Am I willing to give the fragrance of God within to others? Would I be willing if I were giving every bit of God's love away with nothing left for myself? Could I empty myself completely to give it all to someone else? Could I bear having no Christ left within? Am I capable, in my spirit, to say, "Take it all?"

These are questions I have pondered and, by listening, I began to hear the responses.

If I can give all of Christ within away, where do I begin?

“Love, God is. Love my neighbor as myself.”

Ah, I must first love myself. God is within me so I should love the Godliness within me.

“No, I shall love all of me.”

How can I judge what is Godliness and what is not?

“I can love just me. If I love myself, then I can love others.”

What can I do to show I love others?

“I don't have to show anything, just love them. God will allow them to see what He wants them to see. My assignment is just to love them.”

Agape is a Greek word meaning spiritual love. We have a special love for our children, another love for relatives and close friends and still another love for our neighbors. These are all only a part of the touch of the all-encompassing spiritual agape love between our Creator and us.

God is the only One who can give this type of love. We have inherited God's love and it is a continuous flow, which can never run dry. I am willing to give this Love to others.

(`~`*`~`)`~`*`~`(`~`*`~`)`~`*`~`(`~`*`~`)`~`*``~` (`~`*`~`)

Gift of Love
by Dusty Reed

Communication with family is one of my highest priorities. It doesn’t always seem to show as such on the surface but when I sense the overall love our family experiences, I am grateful. I believe my husband’s and my convictions, blended, have provided this influence. This blending has developed over our nearly twenty-seven years of marriage.

I am an independent in many beliefs, choices and opinions. I am also dependent on my husband for many decisions. If I do have a definite belief or opinion, he seldom challenges it. If I am searching for a solution, he is willing to offer his opinion about it. Many times, he is a good listener and lets me find my preference. There are a few issues where we have not found total alignment. However, we respect one another’s rights to personal beliefs and, in these cases, we each follow our own convictions. Sometimes this becomes an opportunity in avoiding verbal disagreement, especially in how to influence our son. In these few areas, we remain strongly convicted to our personal beliefs.

I make it a frequent practice to study Scripture, write affirmations, speak them when applicable, journal with solutions, take word vitamins (favorable traits) by thinking on them, encourage my joy bubbles, avoid complaining and gossip, listen to motivational speakers and study personal development books. These and other favorable practices continue to develop my convictions. Each of these practices strengthens my faith in God, in who I am and who I desire to be. My outlook on life offers assurance of this.

I continue to see more expansion that was always there. I didn’t know how to define it but when I see it through another’s writing, I know it is also a part of me, of my beliefs. As it is awakened, I can observe and say, “Aha, this is a healthy assurance because I already believe and connect with this.” It offers a communion with the other soul who also believes this. We communicate on a deeper level of understanding. We sense the invisible but ever-present love that is guiding us.

Love is an individual thing. It means different things to each person, depending on faith, memory and experience.

I have experienced God's love through experiencing it with my family. Others learn it through a traumatic experience when they discover on a one-to-one basis that God loves them. Others learn from caring souls who give with compassion. Others learn by giving.

We all have the Gift of God's love within. We cannot begin to define God's love! There aren't the words to do so! There isn't a feeling to do so! God's love "is" and our responsibility is to simply accept!

Once we accept, we become more aware through acknowledgement by willingly loving God, loving ourselves, loving others and the circle goes round and round and round, expanding, expanding, expanding. How does this happen? Simply by asking God to let it happen and remaining open for it to do so. I think, write and speak that it happens and believe that it does. Therefore, accepted by faith, it is happening.

Lord help me
be more sensitive
to others,
Especially family
and loved ones.
Let me express
Your love
so they will know I care.
Lord, help me.

(`~`*`~`)`~`*`~`(`~`*`~`)`~`*`~`(`~`*`~`)`~`*``~` (`~`*`~`)

God's Love
by Dusty Reed

Fellowship with God
the Creator, as my Creator
Creating my thoughts,
Creating my feelings,
Creating my understanding,
Creating my being, Creating my surroundings
is prosperity.
God loves me.

(`~`*`~`)`~`*`~`(`~`*`~`)`~`*`~`(`~`*`~`)`~`*``~` (`~`*`~`)

Some sites I recommend:

Inner Guidance Movie - Delightful!

Love Is God

BBS Radio

Hummingbird's Nest

Transform Now

Healing Sounds

(`~`*`~`)`~`*`~`(`~`*`~`)`~`*`~`(`~`*`~`)`~`*``~` (`~`*`~`)

And, for anyone who enjoys playing at ebay, lots of goodies (records, colored pencil drawings, books & post cards) are available at Dusty's eBay

I have posted a new page with note cards (for sale) with some of my rose drawings. You can check it out by going to Rose Descriptions. You can also see samples of a couple of other colored pencil drawings I've done at My Roses

(`~`*`~`)`~`*`~`(`~`*`~`)`~`*`~`(`~`*`~`)`~`*``~` (`~`*`~`)

You are welcome to forward this newsletter to friends who might be interested! If they would like to subscribe (at no cost), they can write to me at cascade@mahaska.org (with Expansion Encounters as subject). Thanx muchly!

Working toward consideration and to better humanity, we want to encourage free enterprise, free speech. We are Life Now, a spiritual happening on and off the Internet.

(`~`*`~`)`~`*`~`(`~`*`~`)`~`*`~`(`~`*`~`)`~`*``~` (`~`*`~`)

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