|
 |
 |
My Dearest Friends,
When in his presence, his love surrounding me, I felt his enormous spirit and will never forget the sweetness of his voice. His message still rings in my ears and is ever so clear: "Above all else, love one another..."
“Love one another,” I thought. “Can it be that simple?” I wondered. Loving whomever and whatever was easy within the presence of Jesus where I felt love everywhere! Heaven holds nothing but love, God is love, Jesus is love, the ability to love was no challenge at all.
Back on earth, I found loving everyone is not so simple—not so easy! The love I had for everyone and felt back from them, was based upon conditions that made me feel vulnerable. Loving with all your heart can hurt, and hurt deeply. During a lifetime, loved ones are lost to death, to illness, and even to others when love wanes and partners whom committed to unending love find somebody new to love.
I saw that to love and to be loved—is one of the strongest driving forces within mankind. Either love or the lack of love will compel or govern at nearly every turn. Almost every expression, every thought and deed, seeks love and acceptance of that love. We are challenged by this never ending need and are often brought to despair because of it.
A need to find love can take us on a journey to discover it in all the wrong places. How many songs are written about those places and people so wrong for us? Yet, we are compelled by the internal need and drive to discover and to experience love, an emotion that almost overwhelms to keep seeking.
I eventually learned how it is that we are to learn "to love above all else." God is pure love! He is the ultimate of love and he desires for us to grow to become as he is. Learning to love is a selfless act that comes with self-giving and sacrifice. While it is risky business for some, it is our ultimate goal---our greatest challenge on earth--- and what we came here to learn.
As God’s creation, our spirits loved freely and unconditionally when with him. In the presence of God, love comes easily because we draw our ability to love from him. For higher growth, God sent us to earth to acquire this attribute for ourselves. To become beings of greater love—our understanding of love had to internalize–to become a part of our soul. This can only happen through experience. On Earth, what love we gain—is tested to the nth degree! By the time we think we have learned it all, something develops to further our testing—and the tests are almost always through painful trials. As we learn what true love is not, we will learn what pure love is.
To love, in the purest way, we must first recognize and develop the love already within us. Every fiber of our soul was created by God to love and to generate more love that we might become pure love; the purest energy that both creates and heals. Through mistakes and through misuse of love we will come to learn what is pure about love. We can work through our physicality bound by ego—that selfish pursuit of physical love—and face even the great challenges brought by those in quest to find love for themselves when abusing that of others. Even those whom we love the most and become hurt by, can bring our greatest growth.
What a blessing to know that within you lies the purest of love in embryo, and that it is without beginning or end. Uncover it by opening to love’s possibility and trusting its ultimate purpose. Soon, you will feel its completeness and discover that love simply just "is."
My love and prayers are with all, especially as you meet your trials and challenges— stay the course, our goal is worth it! God works in mysterious ways, he gives us a taste of his purest love and blessings, then sees what happens to our faith when it is challenged.
All my love,
Betty
New additions:
Finding Our Garden Within
. . . the kingdom of God is within you.
(Luke 17:21)
“. . . As I got closer to the water the thought came to me that these could possibly be the “living waters” mentioned in the scriptures, and I wanted to bathe in them.
As I approached the water, I noticed a rose near me
That seemed to stand out from the other flowers, And I stopped to examine it. Its beauty was breathtaking.
Among all the flowers there, none captured me like this one. It was gently swaying to faint music, and singing praises to the Lord with sweet tones of its own. I realized that I could actually see it growing.
As it developed before my eyes, my spirit was moved, and I wanted to experience its life, to step into it and feel its spirit. As this thought came to me, I seemed to be able to see down into it. It was as though my vision had become microscopic and allowed me to penetrate the rose's deepest parts.
But it was much more than a visual experience.
 I felt the rose’s presence around me, as if I were actually inside and part of the flower. I experienced it as if I were the flower. I felt the rose swaying to the music of all the other flowers, and I felt it creating its own music, a melody that perfectly harmonized with the thousands of other roses joining it. I understood that the music in my flower came from its individual parts, that its petals produced their own tones, and that each intelligence within that petal was adding to its perfect notes, each working harmoniously for the overall effect—Which was joy. My joy was absolutely full again! I felt God in the plant, in me, His love pouring into us. We were all one!” —Embraced By The Light, pages 80-81
 more favorite
quotes
|
|
Readers Ask Betty
Do our pets go to heaven?
