In the Beatitudes, Jesus spoke to a multitude . . . He didn’t speak to just the disciples or other important people. He spoke to people like you and me, there to hear His words.  Part of what He said was:

“You are the light of the world.”[1]  Isn’t that amazing. You and I are the ‘light of the world’. Just think of the moral role that puts upon us. The world is dependent upon us to shine our light with goodness and love. Let us not fail.

We see people full of love and compassion. They radiate and give off an energy of love and joy, so powerful, it touches us. This energy is the light. And, the more forgiving and loving you are, the more love and joy you have in your life, the more you shine, the more you will touch others.

Verses throughout the Bible speak of darkness and light. Here are a few:

“Be careful, lest the light in you be darkness.[2]

      For it is God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness.”[3]

    Jesus came to earth to preach the “good news” of the kingdom of God and teach people how to enter this blissful state of divine consciousness by loving God with one’s entire being—heart, mind, soul, and strength—and one’s neighbor as oneself. He also came to help humanity overcome karmic debt, end its separation from God, and realize eternal life in the kingdom through the miracle and gift of his life, death on the cross, and resurrection. A pivotal teaching about the kingdom of God is that it is within us. In Luke 17: 20-21, Jesus says, “The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: Neither shall they say, ‘Lo here!’ or, ‘lo there!’ for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.”

    In Messages from Jesus Mary Ann asks Jesus about his return, and he says, “I will come, in Christ Consciousness, for all people everywhere, with the glory of the heavens and earth, and all on earth shall know. There will be no doubt.”

    Mary Ann asks, “Will the kingdom of God be revealed to us?” Jesus replies:“Behold, the kingdom of God is within and in the midst of you. It is in every breath you take.” At this point, Mary Ann becomes filled with ecstasy from the divine energy flowing with every breath. (Third Edition, 2009, p. 47)

    The above words of Jesus indicate that the kingdom of God is a state of consciousness. If many of us begin to live in this blissful, loving state, new lifestyles will emerge, and cultures and institutions will change. Thus, the kingdom of God might also be manifested outwardly, but only in order to accommodate a change in consciousness. First and foremost, the kingdom of God is within us – though hidden – and we simply need to become consciously aware of it by loving God and each other in the ways that have been shown to us by Jesus and other great masters in their teachings – such as communing with God in prayer and meditation, yogic breathing techniques, chanting, worship, seeing the good in everyone – and by the example of their love of God and all of us. For every person – regardless of his or her actions – is, at the core of their being, a soul, a divine manifestation of God, and is worthy of our love.

    Pure, unconditional love enables us to feel the presence of God. By bringing us closer to God, it helps us to become one with God, to enter God’s kingdom of eternal bliss.

- George Johnston

    Biblical passages about the “only begotten Son of God” and Christ’s words, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life….” have led many Christians to conclude that Jesus is the only Son of God and that Christianity is the only true religion. But these passages refer to the inner Christ – Christ Consciousness – which manifests in all beings who become truly enlightened, or God-realized. Christ Consciousness is not limited to Jesus, but is available to everyone. This loving intelligence and oneness, which permeates and connects everything in the universe, is an extension of God and is the very essence of our nature as spiritual beings, created in the image and likeness of God. The great yogi and God-realized master Paramahansa Yogananda explains in his writings that Jesus often spoke of himself as the Son of God because he regarded himself as one with the universal Christ Consciousness – the spiritual emanation (Son) of the Father. For Jesus identified with his spiritual nature, not his physical body.

   In Messages from Jesus by Mary Ann Johnston, Jesus says, “The term ‘Christ Consciousness’ is more recent than of old and yet is a good expression of the meaning of ‘the only begotten Son of God.’

   “The term ‘Christ’ goes back farther than biblical times. Krishna, as a Christ, lived three thousand of earth’s years before me. There were others before and since, all highly evolved, fully realized beings. Dogma has distorted the true meaning of Christ, limiting God, once again, to only one Christ. God cannot be limited.” (Third Edition, 2009, p. 33)

In the Beatitudes, Jesus spoke to a multitude . . . He didn’t speak to just the disciples or other important people. He spoke to people like you and me, there to hear His words.  Part of what He said was: “You are the light of the world.”  Isn’t that amazing. You and I are the light of the world.  It is for that very reason that I endeavor to increase the light within myself so that I can give it to others and creation abundantly.

