The Greatest Life Coach – the Messiah

While sitting in church yesterday and listening to the Easter sermon, many thoughts went through my mind.  Thinking of the blog I wrote two weeks before, I realized that the Messiah, Jesus, was the greatest life coach of all. In the short three years of his public ministry, he tought us how to live, and he also taught us how to love.


He taught us how to ask, seek and knock:
"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”
~ Jesus - Matt.: 7:7

He taught us how to love:
“But I say to you that listen: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. Do to others as you would have them do to you.”
~ Jesus – Luke 8:27-31

Jesus did many things (60 character traits of Christ) while on earth:
He baptized, created miracles, fasted, healed the sick, forgave sins, he prayed, he served, he taught, he wept, and he witnessed. He gathered 12 disciples and had many other followers including several women.

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
~ Jesus – John 14:6

In his role as the Messiah, Jesus pursued the will of God. He did everything possible for him to represent God here on earth.  Most Christians believe that Jesus’ purpose was to die for our sins.

I like to suggest here that the greatest life coach came to teach us how to live and to love. Ever since the fall of man, Adam and Eve, the first human ancestors who made a mistake in loving and living, it was God’s desire to restore a true man to build his ideal family. Therefore, Jesus Christ came as the second Adam.  If Jesus’ was the second Adam, where was the second Eve?

Some people believe that Mary, Jesus’ mother was the second Eve. Unfortunately, the second Eve was never manifested in Jesus’ lifetime. The Holy Spirit came after his departure from earth, and became the comforter and the healer. When we talk about the Holy Trinity, it becomes obvious, that the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost become a spiritual family.

“The entire purpose of Jesus' coming can be summarized in one sentence: Jesus came to bring the resurrection needed to perfect man's love to the point where men can come into direct dominion of God's love."
~ Sun Myung Moon

When Rev. Moon was a young boy of 16, he was visited by Jesus on Easter morning. Jesus asked him during his prayer, to continue on his mission and fulfill the will of God in bringing a true family to this earth. Rev. Moon talks about this experience at length in his biography.
In his teaching, the Divine Principle, he reveals the mission of the Messiah as a teacher of love and life. Jesus’ life was cut short. That’s why he promised his Second Coming. The purpose of the Second Coming  is to bring salvation on earth with spiritual and physical restoration; it is the Kingdom of Heaven.

Jesus as the Messiah represents God’s love and God’s life. In the purpose of creation we learn that God wanted to multiply his love and life through a lineage. Jesus was not able to manifest his lineage. He has billions of spiritual children, but unfortunately couldn’t marry and have a bride. He didn’t have a physical lineage to multiply his own children. For two-thousand years we celebrated Jesus’ sacrifice and spiritual salvation. It is now the time to bring the purpose of creation to fruition and fulfill all of Jesus’ promises.

That was the essence of our Easter message.

Hear the Frequencies of Nature

With all the natural disasters we had recently, from earthquakes, tsunamis, tornados, floods, etc. it is necessary to remember that nature itself is very harmonious and pleasing to the human eyes and ears. Today I like to share this video about frequencies and sounds which can revitalize and encourage us. There is so much law and order in nature, that is blows my mind. Like the beauty which a mathematician named Fibonacci discovered in the 13th century; it shows as regularity in flowers, shells, ocean waves and even sounds.



When bad things happen, we have two choices, get angry and resentful or look for the beauty and positive. Today, I choose to see the later.

Here is the website which introduces more of this fascinating subject:
http://www.omega432.com/music.html

Would You Hire a Life Coach?

Have you ever wished that there was a person who is be a sounding board for your ideas and encourage and support you in fulfilling your dreams? Somebody who doesn’t judge you or crush your enthusiasm?
Since the Law of Attraction gained attention (through the movie “The Secret”), more people became aware that there is more to life than everyday reality. Today, we are easily talking about reaching our full potential, achieving personal goals and being successful. There is a new profession called Life Coaching.

"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you've imagined. As you simplify your life, the laws of the universe will be simpler."
~ Henry David Thoreau

We all know about coaches for the different sports teams. Among the famous ones were John Wooden (basketball), Vince Lombardi (football), Yogi Berra (baseball), etc. 
“Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are.”
~ John Wooden, American Basketball Coach, 1910-2010

You see, coaches don't solve problems they simply assist their clients in finding the answers themselves.

