Spiritual Guide | Inspirational Speaker | Lorraine Cohen

One of my favorite CD’s is Marianne Williamson’s, “Meditations For A Miraculous Life” . In the evening prayer meditation she talks about being gratefull for the lessons received during the course of the day that invited compassion and love.

In this time of self-reflection she reminds us to ask for forgiveness for the ways we withheld love and that tomorrow we may do better at BEING LOVE.

As human beings we don’t always emulate the qualities of love. We are influenced by our past, cultural conditioning, and day to day experiences that either brings out our best or our worst.

Each of us at  has screwed up, made mistakes, betrayed another, broken promises, and fallen short of our ideals. Surrendering self-contempt is an act of self-love. Forgiveness invites love and compassion. It is through our humanness that our greatness emerges.

When we are willing to soften our heart towards ourselves we can be more authentically loving towards others.

What are some of the ways you are self-punishing?

Do you speak to yourself lovingly or with harshness?

And when you mess up, are you compassionate and forgiving?

The feelings and thoughts you are experience reveals what is asking to be healed. Being willing to separate the truth from the story or drama that is being activated within you allows you to choose to show up from the best of who you are.

And when you are not at your best, make amends with yourself so that you can create opportunities to restore harmony and connections with others.

During those times when you are being unloving towards yourself, imagine you could see yourself through the eyes of the Divine.

What would love see?

What would love say?

What would love do?

Grief and sadness lies beneath anger. As long as we remain judgmental and unforgiving, we are unable to release the pain and come to a place of resolution and inner peace. When we can view each experience as a healing and growth opportunity, we can release the pain.

Forgiveness, compassion, and love is the pathway to joy.

Joy connects us to love, which is our true nature and the essence of God. Approaching life with wonder, like we did as innocent children, invites us to see and attract options and possibilities that can resolve challenges and bring Grace. In wonder we delight in the blessings, gifts, and wonderfull surprises The Divine has for us.

Imagine looking through the eyes of love every day.

Imagine if we all did that.

Imagine the world we would create…..

Ready to fall in love with yourself?

Join me on September 18 in my Pathways to Awakening program. This  four week journey through Self-Love will provide opportunities to explore what love means to you, Divine Love, personal & inner integrity so that you can embrace your value and align with your true nature of love.

Guided by the Divine, the deepening processes and meditations will provide many opportunities to resolve past hurts, angers, resentments, and judgments towards others and especially towards your SELF; to open your heart to experience more peace, love, and Grace. Learn more here and take advantage of special pricing through September 13!

Imagine treating yourself with greater compassion, forgiveness and appreciation as the precious magnificent being you truly are.…

Imagine feeling good about yourself so that you stop punishing yourself and allow the abundance and love you crave to pour into your life.…..

Love and blessings,

Lorraine

“…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 the Universe. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There’s 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’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we’re liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others…” ~ From A RETURN TO LOVE by Marianne Williamson

You have a purpose in being here

You matter

You are beautiful

You are smart

You are good

You are whole (not broken)

YOU ARE LOVE

You ARE ENOUGH

Your soul knows that.

The Divine knows that.

Love is the energy of this new Age of Enlightenment.

The veil of separation between your Human Self and Soul Self is lifting to reconnect you with Divine LOVE. 

You might be facing some difficult life challenges in your – relationships, health, finances, business which are opportunities to break your heart open to access that LOVE.

Imagine what it might feel like to be embody LOVE in every moment no matter what is happening…

Here are five ways to be more self-loving with yourself (and others):

1. Notice when you are being too harsh with yourself. Your natural state is love.  Pay attention to your thoughts, self-talk and how you speak about yourself to others. Listen to the words you use to express in your head and out loud.  Do your words, thoughts and actions reflect love compassion, forgiveness, patience…? Look for opportunities to soften your heart and allow the love to flow.  Do you speak or think of yourself like a loving friend or a critical parent?

2. Treat your body with love and respect. Do you mistreat and abuse your body by ignoring what you know will help you to feel vital, vibrant, and alive?  You might ignore when you need to rest, exercise, eat more healthy, take breaks, meditate…..Do you withhold love by choosing to do things that might negatively impact on your health and well-being? Do you prioritize your self-care? Look for ways to honor your body and your needs as the treasure you are!

3. Do something every day that brings you pleasure. Yup, I said every day. What makes you feel good and brings you joy that is positive and uplifting? Do you pamper yourself and do things that make you smile? When you value yourself by doing loving things consistently, your life will be much happier and everyone in your world will reap the benefits.

