The Next Step in Evolution

May 13, 2020Leave a comment

The Next Step in Evolution with James Redfield

A series of fictional books captured the interests of millions in the early 90s. Two of the books landed on the New York Times Bestsellers list for a combine total of 74 weeks. The spiritual lessons and truths are timeless and beg to be revisited in these important, transformative times on the planet. James Redfield invites you to open your perception, find your guidance, and discover why you’re really here. He encourages you to open yourself to the possibility that there is something more—right here in front of your eyes: “The guidance within evolves the world toward a Heaven that is already here. To know this is to know our destiny.”

[Click Here to Listen]

James Redfield was 43 when he published The Celestine Prophecy. He has been keenly interested in human spirituality all of his life. Born on March 19, 1950, he grew up in a rural area near Birmingham, Alabama. From an early age, he was motivated by a need for clarity about spiritual matters. Brought up in a Methodist Church that was loving and community-oriented, he was nevertheless frustrated by a lack of answers to his questions about the true nature of spiritual experience.

As a young man, he studied Eastern philosophies, including Taoism and Zen, while majoring in sociology at Auburn University.

He later received a Master’s degree in counseling and spent more than 15 years as a therapist to abused adolescents. During this time, he was drawn into the human potential movement and turned to it for theories about intuitions and psychic phenomena that would help his troubled clients. All along, Redfield was forming ideas that would eventually find their way into The Celestine Prophecy. In 1989, he quit his job as a therapist to write full-time, synthesizing his interest in interactive psychology, Eastern and Western philosophies, science, futurism, ecology, and history.

Using an adventure parable approach that has been called “part Indiana Jones, part Scott Peck,” The Celestine Prophecy created a model for spiritual perception and actualization that resonated with millions of people and focused on the mysterious coincidences that occur in each of our lives. Disdaining the spotlight himself, Redfield proclaimed in The Celestine Prophecy that each of us must intuit his own spiritual destiny.

As he writes in The Celestine Vision, his non-fiction title published in 1997, “The actual writing of The Celestine Prophecy occurred from January 1989 through April 1991 and was characterized by a sort of trial-and-error process. Quite amazingly, as I remembered earlier experiences and wrote about them, lacing them into an adventure tale, striking coincidences would occur to emphasize the particular points I wanted to make. Books would show up mysteriously, or I would have timely encounters with the exact sort of individuals I was attempting to describe. Sometimes strangers would open up to me for no apparent reason and tell me about their spiritual experiences.”

After the self-published book was brought to the attention of Warner Books through a perceptive sales rep, Warner Books bought the rights and published the hard cover edition in March 1994. The book quickly climbed to the #1 position on the New York Times bestsellers list. It remained on that list for more than three years, joined by The Tenth Insight, which built upon the Nine Insights revealed in the first novel. The two books spent a combined 74 weeks on the New York Times list, making James Redfield the best-selling hard cover author in the world in 1996, as cited in BP Report (January 1997).

In October 1997, James Redfield was awarded the highly prestigious Medal of the Presidency of the Italian Senate at the XXIII Pio Manzu International Conference in Rimini, Italy. Pio Manzu is a nongovernmental arm of the United Nations headed up by Mikhail Gorbachev.

In the spring of 2000, James joined Millard Fuller, founder of Habitat For Humanity, as the only two recipients of Humanitarian of the Year honors from their alma mater, Auburn University. Two months later, he was honored by the International New Thought Alliance with another Humanitarian of the Year award.

The Celestine series of adventure parables continued in 1999 with the publication of The Secret of Shambhala: In Search of the Eleventh Insight (Warner Books). Set in modern day Tibet, Redfield continued the inspiring journey of The Celestine Prophecy and The Tenth Insight—carrying readers to a new adventure in a sacred place where truths that can affect all of humanity await. In 2002, James joined author Michael Murphy and filmmaker Sylvia Timbers in a collaborative work entitled God and the Evolving Universe (J.P. Tarcher).

In March 2004, James Redfield was honored by the Wisdom Media Group with the World View Award for engaging the discussion on the nature of human existence and for his ongoing efforts and contributions to the bettering of humanity.

The fourth and final book in the Celestine series, The Twelfth Insight: The Hour of Decision, was published by Grand Central Publishing (formerly Warner books) in February, 2011.

James is embarking on the Celestine Prophecy Tour… take a look and see if he will be in a city near you www.TheCelestineProphecyTour.com.

Finding the Source

January 22, 2012Leave a comment

The water was disappearing more and more all the time. Our sacred backyard sanctuary had a leak. The pond needed to be filled every couple of days.

We put the pond in ourselves in 2004. We really didn’t know what we were doing. We researched for years and decided to go ahead with our limited knowledge and experience. We ordered a kit, rented a backhoe, and followed the instructions. It turned out beautifully and we enjoy it immensely. The Koi and gold fish are maturing and the water plants need little care. But that “limited knowledge and experience” piece does come back to haunt us.

There are two important steps the instructions did not cover adequately. First, how important sealing the main seam is! Second, they never mentioned that the liner needed to be fitted inside the waterfall spill-over. We paid careful and diligent attention to the main seam when we sealed it. I believe it is a waterproof seam serving us well. But the other issue with the waterfall spill-over has caused us grief.

