Tamara Tamara

ADDENDUM to my Book on Generational Healing

                                                                                                                                                                                                   



The following is shared with permission. It is an incredible story from a man somewhat new to Generational Healing. I point out in my second book, An LDS Approach to Energy Healing, that the principles for this kind of help are found in the Bible, so I will comment at the very end to help clear up questions that readers may have. God is so good! All praise and glory go to Him that this man found REAL help - the kind that gets to the root of addictive behavior.  (Public domain image above)


In January of 2019 I received this remarkable email that has to do with overcoming Abuse, Same Sex Attraction and Pornography:

Hi Tamara,
You don’t know me, but we briefly met at your booth at the conference in _____.  I bought your book An LDS Approach to Energy Healing. I’ve had some limited experience with energy healing/work (from reading and using Dr. Brad Nelson’s material) and the subject of generational healing was especially intriguing to me - that’s why I bought your book.

I finally felt I had learned enough, and had enough courage and faith, to try using the information you shared.  I had the most wonderful, interesting, enlightening, empowering, personal experience I’ve ever had with this kind of thing.  I wanted to share it with you - mostly because I don’t have anyone else around me who would understand or appreciate it like you.


First, a little background (and I’ll try to keep this appropriate):  I am 60 years old. When I was in 5th grade my family started having Indian Placement Program kids live with us (remember that program?)  The boy who lived with us at the time sexually abused me, for most of 5th and 6th grade. At the time I didn’t think that much of it - I actually enjoyed it, being too young to really understand the ramifications - but it planted a seed in me.  For the last 50 years I have struggled, off and on, with same sex attraction, masturbation, and pornography. I’ve led a good, LDS life, trying to be as clean and worthy as I can be. I’ve been married for 34 years and have 4 grown children. I served an honorable mission and I’m currently a temple worker.  But, these personal struggles have always been simmering on the back burner of my life. Occasionally, they’ve shown their ugly head and I have a period of intense struggle and anguish.

A couple of years ago I became aware of Dr. Brad Nelson’s work, ...podcasts, Scott Gillespie’s work, and other sources that helped me find other approaches and possibilities to my problem besides just praying about it.  I’ve had some blessings. I’ve cast out spirits from my home and from around me personally. I’ve prayed for angels to literally come and help me. But, those problems always resurface after a period of time.

Then, I learned about generational healing, and energy being passed down in our DNA, and how most often those unclean spirits that afflict us are our own ancestors/family.  That was eye-opening! And very intriguing. I felt strongly that I had been dealing with ancestral spirits/energy my whole life. Enter your book.

I finally decided to try DER / RET - I’m not sure which one, I know practically nothing about either.  But I was at a desperate place and really needed some results. I sat down in front of my closet door mirror, said a sincere, heartfelt prayer, pleading for help and guidance because I really didn’t know what I was doing.  I stated my intention that I just wanted to know who “they” were and why “they” were doing this to me. After a few minutes of looking in the reflection of my left eye, I began to see a face superimposed on my own! I don’t know who he was, but he was definitely there.  I looked in my right eye, and another face appeared. I went back and forth a few times, slowly, and several different faces appeared, all superimposed over my own face. I asked them why they were doing this - they answered that they had all been abused themselves.  I got the impression that they weren’t trying to be malicious with me, but they just couldn’t help themselves. 

I was overcome with love and compassion for these men, who have been struggling even longer than me.  I told them I loved them, and forgave them, then asked them to please repent. Then, I did the most unexpected thing (for me), I asked them to give me their sins and I would repent for them here in this plane, I would take care of the sins for them! Then I told each one of them to “please go to the Savior!”  As I was practically crying, I pleaded with them to “go to the Savior!” Slowly, I felt them depart, one by one, until my face was completely clear again. In all my prayers since that experience I have asked Heavenly Father to please forgive those men and help them find the Savior.

