Leisure is an attitude of mind and a condition of the soul that fosters a capacity to perceive the true reality of life. Spirituality can be born only in leisure–a leisure that allows freedom of thought and time for the contemplation of the nature of God. I propose that leisure is the foundation for success in discovering a peaceful existence of spirituality in our lives. Whether we physically stop our routines and escape to nature or simply shift our mindset to a deeper spiritual awareness, relaxing into the state of leisure allows spiritual enlightenment to bless you.

I recently created and conducted a workshop called Knowing Your Light where thirteen adult women enjoyed three days in nature, opening themselves to more of what such leisure could provide.  The goal was to share truths about our infinite and beautiful worth as children of God, then to practice applying these truths through experiential processes. From the joyful responses of the attendees, it is obvious this process works.

During our days together, I shared several guided meditations in which the reality of a very close connection to our deepest spiritual being was shown.  Meditations to such paradigms allow the body to relax and the spirit to take over, opening portals to the energy of love and light. Once all cords to negatives and darkness are cut, and once the spirit is aligned with the pure love of God, you can literally feel like you are in heaven while yet on this earth.

I taught the art of silence, which allows spirit to speak in place of life’s hectic pace of duty, amusement, and our own mindless chatter. Access to living in spirit comes from choosing to stop and enjoy the silence, the quiet, as in the moments of leisure we create and allow for ourselves–the kind of leisure that does not require more work to accomplish than the work we are leaving behind! We can especially find the true state of leisure in an escape in nature. We stop to smell the roses because we find God in those roses! When we take the moments required to remember this truth, we quickly feel that gloriously abundant love entering our bodies, healing our souls.

Like all things in life, there are opposing forces at work. With an overwhelming selection of choices for our time, finding true leisure is almost a thing of the past. The most common comment from the women in my recent course was the realization that they needed to appropriate more time to be with spirit. They each created a game plan–making personal choices to spend time with spirit in ways that fit their own lives, and committed to live by that personalized plan.

I propose that a real vacation is giving yourself a break to spend time doing nothing: being silent, reconnecting to God through nature or books or even a walk along a river for an hour once in a while. The point is to give yourself a real break, and often–as often and in as many ways as you need to keep yourself high on spirit!

I continue to teach about being connected to spirit because I believe it is my life purpose to show this way of living, sharing the reality that God is always with us, loving us, helping us.  We have to slow our minds to receive such enlightenment, where the energy then allows spirit to affect you. Once connected to spirit, everything good and aligned with your true purpose can be created.

The power of creating our lives from a place of spirit may seem like a new concept to some, but for me it has become an easier and more powerful way of living my life.  When I choose to spend the time required to remember God is with me and loving me in this and every moment, detaching from fears and stresses, I make much better choices and I feel wonderful.

The reason living in spirit is so powerful is because the highest form of knowledge is the illumination of thoughts that comes from a higher source than our own, and when we least expect it, even in our stillness. You cannot be filled if you are not empty of your own thoughts!  This requires asking for enlightenment, but not forcing the answers.  We learn to gain spiritual heights by enjoying a state of leisure as our very most natural way of being.

You have heard it said we should not worry, but be happy, that life is good, that when God is for us, who can be against us, and on and on.  If such a way is not your experience right now, perhaps you can decide to give yourself a gift of leisure and escape to spirit sometime soon. As an aid to reaching that sublime state, I share this 12 minute guided meditation to your own beautiful connection with God, along with a collection of similar ones on my meditation page (see tab to meditations above).

Sending my love, Judy

Affirmations To Anchor Your Soul, Guided Meditation by Judy Hansen

Music by Jenny Oaks Baker (Pie Jesu) and Diana Ross (You Are So Beautiful)