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Affirmation: I get quiet and I hear God’s whisper.
One of my friends said: “When my ego gets loud, I can’t hear God’s whisper.”
So true! I can be crazy and insane in my head (it’s always in my head!) but when I pause, close my eyes and calm down, the stillness speaks. I get peaceful. I feel a release. I am able to hear God’s voice – often just as sensations, but sometimes with words too.
Those of you who are not comfortable with the “God” part in this affirmation: name it as you wish. Call it the universe, higher power, inner voice. That’s not the point. The point is understanding the benefit of connecting and accessing the quiet place within ourselves that always speaks our truth.
My wonderful assistant Jennifer and her 3 children face daily worries and fears since their husband/dad was deployed to Kuwait. Today, Jennifer’s husband is visiting his soldiers in Iraq. He will be there for a week. I invited Jennifer to share with us every day this week on this blog how she manages to stay positive, choose love over fear and get support when she needs it.
I am sure that Jennifer’s mind will play tricks on her. Using this affirmation will hopefully help Jennifer to quiet her mind and hear God’s whisper.
How do we get quiet? Choose what works for you: Breathing? Meditation? Walking in nature? Listening to music?
Get quiet. You’ll hear the whisper.
Write to Jennifer if you want to support her. Jennifer: share with us! We are here for you!
Great awareness about expectations versus reality, Jennifer. Often, we try to do our best, to be perfect in any way we can and we end up setting unrealistic expectations. I can only imagine how excited you all are to re-unite as a family after Mick was away 6 months. Since he is going to be home for only 2 weeks, you might want to have a conversation with your kids (and maybe with yourself) and set realistic expectations for his visit. Watching how much you have grown in the last couple of month, I know that getting quiet and hearing God whispers, will guide you in this process.
Thank you so much for opening your heart and inspiring us with your thoughts.
Sunday, Aug 28
Today my daughter and I went to church. Something we have not done in a very long time. I have been using the excuses of not having time, not knowing where to go, the possibility of having the Army relocate us so I don’t want to get attached and get my heart broken again…blah blah blah. Last week my daughter, Lauren, went to church with a friend of hers and they invited me to attend evening service to watch a skit the children were putting on. I agreed and was immediately drawn to the quaint, southern feel of this sweet church and felt at home as soon as I walked through the doors. The skit was great and Lauren asked if we could come back. As I recall, she sort of whispered this question during the sermon, hmmmm whispering, coincidence?
Today’s message was about pruning to gain nourishment. Good message for me today. Letting go of things I feel I have to do for other people even though they don’t ask or expect it, or things I do to try to prove to others I am not lazy. No one has ever called me lazy, I guess I’m just afraid of being called so. What a relief to let that stuff go. Feels like an 80lb ruck sack just fell of my back.
So as this Sunday comes to an end and I am pruning back on the outrageous expectations I have of myself. I am remembering to nourish myself spiritually, and figuratively thanks to the wonderful feast my mom prepared in honor of my birthday. I am letting go of the fear of asking questions and I am finding the quiet, waiting for more whispers.
Saturday, Aug 27
I woke up to a Happy Birthday email from Mick this morning. I am 36 today, but I felt 80 when I got out of bed. I am painting my bedroom, after removing some hideous wall paper, and it has become a much bigger task than I ever imagined. I have learned a very valuable lesson about expectations vs reality.
With my mother staying with us for a while I have had an amazing amount of help, it’s almost like having a clone. She is cooking while I’m doing homework with my kids, or shes helping with Spanish vocabulary while I’m working on the computer. Even with all the help she has been, I can barely accomplish the things I feel I should. This tells me I expect way too much from myself. I have realised that if I use all the tools in my chest of life skills correctly, I can complete the tasks I start, find the appropriate time to start new tasks and set my self up for success rather than failure. After all, we cant apply paint with a screwdriver very efficiently can we?
So I am working on giving my husband the gift of an organized, laid back wife when he comes home in a week. Since I’m a sucker for good BOGO, I will make that my birthday gift to myself as well. Organized, laid back, ready for Rest and Relaxation. I think God is smiling at me today.
Friday, Aug 26
8 days until Mick is home for 2 weeks of R&R. Rest and Relaxation is what that stands for. That sounds nice. A year ago I would have tried to shove so many things into that 2 weeks that I wouldn’t have given myself time to breathe, let alone enjoy my husband being home. I have realised since my Life Coaching with Michal and making Reiki a priority in my life, that taking time for myself is just as important as making time for others. Being a frazzled, unfocused mess is no way to live life. BELIEVE ME, I’ve been doing it for years. Finding focus in the midst of chaos is not easy but it is possible. With practice it can become a way of life. Ask the happiest person you know what their secret is, I’m sure focus is part of the equation.