Since that incredible experience, the best way I can describe how I feel is “clear.”  I have felt “free” from their presence many times in the past, but there was always something lingering, like a toe in the door, or something like that - all I had to do was think the right thought, or initiate the right trigger, and the door would fling open and they would all rush in again.  But now, I feel “clear.” There is nothing there now. The triggers don’t affect me. The urges, impulses, desires are gone. Just gone. It’s still too early, I know, to assume that the battle is completely won and over. But at least I feel like I can fight now with more power and confidence. So, thank you!

(We corresponded twice in January 2019)

On Fri, Mar 8, 2019 at 6:40 PM Tamara Laing; tamaralaing247@gmail.com; wrote:

Dear _______, 

I hope things are going well for you and yours. I looked up and reread your story today and was surprised at the details you gave me about past struggles.  I had forgotten them all. I am headed to the Northstar Conference in SLC next week which is for firm in the faith people who struggle with or care about someone experiencing SSA.  I think the timing today of feeling I should look up your story is interesting.  

I am wondering if I can share any part of your story anonymously with others who struggle? Would you be open to consider letting me share any of what you wrote on my blog?  I actually have posted on my website two other men's stories about casting out for addictive behavior.  I just call the one man "K," I believe. 

Perhaps it is more comfortable to share just verbally? It could be helpful at the NorthStar conference to mention one on one to others about you adding in your Generational Clearing experience -  which I wanted to tell you is exemplified in Nehemiah 9:2 and elsewhere.  There is a whole book about [generational healing] by a [medical doctor] titled Healing the Family Tree by Dr. Kenneth Mc Call.  I use some of his fascinating stories when I teach my classes on Deep Emotion Release (that you did in the mirror).  

Another option for sharing more briefly is that I'm going to be speaking at the Firm Foundation Expo in Layton, UT in April of 2019.  I'd love to share your story, if you let me. Of course, I will understand if you feel differently about any of these ideas.  Please be prayerful and consider how it could help someone else new to this kind of work who thinks they don't know enough to try.  You have an amazing example of exercising faith!!

Your sister in Christ,
Tamara

Date: March 8, 2019 at 9:03:44 PM MST
To: Tamara Laing; tamaralaing247@gmail.com
Subject: Re: Your experience with DER

Hi Tamara,

Yes, I absolutely give you permission to use my story!  Anywhere you need to. (Anonymously, though, please.) If my story can help anybody, I would be honored to be a part of their healing process.  I firmly believe that more people (not just men) would find healing, freedom, strength, comfort, clarity, and peace if they were open to the fact that we are all definitely dealing with negative energies and spirits.  And there are tools and people to help!  Yes, yes, yes!

Update: Since my DER experience, which was so profound, my life has been Wow!  I've had experiences with the Lord that I've only dreamed of.  He has tested me in new ways, and I've had the spiritual strength, clarity, and confidence to meet those challenges. I no longer feel like I'm carrying around that secret ball-and-chain, but I can commune with Him like I never have before.  Yes, some of the old patterns and habits still show up occasionally (but much less frequently!), and I'm able to immediately face them, deal with them, and eliminate them with confidence and speed, without letting them drag me down with discouragement and shame. I feel like I can finally be the man I'm supposed to be - the man God wants me to become.  (And you can share that, too!) Thank you, 
Tamara!

POST SCRIPT March 12, 2019 by Tamara Laing

The above emails necessitate some comments about responsibility. First, a few words of introduction. Deep Emotion Release appears to employ powerful tools in removing inherited dysfunctional family patterns. However, each tool’s power is in Christ!  He is our Savior and Redeemer from so much more than just sin.  He is willing to take the mortal bitterness and agony we go through as we seek Him.


