Check out 3 April 2022 Sunday chat https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1445242021
Hello to you. I hope this finds you well today. It’s looking like another beautiful day is happening. I’m headed to church in a few minutes so I will leave you with this little message from A Woman’s Spirit today:
I can trust that God is part of every detail of my life today. I can either be peaceful about what happens or be resistant and miss my opportunity to contribute.
And a couple pictures:
Check out 31 March 2022 Thursday chat (placebo effect) https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1442170547
Hello to you. How are you? After my post yesterday when I shared my experiences with rose quartz it made me think about the placebo effect. To me that term is like belief. There are many things in our world that we believe to be true, believe to exist but there is little to no “peer reviewed scientific evidence.” Intangible things like God and our souls and yet we continue to believe and have positive experiences. Whether or not there hasn’t been a scientific study or there has been one doesn’t matter to me…..doesn’t change what I believe or negate the value of personal experiences I have had. Whether or not science thinks so, crystals help, God and the soul exist. There is great power in belief.
What is the placebo effect? The placebo effect is when a person’s physical or mental health appears to improve after taking a placebo or ‘dummy’ treatment. Placebo is Latin for ‘I will please’ and refers to a treatment that appears real, but is designed to have no therapeutic benefit.
https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au › …
https://www.livescience.com/40347-crystal-healing.html – Crystal healing: Stone-cold facts about gemstone treatments
There is no peer-reviewed scientific evidence that crystal healing has any effect; it is considered a pseudoscience. Alleged successes of crystal healing can be attributed to the placebo effect.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org › wiki
The messages from A Woman’s Spirit were good today:
Even on a rainy day, I can feel the sunshine. Even when the clouds are gray, I can feel a glow. There’s a little light inside me, just keeps burning. I take it with me, everywhere I go. – Jill Clark
We carry within ourselves the single necessary ingredient for our happiness: a positive attitude. Nothing can ruin our day , unless we let it. No remark can devastate us, unless we let it. No person can have a harmful, lasting impact on us, unless we let him or her. No unhealthy, negative attitude controls our thoughts without our assent.
Feeling good about the experiences we’re having, regardless of their nature, is a decision. Trusting that some good will come out of every one of them is a habit we can form. We can acquire an attitude of hope for growth and positive change.
I will see the sunshine even through the clouds if that’s my choice. Today I have twenty-four hours to practice this.
I wanted to mention my young friend on Twitch told us about another incident she and a friend experienced with bullying. This time they were coming from church and the boy was after the girls friend who has autism. He tried to punch the person and the girl tried to stop him and got punched in her chest. Whenever she gets on and tells us this stuff I feel powerless. I just want to climb through the wires and walk with her….protect her. I’m not completely powerless though. I can pray for her, lend my support and share her story.
Check out 30 March 2022 Wednesday chat https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1441259554
Hello to you. How are you today? I hope well. Last night was another struggle with getting sleep but God and I got through it. My head has been really full the past few days and I’ve been thinking and praying about a lot. There has been so much going on near and far that has captured my attention and care. It’s hard to wind down when I’m like that. Before bed I saw a video that added more thoughts to my head and prayers to my lips. It was about our President and his mental condition. The source was from Fox News which I expected to be cruel about this subject but Tucker Carlson wasn’t. He brought up some very valid concerns. I will let you judge for yourself if you are interested: https://youtu.be/gsOnnLts-4U – Tucker: Biden can’t regulate his emotions. Being a leader at any strata of this existence isn’t an enviable position. So much responsibility and pressure! God is working in these people. I hope to continue to see God at work. I’m already seeing glimpses of it with the war in the Ukraine. What we focus the power of our thoughts on the most is what helps God manifest those thoughts into reality. That’s how it seems to me anyways! Prayers for leaders at all levels!
Message from A Woman’s Spirit for today:
By embracing the unfair, I no longer feel fear or reflection or lack of self-esteem. – Eileen Fehlen
It’s so human to quickly label an unwanted situation as unfair and to assume we know what’s best for us. We reason that if God would answer our prayers, our lives would unfold appropriately. It’s also terribly human to have to relearn repeatedly that God’s will and God’s timetable don’t always match our own; however , without fail they serve us well.
Learning to appreciate the good in everything that comes our way makes us courageous. In time few things will fill us with fear, and that is measurable progress. We were tormented by fear for so many years that we never expected this rebirth of spirit. Life is beginning to feel inviting, exciting and safe. Let’s step forth together.
I can be certain that God will give me only what is right for me today.
