Insights & Inspiration Blog

Following is dialogue between myself and Jesus taken from my book Messages from Jesus,

"One day, I was driving home from a visit with family, through an area where part of the forest was being cleared for a new section of freeway. I came over a hill and saw the clearing. It was as if a giant sickle had been wielded through the forest, taking with it everything in sight—a swath of devastation of the green, for miles. I gasped and had to catch my breath. Immediate sadness came over me. All this for safer travel in this rapidly-growing population, at the expense of Mother Earth."

"Human life is important. It is the growing affluent and materialistic society of today that demands safer travel. If it is done with honor and without malice and intent to harm Mother Earth, it is acceptable. If it is done for excessive monetary profit, it is not acceptable. Mother Earth suffers either way. The devastation to all of nature on and in Mother Earth is evident in war-torn places, forest clearings, diverting of waterways, raping the land of minerals, oil and gas, pollution to the environment and even waste from your households. All of this and more has been as detrimental to Mother Earth and her inhabitants as is the taking of human lives.

"You cannot just take from Mother Earth. You must realize you are taking away from future generations—your children, grandchildren and theirs. If you take a tree, you must plant a tree.

"Be aware of what you are purchasing and throwing away. How much waste are you accountable for? Do you recycle? Do you pollute? Do you have more than you need? You are like the child in the store crying loudly, 'I want . . .' when in fact you do not need.

"I tell you, Mother Earth is more powerful than all your weapons set off at once. Do you not realize that you are working in parallel with Mother Earth. As you advance, so does she. As you become imbalanced, so does she."

"Is this why there is so much drought in some areas and floods in other areas. . .?"

". . . And seasonal disruptions and melting of polar ice and strange behaviors of animals and people—often caused by man's ignorance.

"Some of the devastation is from Mother Earth's natural cleansing cycles and maintaining equilibrium. And Mother Earth needs more and more cleansing now as human population grows and devastation to humanity and nature increases. Mother Earth does not do harm intentionally. It is in the cleansing process that people get in the way.

"Many humans don't understand that Mother Earth is a part of the whole, just as important as you and I. It is all one."

"Some time ago, I was visiting a sick friend, who was in a great deal of pain and wanted some healing energy work for himself. We went into his bedroom and he lay down on the bed. One of his two great danes came and stood alongside of me. I had to brace myself because the dog put his body right up against mine and pushed against me. This dog was nearly as tall as I am and he was sitting! The other great dane did not interfere. I started to bring my hands across my friend's body to try to determine where his aura needed work. The dog would push my hands, with his nose, into areas where he thought I should be working. Here was a healer dog!

"When the dog and I finished with the energy work, my friend and I decided to go outside and lie in the sun. We proceeded to lie down on lounge chairs. The two great danes lay down near us. It was a beautiful, sunny day. I noticed many flies in the area and I did some heart talk with them and said, 'I am honored to be in your presence, but I would like to be able to lie in the sun. I would appreciate it if you would let me rest here for a little while, and when I am done, you can have your space back.' . . . No bugs bothered me. After about five more minutes, my friend jumped up and emphatically said, 'I can't stand these flies. I need to get some spray and spray them.'

"I was very upset, first of all, because I had not spoken for him in the beginning and, second, because he wanted to kill them with spray. He went inside to get the spray. I attempted to talk the flies into leaving. In the meantime, I didn't want to stick around for the kill. So . . . I looked at the great danes, and in silent heart talk, I asked them, 'Would you like to show me your yard and what you do here?' They immediately jumped up and walked off about ten feet, turned around, and looked at me as if to say, 'Well, are you coming or aren't you.' So I got up and followed them. First they took me to one area of the tall stockade fence, which was needed to keep them in the big yard. They barked, and from the other side of the fence another dog barked back. I felt as if I had been introduced to the neighbor dog. Then I followed them down a trail leading through some trees and they showed me where they lie out of the sun. They took me to the fish pond and some other areas also. By then my friend had done his deed, so I thanked the dogs and left them on their own."

