside appearance will not come together. The puzzle pieces did not fit no matter how I tried to change them.

If you find you are going through one of these times right now, then embrace the journey that is coming. The inward spiritual quest requires giving up all beliefs of control. What is left is a knowing that there is power within you that can prevail through all things. And no one or no thing can ever take it away once you have developed it.

I use to say the cliché over and over again that I heard in New Thought, “Change your thinking, change your life” now I simply say, “change your life, surrender your life and your thinking will align with you.”

If the vibration in your life is changing and the energy of your light is changing, you absolutely cannot live life the same way. It is impossible. Oh you can for a period of time, you can tell your body that it is okay to have addictions or dependencies, however, the body always tells the truth and it is only a matter a time that you will surrender to the higher calling of the more authentic and natural you.

We can go willingly or painfully. We do not always choose what is happening to us, we do get to choose how we hold relationship with what is happening each and every day. We can see it as necessary and instructive or just the opposite. Yet one truth remains, it has been sent our way, otherwise, it would not be there.

The perception of your Spirit and Spirit itself can greatly be discovered when you know that whatever is happening in your life, it is to connect you at a deeper level with yourself.

If you have been recently rejected in your work or in relationship, it is Spirit operating in your life to bring you to a greater place. If you are facing adversity, let it tell you what it is bringing into your life.

Learn to replace Dear Abby with Dear Spirit / Dear Self. The only answers that will fit or prove true are the ones that you integrate in your life from all that you are.

Your path is unique to you. Pray, connect with quality people in your life, find a new mentor and make sure the clothes (ideas) you are wearing are still effective as you continue to move into a deeper sense of your spirit. You WILL be amazed!

Radiance Factor on VividLife Radio debuted with Anita Moorjani

It was an amazing first week for my new radio show The Radiance Factor on VividLife Radio. I can’t thank you all enough for listening, your wonderful feedback, and of course the show’s producer Shayne Travis and my guest Anita Moorjani for sharing their inspirational gifts.

I was very excited about debuting the show with Anita as she exemplifies the message of awakening to our true beauty and sharing it with the world that I hope to make the theme of every show. After battling cancer for 4 years Anita was near the end of her fight; her body was covered in tumors, lungs filled with fluid, in a wheelchair and only able to breathe with the help of an oxygen tank she slipped in to a coma.

At that time Anita was given hours to live by doctors and in the midst of this experience, she was given a level of clarity and peace that told her you will you not die, you will LIVE…you will LOVE yourself…and teach others the power of this amazing gift. She was felt connected to herself and everyone else on a deeper level of pure love that she ever felt imaginable. Anita was reconnected with friends and relatives who had gone on given lessons beyond forgiveness to a level of unconditional acceptance and inspired to return to share these blessings with others.

Upon waking from this coma she healed herself from her Stage 4 cancer and documented her experiences and lessons in her NY Times bestseller “Dying to be me…” which has also been featured on Wayne Dyer’s PBS special “Wishes Fulfilled”, Fox and Friends, CNN, and more.

While we talked about her experiences that surrounded her awakening it was the many takeaways from her life before and after that I want to be sure to share with you:

The first lesson Anita shared was that she felt much was that so much of our sickness self-imposed pressure that we place upon ourselves. The pressure to conform to societies, customs, and the beliefs of others that are not in alignment with ourselves, manifests inside of us to make us physically and mentally ill. On the “other side” love was unconditional, it transcended race, beliefs, gender, and the message to gain was that in order to enjoy this life we should work to move beyond these pressures.
Along with that came the powerful lesson is self-acceptance. Throughout her life she was bullied, discriminated against, and in turn, joined in the fight with others by beating herself up. Like many of us, she was steeped in self-doubt and buried in question that left her thinking; Why am I so harsh on myself? Suppressing my creativity to please others? Seeking approval? Tough on myself? Before you can see the beauty in life or others you have to start by seeing the beauty in you! The beholder right?
Next was her awareness to the power of acceptance which came from a feeling of reconnection to her father with whom she had a difficult relationship and who had died 10 years earlier. This experience provided insights into both our relationships on Earth and to those spirits who have gone on that forgiveness is not enough. To forgive someone still acknowledges the wrong between you, unconditional acceptance however gives power to the connection between people that releases each of you to love freely.