When we desire to help others clear such "baggage," the aftereffects of sin, it is wise to give these burdens (that have actual energy patterns) directly to the Savior Jesus Christ.. He is the only one meant to carry them! I believe the man in the above story was actually offering to take owner-ship of the family pattern, the effects of sin, rather than offering to carry their sins. An apostle taught:

"The afflictions of devils - the confusion of tongues - deadly poisons - and sicknesses are all curses which have been introduced into the world by the wickedness of man. The blessings of the gospel are bestowed to counteract these curses. Therefore, as long as these curses exist, the promised signs are needed to counteract their evil consequences. (Masterful Discourses of Orson Pratt, 609) 

Blessings of the gospel are the processes I teach in my second book to counteract "sins of the fathers" or the dysfunctional family patterns passed down in the DNA. Promptings from the spirit have directed me to specifically use the gospel blessings of: forgiveness, gratitude and praise in all things.

OWNERSHIP OF FAMILY PATTERNS

When we desire to help others clear inherited "baggage," it is wise to give these burdens (which have actual energy patterns) directly to the Savior Jesus Christ. He is the only one meant to carry them! The man in the above story was actually offering to take ownership of the family pattern, which is the effects of sin.

"When the governor, the person who was placed to reign over this fair creation, had transgressed, all his dominions had to feel the effects of it, the same as a father or a mother who transgresses certain laws, frequently transmits the effects thereof to the latest generations. How often do we see certain diseases becoming hereditary, being handed down from father to son for generations. Why? Because in the first instance there was a transgression, and the children partook of the effects of it." (Masterful Discourses of Orson Pratt, 356)

There are numerous Christian witnesses to the reality of Generational Healing. These witnesses go far beyond the scripture references I shared in my first book, Healing Arts - A Gift from God.  Besides scriptures on curses of the fathers to the 3rd and 4th generation, there are examples in scripture of proxy "saviors" (note the lower case letter 's'). Additionally, there are modern day Minister authors of books about healing generations by proxy. Foremost, in my opinion, is what we read from prophets and apostles about the effects of sin passed down to us from our generations that can be turned into blessings. 


In my first book, I tell the story of how God led me to Rapid Eye Technology to help my daughter who had severe anxiety and depression. We learned that part of what she was experiencing was due to generational issues. It was as if she was carrying around "secondary" PTSD from others. (What patterns might we be carrying in our DNA from our ancestors?) Hidden trauma needs to be released so that we and our children can be free.

"[The book] It Didn’t Start With You shows how the traumas of our parents, grandparents, and even great grandparents can live in our unexplained depression, anxiety, fears, phobias, obsessive thoughts and physical symptoms—what scientists are now calling “secondary PTSD.” (markwolynn.com)

I found Mark Wolynn's book, It Didn't Start with You, after I wrote my own book on this subject. His book has some incredible stories on healing generational issues! Wolynn and 30 other generational healing authors I quote from in my second book add firm witnesses to the truth of the effectiveness of generational healing experiences. 

Forgiveness and gratitude are powerful tools from Jesus Christ to clear generational issues in our families. A generational healing model that focuses on ownership and responsibility is Ho'oponopono - an ancient Hawaiian reconciliation and forgiveness process. Dr. Stanley Hew Len, a clinical psychologist in Hawaii had outstanding success with it. His teacher and associate, Morrnah Nalamaku Simeona, is the person who actually made the shortened version of this ancient spiritual tradition. Morrnah taught that when using the process, we are taking responsibility for what the Western world would term to be the other person's issue(s).  However, to say, "It's your responsibility doesn’t mean it’s your fault, it means that you are responsible for healing yourself in order to heal whatever or whoever it is that appears to you as a problem." (Rosario Montenegro, "How Dr. Hew Len Healed a Ward of Mentally Ill Criminals with Ho'oponopono," pdf)  A second source online on this method said: 

Dr. Stanley Hew Len spent several years as a consulting clinical psychologist at the Hawaii State Hospital. He has had profound results by using this process with the most dangerous, violently "mentally ill" criminals in Hawaii. Yet he never talks to them, in fact, he never even sees them. He writes down their name and then just works on himself. He cleanses his judgments, beliefs, attitudes and asks Divinity what he can do for the person. As those attachments and memories are cleansed, the patient improves. "The Divinity," comments Stan, "says it is time to bring all the children home."  (Deborah King, An Interview with Morrnah Simeona and Dr. Stan Hew Len, https://learnhooponopono.com/about) 

