BEING IN SERVICE TO OTHERS is the hallmark of life. It represents the purpose each of us holds through this mortal experience. And it enables us to move quickly forward on our journey of spiritual evolution. What is the distinct element achieved when one is in service to another? Is it personal gain, financial success, or health improvements? Maybe. But it is above all the exact elevation in our own spiritual attainment as well as the spiritual attainments of those whom we are serving. It is ELEVATION. We are here to receive and to give - to ourselves, to our friends and family, and to those who cross our paths. We're here to make of this excursion a swift and steady lesson in humanity's propulsion toward eternal heights. And we're here to do it together. Isn't it amazing how all our lives we depend on others? Really, if we think about it, we depend on so many people for everything we have. We rely on the grocer for our food - he relies on the producer and packager for his products - and he relies on the farmers and ranchers. We rely on the doctor, the educator, the transportation engineer, the commentator, the politician, the researcher, the author, the artist, the musician, the restauranteur, the gardener, the business owner, the postal worker... and the list goes on. For all of these tasks which must be done, we rely on one another. And in a beautiful kaleidescope of activity and service, our lives are enriched and blessed beyond a single individual's efforts. For this purpose are we - the giver, the receiver - in an ever changing and evolving exchange of service, to lend whatever skills and talents we possess to contribute to humanity's benefit, and to receive whatever gifts of another's skills and talents for our benefit. We must rely on each other. We must cherish each other. We must honor and give thanks for each other. And we must SERVE. It is our highest position, ever.

The uncanny messages showing up all week couldn't have been a coincidence. They seemed to pop up everywhere: in my inbox, on the television, in the books I was reading. How could it be that the exact words I needed to hear were given me seemingly randomly, and from so many sources? Of course, I learned, they weren't random...

As a reminder that all wisdom is accessible to us when we simply open our eyes and look, when we open our ears and listen, when we open our minds and receive, inspired and direct messages were given to me through a series of specific quotes, teachings, and gifts from friends. They came intermittently but forcefully into my scope and I could not deny their source.

I had been guided in meditation recently that I needed to "see" the light before me, beside me, and within me. I needed to "hear, believe, and listen" for the voice which whispers and allow my spirit to "feel what is being said." I was told to go toward "a bright manifestation of hope - in everything, everywhere." At the time, I didn't realize precisely what that meant, but as the week wore on, I soon realized that this admonishment was quite literal and that I would be learning an unforgettable lesson. Read more ...

In everything there is a lesson. In everything there is a gift. In all things there is purpose. And in all our lives there is meaning.

This means that when we perform the simplist task, or engage in an act of service, or participate in a casual conversation, there is meaning. There is purpose. Though the daily acts and words of our lives may seem nothing more than common and ordinary, they have the potential to be uncommon and extraordinary. In fact, they are purposed to give us invaluable experience and eternal lessons of wisdom, hope, and light. And when we view all things through this lens, we then become navigators of remarkable precision through the journey of life.

It's easy to get caught up in the "drudgery" of what we consider random, repititious, or useless events in our lives. But a very wise young man said to me recently, "There is more than what we see or hear or understand. There is more, so much more."

I've found great wisdom and beauty in those words. And they serve to remind me that I can rise above the sorrow and struggle this life sometimes gives in order to find the "more" he was talking about, that everything is not limited to what I can see or hear or understand, and that there is meaning to all things. In fact, there is more, so much more...

A bright vision of Hope. A lasting stream of Love. A high and holy power of Life.

LIGHT: The inherent glow that burns within us. LIGHT: Our brilliance manifested. LIGHT: You and me. Shining this light is inevitable, if we are living in the stream of positive energy we've been created to live. And if we are true to our highest, we can be this light personified. How does it look to others? Like a glow in our countenance, a spark in our eyes, and a power in our being that defies all earthly challenges and defeats. We are here to shine, to burn brightly, and to glow, sending outward those rays of divinity which heal and inspire and breathe life into. We are one infinite Light, threading through the fabric of eternity like a golden strand which breaks not, nor does it fray. It spans eons with its gold rays and lasting brilliance. It feels to reach across bounds of forgetfulness and fear, snuffing out doubt and penetrating darkness. It calls from deep within. Do we answer? Do we hear? Do we feel? Do we believe?

We can answer. We can hear. We can feel. And we can believe. We need only listen, and watch, and trust.