Friday, June 10, 2011 at 5:12PM

“All that a man achieves and all that he fails to achieve is the direct result of his own thoughts.” ~James Allen

“I can’t. I’ll never. They don’t. I’ll Try. I Hope. I Need.”   The ever muttering mantra of those plagued with self doubt. Is this you? It damn sure was me! I suffered the agonizing pain of a low self worth and self doubt. I don’t anymore. It was a real challenge in my life. I struggled with obesity from an early age.  I was a social outcast in my town. I never fit in except with a very few people, some of whom moved away when I was young. I was born into a house that always struggled for money. I had a father who was self absorbed with an alcohol issue. It was hard and affected me in more ways than one. But I overcame it. I look back at that boy and I must say that I overcame it. I didn’t have therapy or counseling. It was I myself, and a spiritual understanding, that changed my life.

“If you fear making anyone mad, then you ultimately probe for the lowest common denominator of human achievement.” ~ Jimmy Carter

As an adult these subconscious beliefs permeated my life. I felt I wasn’t worthy or even lovable. I felt as if I was worthless and those beliefs played themselves out in my life. I was told I was “a worthless bum” and I struggled as a bum for many years. I failed at many things in my life until I changed my mind. I had to do it - I had to make a choice and declare that choice to the world. Nothing changes in your world unless you change your mind about it first. The Universe is nothing but the product of your belief, and that belief in the creative channel through which your world experience is formed. But when do you change it? The biggest spiritual truth I wish I could transport into the mind of humanity is that nothing happens outside of this moment. Everything is based in what you think say and do in this moment. Tomorrow never really happens until it is today. Yesterday can’t happen again. So this pivotal moment is the moment of breaking self doubt.

“Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside of them was superior to circumstances.” ~Bruce Barton

Self doubt is the fear of not being loved. As you sit in that chair right now realize that the universe is God/source. “God is Love” is right in the Bible (I know, I wrote that part (LOL)). Everything you experience in the world is love. Many people will argue that fact. But the most loving thing God/Universe can do is give us what we are asking for. We ask with our belief. What do you believe? Do you believe that the world is hard and you are not worthy? If so, what does the world show you? I’ll bet the world shows you reasons to believe that life is hard and you’re not worthy. I have a friend who his entire life believed that the world was easy and he would always have money. He one time told me he gives himself $20,000 a year to just blow on toys. He knows he will always have money and so God/Universe gives him money. BTW, he has really cool toys.

In this moment will you commit to changing your life? If you do everything changes and your world will show you the change. Once you see the change your self-doubt is demolished through time and results. Those results cannot happen unless you start in this moment.

“Nothing builds self-esteem and self-confidence like accomplishment.” ~Thomas Carlyle

If you want more information about breaking through the fears of self doubt, check out “The Eight Steps for Breaking through the Fear Barrier," a free coaching report when you sign up for the newsletter at www.johnofpeniel.com.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011 at 11:53AM

“You do anything long enough to escape the habit of living until the escape becomes the habit.” ~ David Ryan

I have had the opportunity to work with many people who have suffered with addiction over the years. It is a difficult monkey to have on your back. When you are immersed in addiction, all seems helpless. You become afraid of not having your fix. Many of you know that I believe that our life experience is a dance of Love and Fear. It is through the eradication of fear that we reach the state many call enlightenment. If, as the Bible says,”God is Love,” then we are here to experience our separation from Love so we can know Love/God fully. So the reality is each of us just wants to be loved.

"Life is meant to be a celebration! It shouldn't be necessary to set aside special times to remind us of this fact. Wise is the person who finds a reason to make every day a special one." ~ Leo F. Buscaglia

Addictions are based on several factors. Doctors will tell you it is a chemical response. I believe that our life experience is a product of belief. Those beliefs are based on their relationship to Love and to Fear. Recently while working with someone addicted to smoking, I looked at the time in their life that the smoking started. “Peer pressure,” was the reason given. As we looked deeper into the reason it was very apparent that she wanted the others to like her. So in reality she began smoking because she wanted her peers to love her. If you look at her life before this moment you come to realize that before she started smoking, she already felt unloved. She had been searching for a positive relationship experience and she found that using the tool of smoking.

