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Mmmm Coffee..

Wake Your Body Up

Hello Internet!

Luxury spas and resorts around the world have long used coffee as a secret ingredient in body scrubs. For top dollars they use the grounds to help exfoliate old skin cells, while the caffeine minimizes the appearance of cellulite and varicose veins.

There’s really no need to have to go to the spa to enjoy the experience of this amazing body scrub. I’ve created a coffee scrub worthy of any 5 star spa! This scrub has my body feeling like a million dollars and check out what people are saying about it.

Coffee is a pretty amazing product from nature. The scent of coffee acts to clear a person’s mind of excessive thoughts. The scent also works as an anti-depressant. Also, caffeine is a natural antioxidant, when a coffee body scrub is applied, the skin absorbs this antioxidant and can help prevent premature aging. Caffeine is also a vasodilator, which means it constricts blood vessels in the skin. This action works to make blood vessels tighter and firmer very quickly, which is reflected in your skin texture.

I use the scrub for both my face and body. You will need to gauge, what’s best for you. If your skin is sensitive, then I wouldn’t suggest using it on your face but I’ll provide the info for those that want to try it. A word of warning, it’s a messy task but WELL worth the rewards.

For your face…

  • Scrub into your face in an upward, circular motion. Now, with the coffee still on, take your exfoliating scrub and scrub in an upward circular motion. Let it sit for 5 minutes and wash off.
  • If you doing the body scrub at the same time, don’t wash your face yet. Just let it sit while you scrub your body

Now for your body…

  • Now starting at your feet, scrub each area of your body in a circular motion.
  • Note: you are applying and scrubbing with your hand
  • Give very good attention to each and every area or your body, exfoliating it.
  • Let it stand for 5-10 min. Rinse. (rinse your face now as well)
  • Now take your exfoliating/spa gloves and scrub again in the same way using an all natural moisturizing body wash. Bottom to top and rinse.
  • Pat dry
  • Now use an all natural lotion or a Body By Nature creamy body butters and juice your body.

Post a comment and let me know how you feel afterward!

Live on PURPOSE!

10 Steps to an Inviting, Cozy, Sexy Home

Ever wonder when you walk into some people’s homes and it just has that vibe that inviting coziness or even sexy feeling, how the heck they do it? Well Internet, Lifestyle Divine is here  :)

Here are some simple steps to creating an inviting, cozy, harmonious and yes, even sexy home.

1 – CLEAN UP

This seems like stating the obvious but it must be said. No fingers pointed but some of you have some very unclean homes. I’m talking about tidy, I mean CLEAN. Get behind that desk that hasn’t been moved in years and clean out the dust and dirt. Mop the floors. Clean all of the places you don’t normally see as well. Get in there and do the work. This is clearing the air. Try to use environmentally friendly/green products. They are so common place now they really don’t cost much more than the standard brands and the leave you with a cleaner air and not one where everyone eyes are watering and they are gagging. Not so sexy.

2 – CLEAN OUT

As your cleaning up, lean out. Remove ALL clutter. This is a vital step in creating harmony in your home.

Cutter creates tension. You may not be entirely conscious of this because you used to the clutter but once you clear the space your entire body will relax from the release. Clear off side tables and coffee tables. They should only contain any or all of the following: a lighting source, a book, a vase of flowers. Clear out every area of your home. In general, if you haven’t used it, looked for it, wondered “where did I put that…” in the last year, dare I say 6 months, toss it! This includes old clothes, magazines, food, toiletries, and even furniture. If that old comfy chair that only you appreciates is cluttering the space, out it goes. The great thing is if the clothes and furniture are in good order there are local charities always looking for things so they won’t go to waste.

Let it go and breathe

3 – OPEN THE WINDOWS

Yes, breathe FRESH air that is. If you’re in a four season country and its winter you can still crack the windows a bit. If its summer where you live, open those windows wide and let the fresh air in. You’d be amazed and how the gentle flow of breeze coming in your home actually adds life to it.

Now that you’ve cleaned up and cleared out and your windows are open letting the fresh air in stop and take a moment to just feel the difference. Amazing isn’t it?

4 – THE LAYOUT

This article isn’t about Feng Shui but I will use one or two points from it. Feng Shui is a very complex science and one that I won’t pretend to be an expert at but I will cover arranging your furniture for harmonious flow of energy and life. In Feng Shui there is a very specific way your furniture should be laid out.

