Skip to content
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Center Staff
  • Board of Trustees
  • Services
    • Sunday Services & Meditation
    • Wednesday’s Wisdom
    • Congregational Songs
    • Archived videos on our Youtube Channel
  • Gallery
  • Media
  • Contact Us
Top Menu

Center for Spiritual Living
Center for Spiritual Living
No matter where you are on your spiritual journey, know that you are welcome here.
  • Programs
    • Animal Kinship Ministry
    • Circle of Love
    • Coming Home – Awakening To Spirit
    • Community Outreach Programs
    • New Thought Bookstore
    • Shifting Sands
    • Youth and Family
  • Science of Mind Classes
    • Course Descriptions
    • Current & Upcoming Classes
  • Events & Calendar
  • Prayer Ministry
    • Affirmative Prayer: Career and Creativity
    • Affirmative Prayer: Health
    • Affirmative Prayer: Love and Relationships
    • Affirmative Prayer: Spirituality and Consciousness
    • Affirmative Prayer: Wealth
  • Ministers
  • Give
  • Volunteer
  • Blog
  • Programs
    • Animal Kinship Ministry
    • Circle of Love
    • Coming Home – Awakening To Spirit
    • Community Outreach Programs
    • New Thought Bookstore
    • Shifting Sands
    • Youth and Family
  • Science of Mind Classes
    • Course Descriptions
    • Current & Upcoming Classes
  • Events & Calendar
  • Prayer Ministry
    • Affirmative Prayer: Career and Creativity
    • Affirmative Prayer: Health
    • Affirmative Prayer: Love and Relationships
    • Affirmative Prayer: Spirituality and Consciousness
    • Affirmative Prayer: Wealth
  • Ministers
  • Give
  • Volunteer
  • Blog

Will The Real Love Please Stand UP…NOW?!

With
February Being the LOVE month…with Valentine’s Day having just been celebrated…by
a large number of us…with chocolate covered strawberries, roses, Cupid’s arrow,
and those proverbial Hallmark wishes…Let’s Talk About Love!
Let’s
talk about Truth…NOW! …’cause Love is in the air!
Remember
last week’s blog?…
Our primary relationship is with ourselves.
When we love ourselves fully and unconditionally, we throw open the channels
between ourselves and the universe to give and receive love.
Got IT?…Get IT?…GREAT!!!
If someone were to ask me: “What is the most difficult
challenge that you’ve faced in your life?” I would unhesitatingly reply:
“In time past…To be myself.” To be oneself in all situations is often
an impossible job that calls for effort, courage and brutal honesty. But, to be
myself I need to know myself. And to know myself, I must  Love  myself.

Some may hate to describe themselves as self-loving because we have been told
that this is narcissistic. That there is an element of wantonness in admitting:
“I am a wonderful person and I Love myself”

Ask
Yourself:  When I look into the
mirror,  am I happy with whom I
see.?  Do I ever allow my imperfections
to neutralize what is best in me.?  Do I
accept myself without conditions?

Dale Carnegie, the
best-selling author of How to Win Friends and Influence People, tells
the story of a woman, Edith, who, as a child, used to be sensitive, shy and
overweight. She never went to parties, never had any fun and always felt that
she was different and undesirable. 
Later, she married a man several years her senior.  Her in-laws were all outgoing, poised and
confident people.  But that did not
affect Edith’s shyness. She felt she was a failure and feared that if her
husband found out the truth, it would be the end of their marriage. So, Edith
put up a show of gaiety, while deep within unhappiness eroded her. One day, she
overheard her mother-in-law say, referring to the secret behind her children’s
poise and happiness: “No matter what happened, I always insisted on my
children being themselves.” Almost overnight Edith changed. She began a
search for herself, building on her strong points, accepting without apology
her weaker points.

Striving for authenticity in thought and action is the first mature step in
self-evolution. We feel alienated from others because we don’t show our real
selves for fear of rejection. The result is internal dissonance. We can connect
with our inner selves only when we peel off all masks. To accept the totality
of our being, we must become compassionate towards ourselves. Accepting our
negativity is an integral part of the human experience; we can then extend this
to others. This is true compassion.

The American philosopher, Emerson makes a valid point in his essay On
Self-reliance
: “There is a time in every man’s education when he
arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide;
that he must take himself for better, for worse, as his portion; that though
the wide universe is full of good, no kernel of nourishing corn can come to him
but through his toil bestowed on that plot of ground which is given to him to
till. The power which resides in him is new in nature, and none but he knows
what that is  which he can do, nor does
he know until he has tried.”