"Decide that you want it more than you are afraid of it." ~ Bill Cosby

Conditional love creates fear and distrust which makes us feel separate and alone. When you ask a smoker why they smoke, the answer usually is “it relaxes me.” That is because when they don’t smoke they are in fear. Smoking, or any other addiction, is just their means of getting the feeling of love. Smoking becomes their spouse. Stopping smoking is like ending a loving relationship. You're afraid you won’t have that feeling anymore. If the smoker is in a relationship, then the best thing their spouse can do is, instead of giving a negative response to the smoking, is take the moment they want to smoke and love them fully. If your relationship is also a sexual one then make love when they feel the need to smoke. Afterwards give them  positive feedback so they feel loved and accomplished.  People smoke after sex due to anxiety. Alleviate the anxiety and you alleviate the need for smoking. Don’t allow love making to become the addiction. Love them unconditionally and in all ways, and then they feel loved and, after time and results, they will set their fear down.

“Just cause you got the monkey off your back doesn't mean the circus has left town.”~ George Carlin

Addiction is a bad lover. Whatever your personal addiction is, realize that it is a relationship. The reason it is a relationship is because it gives you the feeling of love. When ending that relationship you will have all the pangs of a relationship ending. When the addictive relationship ends, remember you are ending it because it was unhealthy and not truly loving.

Saturday, November 6, 2010 at 9:56AM

Good Morning Love.

I am grateful for the love in my life. I feel it in so many ways. Due to my fianceé’s work we do spend quite a bit of time apart. When she is away, the first thing I do each morning is roll over, grab my phone, and text her “Good Morning Love.” It is a simple message, but one with a great deal of meaning to me. I convey my message to her and yet this statement is powerful in that I start each day greeting love. After our morning exchange I then think of the other aspects of love in my life. I have a beautiful relationship with my son. We laugh and jokes and tell each other, “I love you, “often. I also remember that I love the world and the people in it, no matter what their actions are. I then remember the love I have for myself.

Good Morning Love.

All of these Loves make up my experience of Love. It is a wonderful experience of my choice. I choose daily to greet love into my life and so it manifests in many and varied ways. I Love…. Love. It fills my spirit. It lightens my step. It makes the day begin and end with a smile. There is a quote in the book of John that says, “God is Love.” God/Universe/Goddess, Whatever you call the source of it all, is made of Love. Each morning to greet Love and move forward is to see our source in all Her/His glory. It is to welcome the feeling of Love into our day. The day is of our choosing and how we interact with Love is the experience we are creating. Love is not judgmental or vengeful. Love is always there and supportive. Love always gives a second chance, But it is you who has to take that chance. Choose Love over fear and negativity and you will touch something larger.

Good Morning Love

Don’t think of Love as enormous. Think of Love as always there to greet you. Don’t think of Love as hurtful. Think of Love as Joyful. Open your eyes and greet Love with the anticipation that Love will greet you with a good morning. This brings about a joyful interaction with Love.

Good Morning Love.

Monday, October 11, 2010 at 12:45PM

“Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends.” ~ Maya Angelou

When I was young I was the product of my environment. My father was a bigot. On a regular basis I heard the “N” word coming from his lips. As a young impressionable boy I followed in his footsteps. I was a racist. I am blessed to have seen the error of my ways very clearly. My transition came in an interesting way. One night while paying for gas at a local convenience store the cashier gave me five dollars too much change. I returned to the store and brought the money back to the cashier. The next person in line said something that affected me: ”There is something you don’t see every day - an honest person.” I felt this swell of tingly energy surge through my body. I walked out of the store and the feeling stayed with me. I suddenly had the realization that I had felt this feeling before. “Jesus is that you?” I said out loud. The energy swelled even greater within me. From that moment on I was no longer racist or homophobic.

Now I do not consider myself a Christian and it was years after this experience that I discovered my past life connection to Jeshua. I do believe that enlightened teachers such as Jeshua carried a pure love that you could viscerally experience. It was one of the first things I remembered in my regression. I believe the intent within your heart is felt far greater than words, though words with intent are the most powerful things in the world.

“Bigotry is the disease of ignorance, of morbid minds; enthusiasm of the free and buoyant. education and free discussion are the antidotes of both.” ~Thomas Jefferson

There was a time when the “N” word was used much more frequently than today. Sometimes the words we use are interpreted in many ways. I had a friend named Atlas. Atlas lived in a poor section of town, but always seemed to have a smile on his face. I liked him a lot and have lost touch with him since moving from my home town. Every time I would see Atlas around town he would yell out to me,” You stupid ass white boy.” I would respond in kind, “you dumb ass N&5$8R.” We would shake hands and laugh.

One night I ran into Atlas and he was visibly upset. “What’s wrong Atlas?” I asked. “Man John, I had to fight. I don’t like fighting,” He responded.  I asked him what had happened and he told me that a man had called him a “N&5$8R.” “I call you that all the time, Atlas.” I answered. “Yeah but he meant it!” was Atlas’ reply.  Here was a man who could feel the intention behind the word. I no longer use the word out of loving respect for my fellow women and men.  We are all a part of the whole and to be hateful towards another is to deny a part of yourself a connection to God/Source.

