Gloria to God:

Dear God, as You were talking to me yesterday, it felt as though I were freed from having to publicly declare what has been bothering me.

God:

You were freed from the claim it had on you. You have stepped out of the embarrassment and shame, much of it.

Gloria:

It is not so clear to me that I must say it here.

God:

It seems less weighty to you.

If you never had your judgment about it in the first place, it would not have been an issue for you, and you would not have to say more about it. But you brought it up. Today it seems more like a detail to you rather than a major confession. It is more in its place.

Gloria:

Yes.

God:

You are in a more "So what?" frame of mind.

Gloria:

A little.

God:

Since it is not quite the huge issue it was yesterday, it is less interesting. It has less drama associated with it. Confession is for something momentous, and now this simply is not as momentous for you anymore. Not easy yet, but not of the magnitude it held yesterday. The drama isn't here for you anymore. Now get it over with, dear Gloria.

Gloria:

Well, finances have been so grim that I have applied for food stamps and Medicaid. I have an appointment today.

God:

Was that so bad?

Gloria:

No. Yesterday it would have been enormous. I am still embarrassed. I would feel mortified to use food stamps in front of anyone I know.

God:

So long as you will feel mortified, you will certainly find people you know next to you at the check-out counter. No matter how you avoid it, no matter if you go out of town, someone you know will be there until you let go of every vestige of investment of judgment.

Do you begin to see how your taking this step of applying for help will free you from the necessity of it? You are making more room within you for Me to come in. When there is judgment, there is not openness. The release of judgment opens doors that were closed.

I will say it again. There is nothing on earth to be ashamed of. In My eyes, there is nothing to hide, keep secret, pretend about. There is nothing to deny.

There are not even things to be proud of. Being proud of is the same as being ashamed of. If you were not proud of being above asking for help, you would not have embarrassment about applying for it. If you did not believe in dignity, you would not be feeling indignity.

If you were not proud of not stealing, you would not feel haughtier than one who does.

If you were not proud of eating health foods, you would not note the sugared flavored carbonated water and white bread in other people's shopping carts and tighten your lips.

When you have faced every fear you have, what fear is left? When fear of illness, helplessness, pain, death, loss and defamation have gone, what other fears are there? All fears are of those, of the body or of what someone else would say or think. I cannot think of another. Oh, yes, fear that you do not have control, or fear that you, ignorant as you are, do have control!

You are not less, regardless of what happens. You are not more, regardless of what happens.

If your opinion of yourself is based on what others think or might think or have thought, you are vulnerable. If your well-being is based on the state of your body or a position in life, you do not have well-being. You are just a bouncing ball, higher one minute or the next, dependent upon the hand that bounces you.

But you, Gloria, are in the enviable position of having let go of your fears by having to face them. The opposite of facing them is denial of them. So when My children can face their fears, they may not have to go through them. Facing your fears is the same as facing your beliefs and judgments. You are here on earth to let go of your fears and by so doing, help others let go of theirs.

When you are devoid of judgment, beliefs, fears, then you remain My child with exquisite purity. The difference is that you are in pure love. Not in brief love. Not in partial love. Not in judgment. Not in holding on. In just being, being in pure love.

* * *

Margaret to Heavenletters:

My vote for a "Hearts of Heaven" from the September 12 letter is: "My children may not want things just as they are, but they are so attached to things just as they are."

Tina to Heavenletters:

Thank you so much for your question, September 14, about health, which gave God such a wonderful opening for an answer that is so good for us all. I am just starting up in a position with the TLC ministry at my church. We extend greetings and care to members of the congregation who face challenges and transitions. It is excellent for me to be reminded that God always has all situations in divine order. Faith and trust will be much more appropriate offerings than pity or even compassion.

Thanks for sharing such a tender issue for the benefit of all. This issue might be a candidate for the book. How often our faith is eroded by our minds challenging God's vision and demanding our preferred outcomes. Because of this mental habit, by throwing God out of our hearts when we believe He has failed us or punished us, we so often throw our faith and strength out just at the times when we need it the most. Thanks God for showing us a better alternative for the challenging times.

Love and Light.

Bev to Heavenletters:

Thank you for your pure honesty in September 16's Heavenletter. I feel deeply freed by it.

Abby to Heavenletters:

I had an experience with God the other day that was just really cool and I wanted to tell you about it. I am at school in Chicago now, and I took the el downtown to try and locate an outdoor free swing dancing by the lake that I had heard about. Swing dancing is one of my greatest joys. So I got off the train and started meandering in the direction of the lake, near the Art Institute, but I couldn't seem to find anything, and it was dark and late at night, and I was alone. I didn't know what to do, and then it occurred to me to ask God. So I did, and He gave me directions! It was so cool, and definitely a gift from Heaven because when I got there, they were playing my favorite song!