Taken from Messages from Jesus, Third edition, pp. 97-99.

I learned a wonderful lesson from a dog some time ago. I was working in New Mexico and my assistant occupational/therapist and friend told me her dog was to have surgery soon, and she wondered if it would be all right if she brought the dog into the rehabilitation area, in a cage, during recovery. Well, the day arrived and so did she and the dog.First she carried in a large cage and then she went out to carry in the dog. He was quite a big dog and was heavy for her to carry and put in the cage. He was still under the effects of the anesthesia. We went about our work and, when things slowed down, I said to her, 'How would you like me to do energy work on your dog?'

"The words just spilled out of my mouth.I had never worked with animals before and wasn't even sure if they had auras! She opened the cage and pulled the dog out. The dog was so out of it from the anesthesia that he did not make any signs of awareness. I proceeded to say a prayer and then, very slowly, I scanned for his aura. Immediately, I felt it and then smoothed his aura out! She rolled him over and, again, I slowly smoothed out his aura on the other side. I also worked on healing the incision.After we were finished, she put him back in the cage.

"A few weeks later, we had a terrible ice storm. I was afraid to venture out to go home after work. My friend offered to let me spend the night in her nearby home, and I was very happy to do so. We arrived at her home and walked in. The dog I had, two weeks earlier, given energy work to was on the other side of the room as we entered. He spied me and ran to me and lay at my feet. Over and over, I slowly smoothed out his aura on one side, and then he rolled over for me to do the other side. It was a joyful, happy reunion. In the morning, as soon as he heard me up, he ran to me and again lay at my feet for more.

"This was a new revelation for me. First of all, that animals have auras. Second, that animals are so remarkable that they can be aware of their surroundings even while anesthetized. Third,that this dog remembered me and my energy. I loved all of it.

"Given that I had chosen not to study or read or listen to anything about healing at that time, because I wanted it to come straight from God, I was unaware of the energy of animals. This was a first for me and God provided the lesson through Mother Nature. I was ready for it. All lessons seemed to come when I needed to know something, often through another person, plant, or animal.

"My friend tried to pay me for helping her dog, with money, food and so forth. I realized it was important for her to be able to give me something. I finally accepted a feather, which is still hanging from a planter in my healing room."

From Messages from Jesus Third Edition, p. 94-96

Jesus, as he is revealed to us by enlightened sages and others who know him, is a mighty spirit, actively engaged in helping humanity. His awareness is unlimited, far greater than human thought and perception, yet he sometimes appears to sincere seekers, in visions, in a human form.

He is a teacher of infinite compassion, wisdom, love and patience, guiding us home, regardless of how long it takes. He speaks – from the other side of the veil but with intimate knowledge of us and our modern world – to those who commune with him, and gives them sacred teachings to guide and inspire us. He is one with God, yet “he” is our “brother”, and loves us no matter what we do.

To understand his teachings, they should be studied, contemplated, and lived. Not only the Bible, but also the profound messages he is giving us through others at this time, should be read, feeling the truth, power and love in his words. 

The teachings that we receive from Jesus today are expansive and include aspects of Eastern religion. But, just as when he lived and taught in a physical body, he still puts love first, exposes falsehood, and tells us how to attain salvation. Only, now, we have greater knowledge of this world and the afterlife, so he discusses matters we would not have understood two thousand years ago. He knows all about our material and spiritual needs, and tells us what we should do to have peace within ourselves and on earth, eliminate the causes of suffering, communicate with nature, and experience the divinity in everything. He discusses a wide range of topics, including: sin and karma, forgiveness, the soul and reincarnation, the illusions of the ego, love and oneness, qualities of a spiritual master, enlightenment, and the nature of God.