A friend of mine used an object lesson on this in her class which mentioned various methods to do emotional clearing including Ho'oponopono. She explained:

“Ho’oponopono is not about taking the blame.  It’s the responsibility we’re talking about. Responsibility is different.  If I drop this marker on the floor, who can pick it up?  Anybody.  Who is blessed if we do so?  All of us.  We are not "being Jesus."                                                                                                                           
There is an example of Ho’oponopono in the book of Samuel chapter 25.  It's the story told in the book The Peace Giver  by James L. Ferrell about Abigail.  We help people with Ho’oponopono by helping them get energetically in a space of forgiveness.” (Kisi Watkins, Christ Centered Energy Healing Tools Class) Note: Her class is taught a few times a year at no charge and I quote Dr. Hew Len and share this and other forgiveness process in my books.) 

When I first heard the concept of clearing for my family tree, it seemed really unusual. I've experienced that finding examples in the scriptures about new ideas I may question gives me confidence that I'm on the right track, after all. Here are two scriptures I found recently on confessing for one's ancestors which I found after I wrote my book on generational healing. First, is the verse I referenced in the above email. “And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers." (Nehemiah 9:2) And the Lord said, “If they will confess their sins and the sins of their fathers… then I will remember my covenant.”(Lev. 26:40, 42)

A modern summary I've found for this whole idea lies in these great words of explanation:
“The apparent injustice of ‘the sins of the fathers’ being punished until the third and fourth generation is reconciled when it is understood that God is, in fact, encouraging the living to help their sinful fathers, through prayer, by asking him for forgiveness on their behalf.” (Dr. Kenneth McAll,  Healing the Family Tree, 101)  

ISAIAH ON OWNERSHIP

A world renowned scholar on the book of Isaiah, Avraham Gileadi, has unlocked messages in that book which teach us about layers of meaning behind lower case "s" proxy "saviors" spoken of in the last days. He shows how Hezekiah, Abraham and Helaman were examples of this and explains:
Whether a curse that afflicts you is a consequence of your own or another’s transgressions, the only way to get rid of it is to take ownership of it and see it through to the end.  Proxy saviors, who, on behalf of others, seek God’s intervention or deliverance from mortal danger, follow God’s pattern of making amends for the misdeeds of those for whom they intercede."  (Avraham Gileadi, Isaiah Decoded, 344)                                                                                 
“Nothing is so calculated as to generate charity as taking others’ burdens upon oneself as if they were one’s own. . . . Proxy saviors such as King Hezekiah, for example, bear the transgressions of their peoples when they intercede with God on their behalf (Isaiah 37:14-36; 38:1-6). But they do so in order to obtain their people’s temporal salvation. Or in the case of God’s servant and others who minister in the priesthood after the holy order of God, they intercede for others to qualify them in part for temporal salvation and in part for spiritual salvation. However, they themselves don’t save their people—Jehovah does. They merely create the conditions for such salvation to occur.” Avraham Gileadi, Endtime Prophecy, 219, 250-251 

I very highly recommend studying Isaiah - the only book of scripture the Savior commanded us to study. I have found help in understanding Generational Healing by what Isaiah says. It has been immensely helpful to begin to understand Isaiah by reading the words of - or listening to - Avraham Gileadi on the website Isaiahexplained.com.  On that website, he gives excellent audio "Analytical Commentary" at the bottom of each chapter of Isaiah translated true to the original Hebrew.