“Leaders aren’t born, they are made. And they are made just like anything else, through hard work. And that’s the price we’ll have to pay to achieve that goal, or any goal.”
~ Vince Lombardi , American Football Coach, 1913-1970

General Coaching
The structure and methodologies of coaching are very numerous with one unifying feature, coaching approaches are predominantly facilitating in style, see facilitation; that is to say that the coach is mainly asking questions and challenging the person to be coached. Coaching is differentiated from therapeutic and counseling disciplines.
Coaching is performed with individuals and groups, in person, over the phone and online.

What is a life coach?
Life coaching is a practice that helps people identify and achieve personal goals. Life coaches help clients set and reach goals using a variety of tools and techniques. Coaches are not therapists nor consultants; psychological intervention and business analysis are outside the scope of their work. Life coaching has its roots in executive coaching, which itself drew on techniques developed in management consulting and leadership training. Life coaching also draws inspiration from disciplines including sociology, psychology, positive adult development, career counseling, mentoring and other types of counseling. Contemporary life coaching can also be traced to teachings of Benjamin Karter, a college football coach turned motivational speaker of the late 1970s and early 1980s. The coach may apply mentoring, values assessment, behavior modification, behavior modeling, goal-setting and other techniques in helping their clients (Wikipedia).

Here are a few links for life coaching:
http://www.mylifecoach.com/
http://www.bhia.org/holistic/life-coaching.htm
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-life-coach.htm

http://www.icoachacademy.com/
http://www.robbinsmadanestraining.com/

Here are some suggestions by Christy Whitman of Quantum Success Coaching Academy:
The most important about life coaching is to understand that we are not given advice or fix the other person:

1 - Start from your own authentic being (you don’t need to know more than your client).
2 - Ask powerful questions to get the client to find the answer (support their vision - give suggestions not advice).
3 - Focus on the client not the problem (listen-listen-listen, illuminate the other).
I liked her point that we don't have to be "perfect" to be good role models. Here is a link for a video presentation: http://christywhitman.com/QSCA/program/video-2.

At a time when jobs are not easily available, learning skills to be independent can be can be a good alternative for employment.

Rainy Days and Mondays

Today is a rainy day and it’s Monday. The clouds are hanging low, it’s dark even though it is daytime and the atmosphere feels heavy. The wind is bending the big trees in our backyard, swaying them from side to side. It is only April 4, but the thermometer shows 75 degrees.

What to do on a day like this? If you are sensitive to the weather or atmospheric pressures, you may feel depressed and down. The best thing to do when you are feeling low is to do something.

Take a walk
If you are brave enough to face the elements, go out in the rain and look at the clouds and appreciate the rain watering the grass and the trees. You may remember your younger days when you had fun in the water puddles, and watched the birds picking the worms coming up after a good soak.

Listen to music
"Rainy days and Mondays” always bring me down by the The Carpenters was a popular song in the 70s. Sometimes sentimental songs like that are making things worse. Then listen to your favorite music with a more upbeat rhythm.



Visit with a friend
Best thing is to visit and talk with a friend personally. If that’s not possible, get on the phone. If you try to sheer up somebody else, it will make you feel better, too.

Bake a cake or bread
The smell of fresh baking always lifts my spirit. There is nothing like that familiar aroma filling up the house, in anticipation of the warm bread with butter and jam.

"Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass... it's about learning how to dance in the rain!"
~ Vivian Greene

Take somebody to lunch
In case you have to work, find some coworker and go out for lunch. The change of scenery will change your mood. A friendly conversation, a sharing of somebody else’s life gives you a new perspective on your own situation.

Go to the gym
If you are a member of a fitness club, you will know that a good work-out always makes you feel better. Moving your body, not only gets your juices (lymphatic) flowing but you also get the benefit of the endorphins (the feel good hormones).

Find a respectable physician
If you have a serious case of depression, which last more than rainy days and Mondays, find a medical practitioner who may be able to help.

“When we choose not to focus on what is missing from our lives but are grateful for the abundance that’s present … we experience heaven on earth.”

~ Sarah Breathnach

If nothing else, you can be grateful that you can experience this day. Life is not always sunshine; change is inevitable. Our greatest gift is to appreciate what is, finding the beauty even in a rainy day. At the end of a crummy day be grateful that you have electricity, that you have a roof over your head, food to eat, and whatever else is important to you.

ABC's of Clear Decision Making

This article is not about strategies  for better decision making. 
I want to take a more internal approach.  I observed that most of our decisions are based on emotions, either love or fear.  Obviously, we are not aware of this underlying influence.  None-the-less, if you want to make wise decisions, which really advance you as a human being be watchful of your motivation.  Love decisions benefit others and also yourself.  By focusing on positive intentions, even if the temporary result is not to your liking, the ultimate result will bring wellbeing.  With fear decisions you want advantage, dominion, revenge or play on your jealousy or shame.   The result will always be division: awareness of race, religion, nationality, and whatever else makes people appear different.