We knew we had small amounts of water leaking around the waterfall, but feared a much bigger problem. It seemed like a daunting task to tackle the leak. Surely it would require de-construction and re-construction.

One Saturday I was working in the gardens – weeding, moving plants, and playing with the stone around the pond – when I noticed moving water where it wasn’t supposed to be. Outside of the waterfall and creek a small trickle of water was discovered. I began moving rock, pulling mint plants, and clearing out roots of a reed that sucks water from the pond. Slowly but surely I made my way up to the source of the leak. There, before my eyes, water was emerging from a place I never imagined.

I vacillated between joy and hesitation. Would this be a simple fix or a major de-construction project? And then, two simple solutions quietly emerged. First, we could carefully work with the liner and simply re-route the water back to the pond. Or second, we could fill the hole with concrete; creating a dam or plug, and hopefully the source of the leak would re-route itself down the waterfall. If you know the temperament of moving water, the second option could be risky and wasn’t likely a viable solution. So, I began working with the liner to catch and re-route the leak.

I expected the worst. Fixing the leak seemed like such a big project. But I was delightfully surprised to find a gentle little stream of water where it wasn’t supposed to be. For now, the liner has been manipulated to re-route the water and it seems to be a manageable solution.

There are times in my life when I experience energy leaks. Finding the source means two things to me. First, it is important for me to understand where my leak originates. Where and why am I loosing energy? Finding that source helps me address the issues and move back into wholeness. Second, finding my Source, my center, the spiritual essence of who I really am, is a powerful daily practice. This Source is an abundant stream of powerful energy that fuels my life. This infinite Source of love and light can heal any leak, wound, block, or congestion, and move me into right relationship with myself and the world around me. Having an intimate and infinite relationship with my Beloved Source illuminates dark shadows, ignorance, and self-doubt. This constant companion is so life-affirming!

So, when something is out of balance and I’m feeling low, all I need to do is be still, go within, and find that Source… She leads me beside the still waters. She restores my soul!

All We Need is Love

December 9, 2011Leave a comment

“All we need is love,” instructs John Lennon’s famous lyrics. The sentiment is incredibly moving today as we enter this holiday season as well as this pivotal time in history. Love is a unifying force that can improve the quality of life on earth, ignite planetary healing, and create global oneness.

There are many definitions of love, but let’s discuss the universal, altruistic love that is shared by most faith-based organizations. Love is central to many religions, as in the phrase, “God is Love.” Love is the ultimate grace and blessing where most do see eye to eye. This love is a divine link that can bind us together and the redeeming force that can reconcile the hearts of humanity.

In the Bahá’í faith, love is the light that guides in the darkness, the living link that unites God with man, that force that assures the progress of every illumined soul. Bahá’í’s believe love reveals, with unfailing and limitless power, the mysteries latent in the universe.

The Dalai Lama said, “Love, compassion and tolerance are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive.” In Buddhism, love is unconditional and requires considerable self-acceptance. They believe this is quite different from “ordinary” love, which is usually about attachment and rarely occurs without self-interest. Instead, it refers to detachment and unselfish interest in the welfare of others.

In the Jewish tradition followers are encouraged to show mercy, love, and compassion to their brother and, as the Torah commands, love God “with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your might.” In the Christian faith, there are numerous references from “love your enemies” to the greatest commandment: love one another. It is said, “God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.”

Sufism explains the essence of God as love and the Sufi path is a path of love. Love is to see what is good and beautiful in everything. The aim is to be accepted as a lover by the Beloved God. Love encompasses the Islamic view of life as universal brotherhood that applies to all who hold faith.

Love is an inter-faith, universal virtue. This magnificent and beautiful imperative is swelling and pulsing within the hearts of humanity. There is a collective awakening stirring within us and contributing to a global shift in consciousness. The conclusion? We are ONE. Therefore, love ONE another.

Be a part of the global shift. From, and through, the love of your divine source, start with yourself. This love is a critical key to healing the planet. Self-acceptance and unconditional love for oneself is foundational. You cannot love God or others completely without loving yourself first. It doesn’t work that way. In loving yourself completely, you will activate a healing resonance greater than yourself and prepare the way for all other love.

Rumi wrote, “Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.” Love yourself and you open the floodgates for universal, altruistic love to permeate every cell of your being and every corner of the universe. You pave the way to “Love your enemies.”

There’s a visceral yearning inside each of us to love. Take a few minutes everyday and focus on universal love with the intention of increasing your energetic field of love. Breathe into your heart and allow it to expand… open… and guide you. Direct your attention to your heart and rest in the awareness of universal LOVE.

Next, imagine sending love to your loved ones, neighbors, community, and expand this field of love to all beings on our planet. Include all races, religions, and those different from you. And, yes, include any “enemies” you may have. This powerful intention will assist you to embody universal love. And, there’s another benefit to this practice: all sacred wisdom and guidance comes from this place! You are building your soul’s navigation system.

“All we need is love!” Today is a great day to allow your heart to embrace this world with all its amazing beauty, diversity, and need. We are called to deeply love those who are different from ourselves. It’s time to break down the walls that divide us, love one another, and BE in the heart of God. Kahlil Gibran, writes, “When you love you should not say, “God is in my heart,” but rather, “I am in the heart of God.” Come join in the co-creative path of love… I’ll meet you in the heart of God where we will unite and ignite loving peace on earth!