Just for today, I will write down all the things I want to accomplish. I will look at that list and cross off the things that aren’t that important now that their written down. I will move things to another day if I don’t end up with any time for ME. I will add “smile before you answer any questions”. I will ask my children to do the things they are capable of. I will look for the lesson to learn if things on my list don’t get done.
Just for today….I can deal with that, it doesn’t seem so daunting. That will be my new motto. Just for today I hope you all find something to smile about.
Thursday Aug, 25
I received another email from Mick saying he is doing well. I am so thankful for the internet. I think of all the wives of wars past that waited years to find out if their husbands were safe, if they were ever coming home, and I am thankful. I am thankful for the sacrifice Mick is making, I am thankful for the beautiful roof over my head that his sacrifice provides and I am thankful for the epic love story my life has become. I met Mick on the 16th of September, 1995 and it was love at first sight. I’m talking the take your breath away, mouth dropping kind of love at first sight. All these years later it feels the same way every time he walks through the door. I am thankful for that kind of love. I miss him.
Along with this love story are the beautiful children we have. We were blessed with twin boys that are now 15, and a daughter that just turned 11. They have brought us an immeasurable amount of love. They have also forced us to face things we never even thought about. For instance, bursting through the door, one boy is running to the freezer for ice, the other is covered in a pale sheen of sweat ready to pass out. My son Kevin has jumped off a 6 foot transformer box and hurt his shoulder. As a massage therapist I have an understanding of the human body. One look at his collar bone and I know its broken. As sorry as I am for my first born, I see this as a perfect opportunity to use Reiki and make our visit to the ER as comfortable as possible. I ran it as I felt his collar bones, as I put the ice pack on him and as we drove to the hospital. We got a parking spot close to the door, we were seen right away and checked out just 2 hours after we had arrived. I am thankful for the timing of all the events that made this an easy trip to the ER. One day at a time Jenn, one day at a time
Wednesday, Aug 24
I woke to an email from Mick telling me he arrived without incident and all is well. He has a busy schedule hopping from camp to camp, making sure all of his soldiers have what they need and answering any questions he can. He is looking forward to being in a Blackhawk again ………my mind can not comprehend the rest of the words on the screen as a flash of the recent tragedy in Afghanistan clouds my eyes. That familiar feeling of fear shows up and withing seconds my hands are sweating, my heart is pounding, my ears are ringing and all I want to do is scream. All the events of 9/11, the aftermath, this war on terror….what about my war on terror. I am feeling terrified right now, who will fight for me? As I take a breath and try to calm myself I look for a distraction. I close the email and see Michals weekly affirmation “I get quiet and hear Gods whisper”. Could it be more perfect?
I sit back in my chair, remembering I need to get some WD-40 as it squeaks and creaks, and try to quiet my mind. God knows this takes a long time for me, so does me the favor of just jumping right in with words of comfort. “I will fight for you, let go of your fear and give it to me”. I struggle with this, thinking there are so many people with much worse things going on, who am I to burden you with my fear? A familiar laugh and sigh of parental resignation is followed by a flash of my children. “Do it for them” This stops me mid-argue, and I let go. I put a finger to my temple and pull the worry out, just as in Harry Potter with Pensieve, and hand it over. I feel better.
Now I can re-focus on sending Reiki to every one involved in this adventure my husband is embarking upon and I am happy. Thank you for your guidance Michal, I appreciate you.
It is admirable to see how well you deal with the situation, Jennifer. So true – you have no control over Mick’s situation but you do have control over your reaction. Right now, you are choosing to feed the trust, the healing and the prayer rather than the worry and the fear. You are even taking care of yourself and by doing that, you are affecting Mick’s energy and the world’s energy. I’m sure that Mick loves the vibe he gets from you. He hears it in your voice; he feels it in his heart. Your positive attitude supports him tremendously. You are an inspiration. Keep sharing!
Tuesday, Aug 23
Tomorrow my husband, Mick, will leave his base in Kuwait to visit some of his soldiers that are deployed to Iraq. Following the footsteps of most of the men, and some of the women, in his family as far back as recorded history, Mick has chosen the life of a soldier and embraced it with a sense of duty and pride that makes me proud to be an American and even more proud to be his wife.
I have no control over what happens to him this week but being able to tap into the infinite healing energy of Reiki is helping me deal with the things that I can control. I can control my energy and how I interact with our teenage children that always know when Im worried. I can choose happiness and resignation so that I can get on with my life rather that hide under the covers like a scared child.
This evening I am sending Reiki to all the people involved in this movement, both in Kuwait and Iraq. To all the vehicles and aircraft, buildings and bases. To all the chow halls and food and water, all the air conditioners and latrines. I envisioned a cloak of invisibility around him so that anyone with the means of doing harm to a military vehicle or aircraft would simply not see it.
I am also remembering to take care of myself this week by running Reiki as I fall asleep so I can be rested enough to face the challenges of daily life with a smile on my face.
Jennifer,
You are an amazing woman! I send you lots of love, light and COLOR for your journey.