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 Walking a conscious spiritual path is truly a choice. We can sit and read about insights and experiences of others, but that doesn’t move us forward on our sacred journey unless we are committed to meditate, contemplate and internalize the truths that arise in the silence or in spiritual literature and other spiritual experiences. I made this commitment twenty years ago. It was the best decision I have ever made.
Choosing to follow spiritual guidance may produce a true awakening to the Love that we really are. Each person’s awakening will be different. No one can make it happen as one thinks it ought to be. It comes through the higher consciousness and often begins as a growing reverence for life. The journey becomes a richer experience each time an inner realization of the Presence occurs. Life itself becomes a spiritual adventure.
Great Mystics tell us that this is not an easy path because we are called to “die” to attain what we desire. This is not a physical death. It is dying to the personal sense of self. Full Enlightenment occurs when the revelation of God incarnated as the Self is fully realized. There is no longer I, me or mine nor past, present or future. There is only God, Light, and now.
Over the years, there have been many ups and downs in my spiritual journey. There still are, but I can feel the change in myself. There was a time that I never thought of God or Spirit or even the Universe. For many years after I had an awakening during a long illness, I was only aware when I was in the peaceful flow. Today I am more aware of the times when I am out of the flow. That affords me a great opportunity to understand how my ego tries to pull me out of peace. This awareness is a reminder for me to detach from the mind talk and to look at the situation without judgment. Only then can I identify those old behaviors and beliefs, understand them and, begin to transform them.
Awakening to the Truth of who we are is the greatest commitment we will ever make. We must become aware of the Spirit that guides us and release our attachment to the sense of separation from others and the world. As feelings arise there may be distractions, fear, suffering and a number of other emotions. It may feel as if we are at war with ourselves. The mind is powerful, but so is the heart. Compassion for the self and others will always bring us back to Love.
The Divine works through us as often as we allow. While writing my thesis on Mysticism, my inner wisdom guided me to different books or websites that made my work easier. However, when it came to the conclusion, I was stuck. I struggled to find just the right words to pull this topic together. It wasn’t working. I had extreme neck and shoulder pain. I finally visited my doctor who banned me from the computer or anything to do with the thesis for the weekend. “Just rest,” he ordered, and I listened. The next morning, I plopped in front of the television. The first program just happened to give me an idea for the conclusion. For the entire weekend, more ideas came out of a book, a DVD and from my higher Self. No struggle, no pressure. I just surrendered and sat in awe of the entire experience. I didn’t write one word at this time. I just watched and listened. On Monday when I began writing again, the words just flowed.
This is the Sacred Journey…to surrender, be present, observe, listen, trust and act. It’s very simple, but not always easy. Many hesitate because they believe that this journey means giving up too much. I certainly don’t agree. It has enriched my more life than I ever imagined. Everyone can choose to walk this Sacred Journey. How about You???
Written with Love
Barbara Rasp
Holy is this path and holy are you who walk it. It has been found by many brothers who see the lessons in the Journey to Enlightenment as that path to Heaven. You walk alone, but you do not die alone; for when you move out of the valley and up the mountain, life takes on new meaning.
From: A Gift of Roses, by Barbara Rasp
http://www.wisdomsvoice.com/books.htm
 Dear Friends, If you have looked at your email today, you probably saw what one may call a computer glitch on Mystical Reflections. Well, I have to admit that it really was a Barbara glitch. Everything was going well at 3PM and…in my haste to add text, I hit the wrong computer key and OMG, the computer took over and away it went sans text. I quickly found that no matter how I tried to fix it or stop it, I couldn’t find an answer. So I’m sending it again today. Yesterday, March 4th was a very special day for me. The text below is a tribute to my Dad. I hope you enjoy it. It’s March fourth, a very special day… one that will always be in my memory. Today would be my father’s 98th birthday. Unfortunately I only had him for my first twenty seven years, not nearly enough to truly understand and appreciate his impact on my life. Dad was the quiet and thoughtful one in the family and, in some ways, a mystery to me. My mother was outgoing and loved by everyone. Today I can see pieces of both of them in me, but I didn’t recognize the part of me that is Dad until long after he was gone. At twenty-seven I didn’t have the capacity to understand how much he loved me and how much of him is in me. Today as I reflect on his impact on my life, I can appreciate his adventuresome spirit which I inherited. For my first eight years, we lived in a small Pennsylvania steel town. Dad worked the swing shift in the mill, but he had a vision of a better life. In 1947 he purchased a homemade one room 16 ft. house trailer. Before the snows arrived, he hitched the trailer to our 1941 Pontiac and moved us to Florida. I had one doll, a teddy bear, a bicycle and a set of loving parents that were willing to take a chance by leaving a large extended family behind to create a happier and more prosperous life. For a year we lived in that one room trailer with a hot-plate, a tiny icebox, a drop down sofa and a rollaway bed. The next year we moved into a 26 ft. trailer that had two rooms. Four years later, we moved into a small home. I loved and admired my dad in my early years, but when I hit my teens, Dad could do nothing right. He was the one that received the brunt of my teenage hormonal swings. Fortunately, Dad had patience. That issue was resolved one weekend when I had just completed my nursing education and had taken a weekend off of work to go home and be with my mother who was in the hospital recovering from surgery. One night, Dad took me out for dinner to a very good restaurant. My inner wisdom prompted me to apologize to him for what I had put him through during my teens. I also told him how much I loved and admired him and how happy I was that he was my father. Dad accepted that apology and told me he knew that he could be stubborn too. My mother told me many years later that Dad was beaming with pride when he told her about the incident. He said, at that moment, he knew that I had finally grown up. That conversation