4. Commit to the relationships in your life that lift your heart and feed your soul. This year look for opportunities to be more engaged with the people you love. Ask for help and allow them to love in return by being there for you when you really need support. Allow the nature flow of love to be both given and received.

5. Engage in daily spiritual practices to connect you with your “Essence” and Divinity. Prayer, contemplation, inspirational reading, walks in nature, meditation….opens our heart to be in loving communion with who we really are and God/Source/Higher Power as we walk though life’s challenges and blessings.  Cultivating the relationship with The Divine invites us to look at life through the eyes of love – to embody love with ourselves and those whose lives we touch.

Demonstrations of self- love are great ways to open your heart in concert with doing the inner emotional healing and transforming beliefs on both the conscious and subconscious level.

Ready to fall in deeper love with your Self?

Join in the next Pathways to Awakening Journey Into Self- Love, beginning Tuesday, November 13.

The weekly meditations and deepening processes that have catapulted past participants into higher states of joy, abundance, peace…are all designed in the moment by God to work on conscious and subconscious levels to heal and open your heart and create reconnection with your Sacred Self. Adding EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) had made the program even more potent.

Imagine releasing old pain, beliefs, and patterns you have been carrying in your heart for years with Grace, even joy?

Impossible? Not in this program !

Go read what other folks have said and experienced.

If the program resonates with your heart, LISTEN and reserve your seat with the early tuition before it expires on November 9!

You deserve it!!

PS! Listen to my FREE call on Self-Love here

Love and blessings,

Lorraine
www.powerfull-living.biz/pathways/

There is no love without forgiveness, and there is no forgiveness without love. - Bryant H. McGill

Love is one of my personal themes for 2011 and seems to be a global theme as well!

One of the things I have noticed is that when I have an intention to focus on something, the Universe answers my prayers by giving me numerous opportunities to play with whatever I want to work on.  Often, those opportunities come one after another or simultaneously, like the volume just got cranked up and everywhere I turn I bump into “my stuff.”

Last weekend was a great example. I’ve been working with self-love and compassion – for myself, within my relationships, and with the Divine. Last Friday I felt an intuitive nudge to invite my subscribers to receive a special gift. Inclusive of this offer was a condition that felt important to me. I wanted to get the email out before I left to visit a dear friend overnight.

So I wrote the email invitation, sent it out to my list and felt pretty good about I offered. Before leaving for my trip, I checked my emails, excited to see who was interested in saying yes to receive my gift. I had a number of quick replies emails including one from my dear friend Anita who wondered why I had included a condition with my offer.

My initial reaction was  anger and defensiveness. I send a quick email reply that was a bit edgy and left the house. Once on the road, my emotions and thoughts went wild. I was all over the place shifting from anger, feeling I had done something wrong, to righteous indignation, the desire to be right without defending myself….

On the flip side I was exploring the message and blessing from the experience, recognizing the underlying beliefs that were at play, appreciating Anita for being in service to my healing and growth, releasing my inner turmoil to God, then yanking all the drama back…cycling round and round. 

I was both the observer witnessing the craziness I was creating while being hooked into the story at the same time. By the time I reached my friend’s house 90 minutes later I was feeling exhausted.

The following night, Anita called me to chat. There was no mention of the emails and I could feel a wall between us that is rarely there. We have a very genuine and authentic friendship with a commitment to clear things up right away and I could feel myself partially withdrawn.

I needed to tell her the affect her email had on me and my head was talking me out of it. “Why don’t you just let it go Lorraine? Is it really that important or are you turning this into a big drama for control and validation?”

The truth was that the more I tried to discount sharing what had happened, the more disconnected I felt from myself and with Anita.

I had to tell her….
 
So, I briefly talked about how pissed off I had felt, the awareness that was revealed from the drama I created, and thanked her for being of service to me. As she listened, she chuckled in appreciation and compassion for my drama creation.

As we continued to chat, I still felt disconnected from her, like something was out of sync. I became aware of  feeling guilt and shame.  I realized I needed to ask for her forgiveness. Forgiveness for directing all that anger towards her, forgiveness for the judgments I had felt, and the story I created in my mind to feel better about myself at her expense. 

So I asked. “Will you forgive me?”

Of course!

Will you forgive yourself?

Yes….I will

Everything shifted into peace. I felt clean, connected with myself, my Divinity, and with Anita. I could feel my soul smile…..

Three loving actions made that possible.

1. Telling the truth. Expressing what had happened in a loving and healthy way allowed me to release what I was still holding onto that had created an unconscious rift in our friendship.

So often people censor their voice by minimizing and discounting what might need to be expressed especially in support of healing and resolving a conflict. Withholding thoughts and feelings creates a barrier in relationships and breaks trust. Without an exit valve for our emotions and thoughts to be released, the pain we carry will impact on our emotional, psychological, mental, spiritual, and physical well-being. 