I lovingly share my life with all the aspects of me that I see before me each day in all of my colors, genders, religious beliefs, and I am open to new and exciting introductions to other parts of me that will present themselves.

“Bigotry dwarfs the soul by shutting out the truth” ~Edwin Hubbel Chapin

Monday, August 30, 2010 at 10:36PM

“Joy in looking and comprehending is nature's most beautiful gift.” ~Albert Einstein

Tonight I was sitting here with my six year old son. Every so often a bit of wisdom comes from his mouth that makes me stop in my tracks. Out of the blue this evening Kynan said, “Daddy no matter where you go you are always connected to nature.” My ears perked up and I began my process of questions,” Why do you say that Kynan?” “Think about it Daddy, right here in this room, if you pick me up, I will be touching you and your feet will be touching the floor. The floor is touching the walls and the walls go down to the earth,” the little sage retorted.

I couldn’t argue his logic nor would I want to. You see I believe we are connected to everything around us: buildings, nature, even each other. By recognizing this simple connection and realizing that we, in fact, impact our environment by our mere existence.  Our connection is every day in every way and we are part of the greater whole.  By acting in partnership with the world we create a natural flow of events that is harmonious. By acting with ill intent and disregard for our environment and each other we are creating a very unpleasant experience.

Take today and expand your awareness of all around you in this moment.  Recognize that you are a part of a larger entity. Nurture that entity. Care for that entity and see the results in your life experience. That entity is more than just the earth, sky, and water. It is also each other and our individual spheres come together is synchronistic order and the time we created. Look at the person you are passing in the street and realize that you are both connected to the same world. Realize you breathe the same air. Love them for who they are, Smile, say hello, nurture yourself through others. Change the natural environment by being aware and acting with conscience. Remember no matter where you go, you are connected to all around you and vice versa. You are a representation for them just as they are for you.

Stay connected and live joyously.

“One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.” ~William Shakespeare

Saturday, April 24, 2010 at 11:14PM

“God has no religion”~ Mahatma Ghandi

I watch people. It amazes me that most people feel powerless. They always seem to be looking for the next thing that will make them . . . whatever. They read all the latest new age guru’s teachings and they start affirming in the way they are told. After a time they become sure that it is not working. It is interesting that it just happens to be that there is another new age guru on the scene. They create systems based on ancient teachings and form a new set of dogmatic ceremonies around simple truths.

What are the simple truths?  The prophets , messiahs, and teachers of old all said a few things.

1.)    Our faith creates our experience. (What you think you become – Buddha)

2.)    The divine resides within. (The power of God is with you at all times - The Bhagavad Gita)

3.)    We are limitless. (Nothing will be impossible to you- Jeshua)

4.)    Self is supreme. (ye are gods- the Torah)

5.)    Fear needs to be eradicated. (The whole secret of existence is to have no fear.-Buddha)

6.)    Love is the essence of all. (God is Love-the Apostle John)

"If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough”~Albert Einstein

All the modern teachings are really based on these principles. Let me give you an example. ‘The Secret’ talks all about ‘The Law of Attraction.” It tells you to imagine yourself driving that new car to put yourself in the state of already having it, to “believe” it is already yours. Belief is just faith and since faith creates your experience, of course it will start a manifestation into your experience (1). That faith comes from you. The divine spark of the Law of Attraction resides within you (2). ‘The Secret’ also says there is no difference between something large or small in the mind of the Source. We can create anything (3&4). The major obstacle spoken of was “negative thinking” which is a product of our fears. So we must release our negative thoughts or fears (5). The many teachers in ‘The Secret’ all speak of creating from a positive joyful place and the source of your dream life comes from that place. Positivity is a feeling and that feeling comes from love. Thus Love is the creator (6).

The next New Age teacher will say the same thing in a new and different way. It will sound as if it is the key to creation and it is. The issue is not with the teachers. They are truly doing what they feel to be right. As long as people keep looking without for something that is within, a path will always be there to follow. When they look within and create without, then they are at the path’s end and become truly enlightened.

“Life is really simple, but men insist on making it complicated.”~ Confucius

Tuesday, April 20, 2010 at 9:57PM

“Enlightenment must come little by little - otherwise it would overwhelm.” ~Idries Shah

My thoughts drifted back many years tonight. I thought of a night in New Orleans trying to sleep in a tent. It was the first show that my comedy show Hack and Slash did on the road almost two decades ago. It is a night that I will never forget. It was a night that changed me forever. That night I had my first real spiritual experience. It is known as a kundalini rising. The words are too big for the way it happened. It was a subtle moment that brought about a realization and then an experience that would alter the direction of my life. People try for this experience for years. I was lucky enough to stumble upon a truth.

