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by Doreen Virtue
This article first appeared Watkins Mind Body Spirit, Issue 50
Most of the time I write books, I’m sharing information that I already know. Occasionally though, the book becomes my teacher. Such is the case with my new book, 10 Messages Your Angels Want You to Know, which taught me information which has completely changed my life.
I was given the book title in meditation, without any indication as to the subject matter. Trusting that the angels always deliver positive life-affirming messages, my publisher and I agreed to move forward with the book. Then, each day I would sit in quiet contemplation and prayer, awaiting the messages to come through. And wow did they ever come through!
Many years ago, I had paid for my college tuition by working as a secretary taking dictation. At that job, I learned how to type between 80 and 100 words a minute. I certainly needed this typing skill to write this book, as the messages came through extremely fast. I felt like I was Heaven’s secretary!
The messages went deep immediately, with explanations about duality and non-duality and how to live in this world without succumbing to its distractions and illusions. Most of these messages I was already familiar with, just not at the depth and practical application which came through.
But then the angels’ messages started hitting home on an area I hadn’t really considered: seeking happiness externally. Like you, I knew intellectually that happiness is always found within.
But the angels took this message to a whole new practical level of explaining that seeking happiness in any way – through food, drink, purchases, classes, approval, etc. – is always futile. They said that seeking happiness is like trying to get 2 plus 2 to equal 3. It can’t happen, and neither can finding a key to happiness outside of yourself.
They said that any spiritual path that teaches “seeking” is a distraction from being at peace. Here is the message that was an epiphany for me:
“For most humans, there’s heartbreak when you realise that lasting and fulfilling happiness cannot be found externally. You could achieve the most perfect achievement, purchase the most perfect product, eat the most perfect meal, and get accolades from the whole world, and these externals still wouldn’t lead to lasting happiness or fulfilment.
Perhaps these externals offer brief moments of satisfaction, but they cannot last—nor can they be pieced together to create one long moment of happiness. You can enjoy a savory meal, which is far different from relying upon that meal to give you meaning and fulfillment. To do so will lead to addictively eating in order to attain the sense of satisfaction. The same holds true with other forms of addiction.
This is your moment of giving up the external search and realizing that this world holds nothing that will fulfill you in the same way that you remember Heaven’s fulfillment. There’s a grieving process that occurs when you realize that you’ve wasted time chasing after futile goals that will never pay off. Sadness, and even a sense that your whole world is crashing down around you, can make you feel vulnerable and unsure of yourself.
This process and these feelings are part of the undoing effect when you release the ego’s attachments to synthetic replacements for Heaven. The gaudy temple that was built to glorify the ego comes crashing down.
Facing this “dark night of the soul” and the accompanying heartbreak leads to the blessing of opening your heart to the true Source of lasting happiness and fulfillment. This is what surrender means: giving up the external search for happiness, and returning to relaxing in the comfortable folds of God’s love.
This is when you return to Heaven and your consciousness, while still having your earthly body and life. You dedicate the rest of your mortal life to selflessness, realizing that this is the only path that replicates the oneness and happiness of Heaven.
You still continue with the dream of living in a separated physical body; however, instead of expending your earthly resources upon futile pursuits, you devote yourself to meaningful and selfless service. By helping other people, animals, the environment, and so forth, you help yourself to feel fulfilled and truly happy. Spend that same amount of time, money, and energy that you would have used for a temporary pleasure for the lasting fulfilment of knowing that you contributed. And in giving, so do you always receive that which matters.”
Receiving this message helped me realise that my ego had been unconsciously whispering to me that there was some magical key to happiness that I would someday find. Even though I intellectually knew that all happiness comes from within, the ego had convinced me that there was some elusive exception to this rule, and that someday I would find it. And the ego had covered this belief, so that I wasn’t even consciously aware of it until the angels’ words came through. After having this epiphany, I became more involved with volunteer and charitable work, including animal rescue work. As the angels explain in the book, selflessness is the path to discovering the happiness that you already have within.
The rest of the book discusses uncovering the happiness that you and I already have inside of us. Instead of seeking happiness, we reveal what’s already there. It’s such a relaxing realisation, to let go of the time-consuming search for some magical external key that does not exist. My prayer is that those who read this book will also have epiphany realisations about the topics which the angels discuss, including overcoming worry, how to deal with judgments, relationship healing, selfishness versus selflessness, and so forth.
MEET THE AUTHOR
DOREEN VIRTUE holds degrees in Counseling Psychology from Chapman University in California. Doreen runs an animal rescue ranch. A lifelong sensitive intuitive, Doreen has been talking to God, Jesus, and the angels since she was a child. She is the author of over 70 books and card decks, and she has appeared on television and radio worldwide.
Find out more at www.angeltherapy.com