Learning how to lovingly express in a healthy way, without defending, explaining, or personalizing enhances intimacy and trust in relationships and deepens self-love.

2. Asking for forgiveness. Allowing my vulnerability and humanity to be revealed created the pathway for healing. Each of us at one time or another has strayed from our path, ignored our heart, betrayed another, been unloving, acted unwisely, given in to an addiction, desire, or temptation we might regret. There is a need for forgiveness when there is blame that often results in a misunderstanding or taking things personally.

3. Forgiving myself  for being less than love. 99.99% (I think it’s really 100%) the person we are the most upset with is US. The truth is we mess up. We overreact, get angry, and make mistakes. Who we have become is the culmination of our life experiences and cultural conditioning. Every person and situation has provided opportunities for us to learn, grow, heal, and evolve. Nothing has been wasted….ever. I have found that as my heart breaks open, embracing my humanity with humility and compassion has deepened my ability to love.

One of my favorite CD’s is Marianne Williamson’s, “Meditations For A Miraculous Life” . In the evening prayer meditation she talks about being gratefull for the lessons received during the course of the day that invited compassion and love. In this time of self-reflection she reminds us to ask for forgiveness for the ways we withheld love and that tomorrow we may do better at BEING LOVE.

Forgiveness is an act of love and compassion. It is through our humanness that our greatness emerges.

In times of extreme pain, if we are willing to soften our hearts, let some of our protective guard down, and be willing to be vulnerable, many miracles can happen. I believe all prayers are always answered although they don’t always match the picture of what we expect.

Looking at yourself:

• Would you be willing and open to forgive yourself for any judgments you might be holding? 
•  If you were more compassionate and forgiving, how might your attitude change towards yourself? Others? Your life?
• What might you do differently? How would you feel and think differently?

Grief and sadness lies beneath anger. As long as we remain judgmental and unforgiving, we are unable to release the pain and come to a place of resolution and inner peace. When we can view each experience as a healing and growth opportunity that brings us closer to our Divinity, we can release the pain through forgiveness and open our hearts to feel gratitude and joy.

Joy connects us to love, which is our true nature and the essence of God.
Approaching life with wonder, like we did as innocent children, invites us to see and attract options and possibilities that can resolve challenges and bring Grace. In wonder we delight in the blessings, gifts, and wonderfull surprises The Divine has for us.

The next time someone does something that upsets you or you do something that you regret and judge, ask yourself:

What would love see?
What would love hear?
What would love do?
What would love say?

And then allow love to guide you in responding with a compassionate and forgiving heart.

Imagine walking through eyes looking through the eyes of love every day.

Imagine if we all did that.

Imagine the world we would create…..

Why not start today.  It begins with just one….

If You Have Been Spiritually Fed and Inspired…

If you are spiritually nourished and inspired by our work and service, and wish to share an offering of love, a tithe, or a financial gift to support our work in the world, we gratefully receive gifts at by clicking here

Blessings,

Lorraine
www.isayyesnow.com

Several days ago I wrote a post called: Are You Fighting Against Life Or Flowing With It? that I’d like to expand on…

Last year I had the privilege to hear Marianne Wiliamson speak for two hours at a conference in LA, The Freedom Formula Experience, hosted by Christine Kloser, Marianne was one of the guest presenters along with Neale Donald Walsch, James Twyman, David Neagle, and of course, Christine.  It was a phenomenal experience that brought me to tears repeatedly.

Marianne Williamson is viewed as one of the most “plugged in “spiritual leaders in the world today in bringing God’s voice into the world,  When she speaks, much of what she says references The Course in Miracles, a three volume curriculum; a  complete self-study spiritual thought system that teaches about Universal love, peace, and forgiveness. Personally, I have not taken this course and I am feeling that I might add this program to my spiritual practices in the near future.

As she spoke she reminded us that the Universal Laws that govern creation are unalterable fundamental truths that underpin our internal existence just as the Law of Gravity is a truth that governs our outer world. Aligning with Universal Principles in thought, word and deed empowers us to flow in co-creatorship with The Divine vision for our life.

Two of the principles she spoke on from the Course are:

1. The presence of fear is a sure sign that you are trusting in your own strength

2. Beware of self-initiated plans

What do they mean?

Let’s take number one about fear, which is something we can all relate to as a powerfull energy that can be a catalyst for change or a barrier to experiencing the fullness of the life we came here to live.

