Effective Meditation

Meditation is the tool whereby you can establish and develop your own connection with Spirit.

Meditation has been used in many different ways for centuries. Some are effective, most are not. It began very simply and has always been employed by Spirit as a way to initiate communication with people. As time has gone on and life has become more complicated, human nature being what it is has led people to look for something 'more' and many methods of meditation now reflect what people think will be more effective.

Some methods employed by particular groups (such as some monks for example) to achieve an exceptionally deep level of mediation are suitable for their needs but not for the average person.

Most other methods that are popularly used to achieve a state of meditation are usually ineffective.

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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~For more information, you might enjoy reading my book, More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife. Purchase paperback on Amazon.com. It's also on Amazon as an e-book for those who have Kindle or Sony Readers. The audio book is now available!
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Communication With Spirit

Learning to allow communication has been dealt with in the two articles mentioned above so will not be repeated here. However, we do feel it is important to explain a little more about the quality of communication.

There are many Mediums in the world who act as intermediaries between earth and the Spirit World. They usually train in some way to do this work and have differing abilities and levels of experience and therefore differing rates of success.

Read more here.. http://tinyurl.com/3jqqu8h

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~For more information, you might enjoy reading my book, More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife. Purchase paperback on Amazon.com. It's also on Amazon as an e-book for those who have Kindle or Sony Readers. The audio book is now available!
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Key Things To Know When Communicating With Spirits

By Crystal Milligan

Connecting with the spirit world is not difficult, it simply involves the desire to do so and the requisite time necessary to facilitate the interaction. Throughout history people and cultures have engaged the spiritual realm in a variety of ways. The following is a list of things you should do to facilitate your contact with the spirit world:

Give permission for the spirits to work with you, specifically your guides and angels

Helpful spirits will work with you proactively when you give them the permission to do so. This can be done by speaking out loud, in prayer style, your intent to work with them and asking them specifically to work with you. If you have a particular subject you would like them to address, state it as such and ask for their assistance.

It is important to make sure to ask for only those spirits to work with you who are there for your highest purpose and utmost good. You do not want lower-energy, earthbound spirits hanging around, giving you messages and instruction. These lower energies typically know little more than you do, if as much, and often are mischievous and out to play with or harass you. Instead be sure to ask for higher, enlightened guides and hosts; those operating within the Light and for the purpose of the Light, and then give them permission to work with you in whatever form will be best received by you.

Once you have stated this (and you can do so more than once) sit back and observe your surroundings for the next few days or weeks. Note any dreams, thoughts, serendipitous events, information and out-of-ordinary circumstances you encounter. Keep a journal to log these things and review it often for the answers you seek.

Meditation

One of the most helpful ways to facilitate spirit communication is via meditation. Meditation is truly the cornerstone of any viable spiritual practice. Meditation allows us to calm our minds and listen. When we are in a position to listen we not only hear our own thoughts and messages but the messages sent from our spirit friends and guides.

It is best to make sure you are in complete silence when meditating for the purpose of spirit communication. This means no ambient noise if possible as well as no meditative music. Just pure silence. Be alone in your mind with your thoughts and maintain a state of hopeful readiness. If you have given the spirits permission to come they will show up, and many times they show up while you are in the act of meditating. If they do not show up during your meditations they will show up in other ways, and your meditations will lay the groundwork for their appearance.

Channeling

Channeling is an effective way to make contact with the spirit world. Channeling involves making oneself available to higher spirits and energies to be used as a conduit or channel for their pertinent messages to come forth. Channeling can be done via trance (as with Edgar Cayce) or while conscious (as with Jane Roberts). While in trance a person's awareness is completely displaced; with conscious channeling the practitioner is aware of the messages and information coming through.

A person can either speak out the information or alternatively write it down, such as in automatic writing. Other things besides spiritual messages can be channeled as well, such as musical compositions, poetry and even scientific formulae. In order for the practitioner to channel he or she must first set the stage accordingly, to include psychic protection, grounding and relaxation. Once these things are done the practitioner must give permission for the higher spirits to come and then wait for messages or inspiration.

The Divinatory Arts

Divination means to foresee or to be inspired by God. God in this context refers to the Source of all things, the All That Is, the Universe, etc.

Some divinatory arts include tarot card reading, dowsing, clairvoyance, precognition, tea leaf reading and scrying. While working with these divinatory abilities or instruments, spirits are allowed to come forth to relay messages or give information via sense, signals, images, words and information.