In his book, Isaiah Decoded, Avraham helps a person uncover the various levels of Jacob's Ladder that are hidden in Isaiah.  Most interesting, to move up from the Zion/Jerusalem level to the level of Sons and Servants on the proxy savior level a person must overcome not only their sins but also their iniquities. Iniquities are largely characterized as "the evil aftereffects of wrongdoing" by Gildeadi. (Isaiah Decoded, 174)  Hmm. Does that sound familiar? It echoes Orson Pratt's words near the beginning of my comments! We can overcome the dysfunctional patterns passed down to us! 

There are several models of how to do this in various energy modalities out there, but my two favorites are Rapid Eye Technology and Deep Emotion Release. I know that we can help ourselves and our families by cleaning up our own thoughts and perceptions using forgiveness and gratitude. 

"In a real sense we ascend the ladder to heaven as we experience spiritual renewal or healing. . . . Becoming like God, then doesn’t consist so much of adopting new ideas but of discarding old ones that impair our view, that render us prisoners of prejudice. Each time we pass through the refiner’s fire and complete a new cycle of descent before ascent we peel off another layer…Healing thus consists largely of unlayering, unbinding the “bands of  iniquity,” giving the inner child of God a new lease on life. . . .    (Avraham Gileadi, Isaiah Decoded, 129, 131-32)

While we often lump ‘sins and iniquities’ together as though they are the same thing, there exists a significant difference between the two. Persons on the Zion/Jerusalem level, for example, receive God’s forgiveness of their sins but must still overcome their iniquities. . . .Covenant keeping with God is the sole guarantee we have of overcoming curses. (Avraham Gileadi, Isaiah Decoded, 173, 356)

CHRISTIAN AUTHORS

I've studied at least three books by Christian psychiatrists on healing generations. I deeply appreciate Dr. Kenneth McCall's tiny book Healing the Family Tree that sold over 100,000 copies. He was an M.D. turned psychiatrist. Included in his book are stories on healing labels of same sex attraction (p 11, 22, 88) and  schizophrenia, epilepsy, heart conditions and more, all through prayer and the Eucharist (Sacrament). Those prayers included steps of what many call Generational Healing. The author wrote: “First, it is necessary to cut the known bond to the controlling person, alive or dead, then to forgive wholeheartedly, finally, to transfer control to Jesus Christ, making any essential environmental changes to support these steps.”

Bert Hellinger began as a Catholic priest who then became a renowned author on "family consciousness" and family members unconsciously repeating the suffering of the past. I have followed Deitrich Klinghardt,MD's wisdom. He realized a single person can do Bert Hellinger's Family Systems method one on one with a medical patient instead of organizing a group of people to stand in as proxies for each family member! I've been guided to take that philosophy even further and teach that generational healing is something we can do for each other OR as an elegant self-help process. Spiritual promptings taught me this can occur when we connect to who we really are.  I am a witness that even when we're alone we can clear generational issues in ourselves because of the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ!

There is evidence from many reliable Christian sources that generational healing is not only plausible - it is happening! 


SPIRITUALLY SEEING

Seeing faces of ancestors 'superimposed' on one's own is explained in my book An LDS Approach to Energy Healing. It is something I have experienced hundreds of times. I share stories about my children and clients also experiencing, seeing and being witnesses of this and that it can be learned. I have had first time clients who see spiritually similar to the man in the email, although I had to clear out layers of my own issues before I learned to see this way.

(Illustration #99 (of 492) in Healing Arts - A Gift from God by Tamara Laing)



Please don't be alarmed about seeing spiritually because quotes from the brethren are included throughout my book that add clarity to every step of the Deep Emotion Release (DER) process. Several of the Odes of Solomon in Lost Books of the Bible seem to describe the DER process, such as Ode 13: "Behold, the Lord is our mirror: Open the eyes and see them in him: and learn the manner of your face, And tell forth praise to His spirit and wipe the filth from your face: and love his holiness."

