Have a Heavenly New Year
I’ve always found New Year's Eve ironic, because people have a tendency to hate change; but here we all are getting ready to celebrate and embrace a change! A big change. Imagine if we could treat every change like we treat New Years Eve?
My boyfriend broke up with me- let’s have a party!
My parents are getting too old to take care of themselves- alright!!!
My metabolism has slowed to a crawl- wahoooooo!!! Champagne!
Easier said than done; but is it really? The only difference between hating change, and loving change is in our minds. I believe the most difficult part of change is the way we think that “something bad might happen”. Better to deal with the devil we know, than the devil we don't.
Our mind monsters populate our thoughts with anything and everything that could go wrong. Lucky for us, the only thing we have to fix is our minds. Yes, easier said than done.
At Chapel of Awareness, we focus on the controlling of the mind and our emotions. Perhaps that may seem odd for an institution that trains people to be mediums. Shouldn't we be focused on mediumship? NO! You cannot be an effective medium if you cannot control your mind and emotions. It's harder to learn control than it is to learn how to talk to dead people. Chapel's founder was gifted a few Spiritual Laws by Tao Sing to help guide us along the way- non interference, karma, love, moderation, reincarnation, no distractions.
If you have not been to classes at Chapel, it is likely you have not heard two very important "alternative" definitions. I wanted to bring those two definitions up today, because they pertain to our New Year, our perception of change, and everything else...really. These definitions are truly the "end all be all, life is what you make of it”; and I think if I can sear them into your brain, you’ll have a very good start to your New Years.
The words I want to teach you today you already know; but you’ve been given very different definitions in your life. I’d like to invite you to throw out the definitions, ideas, and perceptions you have about these two words... at least for today. I want you to be open to new truths for your New Year. These words aren’t just words, they are places we have been taught to aspire to, and avoid- Heaven and Hell.
If you were raised in a typically Christian Americana environment like myself, Heaven is golden gates surrounded by clouds. Everything is perfect, everyone has wings, and you’re surrounded by loved ones and Jesus. Hallelujah! Pearly gates, gold plated everything, Saint Peter waiting to see if you’re on his “nice” list. Heaven is a bit like a Western Christmas. He’s making his list, checking it twice, he’s gonna find out who’s naughty and nice. Everything you want is in Heaven: all your dead pets, your dead family members (that gained entry per Saint Peter and God’s discretion), Jesus is there handing out high fives, and perhaps there’s cocktails? Heaven is like THE BEST. You WANNA GO THERE...not to hell...certainly not purgatory- am I right?! Don’t worry everyone! There’s a sure fire way to get to heaven, and avoid hell. All you have to do is: be a child under the age of ten (free entry for kids!), and/or accept Jesus as your Lord God and Savior, don’t sin, don’t even think about sinning (in fact, make sure you judge other people for sinning, just in case), if you sin admit you sinned to someone designated by God to absolve you of such sins, get baptized (DO NOT FORGET TO GET BAPTIZED, if you miss this one...you’re going to hell), and have an ever looming suffocating fear of hell and God for all of your days on earth... JUST IN CASE. You don’t want to risk going to hell.
...Then there’s Hell, a fiery pit of eternal punishment for not being baptized and not accepting Jesus as your personal lord and savior...regardless of whether or not you've ever even heard of the dude. There’s little demon fellars running around with pitchforks, poking you; and you have to stay there FOREVER. FOREVER DAMNED! Muahahaha! Also, watch out for Satan, and all his demon friends!!! They're always trying to trick you into doing the wrong thing, because they're in a competition for your spirit with God. Obviously.
Did that give you nightmares when you were young? I had friends growing up who were terrified of hell. They had nightmares, they felt guilty all the time, and they were always crying to teachers, "Am I going to hell?!" I think I grew up charmed, because I never bought it. I literally never once considered Hell to be real. I was more conflicted about Heaven...that didn’t really seem real to me either, but slightly more real than Hell. I knew intuitively there was an afterlife; but didn't understand the discrimination of Christian Heaven. I kept my thoughts about it to myself, because you find out really quickly in the church that grown-ups didn’t like thoughts like the ones I had.
Hell is pretty scary; but Heaven is almost as disturbing and ominous...if not MORE disturbing and ominous as hell...actually.
You’ve probably noticed that these are not the definitions of Heaven and Hell I am going to offer you. I should hope you noticed- I dressed those paragraphs with as much sarcasm as I possibly could. Those paragraphs aren’t how I want you to spend your New Year's Eve. I’d much rather you spend your New Year's Eve contemplating Chapel’s definitions of Heaven and Hell. I believe it will make a valuable and positive impact on your evening, and your new year.
Chapel defines Heaven, not as a place; but as a state of mind, on earth, one is in when one is in harmony with one’s path and spiritual law. Chapel defines hell as a state of mind, on earth, one is in when one IS NOT in harmony with one’s path and spiritual law.