In your living room, make sure your back is not to the entry. Move the couch and chairs around so that you can clearly see the entry and the window from where you are sitting. The logic is that when you cannot see these areas your mind will automatically not be focused and therefore you will not be relaxed.

If the layout of the home is one where this is not possible invest in a beautiful mirror and place it in the right spot to allow you to see these areas form the couch ad chairs

In your bedroom, the same applies. You must be able to see the doorway when lying in bed.

5 – GET THE ENERGY FLOWING IN YOUR BEDROOM
For the bedroom, we’ll apply a bit of Feng Shui again. If you are like most of the people, you probably have at least one alarm clock, TV, stereo and even a computer in your bedroom. What about the under the bed clutter? Remember I asked you to remove clutter? Did you move it to under the bed or did you simply ignore under the bed? This was a challenge for me when I de-cluttered. My home doesn’t have much storage space and even after clearing out bags of old clothes I was still left with a very small amount to store because of the many seasons where live. I figured one of those under the bed storage containers would be fine, after all, it’s for” under the bed”. Well, it’s actually not so good. If you’re trying to create that harmonious space where things just flow this is a hindrance as energy is unable to flow freely in a bedroom with clutter under your bed and electronics all around. This type of bedroom is actually unable to support a good night sleep, and to promote health and happiness. Relationship wise? It is even worse. Of course there are solutions. Start removing as many electronics as you possibly can; place the ones you must keep, far away from your head. If it’s SO painful to remove the TV, cover it with a decorative fabric. Make sure is placed against a solid wall. According to Feng Shui, you are to also avoid water elements and mirrors. This is up to you. Again, this article isn’t about Feng Shui, I’m simply using small elements of it here and there. I think mirrors in the bedroom are, required ;) .

Ensure all of the fabrics touching your skin are soft and cozy and your pillows are plush. Buy the best sheets and pillows you can afford. Use a scented linen spray or your favorite perfume and iron your sheets, nothing fancy, just a quick once over.

6 – BRING IN LIFE
Fresh flowers add so much to a home. Keep fresh flowers on the table and in the front hall. One flower stem in a bud vase in the powder room is all it takes. Also at the kitchen table your desk and the coffee table would benefit from a simple arrangement of fresh flowers. You don’t need a full bouquet for each. One standard bouquet can split into two. When that special someone sees you like fresh flowers as well, he may get the hint and start buying them for you. Men actually like buying flowers for women, they just don’t do it because they thing we don’t appreciate because it’s too simple. Then we get annoyed that he doesn’t remember the simple things. Misunderstanding of the genders I call it! Sometimes men need to be guided, show him that the simple things matter too.

7 – SERENADE YOUR HOME

This is a HUGE part of having an inviting atmosphere. Play soft music on low, ALWAYS. Yes when you leave home, leave the music on low. When you walk through the door after a long day of work the sounds will be so inviting and instantly begin to relax you. When you keep the music on, the energy infuses into your home. Guest will love the vibe. Be careful you’re not playing break up slow jams as you are setting energy here. Just because its slow and melodic, doesn’t mean it’s good energy. Skip Chante Moore’s “Bitter” and go for her “Love’s Taken Over” instead. Keep the music always on, switch it up as you see fit but just let it play.

8 – THE COMFORT DETAILS

Adjust the sounds, reduce noises, lighting. Make your place as comfortable as possible. Close that bathroom door and the toilet lid, oil squeaky doors. Keep the space clean and clutter free. Burn lavender essential oil for a restful sleep. If you didn’t have the will power to remove the TV, while in the bedroom, focus on your partner or a favorite book, instead of the TV. Keep fresh, soft linens in the bathrooms and make sure it’s clear of clutter from product bottles. Look at what hotels do to create comfort.

9 – THE SEXY DETAILS

Add a few candles for soft lighting, put all light fixtures and lamps on dimmers and if possible, change your bulbs to the most flattering shades.  Use soft luxurious fabrics if possible (they last longer anyhow). Have a sexy scent wafting through the air. You can actually use your old Glade Plug In scent bottles with your own favorite perfume or cologne. Here’s an article on how to do it:  http://www.ehow.com/how_5012011_make-house-smell-sexy.html Our Body By Nature – Home Sweet Home line offers candles and other fragrant items to enhance your home.

10 – Relax and enjoy! A harmonious, sexy and inviting space is not only great for when you have guests but more importantly it’s essential for your spirit. It relaxes you and helps you focus on you.

