The theme we’ve chosen to embrace as our Center this year is “FREE to be ME in 2023.” Of course the ME we are talking about is not the little me, the ego me, but the greatest Self. In our language, that would be our Divine Self or the highest expression of ourselves. This would include all that we are, our greatest potential, our biggest and most creative expression. We would let go of any limitations, false thoughts, emotional anchors to our past, and anything that is holding us back from our greatest Self.

The question I’m sure becomes “How do we do this?” I just heard a short speech by Dr. Joes Dispenza, who focuses his work on teaching people how to tap into their true potential, which heals their lives in a multitude of ways. He said it wasn’t enough know something, we must know “how.” When we understand how consciousness works with our brain, we are well on our way to realizing that the process is not just spiritual by scientific.

So how does one become their greatest Self. In the Science of Mind, Dr. Ernest Holmes writes, “We see the abundance in the Universe. We cannot count the grains of sand on a single beach. The earth contains untold riches, and the very air is vibrant with power. Why, then is man weak, poor and afraid? The Science of Mind deals with these questions.”

The answer he gives is that the innate quality of the Universe is “Freedom under Law.” We know there is an energy, a creative force, that pulls our life into action and that it is totally directed by our prevalent thoughts that have the most emotional pull to them. It is a vibrational Universe and we are always vibrating. We are in charge of our vibration.

The answer is clearly the power of the decisions we make. We might think we cannot think a certain way or that we cannot change our thoughts, but that is a lie. From the moment, we are born as we discover the world around us, at first we are a sponge soaking up the opinions and thought of others. However, there comes a point as our brain develops that we realize we are at choice. At that point, we are continually making choices. “Thus the inherent nature of man is forever seeking to express itself in terms of freedom.” (Ernest Holmes)

Yes, we are free and we are at choice at all times, even if it is merely the choice of how we respond to a situation. The moment we can step up to the plate of life as a free thinking individual, making choices that our for our highest good and that take nothing away from another’s free will, we can step into our True Self.

So, for me, during this year 2023, when I say “I am FREE to be ME,” I am saying that I choose to only say yes to those experiences and ways of thinking that bring my best self forward into expression. If I should think a thought that is limited or unloving toward myself or a thought that doesn’t have a positive forward movement to it, I must decide to shift. During my daily meditations, I can work on this by starting my day making contact with that highest self in the quiet, deciding how my day will unfold and knowing that no matter what comes up is for the forward and upward movement of my life. It is a matter of trust, faith and constantly reviewing my day and making even better plans for tomorrow.

Yes, changing our lives, our thoughts, our beliefs is a decision. It is not a final decision, but one that must be made again and again until it is irrevocable.

Happy New Year! Happy Decisions! Happy Freedom! Happy Life!

Love and Aloha,

Rev. Rita Andriello-Feren, Co-Founding Director CSL Kaua`i and the Institute of Magnificence and Author of “What Do I Need to KNOW? 101 Thoughts That Changed My Life” and “This Thing Called Treatment,” both available on Amazon.