In a recent conversation  with some close colleagues we talked about that when are in the grips of fear and our inner thoughts become rampant with worse case scenarios that we have disconnected from God/Source/Higher Power and are running at full throttle into the illusions of our mind.

When we are connected with our “essence, our eternal nature”, we have faith and trust that all is well and our viewpoint is one of peaceful expectation that all our needs are met and our job is to listen to and follow the guidance the Source within.

When fear shows up, that’s a signal to stop, take a breath, pause, get present, and go within for guidance and inspiration. Taking this simple and powerfull step invites you to get present to the reality that all is ok in this moment and that your imaginings are not matching up to “you’re HERE and NOW”, unless you truly are in danger! All others thoughts are pure fabrication.

In the illusion of fear we can cut ourselves off from the support and power of the Universe to partner with us in creating “what’s next” and resolving any circumstance that presents itself in service to our growth and evolution.  In fear we ask, “What do I do?” meaning, “How do I get rid of this or make it stop”,  rather than “Who am I being called to be in this moment. What is mine to do?”  and opening to the growth and learning that comes from the experience as a gift and blessing to our evolution. In fear, we resist, rather than embrace.

It takes practice and commitment to hear the calling and voice God speaking through your soul. It takes courage to go the distance of walking through the experience to reach the gift on the other side that is calling you forward.

My dear friend Kimberly Marooney says, “The Universe handles 80% and our job is to handle the other 20%. That means showing up and taking 100% responsibility for our 20% part in co-creation”. 

When we go off to pursue our own problem-solving ideas without including the guidance of spirit, we are trusting in our own will and strength to figure it out. That’s like flipping a finger at the big guy or gal, and saying “No thanks, I’ll do it myself!”

Is that you?

If you said yes, how’s that workin for ya?

Point two – Beware of self-initiated plans. Your vision for your life, even if it seems fabulous, pales in comparison to the vision in the mind of God. You might be very successful financially, or by whatever your definition of success is, and still feel like something is missing; a dissatisfaction, emptiness, frustration that seems to suggest that there is something out of whack…. And you might feel a yearning, a longing for that missing something.

I believe that longing is for communion with God; to fulfill your purpose for being here in a physical body in alignment with the vision God has for your life. Our most fundamental reason for being is to “love and be loved” – to be the embodiment of Divine love in who we are and what we do.  To “BE LOVE”.

When we begin each New Year we typically think about where we are, what we want and create a vision to motivate us into action right? Then we might write down our goals, create a vision board, write down affirmations, visualize the result we want and go forward with the intentions of what we pictured is already ours using accountability, methods to track progress, etc. Sound familiar?

Marianne spoke about how each of us came here with a unique blueprint encoded within us to fulfill in our life experiences. Things that we wished to experience for the purpose of our own evolution, to serve the world’s evolution, and to expand Creation.

So, let’s say you’re having some success with action plans but not really at the level of success you desire or you keep bumping up against obstacles and can’t seem to gain momentum. You seem to be doing everything right and things just don’t seem to flow the way you want. You might even be feeling stuck, confused, frustrated, disappointed, and perhaps angry at your self, God, others…

What if your plan wasn’t God’s plan?
 
What if the job you assigned yourself to do wasn’t the job God had for you?

What if the plan you created was motivated by fear rather than inspired by the mind of God?

In the last few days I have been getting strong inner nudges to be doing more meditation and looking at my priorities. I have come to realize that I have been squeezing my spiritual practices into the daily activities of running my business, rather than making my spirituality the most important commitment in my life. I have allowed my business and other distractions to take precious time away from cultivating my relationship with my soul and Source. I haven’t been aligned with my desires to be in Oneness with All There Is which is why some areas of my life and business have continued to be stressful.

So yesterday I committed to meditate twice daily and immerse myself with more opportunities and spiritual practices to commune with my spirit. My decision is to daily carve time and space to prioritize my relationship with God and to check in repeatedly for guidance throughout the day, especially when making decisions.

This morning during meditation I asked four questions that Marianne posed for morning reflection:

• Who am I called to be?
• What I am called to do?
• What am I called to speak?
• And to whom?

When you are out of alignment with your essential SELF in your thoughts, feeling, words, and actions, you are perfectly aligned to the results you are creating.

When you seem to be doing everything right and things aren’t flowing, my partner, Anita Pathik Law and I both believe that -  The key to manifesting more of what you want is being in alignment. Simply put, whenever you are hitting up against obstacles, unintentional or undesired creations in your life, something, somewhere is out of whack. Unless you can see where you are out of alignment you will continue to operate in a survival oriented space, which is a difficult place to attract and manifest your greatest desires.

Operating strictly through EGO is one way we “Edge God Out”. A healthy ego partners with our soul to align with Divine Will.