Hope this helped. If you have any other suggestions or tips on what you’ve tried, let me know!

How To Develop A Personal Mission Statement

roadmap to success, personal mission statementA personal mission state is a very powerful tool in the process of creating a divine lifestyle. Its your road map to success.

I was first introduced to the idea of having a personal mission statement when I joined Shanel Cooper Sykes, Shanel’s Classroom, a life coach and empowerment tool. One of the first tasks you have before starting class is to set up a personal mission statement.

What is a Personal Mission Statement

When you think about it, every successful business has a mission statement. A mission statement is designed to provide direction to business, a statement of purpose. A mission statement explains the company’s reason for being. A personal mission statement is seeks to accomplish the same. Writing a personal mission statement offers the opportunity to establish what’s important and serves as road map. It articulates the answer to the question, what is my reason for being. A personal mission statement must be flexible. As you go through life and learn and grow you will need to adjust the statement accordingly.

How to Create It

So how do you create a personal mission statement? Here a few introspective questions covering all areas of your life, to get you started.

  • What do you ultimately want for your life?
  • What do you want your spirituality to be like?
  • How much money to you want?
  • How will you get that money?
  • What do you want to do with your life? Read 1o Steps To Finding Your Passion and Purpose
  • What do you want your relationships to be like?
  • Are you married, do you want to get married?
  • How about kids?
  • Do you have a physical, health or weight goal?,
  • How amount your social life? What should that look lke?
  • An of course stuff? What do you want? What kind of house, car etc
  • Now ask Why? Why do you t these things?

Now your statement doesn’t have t cover all of these areas, in fact maybe it shouldn’t because the more focused it is the more effective. These questions are just to get your juices flowing.

No Negativity

Don’t but any negative statements in your mission statement, like I will not, I don’t want. Based on the Law of Attraction, this action just brings that same thing to you. What you focus on expands. For a biblical reference look at Job, “For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me”. Don’t focus on the negative. Instead, if that line item in crucial to your personal mission statement, turn that negative statement into a positive. Instead of “I will not make random purchases”, say “I will make responsible decisions with my financial resources.”

Repetition

 

Once you’ve created your statement you need to get it into your very soul Write it out on a cue card or paper no smaller than 5 x 9. Post it somewhere you can see it. Say it repeatedly and memorize it. Some key times to say it are just before you get out of bed and just before you go to sleep, But say it throughout the day as well. What I did is create an event called “Check In” in my Blackberry. In the notes area I typed out my whole statement. Then I set it to go off at four hours intervals every day. So every day, every four hours I check in with myself and say my statement. It anchors me and keeps me focused on task. Say it often until you have it memorized.

 

You Have To Believe It

As you say your statement, pay close attention to your body. Read Changing Your State of Being can Change Your Life. Adjust your body into a position of excitement and power. Don’t just say it, proclaim it with passion. This is not just anything; this is your PERSONAL mission statement, your road map. Get excited. Believe it to your core. Feel each line item as you proclaim it to the universe and watch it respond.

 

The Power of a Personal Mission Statement

I can definitely attest that a personal mission statement is a vital piece in the process of transforming your life. As I mentioned earlier, when I first created my mission statement I set it in my blackberry to go off at four hour intervals. In my statement I was claiming a certain amount of money. I was in a very unhappy environment at the time and long story short, I quit my job. I actually just walked out and said I’m not coming back! How’s that for “bold”?! Well sitting in my car was sitting in my car trying to figure out what to do now, I received a phone call. I was offered a job making the exact amount I was claiming in my mission. What makes this extraordinary is the fact that the amount was much more than I had ever earned and ever expected from this job when I went for the interview. I stretched my limits and reached for more and got it. Of course, now the gloves where off and I was ready to stretch myself BEYOND. I accepted the job (as a “for now”) and quickly updated my mission statement!

Here is a cool tool I found online  Mission Statement Builder although I think you get a better product when you follow the steps I’ve outlined

Live on PURPOSE!

Juicing to Increase Your Energy

Consume Life To Have Life

Hello Internet!

Ok, so I know that envy is a negative emotion, but I’m going to be honest with you. I used to really envy those people that just bubbled with life. They had so much energy and everything they spoke of came across with so much life and passion.  It was infectious…except I didn’t have the energy to keep up. I got tired just listening to them!

