Intro
Although I grew up with a so-called Buddhist mom (biological) and atheist Caucasian dad (who adopted me since I was three), I started believing in this entity called God, whom I briefly overheard about from a few girls in elementary school.
I had gathered bits and pieces of their conversation about a book called, “Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret.”
I didn’t get a chance to read that book, or formally learn about God since my parents disapproved of me going to Sunday school with a friend; they said that all church people are crazy.
However, I still quietly prayed to this unknown God in the privacy of my bedroom whenever my parents fought.
After high school, I ventured out to find God (out there) by exploring the various denominations of churches to see where I might fit in.
I met a few Christians who were loving, understanding, honest, and much more, but even they had the need to control some portion of my life.
I believe they felt a need to “save” me by whatever means necessary. I understand that people may have good intentions for needing to recruit church members, but I don’t believe manipulation, guilt-trips and control are loving ways to accomplish that; if anything, it pushes people further away.
After almost a decade of being exhausted from often being reminded of the following, I discontinued going to church, or even seeking God:
- we are all sinners
- God is a judgmental, unforgiving, angry, vengeful and punishing God half the time
- whoever isn’t Christian may be good, but they’re going to hell anyway
- the devil is basically more influential and powerful that the Almighty God who created him
- many Christians (to include Catholics) that I crossed paths with didn’t speak or act like the Jesus that they claimed to follow
- being often reminded throughout a conversation of the following phrase: “It’s because I’m a Christian”
- certain types of clothes prohibited in certain churches (e.g., I wasn’t even allowed to wear nice shorts that came down to my knees while I was pregnant at this one church)
- one must attend church every Sunday (e.g., once, I missed one Sunday of church because my Marine husband—at the time—had sudden on-call duty, and we couldn’t get a babysitter for our two toddlers the last minute, and a group of women approached me the next Sunday and made me feel guilty about it in a “loving” way)
- as long as people can quote the bible and brag to others about their weekly church attendances and many hours of volunteer work at the church, it’s okay to not live by Jesus’ teachings—especially about not judging others, forgiving others and loving one’s enemies
- having bible home studies and lunch, and then gossiping about whoever didn’t show up that day
My yearning to have a relationship with God conflicted with such experiences, as well as some teachings that didn’t sit well with my heart. I wondered why good people, who weren’t Christians and didn’t get a chance to know Jesus, weren’t able to go to heaven as well.
I even wondered why the church excluded others who were different as well. I wrote a post called, “My Gay Childhood Friend” who was girly since second grade.
We reunited right before 9th grade, and he was still very feminine, but just a wonderful being overflowing with much positive energy. He came out after high school, and I didn’t think anything less of him.
I had always known, but never cared because he was my loving friend. I was happy for him for being free.
I started believing in having a personal relationship with God ever since I met my Korean neighbor in Okinawa who walked the talk, like no other Christian I had ever met while having attended various churches throughout my late teens to late twenties.
Hanging out with my older, sister-like neighbor (beautiful inside and out) was like how I had imagined it would be like to hang out with Jesus.
She was the first person to teach me that we can have a personal relationship with God. I wrote about her in several posts, to include the first one, “Inspiration.”
I also came upon Neale Donald Walsch’s book, “Conversations with God,” which changed my mind about giving up my search for God. I also included bits and pieces of his teachings in many of my posts.
His books made me feel for the first that I was actually having a conversation with God (while reading) because Neale had done such an amazing job of asking various honest questions, carrying on very personable and flowing conversations, connecting at the heart and soul level, willing to be completely authentic and vulnerable, and having such a magnetic and lovable personality.
Learning (as a human being)/remembering (as a soul) that Spirituality teaches the following (just to name some examples from the many great teachings that I believe even Jesus lived by) highly resonates with me (a sign that it’s in alignment with my True Self/Soul/Trinity: God, Goddess and Divine Spirit/All That Is):
- there are many paths to God, and not one is better than another
- God , Goddess and Divine Spirit/All That Is is within us and all around us
- duality (to include “negative” happenings and so-called enemies) is very effective in helping us to define ourselves and our physical reality, and are blessings in disguise/great teachers of wisdom
- we reflect (like a mirror) to one another both “positive” and “negative” aspects of ourselves, to include our shadow self (the part of us that our ego self says are “bad” and must be repressed, suppressed, judged, criticized, ignored, denied, rejected, blamed, and condemned in order to be accepted and approved by society)
- we must integrate our soul (ego self, shadow self and True Self) so that we can become One balanced Soul of Unconditional Love, rather than blaming and rejecting our other aspects of ourselves, which are just lost/forgotten parts of us
- we are all Divine parts of the Divine whole which = We Are All One
- God, Goddess and Divine Spirit/All That Is is truly Almighty/Omnipotent, Omniscient, Omnipresent and ALL-Loving
I’ve read several of Neale’s books since 2001, whenever I had a chance in-between my busy Army lifestyle; however, I don’t think I fully understood all of his profound teachings—as well as the fact that it fell under the major category of Spirituality—until after I medically retired.