A – Acceptance
The opposite of acceptance is apathy. It is not only necessary to accept the other person or circumstance but paying attention to them. Your willingness to accept the other is based on a decision.


“Some people confuse acceptance with apathy, but there's all the difference in the world. Apathy fails to distinguish between what can and what cannot be helped; acceptance makes that distinction. Apathy paralyzes the will-to-action; acceptance frees it by relieving it of impossible burdens.”
~ Arthur Gordon


B – Belief
In all of history nobody had ever broken the record of running one mile in less than 4 minutes, until Roger Bannister broke the record because of his belief.


C – Choice
I belief it is man’s greatest gift to have choices. That puts us above all of the creatures in the universe. It is also an awesome responsibility, because we have the choice to act on our fears.


D – Destiny is not a matter of chance, rather a choice – take action, even small steps can make a difference toward what you really want in life.


"Great things are not done by impulse but by a series of small things brought together."
~ Vincent Van Gogh


E – Emotional Release
The Emotion Code  is a powerful release method because it helps to make a decision to let go of emotional baggage.  I like to encourage everybody to look into this book by Dr. Bradley Nelson.  He explains how we all have emotional memories which are dragging us down and cause problems in life.


F – Focus
Choosing selective concentration helps to make better decisions. With a clear focus we can even “move mountains.” Or is it with a strong faith? It is the definiteness of either, which will bring us the desired result. As long as we focus only on our physical strength, we only get tired. With the spiritual input, focus makes us unstoppable.


G – Gratitude
Gratitude  is a virtue but it is also an attitude, because we can decide to be grateful even in the most difficult circumstances.


“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity.... It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.”
~ Melodie Beattie, Author


H – Happiness
Happiness  is a choice; we can decide to be happy. Happiness is not depending on external circumstances rather how we feel inside.


I – Intention
By deciding on a certain intention, a goal can be reached more successfully. Once a specific purpose is decided upon, the result will come based on the intention. It is quite liberating, because that way we are not focused on the result but rather on the process.


J – Joy
Joy is an emotion which follows the fulfillment of desire; blessed are those who can find the source of joy within themselves, rather through external stimulation.


“I cannot do great things, but I can do small things with GREAT LOVE.”

~ Mother Teresa

K – Kindness
Being kind is a general act of goodwill. Something that doesn’t cost a penny; it can be as little as a smile or a friendly word. Being generous in kindness is the best reward for yourself because it makes you feel good, too.

L – Letting Go
I was listening to an interview with Hale Dwoskin from the Sedona Method  the other night. He explained that letting go is as easy as looking at a pen in your hand and deciding to let it fall to the ground. Just let it go. It is a decision. And so it can be with emotions, thought process and undesirable habits. With willingness even the most stubborn subconscious mind has to co-operate.


M – Manors
Manors are based on certain habits we adapt to throughout our lives. If we can accept certain disciplines when we are young (hopefully our parents are enforcing discipline), our manors can be pleasant and acceptable to others. Fortunately, we are never too old to change our habits and with that, create better manors.


O – Optimism
Optimism is positive expectation. With an upbeat attitude, even the darkest day can be an experience. The optimist finds the good in everything and beliefs that in every difficulty or disaster one can still find something pleasant.


P – Patience
Patience takes discipline. Discipline is difficult to learn. With the skill of discipline life becomes easier to handle.


R – Responsibility
Humans are the only creature who can be responsible. Only spiritual beings have the “ability to respond.”


S – Serving others
If we could define the human purpose in three words, it would be “serving each other.” Everything in the universe is base on relationships. Nobody can live alone, or be fulfilled alone. Only in relationship to each other can we find true fulfillment.


T – Trust
Trust is deeper than faith. It takes knowing and experience to trust: God and people.


U – Understanding
Decide to understand others and your relationships will flourish. Literally, understanding means “standing under” someone. It takes humility to do that.


V -Value 

What do you stand for? What are your core values? Decision making is very much based on how you determine what is important or not. Do you value integrity, family, faith, fidelity, traditions, etc.?


W – Willingness

Every decision starts with the willingness to engage, to act, to continue, or to pursue. 

I hope I could shed some different light on the power of decision making.  We are spiritual human beings.  In order to advance and grow in life, we need to focus on spiritual principles and values.  Whatever we are focusing on will multiply.  Our world is full of fear and despair, let’s bring about more love.