So of your life doesn’t seem to be working and you have that longing and desire to be aligned with your soul path and partner, join me with Anita  on February 25 for Aligning With Your Destiny, our 13 week life-changing transformational program that will help you to cultivate a stronger connection with your SELF, GOD and the life you came here to live. Register  before Monday, February 15, and save up to $255 off the registration and take the next step in living your destiny! Hear our preview calls

If you’re unhappy with your life, you have the POWER to alter your course when you align with the Divine! How about today?

Blessings,

Lorraine
www.isayyesnow.com

 
Not long ago I subscribed to receiving daily inspiration emails from Neale Donald Walsch, author of “Conversations with God”. I LOVE them.

When I received the one for today, I just had to share it! Enjoy

On this day of your life, I believe God wants you to know…

…that “Why is this happening?” is the most useless question in the Universe.

The only really profitable question is, “What?” As in, “What do I choose now?” This question empowers.

The “why” question simply perplexes, and rarely satisfies even when it gets a good answer.

So don’t try to “figure it out.” Stop it.

Just focus on what you now wish to create.

Keep moving forward.

There’s nothing behind you that can possibly serve you better than your highest thoughts about tomorrow.

Have a great day

Lorraine

www.powerfull-living.biz

PS. Did you purchase your copy of Christine Kloser’s new book. The Freedom Formula yesterday? You still can! You have the opportunity in THIS moment, to learn from 75 “conscious” entrepreneurs including Marianne Williamson, Guy Finley, Marci Shimoff, Wayne Dyer and others who are here to help you make profits as an entrepreneur by integrating your spiritual wisdom with proven business strategies. And…when you get her book you will learn more about her Conscious Entrepreneur Conference in Jan. ’09 with Marianne Williamson (A Return to Love), Neale Donald Walsch, and James Tyman (The Moses Code).

You’re invited to meet Neale Donald Walsch, author of “Conversations with God”, James Twyman, author/producer of “The Moses Code” and Marianne Williamson, best-selling author of “A Return to Love”… as they teach you their success strategies for financial and spiritual fulfillment as a conscious entrepreneur!

This special invitation is part of a ground-breaking event that is happening today! 

 You see, a good friend of mine, Christine Kloser, has written a book that reveals the formula for integrating spiritual wisdom with proven business strategies that show you how to experience soul-satisfying success in your business, and your life. 

Christine is the real deal. She came through many financial, business, and spiritual struggles to become who she is today as a wildly successful entrepreneur who has learned to bridge spiritual concepts with proven business practices. In this ground-breaking book, she spill the beans on how she found FREEDOM in all areas of her life! You can too!

The book is called “The Freedom Formula®, How to Put Soul in Your Business and Money in Your Bank”.  And, today Christine has gathered together 85 conscious business leaders who are all excited to share their valuable gifts with you when you buy The Freedom Formula® at Amazon.com!  The most valuable gift being the opportunity to save $500 on The LIVE Freedom Formula Experience® where you’ll get to meet Neale Donald Walsch, James Twyman and Marianne Williamson… in person! 

And, one lucky book buyer (maybe you) will receive 2 tickets to attend The Freedom Formula® Experience absolutely F-R-E-E!

www.FreedomFormulaBook.com

Christine has been writing and speaking about soul-based business and conscious entrepreneurship for years. She has helped thousands of people transform their lives through her teachings and her books.  Christine is not someone who just talks about conscious entrepreneurship, she walks her talk. Simple as that.

“The Freedom Formula, How to Put Soul in Your Business and Money in Your Bank” offers such transformational new strategies that it has been endorsed by such luminaries as Neale Donald Walsh, Michael Gerber, Kendra Todd, Mark Victor Hansen, Alexandria Brown, Michael Port, Loral Langemeier, David Neagle, Joe Nunziata and many more leaders of abundant living.  With this kind of support and belief from one’s peers it is well worth it for you to check this out.

Just go here now for all the details. You’ve got literally nothing to lose, and everything to gain.

www.FreedomFormulaBook.com

Today is the day to get started on creating an even more meaningful and successful future.

To your freedom,

Lorraine
www.powerfull-living.biz

p.s. Getting your copy, your gifts and a jumpstart on your goals is just a click away.

 p.p.s. Christine guarantees you will be delighted with the book – if for any reason in the next 90 days you don’t like it, you keep the book and she will refund your entire investment.

p.p.p.s. I know you know lots of people who would love to get the book and enjoy all the bonus gifts. Why not share this message with them so they too, can begin to enjoy The Freedom Formula as soon as possible and receive all the wonderful bonus gifts.