Around the time when the 40-Day Program is offered (3 times a year – January 1st, May 1st and September 1st), I invite people who have taken it and love it to tell their friends and family about it.

Almost everyone who has ever taken the 40-Day Program heard about it because they either saw it on my Facebook page or they heard about it from a friend or family member.

Word of mouth rocks!

We receive letters from people who loved the 40-Day Program and said it has changed their life but don’t want to tell anyone they did it, because of the God and Jesus references.

Let’s look at that today!

Is your spiritual life a hidden secret?

Does it make you feel nervous to talk to others about God?

Or are you out in the open sunshine, declaring your love for the Truth?

Here is a big one: Do you tell people you love them?

Do you openly declare your love and gratitude?

SHARE YOUR LOVE!

For me, for many years, sharing my spiritual  life with others made me WILDLY UNCOMFORTABLE.

Back in 1992, I found A Course in Miracles and I was immediately drawn to the ideas about God. I had very little religious upbringing (we went to a Methodist church as a family) but I don’t recall God being a part of our upbringing. I don’t recall having conversations about God, and certainly not about Jesus.

I was living in NYC at the time, and i had created my image as a sophisticated modern New Yorker. I laugh now at this, but there you go! I was very concerned with what other people thought about me, and I practically made it “my job” to have an image of sweetness and helpfulness that didn’t rock the boat. I didn’t like conflict (still don’t) but back then I did everything in my power to avoid it.

So even though a love for God and a love for Jesus Christ was growing in my heart, I didn’t want anyone to know!

I hid A Course in Miracles at the book of my closet, as if it was pornography. I was dating and living with a guy who was totally awesome, but who I didn’t think would be open to these idea of God or Jesus. So I kept totally quiet. When I knew he wasn’t around, I would be in Heaven with my “pornography”, my guilty pleasure: A Course in Miracles.

A couple years later we broke up (of course! How could a relationship based on secrecy last?) and then my Course back came out into the public – my coffee table in the living room!

That felt like such a huge move, even though it was my own living room and I lived alone.

I would sometimes move my Course book to the top of the bookcase in a pile of other books when guests came over … hide it a little.

I was THAT in the closet!

I didn’t want controversy and I also didn’t want people to think I was going to start a God conversation.

Instead I talked about the weather, food, my problems and difficulties, my next travel plans, what movies and books I was reading (conveniently leaving out A Course in Miracles from the list).

So that went on for a while, until finally I really wanted to talk about my love for God! I wanted people to know me, and not the image of me that I had built up. I wanted ME to know ME.

I was tired of hiding. I was wanting to share this part of my life with others.

Around this time I was starting to talk with Jesus and I didn’t know any one who was doing that.

I had an image of people who were in love with Jesus as fundamentalist extremists who preached and tried to convert others and I didn’t want to be associated with that. I had a lot of ideas back then!

And finally I decided to come out of the God closet.

I thought i would just put one little toe in the water and test it out, to see how it felt.

And you know what happened?? Nothing! haha! No one died. No one thought I was trying to preach to them. And I found out that people want to talk about God!

I started only talking about God in the beginning, and eventually I began to talk more and more about my love for Jesus. I noticed that some people got uncomfortable but the majority of people I talked with were curious.

They asked questions. They wanted to know more.

And some even bought A Course in Miracles based on what they heard from me.

Over the years hundreds of people have thanked me for being vocal about my love for God and my love for Jesus. I’m grateful for that. They say that one conversation set them on a new path, opened a door for them.

I think the biggest reason I stayed so quiet for so long about my love for Jesus is because I couldn’t explain it. I didn’t know the bible. I didn’t entirely know A Course in Miracles.

I thought people would question and challenge me and I didn’t want to have to explain myself and then screw it up.

And finally, I thought: I don’t have to explain myself!

I can simply say I’m in love with God. I’m in love with Jesus. I read this book called A Course in miracles and I love it.

There is such freedom in being yourself.

My friend Janet from the second grade took the new 40-Day Program and she wrote about finding joy and about telling people she loves them:

My beautiful and amazing childhood friend has helped me change my way of being. I have a hard time putting in words what her program has done for me…I was “stuck” for a lack of a better words, after loosing several lovedones over the last few years. My joy is back, I truly love life. I told Lisa that at times when I was going through her program I thought I was being “punked” because each day my perception shifted and I saw my brothers and sisters as pure love and that has become my world! I’ve always been a faith based person, this program has helped me live peacefully and with joy. Lisa tells everyone she meets that she loves them, I didn’t get that for the longest time, I do now…. I genuinely love each person I meet! I love you from the bottom of my heart, Lisa Natoli xoxoxo

Thank you Janet! I love you!

And to you reading this, I love you!

Today, I invite you to:

1. Sign up for the 40-Day Program which begins May 1, 2016: https://www.teachersofgod.org/40day

2. Tell a friend or family member about the 40-Day Program (tell several people! Thank you so much!). Here is the link: https://www.teachersofgod.org/40day

3. Tell people you love them and how much you appreciate them.

I would love to hear about how you express your spiritual life to others around you. Please leave a comment below!

Love, Lisa