—————
Today I picked up a round piece of rose quartz I have and it was so comforting. There have been several times when I’ve been sick that I have held rose quartz and felt like it helped me heal. When my friend and I went to a rock and gem show I could tell by the crowds that I’m not the only one who feels like these stones help. I know for some it seems like woo woo and that’s ok! It could be a placebo effect somewhat but like with the rose quartz orb I’m holding as I write to you – it feels good in my hand. I think of those worry stones – remember those?
Rose quartz is known as a healing crystal and the stone of unconditional love.
…
It’s believed by some to emit strong vibrations of love, which are thought to:
https://www.healthline.com › health
Check out 29 March 2022 Tuesday chat (core issues) https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1440224536
Hello to you. How are you today? I hope this finds you well. The direction I was lead today was to a book my Aunt gave me many years ago, Healing the Child Within by Charles L. Whitfield MD. In particular to look at core issues of dysfunctional people and one of those core issues is control also known as attachment. The book is still available if you are interested in further reading and learning: Healing The Child Within: Discovery and Recovery for Adult Children of Dysfunctional Families https://www.amazon.com/dp/0932194400/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_DM6N7NE2ZFQ55EGW7PHB
A couple messages from A Woman’s Spirit:
Inside me is a stirring truth that is guided by my Higher Power. I am empowered by truth and joy. – Laurel Lewis
I will listen to the still, small voice within and feel secure and joyful, knowing that my actions are God’s will.
On my Twitch Stream today one of my viewers from England who is a young girl, told us about what happened to her, her brother and her brothers friend. They were attacked by bullies again. She was pushed in front of a bus by these kids! I was so hurt for her and the others attacked. The core issue I was lead to in Dr. Whitfields book, control, really applies to these bullies. Many bullies are themselves victims of violence or have been taught this behavior. Are from lives where they haven’t been in control. In order for them not to feel powerless themselves they externalize in their behaviors…. do what has been done to them. Some of these types are fortunate and some kind of intervention happens but I suspect far too many an oftentimes divine intervention doesn’t happen. They end up in jail or prison…death row. In this lifetime they just don’t learn. I’m so grateful for all the things I’ve gone through that I’ve had God who has put the right people, places and things in my life. Some of us internalize and abuse ourselves to deal with powerlessness and in the case of bullies and others they externalize their powerlessness. “Frequently the person who feels out of control is obsessed with the need to be in control.” (Page 69).
Check out 28 March 2022 Monday chat (Clouds) https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1439323879
There was a good message today from A Woman’s Spirit. It speaks to the importance of remembering we are not all experiencing this life in the same way. It’s biologically impossible! Our bodies alone prove this point. All the walks of life with their different bodies. Different levels of vision for example. Some people can see really well and others are blind! Think of a concert and all the different eyes witnessing it. Not everyone will come away from that concert perceiving it… experiencing it the same way. It helps me to remember this when interacting with different people. It helps me be more empathetic….more understanding during times of agreement or disagreement.
The message is so good I want to share the whole thing:
There are many realities. We should member this when we get too caught up in being concerned about the way the rest of the world lives or how we think they live. -Natalie Goldberg
One of the most elusive truths we’ll ever struggle to grasp is that everyone has a unique perspective about every circumstance, a perspective that reflects a personal understanding of the universe. We never doubt that truth for ourselves, of course. We simply fail to acknowledge that it’s true for everyone else too.
There are times we can’t shake the need to be right; our egos depend on it. Unfortunately, we can’t maintain any real peacefulness if we are always in conflict with others who have their own viewpoints. Winning the “battle” then becomes a painful victory. Believing in valid, separate realities is only difficult at first. But like any other opinion or attitude, it can become habit with enough practice. We have nothing to lose by giving it a try.
I don’t need everyone to agree with me today. I only think I do.
Check out 27 March 2022 Sunday chat (Flower) https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1438376319
Hello to you today. I hope this finds you well. Todays post is going to be mostly pictures. The messages in A Woman’s Spirit will hopefully resonate:
To each particular person the world speaks a different, particular word and calls for a different, particular response. – Mary McDermott Shideler
I am invited to experience particular situations today. My presence is needed if I am called.
Do to others what you would want done to you.
Check out 26 March 2022 Saturday chat (spring) https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1437351008
Hello to you. How are you? Hope this finds you well. I dreamt about my dog Spot again last night. She was running loose for some reason and found me. I miss her but she’s living her best life right now so grateful about that. She and I share dreams pretty often.