Sometimes people get curious about what I do, what I teach, and what I believe; and I openly engage in conversations about just that. Whenever the topic of Spirit Side comes up, so does Heaven and Hell. Curiously, no one really flinches when I express I teach there is no Heaven. There is the physical side and the non-physical side, and heaven is just a state of mind on earth. I get slow nods, “Okay”, even “I like that, okay, that's cool.” Oddly, people get combative when I say I teach there is no Hell. People get really butt hurt over there not being a Hell! “But where is Hitler? Where’s the serial killers? Where is my ex-husband going to go! HELL! There is a HELL! People need to be punished, and go to hell, and burn in fiery miserable unbearable horrific cruel HELL for all eternity!!!!”
Jeez, oh my lands, okay, holy cow, you want people to suffer, I get it. WOW. That’s a little dark, not my thing, but you do you.
There are people SO indoctrinated by fear and anger, that they refuse to believe in a kinder, benevolent spiritual existence.
Aside from folks really wanting humans to suffer after they die, another major point of contention is the lack of “judgment”. Which I totally get, because obviously there must be some supreme bearded old guy choosing who stays, and who goes, right? It's definitely true, that's why we created a dominating patriarchal system on earth! To mimic the system in Heaven! Our lives and fate can't be our choice, or our free will. That would be silly! It would be so silly if our lives and deaths were OUR responsibility! I mean there’s NO WAY we are responsible for, or capable of, determining whether or not we do, or did the “right” thing. That sort of thing isn’t up to us.
Just gonna hand the responsibility for my life over to someone else...I’m not in charge of it...no way...supreme bearded old guy is in charge of my fate. I definitely...can’t be held accountable for it! Not my problem!
...that’s a pretty good scapegoat, man. “I’m not responsible for my fate; and I can do whatever I want as long as I admit when I do something wrong, and let a priest dunk me in water.”
Actually, now that I think bout it...It’s sounds like it's a lot easier to get into Christian Heaven, than it is to get into mine. I've got to constantly think of Spiritual Law, whether or not I'm in alignment with my path, and I've got to constantly hold myself accountable for my actions because there's no supreme bearded old guy to pass judgment on me. Sigh. I'm always doing things the hard way.
I didn’t bring up Heaven and Hell as a topic for New Year's Eve to scare you, or to poke fun at the historical definitions of Heaven and Hell (okay, maybe a little). I brought up the topic because I like you, and I want you to be in Heaven this New Year. I had to address the ancient definitions of Heaven and Hell to showcase why so many Western people unconsciously live in a state of flux, guilt, lack, and/or misery. Most of our stories, bible or not, are built on a platform of FEAR and POWERLESSNESS.
“Fear God, Fear Satan, and you are powerless to determine your fate.”
So, that narrative is dumb; but that dumb narrative really holds us back, and can keep us from fulfilling our true potential for joy and abundance. I don’t want you to feel powerless and fearful- I want you to feel empowered.
You are powerful.
I’m a task oriented person, a recovering type A personality, so I like lists. That’s a lie, I LOVE lists. There is comfort in the intention and focus set by having a list. I took it upon myself, to create a list for you:
How to get to, and stay in Heaven this New Year. Here we go!
Recognize Karma (cause and effect) is in play all the time; and regularly check in on your actions to determine what the effect of the cause will be. Ex. If I ignore my boss’s input on my job performance because I don’t like criticism, what will happen? You're probably going to get fired, friend. Ex. If I want to have 5,000$ in my savings account by the end of next year, what actions do I need to take to get there?
Use “Like Attracts Like” to your benefit. If you are living life as a sad, miserable person- you are going to attract sad, miserable people and situations to you. If you are living life as a happy, hopeful person, you are going to attract happy, hopeful people and situations to you. Be what you want to see in your life- Be the change you want to see in the word.
Don’t overdue, hyper focus, or obsess. Practice Moderation. If you find yourself entrenched in something (drugs, knitting, alcohol, scrap-booking, cake), it’s probably time to get balanced. We can’t eat cake every day for breakfast. Maybe every other day.
Don’t get distracted by things that don’t matter. Distractions take up a lot of time- precious time. Do you really need to stop to take time out of your day for a political fight with your cousin, Ralph? No! Leave Ralph alone. Is it going to add any value to your life if you wait in line to get the new iPhone? No! Try to not live your life like Doug the Dog from the Disney Movie “Up”. Squirrel!!
MIND YOUR BUSINESS!!!! Non-interference, people. Stop meddling in other people’s lives, or trying to fix other people’s problems. It is likely you are committing interference if you’re focused on the actions of others. It is also likely that you are distracting yourself with the problems of others so you don't have to deal with your own problems. See #4 again.
Love one another. That one never gets old. It never goes out of style, and it never stops working. Do all things with love. It’s easier on our bodies, minds, and souls! Love is always our purpose!!!! We do not spend nearly enough time loving.
Remember you are here to learn lessons, and have experiences that enrich your spirit, so you can grow and evolve to spiritual perfection. This is the reason you reincarnated. This is the reason you are alive. Remind yourself every day: I am here to learn, grow, and evolve.
That is a short list of things to do to get to Heaven, People. There’s no guilt involved, no dunking in water, and no guest list. You just have to be in harmony with Spiritual Law, and you can live in Heaven every day of your life. Isn’t that what you want?! That’s what I WANT!!!
I want you to be in Heaven this New Year. Take your power back. Change your mind about change. Treat every change like we treat New Years Eve. As a celebration.
Happy New Years, Everyone!!!