Although I studied about various teachings of Spirituality (and also looked into Gnosis) for almost three years now (and have recently been drawn to Mysticism), I’ve often enjoyed watching Joel Osteen’s sermons, ever since I came upon his televised show a couple of years ago.
He initially captivated me with his positive presence, and his very different approach as to how he teaches about a loving God, and how he focuses on uplifting messages. I continue to enjoy his programs although I haven’t considered myself religious for over a decade.
I figured, as long as I feel uplifted by Joel’s loving presence and certain positive messages, it didn’t matter that it included some of his limited teachings from the bible that didn’t match his deep down belief that God is an “ALL-loving God.”
The following are some observations about the interview/video (below) that helped me to better understand Joel Osteen:
I believe Joel Osteen is giving to humanity the best he knows how from his heart, and that his method of teaching sermons is more unconventional than most churches because he’s being guided (growing more and more each day/expanding Christ Consciousness) by his inner-knowing/his inner-wisdom/silent communication with God.
I believe that ALL souls are Divine perfect creations, and that we each have a significant life purpose—individually and collectively.
We cross each other’s paths (as both students and teachers) in order to help one another with our soul growth/evolution, and to help one another remember that we are all parts of the whole/All That is.
Although we may not see the ginormous picture with our physical eyes, I believe we can intuitively sense this magnificent interconnection of all life from deep within our souls.
I believe Joel has loving intentions when it comes to his sermons, it’s just that he sometimes struggles with transparently talking about certain topics and answering certain risky questions that he believes the majority of society is not ready for.
I believe this is due to his heart telling him one thing (that God truly is an unconditionally accepting and ALL-loving God) and his mind telling him another (that everything in the bible is truth, and has not been manipulated, altered, or removed in any way, shape or form by the former Catholic church, despite evidences—to include The Lost Gospels).
My sister-like neighbor also mentioned once that she intuitively knew that God wanted her to speak out in public about the truth of God, and she didn’t wish to because she didn’t feel that the majority of society was ready for it.
Looking back, I realized that she was the first spiritual teacher I had ever met. She was so different from most people I had ever known—free-spirited, refreshingly honest, humorous, playful, gentle yet assertive, very confident, strong, wise, compassionate yet not emotionally attached, generous, and much more. I loved her like a real sister.
She had also mentioned about this life being her last lifetime, and I didn’t fully understand that statement until a decade later. Neale Donald Walsch also had such challenges that he overcame.
She even showed through her actions on how to appreciate even the simple things in life, and to enjoy every moment. I wanted to stay in touch with her, but she told me that it wasn’t necessary, and that we would meet again someday for sure.
She often said strange yet soul-touching things like that. I just thought that I wasn’t good enough to be her friend; but now I realize that was due to my own insecurities, and lack of self-worth and self-love at the time.
I believe, deep within him, Joel intuitively senses that there are many paths to God. I thought it was interesting that both Joel and Victoria stressed the importance of one’s relationship with God, regardless of whether or not one is religious or from a different denomination.
I also believe, deep within him, Joel intuitively senses that gays are not sinners; hence, his controversial statement that he believes that they, too, can go to heaven (I’m assuming through Jesus).
It seems that fear prevents Joel from sometimes being transparent, despite his claim that he only needs the approval of God.
I hope he one day realizes that it’s okay for him and Victoria to be completely honest and authentically vulnerable by admitting to personal questions like having had at least one rough time in their marriage of almost 25 years (probably longer now).
That way, others can better relate to them as one human being to another. There are many people now who can sense (and not just by body language) when one is being sincere or not.
In the interview, Oprah mentioned to Joel that Mother Theresa even admitted having moments where she lost her faith.