There are many types of divination, so the aspiring communicator should conduct appropriate research in order to determine which art suits him or her the best. Some methods will feel right while others may feel foreign.

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The important thing to remember is that Spirit will always find a way to communicate with us if we are willing and receptive. Therefore set your intention to work with Spirit and specify what it is you would like to learn. From there safely explore and document all that is given... and enjoy!

Crystal Milligan is a psychic medium, writer and teacher and can be reached at http://www.crystalmilligan.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Crystal_Milligan


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~For more information, you might enjoy reading my book, More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife. Purchase paperback on Amazon.com. It's also on Amazon as an e-book for those who have Kindle or Sony Readers. The audio book is now available!
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How to Communicate with Your Spirit Guides

Everyone has several spirit guides and protectors who work in the unseen realms. These may be deceased relatives, angels, archangels, ascended masters, goddesses/gods, the Holy Spirit, or some soul you have partnered with in past lives in order to assist one another with soul development.

Our guides may change throughout our lifetimes. As our souls grow from lessons learned, we may "unlock a new level" (like we do in video games) of ascension and no longer need the guides we were working with. We may be introduced to spirit helpers who are more advanced (have purer energy) on that plane.

Many people think it is difficult to get in touch with their guides, but the truth is our guides WANT to communicate with us. The reason some people don't hear from their guides is because they don't take time to get still and listen. They are consumed with busy work schedules that zap their time and energy; their spiritual practice is either non-existent or not a priority. Another reason is because our guides do not infringe upon our free will (as dark entities do); they wait to be called upon. So, why not call upon them today? There's probably something you are dealing with that an advanced soul, who sees more of the big picture, could help you with. Why struggle when help is available?

It's not necessary to know the names of your spirit guides in order to work with them. In fact, you may have so many helpers working behind the scenes on your behalf that you couldn't possibly remember all their names and roles—that is unless you feel led to do that kind of research. In those cases, I suggest you do the exercise below or use oracle cards such as those created by Doreen Virtue. She has a deck for angels, archangels, ascended masters, goddesses, etc. I have about eight decks that I use whenever I need precise guidance. The instructions for use are in each deck.

How to find out who are your guides:

1. Light a candle and set your intention to hear from Spirit
2. Breathe deeply for a few minutes to clear your mind
3. Call in your spirit guides
4. Ask for the names of your guides (optional)
5. Write down what you hear/see/sense
6. Thank your guides for their message(s) to you.

I trust that you will begin to work with your guides and find your life goes much smoother as you listen to and follow your higher inner guidance.
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For more information, you might enjoy reading my book, More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife. Purchase paperback on Amazon.com. It's also on Amazon as an e-book for those who have Kindle or Sony Readers. The audio book is now available!
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Helping Souls Cross Over

A new friend of mine recently told me that she had started letting spirits communicate with her. For a long time, she had let the "whisperings" pass by—dismissing them as her imagination. Last week, she decided to follow up on the things that they were telling her. Doing some Internet research on the names, events, and places they were giving her, she was able to confirm that these souls were truly identifying themselves with facts that could be proven historically. She has a desire to help them cross over. Since she is a newbie at doing this, I gave her some pointers that I'd like to share with you as well.

If you want to work directly with the souls to cross them over, I hope you will do so by calling in your spiritual guidance team (ascended masters, angels, etc.) to "screen your calls" so to speak. I was so bombarded by ghosts at one point that I decided to stop working with these lost souls. I didn't want to close down my ability to hear and see in the spirit realm, but I needed a break from all the intrusions. I wasn't bothered by them for a while. That is until I consciously agreed to make my shift into using my business endeavors to accomplish my spiritual mission, which includes communicating with those who have passed.

I was hesitant about opening myself up to this sort of thing again, so I put some strong boundaries in place about what type of souls I would consciously work with. As part of setting boundaries with entities (as I mentioned in my book for empathic and energy-sensitive people, Whose Stuff Is This?) I work with my guidance team, which includes Archangels Michael and Chamuel and ascended Masters Jesus Christ and Quan Yin. While I am energetically aware when there is an entity in my vicinity, the only ones who get to interact with me are the ones who actually have a pertinent message to deliver. Otherwise, my guides work directly with the lost souls who come to me for help. My guides help them cross over without my conscious participation.

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For more information, you might enjoy reading my book, More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife. Purchase paperback on Amazon.com. It's also on Amazon as an e-book for those who have Kindle or Sony Readers. The audio book is now available!
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Does Meditation Bring in Entities?

