15. Centered in the Divine
Nothing that you could ever believe, think, say or do could possibly diminish God’s love for you.
I have a very important message for you from Divine Source. If you get nothing else, get this:
You are precious to God. You are God’s beloved son and daughter in whom God is well pleased.
There is nothing you could ever believe, think, say or do that could possibly diminish God’s love for you and your value.
A speaker held up a $20 bill and asked his audience who wanted it. Most hands went up. He then crumpled the bill into a wad and asked who still wanted it. Hands stayed raised. He then threw the bill on the floor and ground it with his heel. He picked up the bill, all dirty and crumpled and asked who still wanted it. Hands remained in the air.
He told the audience that no matter what had been done to that bill, no matter how mistreated and no matter how it looked, it did not decrease an iota in value.
And so it is with you. No matter what you’ve been through. No matter what someone has done to you, no matter what erroneous decisions you’ve made, no matter what your circumstances.
As a child of God, you are absolutely, divinely loved and worthy.
You are meant to be loved and to love.
In A Course in Miracles, Jesus states that our only purpose is to extend Love.
In the New Testament, Jesus told his disciples: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." John 13:34-35
(Notice in two sentences how many times Jesus admonished “to love one another.” Do you think he was emphasizing something?)
And yet, a good many do not perceive being worthy and loved, and that affects our ability to give love, for we cannot give what we perceive that we don’t have.
The greatest obstacle to feeling God’s Love, to feeling the Divine Presence within ourselves, is our own self-condemnation. Most humans feel unworthy, not good enough, less than others.
There seem to be many voices in our head—parents’ voices saying since the age of two, “No, no, no!” Classmates making fun of those who are different; perceived rejection abounds; and being told that we’re wrong and bad saturates our lives.
When I was about nine years old, while walking to school one day, I passed a house where two boys, just a little older than me, were rough-housing with each other. Suddenly they stopped & looked at me. One of them said, “You’re ugly.”
Well, I had never before heard anything other than that I was the cutest little thing to ever come along, and I was so loved in my home. But at that moment, that boy’s words cut into my heart and seared into my brain that I was ugly.
Those words had affected me for many years. I remember a time several years ago when I had to drive my sister’s red sports car. It was agonizing to be driving that car, for I cringed at drawing attention to myself, feeling way unworthy to be driving such a flashy car. And yet, today, I dress smartly in red and even drive my own red car, very deliberately chosen. That’s a result of overcoming my personal stigma.
Do you remember the first time you felt not good enough? Not as smart or as athletic as others, not good-looking enough?
Maybe you were compared to others rather than being appreciated for your God-given talents and abilities?
And then there are our own mistakes. I’ve made so many guilt-worthy, regretful errors in judgment, it’s just downright embarrassing!
Here’s a story about a woman who was a great nurse. But one day she made a mistake that caused harm to her patient. She was so distraught by her error that she left the work she loved. Many years later she yearned to return to nursing, so she took the required courses to recertify. Her class work and practicum were excellent, but when it was time to take her final exam, she didn’t show up.
The voice of guilt in her head was sabotaging her goal.
So, these voices are held in our heads, becoming the “itty bitty poopy committee” that says, “No-no-no” and “you aren’t good enough, you can’t do that”, and derails us before we can make another embarrassing mistake.
What’s your story of self-sabotage? I invite you to bring it to mind, because you will soon have an opportunity to release it.
The person who is hard on others, you can bet, is hardest on themselves.
It’s time we stop this self-condemnation and move into loving ourselves!
There is another Voice within you. The prophet Elijah called it “the still, small voice”, because it sounds like a whisper compared to the cacophony of the “itty bitty poopy committee” and so it takes practice and stillness to hear the Voice of the Divine telling you the only message you need to hear. It says, “You are my beloved. You are precious to me.”
If you hear any other voice in your head saying that you don’t deserve happiness, that you’re not good enough because of something you’ve done in the past, or something’s been done to you, or because of a set of circumstances beyond your control—if you hear a voice that says the opposite of God’s Voice, just say, “Get thee behind me, satan”—that is, egoic mind, the master of lies, your voice of error!
The voice of the Divine is saying, “You are my beloved. You are precious to me.”
Say to yourself, “I am the beloved. I am precious to God.”
I invite you to remember when one of your children took his or her very first steps. Remember how encouraging you were. And when the toddler fell, you didn’t think it was a mistake. Everyone knows it’s just part of the process of learning to walk.
Why would we not consider everything we do at every age as merely another stage of learning to walk?
Remember a time that your child was hurt or scared. Did you not feel great compassion and wrap your arms around this little one? You wanted to comfort this precious child.
Just as you have loved your child, so is God’s love for you, but infinitely greater!
You can do no wrong, no matter what! You are merely taking steps toward your fuller and fuller potential in this earth incarnation. When you fall, you just get up, steady yourself, find your balance, and go again until you’ve mastered that stage, and then the next stage and the next.
LIVING THE TEACHINGS
Exercise: Releasing Regret and Loving Yourself
I invite you to close your eyes and bring to mind something you deeply regret. I assure you that you are safe, as you have the opportunity to forgive yourself and feel God’s deep and abiding love, no matter what you have ever done or will do.
What is your regretful incident?
See yourself as a little child, perhaps having fallen down and hurt yourself, or perhaps you are so afraid.
And now feel yourself wrapped in comforting arms of a Divine Presence who loves you so much that there is nothing you can do to lessen that love.
And Divine Presence says, “You are my beloved. You are precious to me. Let go this painful regret. It is to hold you back no more. The past is gone. The only thing you need think and feel is how much I love you. All you need to know is my love for you.”
Breathe.
Thank God for this warm, embracing love.
Feel and say, “The Light of God surrounds me….the Love of God enfolds me…..I am God’s precious child.”
Now feel yourself supported in your chair. Wiggle your toes and fingers, and when you’re ready, open your eyes.
Loving yourself is key to being centered in the Divine.
I invite you to watch a video of a man who is surely centered in the Divine.
Nick Vujicic was born without arms or legs. Imagine if your child was born such. Would you be too shocked to give that child a warm and loving welcome into the world? Would you know what to do with him/her? Imagine if that was how your babe’s life began. In school would your child be taunted and made fun of?
In spite of Nick being born without arms and legs, his parents accepted and encouraged him to live to his full capacity. With his instinctive “spirit of power, and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7), Nick has achieved success in living his life to full capacity. He has learned to golf, swim, drive a small boat, & live independently with an immense sense of humor--you should see the innovative way he combs his hair & brushes his teeth! (available to see on Youtube.) And yes, he is married with children.
It is said that it isn’t what happens to you that’s important, but what you do with what happens to you. Nick has many videos on Youtube of his life and influence as a motivational speaker. Please watch and be inspired with what he has done with his circumstance.
Nick Vujicic:
No Arms, No Legs, No Worries.