"The size of your success is determined by the size of your belief."
~ David Joseph Schwartz

Spring, finally ....

This year more than ever, everybody whom I know is waiting for spring and the warmer weather. Today, being the first full day of spring (according to the meteorologists, spring started officially on March 20, at 7:21PM EST)  The spring equinox (vernal)  is the time when both day and night are equal about 12 hours each. Here in the Southern part of Ohio, we have experienced a few warm days already and the crocus and daffodils bloom.

Seasonal changes are determined by the influence of the sunlight which is determined by how the earth orbits the sun and the tilt of its axis.

Magnetic Pole Changes
Some scientists believe that the climate changes are due to the moving of the magnetic pole. It has been recorded that the magnetic north pole has moved as much as 40 miles (64 kilometers) a year; in fact it has been confirmed that the pole is now located in Siberia. The earth's north magnetic pole is racing toward Russia. One newspaper reported that that is nothing to worry about since it has happened before.

The recent earthquake in Japan and the following tsunami brought parts of Japan closer to the U.S.

The earth’s magnetic field
Another phenomenon has happened just last week: thousands of dead fish have washed ashore in Redonda Beach, California. Some scientists believe it happened because of the reversing of the polarity of the earth’s magnetic field. Others believe that extreme occurrences like the reversing of the polarity are not going to happen until December 21, 2012.

Global Warming
There is a growing controversy going on regarding Global Warming. More scientific research shows that the whole idea of Global Warming is a political issue rather than a geological event.

The London Times recently reported: “Britain’s premier scientific institution is being forced to review its statements on climate change after a rebellion by members who question mankind’s contribution to rising temperatures.”

Newsweek magazine also reported: “Uncertain Science: Bickering and Defensive, Climate Researchers Have Lost the Public’s Trust.” Newsweek does its best to cling to its increasingly discredited doctrine, but the growing body of contrary evidence only adds to the public’s disbelief.

Other newspapers also wrote similar articles.

Here is the Cato Institute’s opinion regarding this issue.

“A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever.” ~ Eccl. 1:4

Amidst all the changes we are experiencing, let’s enjoy the beautiful season of spring with all the fresh growth and renewal. Nature has proven itself faithful every year, and brought back its radiant colors and sweet fragrances. When we think things are out of control, we have to look deeper and find the causes behind the events in our lives. For many faithful believers, these are “The Last Days.” 

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.” ~ Rev. 21:1

Let's Pray for Japan

“Pray unceasingly…” 1Thess: 5:17

Some events in our lives come and go. The earthquake and following tsunami in Japan is not one of them. As we follow the news coming from the pacific island nation, we are in total awe in the face of the destruction and human suffering. Earthquakes and tsunamis have happened before, Japan hits home a little more, because of the many friends and families I have gotten to know over the years. In the last few days, we received many good-news reports in the midst of the disaster, that our friends are safe and by some miracle were spared death. Do our prayers get answered?

"The chaos of our world is a mirror of what we harbor within. As we heal our personal challenges through forgiveness, understanding, tolerance, and compassion, our Earth world will be healed."
~ Gregg Braden

Pray for Specific Needs
I often feel so helpless when events like these happen. Our prayers are more than useful. With specific requests, they can be life-saving. In this case, donations poured in and essentials were delivered like food, water, blankets and kerosene.

Japanese Character
The Japanese have a saying:”shikata ga nai” (it can’t be helped), which means they are more accepting of circumstances beyond their control. Another is “gaman” (being a virtue), which encourages to be patient and persevere in the face of suffering. None-the-less, we all have our limits. When you’re cold and hungry and homeless, you have only one thing on your mind: when will all this end?

Here is a link that exemplifies this behavior:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/20/opinion/20kristof.html?_r=1

Prayer can be powerful because it sends not only good will but an energy which can truly “move mountains.” Pray by yourself or in group settings and send your love-vibes to those displaced Japanese.

Here is a personal testimony of an earthquake surviver:
http://significatojournal.com/columns/compassionate-pugilist/looking-for-my-family-in-the-earthquake

Here is a link for a spiritual practice for sending Love Energy: 
http://evolutionezine.com/with-love-to-japan

Here are the links for money donations:
To donate $10.00 just pick up your cell phone and text REDCROSS to 90999

For those who want a receipt for this $10.00 go to:
http://www.mgivefoundation.org/receipt/

If you'd like to give more than that, go to:
- http://www.redcross.org/ for instructions.

Here is the CBN link:
http://www.cbn.com/ Disaster Relief Fund

Here is the link for Unification Church to help Japan:
http://www.familyfed.org/members/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=315&Itemid=390