Do you feel the presence of your guides or other entities near you when you meditate?

I used to have a male spirit (he called himself Jonathan) who bugged me many times when I tried to meditate. He was acting as a guide and wanted to give me advice, but he didn't always have my best interest in mind. I sent him away by calling on my higher-vibrating guides and affirming that only those who had a purer more loving vibration than I did would be allowed near me. None could influence me who had not successfully passed more ascension initiations than I have.

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For more information, you might enjoy reading my book, More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife. Purchase paperback on Amazon.com. It's also on Amazon as an e-book for those who have Kindle or Sony Readers. The audio book is now available!
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Speaking with A Ghost in My House

A week or so ago, things began disappearing and then reappearing in my house. I would go to a location where I knew something should be and the item would not be there. I would search thoroughly before finally giving up. A few moments later, I would go back to the location and it would be there in plain site; or else I'd ask my husband if he had seen the item and he would walk to the exact place I had looked and pick up, giving me a puzzled look as to why I couldn't see it. This happened about five times and I was pretty certain there was a ghost in our house. It felt like the spirit of a child--young, innocent, curious, and playful.

Next, two framed photographs that had stood in place for years began to fall over of their own accord. This one was insistent upon getting my attention, but I really didn't want to deal with a ghost. The next day a client of mine called and said he sensed his deceased uncle was trying to get in touch with him but he was having trouble connecting and hearing. He asked if I would listen for a message. So, THAT'S who the ghost was! It made sense.The uncle was a light-hearted fellow who died young.

I called upon my guides to retrieve the message and bring it to me in a format that I could decipher. Not only was the uncle present in this listening session, his brother (my client's dad) also came through. My client was relieved and comforted by what these men had to say to him.

What a privilege it is to be able to share information from deceased loved ones. I remember when I used to pray several times a day (for many years) for all nine gifts of the Holy Spirit to manifest through me. Believe me, the gift of discerning of spirits has not ceased!!

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For more information, you might enjoy reading my book, More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife. Purchase paperback on Amazon.com. It's also on Amazon as an e-book for those who have Kindle or Sony Readers. The audio book is now available!
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My Aunt Kathryn's visit from the Afterlife

My Aunt Kathryn died of lung cancer November a year ago. Before she passed we talked about her visiting me from the afterlife and agreed that our sign that her spirit was near me would be a cameo or silhouette. She lived on Cameo Court when I was a teenager and I loved going to visit her there. Cameos and silhouettes are not often seen these days, which makes them ideal items for this purpose.

This past New Year's Eve I was in my office when I started smelling cigarette smoke. I thought it might be Kat so I said hello. Later that day, my husband and I were sitting in the living room when I started smelling cigarette smoke and felt someone playing with my hair. I didn't say anything. I just enjoyed knowing that my aunt was letting me know she was with me.

A few minutes later my husband asked, "Do you smell cigarette smoke?"

"Yes."

"Do you think your Aunt Kat is here?" he asked.

"Yes, I do."

At that moment, I felt a warm energy flow down the left side of my body draping me like a heated blanket, confirming that it was indeed her. So, maybe she couldn't find a cameo!

This past weekend I made a trip to Georgia to visit my parents and 94-year-old maternal grandmother, who lives with them. For days after getting back home, I've been thinking about Aunt Kat and wondering how her spirit might be enjoying the afterlife. I also kept craving a cigarette, which is odd since I'm not a smoker and never have been.

Yesterday I got an email from April Weltch Anderson on Facebook. She asked me to take a look at her new page. You simply must click this link to see what I found there! http://www.facebook.com/pages/Victorian-Diva/142904345775139

I love you Aunt Kathryn! Thank you for letting me know you are alive and well in spirit.

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For more information, you might enjoy reading my book, More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife. Purchase paperback on Amazon.com. It's also on Amazon as an e-book for those who have Kindle or Sony Readers.

Author Writes Book from Messages Received from Son in the Afterlife

Author Gene Skaggs joins LavendarRose today on We Are One in Spirit Podcast to talk about some comforting messages he received from his son in the afterlife.

Gene has been a student of A Course in Miracles since 1979, and has written four books on the course titled: A Beginner's Glossary to a Course in Miracles, The Relationship Game Changing the Rules, 101 Questions and Answers on the Course, and Biblical Quotes from the Course Reinterpreted. Gene has been teaching the Course three times a week since 1988. He has a private counseling practice, does numerous talks and workshops throughout the county, and is a certified Psych-K facilitator.

