that where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness;

Forgiveness is letting go. For me; forgiveness is to stop fighting with myself, or with others. It is to stop judging and blaming. To forgive is to release the burden of our own failures, or the failures of others. To others we can say “I’m not saying what you did to me was OK, I’m just not going to carry this darkness in my heart or on my shoulders any more”. We may spend time asking ourselves ”why?”, we may torment ourselves trying to find reason or purpose behind events that we cannot understand. We don’t want to believe that we deserve anything less that love, and that is because we don’t, and that is why we torment ourselves with a head that wants to push the anger away, but in order to protect self (to protect our ego because in truth, we don’t need protecting), we are actually holding on tight. To forgive is to allow the emotion to flow through you, and say “I’m not holding on to this anymore - I do not need to. I do not need to hold on to this resentment any more, because now I can forgive and let it go”.

So what do we come to know that allows us to forgive?

We come to accept that in our human-ness, we all have our light and dark sides. We have a conscience of free-will, and in coming to know the freedom of choice, we must have within our experience the choice between two opposites. It cannot be any other way. We are all in the same boat, sailing the same journey. The journey of creation. The journey of creating our own reality. Our ego, provides the mechanism in which we make these choices.

Acceptance is on our path of forgiveness. Acceptance that we are all perfectly imperfect. As Jesus said “He that is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone”.

I believe that we do the best we can, with the tools that we have. Sometimes, the tool box is pretty empty.

A big change occurred for me in my life, when I came into contact with numerology. Numerology demonstrates that we are souls that have experienced many lifetimes. We enter each life with an accumulation of experience and qualities that have developed as well as lessons and challenges for our growth. We can see this clearly for each and every person. People and circumstances come into our existence to help us fulfill our purpose. In human form, this can mean that have what we perceive as painful experiences.

When I have been able to step outside of myself, and look at the drama before me, I can ask “why would this circumstance have been orchestrated for my higher good?” “How have I changed, as a result of this experience?” “what has this taught me?” It doesn’t mean that we don’t feel pain, but it can help to view our lives from a wider perspective - and consider for a moment that there is meaning and purpose behind experiences that seem meaningless and purposeless.

To forgive, is to let go, and let God.

Take a deep breath, sigh long, and let it go.

Lord, make me a channel of thy peace;
that where there is hatred, I may bring love;
that where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness;
that where there is discord, I may bring harmony;
that where there is error, I may bring truth;
that where there is doubt, I may bring faith;
that where there is despair, I may bring hope;
that where there are shadows, I may bring light;
that where there is sadness, I may bring joy.
Lord, grant that I may seek rather to comfort than to be comforted;
to understand, than to be understood;
to love, than to be loved.
For it is by self-forgetting that one finds.
It is by forgiving that one is forgiven.
It is by dying that one awakens to eternal life.
Amen.

that where there is hatred, I may bring love;

Love is a natural expression of who we are, yet we find it most difficult to love ourselves. Before we can extend love to others, we must find it within us. We do not find love when we are loved. We love, and have love, when we ARE love.

When we love ourselves, we are vibrant, passionate, compassionate - we express ourselves with who we are. We are authentic. When we are being true to ourselves, we can make the most amazing transformations within us and without us.

I am reminded of the most perfect quote by Marianne Williamson, from her book “A Return To Love”:

Our greatest fear is not that we are inadequate,
but that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our darkness, that frightens us.
We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant,
gorgeous, handsome, talented and fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.

Your playing small does not serve the world.
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking
so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.

We were born to make manifest the glory of God within us.
It is not just in some; it is in everyone.

And, as we let our own light shine, we consciously give
other people permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our fear,
our presence automatically liberates others.

Love starts at home. It starts with honoring who we are - accepting who we are. We are all perfectly imperfect and imperfectly perfect. Love speaks from the heart, it heals, it forgives. Forgive yourself, and forgive those who you perceive have caused you pain.

To experience love is to experience life. It cannot be read about, or watched on TV. It has to be experienced. Often, the lessons of love are painful and as such, we can shut down our hearts, to not speak to the heart or of the heart in hope that we may protect ourselves. To do so, is to shut yourself off from the joy of life itself.

Wear green, or visualise green around your heart. Green is the colour of the heart chakra and when in balance will enable you to give and receive love in perfect balance. Blue is of the throat chakra. Intend to release any blockages that prevent you from speaking your truth, speaking from the heart - speaking with truth, and speaking from love.

Through reading this passage, may you receive the blessing of love.

Lord, make me a channel of your peace

Allow love to flow through me, not from me. Let my love be unconditional, without attachment. Help me to give of myself with pure intention.

We are beings of energy. At the lowest level of our existence, if we were to take a microscope, at the lowest level possible, beyond the molecule, the atom, we would not find mass. We would find vibration. Energy. This energy is our live force, our chi. This life-force is neither good, nor bad for that is a human perception followed by a judgement. We determine good, or bad by our life experiences, our family upbringing, our culture - everything perceived through the eyes of being in this human form. We also see through the eyes of our soul - our accumulation of experience that we have brought with us into this lifetime.

Life-force is not good, or bad. It just IS. It is potential. We are potential. Potential for a future we are creating with our intentions.

We are all channels of energy, yet energy can become blocked in our body. Fear, which is the opposite of love, blocks the channel of peace that naturally runs through us. Peace and love is our birthright. It is a natural condition of our human existence. It is a gift that is rightfully yours.

Let us remove ourselves from fear. Let us remove the blocks, that prevent us from flowing naturally, expressing all that we are. Let us not be confused with expressing ourselves with judgement and perception of what is good, or bad, thereby, expecting something in return, that too, is either good or bad.

For now, let us be in the moment, and be a channel of peace.

Amen