I always wanted to go to bed. Even thinking was tiresome. I’d have some wonderful strike of brilliance, intuitive thought that could potentially change my life and I’d have to go sleep on it.

To have energy, you have to consume energy and then exude energy.

I had so many goals and dreams but all I could do was dream (as I slept) but nothing comes to a sleeper but dreams and even they’re gone when you wake up. I realized one very big block to my success was lack of energy. It takes energy to accomplish goals and those goals are fuelled by passion and excitement…which takes energy.

In terms of nutrition, it’s best to juice instead of eating fruits and vegetable whole. The reason for this is that our poor eating habits over the years have compromised out intestines and limits our body’s ability to absorb all nutrients form veggies. Juicing helps to facilitate this and allow our body to receive.

So first things first. You need a juicer! There are a variety of juicers on the market. Do your research and read the reviews for each. Remember no one item will please everyone but there are a few that the market seems to deem as superior. Namely, Vitamix and Healthmaster. Depending on your budget these may be well out of range. A low cost option is Sharper Image and Breville has quite a few in a range of prices.

Now that you have your lovely juicer, what do you juice? There are a wide variety of vegetables and fruits available from God’s garden to juice. Dark green veggies are best and offer the most nutritional benefits. Bright colored veggies as well. Herbs such as parsley and cilantro are great to add as well.

Here is a great starter recipe:

1- Apples

1/2 bag of Spinach

handful Kale

1 stalk Celery

2 Carrots

Pinch of Parsley

2 Beets

quarter size of Ginger

You can adjust the # of Apples or Beets for taste or add seedless grapes

There are also some essential oils you can add as supplements to your juice for a little extra something

  • Fish Oil
  • Flaxseed oil
  • Cod Liver Oil

You also want to ensure you drink the juice right away. Once the juice is made and exposed to oxygen it begins to oxidize and lose its enzymes and therefore its nutritional value. There are some ways to freeze and store the juice but it requires a process that will take you as much time as to just make the juice fresh when you need it.

Just like with your hair or skin care products it is important to change around the veggies you use. For two reasons: first, you open up your body to eth benefits of many veggies and secondly, continuously juicing the same vegetables could actually make one allergic to them over a period of time.  Change is good.

It is very important that you clean your juicer right away to avoid clogging the blade, bacteria and mold. Tip: place a bag, maybe one of the bags the veggies were in, in the pulp catcher so that’s one less item to clean. The best type of tool to clean the juicing screen with is a brush (some juicers come with a cleaning brush). Scrub the parts under running water as the brush bristles do a good job of getting into the fine holes.

Initially you may be put off by the taste and time involved but the benefit you will reap will FAR outweigh this and eventually you actually begin to crave the juice. The important this is to of course get the end prize in mind: Energy, vitality and passion for life.

To see the juicer and supplemental oils I use check out my products page

Live on PURPOSE!

Featured Video

Author, speaker and entrepreneur Shanel Cooper Skyes talks about what self love REALLY means.

10 Steps to Finding Your Passion and Purpose

Find Passion, Find PurposeWarning: This isn’t going to be easy. It will require a lot of reflection and soul-searching. You may get to points where you feel uncomfortable, upset or overwhelmed. You’ll need a lot of courage and a lot of commitment. But what you’ll get is clarity and direction. When you have clarity of your passion and purpose you have a reason to jump out of bed in the morning, excited about what the day holds.

Now get comfy, this takes some time but the pay-off while serve you a lifetime.

The first few steps are self discovery questions because really, the answer lies within you, no one else. Let’s get started!

1.  Get Clear

Before you delve into this process you must clear your mind and still your spirit. Take a few minutes meditate before you follow these steps. Clear your heart and mind of day-to-day stresses, fears and confusions.  

 

2. What are you good at?

Identify your gifts, talents and abilities. Think back on your life and answer the following questions:

  • What some things that you have displayed a natural ability to do or gift at? Maybe writing, talking to people (public or one-on-one)
  • What are some things people have always said you’re so good at?
  • What do you excel at above the “average” person?
  • What are your strengths?
  • What interest’s hobbies do you have that sets me apart?
  • What gifts do you have to share that others will rave about?
  • When you go into a book store, what section do you gravitate toward? Why?
  • If money were NO object, what would you definitely be doing right now? Why?

Take at least 30 minutes, go through each question and write the answers down. Don’t try to think it through or keep it in your head, write it down. As you go through, analyze every area of your life for hints. Be sure to answer the “why” as well. Sometimes the answer actually lies in the “why”.