Interestingly, besides forgiveness, gratitude and praise are part of the recipe that the Holy Spirit led me to include in the Deep Emotion Release process. I have been tutored on this over the last 15 years as I've met with clients coming to me for Rapid Eye Technology. The author of the email story above set an intention and was following the spirit as suggested on page 110 of my book, more so than he was using the suggested step by step process I outline. Condensing an entire process that is chapters long to a sentence is a challenge. I'll share that DER always begins with prayer and then specific verbal intent during "Neurological Integration" (from Dr. Kenneth Fabian of New Mexico) followed by several options: fill in the blank forgiveness, gratitude and praise in all things processes; bonding; imagery; rebuking; the Silent DER process, etc. People have told me over and over again that Deep Emotion Release is a powerful process - however, its real power is in Christ!

SECOND WITNESS STORY

I have been sharing a similar story to the above man's experience in my Deep Emotion Release classes. It is a story from a man's journal about his wife, who after head trauma, struggled at length with chronic migraines. The husband, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was led by the spirit on what to do and was taught about casting out familial spirits and generational healing principles such as forgiveness.  As the husband prayed for and assisted his wife's great-great-great... grandmother (who had been through horrific abuse herself) to repent and look to the Savior, his wife began to improve. 

The husband in this "second witness" story aided his wife by having "healing conversations" with her deceased ancestor. Although she had passed on, we know that her spirit lives still - and therefore this communication is entirely possible by faith. 

“Paradoxical though it may appear, interceding with God on behalf of others—enabling both fathers and sons to be made perfect ”—applies not only to the living but also to the dead.  Because the priesthood according to the holy order of God is without beginning of days or end of years” (Heb. 7:3; Alma 13:7, 9; D&C 84:17) its ministry reaches backwards as well as forward in time.”  Avraham Gileadi, Endtime Prophecy, 214-215

Deitrich Klinghardt, MD teaches to do this very kind of work - having healing conversations with people alive or dead - in the generational healing processes he teaches connected to his world renowned "5 Levels of Healing" model. Many others teach the same.
“…Often unknown to us, our ancestors’ unresolved suffering disables us and binds us painfully to them. [Author Mark Wolynn] gives us the tools and skills — an approach that combines understanding, imaginative dialogues, and compassionate reconnection—to free and heal ourselves. —James S. Gordon, MD

Yet another witness is an M.D. in South Africa, MK Strydom.  She wrote Healing Begins with Sanctification of the Heart. It is a very thick book with information listed by dis-ease along with a wealth of scriptures and much on generational clearing. You can have her book today since she offers it freely as a PDF online! 

We can begin reversing the world’s curses by turning our own ‘ruin’ into ‘rebirth,’ ‘punishment’ into ‘deliverance,’ ‘suffering’ into ‘salvation,’ etc., by living God’s law. . . . Our destiny is to assist in the earth’s ongoing creation by raising its vibration to the level from which it came. To do so we must live a higher law.  (Avraham Gileadi, Isaiah Decoded, 346)

Finding gratitude and praise in all things is certainly a higher law. Discovering this challenge and using it amidst the crisis situations of my life has changed me! The experiences I have had over the years with clients and the feedback they share has given me a firm witness that the emotional work of moving up to gratitude in the thick of trials is from God.

Working in this field has helped me to understand the scriptures better. Before I studied our subject, Isaiah 52:1-2 was confusing to me. It reads: "Awake, awake; put on thy strength O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city; for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean. Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem, loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion."  
I found a key to interpreting this verse in the Old Testament Student Manual Kings-Malachi on page 196:
Joseph Smith answered questions about the meaning of Isaiah 52:1-2. He showed that the beautiful garments symbolized the priesthood power restored to the house of Israel in the last days and that the loosing of the bands from her neck signified the removal of the curses of God. 
Author Truman Madsen widely expands our view of what is possible when we purposely use the gospel principle of forgiveness with those above us on our family tree.
Perhaps you have problems that you can blame on your ancestors, if you forgive that and choose to stand close to the Lord in the process of purifying your life, that will affect your whole family in both directions. You are not alone. There is no way you can gain solitary and neutral ground...This, I believe, is one of the profound meanings of the tame and wild olive trees....  
If you take a tame branch and graft it in to a wild tree, in due time, if that branch is strong enough, it will heal and regenerate to the very roots. You will have then been an instrument in the sanctification even of your forebears...To be that kind of branch and achieve that kind of transformation backward and forward is perhaps the greatest achievement of this world. But to do it one must be great, one must be linked, bound to the Lord Jesus Christ. One must be mighty. One must be something of a savior. And that is exactly what the Prophet Joseph Smith said we are: 'saviors on Mount Zion.'  (Truman G. Madsen, The Temple: Where Heaven Meets Earth, 84)

