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Speaking For God vs. Speaking With God

It’s weird, kind of, making these private conversations public, and it’s even weirder, asking You for a message, a timely message, to help others. Why is this weird? Why do I feel uncomfortable?

Because you have seen messages purportedly from Me misused. You have seen people whose character or motives you mistrusted stand up and proclaim they were speaking for Me. And you don’t want to do that, to be that.

That’s right–so, how will this work? I mean, isn’t that exactly what I ‘m doing, proclaiming I am speaking for You?

There is a difference between speaking for Me and speaking with Me. I don’t want to dictate a message; I want us to continue to have and to deepen our relationship, and for you to continue to be willing to share that relationship with the world. I am not looking for prophets–I’m looking for people who want what you want, to be deeply and personally connected with Me, and inspired by that connection, to discover the best of themselves, find their own highest fulfillment and deepest joy, all while blessing the world with their enthusiasm, with their quiet faith, with their exuberant joy, with their steady love, with their fierce and gentle peacefulness. Yours is the role of an Inviter. You are inviting others to eavesdrop on our conversations in order that they might decide to begin conversations of their own. That’s not too weird a thought, is it?

No, and it takes the pressure off.

I never want you to feel pressured. I want you to feel loved. Loved and led, remember? Now scoot. Your day is beginning–and remember, I Am with you. You can talk to Me any time, about anything.

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Bring Your Best

Lord, I always start my day, start at the page, with me. I…whatever. Even if it’s gratitude, shouldn’t I be starting with You?

 

You have been taught to fear the “I” word, that “I think” and “I feel” are somehow unspiritual. Where else would I want you to start? When couples marry, each says, “I do.” Each brings the best—and worst—of themselves to the table. Each commits to the other.

Some people believe all I want to hear about is Myself—how great I Am, how powerful or holy. I know Who I Am, and yes, part of this relationship is for you to learn Who I Am. But I also know who you are, and part of this relationship is for you to discover who you are, what your gifts are, what and who your loves are, and how you fit into My beautiful world—which means learning about others, who they are.

Nothing delights Me more than seeing you make an important discovery about yourself, and using that new knowledge in the larger world. I have told you before, you have to have a self in order to share a self.

The key question is, what is your center focus? If all you think about is yourself, with no regard for anyone else, you are like those who used to believe the earth was the center of the universe, and the sun circled the earth. But many make the opposite mistake and are equally unbalanced when they refuse to factor themselves, their personalities, and their dreams into their own life equation.

The third way is what I am calling you—all of you—to do. Bring your best to the world. Bring your best to your relationships. Bring your best to your job, which means, find the job best suited to the real you. Bring your best to Me, morning by morning, evening by evening, day by day. Bring your best to the world. After all, isn’t that what I Myself do with you?

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Rest

Why is it so hard for you to rest?

I don’t know, Lord. Why is it so hard for me to rest? Because nothing, nothing is ever finished. I’m thinking about Genesis—You finished creation and then rested. As a model. Right?

First of all, creation is ongoing. Second, you have scripture that says the Lord never sleeps or grows weary, that I am always watching over My creation. So maybe you need a new definition, a new understanding of “rest.” Maybe it’s not meant as an antidote to “fatigue.” Maybe labor requires one kind of pause, physically and mentally. Maybe “rest” is an immersion, like floating in water, like soaking in a hot tub, but immersed in My Presence where you receive new creative input. Like plugging in a battery—you don’t have to wait to re-charge until it’s fully depleted.

 

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Vision Quest

The year is racing downhill and I am indoors lying in a recliner with an ice pack on my back and a very poor attitude. Not a good way to begin a Vision Quest.

There is nothing wrong with beginning a Vision Quest out of frustration. Or sorrow, or grief or anger, or any other emotion. The only “wrong” would be not beginning at all. Everyone who came to Me for healing was healed: body, mind and spirit. That is all you need to remember.

Lord, I don’t know how or where to start.

You start a hike by picking up your pack. Why don’t we see what is in your pack?

Okay. It feels disorganized, thrown together, like my life feels right now. If I wanted or needed anything, like a flashlight, it’d be hard to find it.

So the first step is to clear out the clutter. That is what meditation does, it clears your mind.

Lord, when I go outside now, I am almost desperate to come back with a saleable image, as justification for going. Like no other reason counts.

Usually, the only way you rest is by being sick. Or injured. This is a long-standing problem. Even your vision quest you are treating like a march, hurry up and get there, rather than as an adventure.

Lord, it’s true. I am hurrying because I am anticipating being interrupted before I really even get started. I just want to understand.

Understanding is over-rated. You can experience without actually understanding. You can know without having words to fully explain. Here is what you experience, in your best moments: a connection to Me and to this earth that you are certain of. A joining. A call and response. I call, you answer; you call, I answer.

Lord, it is true. I say all the time, I don’t know how the radio works, or the tv, or the computer, or the phone, even!

But you enjoy all of them. It is time you experienced the joy again. What if I told you your new lens was a special gift from Me? That I—not your ego—planted the desire for that lens, and I pre-arranged its availability? What if I planned the whole thing? See, there is so much you “never thought of.”

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Prayer as Alignment

Lord, as I was lying awake earlier, I started to talk to You about prayer, but now I don’t remember what You said.

What I said was, you need to align your heart and your head, your feelings and your thoughts, with Mine in order to hear Me clearly. Otherwise, I can hear you but you can’t clearly hear Me, and that limits how I am able to help you. Once you can align your thoughts and your feelings, then your actions will follow. The steps you take then will literally be steps along My path for you.

So there is one path, right? Your Perfect Will?