In part one of this two-part interview, Gene discusses his latest book, Anderson Speaks. This book tells a story that began August 6, 2009, when at the age of 22, Gene’s son, Anderson, laid his body down. The next day, Anderson began giving his father numerous messages from the afterlife. The book contains those messages, plus tips on how to navigate the loss of a loved one, how to comfort those who have lost a loved one, stories of who Anderson was while he walked this planet, and messages for his generation.

Listen to part one by clicking on the small arrow in the player below.

The World is a Mirror of My Thoughts

The purpose of religion is to help us find that connection with God that we already (still) have and think we have lost but haven’t. Most religions teach that this connection was lost in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit. The purpose of A Course in Miracles is to deliver us from the erroneous belief in separation that our egos have convinced us is true.

It impossible to be separated from God. But there is an illusion that the ego has created that makes us think we are. We are manifesting outwardly what we believe inwardly. Everything we see around us that we are not pleased with is part of our thought system that must be renewed by the Holy Spirit as He removes our wayward thoughts and bring truth to bear on every situation so that our external situation begin to mirror a more positive of who we truly are. When we change our internal thoughts, our world will change as well.

Click the small arrow in the player below to listen to part two in which Gene discusses A Course in Miracles and Psych-K. Psych-K gets the unwanted files out of the way so you can experience yourself as one with our Creator.

The book can be purchased as paperback or e-book through http://www.geneskaggs.com/ or on Amazon. Also available for Kindle Reader. You can read more about Gene here www.onemiracle.org or www.geneskaggs.com.

Sign up for Gene’s itinerary to learn where his next workshop will be: email onemiracle @ comcast dot net. As for the Course broadcast.
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You might enjoy reading More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife.
Purchase on Amazon.com

A New Show for the Spiritually-inclined

For those who love to talk about spiritual matters such as seeing ghosts and angels, channeling, religion, empathetic abilities, intuition, human divinity, deities, chakras, Christ consciousness, divine and inner guidance, unity and oneness, energy modalities, enlightenment, healing and intuitive arts, heaven/hell, karma, last days, magic, manifesting reality, meditation, mediumship, metaphysics, ancient spirituality, new age, pantheism, past lives, prayer, psychic gifts, paranormal phenomena, reincarnation, spiritual communication and guidance, spiritual and personal transformation, and universal laws.

The show may not be a fit for everyone, but if you are interested in reading the posts on the blog as well as listening to the show, go to http://weareoneinspirit.blogspot.com.

You may want to subscribe to the blog so you'll get a reminder when something new is posted. If you are only interested listening to the shows, you may subscribe to the RSS feed at http://nashvillewriter.audioacrobat.com/rss/we_are_one_in_spirit.xml.

Thank you for being part of my life!

Yvonne Perry
http://writersinthesky.com

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For more information, you might enjoy reading the complete book More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife.

Purchase on Amazon.com

The Spirit of My Husband's Father Visited Us

I suppose this is an amendment or clarification to yesterday's post on The Sid Series blog in which I spoke about my grandson hearing a spirit in my house when he stayed with us last weekend.

Even though my husband's father just passed last week, it didn't dawn on me that Jack might be visiting us. That is until I came home from picking up dinner and walk into the garage and saw the ghost of a man. The apparition only lasted a split second and faded.

My husband opened the door to let me in and immediately asked, "What's wrong?"

"I just saw a ghost. That's all."

"Sidney told you we had a spirit in the house."

"Yes, but who is it?" I asked. "Oh, wait a big 'duh' minute. I felt this strange energy when Sid was here; I felt it the moment you called to tell me Jack had died. I felt it that evening when you came home from work, and I feel it now. It has to be your dad."

"Makes sense. Maybe we should light a candle for him."

Usually, spirits come to me because they want me to help them cross over or give a message to their loved one. So we lit a candle and asked Jack what he needed us to do for him. Within just a few seconds my husband and I both felt an energy surge.

"Looking for Virginia." I repeated what I was hearing in my mind. Virginia was my husband's mother's name. She passed before Randy and I met one another. "Is your dad looking for your mom?"

"No. I sense that my mom has reincarnated . . .  She is embodied as one of my grandkids."

The energy level around us surged again. I tried on a few of the grandkids. Elise's kids? No. Ryah's baby? No. Keilie? A little stronger feeling.