There is a saying that your focus determines your reality. I have also heard it said your intention determines your reality and your thoughts determine your reality. What I learned that night was that your very being determines your reality. Your thoughts, focus, and intention originate from within. You as a soul that is one with God manifest yourself and your experience through the thoughts you focus on with great intention. All of the above is true. Books on the Law of Attraction are focused on the outcomes of your desires. But your desires are made up of yourself and your beliefs.

That night in New Orleans I had an experience that was very powerful. I felt the energy rise up through my body and I saw the light show that signaled spiritual awareness. I also felt the nature of the Oneness of everything. For me, that night duality ended. I felt aware of my place as a part of God, a creator with the creator. I felt my divinity.

“You are here to realize your inner divinity and manifest your innate enlightenment.” ~Morihei Ueshiba

As I said, I had a light show experience. That show did not happen however until a couple of other things happened. The first was that I realized that I was in control of how the energy moved through my body. I focused with intention and believed I was raising the energy through my body. I was consciously creating. Then, when I reached a point of reaching the heights of my energetic body, a pause happened that I couldn’t overcome. I couldn’t overcome it because it was the point of becoming completely at one with the consciousness of God and to become one you must commune. You must experience the connection to another consciousness, one that is always there when we are unaware. It is a point where God meets you half way and envelopes you in himself, if you relax and allow. It is an interesting place. A simple merging of consciousness and yet that is too complex a definition.  Oneness, it just . . . is.

Most people on a spiritual quest are seeking the light show. They want the Fatima experience. They want to see God. The true light show happens every day, all around you. In seeking the light show, we look outside ourselves. It is us that is the light show. Our physical selves are an illusion of duality. Our true nature is oneness with our source, a state of enlightment known as "satori." Make the subtle and conscious shift in thought, and you will attain the satori experience you desire. Enlightenment begins subtly, then exposes its grand simplicity.

“If a man can control his mind he can find the way to Enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him.” ~Buddha

Thursday, April 15, 2010 at 11:55AM

"All differences in this world are of degree, and not of kind, because oneness is the secret of everything." ~Swami Vivekananda

We come into this world to know and experience the Source, God, Universe, whatever your particular label is. I will use God. We come to know God through our experiences. We come to know him/her through our feelings. We come to see him through our senses. We experience her through our own doorway.  

God comes to know us through our experiences. She comes to know us through our feelings. He comes to see us through our senses. God experiences us through our own doorway.  The source we are seeking is ourselves and God together. The Illusion of the world is a construct of belief that allows us to experience our separation from God so we can experience God fully. The illusion, built of formless energy (atoms), makes up the entirety of our physical experience. Everything we experience comes into our lives through our senses. Our belief is built upon the data of our lives.

"Quantum physics thus reveals a basic oneness of the universe." ~Erwin Schrodinger

The senses are impressions that give us a feeling response. That feeling response is our direct connection to God. If God is Love, as the Bible says, then we must measure our feelings against the feeling of Love. The simple realization that the feeling of pure unconditional Love is God, and that we choose to experience varying degrees of separation to have full understanding of that Love, allows us to realize that we are an active part of God, each one of us. Every person you see throughout your day is another aspect of God experiencing self through separation.

The separation we feel is our fears. The illusion persists even when we are in fear. So If the illusion is always there, then God must always be there. If other people are there, then God must also be there. If you feel anything, then God must also be there. The illusion that surrounds you is one of your beliefs. Your beliefs correspond with others' beliefs, and so our illusions intersect. Stepping back from this idea you realize that we are just one giant entity. The entity includes everything, you, me, the earth, the universe, everything. We are one. And so as you walk through your separation experience, realize that you are not separate. You are one with it all. The representation before you is the illusion of your faith. That faith can be altered and the current illusion will morph into a new one. The people around you will move in and out of your experience depending on their shifting faith. It is all divine. God’s consciousness, your consciousness, and the combined self as one, is the trinity: Father (God), Son (you), Holy spirit (God/You as one).

Acting as one with everything, seeing the world as a representation of self, allows us to alter the negative aspects and move easily into joyful creation. In finding our oneness we find our way home. I often use the joke, “So nice to meet me” - now you know why.