That phrase comes from the Old Testament: "And saviors shall come up on Mount Zion..." (Obadiah 1:21) I've collected pages and pages of other scriptures and quotes by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on the principles used in generational clearing. These are in my second, (gold) book.

So, let's create better conditions for our family lines! I am certainly not the only person sharing about this kind of help. God has given us all kinds of clues in the scriptures if we will seek them out. And He has blessed us with the testimonies of many Christian authors and thousands of anecdotal experiences. Let us have courage and be a blessing to members of our family tree! We are called upon to forgive ourselves and our ancestors in order to remove the curses of God. We can even seek to find a silver lining for our trials and watch God's miracles unfold. 

The reader may enjoy another story about clearing generational patterns of Same Sex Attraction. That experience is in my book, An LDS Approach to Energy Healing. Read about that book HERE.

There are 2 other stories about overcoming SSA on my website under the post, "Brother Poulton's Fascinating Paper."  Read that post HERE  

Other help may be found on the North Star website: "A faith affirming resource for Latter-day Saints addressing sexual orientation and gender identity and who desire to live in harmony with the teachings of Jesus Christ and the doctrines and values of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."  https://northstarlds.org

A post about Brother Scott Gillespie overcoming a 4 decades long pornography addiction is HERE .


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Tamara Tamara

"Mighty Spirits" includes those with Mental Illness



Our trials have purpose in the eyes of God and can bring us closer in love with Him and others. This post is meant to help you understand who you really are. I hope it changes your perception of yourself and any labels you may have been given.

It was helpful for my daughter and I to change our perceptions about mental illness. In the beginning we asked the question 'why?'  or  'why me?'  Over time, we learned to change the questions we were asking of God to, "What would you have me learn?"

I learned that I may have even chosen to have a daughter labeled wtih a mental illness before I ever came to earth. The idea that we may have chosen our own life learning lessons -- or what we call trials -- is actually a cross cultural pattern found in NDE's around the world. Understanding this can bring hope when facing life's challenges. Remembering who we are, where we've come from and our purpose in coming to earth helps us through happy as well as tough times. Author Roy Mills saw that before being born on earth, “I selected certain life experiences and was taught about them.”

An apostle said something akin to that.  Elder Richard G. Scott said,
"We lived in the presence of God our Holy Father and His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ in a premortal existence. There we gained an understanding of the Father's plan of salvation and the promise of help when we would be born as mortals on earth.  ...So that the period of mortal testing and growth would yield its greatest benefits, you were taught and prepared for the circumstances you would personally encounter in mortality." (Ensign, Nov. 2005)  (See also illustration #293 in my book Healing Arts.)

Interestingly, Roy Mills was told not to share the memories from his NDE with anyone  -  for 45 years! He upheld that; then, in 1995 he was told by an angel that it was time to share She said the message of his pre-birth experience would change the lives of everyone who would listen.  It would help them understand who they really are.

My friend, Kathy Truman, introduced me to Roy Mill's book  The Soul's Experience and sent the excerpt below. It is from a chapter titled "The Mighty Spirits."  I share this with all of my clients lately and have highlighted portions of it. Enjoy, and get your own copy of this amazing book!