Ironically, we spend a major part of our lives with a begging bowl, pleading
for love from others. We believe that we will feel better if people   love us. 
But the love I want begins with me. I can experience real   love only when I fill myself with love…and
am willing to give it to others. The more I give, the more I receive.

All our life’s experiences comprise an endless learning act. We merely need the
willingness. We must all learn to bypass the cacophony of the world to reach
into the silence of our soul. In order to love… in order to be happy… we must
learn to be present in each moment. 
Don’t keep your happiness on hold. 
Hey, Life is not a dress rehearsal. 
Now is the only time we have.

If  we 
work for them, all our material 
dreams can be achieved. But if what we seek is something beyond,
something that endures within us, we must give priority to love and happiness.
We are willing to invest time and money in the pursuit of material gains. But,
we don’t do the same to establish love, happiness and peace of mind. If only
each of us could pray to alleviate the pain and suffering of others, we could
make that vital connection with the real us.

In his book Seat of the Soul, Gary Zukav asks his readers not to pass
value judgment or censure anybody. If we do so, we in turn will be judged by
the universe and penalized accordingly. Judgments build walls between people,
create hostility. When negative thoughts intrude, break its flow by repeating
to yourself words such as love, joy and harmony. Words weave patterns in our
lives. Build up a vocabulary of words that have positive connotations.

Tomorrow really never comes. We have only today, maybe only this fleeting
minute. So let us be grateful for every moment that comes our way. Many
successful people began and ended their day by an act of gratitude. The
universe, God —call it what you will—has been magnanimous with us today.

So let us close our eyes, recall every happy moment that we have experienced,
and thank this power with all our heart. As gratitude and appreciation grow and
fill your life, you will learn how to sincerely love yourself for what you
really are.

There is not a single person in this universe who leads a problem-free life.
Yet we encounter people whose lives appear dynamic and joyous. What sets them
apart? The answer: they do not allow themselves to be immobilized by little
things. They respond to problems with ease, change things that can be changed
and accept those that can’t. In the process, they come closer to the wisdom of
discernment.

Contemporary wisdom would have us believe that packing each day with things
that need to be done is the secret of success. But Life isn’t all about getting
things done as much as it is about enjoying each step along the way. Many a
marital discord erupts from couples’ obsession with getting everything done in
record time and to perfection. If, on the other hand, I ask myself each night:
“Has my Life made a little bit of difference to at least one person?”
and hear a resounding “Yes!” in reply, all the things I haven’t
managed to do over the day would not matter at all.

Remember…

Self love forms the foundation of your single, most important relationship –
that with YourSelf. The strength of all your other relationships is exactly
equal to the strength of that foundation. To love YourSelf is not just a
self-esteem boosting piece of advice. It is the prerequisite to truly loving
others. The Golden Rule tells us to, “love your neighbour as you love yourself”.
You are likely to have heard it many times, expressed in different ways,
thinking it is about loving others. Look a little closer though, and you will
find that at its very centre is the command to love yourself.

Will
the Real Self Love Please Stand Up?
To love
yourself is to be in awe of the miracle of your existence. It is to accept
yourself as you are – the “light” parts and the “dark”, the
“good” and the “bad” – while knowing that the real you is
above the perceived dualities of the physical realm. It is to be willing to
receive as much as you are willing to give and do both equally. It is about
knowing your values and your boundaries and honouring them. It is about
teaching others how to treat you by showing them how you treat yourself. It is
about being kind to yourself. It is about looking after your mind, your body
and your Spirit; all three. It is about knowing you are worth it, not because
of what you have achieved or what you look like or what others think of you,
but because Love
is your birthright no matter what.

