Anne's Note, Changes, discusses some changes in her life. The Main article, Egonomics, describes the problems caused by the ego and ways to tame it. The Healthy Living article, Using a Mantra, explains the benefits of creating your own three-word mantras. The Anne Talk is Light Meditation. It's a guided meditation into the light of who we are. The Featured Product this month is Anne's newest book, Words Make a Difference.

The EZ Mantra: "Everything can be EZ or at least EZier." – Anne Sermons Gillis

Living EZosophy, August 30, 2016
Published Weekly on Tuesday Mornings

Phone: 281-419-1775
Email: anne@annegillis.com

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  A Note From Anne

Changes

Dear ,

I may be paranoid. I think AT&T is trying to force me into buying their new high-speed internet service by knocking me offline repeatedly about once an hour. There’s a saying, “Just because you are paranoid, that doesn’t mean they aren’t out to get you.” When I do a computer search on underwear and every ad for the next week pops up displaying underwear, I know the advertisers and the online mafia have their hands and terabytes into everything. Enough grousing.

I mentioned last week that my sister was close to leaving this world. She crossed over last week. I had an odd feeling when I heard the news. There was no hurrying to go to a funeral. There is no funeral – there will be a celebration next year. That’s okay. It’s just that making a dash out of town after a loved one dies often places the mind on trip planning rather than on grief. I cried on and off, but felt relieved that she was out of pain. No more cancer, though that was short-lived, but better still, she escaped the mental prison that held her brilliant mind hostage for years. I’m not quite sure when we started losing her, but when she asked me to take over my mother’s finances in 2003, I knew things were changing.

Anne's sister, Jo Roberts

My sister, Jo Roberts, was a maverick. She lived with what one might call a burden, or perhaps an advantage, of being a bona fide genius! She was ten years older than I. She was a mentor to my emotions and intellect and a guardian for my heart. I lived with her accomplishments, and there were many, and compared my life to hers. I always came up short. But not in her eyes. She was always proud of me and pushed me beyond the familiar and into the end zones of life. I have missed her many years, and so this finality is not a shock. I’m saying goodbye to her bit by bit as I sift through the memories that held us close for so many years. I love you sister and wish you Godspeed in your next adventure.

Anne

  Main Article

Egonomics

There is a part of our minds that functions to limit us. Some call it ego; others refer to it as egoic mind. This idea does not refer to Freud’s concept of ego; in his model the ego is the mediator between our instincts and our social self. The term ego has undergone multiple transformations since it first appeared in Freud's psychoanalytic theory. Eric Berne brought the ego into cultural narrative with his theory on ego states. Berne divided the emotional states, or ego states, into the parent, the adult, and the child. Berne and others further subdivided these ego states until there are too many aspects of mind to keep up with without being trampled by the intellect! All respect to Berne. I think he was a genius.

People refer to someone who has an exaggerated self-image by saying she's all ego or that that's his ego talking. We say, “He has a big ego.” We use the term egotistical as a pejorative. People have even turned the word ego into an acronym. Easing God Out or Easing Good Out. Some people define the ego as a useful part of the mind; they prefer to befriend it. Others think the ego should be annihilated, and some realize that the ego must be carefully watched and tamed, lest it become the gatekeeper of our mental prisons. A Course in Miracles invites us to “Watch your mind for the temptations of the ego, and do not be deceived by it. It offers you nothing. When you have given up this voluntary dis-spiriting, you will see how your mind can focus and rise above fatigue and heal. Yet you are not sufficiently vigilant against the demands of the ego to disengage yourself. This need not be.”

While many people dispute the circuitous route ACIM takes on the way to peace, the course nails the destructive element of the mind and refers to it as ego. Just as one uses the word love in different ways, people use the term ego to refer to different things. Regardless of whether we use the word ego to refer to someone’s grandiosity or use it to describe a part of our mind that takes part in the organization of the personality, it is helpful to have a word that describes a part of our mind that limits us. Egonomics provides that clarity and defines the ego as a part of the mind that limits us at every turn and thwarts our best efforts at healing unhealthy and ineffective beliefs, emotions, and behaviors.