truly changed our relationship. I realized that my behavior was hurtful to Dad and to me. I asked for and received his forgiveness, and I forgave myself. Our arguments stopped and I came to know Dad in an entirely different light. I also learned that it is OK to disagree, but it’s more important to learn from one another than to always be right. I am also grateful for that evening because I didn’t know that in eight years, Dad would be gone. For many years I wondered why I chose Dad to take out my hormonal frustrations. Perhaps it’s because I have so much of him in me. My adventuresome spirit went beyond our move to Florida. It eventually took me all over this country. Although I have my mother’s great sense of humor, caring, and intuitive nature, I have dad’s quiet spirit as well. I don’t have to be the life of a party. I just enjoy being there. Today I am also happy being alone because it gives me the opportunity to connect with my Source and bask in the wonder of quiet time. I found myself misty-eyed while writing this piece. Aside from family dynamics and how much we can learn through our interactions, I feel that a deeper message here is the importance of forgiveness, not only for another but for us as well. Forgiveness is not complete until we are willing to forgive ourselves. This behavior will pose great challenges for the ego. For our spirit, it will always create Love and Peace. Written with Love, Barbara Rasp My Dear Ones, Always look to the light for within the light are the answers to the peacefulness you seek. Within the heart lies the opportunity to change the world, but one cannot change the world unless one changes the self. Without love there is no glory. Without love there is no success. Without love there is no peace. Without love there is no forgiveness. Judgment comes from the intellect. Forgiveness comes from the heart. Judgment comes from fear created by the frightened mind. Forgiveness comes from Love, created of the eternal God. Wisdom’s Voice http://www.wisdomsvoice.com/
 It’s March fourth, a very special day… one that will always be in my memory. Today would be my father’s 98th birthday. Unfortunately I only had him for my first twenty seven years, not nearly enough to truly understand and appreciate his impact on my life. Dad was the quiet and thoughtful one in the family and, in some ways, a mystery to me. My mother was outgoing and loved by everyone. Today I can see pieces of both of them in me, but I didn’t recognize the part of me that is Dad until long after he was gone. At twenty-seven I didn’t have the capacity to understand how much he loved me and how much of him is in me.
Today as I reflect on his impact on my life, I can appreciate his adventuresome spirit which I inherited. For my first eight years, we lived in a small Pennsylvania steel town. Dad worked the swing shift in the mill, but he had a vision of a better life. In 1947 he purchased a homemade one room 16 ft. house trailer. Before the snows arrived, he hitched the trailer to our 1941 Pontiac and moved us to Florida. I had one doll, a teddy bear, a bicycle and a set of loving parents that were willing to take a chance by leaving a large extended family behind to create a happier and more prosperous life.
For a year we lived in that one room trailer with a hot-plate, a tiny icebox, a drop down sofa and a rollaway bed. The next year we moved into a 26 ft. trailer that had two rooms. Four years later, we moved into a small home. I loved and admired my dad in my early years, but when I hit my teens, Dad could do nothing right. He was the one that received the brunt of my teenage hormonal swings. Fortunately, Dad had patience.
That issue was resolved one weekend when I had just completed my nursing education and had taken a weekend off of work to go home and be with my mother who was in the hospital recovering from surgery. One night, Dad took me out for dinner to a very good restaurant. My inner wisdom prompted me to apologize to him for what I had put him through during my teens. I also told him how much I loved and admired him and how happy I was that he was my father. Dad accepted that apology and told me he knew that he could be stubborn too. My mother told me many years later that Dad was beaming with pride when he told her about the incident. He said, at that moment, he knew that I had finally grown up.
That conversation truly changed our relationship. I realized that my behavior was hurtful to Dad and to me. I asked for and received his forgiveness, and I forgave myself. Our arguments stopped and I came to know Dad in an entirely different light. I also learned that it is OK to disagree, but it’s more important to learn from one another than to always be right. I am also grateful for that evening because I didn’t know that in eight years, Dad would be gone.
For many years I wondered why I chose Dad to take out my hormonal frustrations. Perhaps it’s because I have so much of him in me. My adventuresome spirit went beyond our move to Florida. It eventually took me all over this country. Although I have my mother’s great sense of humor, caring, and intuitive nature, I have dad’s quiet spirit as well. I don’t have to be the life of a party. I just enjoy being there. Today I am also happy being alone because it gives me the opportunity to connect with my Source and bask in the wonder of quiet time.
I found myself misty-eyed while writing this piece. Aside from family dynamics and how much we can learn through our interactions, I feel that a deeper message here is the importance of forgiveness, not only for another but for us as well. Forgiveness is not complete until we are willing to forgive ourselves. This behavior will pose great challenges for the ego. For our spirit, it will always create Love and Peace.
Written with Love,
Barbara Rasp
My Dear Ones,
Always look to the light for within the light are the answers to the peacefulness you seek.
Within the heart lies the opportunity to change the world, but one cannot change the world unless one changes the self.
Without love there is no glory.
Without love there is no success.
Without love there is no peace.
Without love there is no forgiveness.
Judgment and Forgiveness are only thoughts.
To judge your brother is to allow the intellect to speak and bring forth thoughts of pain.
Judgment comes from the intellect.
Forgiveness comes from the heart.
Judgment comes from fear created by the frightened mind.
Forgiveness comes from Love, created of the eternal God.
Wisdom’s Voice
http://www.wisdomsvoice.com/
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Walking a conscious spiritual path is truly a choice. We can sit and read about insights and experiences of others, but that doesn’t move us forward on our sacred journey unless we are committed to meditate, contemplate and internalize the truths that arise in the silence or in spiritual literature and other spiritual experiences. I made this commitment twenty years ago. It was the best decision I have ever made.