She then asked Joel, and he said that he never did. I could understand why Oprah’s expression appeared to be one of doubt or disbelief because I, too, for moment, wondered if his statement was true.
However, I believe my True Self offered another perspective; that perhaps, Joel was telling the truth. Maybe we were projecting our personal experiences onto him?
I was hoping Oprah’s follow-up question would be something like, “So what were some of your greatest challenges in life that have tested your unshakable faith?”
He would probably answer him taking over the ministry, his father’s heart attack, his mother’s phase of healing from cancer, and his legal situations (personal and business), which are all reasonable challenges.
But what about very personal challenges that breaks one to the core, and makes one lose hope because there are no outer support systems to back you up, especially family?
In one of Joel’s sermons, “Activate the Right Genes,” he compared the generations of two different families to make his point about choosing to deactivate genes that are not helpful (i.e., alcoholism, criminal behavior, anger issues, etc.).
The only problem with that comparison is that the generations of families starting with the first man obviously came from a poor, uneducated and unhealthy family background, while the generations of families starting with the second man was a famous theologian and the President of Princeton University.
Now back in the 1700’s, for a man to be a famous theologian and the President of Princeton University, I believe it’s safe to assume that him and his generations of families had strong support systems—to include financial security, abundance, family support, physical safety, education, comfort, a healthy environment, etc.
So of course many of them became successful in life; they had much more resources available to them that gave them opportunities.
I wondered if Joel was even aware that he had chosen such an ineffective analogy. It seems that a comparison of a series of generations of two families of similar, unfortunate backgrounds would have better served the point to his story.
That way, it shows that despite both families’ poor, uneducated and unhealthy backgrounds, as well as different genes, one side chose to flourish while the other continued to pass on their “negative” genes.
If one has been surrounded with much peace, love, joy, support, guidance, truth, wisdom, abundance, physical safety, financial security, comfort, and other “positive” energies growing up, it would be easy to speak about and to have unshaken faith.
It would also be easy to make sympathetic statements like, “Just get over it” without feeling any deep empathy.
Healing is a process that sometimes takes great patience, not something that changes overnight with a motivational speech or two.
Depending on one’s trauma(s) or any other deep hurts that they may have experienced, it takes more than just going to church or listening to some sermons.
Going deep into the heart of the matter and healing within (to include embracing one’s true feelings that arise rather than continually suppressing them) brings about change rather than merely appearing healed to others on the surface.
I believe deep healing also includes noticing, recognizing, acknowledging, healing and then embracing or releasing what we once denied within ourselves (our reflections from others/our shadows).
True healing requires deep connection at the soul level as well (e.g., true forgiveness as opposed to forgiving on the surface to appear “good” to others and/or to get into a place called heaven).
For me now, Joel Osteen is more of a motivational speaker who uplifts me with his positive energies (basically reminding me to maintain my high vibrational frequencies, or to raise them), although he sometimes surprises me with some inspiration (since he, too, is part of All That Is).
When it comes to the majority of my Divine guidance (to include the angelic and spiritual realms), deep healing and profound inspiration, I’ve learned/remembered to go within, or to receive messages, knowledge and wisdom from other spiritual and mystical teachers whom I highly resonate with.
If someone tried to passionately convince me to jump off a very functional plane (with flight gear) in order to overcome my fears, but yet, they’ve never done so themselves, I would question their method that wasn’t motivational, let alone inspirational.
However, if someone who had experienced it looked me int the eyes and managed to convince me that everything was going to be alright, and that it helped him/her to overcome their fears…then I might consider.
I believe the ultimate challenge in creating unshakable faith is to have risen above many of life’s greatest challenges/tests, and to be able to look into another’s eyes and silently say…
“I see you my soul brother/sister (a reflection of me), and I feel your pain because I, too, have experienced your various sufferings. And because I’ve learned (as a human being)/remembered (as a soul) to overcome these dark times and fears, I will show you by my past example (not just tell you) how you, too, can rise above them too…
These personal experiences of so-called sufferings build strong character that no other formal training or education on Earth can provide, and give much wisdom that mere texts and words can barely describe…
Now that we’ve experienced the darkness and fears of Life, let us now fully appreciate the Light and Love/Peace/Joy/Truth/Wisdom/Abundance/Freedom that overflows from deep within us and now surrounds us. As Jesus said, the Kingdom of Heaven/God is within us and all around us.”