George Johnston

Sometimes, in our attempt to imitate what we learn from others, we get caught up in repetition, routine, techniques and rituals that leave us ignorant of who we truly are. We try to be someone we aren't. We look outward instead of concentrating inward for discovery of revelations of our own. Shakespeare wrote, "Unto thine own self be true." God is within ... Go there in love and be made whole.

With love, Mary Ann Johnston

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]

     “Open their eyes, that they may turn from darkness to light.”[4]

     “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”[5]

      "Let your light so shine before men …”[6]

Sometimes people ask me, "How can I be important to God? He is so vast and infinite, and I am so miniscule compared to the whole of creation."

I had often wondered that myself, until I realized that in God's infinite being, He is not only infinite but He is also infintesimal. God is in and between every tiny particle of creation. Thus we live with God in Oneness. —Mary Ann Johnston

Several years ago, I attended a church service for which Mary Ann had been invited to give a homily. As part of her talk, she read some of the inspiring messages she had received from Jesus for her book Messages from Jesus. Here is one of them: “My life and death – this sacrifice – offers perfection for all time, a release of all karmic debt, forgiveness of sin known and unknown, for those who listen to the truth and live in love.” (Third Edition, 2009, p. 177) After the service, one of the attendees, referring to what had been said about sin, told me that his church didn’t believe in sin. I assumed that he and other members of his church no longer accepted traditional attitudes about sin, overlaid with concepts of guilt, condemnation and vengeance, so I told him that in Mary Ann’s book Jesus gives the word “sin” a definite meaning, free of the judgmental concepts people often associate with it.

My comments did not seem to satisfy the man, who appeared to believe that sin doesn’t even exist and that the word should not be used. Much later, it occurred to me that perhaps he had studied A Course in Miracles, in which, from a higher perspective, evil, sin and guilt are seen as insubstantial – illusory and unreal. For, in the supreme state of consciousness that the Course and Messages from Jesus point us toward, all things are unified in the One, and the world that we perceive with our senses and mortal mind is but a dream.

In Messages from Jesus, Jesus clarifies the meaning of sin and other pivotal concepts found in religious and spiritual teachings. On page 175, Jesus says, “Sin is the human conception of the action and the result of wrongdoing. Karma is what you receive as a result of good or sinful action.”  Wrongdoing is generally thought of as action that violates spiritual or moral principles.

In Messages, Jesus does not judge anything as bad. He simply tells us what helps or hinders our spiritual growth. But humans often conceive of sin and sinners in judgmental, or even vengeful, ways. Many people regard sin as hateful and want to see sinners “pay” for their actions, perhaps even by suffering in hell. To think this way is unloving and unforgiving. Making no effort to free the mind from negative habits of thought that keep us from advancing to a higher level of awareness is, in itself, a sin.

Throughout Messages from Jesus, Jesus encourages us to live in oneness and love, without judgment. He helps us to understand that we should see everything from a higher perspective and learn to love all actions and all people. He says, “To find the divinity in all things as one, you must go beyond judgments and comparisons, and acknowledge the possibility that all is unified in love as one, even the perceived evil. And, in this spiritual growth, you will catch glimpses into the real world, where only ever-expanding love prevails.” (p. 125) Keep in mind that this does not translate into doing away with familial and legal restrictions on immoral or criminal behavior; it concerns our state of consciousness and attitudes.

In the chapter “War”, Jesus says, “Evil, as you understand it, is a term for mankind’s desecration of free will in your physical and creative faculties of thought, feeling and action.” (p. 122) Thus, the word “evil” applies to thoughts, feelings and actions that are immoral and unloving. But we should realize that some of the things we regard as evil because they cause pain and suffering, in the long run may be beneficial in unforeseen ways. For example, sometimes it takes overwhelming pain and misfortune for a person to give up an unhealthy or destructive way of living. If a smoker gets lung cancer, it would be a mistake to think of the illness as evil. Diseases and other misfortunes are often karmic, caused by wrong actions in this or a previous life, and as such, they eventually teach us to avoid the actions that bring them about. We shouldn’t think of them as evil, for they help us to change for the better.