“No emotional trauma distresses us more than the loss of a dear one, and so a proper understanding of death is vital to our emotional and spiritual well-being. Loneliness tests us to the breaking point and can lead us into despair if we let it. However, knowing where a loved one goes after death is important to our healing.”
—The Ripple Effect, page 188
I am often asked what happens to our pets when they die. I believe, with all my heart, that they too return to the Spirit World where I once visited to be with our Creator. All spirit is created by God our eternal Father, and all spirit will return to him. To me this includes our beloved pets. They will likely greet us when it, too, is our time to be with God. There is no greater thing to learn on earth then to love—love each other and all creation. Sometimes it takes a furry little friend to open our hearts to experience and to learn of love. They are gifts from our Heavenly Father. How blessed we are!
Will I know my loved ones when I die?
“Our bonds with loved ones continue after death as they began long before birth. The love between us is eternal and does not cease simply because we cannot see the departed. Those who have passed to the other side are very much alive—more so than ever—and they are able to comfort us and send us their love.”
—The The Ripple Effect, page 190
Many want to know if they will see their deceased loved ones again. Death is but a transition where heaven and earth come together. Though loss is felt here, a new birth in heaven is attended with excitement and joy as a beloved family member returns home from their journey in mortality. We recognize our loved ones not only by their physical appearance, but by their "presence" as well—that identity that emanates one's true nature. We recognize each other and with great joy! When my father appeared to me a year after he passed away, I recognized him instantly, though he appeared much younger than I had become used to seeing him. I was assured with perfect clarity that, not only was he back home, but mindful of me and helping me when needed.
“You too can take comfort in knowing that your family members—perhaps from many generations back—are aware of you and are guiding you at times with unseen hands. God shares out the work of raising and watching over his children. His work occurs at many levels to ensure we are never alone. Knowledge of his plan tells us that our deceased loved ones are indeed our loved ones still. Though our mother, father, child, sister or brother may die, our love for them does not. By this we know that the bonds of love do extend between earth and heaven. By this we have hope and even assurance that family connections are enduring, even eternal.”
—The Ripple Effect, page 199
Yes, our families and our loved ones are forever!
Betty, my life is so difficult!
How can I find strength?
“Through prayer we bring life to our souls. Not only do we open ourselves to an increased endowment of God’s love and light, but we also call down the powers of heaven to overcome trials. In sending up a desperate cry for help, we call angels down to our sides to fight for our cause by adding their energy to ours. By sincerely seeking wisdom, we open ourselves to impressions which can come immediately or at odd moments and provide keys of knowledge which unlock doors of opportunity. By offering heartfelt gratitude and praise to God, we open up space in our lives for new blessings.”
—The Ripple Effect, page 95
I was distinctly told that all prayers of desire are heard and answered. When we have great need, or when we are praying for other people, the beams project straight from us and are immediately visible.
. . .We all have the ability, however, to reach God with our prayers.
Embraced By The Light, page 104
People often ask me how to pray. Any form of prayer gives us personal moments with God. Even our thoughts can be prayers, especially when we have emotion attached. The words we speak affect the energy around us and so our prayers spoken aloud are powerful. However, silent prayers are heard too and can even progress to a state of continual focus on God. Christ encouraged us to “pray without ceasing,” which is when our hearts are so connected to God that they always hold a prayer. There are times, when whatever the state of our physical being, our soul can be on its knees in prayer.
“God knows beforehand what we need, but he wants us to grow by exercising our spiritual strength and constantly seeking his help in the face of opposition. The world may tell us to rely on our own egos and talents. Satan may tell us there is no God. Our own consciences weaken us with accusations of unworthiness. If we are going to pray effectively we must exercise faith sufficient to blast through these doubts and speak to our Father who is waiting patiently and lovingly for us to reach out.”
—The Awakening Heart, page 97
Go here and fill out the form to submit your question to Betty.
|
|
|
|
This man stopped walking with Jesus and his life became a shambles. He died and was given a second chance