To YOU Loving YOU!
With Love & Blessings!
Rhonda

Rhonda Maria Farrah, MA, DRWA

“There is a mighty Power within you. There is
that Spirit of Life, Light, and Love. The more you feast on these ideas and
fast from old corrosive ones, the closer you experience the Life you
desire.”
-Frank Richelieu, The Art of Being Yourself
Rhonda Maria Farrah, MA, DRWA
The Wellness Institute International
949.527.1574
Licensed Teacher
The Art of Feminine Presence™
Author  of the Forthcoming Book
How To Live & LOVE During The Process of
Divorce…
A Journey In Healing & Transformation
rhonda@HelpMeRhondaNOW.com
www.TheWellnessInstitute.tv
Share this post

Author: Rhonda Farrah

Recent Blog Posts
  • Annual Holiday Brunch, Sunday December 3rd

    Sunday, December 3rd at 11:30 a.m., after the service Celebrate the holidays with your spiritual family Sunday, December 3rd at our Annual Holiday Brunch. Bring friends and bring your wallet, shop our Annual Holiday Boutique! No need to bring a potluck dish, all of the delicious food and drink will be provided!

    November 29, 2023
  • Annual Holiday Boutique December 3rd

    Our Annual Holiday Boutique unfolds Sunday, December 3rd, at 11:30 (after the service). This year the boutique is open to artists and artisans from Centers throughout Orange County. You will find art, fine art photography, crafts, fiber arts, trinkets, and gifts you won’t see elsewhere! Whether you are looking for creative hand-made gifts to give…

    November 28, 2023
  • Hans Smith Made His Transition

    Hans (Hanyo) Smith October 27, 1947 – November 11, 2023 It is with great sadness we announce that our beloved Hans Smith has made his transition. Hans made his transition at his home in Cleveland, Ohio, where he relocated several years ago to be near his son and grandchildren. Hans was a long-time member of…

    November 12, 2023
  • Dena Van Slyke Celebration of Life January 7th, 2024

    Sunday, January 7th, 2024 ~ 2 p.m. Please join Dena Van Slyke’s beloved life partner Lee in celebrating her remarkable life Sunday, January 7th, 2024 at the Center for Spiritual Living Capistrano Valley, 1201 Puerta del Sol, San Clemente, CA. Dena had been a member of the Center for more than 20 years and served…

    November 9, 2023
  • Town Hall Meeting, October 8, 2023

    Values/Challenges/Strategies Summary We asked you what you valued and what you saw as challenges or obstacles to our values. Many of you also offered up some strategies for meeting concerns you had. Below is a summary of your feedback. Values Challenges/Obstacles Suggested Strategies Ministerial Staff (3) Financial Stability (3) Increase no. seats filled Programs Music…

    October 15, 2023
  • The Visioning Process – Sunday October 15, 2023

    Vision statements and visualization do involve creativity but taps into our left brain, which is analytical and logical. It’s the part of the brain that helps us write our to-do list or plan our budget. Visioning flows is an exercise in tapping into the subconscious brain. It is a spiritual practice that allows us to…

    October 9, 2023
Categories
  • Blog
  • Classes
  • Events
Tags
Affirmation Affirmative Prayer Audio blog center for spiritual living capistrano valley creativity Darin McClure Darin McClure Dr. Heather Clark Dr. Heather Clark Ernest Holmes Forgiveness gratitude gratitude Jason Silva Joyous Living Journal Joyous Living Journal Juli Isola Juli Isola Lisa McClure Lisa McClure Love Love Meditation meditation Music Oneness Parenting Quotes Rev. Dr. Heather Clark Rev. Dr. Heather Clark Rev. Karyn Allen Rev. Pattie Mercado Rev. Pattie Mercado Science of Mind September Warren September Warren spiritual growth Sunday Service Sunday Service Vidette Vanderweide Vidette Vanderweide Wednesday Wisdom Wednesday Wisdom Youtube
Contact Us
Center for Spiritual Living Capistrano Valley
1201 Puerta Del Sol
Suite 100 San Clemente, California 92673

Phone: 949-240-6463

Other contact options

Volunteers: Please check your assignment schedules here.

Latest Tweets
Could not authenticate you.
Latest Facebook Update
This message is only visible to admins.
Problem displaying Facebook posts. Backup cache in use.
Click to show error
Error: Error validating access token: The session has been invalidated because the user changed their password or Facebook has changed the session for security reasons. Type: OAuthException

Center for Spiritual Living Capistrano Valley

Center for Spiritual Living Capistrano Valley

Percolating Your Passion with Purpose, with Dave Friedman, RScP. Sunday August 13, 2023.

... See MoreSee Less


Video

View on Facebook

·
Share



Share on Facebook



Share on Twitter



Share on Linked In



Share by Email

Center for Spiritual Living
© Copyright Center for Spiritual Living Capistrano Valley