Using the concept of the ego as a limiting device, here are some characteristics and thoughts about the ego and its function.

• The ego’s foundation is fear. This is emotional and psychological fear. This is not the same fear one has when a bear runs toward them.
• The ego bases its operation on protecting one from this fear.
• The ego’s fears are illusory.
• The ego fears its own destruction. The ego takes on a life of its own and uses the personality to fulfill its needs and pass on its legacy. This legacy is spirit poor and rich in control and divisiveness.
• The ego feeds the mind endless stories of travail in order to cement its position in the psyche.
• The ego’s motto is, “Seek, but do not find.”
• The ego feeds on special relationships to get what it thinks it needs to stay alive and be in charge. This is “loving to get.” Naturally, this faux love has a self-serving agenda.
• When we are afraid and upset and there's no bear around or other life-threatening circumstances, we are operating under the influence of the ego. When the ego rules, we live in a drunken state of fear.
• It takes an ego to point out an ego.
• The ego gets all its material from the past and then diverts the mind away from the present.

The above information seems daunting, but it can be liberating to expose erroneous mental constructs. It is revelatory when we understand that part of the mind is out to get us. We can refer to the ego’s plan as the ultimate plot for self-sabotage. Knowing that all its thoughts and feelings are not helpful, we can choose another way.

Operating under the influence of the ego is like having a road map that only goes to New York City. We load up the family to go to Florida, take out the New York City road map, and head out. We never get where we want to go using the New York City map. We use the same map on all trips, so whether we're headed to Hong Kong or Hilton Head, we always end up in the same place, New York City. That's what the ego wants. It wants us to end up in the same place with every mind trip we take. The ego wants us under its spell and it’s not a magic spell. It’s the spell from hell.

What is the way out? How can we sober up from the ego drunkenness? We sober up in one of two ways. We can go directly to wholeness or we can use stepping stones to wholeness. Either way leads us away from the ego and into the promised land.

The Direct Approach - Love. Love, accessed in the moment, dissolves the ego’s effect. Love is always present, and the direct approach is the fastest, easiest, and most accessible option.

The Stepping Stone Approach - Forgiveness. When blinded by ego’s effect, forgiveness walks us away from the ego. It heads us into our essence, which is love. We forgive others for not acting the way we want them to act because we want peace. Forgiveness means letting go of the upset that surrounds the situation, and, while it is difficult to let go of certain situations, it is never impossible. Why? Because we always have help.

“If you knew who walked beside you on the way that you have chosen, fear would be impossible.” (ACIM) When we believe life is hopeless, we are ego drunk. When we believe nothing works for us, we are under the influence. When we think situations or people hold the key to our happiness, we are under the influence. When we think the world is evil, we are under ego’s influence. When we stop and turn toward ever-present love, we stop the ego in its tracks. All doubt, all pain, and all hopelessness disappear. And that’s the good news. “Delay does not matter in eternity, but it is tragic in time.” (ACIM) The way out of pain is here. Jerry Jampolsky wisely proclaims, “Love is letting go of fear.” This path stands waiting, loaded with love, for a decision to abandon the map to New York City and to choose the path of love, and when we do, life is always EZier and EZier.

Anne

  Quotes

"One thing people have in common is a sense of aloneness. They feel separated from a tribe they never knew. They even joke that they are adopted because their family of origin members think so differently. They look for their place, a place where others share similar beliefs and attitudes. They don’t feel the support of others or from life. There is a cure for that. For $295.00 I can fix that. AND That’s how advertising works. It exploits our weaknesses and encourages us to buy things that cannot deliver what they promise."
-- Anne Sermons Gillis

"Fear is a filter that casts a shadow on everything."
-- Anne Sermons Gillis

"Martin Luther King, Jr. (MLK) asked us to not sit back and watch others take abuse. He called us to get off the sidelines and speak up for the downtrodden and poor. Fortunately, there are brave ones who move past their comfort zones to protect our environment, our animals, and our children, and to seek a way of life that works for everyone. The question we must ask ourselves is, ‘Am I one of those?’ and if the answer is ‘No,’ then the next question should be, “Why not?"
-- Anne Sermons Gillis

  Featured Product This Month

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• Heal the most basic wounds of our human condition.
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You may order it from the website or call me at 713.922.0242 to order directly from me. The price is $16.95 plus $3.99 shipping.

