Forgiveness is Declaring a New Beginning

 

Forgiveness is the cleansing fire that burns away old regrets and resentments.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Forgiveness is the key to happiness.
- A Course In Miracles

In forgiveness you grant,
and more so in the forgiveness you receive.
- Terry Goodkind

The practice of forgiveness is our most important
contribution to the healing of the world.
- Marianne Williamson

Forgiveness is not a whitewashing of the past.
Forgiveness is declaring a new beginning to create space for a joyful present and future.
 - Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Today's affirmation:
I accept everything that ever has been,
with no regrets, no resentments, and no call for vengeance.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Forgive Others for Your Own Sake

How to get over regrets and resentments

Find Peace in Forgiveness

Forgiveness is Essential to a Great Relationship

Burned by Your Own Anger
      

Praise and Celebrate Your Life

As the evening beckons with the promise of tomorrow...

may your gratitude rise up and with strength answer, "yes."

- Mary Anne Radmacher

The miracle of gratitude is that it shifts your perception
to such an extent that it changes the world you see.
- Robert Holden

The more you praise and celebrate your life,
the more there is in life to celebrate.
- Oprah Winfrey

The path to happiness is forgiveness of everyone
and gratitude for everything.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

He is a wise man who does not grieve
for the things which he has not,
but rejoices for those which he has.
- Epictetus

Celebrate! Celebration is an expression of Gratitude.
Gratitude is like the prayer, while
Celebration is the hymn and sacred dance.
Celebration is its own road to happiness.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

We can only be said to be truly alive in those moments
when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.
- Thornton Wilder

Further reading: Attitude of Gratitude

To Feel Blessed

A List of Gratitudes

Zero-Based Gratitude
    

Release Uncertainty, Regret, and Fear

 

Forgiveness does not change the past,
but it does enlarge the future.
- Paul Boese

Forgiveness is the key to happiness.
- A Course In Miracles

I rest in the light of forgiveness.
I forgive myself and others for that
which is done (and better left undone)
and also that which is not done (and better if done).
I give myself permission to enjoy this moment without guilt.
I freely release all uncertainty, regret, and fear.
- Mary Anne Radmacher

Forgiveness Creates Space for a New Tomorrow.
Forgiving Others Grants You Peace.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Forgive All From Your Heart

Forgiving Sets You Free

Burning Away Old Regrets and Resentments

Helping is what Life is About
     

Goodness Transcends Adversity

 

Believe in the goodness of life.
Believe in the power of time to heal and to renew.
Believe in the power of forgiveness and gratitude.
Believe in the gift of rainbows and butterflies.
Believe in the laughter of children.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Being part of the natural world reminds me
that innocence isn't ever lost completely;
we just need to maintain our goodness to regain it.
- Jewel

Believe in love.
Believe in magic.
Believe in others.
Believe in yourself.
Believe in your dreams.
If you don't, who will?
- Jon Bon Jovi

Be open to the goodness of life -
even in the midst of apparent adversity.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Natural Goodness

Our Opportunity

Renewing Yourself

Believe in Humanity
    

Wisdom of Martin Luther King Jr

 

Nothing in all the world is more dangerous
than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Rarely do we find men who willingly engage in hard, solid thinking.
There is an almost universal quest
for easy answers and half-baked solutions.
Nothing pains some people more than having to think.
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive.
He who is devoid of the power to forgive
is devoid of the power to love.
There is some good in the worst of us
and some evil in the best of us.
When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies.
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Cowardice asks the question - is it safe?
Expediency asks the question - is it politic?
Vanity asks the question - is it popular?
But conscience asks the question - is it right?
And there comes a time when one must take a position
that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular;
but one must take it BECAUSE it is right.
- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Further reading: Gain Peace Through Peace

The First Step in Faith

Serve Others

Hate Returns Upon Itself
      

Some thoughts as we enter the New Year of 2025...

 

Some thoughts as we enter a New Year:

Good Endings precede Good Beginnings.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Stop holding on to the past.
Release your regrets about whatever you may have done
or failed to do that turned out poorly.
Forgive others for whatever they may have done
or failed to do that cause you harm.
Declare today to be a new beginning.
Let go of the past and move on with creating
a joyful new future for yourself.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

To Gain Inner Peace, You Must Forgive

 

Forgive those who have injured you -
not because they deserve your forgiveness,
but because you can never be happy until
you release your anger and grant forgiveness.
Forgiving is not a gift to someone else -
Forgiving is your gift to yourself - a great gift - the gift of happiness.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

The remedy for wrongs is to forget them.
- Publilius Syrus

Forgiveness is not always easy.
At times, it feels more painful
than the wound we suffered,
to forgive the one that inflicted it.
And yet, there is no peace without forgiveness.
- Marianne Williamson

Forgiveness means letting go of the hope for a better past.
- Lama Surya Das

Forgiveness ... is the finishing of old business
that allows us to experience the present,
free of contamination from the past.
- Joan Borysenko

The Price of Inner Peace is Forgiveness.
 - Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: How to Forgive and Move On