THE MIGHTY SPIRITS 
Excerpt from:  The Soul’s Remembrance by Roy Mills
An account of one man’s remembrance of the premortal realm:

We come to live in the physical world so that we can grow spiritually by gaining experience and exercising our free will.  Many of those experiences involve hardships which can only happen on earth, because Heaven is a place of perfect love, forgiveness, peace, and tranquility.  And these hardships are necessary to help us build faith and exercise the gifts God has given us.  Each of us is given a mission to accomplish while we are here, but we are also allowed to select some of the challenges that will bring us growth.
The angels help us choose our experiences, because what we choose must fit with our mission and with God’s overall plan for our lives... They explained that the more difficult a challenge was, the more knowledge and wisdom and love it could bring.  I knew that it would be pleasing to God if I dealt with many experiences in a positive way, so I began selecting all kinds of challenges.
While I was in Heaven, I never saw anyone who was depressed, maimed by an accident, or suffering from disease. Our spiritual bodies are always healthy and whole; they are perfect, and our spirits shine with a radiant beauty. Our physical bodies are only a temporary home for our spirits, and nothing can truly harm who we really are.  So when I selected my earthly experiences, I had no concern for what they would do to my physical body.  I knew that the more I suffered for others, or because of others, the more I would grow in spirit.  And with that knowledge, I had a completely different perspective on adversity and the experiences I chose for my own life.
The angels explained to me that an illness or accident triggers a chain of events that can lead to spiritual growth.  Some spirits choose a life of extreme sacrifice or nearly unbearable suffering.  The light of God shines brightly around these people, and in Heaven they are thought of as mighty spirits, because they come to earth to suffer so that others can grow in understanding and love.  
Some mighty spirits choose to be born with severe disabilities such as blindness, deafness, mental illness, Down’s Syndrome, and others.  Some choose to be paralyzed or disfigured or disabled later in life by an accident.  Others suffer a life-threatening illness such as cancer, or Alzheimer’s.  And many brave spirits choose to be born into alcoholic or drug addicted families, or into abusive homes where they suffer and sometimes even die from abuse.
Many of these people who suffer from such challenges live their lives thinking they are inferior or unworthy of love because they look different or don’t have the same abilities as most people, or because they were the victims of abuse.  But the truth is that they are mighty spirits who denied themselves and have come to earth to help others grow.  
When we see a child who is confined to a wheelchair because of a problem with his or her muscles or nerves or brain, we feel compassion for the child.  But the deeper truth is that this individual had compassion for us first, having chosen their condition to help us grow.  When we think we are helping the disabled, we are really helping ourselves by learning selflessness, charity, and how to demonstrate our love.
These courageous souls chose their conditions in order to inspire love, compassion, caring, patience, or forgiveness in others.  They also suffer to gain experience and knowledge that will help others who face similar challenges, or to help improve conditions by raising public awareness.  Like Jesus, the mightiest Spirit of all, these souls suffer in our place so that we can learn, experience, and grow without bearing the same cross they carry.
In Heaven, everyone who chooses to be born on earth is thought of as a courageous spirit.  It’s not easy to leave the peace and love of Heaven for the hardships and strife of earth. ..It often takes adversity to shake us up and help us grow, but God wanted His children to be happy in their earthly lives, too.  After choosing my life experiences, I was told to also have fun while I was here.  This life may be a ‘vale of tears,’ but it is also supposed to be a time of joy.  And how much joy we experience is up to us.
When we realize that we, ourselves, chose many of the difficulties in our lives, and that all things happen for a reason, we begin to let go of earthbound thinking.  We can give up the crutches we use to fill the emptiness in our live-alcohol, drugs, money, meaningless sex, prestige, and power.  When our eyes are opened, we begin to see things as they really are.
We begin to understand that life isn’t cruel or unfair, but is a spiritual journey that leads us to meaning and joy and real happiness.  Knowing the truth about ourselves sets us free to be the happy, loving people God wants us to be.


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