Life is filled with opportunities for expansion and growth. It doesn’t always come in the form of pleasantries and peaceful experiences. Ernest Holmes, Founder of Religious Science once stated that the time would come when humanity would learn without suffering. I’ve always taken this to mean and change in attitude. In other words, instead of reacting to our problems as victims who are suffering from some wrong doing, we would would treat our problems as opportunities. I’m not saying it’s easy to do this, but it is possible.

This week has been a particularly challenging one for me in the relative world. Many challenges have presented themselves to me that have given me the opportunity to change my attitude about those experiences. Instead of looking at them from a victim consciousness, I look at them as opportunities where I can become the greater me. I can respond instead of react. I can be clear instead of sitting in the blur of indecision. I can be loving and yet firm. I can love myself and project that love out to others. If I find myself getting caught in my ego, I can recognize it quickly and shift to a more compassionate way of thinking of both myself and the people and situtation.

As I said, this is not easy necessarily, but it is possible. It takes a lot of trust of oneself and it takes faith in the fact that these challenges wouldn’t be showing up if we didn’t have all that is needed to meet them and ride through them. Riding through them means just that. I know sometimes it is easier to ride around them or to back away from them, and we are at choice to do this. However, what I know from experience is that riding through them would create a higher state of consciousness, belief and trust in the idea of Divine Right Action always being present, and create a new path from myself. Backing away or skirting around the edges, only creates the space for those challenges to come back around with a difference face or in a different place.

So, today, I am reminded that I can be in love, can respond with firmness and peace. I am reminded that I am a creative being with unlimited possibilities for the most amazing life ever.

Love and Aloha,

Rev. Rita Andriello-Feren, Co-Founding Spiritual Director CSL Kaua1i and Author