Stop Anger Before it Stops You 

Forgive Others for Your Own Sake

Forgiveness is Essential to a Great Relationship
      

Finding Someone to Blame does NOT Fix a Problem

 

We have to let go of all blame, all attacking, all judging,
to free our inner selves to attract what we say we want.
- Joe Vitale

Take your life in your own hands, and what happens?
A terrible thing: no one to blame.
- Erica Jong

A man can fail many times,
but he isn't a failure until
he begins to blame somebody else.
- John Burroughs

As soon as we find someone to blame,
we act as if we've solved the problem.
- Margaret J. Wheatley

The impulse to blame something or someone is foolishness.
There is nothing to be gained in blaming,
whether it be others or oneself.
- Epictetus

When we are disappointed, we look for someone to blame.
Declaring someone to be at fault is the nature of anger.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

When you are impeccable, you take
responsibility for your actions,
but you do not judge or blame yourself.
- don Miguel Ruiz

It is an act of great Courage to forsake all Blame.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Accusation of "Fault"

Judging Others

Why I Choose to Believe that Others are Never the Cause of My Unhappiness

Disappointment and Criticism

Categorizing People
         

Forgive, Again and Again

 

Forgiveness is unlocking the door
to set someone free
and realizing you were the prisoner!
- Max Lucado

To err is human, to forgive divine.
- Alexander Pope

Forgiveness is an act of self-love.
- don Miguel Ruiz

Resentment is a Prison.
It is not easy to forgive,
but make the effort again and again.
Nothing else you can ever do in life
will repay you as richly as forgiving
and loving those you have called enemy.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

I can only have peace of mind
when I forgive rather than judge.
- Gerald Jampolsky

Further reading: Forgiveness Releases the PastAre You The Prisoner?

Treat ALL with Goodness

The Futility of Regret
   

Live life with no regrets and no resentments

 

Live life with no regrets and no resentments.
Whatever happened in the past,
forgive yourself and others. Choose love.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

For all sad words of tongue and pen,
The saddest are these, "It might have been."
- John Greenleaf Whittier

I rest in the light of forgiveness.
I forgive myself and others for that
which is done (and better left undone)
and also that which is not done (and better if done).
I give myself permission to enjoy this moment without guilt.
I freely release all uncertainty, regret, and fear.
- Mary Anne Radmacher

Further reading: Learn To Get Over Regrets And Resentments

Never Second Guess Yourself

Forgiveness Releases the Past
    

Hate Nobody, Love Everybody

Love people who hate you. Pray for people who have wronged you.
It won’t just change their life, it will change yours.
- Mandy Hale

You have heard that it was said,
"Love your neighbor and hate your enemy."
But I tell you: Love your enemies
and pray for those who persecute you.
- Jesus (Matthew 5:43-44)

Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it.
Hatred confuses life; love harmonizes it.
Hatred darkens life; love illumines it.
- Martin Luther King Jr.

Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends of them?
- Abraham Lincoln

The practice of forgiveness is our most important
contribution to the healing of the world.
- Marianne Williamson

If you want to make peace with your enemy,
you have to work with your enemy.
Then he becomes your partner.
- Nelson Mandela

Further reading: Go and Do Likewise
 
Life is a Reflection

Fear and Love Categorizing People

On the Unworkability of Vengeance
         

Live with Honesty and Integrity

 

To be a person of honor is to live with honesty and integrity of action and thought.

This is my simple religion.
There is no need for temples;
no need for complicated philosophy.
Our own brain, our own heart is our temple;
the philosophy is kindness.
- Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama

To believe in something, and not to live it, is dishonest.
- Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi

Honor, Forgiveness, Gratitude, Choice,
Vision, Action, Celebration, Unity -
The Values of an Inspired Life.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Today's project:
Meaningful and joyful lives are lived by adhering to one's personal value system - one's principles. Today, write your six to eight most important values on an index card, and refer to that card as you go about your life today.

Further reading: What We Are Made Of

Do What You Know Is Right

Secret of Happiness

Things Divine
     

Appreciate Goodness

 

The unthankful heart... discovers no mercies;
but let the thankful heart sweep through the day and,
as the magnet finds the iron,
so it will find, in every hour,
some heavenly blessings!
- Henry Ward Beecher

When we trust in the natural goodness around us,
we open ourselves for the blessings of life to flow toward us.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

We return thanks to the Great Spirit,
in whom is embodied all goodness,
and who directs all things for the good of his children.
- Iroquois traditional

The roots of all goodness lie
in the soil of appreciation for goodness.
- Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama

Blessings flow toward gratitude.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Create the world that could be

Know that You have been Blessed

Believe in People; Believe in Yourself

The Power of Your Intention
    

Take Nothing Personally

 

The dream you are living is your creation.
It is your perception of reality that you can change at any time.

