THE TEN INVITATIONS by Gill Edwards

THE TEN INVITATIONS

From LIFE IS A GIFT by Gill Edwards (Piatkus, 2007):
As soon as I finished writing Life Is A Gift, I travelled alone to Egypt and Jordan - visiting the pyramids and sphinx, wandering in the 'lost city' of Petra, snorkelling in the Red Sea and quad-biking into desert canyons. Day after day, I found myself in a state of profound joy, inner peace and gratitude - totally in love with life. It felt like heaven on earth.
On the day before going home, I journeyed to St Catherine's monastery in the Sinai desert, scene of the Biblical burning bush, where Moses is said to have received the Ten Commandments. I have long felt uneasy with the Ten Commandments, because of the negativity and judgment they carry, and their parental and imprisoning tone. Saying 'Thou shalt not...' is such bad psychology - guaranteed to throw people into shame, conflict or rebellion. (Try telling yourself 'Thou shalt not think of a white elephant' without picturing one.) Surely we could find more positive, empowering and inspiring guidelines for our lives?
After lingering in the Eastern Orthodox chapel, I sat on a golden sandstone rock just outside the monastery walls, with Mount Sinai towering above me - and began to meditate. Almost immediately, I was filled to overflowing with joy and bliss (Source energy). Intuitively I reached for a notebook and pen. Then I heard an inner voice speak: 'Two thousand years ago, Jesus came to earth with a message of unconditional love - but few were ready to hear it. Humanity is now ready to receive that message. The time for commandments set in stone is past. The time for invitations has come. As one of many wayshowers for this new era, you will now be offered Ten Invitations to humanity as an alternative to the Ten Commandments - invitations based upon a spirituality of unconditional love, which restores the divine feminine. This period marks the dawning of a new heaven and a new earth.'
For several hours afterwards, I found it almost impossible to speak. I was in such rapture that I felt like an angelic being, and half-wondered whether I must be glowing with light. People turned to smile at me, and children chased after me. As I returned home to the Lake District , that extraordinary joy remained with me, along with a thrilling sense of anticipation for what lies ahead - for me, for you and for our world.

The Ten Invitations

1.               You are invited to love yourself, others and life without condition - trusting that, in an evolving Universe, everything is unfolding perfectly.
2.               You are invited to do whatever makes your heart sing and your spirit dance. Only that.
3.               You are invited to live fearlessly and passionately - to step into your divinity, while embracing your humanity.
4.               You are invited to treat yourself and others with extraordinary respect and kindness - reaching out with love towards all beings, and seeing the Light within everyone.
5.               You are invited to honour everyone else's beliefs, feelings, values and choices - knowing these add to the variety of life, and that everyone's path or guidance is unique.
6.               You are invited to honour the earth, your body and all creation as sacred and divine - and to celebrate life in all its richness.
7.               You are invited to choose your own mission or purpose, expressing your creative gifts, talents and vision in whatever way feels most joyful.
8.               You are invited to listen to the inner voice of Love, which always sets you free - knowing that your goodness and worthiness are never in question, and that you can do no wrong.
9.                  You are invited to trust in a loving and abundant Universe. Ask and it is given. Seek and ye shall find. Knock and the door shall be opened.
10.                  You are invited to follow your dreams and desires - trusting your feelings, and using your imagination, to create your own heaven on earth.

Celebrating 25 years of friendship

Circle of Friends

The Indian legend says that at the end of the evening, friends would gather around a bonfire and share their hearts and speak of the good qualities of each other and remember times shared. As the embers faded, their friendship was said to be sealed anew bringing them closer together. As you sit with the candle lit in the middle of your circle of friends, it will surround and embrace all who sit with you and bring good luck to those who stay together.

Thanks Dympna Leisa and Monique xxxooo

The Year of Magical Thinking - Joan Didion

Thanks Ros

"True spirituality is about love - love for self, love for others, love for the planet. It is feeling committed to being here on the planet. It is living our love, our wisdom, amidst the challenges of everyday life. It is listening to our inner guidance. It is seeing the ordinary miracles. It is living with awe, with wonder, with faith, with joy, with gratitude. It is seeing God in the eyes of a newspaper seller. It is seeing God in a lace tablecloth. It is seeing God in a spider's web. It is knowing that heaven is here and now."
Gill Edwards ~ Stepping into the Magic, p241.

When it Rains by Maggie Mackellar

Thanks Kirsten

More Wisdom

I hope you dreams take you to the corners of your smiles,
to the highest of your hopes,
to the windows of your opportunities,
and to the most special places your heart has ever known.
-Author unknown.

Wherever you go - go with all your heart.
-Confucius

We make a living by what we get,
we make a life by what we give!
-Winston Churchill

The best way to find yourself,
is to lose yourself in the service of others.
-Ghandi

Thanks Dorothy

Michael Leunig

Thanks to my peers at Swinburne for your wisdom, as we have journeyed through "Trauma, Loss and Grief"