Connecting
to Spirit
A New Year's Message Welcome to a new year of possibilities. We live in a special time. It is a time of great opportunity and challenges. It is a time when technology has made it possible to speak to the world and for the world to speak to us. A time when humanity has the power to transform the world. It is a time of endings and new beginnings. The new year symbolizes to many a time of transition, a time of rebirth. To nature based traditions, this rebirth is reflected in the winter solstice and the rebirth of the sun. To Christians this sense of transition is represented through the birth of Christ. Most traditions celebrate the arrival of a new year pregnant with possibilities. To some people, it is an exciting time while to others, the times we live in are frightening. A few years ago there was a great deal of fear associated with our transition into the new millennium. For those whose fear was grounded in religious understanding, it marked the beginning of the end times. For those whose fear was grounded in technology, it was the fear of world-wide computer failure and chaos. Why is it that challenging times frighten some yet propel others forward? What is the key to unlocking the possibilities for the future? One of the things that fill people with fear is uncertainty, the unknown. We fear what we do not understand or what we do not know. Intolerance, prejudice and narrow-mindedness all have their foundation in this type of fear and in our own insecurity in dealing with what we do not know. Have you ever wondered why the color black has been equated with negativity? Think about it for a moment. What is it that we fear that lurks in the dark? It is the unknown. The color black is not evil or negative - It is the unknown - unrealized potential. Another thing that causes us fear when we are faced with the unknown is imaginings. We can be overwhelmed by what could happen. We fear not what is, but what could be. We can become consumed with fear over things which are imagined possibilities. Visualization can be just as powerful when used for negative as it is when used for positive outcomes. Reject fear and worry and insecurity. Those who embrace the future and embrace the unknown with confidence in their ability to deal with it, have the power of optimism on their side. Make no mistake about it, being optimistic will fill you with energy. It can transform your imaginings into potential. From a spiritual perspective, it is important to understand the power of thoughts. Negative thoughts rob you of your vitality, of your potential. Positive thoughts empower you. So, one of the things that separates those who fear change from those who do not, is how we approach the unknown. Ask yourself, how do I face the unknown? Am I comfortable with it or do I fear and resist it? Do I embrace it with optimism or pessimism? Do I have faith and confidence in my abilities to handle change? Now we are in the new millennium. As I mentioned earlier, there are many who fear this transition. There are those who expect that the world will end. There are people anticipating and preparing for great earth changes in answer to prophecy. They have built mountain retreats or isolated themselves from society. They do not understand the power of thought. They do not understand that a thought is a prayer. Those who are preparing for the end of the world are also inadvertently praying for the end of the world. It is ironic that they empower that which they fear. But this is always true of fear. In addition, it should be noted that being prepared for the end reinforces the desire for it to happen. What a waste of time and energy if they are wrong and the world does not end! They have all this food and water and may never get to use it. Why not put that precious time and energy expended on preparing into healing and restoring society - the earth? I should also like to mention that what you believe you live. We can choose to transform and heal or destroy the world with our thoughts and our prayers. In Spirit, thoughts are instantly manifested. In the physical, the process is not instantaneous but thought forms are manifested and eventually become reality. The proof is the chair that you are sitting in. It was once a thought form and now is manifest. You stand in a threshold. Your thoughts are the future. Do not allow prophecy to shape the world. Know that prophecy is a gift to help us choose the future. It is our thoughts that create our reality. Was the year 2,000 just another year. Did the new millennium begin on January 1999, or in the year 2,000. It doesn't matter. What matters is that it is you who is changing the world - choosing the future. What matters is that affirmations for the future can heal and affirm. What matters is that you are Spirit and cannot die. As you begin a new year, embrace the positive and allow Spirit to work in your life. Embrace a world of possibilities, and know that you are reborn each day, and that life is beautiful. Know that you have nothing to fear and that you are Spirit. Rejoice in the knowledge that you have challenges and that your life is purposeful. Happy New Year to you all!
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