Yesterday I walked over to the Sunrise Cafe (https://www.theoriginalsunrisecafe.com/) for breakfast and got to witness one of those God moments. A man with a cane walked in and sat down at a booth by himself. Then the main waitress went over and sat across from him. She noticed he was wearing a hospital bracelet and asked him about it. He said he was having some “medical stuff” going on. One of the the things was cancer. He was going through chemo. After she left I then had the courage to say hello too. What was so beautiful was his smile. For all that he was dealing with he was still smiling. Your attitude when your facing adversity really makes a difference in how things will go for you. The Sunrise is becoming my go to place ! Good food and good people both who work there and the customers.
Todays message in A Woman’s Spirit talks about how sometimes we have to let go of our problems that might be going on that we just don’t know what to do about and make space for spiritual solutions….”let God on it!”
“When we loosen our grasp on our concerns, there is room for the spiritual essence of all life to move through us in such a way that healing occurs.” – Carol Sheffield
I will not be caught in a problem today if I am quiet and ready for the solution. Stillness engulfs me now.
This morning I was looking through my books and decided to take out a book of poetry written by a family friend named Tom Snooks. He struggled and died from cancer many years ago. It made me think of the man from the restaurant who is currently struggling. The poem I want to share is one he wrote about spring:
Check out 25 March 2022 Friday chat https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1436265682
Hello to you. I hope this finds you well. Last night my Aunt, three friends of hers and I went to see the opening night of Matilda at the Nampa Civic Center. We made it through the first half and decided that was enough. The little girl that was cast as Matilda just didn’t resonate with us. For example for the first song none of us could understand what she was singing and it was loud. My favorite character was Miss Agatha Trunchbull. The man playing the part was hilarious. As with most things in the performance arts, the performer will either resonate with you or they won’t. Not everyone likes Bono from U2 for example. The little girl just didn’t resonate with me. That’s not saying she wasn’t talented or anything like that. So that was interesting and it’s the first time I’ve driven at night here!
I was thinking about my post yesterday about how I see, experience and understand God. What came to me as an example of how complex it must be to answer even the smallest of prayers was a family meal. Think about some of the meals you make, even just the trip to the grocery store. So many little pieces go into even just a hot dog or peanut butter and jelly sandwich. It’s like an episode of How It’s Made but for each and every part of the meal. I think about all the people involved with the life of food, machinery, climactic conditions like floods or droughts, the health of the animal stock, fuel prices….so many little pieces have to fit together for just one hot dog! When I began thinking about how complex it is to make a family meal or even feeding just one person, it made me think of what it must be like to be God answering or not answering a prayer. How complicated it must be to have everything in alignment…..so many little pieces. Sometimes pieces seen as insignificant or not relevant but if they are missing things can’t happen. I truly believe that behind every unanswered prayer there is a reason. The other thing to remember too is sometimes what we want and are asking God for isn’t possible…..realistic. Sometimes the answer isn’t how we expect it and we miss it. Sometimes we have to wait for answer. Just like with putting together a meal – all the individual pieces in all the ways those individual items come to reality have to be acquired for that meal to happen! I think Covid has shown us a lot about how dependent we are on each other – like factory workers and truck drivers for example.
The other thing I thought about yesterday with regards to answered and unanswered prayers – people in particular. What is often overlooked is the individual will of the people we are praying for. We don’t know what they want for themselves. We don’t know what kind of conversations they are having with their Higher Power. For example we might find out someone has cancer and immediately begin praying they be cured. What if the person doesn’t want to be cured? What if they want things to be over with? Again….not as simple as things may seem. I think about what we are told Jesus said when he prayed about the sparing of his own life…(Luke 22:42) 42 “Father, if you are willing, take this cup(F) from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” Jesus had his own relationship with God. The apostles could pray for his life to be spared but Jesus was already working things out with God for himself.
Little pieces of the big picture to consider when you are deciding if you do or don’t believe in God. The stuff I’m sharing is what strengthens my personal relationship with The God of my understanding.
The messages from A Woman’s Spirit were good. Sometimes when people get into recovery and are feeling better they try to make up for lost time. They try to do too much at once. It’s important to remember that even doing a small part, a little piece of what you want to accomplish is enough:
I don’t train for a marathon when I simply want to run five mile races. -Patricia Roth Wuertzer
Today I’ll remind myself that I don’t have to complete a big project every day. Making some progress is enough.
Hello to you. How’s your week been? I’m tired. I struggled with getting to sleep last night even with the medicine I have to try and help me. It’s comforting I guess to know I’m not alone in my experience!
The messages from A Woman’s Spirit today had to do with letting people in our lives be responsible for their own actions:
My children have a Higher Power, and it’s not me. – Carolyn White
I will focus on my life and my Higher Power today. Others’ actions are not my responsibility.