"Definitely one of Jackson's kids," I confirmed. I thought of Mac and got a little stronger resonance with that guess. Kind of like the game cold, warm, warmer, warmer, . . . HOT!

"Lochlan," Randy said.  We both had a huge energy rush--an indication that we were correct.

So, it turns out that we didn't need to do anything for Jack. He had a message for us. We thanked Jack and spent a few more minutes with him. The energy let up and I dismissed the session.

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For more information about spirit communication, you might enjoy reading the complete book More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife.

Purchase on Amazon.com

Brother's Spirit Visits Sister at His Time of Death

A reader named Iris sent me the following story about her brother visiting her in a dream at the moment of his death. He was in the hospital and she was at home. At the end of her story she asks a question that I would like to address. "Did he just sneak to my house before the angels got a hold of him and dressed him in white?" Read on . . . Here's Iris:

My older brother Hector had cirrhosis in the liver. He was a strong Christian. He was admitted to the hospital the night of November 20 1999. It was five days before my birthday. November 25th he called my house complaining about the hospital food and wanted me to bring him some rice and beans. I spoke to his nurse and she warned me not to bring him anything because his liver wasn't filtering and any wrong food can be a toxin to him.

I visited my brother that same night and he surprised me with a piece of cake and a candle. That was so sweet of him. I explained to him about the rice and beans. We spent lots of time giggling and talking about Thanksgiving dinner.

On November 27th I had a dream that Hector came to my room and kissed my hand. He was dressed in his hospital gown. He said, " I just came to say goodbye, Sis."

That morning I woke up and my room was freezing cold and it stunk like hospital. It was 6 a.m. Everything felt so weird and off key but I got up, took a shower, and did my normal routine. That afternoon I called the hospital to see how my brother was doing. The nurse told me to come in immediately. When I got there they told me my brother was dead. "HUH?" I asked how come no one had called me. They had called while I was in the shower. I asked what time he died. They said that at 5:45 am he went into coma and his heart stopped. They tried to resuscitate him but they couldn't.

As long as I live I will never forget the fact that my brother came to me in my dream to say goodbye. I don't get it though. Did he just sneak to my house before the angels got a hold of him and dressed him in white?

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To answer Iris' question, I must first of all note that this is a Christian family. Nothing wrong with that, but the western Christian faith interprets the Bible with some inaccurate things regarding the afterlife. Since there is no literal place known as heaven or hell (other than what we create in our minds; and that is done more here on earth than in the afterlife), some souls choose to hang around their loved ones—especially near the time of death and several days or week after the spirit departs from the body. Just like the soul who comes here from the Other Side and takes residence in the body of a baby, there may be some disorientation to begin with. (This doesn't seem to be the case with Iris' brother. He knew he was leaving and seemed glad to venture on.) Once the soul acclimates to being bodiless, it may move on to other realms. However, some stay around indefinitely. We might call them earth-bound spirits.

Just as in this earth life where we have freedom to choose, so it is in the afterlife. We may travel (as we do many times in our dreams) to visit other people, places, and even explore new experiences. Having a loved one's spirit visit is a very common occurrence and truly a blessing as in this case where the brother loving said goodbye to his dear sister. Isn't that a joy to know that he cared so much to do that?

The fact that he didn't return again probably means that he felt she was able to handle his departure, or that he visits in her dream state and she doesn't consciously remember it. Or, he may be giving Iris signs that she's not recognizing.

My grandfather's spirit visited me late one evening this week. He passed in 1988 and visited me quite often in the years following, but it had been probably six or more years since I last felt his presence near me. When I used to cut his hair I could smell the "old man" pheromones coming from his scalp. It was this same smell that let me know it was him when I sensed his presence in my bedroom as I was falling asleep.

Spirits communicate with us through all senses and they give us signs such as leaving an object in your path about which you might say, "Oh, my brother loved [name the item]." The fact that you are being reminded of him, is a good indication that he is popping in to check on you. You may want to read Denise Linn's book, the Secret Language of Signs to learn more about the signs God, angels, and loved one use to communicate with us.

It's so good to know that we are able to communicate our love from the Other Side to those on this earth plane. The soul of never dies.

Thank you, Iris, for sharing your beautiful story with us. I wish you and your brother many more pleasant and endearing encounters as you learn to look for his presence.

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For more information, you might enjoy reading my book More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife.

Purchase on Amazon.com