3. What gets your mojo going?

What excites you? What gives you butterflies and brings you joy? Not just now but in the past and in all areas of your life, work and play. Ask yourself:

  • What would make me want to just out of bed with excitement in the mornings
  • What did I dream of becoming when I was younger?
  • If money were no object, what would I want to do with my days?
  • What are you doing when you completely lose all sense of time?
  • What do you get excited learning about?
  • What would you PAY to be able to do?
  • What do you get excited talking about? Is there that thing that you just get so passionate talking about and your friends and family start running for cover when you get on that roll?

It could be something you haven’t done in a while and the moment you think of it right now you’ll get butterflies in your stomach. Take at least 15 to do this exercise. Remember, write it down.

4. What are the breadcrumbs?

Throughout our lives there are breadcrumbs, clues being left that are trying to guide us toward our purpose. But life and all of its happenings distract us. Not today. Take a few minutes. And think back, what are those nudges you’ve received in your spirit? It’s usually the thing that you’re afraid of. I say this because, like Jonah, we tend to run from our purpose.

  • Maybe it’s something you did so well (and you never thought you could do it at all) that it overwhelmed you and you just avoided doing it again (fear)?
  • Maybe its clues in the way of opportunities that keep coming your way but you keep pushing it aside because you don’t have confidence you can do it (fear)?

What are the breadcrumbs? What are you afraid of, why?

5. Read between the lines

Look at the list you have. The things you’re gifted with, the things you’re good at (abilities) and the things that you enjoy. Is there a theme or a way to incorporate them into one idea?  For example, maybe your gift is writing, you’re good at computers and you enjoy travel. Sounds like a potential travel writer. Analyze this a bit.

6. Uproot your fears

Is it fear of failure or fear of success? I think within all of us, it’s a combination of both.

To banish your fear you need to first face it, acknowledge it. Don’t call it anything else, don’t make excuses or talk circles around it, you’re afraid, and it’s OK. Acknowledge it so we can uproot it. Now, analyze the fear. Is it really rational? Are you going to die if you do this thing? Really ask yourself, “What’s the worst that could happen if I take this business opportunity and put my gifts, talents and abilities to work?” Is any potential damage irreparable? Probably not. Fear used correctly (to save you from a burning building) is great. Fear used incorrectly (to not act on opportunities) is blocking you from living life to the fullest.

Consider this quote by Marianne Williamson in A Return To Love (available in Products and Resources:

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, 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 are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it is in everyone.

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

Yes, “who are you not to be?”! Feel the fear and DO IT ANYWAY!

7. Reach out to others

Once you’ve created the list of gifts talents and abilities and things that excite you, theme them together. So essentially, look at everything there and cluster the ones that are the same and just may be expressed differently.

 

Pick the one that really excites you the most, now, start digging. Read up on it, talk to people who’ve been successful in the field. Participate in the blogs, forums and really get a feel for it. You may start to feel a bit of fear at this point, read the quote from Marianne Williamson above and keep pressing. As your researching, make a list of things you need to learn, need to improve on, skills you want to acquire etc. Go into this full force for a week.

 

8. Check in. Readjust as required

How do you feel? As you were researching the item, where you excited? Did learning more about this item and talking to people doing it give you joy and butterflies? Are you excited to share this new info and all of the details with our loved ones? If yes, press on! Go to step 10.

 

9. Rinse and Repeat

If the first list item proves to not be the path, go to the next item on your list. Remember that FOCUS means Follow On Course Until Successful. The goal here is to uncover your passion so you can walk in your purpose. So leaving item one behind is not failure, its readjusting the plan and pressing toward the mark (finding you passion/purpose)

 

10. Acknowledge and embrace the “ah hah” moments

Once you start this process you will find over the coming days you may have epiphanies or “ah, hah” moments. They come suddenly, and your passion may be revealed through momentous events or moments of quiet awareness as you contemplate changes that never seemed possible. Embrace it and act on it immediately. Grab a pen and paper and let the thoughts flow out. If you don’t it never comes back to you as clearly again.

 

How to make a living doing it.

Through time and patience.

Turning your passion into a business can look a variety of ways. You can become a consultant, do freelance work, create and online business and sell an ebook, start a blog or a forum. I’ve always said, there are a million ways to make a million dollars, you just have to look at what’s worked and be creative. If you’re interested in starting up a money making blog or some online business based on your passion read Ten Steps to Putting Your Passion into Money Making Action. I’ll warn you again. It isn’t going to be easy but WELL worth it.