What’s hard about this message is for parents and authority figures they are put in the position of being responsible for other peoples actions. There are laws in place to help with that for authority figures in our world but not so much for the average parent! There has been a long suffering agreement that children don’t come with a users manual! Sometimes it’s really difficult to know where you end and others begin. We are so interconnected.
This morning I was thinking on last Sundays church message. How the way we deal with difficult people matters to God. This morning I reread the passage in the Bible that was used as the reference for the message. It’s in Romans:
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans+12:9-21&version=NIV&interface=amp
9 Love must be sincere.(A) Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.(B) 10 Be devoted to one another in love.(C) Honor one another above yourselves.(D) 11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor,(E) serving the Lord.12 Be joyful in hope,(F) patient in affliction,(G)faithful in prayer.(H) 13 Share with the Lord’s people who are in need.(I) Practice hospitality.(J)
14 Bless those who persecute you;(K) bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.(L) 16 Live in harmony with one another.(M) Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.[a] Do not be conceited.(N)
17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil.(O) Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone.(P)18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.(Q) 19 Do not take revenge,(R) my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”[b](S) says the Lord. 20 On the contrary:
“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”[c](T)
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
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It’s hard sometimes not to want to retaliate when we or someone we care about has been harmed in some way. From my own experience the defense mechanism is almost a reflex. It really takes a lot of self awareness and control to be able to stop yourself in difficult situations from reacting from a defensive posture. To “turn the other cheek” versus putting up fists. This message today is difficult when I think about the Ukraine and Russia. When it comes to this sort of situation, a war, how are people suppose to react when being peace loving could cost them their lives? I am praying about this question.
A lot of non-believers ask where is God? Where was God when _________ was happening to me or someone else? Why does/is God allow horrible things to happen? Sometimes I ask myself the same thing when stuff is going on. How I comfort myself is I can’t see the whole picture of this existence – but God can. God isn’t limited in years and experience like we are. God is the big picture. I think of cause and effect – there are so many pieces and parts to even just one moment….how complicated it must be to answer even the smallest of prayers. I think of saying a prayer to save a person or animals life. How many specific seemingly minute little things have to happen to answer that one prayer. How many other prayers have to go unanswered so that yours can be answered? I don’t envy Gods job!
Check out 23 March 2022 Wednesday chat(AA Step 3) https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1434295003
Hello to you. How are you? Today began with one of those anxiety attacks I get once in awhile. I think it has to do with sleep apnea but I’m not sure. I just know I kind of freaked out. I had to pull out some tools from my sanity toolkit to get myself calmed down. I started with talking to God and went to the Bible to try and find comforting messages. I looked through so many chapters….the concordance for anxiety and comfort and just couldn’t find what I was looking for. It came to me to try the “Big Book” from Alcoholics Anonymous, specifically Step 3….made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him. I ended up making my Twitch Stream today mostly about this step. When I initially entered into the program this step was hard. My sponsor reassured me that it didn’t have to be just the God of the Bible that I turned my will….surrendered to. It had to be a power that wasn’t me. It was me that got me into the mess I was in. Chances were that it wasn’t going to be my own will that was going to get me free. I just had to acknowledge I was powerless over alcohol (among other things of an addictive nature), admit I had a problem and then, most importantly, be WILLING to ask for help….accept help the way it came. What I realized using this program is if you get to the core of why addiction happens there are fewer what’s. A lot of people I met in AA were self medicating – they had a lot of “why’s” they were covering up with alcohol. They needed therapy and either couldn’t get it or would rather have the stigma of being an alcoholic than the stigma that comes with mental illness. When I look at my own life with help and by myself, there were so many why’s to my addictions. I kept trying to fill voids in my life with people, places and things. Many of those voids were of an intangible nature. You can’t put tangible things in the space where only the intangible dwells.
The messages from A Woman’s Spirit today had to do with friendship. The power we learn through the program is we can choose better friends. Here is a thought provoking part of the message:
“We may not have picked our friends carefully in our youth. Many of us felt pressured to hang out with a crowd that didn’t share our values. We frequently lived up to their expectations of us rather than our own. The internal conflict was painful, and we may still suffer from it.”
My choice of friends today reflects the health of my recovery.
________
It’s pretty easy to tell who are true friends are in life. They are the ones who are still there for you and comfort you as you clean up the mess you’ve made. I consider many members of my family also as dear friends! When we are young it feels like we don’t have a great power of choosing – so much is chosen for us!
Speaking of friendship! Last night Astravert did a wonderful collaboration with some fellow musicians on Twitch:
Check out astravert afishinabirdcage bagelrabbit COLLAB https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1433997448
To be 