Not in the way you think of it, like one narrow trail among many similar-looking trails, or one road in a busy center city of crisscross choices. Remember the book title, you make the path by walking? My Path for you is more like that. When you take steps while in tune with My Voice speaking to you, those steps will be based in love of others, in peace and in joy. The way you walk will be with integrity and compassion. You will be able to bless others along the way and will see your blessings clearly as they come to you.

I am not trying to test My children to see what they know, or at what point they will show weakness or fail. I am like a strong beacon, a homing-signal that you can test yourself against. You can feel or see when you are veering off course.

On My Path, of Love, of Joy, of Peace, of Faith, of Truth, of Goodness, there are many possible roads or trails for every person to follow and find fulfillment and joy. You can be sure of this: your perfect road, what you call My Perfect Will, is the one that gives you the most joy, the most fulfillment, the most peace, the most chances to love and be loved in return. To the extent that your chosen road does all these things consistently, you are walking in My Will for your life. To the extent your chosen road does not look and feel like this, is the extent to which you have veered or wandered off course. Stray too far off course and you will leave My Path completely. You will find yourself on a hard trail, consumed with bitterness, regret, envy, resentment, anger, strife and stress. You will catch yourself lashing out at others. You will begin to view the world around you as dangerous and full of enemies.

But all it takes, to find My Path again, is to examine your direction by lining it up with My Voice as a Beacon. Tune in once again. What do you hear? If you only hear the echo of your own loneliness, know that you have strayed far off My Path. Stop. Sit. Get your mind and body quiet. Let Me soothe your soul, refresh your spirit, bring a cup of cold water for your thirsty body. Le Me wash your tired, bruised, bleeding feet. Then let us walk, slowly, together, while I point out all there is of beauty, all there is to love, in your world. And look! See? See where you are? With Me. With Me beside you, guiding you once again. It is just that easy.

 

 

 

 

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Minute by minute

Lord, do You have a message for today?

I have a message every day. Every minute you breathe in and out, I am filling you with Life. Think about how you want to spend your life, minute by minute.

Imagine if every minute, you got a dollar. $60.00 an hour, more than you ever earned, working. How would you spend it? Would you spend it, save it, hoard it, waste it, give it away?

Your answer depends on your view of the next minute, doesn’t it? Living in the moment is good—but don’t let that prevent you from planning for and committing to a wonderful future.

Couples who marry, and plan for a family, commit themselves to a future life together. Commit to our future life together.

Believe I AM and I WILL BE. Believe I AM already present in what you call your future, and that your future will be blessed. That is how you live with uncertainty and overcome fear. You focus on Love—for today and tomorrow. And you build on Love, a sure foundation, for whatever comes.

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Master Builder

Lord, what can be done, for Texas? What can You do?

 

There is much work to be done on the ground. Many, many earthly hands are needed. And I Myself will be at work–inspiring individual actions and decisions for the best possible outcome, the highest possible good, in the aftermath. I told you before, Miracles are happening you will never hear about. Others will make the national news and give hope to many.

 

Lord, it is going to keep on happening, isn’t it? Is this what You said, about the end–wars and rumors of wars and famine, all of it?

I did not say that in the context of My Will being all of that, but as an alert ahead of time. Actions have consequences. Your job in all of this is to, moment by moment, decide whether you will stand on the side of hope or the side of despair. Will you speak for good or for giving up? Will you inspire others to believe in Me as Comforter and Restorer, or as Destroyer? Can you believe I Am able to bring Light out of darkness, and good out of evil, and calm out of the storm?

Let mercy and kindness flow to Texas now, from around the globe. Let Texas receive the outpouring of compassionate care from all over the world. Let the politicians wrangle–but watch Me inspire a different kind of flood, a flood of support, of help, of comfort, of resources, the likes of which the world has not seen before. I tell you this: the greater the need, the greater the help. The greater the destruction, the greater the rebuilding. And at the Last, when humans manage to find a way to destroy it, My response will be to create a New Earth and say, here you go. For I Am Creator, Redeemer, Restorer, ReMaker. I Make All Things New. That is why My Hands were Carpenter hands. I am a Master Builder, not a Master Destroyer.

 

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Notes of Hope in times of turmoil

Lord, where are You when natural disasters happen?

The same place I Am when personal disasters happen, like the death of someone you love. I am right there in the midst.

Lord, but I feel like Martha and Mary: “If You had only been here, this would not have happened.” I can’t reconcile You saying You are present with the destruction a storm like Harvey brings, with the widespread damage. If You don’t cause it, can’t You intervene to prevent it, or to minimize the damage?

What happened in the Martha and Mary story?

Lazarus died. They thought You abandoned them. You did, actually—I mean, the story says You deliberately waited. You didn’t go.

And then what happened?

Well, then You came, and they were so upset, all that grief.

And then?

Well, then, the Miracle. You raised Lazarus. You had them roll away the stone and You called him back to life.

I could have healed Lazarus, as I had healed so many others, but that would have limited Me in their eyes. Instead, I showed Myself as Lord of Life, Lord over Death, so they would never have to fear death again, not for Lazarus, not for themselves. I gave them greater joy and greater freedom.

Yes, okay, but how does this relate to, say, this hurricane? Or to people who do die?

I AM the Lord of Life. I can—I do—bring Life out of Death. After a devastating loss, the Resurrection that has to happen is in you. In the one who remains behind.

I Am still Lord over Texas. I am working miracles you will never hear of, greater miracles even than preventing landfall.  I am reuniting families and communities. I did not cause this destruction but I am willing to use it, to turn it to bring about good, much good that would otherwise never have been. I make all things New. Learn the Butterfly lesson. Renewal—freshness—newness, that is Who I Am, that is what I do. Let Me do this in you as well—body and spirit and mind.