Live on PURPOSE!

 

 

Aligning Your Goals and Actions

“Tell me who I have to be, to gain some reciprocity” – Lauryn Hill, one of the best of our time (and I won’t take any argument on that internet!)

Recently I started to re-read Debrena Jackson Gandy’s – All the Joy you Can Stand. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, GET THIS BOOK! It will no doubt have a profound effect on your life in your journey through Personal Development.  One of the points in the book that has always really stuck out to me is in point# 8. In this particular section she is discussing putting our energy and life source toward what brings us Joy.  Aligning our actions with your joy givers by asking “who do I have to be in order to attract and create these types experience and relationships”

The first time I read it I took a few hours and really stopped to analyze my life and dig deep to find what TRULY brings me joy.

So Internet, what brings you joy? We all have surface answers. The answers that seem like the right thing to say or that your mind has told us but dig to your spirit. That’s where the answer lies.

Now let’s be clear, joy is not the same as happiness. Happiness is fleeting, temporal. It’s a surface level emotion. Joy is a deeper feeling unstoppable and unshakable. Makes you smile, when everything around you says you should be down. Joy emanates from God given and is deep within your spirit. So Internet, what REALLY brings you joy?

  • What type of marriage or love relationship brings me joy?
  • What type of man or partner brings me joy?
  • What type of relationship with your kids brings you joy?
  • What type of financial situation brings me joy?
  • What type of relationship with my family (mom, dad, siblings) brings me joy?
  • What type of friendships, interactions, associations brings me joy?
  • What type of career and use of my natural gifts, talents and abilities brings me joy?
  • What use of your days and time brings me joy?

If you don’t have kids or a husband or any of the other line items yet but anticipate this in your future, answer these questions anyhow. Start thinking about these relationships and experiences now.

Now ask, who do I have to be t have this? Your desires have to align with your actions and who you are. For example, you can’t say you want successful, loyal, fun friendships but you’re a broke, negative back-biter. You get it? Shanel Cooper Sykes covers this in her video, All Men Are Dogs. Many women want a certain man but fail to look at what they are bringing to the table.  You have to give what you want to have. This was a huge eye opener for me. In answering the question, who do I have to be to have this; I continually came up with exactly what I was seeking as my answer. Interesting huh? Remember that like attracts like and the very thing we put out is what we get so if we want to change what we get we have to put something different out and that something different is, again, the very thing we want to attract. Like attracts like.

So once you’ve searched your heart and truly determined your heart’s desire and what brings you joys in each area of your life analyze who you have to be to have it. Don’t let this be a onetime occurrence though. Check in on this regularly to ensure you are walking in alignment.

Now internet, I have been writing these articles for a while now and Mr. Google Analytics tells me your reading but I see NO comments. I’m sharing my journey, thoughts and discoveries with you so “tell me who I have to be, to gain some reciprocity?” LOL..I had to :)   But for real though…say something!

WordPress Blogsite Design

Do you guys like my site design? What about the previous one (below). I wanted to let you guys know I an offering my WordPress Blogsite design services. Here is a link to a recent clients site www.milestonefinancialteam.com. They still have some content to add but the design is complete.

Cost: $450 – Includes domain name registration and unlimited hosting

*note that hosting on your own on average starts at $10/month. That’s $120/year and with my package its included and unlimited.

 

 

 

Love Thy Neighbour?

So onward with my quest which includes learning to do these things, and my dilemma/learning for today,  I ask: Can I love myself and hate another – thy neighbour? I don’t think it’s possible…so now what do I do?

You see there is a manager at work I just can’t stand, and at first I couldn’t figure out why.

I read that often times what we see In another person that we do not like, hate, gets under skin, irritates us – is actually a reflection of something, some characteristic within ourselves we wish we had ourselves (so jealousy) or have and don’t like. But I can’t see what it is here. I believe there is a lot of validity to that but there is nothing about her I see in myself and nothing I want for myself.