Likewise, we misapply the term “evil” when we regard calamities that strike large numbers of people, such as earthquakes and natural disasters, as evil. In responding to a question about evil in relation to earth changes, Jesus said, “Do you remember, I told you what you perceive as evil is often not what you perceive it to be?” (p. 123) “All of creation is in cycles, including mankind and Mother Earth. The cycles are constantly cleansing and rebuilding, just like breathing out and breathing in is cleansing for your physical body. It is not evil. It is natural and full of God’s love.” (pp. 122-123)

Sin and evil should be avoided if we wish to be happy, because they afflict the body and mind, retard our spiritual growth and awareness and cut us off from the peace, love, and joy of Spirit. Moreover, loving people are spiritually sensitive, and feel the pangs of guilt and remorse if they act in a way their conscience tells them is wrong. Finally, consider the following: Unless we are able to forgive ourselves for wrong actions, we will have to experience in this or a future life the consequences of these actions or something similar. However, if we forgive ourselves for our sins and firmly resolve not to repeat the same actions again, the karmic link of cause and effect will be broken. Like poisonous seeds that have been roasted, our past wrong actions will no longer be able to sprout and produce painful karmic consequences. By living in love, we are able to forgive and thus gradually become free of self-condemnation and guilt. Otherwise, we judge ourselves in this life and after death. In Messages, Jesus says, “If people truly forgave their selves and others, they would be so full of light it would feel as if the weight of the world was lifted from them. They would simply sin no more.” (p. 39)                                       

   – George Johnston

 DEATH AND DYING

     Recently I received a phone call from a gentleman, who said, “I understand you are the person I am supposed to call!”  He went on to say his mother was very recently diagnosed with cancer and they were taking her to Grand Rapids for aggressive treatments, and would I come to see her for a healing session before they left.

  A few weeks lapsed and again he called me. He wanted me to come to the funeral home where his mother was. He said, “I want to thank you. You were such a big help to my mother.”

  On my way to the funeral home, I tried to go over in my mind what I might have said to her in that short hour, that was of such help.  I simply couldn't remember our conversation.

   Upon arrival at the funeral home, the son told me that I had talked to her about dying, and told her of my experiences of heaven when my heart quit during a heart attack. Thus she was unafraid of the process.  He also said, “No one else talked to her of dying! No one else had prepared her.”

  I wrote of several instances similar to this in my book, Messages from Jesus.  It is always a privilege to be a part such important moments in a persons life and to help ease their passing.

  —Mary Ann Johnston

About vegetables and plant life. I now realize that all of life, including vegetables, has auras and are distressed when cut or picked for harvest. There was a study done by Bose of India, where Bose used a crescograph and attached it to a plant and then it was cut. The plant reacted with distress. Then they hooked up the crescograph to several plants.  They cut one  that was not hooked up the crescograph and all the plants which were reacted distressed

 Another study done by Bose shows a mother plant separated from new growth and the new growth did quite well, but if the mother plant was destroyed the new growth did not fare well or died, (The secret life of Plants by Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird). Given this and knowing the suffering of animals during slaughter it would make one refrain from ever eating salad or meat again.

Any time I receive flowers, I thank them for making my life more beautiful and for sacrificing for me. Of course it didn’t have a choice, or did it? Surely God put both animals and plants on earth for our well being, whether as food or pleasure. Certainly we could believe what all past teachers have said one way or another.  But I think again, it is what fits for a person, and the person should be able to not have any guilt about it. Even being a vegan is not good for everyone.

I have had a lot of experience with responses from plants.  One Easter I bought my mother a beautiful pot of planted unopened tulips figuring it would give my mother pleasure to watch them open and we could plant them outside later.  Before I left her place I wanted to feel its beautiful aura and I channeled it some energy. Well,  mom called me the next morning very angry at me because the energy opened every last one of those tulips wide open and they were drooped over the top of the table.  Not leaving her much time for enjoyment.  She warned me not to mess with her plants again.  I always bless and am thankful for a plate of food before me whether it is meat or plant, for it had special meaning in this world of ours. 

