No Hell in Heaven
I once assigned the “My Ideal Day” exercise to a seminar group. One woman created a lovely scenario in which she and her husband went out to a delicious dinner and then to an opera in Toronto. She read her essay, “We are riding in a long limousine so my husband can stretch out his arthritic legs.” When I heard that phrase, I perceived a “thud.”
I asked her, “Is your husband’s arthritis really a part of your ideal day?”
She thought about it for a moment and answered, “Well, no.”
“Then why would you include it in a day that is defined only by joy?”
“I guess he’s had arthritis so long that I can’t imagine him without it.”
Here we have a clear example of how we accept hell into heaven. While we are unlimited beings, we have learned limitation to the point that we can’t imagine life without it. We have money struggles, health issues, relationship challenges, and we believe that’s just the way life is—after all, most people have them, don’t they? But if we take even a brief moment to question whether the way it has been is the way it has to be, or whether the way most people live is the way we must live, we begin to see many more possibilities for our life and our creations than we have been recognizing.
This is a course in total freedom. If you have come this far along the spiritual path, and participated in these seminars, you are ready for uncompromising good. You are ready to dismantle beliefs that make you or your experience less-than in any way. You are ready for healing and manifestation that far exceeds what you have accepted. What is outrageous is not what you ask for. What is outrageous is what you settle for.
Begin to question, challenge, and move beyond any limits you take for granted. The exercise below will help you begin the process.
Exercise:
1. Note any less-than-rewarding condition you have come to accept as just part of the way your life is. Consider:
Finances
Health
Romantic Relationships
Friendships
Family Relationships
Business Relationships
Career
How much you have to work to earn a living or sell your goods or services
Your living situation
The food you eat
Environmental pollution
Politics
Religion
Aging
Death
2. Note any beliefs you are holding about “the way it is” or “the way it has to be.”
Examples:
“I owe money. I will probably always owe money. Everyone owes money. The economy is built on people owing money.”
“My body feels tired and achy because I am getting older.”
“In order to earn money I must deal with people I don’t like and put up with situations that are distasteful to me.”
“If I’m not struggling I’m cheating.”
3. Notice the painful feelings these beliefs engender. Notice how small and limited the define you to be.
4. Now note what the reverse of these beliefs would be:
“God doesn’t owe and neither do I. I can prosper financially, have all the money I need to do whatever I need to do, and have enough to overflow to help others.”
“As a spiritual being I do not have an age. I am not subject to the limits my body seems to imply. I can live my entire life with a healthy, active, and good-feeling body.”
“I can create a livelihood in which I work with people I enjoy and express my passion and gifts with creativity and fun.”
“My life is filled with ease, flow, and grace.”
Your turn:
5. Notice how good the above statements feel, and how much life force they bring you physically, emotionally, and mentally.
6. During each day notice when you encounter a belief that calls you to accept pain or limitation in any way. What belief would reverse the current limiting thought? What would you be doing differently if you were not willing to accept a piece of hell in heaven?
Affirm:
I deserve to feel good and enjoy my life all the time.
I accept only conditions that match joy.