As I dug deeper I pinpointed the moment I decided to dislike her. It was am email when she first joined our organization. To me, it was bossing, no “hi”, no “please”, no “thank you”, no “can you”. It was just “do this”. I hadn’t even met this lady yet. It rubbed me wrong, so wrong. I felt like she was trying to disrespect me, power over me. I don’t like being told what to do and worse yet when you are no one to be telling me what to do (oops I sense haughtiness). But I find she has a lack of courtesy and thinks she is above certain people because she is a manager. So as a result I made a deliberate attempt to “show her” I don’t answer to her and be of very little assistance (stubborn).  Because she has an attitude that an AA should do certain things and I have an attitude of “you’re not telling me what to do”, there has been negative energy. Add to that as well, that pretty much no one likes her; this just fuels my “I’ll show you” attitude.

She eventually got her own AA and now we aren’t even in the same department, but the bad energy is still there. So what now? Forgiveness and release.

Serene Bridgette once said “we don’t forgive others because they have changed. We forgive others because we have changed”. This really rested on me. I accept that she is who she is. She may always have this attitude of “I am manager so I am above”. There is nothing I can do about that and truly it doesn’t even affect my work world but its affecting my spirit world. Hate releases such negative chemicals in our bodies and poisons us. I feel the shift inside of me when I am “hating” on her. It also holds us stuck in a place, in a holding pattern circling our potential, unable to move on toward it until we release. So knowing she doesn’t affect my job I can just ignore her, but how do I forgive, release, and move forward in love for all, including her and myself!?

Oh and let me be honest here, she is not the only one I hold deep angst toward. I have some serious work to do.

I posed this topic to Serene Bridgette and she gave me a beautiful answer and ended with “Perhaps your question should be, are you ready to forgive?”  Hmm..I am, but I’m not. What am I holding on to? What am I benefiting from holding on to this?

Whatever it is I have to figure it out and let this thing go because I truly believe it is not possible to love yourself and hate another. To love yourself is loving God and being filled with love. If you are filled with love, hate has no room. And if we are all an image of God, hating another is hating myself in some way. If I’m sincere about learning to love myself this year I must release the anger, and perceived hurt and forgive.

So no answers today, but Rome wasn’t built in a day either. I’m going to make a list of people I hate, dis-like etc, pinpoint the issue I have with them. Is it hurt I need to forgive? A reflection I need to acknowledge. I’ll also be making a list of things about myself I and hating, dis-liking etc. Then, whatever it is, address that full on and release myself and them from this negative holding pattern. This will begin with acceptance. Accepting this person for who they are and how they are, accepting who I am and trusting God to direct all of our paths and letting GO!

 

p.s check out Serene Brigette here: Facebook, here: Blog or here: Twitter

What is Forgiveness….really?

So my first step in my quest for self-love is Forgiveness. I recognize I have a lot of anger, resentment and issues that all fall back on me holding on to things and needing to forgive. But I’ve been reluctant to go down this road, mainly because of my misunderstanding of what forgiveness REALLY is. I found this great list online that explains it very well and makes me much more open to going down this path of forgiveness. Enjoy…

1. Forgiving is allowing another person to be human for faults, mistakes or misdeeds. Forgetting is putting these behind you; they are no longer brought up and no longer remain a barrier to your relationship.

2. Forgiving is letting another know that there is no grudge, hard feelings or animosity for any wrongdoing. Forgetting is the lack of further discussion, with no ongoing negative references to the event.

3. Forgiving is letting the other person know that you accept as genuine the remorse and sorrow for actions or words that hurt or disappointed you. Forgetting is promising that this deed, whether of omission or commission, will not be brought up again.

4. Forgiving is accepting the sincerity of penance, sorrow and regret expressed over a grievous personal offense; making it sufficient to clear the air. Forgetting is your commitment to let go of anger, hurt and pain over this offense.

5. Forgiving is giving a sign that a person’s explanation or acceptance of blame for a destructive, hurtful or painful act is fully accepted. Forgetting is the development of a plan of action between the two of you to heal the scars resulting from the behavior.

6. Forgiving is the highest form of human behavior that can be shown to another person. It means being vulnerable to being hurt or offended in the future, yet setting aside this in order to reopen and heal the channels of communication. Forgetting is is also a noble human behavior; it is letting go of the need to seek revenge for past offenses.

7. Forgiving is the act of love between you and a person who has hurt you; the bandage that holds the wound together long enough to heal. Forgetting is also an act of love; in rehabilitation therapy, helping the wounded return to a full and functional life.

8. Forgiving is the God-like gift of spiritually connecting with others, touching their hearts to calm the fear of rejection, quiet the sense of failure and lighten the burden of guilt. Forgetting is the God-like gift of spiritually touching others’ hearts with the reassurance of a happy and full life with no fear of recrimination.