—Mary Ann

During this next week I will be posting articles on the seven major chakra attributes, healthy functions, and dysfunctions. These articles are not complete in their presentation of the chakra system; they are simply a tool to help us understand the progressions in our lives, and that our individual paths all lead toward the same goal.

I believe, because I have seen, that there are as many chakras in the body as their are joints in the anatomy. There are also chakras off the ends of the fingers, toes, nose, and ears, etc. However, there are seven main chakras, starting from the base of the spine to the top of the head. 

The seven chakras I will be addressing are inter-connected and function together as the major energy distribution centers for our physical, mental and spiritual being.

In making choices and learning lessons along life’s way, we move upward from our lower chakratic life styles and forward on our spiritual path, sometimes regressing before moving forward again. But, once we pass beyond materialistic and selfish pursuits, and experience life through the higher chakras, becoming ever more loving, we realize the spiritual side of us, which has always been there waiting to be discovered.

With Love,  Mary Ann

Jesus said …
        “One path is not better than another, as they are all one. All lead to God. Everyone imagines they are on a different path but, ultimately, they all have the same destination: God-realization, heaven. Just as there are many roads to any one city, there are many ways to get to God, none better than another. Some paths are higher, but that doesn’t make it better.”
        I asked, “What makes one path higher than another?”
        Jesus said, “Higher means only that a person is nearer to God-realization than another. Still there is no comparison. The closer one gets to God-realization, the more intense the desire to experience divine bliss. And in this desire they live more fully in God. This does not mean it is better than another path, just closer to fulfilling where all paths lead. All paths eventually lead to God.”         
- Messages from Jesus, p.43

I am off today for an over nighter, hoping to help a family avoid becoming homeless. What tragedy awaits so many people. The best we can do is reach out where we can. This is a stretch for us, taking us down to bare-bones. We need to open our doors and pantries, help each other and do it with no strings attached. Do it with love.  Jesus said to "Love one another."  He also said to me, "Whatever you do, do it with love."—Mary Ann

When I give homilies, workshops or counseling, I see people from various paths, religions and levels of spiritual progression. Your spiritual path or journey is truly, uniquely your own; there is no one to imitate. But, even though we are all on different pathways, there is a common goal—God realization. Gandhi said, “There are as many religions as there are people on the face of the earth.”  Gandhi knew we all have different paths, and he also knew that we all have a common goal—God realization—enlightenment. So there should be no distinction here—no judging of another’s path—between individuals or between nations.

Religion has played its part in controlling the way people relate to God and each other, sometimes through fanatic, rigidly-held beliefs. But how much structure do we need in our lives?  Surely there is a lot to be said for religious doctrine but there also needs to be room for choices and change.

You might ask where you should find your pathway to God. Through a pathway of service, or a pathway of  dedication to a specific religion, or a pathway of meditation? It depends on the individual; perhaps through all three.  In the Bible, James 1:27,  we read that pure religion is to visit the afflicted and to keep oneself unstained from the world. There is hardly any other mention of religion in the Bible.  So you might determine that religion is love in action.

Jesus said to me in  Sustained by Faith  pg. 157, "Let your religion be love."

Our life on earth has endless opportunities for growing spiritually if we are open and loving. The essence of a Godly life lies in the everyday living of life—how you live your life.   —Mary Ann Johnston

As I get older, I am often confronted with pain. If I dwell on pain and suffering, likes and dislikes, comparisons and judgments, it's easy to become caught up in this mortal self, this duality, and it blocks the awareness of the oneness of everything. To allow Oneness, the nature of God, to shine through, I practice laying aside the ego, and doing what Jesus repeatedly stated in my book, "Whatever you do, do it with love". —Mary Ann