The following italisized and quoted section is from gnosticteachings.org:
“The Greek word Gnosis (γνῶσις) implies a type of knowledge that is derived from experience, and encompasses the whole of a person. That is, it is genuine knowledge of the truth. Reality, truth, does not fit neatly into a concept, dogma, or theory, thus genuine Gnosis must also be something that one must experience. Personal experience is not transmissible in conceptual terms; a concept is merely an idea, and experience is far more than an idea. In other words, real Gnosis is an experience that defies conceptualization, belief, or any attempt to convey it. To understand it, one must experience it. This is why real spirituality is based on one’s own effort to experience the truth, and the method to reach that experience is primarily practical.”
I know I was meant to come upon the video below, because I have formed a solid belief that everything (both “negative” and “positive’) that shows up in my life was sent by my True Self for my soul growth/evolution.
As long as I remember to welcome all experiences into my space and embrace them with gratitude and appreciation, I will (without a shadow of a doubt) gain wisdom from them.
I realize that there are many opposing opinions out there about Joel Osteen (and many others who are in today’s spotlight); but there’s a way to Be Balance in such situations, and Christians (or others) verbally attacking other Christians, doesn’t lead to peace and love, which Christianity is supposedly based off of.
If we truly choose to follow Jesus’ teachings, we should remind ourselves about what he taught regarding not judging others, forgiving others and loving who we perceive as our so-called “enemies” (blessings in disguise).
I believe, with deeper understanding, empathy, compassion, forgiveness, acceptance, embrace and unconditional love, we’ll be able to see one another through the eyes of Universal Love.
After all, if we’re all yearning to have a relationship with the Almighty/Omnipotent, Omniscient, Omnipresent and ALL-loving God, then why would we allow petty differences to come in between us?
Unless of course, we choose to believe in a lesser God who encourages judging, bickering, arguing, criticizing, condemning and any other words and actions that stem from dense/low/slow-vibrating/dark/fear energies.
I have a feeling that Joel Osteen (as he slowly but surely comes out of his limited box) has the potential to eventually become a bridge that connects all religions, science and spirituality with his: unconditional love for God and humanity, open-mind, open-heart, intelligence, use of scientific evidence, great sense of humor, lovable personality, overall honest nature, management skills, dedication, determination, use of “positive thinking” methods, mega success, fame, connections, influence, use of technology and prosperity (all blessings from God). I sure hope so.
Oprah Winfrey Interviews Joel Osteen In Defense of Joel Osteen (<= click on title to watch in another window)
Note: Thank you www.ashtarcommandcrew.net for the perfect image on left below of Sananda (Jesus the Christ Ascended).
Biblical Mysteries Explained: The Lost Gospels (once suppressed further teachings of Jesus revealed <= click on title to watch in another window)
The following is a quote from the video above:
“In the Gospel of Thomas, Jesus seems to convey a strange message, a secret teaching that is very different from the traditional gospels. The traditional gospels teach that Jesus is the only Son of God. The Gospel of Thomas suggests that we can all become sons of God.“
Psalm 82:6 (King James Version):
6 I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.
After I watched the video above, I was seeking for a source (that I resonated with) that provided info on the Dead Sea Scrolls (which “details the beliefs of the Jewish sect called the Essenes, the group that flourished during the lifetime of Jesus”) and the Lost Gnostic Gospels (which included the gospels of Peter, Thomas, Mary Magdalene and Judas), and came upon this video => Gnosis – The Unknown Jesus (also covers the missing years of Jesus from 12-30 years old)
The following is a quote from the video above:
His disciples said to him, “When will the Kingdom come?” Jesus said, “It will not come by waiting for it. It will not be a matter of saying, ‘Here it is, or there it is’; rather, the Kingdom of the Father is spread out upon the earth, and people do not see it.” The Gospel of Thomas 1:13
I believe the message above means that God/The Kingdom of Heaven is all around us (which includes ALL creations/EVERYTHING—ALL people, ALL other Beings, Mother Nature, things, etc.), and that we should live every Moment of Now with much gratitude and appreciation for having been given the golden opportunity to experience beautiful Earth as a spiritual being having a human being experience.
And when we’re finally able to see (as God sees) our outer world as a Heaven on Earth, we will then realize that it is merely reflecting (like a mirror) our heavenly state of Being within.