The most meaningful lesson Anita says she learned from being at death’s door is that unless we love ourselves, nothing else in our lives can function at their best. The amount of depth, meaning, and joy we experience in my life is in direct proportion to how much love we have for ourselves. The amount of love, kindness, patience we have for others is also directly proportional to how much love, patience and kindness we have for ourselves, because we cannot give others what we ourselves do not have. And, unsurprisingly, the amount of love, respect, support, and compassion I receive from others is also in direct proportion to how much of the same I have for myself.

Her life is much more joyful and meaningful now, and she says she has much more love to share with others than ever before, which she does unconditionally.. But most important, she now understands that if we do not express our authenticity, the Universe will be deprived of who we came here to be.

Be you, as you were meant to be.

You can listen to the actual radio broadcast with Anita Moorjani here: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/vividliferadio/2013/09/10/anita-moorjani-dying-to-be-me

Inner Peace on Earth- for a truly beautiful Holiday

For many people this season it’s difficult “to be jolly”. Financial woes, loss, loneliness, and family stress can feel like weight of a heavy snow more than ever around this time of year. By the way, if you broke in to song with that first sentence, this may article may not apply to you but read on…

Something that you hear a lot around now is “Peace on Earth, goodwill towards men!” More than any other times of year, around the Holidays we tend think about what we can do to better the lives others. If you are struggling with ways to find your own peace though, spreading peace to others can seem out of reach. So how do we remedy that in time to have a great Holiday? I believe the cure lies in one of my favorite phrases, the change we want to see in the world starts with us. Once you have inner peace it becomes easy to be one person or one family making a difference in the lives of others by word and deed.

Now we’re on to something but, again, where do we start within ourselves is the next question.

I come to this with kind of different angle given my particular area of expertise as a Beauty and Life Coach. While millions are constantly searching for an outer “fix” the real connection to harmony and beauty is feeling bliss on the inside and radiating that out to the world. I believe that much of the inner turmoil and lack of peace that we experience comes from allowing ourselves to be caught up in superficial things like material possessions, and not living according to our authentic beliefs.

Even before thinking of the gifts you would like in your life, start finding your peace by thinking of those you already have. Your gifts can be your beautiful smile, radiant personality, intuitive feeling and deep connection to those around you, constant optimism, or just about anything else. By taking this mental and emotional inventory you remind yourself of the value that you already hold rather than thinking there must me something more. That is the point after all, that you are already more than enough! All too often we think of ourselves in terms of the “mizpah”, the beautiful necklace that we give each other as friends. It’s that heart that is broken and each of us takes half to symbolize the eternal bond with the other. The true gift is in letting yourself be complete and giving your whole heart to as many people has you can throughout your life.

We can also achieve peace by remembering that we are all gifts to the world. We are such wonderful gifts in fact, that we should be re-gifted often. And as those gifts we are not our wrapping paper, ribbons, and bows, we are a joy-filled bundle of beauty and divine purpose!

When something or someone is true to their purpose and simply enjoys being they are a source of beauty for the world. Before waiting for New Year’s resolution season, take some time to explore what it is that brings purpose and joy to you. Consider what you would be doing in your ideal job, relationships, and personal life, and how living that true to them would bring beauty to your soul. Now take that a step farther and actually write that down and create your special “gift list”. There is something about the process of putting pen to paper and seeing your dreams in front of you that helps bring them to reality.

Have a wonderful, and beautiful, Holiday and I look forward to being an inspirational part of your journey in the coming year!

Written by Bestselling Hay House author, TV & Radio Host, Celebrity Makeup Artist and Life Coach Michelle Phillips