I was living in Colombia when I was invited to hear John-Roger speak. It was in 1985, I was 26 years old. I don\u2019t remember much of what J-R talked about, but soon after I took my first Insight training and heard about MSIA Discourses.<\/p>\n
Taking Insight was a door that opened a whole new world I didn\u2019t know existed; it was my call to continue learning and growing personally. Soon after my first Insight training, I found out that the people involved with Insight were students of the Traveler. I felt I had found very special people; they were the ones that talked to me about getting the Discourses. I was hesitant at first as I had not been consciously seeking for anything different that what I already knew. I had been raised Catholic, and didn\u2019t know anything about other religions much less about other spiritual paths. I had wanted to feel close to Jesus since I was a little girl, but the Catholic faith had not offered ways to have a closer relationship with Jesus or God. I got my Discourses, and only got fully involved until the next MSIA Staff visit to Colombia a year later.<\/p>\n
The MSIA guiding principles that have been of great value to me are: \u201cYou are not given anything you can\u2019t handle\u201d and \u201cGod loves all of Its creation.\u201d Whenever I feel that the challenge is too big, get discouraged or feel hopeless, I remind myself of, \u201cI am not given anything I can\u2019t handle\u201d and find renewed strength and inspiration to manage the situation, to learn from it, to overcome it. Whenever I find myself not understanding, or judging any person or situation, I remind myself of the loving. My ability to have greater understanding and to love people and situations increase exponentially when I remind myself that God loves all of it.<\/p>\n
I remember towards the beginning of my marriage being confronted about conditionings and beliefs I had acquired throughout my life. What I believed to be a marriage crisis was actually me experiencing my fantasy world collapsing. The rug had been pulled from under my feet and it felt as if I had been left with no foundation to stand on. It was a very scary place to be, and the only thing I was able to hold on to was the Traveler\u2019s teachings. Once I realized that what I had believed and conditioned myself for years was no more, I took the opportunity to more devotedly study and practice the MSIA teachings and set off to build a foundation that has supported me in finding my True Self, and reconnecting to my heart and Soul.<\/p>\n
This and other challenging life situations have been stepping stones when practicing what J-R taught us: to use everything to uplift ourselves, learn and grow. I\u2019ve found it to be a wondrous healing adventure that continues to take me closer to God. J-R always said, \u201cdon\u2019t believe what I am telling you, check it out for yourself and see if it works for you.\u201d I have experienced time and time again that J-R\u2019s teachings are real, and they work. I can\u2019t even begin to imagine where I would be in my life if I did not have this path to be on, to support myself, to keep myself on track, to expand in my loving.<\/p>\n
I had the incredible blessing of meeting John-Roger physically. My experience of J-R over the years was of a human being that was very honest, straight forward, and always loving. J-R wouldn\u2019t say what people wanted him to say, but what we needed to hear to move forward, to go beyond our limited perceptions and get closer to God in our hearts. My experience of J-R still is of his everlasting message and demonstration of loving, by example. He not only delivered the message to love it all, but demonstrated how to do it over and over and over again.<\/p>\n
J-R explained in so many different ways God\u2019s love, how God knows what He is doing, and that no matter how I am or what I have done, do or don\u2019t do, God loves me because I am. This merciful God I now know because of the Traveler\u2019s guidance and teachings. I now relate to God in a more personal way. He is now reachable. I am not going to be punished and sent to hell for my sins, no. My mistakes are opportunities for me to learn very specific lessons that are very much on purpose for me. My heart is so much bigger and able to access the loving when I remember to ask myself: how can I love this?<\/p>\n
The teachings have greatly helped me to more effectively deal with challenging situations in life by looking at things from a higher perspective so that I can see the forest, rather than feeling blocked and\/or overwhelmed by the tree in front of me. The greatest challenge (and blessing) was during the first 10 years of motherhood. Raising Max — my son who was born with Downs Syndrome — required for me to step up and overcome more than I could ever imagine I was capable of, and it is by using the teachings as guidance and support that I was able to manage, to keep going no matter, and know that God is my partner through it all.<\/p>\n
My favorite story took place when I was taking the Insight Super II training. I shared my wish to be the best mom I could be, and in referring to Max I asked J-R, \u201cDo you want to see his picture?\u201d J-R\u2019s answer was, \u201cI can see him through your eyes and that\u2019s better than any picture, and your job is to show him that he is loved no matter.\u201d In that moment I knew J-R knew of my immense love for Max, and I knew for myself that all I needed to do was to make sure Max knew I loved him no matter. J-R\u2019s response was not just words, it was an experience of knowing, an anchoring of the loving in my heart, a reassurance that I had all that was needed to be the best mom I could be.<\/p>\n
Through the years I\u2019ve found incredible inner strength and have grown in my acceptance and loving beyond my wildest dreams, not only for Max but for myself and others, all because of putting the Traveler\u2019s teachings to use and following J-R\u2019s example of loving. If I were to put into words what being a student of the Traveler means to me, it would be to know that I am not alone facing the challenges and lessons life brings to me, that God is always with me and I am loved no matter.<\/p>\n
I am forever grateful for J-R, for MSIA, for being a student of the Traveler, a minister of God, an initiate of the Sound Current. I am truly blessed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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