- don Miguel Ruiz

Whatever anyone else says or does, their words
and their actions are truly about themselves.
Don't take it personally when they rant,
even if they direct their unhappiness in your direction.
Their negativity is basically selfishness,
and their selfishness is about them, not about you.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered; ...
Forgive them anyway.
- Kent Keith
(often attributed to Mother Teresa, who kept a copy on the wall of her orphanage)

We are to take nothing personally,
least of all ourselves, for the moment we do,
our spiritual growth and journey come to a halt.
- Hopi Proverb

What you think of me is none of my business.
- Terry Cole-Whittaker

Don't Take Anything Personally.
Nothing others do is because of you.
What others say and do is a projection of their own reality.
- Miguel Angel Ruiz (don Miguel Ruiz)

If you want reality to be different than it is,
you might as well try to teach a cat to bark.
- Byron Katie

Chaos is the score upon which reality is written.
- Henry Miller

You can't get mad at weather because weather's not about you.
Apply that lesson to most other aspects of life.
- Doug Coupland

Further reading: Don't Take Rejection Personally

How to Not Care What People Think about You

How to be Positive Around Negative People

Don Miguel Ruiz' Four Agreements

Families and Social Expectations
      

Be of Service to Your Fellow Human Beings

 

Clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
Bear with each other and forgive one another.
- Colossians 3:12

The only way you can serve God is by serving other people.
- Rick Warren

Let us touch the dying, the poor,
the lonely and the unwanted
according to the graces we have received
and let us not be ashamed
or slow to do the humble work.
- Mother Teresa

Religion is a blessing when, and only when,
it provides a focus for a compassionate community
to minister to its members and to the world at large.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Do God's Work

True Religion is about Helping Others

Love One Another
    

Forgiveness, Not Judgement

 

Give yourself the gift of forgiving others,
not because THEY deserve it,
but because YOU deserve the serenity and joy
that comes from releasing resentment and anger.
Unconditional forgiveness is the path to your own inner peace.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Today, I say yes to forgiving.
I commit to being for-giving love and for-giving compassion in all areas of my life.
– Sheri Rosenthal

A wise man will make haste to forgive,
because he knows the true value of time,
and will not suffer it to pass away in unnecessary pain.
- Samuel Johnson

I can have peace of mind only when I forgive rather than judge.
- Gerald Jampolsky

Further reading: Forgive Others for Your Own Sake

Forgiveness is our gift to ourselves

Stop Anger Before it Stops You

Ten Little Tips to Feel Happier Right Now
      

Forgiveness is the Cleansing Fire

 

Forgiveness is the cleansing fire that burns away old regrets and resentments.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Forgiveness is the key to happiness.
- A Course In Miracles

In forgiveness you grant,
and more so in the forgiveness you receive.
- Terry Goodkind

The practice of forgiveness is our most important
contribution to the healing of the world.
- Marianne Williamson

Forgiveness is not a whitewashing of the past.
Forgiveness is declaring a new beginning to create space for a joyful present and future.
 - Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Today's affirmation:
I accept everything that ever has been,
with no regrets, no resentments, and no call for vengeance.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Forgive Others for Your Own Sake

How to get over regrets and resentments

Find Peace in Forgiveness

Forgiveness is Essential to a Great Relationship

Burned by Your Own Anger
      

Praise and Celebrate

The miracle of gratitude is that it shifts your perception
to such an extent that it changes the world you see.
- Robert Holden

The more you praise and celebrate your life,
the more there is in life to celebrate.
- Oprah Winfrey

The path to happiness is forgiveness of everyone
and gratitude for everything.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

He is a wise man who does not grieve
for the things which he has not,
but rejoices for those which he has.
- Epictetus

Celebrate! Celebration is an expression of Gratitude.
Gratitude is like the prayer, while
Celebration is the hymn and sacred dance.
Celebration is its own road to happiness.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

We can only be said to be truly alive in those moments
when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.
- Thornton Wilder

Further reading: Attitude of Gratitude

To Feel Blessed

A List of Gratitudes

Zero-Based Gratitude
    

Forgiveness Creates Space for a New Tomorrow

Forgiveness does not change the past,
but it does enlarge the future.
- Paul Boese

Forgiveness is the key to happiness.
- A Course In Miracles

I rest in the light of forgiveness.
I forgive myself and others for that
which is done (and better left undone)
and also that which is not done (and better if done).
I give myself permission to enjoy this moment without guilt.
I freely release all uncertainty, regret, and fear.
- Mary Anne Radmacher

Forgiveness Creates Space for a New Tomorrow.
Forgiving Others Grants You Peace.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Forgive All From Your Heart

Forgiving Sets You Free

Burning Away Old Regrets and Resentments

Helping is what Life is About
     

Believe

Believe in the goodness of life.
Believe in the power of time to heal and to renew.
Believe in the power of forgiveness and gratitude.
Believe in the gift of rainbows and butterflies.
Believe in the laughter of children.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Being part of the natural world reminds me
that innocence isn't ever lost completely;
we just need to maintain our goodness to regain it.
- Jewel

Believe in love.
Believe in magic.
Believe in others.
Believe in yourself.
Believe in your dreams.
If you don't, who will?
- Jon Bon Jovi

Be open to the goodness of life -
even in the midst of apparent adversity.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Natural Goodness

Our Opportunity

Renewing Yourself

Believe in Humanity