“From oneness, He has brought forth the countless multitudes. O Nanak, they shall merge into the One once again.” ~ Sri Guru Granth Sahib

Monday, March 29, 2010 at 9:14AM

"God always takes the simplest way."  ~ Albert Einstein

Many people have heard me speak about the simplicity of connecting with source. I am a firm believer that religions are history lessons of other people’s spiritual experiences, and that spirituality is in your present moment. I talk about God/Source being Love, and fear is the tool to experience God fully. To put it in another way, your positive moments are experiencing the divine source and your negative experiences are of your fear. That being said, the simple realization that positive experiences are touching God, can happen pretty regularly in an average person’s life.

Knowing my belief on this, my love Kelly recently exclaimed, “God is hot water!” I asked her to explain. “Well if God is your positive experience and I love a hot shower, then God must be hot water.” Her answer was perfect. It said so easily how close we are to our connection to source. The simple enjoyment of hot water made Kelly smile. It felt good. Good is only one letter away from God. Bad only shares a ‘D.’ The simplest moments of joy in our lives are directly connecting to source.

My belief is that fear is the tool to experience God fully. If in fact that is the case, then we are here to experience our separation from source so we can fully understand the feeling of it. Ask yourself this question: Would God make it hard? She/he made it so simple that we overlook it. God is with you every day in the simplest things. For me, God is in waking up and seeing Kelly’s smile, in my first cup of coffee (though Kynan may disagree), in writing these blogs. For Kelly, God is hot water. Where in your life do you experience the positive emotion that is God? It is the only present moment you have to do so. Enjoy your life knowing you are never alone, you are always connected to God, and that you are safe.

"Where love is, there God is also." ~Mohandas Gandhi

Friday, February 12, 2010 at 6:49PM

"Fundamentalism as it is called is not confined to the Muslim world. It is something that we have seen in different parts of the world. Let us hope that a dialogue between the followers of the three great monotheistic religions could help in putting an end to this." ~King Hussein I 

I was recently sent a link by someone who proclaims to have "light worker" status. Unfortunately, the link that was sent was an absolute attempt to spread the fears of militant fundamentalists. I say this because the message sent out was a message that one should fear the Muslims. I have met many Muslims in my travels abroad and found each of them to be the same as you or I. When traveling through Egypt, I went to Mt. Sinai. While there I befriended the manager of the hotel where I was staying. I showed him respect and friendship, and he returned it in kind. The following day after climbing Mt Sinai, I ran into another American. "Are you having any problems here?" he asked. "Not at all," I responded. "Your lucky, everywhere I go they all want to fight me," he continued.  As the conversation went on I began to understand; by the end, I wanted to fight him. He was putting out a fearful lack of respect for the people of Egypt, and they were returning it in kind. The night before as I began climbing Mt. Sinai, The Manager I told you about ran up the path a quarter mile from the hotel to give my traveling companion a coat because he said it would be freezing at the top.

"He who knows not Kindness has no faith." ~the Prophet Mohammed

The individuals who look at others of different faiths in fear are, in fact, amplifying the fear.  That can only lead to an explosive result. There are Muslim fundamentalists just as there are Christian fundamentalists. Our last President told the Saudi prince that,"God told him to invade Iraq." The wielding of religion and God for aggressive actions is a medieval premise that should not be tolerated in a shifting world.

The question is which way do we want to shift our world? Do we want a world based in fearful aggressive actions or of peaceful loving actions. As long as religious fundamentalists create out of fear and we do not take notice, then our world has no choice but to head into a dark valley of fear.  Let us peacefully put out our hands in love, and actively shift the world in a positive direction.  Fulfilling the actual intent in being a light worker.

"Love One Another." ~ Jeshua Ben Joseph

Many will say they do not know how to combat militants with love. I say this, read everything you can about Mahatma Gandhi. Whenever things in his country went violent, he did a nonviolent counter action.  What did he achieve - a free India. The spreading of fear by "lightworkers" should show fully where their truth is. Are they living a life of light while they spread fear? It is impossible to be a light worker if in fact the fruit you bear is darkness. Gandhi said,"Be the change you want to see in the world." If you want a world without fear then don't fear. If you want a world of fear and violence then spread the fear and violence. I find it sad that many on the "spiritual path" are using their religion or spirituality as a means of power or control.

"Be the change you want to see in the world."~ Mahatma Gandhi

Eventually the seeds of love and peace that we spread will burst forth into the representation of the tree of life. The seeds of fear can spread like a parasite, but we can prune them away easily and keep the light on our tree. Christians and Muslims can be friends.  I have seen it with my own eyes. It is all the same Source that we all come from.  When we take the Love out of God, then we turn our backs on him/her fully because "God is Love."

"Love is all you need."~ John Lennon