Website issues

For the months of November, December and January, you may have notices some issues with the website: www.consciouskernels.com. Some of you may have even been prevented from getting to the website by your virus protection program.

As it turns out, my webhosting company was hacked into some time in late November and was infected with malware. That malware became attached to a good many of the sites they host -- including ours. Although they said they had fixed the problem, they did not. Another problem, related to this malware or not, cropped up where I could not update any of the webpages. After trying to restore, then not restore the site as a whole, I asked to be moved to a new server. This seems to have fixed the malware issue.

But then Google had a problem recently where all their search results gave searchers a warning that the website they were going to had malware. I believe this is unrelated to my webhost's problem and Google has since corrected theirs.

So all should be well again. Please let me know if you receive any warnings when trying to visit the site.

A Happier You

In our February issue of the Conscious Kernels eNewsletter, we featured an excerpt from Eckhart Tolle about being a happier you. He had 10 pointers. What did you think of them?

He equates alot of unhappiness is caused by not being in the present moment. By comparing the past with now or the future with now instead of just living in the now.

In Spirit, there is only the now. So if you live in Spirit, then you are living in the Now, and if you are living in the Now, you can experience a Happier You -- according to Tolle.

Share you thoughts.

New Year's Intentions

The Power of Intentions is different from regular old New Year's resolutions.

As we discussed in the January 2009 issue of the Conscious Kernels eNewsletter, intentions set the Law in motion. Then we let the Law do its perfect work. We work on our intentions, our focus, our attitudes, our attentions. We give the Law clear directives, clear desires and then we are set.

We let go and let God at this point.

What are some of your intentions for the New Year? Have you taken time to get clear on your desires?

Post your experiences here.

Happy New Year to all.

What happened to the podcasts?

Ah, yes. The best laid plans. The road to **** is paved with good intentions. Any other cliches?

Starting to do my year-end review and my next year planning and although I did accomplish the setting up of a podcast as was part of my list of goals for Conscious Kernels for 2008, I have only recorded the inaugural episode.

The original plan was to create a weekly podcast, especially for those who do not have a New Thought center in their community. Something that could stand in for a weekly Sunday Service or weekly classes, albeit a short one. Just something to help facilitate a spiritual practice, a spiritual pick-me-up, a spiritual boost to an otherwise ordinary day.

So now, 2009 is just around the corner. And a new commitment to recording podcasts. Maybe the once-a-week was too ambitious. Or maybe a shorter length of podcast would be doable.

In any case, stay tuned. There will be a second episode of the Conscious Kernels podcast. Maybe even a third and fourth.

Thanks for hanging in there. Sign up for the feed either at the website or in the righthand column of this blog page.

Peace.

Peace Be Still

At this time of year, we often turn toward innerspection, as well as looking at where the world is. As I wrote in the December issue of the Conscious Kernels newsletter, the idea of Peace has been forefront in my mind. And I wrote that before the attacks in India this past week.

Now, more than ever, we need to focus on Peace. Why is the violence happening? What is the real cause behind it? The conflicts seem to be coming from people trying to control other people or people thinking they can be controlled by other people.

If we all realized that we are the power in our own lives, that no one can take our power from us, that we are the only ones who can give our power away, then perhaps a small kernel of peace will begin to grow out of the knowing that we are the power.

We welcome your thoughts. How do you grow your kernel of peace in your own life?

Our leaders reflect our group consciousness

Regardless of political affiliation, the election of Barack Obama reflects the group consciousness of American voters. Where are we going as a people? Look at what Barack Obama is and represents and where his policy positions stand to answer that question.

First, he is of mixed race. A physical reminder that we are moving beyond one race vs. another. As all the newscasts during the election kept bringing up the fact that he would be the first African-American president, I kept realizing in myself that I never thought of him that way. I saw a man. That's all. A man. A smart man. I wanted to know what this man would do for this country and this planet.

So badly in need are we of intelligent, humane, logical, practical, forward-thinking leadership, I wanted to find out how he would lead us. I saw in him a person who thinks like I do on so many of the issues facing us.

He represents respect for this planet in his positions on renewable energy, environmental protections and global warming. He represents respect for the common man trying to live a life of dignity and prosperity and providing for his or her family. He represents scientific advancement for the betterment of life. He represents decency and transparency in the workings of a government that is supposed to be: of, by and for the People. (The "for" part has been sadly lacking.)

What his election really says is that we, the People, are finally starting to recognize our own respect of this planet and its people. We are starting to recognize our own power and our own responsibilities. This is a great step forward in the Consciousness of America as we become again a beacon of hope and great stewardship for the World.

Listen to his words in a spiritual context. He mentions Unity alot. He talks about us coming together as a people. He talks about making the world a better place. He talks about the future for posterity.

I don't know what the George Bush years said about our collective consciousness (I never voted for him), but we can call it a dissipative structure eventually leading to the good. A dissipative structure, which my spiritual teacher taught me, is when everything seems to be going to hell in a hand basket, a breaking down of the old, so that a better new can be built up. Sometimes you have to go through a dissipative structure to come out the other side, stronger, smarter, with more understanding, and a higher consciousness.

If things had not gotten so bad, we would not, as a collective group, noticed. We would not have gotten up and done something. We would not have organized and mobilized and made our voices heard.

We want to be heard and with the election of a man like Barack Obama, our consciousness has created a new experience where we are heard. Our leaders hear us and are doing something about it. What a refreshing change.

I feel this is a turning point in America. What has happened to our country in the last 20-30 years? Yes, it goes back that far, at least for me.

I see the connection between everything. One thing truly affects everything else. We do not live in a vacuum. Nature is not a vacuum. Our issues must be solved from that stand point. And things will change faster and easier when we see the interconnection of everything.

This has become an open letter to the President-Elect. Approach everything from a sense and spirit of Unity and you will succeed. We will succeed. Together.

Everyday Faith and the Joy of Gratitude

For November, our idea of the month is the Joy of Gratitude. With Thanksgiving being celebrated in the United States, it is an appropriate and timely topic. Do you experience joy when you are giving thanks? What feelings do you associate with gratitude. Feeling joy in the midst of being thankful takes your thanksgiving to a whole new level.

How can we raise our thanksgiving to joyous levels? Post your comments.

Also in our November newsletter, our featured article is about Everyday Faith. What is Everyday Faith? Read our newsletter and post your comments here. Sign up for our newsletter in the handy form to the right.

Peace and blessings to all.

Until next time.