—Mary Ann Johnston

I might go so far as to say I am not Christian, but an individualized product of Christianity. I believe there have been many Christ figures.  Most Christians would not believe that. I also believe in reincarnation.   

CHANNELING

When I asked George to explain Channeling for me in my book Sustained by Faith, pp. 185-187, he wrote the following:

“The terms ‘channeling’ and ‘mediumship’ have almost the same meaning. In the past, people who contacted spirits, especially those of departed family members, were called mediums. Then, starting in the nineteen seventies, many books were written that contained information from beings in the spirit world about life after death, metaphysics, and prophesied events, such as earth changes. Psychics who received this information began to be called channelers, and the process of receiving it was called channeling.

“Usually a channeler either consciously communicates with a spirit being but is unable to see it, or becomes a passive vessel, often unconscious, so that a spirit can use their vocal cords to speak or their hands to record messages.

“In either case, some channeled messages are true and come from great spiritual beings, some contain lies and are intended to deceive, and many are from spirits who have access to certain kinds of knowledge but are not infallible. Unlike the process of receiving information from beings who appear in visions or supernatural visitations, in channeling, the source of the information is invisible to the channeler and it is often impossible to determine if it is really who it says it is, if it has a high, low, or ordinary degree of spiritual development, and if it can be trusted to tell the truth.

“Only through clear spiritual insight and sound reasoning can one discern the nature of an invisible being or the value of what it says. Also, while some messages are straightforward and fit in with the spiritual teachings of enlightened masters, others are difficult to evaluate because truth and fiction are mixed together and the fiction is presented with such skill that it looks like truth.

“For these reasons, channeled messages should be carefully considered before being integrated into one’s belief system, always keeping in mind that the most valuable and trustworthy information is that which is given in love and elevates one’s consciousness.”

I had not heard the term “channeling” until my later years and even then didn’t really know what channeling was nor pay it much mind, but when I learned more about it, I realized my communion with Jesus is not channeling. For when I communicate with Jesus, I see Him in ethereal human form or as light, and I am not unconscious, but rather in superconscious oneness with Him—in an expanded state of consciousness that is loving and blissful. Jesus does not take over my body or personality. Nor did He, until I reached the age of sixty-two, ever give me messages for others. It was simply a personal, loving relationship. --Mary Ann

TEN SIGNS YOU NEED A RETREAT

 

1. You don’t laugh as much as you used to.

2. It’s difficult for you to ask others for help.

3. You go to too many meetings.

4. Your heart feels closed.

5. You rush everywhere.

6. You know there’s more to life, but don’t know what

it is or what to do about it.

7. Your energy feels depleted.

8. You want to cry, but can’t.

9. You are easily angered, anxious and fearful.

10. You have no idea what you would do if you had a

whole day just for yourself.

For more info see the schedule in this web site for an upcoming silent retreat at Song of the Morning Yoga Retreat. -- Mary Ann Johnston

Sandi Jones and I, Mary Ann Johnston are giving a Silent Retreat at Song of the Morning, November 20-22.  For more information you can check the schedule on this web site.

Keeping Silence will help you connect to your Inner Self; to find peace within and experience the eternal present. This retreat will include readings from Paramahansa Yogananda’s writings, guided and silent meditation, nature walk, chanting, and as much time for inward reflection as you need. Silence will be held by ‘attendees, from Friday 8 p.m. through the Sunday Service, except for two sharing periods.

Mary Ann is a practicing healer/occupational therapist. She has given classes on spiritual living, breathwork,  and healing  throughout Michigan and the Southwest.  She authored Sustained by Faith & Messages from Jesus.

Sandi Jones has taught yoga and meditation in the Golden Lotus style for over 20 years and has a background in education and social work.

Hope to see you here, Love, Mary Ann