Giving back and paying forward

Giving Back and Paying Forward

I have been blessed.

I found the secret of turning negatives into positives.

It wasn’t always so.

My struggles are not unique. 

School, relationships, work and finding balance in life have been my challenges.

I was in my 40’s when I decided that life just didn’t feel right.

Marriage had been a struggle, work was no longer satisfying, debt had taken control of my conscious thoughts and church had let me down.

Life was at a crises point and I didn’t know what to do.

I was continually reminded of things that had gone wrong in my life and all the unresolved issues I had let slide. 

It seemed unsurmountable.

I decided to write out a list.

I made a list of all the areas in my life that needed attention. 

It was not a short list.

When I looked at the list as a whole, it seemed huge. My plan of attack was to take the list and work on items one at a time.

It took time, months went by, but one by one my list was getting smaller.

I felt better, I was more confident, I was clearer, more determined and more focused.

I approached those I had wounded and ask them to forgive me for being human.

I resolved to rid myself of debt.

I sold my expensive SUV and sold my house.

I paid off my debts went on a walk about.

It was an intensive period of 6 months. 

I bought a used truck and a small camp trailer and wandered the land looking for answers.

My marriage failed completely. 

My church excommunicated me. 

I no longer had a means of employment.

A divorce and yard sale took what had taken me a lifetime to accumulate.

I began to pray.

Feeling that my life was on a precipice, I went to the mountain top to fast and pray. 

I camped on the edge of a cliff, placed my sleeping bag on the ledge and decided that I would not come down until I had an answer.

Three days later, hungry and thirsty I descended the mountain with new resolve.

My old life gone, I resolved to start again, only this time I would follow my heart.

I detached from the hustle and bustle of being a worker bee and began to relax into my new life.

I read inspiring books, walked many miles and spent time in nature observing and asking questions.

I took my new life seriously.

One day while fervently praying on bended knee and asking for help I opened my eyes to see a skunk only a few feet away sitting calmly watching me.

My solemn meditation and prayer turned to panic and later into laughter.

I learned a lesson … take life lightly.

I learned to forgive myself and others for being human. 

I learned to find joy in simple things. 

Nature became my chapel. 

Chatter from the outer world became less important.

Free from the albatross of stuff that I had collected over the years, I found that I could live simply with only a few things.

Life has taken me many places.

My soul has been challenged many times.

Each challenge makes me stronger.

Each success brings more confidence.

Work now brings fulfillment and joy. 

I recently visited my old church and was able to express gratitude for the lessons learned and the freedom to follow my own path.

I found my secret to inner peace …

When life, work, partners, or companions create chaos in your life, learn to recognize the challenge as a lesson.

Look inward to find answers.

Ask your Spirit Guides and Angels to help you find answers.

Ask to understand why you have attracted this lesson.

Recognize that what you are now experiencing is a result of the vibrational frequencies you are sending out.

Experience each life lesson as a challenge and opportunity to grow, don’t shortcut your lesson or it will come back again.

Pass through your dark night of the soul and into the light.

Be gentle with yourself and others.

Forgive yourself and others.

Learn to love yourself and others fully.

Pay any debts that restrict your movement into a happier life whether they be monetary or promissory.

Always, always, always show and give gratitude for the lessons, blessings, and challenges that shape your world.

Give back to those who help you.

Pay forward all that you have received.

Your flow of life can be a happy, natural, pleasant experience once you align with the true purpose of your life.