9. Forgiving is the act of letting go of temporary ill will, disappointment or the disgust that arises from the break in your relationship. Forgetting is bridging this gap in the relationship, eventually strengthening it against such a break in the future.

10. Forgiving is an act of compassion, humanity and gentleness by which you let another know that he is indeed a child of the universe upon whom a variety of graces and blessings have been showered and that current or past offenses need not be a barrier to goodness. Forgetting is the act of encouragement, support and reinforcement by which you assist the other person to rebuild, reconnect and re-establish a loving, caring, healthy relationship with you and the world.

In Defence of Self Love

In defense of my self love movement.

I’ve been researching th topic of self love, and being a follower of Christ I was trying to find some Biblical direction…online (my firts mistake). What I found was religious people who are playing church saying it’s a sin. That you should rely on God/Jesus for love. Well this is true but incomplete. If in fact we are a reflection on God, which the Bible tells us, does God not want us to love that reflection – ourselves? In Mark 12:31 Jesus said the SECOND GREATEST commandment is to ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ And that “There is no commandment greater than these.” The other and first being to love God.

There is a clear assumption then that you would love yourself already, other wise you would have no reference point to go to, to love thy neighbour.

…Sorry religious folk, I can’t buy that it’s a sin.

How sad is it that so many Christians believe they have to spend their lives beating themselves up, calling themselves sinners over and over again. When do you just accept that we have all sinned and move into love?

There is nothing greater than love. GOD is love and when we live in love for others and especially ourselves that vibrational frequency only draws us closer to God. Isn’t that what we want?

Paul tells us that through the law, sin became known. Focusing on sin draws us to it….focusing on love, draws us to “it” – which is God.

I am convinced that God wants me to love myself and I refuse to receive any further hypocrisy regarding that. Based on Mark 12, I need to love God, Love my neighbour and love myself

2012 – Experiments in Self Love

I read a quote “If your today had to be your forever, would you be content to live in it?” – Serene Bridgette.

My answer was “no, I wouldn’t be”.

The question really got my mind going and changed my heart about how I’ve been living. I found I was putting a lot of my joy, happiness, love for me, and so much more…in others people’s hands. I was doing this not only through expectancy, like expecting my honey to make me happy but also through just giving my power away when I say he ruined my day and “made” me mad. And then I’d spend the whole day, or at least a good couple hours ticked off and just bitter.

What I’ve come to realize is that no person can make you happy and it really isn’t their responsibility. Your happiness, joy and love for you, is in your hands. And when you have these things, they exude from you as confidence and magnetism and people are drawn to you. And really how can anyone enjoy being in your presence if you don’t? I’m in a 5 year relationship and I’m just learning this now.

So, this year I learn to love myself. Truly love myself. To be excited about myself. To support myself. Some may say this is selfish but to the contrary, it’s self-love. As women in particular our lives are spent caring for others, maybe out of gender or societal expectancies, and we forget about our own needs. I spent the last 18 years of my life raising a very amazing, responsible and independent young lady, and prior to that, as the eldest, playing second parent to my siblings. My turn now!  Again, this isn’t selfish. It’s being self-FULL. Being a better fuller person allows me to pour into others without depleting me. Which is important to me because sometimes doing what makes me happy means doing for someone else ….and sometime it doesn’t. Balance is key. Don’t forget about YOU.

2012 is the year I fall madly, deeply in love…with me and do what is best, right, fun, joyous and loving for me. This is the year I:

  •                 Care for myself inside and out
  •                Carry myself flawlessly. Making sure I look on point head to toe!
  •                Make decisions that are good for me – finances etc. Then standing by those decisions guilt free
  •                Forgive myself for poor(supposed) past decisions
  •                Not worry/live in the present moment
  •                Have Integrity – keeping my word to others and myself
  •                Meditate
  •                Spend time WITH myself
  •                Get back to dating THE man of my life – God
  •                Commit to my Pamper Day using my amazing Soul Purpose products
  •                Am gracious, loving, kind and thankful for and to all, especially myself

I’ll be documenting this on Lifestyle Divine and sharing self-love principles, ideas and tips with you as I learn them. I’m in this 100%, even if alone, but I would love it if some of you would like to join me or even just post comments. Follow me here, FB or TW.

In the meantime, I want to point out that I’ve redesigned the site to give it more life and vibrancy.  Let me know what you think….

Life begins with self-love.

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