Click here to order Words Make a Difference.

You can also download a Kindle copy of Anne's new book, Words Make a Difference, on Amazon.

  What is EZosophy?

Click the graphic above to learn about EZosophy.

NOTE: If you are viewing this on a cell phone, be sure to scroll to the right to see the other column.

  Healthy Living

Using a Mantra

“You are what you eat” is a funny saying. It’s not meant to be taken literally. It is used to point out that what we eat profoundly influences our bodies and health. While what we eat is important, what we think influences our physical well-being even more.

The mind is resolute in its jabbering. It picks a topic, sucks the life out of it, and then goes on to something that has little relevance and is a rerun of previously thought material.

When we awaken and start witnessing our thoughts, we get embarrassed, horrified, and critical. How negative we are! When we relax and let go of judgements, it is entertaining to watch the madhouse of the mind.

One way out of the mental drivel is to choose the words we want to think. The use of a mantra is popular in the east, and, with the globalization of everything, including religion and spirituality, mantra is now widely used in the west. A mantra is a set of words one intentionally repeats to calm the mind. Mantras are often given to students by a master. They are spoken in Sanskrit. Sanskrit is said to be the original language and its power lies in the sounds. The sounds help bring about what you are chanting. If one chants “Om shanti,” which means peace, this chant helps bring about peace.

When I first heard about mantra, I didn’t have a spiritual teacher or guru, so I made up a mantra. It may not be as effective as a Sanskrit mantra, but I was sure it was better than the useless words I normally ran through my mind.

Mantra helps with mental firmness, so why not construct your own mantras. I suggest you use just three words for your mantra and repeat it as often as you can throughout the day. Use it to replace the mind’s parade of thoughts.

Here are examples of some mantras you can use or use as guidelines to create your own mantras.

• Health mantra – Health, vitality, strength
• Prosperity mantra – Abundant, lucky, fortunate
• Happiness mantra – Happiness, laughter, miraculous
• Self esteem mantra –  Wise, powerful, intelligent

General Mantras

• Innocent, safe, peaceful
• Health, wealth, happiness
• Love, joy, peace
• Love, compassion, harmony

Give your mind a nice surprise by providing refreshing, nourishing material. Healthy living starts in the mind and trickles down to the body. Yes, the body does have a trickle down economy and it’s our minds that direct the show. When minds are in line with health, we are naturally attracted to healthier lifestyles. We want to exercise and eat healthier foods, not from a sense of having to be good or be better; healthier living is a natural outflow from healthy thinking.

Try a mantra for a day and if you experience the benefits, you will want to continue. Don’t be concerned about not being able to get your work done; there’s plenty of time to do mantra and have other thoughts. Only about one percent of our thoughts are relevant to anything, so using a mantra actually increases our productivity, nurtures our creativity, and gives us more peace of mind.

Anne

  Anne Talks

Today's Anne Talk is Light Meditation. It's a guided meditation into the light of who we are. Time: 9:24.

  Anne Art

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  Anne's Schedule

All times here are Central Time.

Monday, September 19, 2016
5:00 PM. Call in to 888-919-2355.
Live online interview by Keith Anthony Blanchard of Center of Light Radio.

Sunday, September 25, 2016
After 11:00 AM service
Book signing for Anne's new book
Words Make a Difference
Creative Life Spiritual Center
5326 Spring Stuebner Rd. Ste. 200
Spring, Texas 77389
Phone: 281-350-5157

Sunday, October 23, 2016
11 AM Service: "Living in Ease"
Carmel Temple
1208 Pennsylvania St.
South Houston, TX 77587
Phone: 713-944-0014

  Call or Email Anne Now to Schedule
  Your Next Meeting with her.

You may reach Anne by phone at 281-419-1775 or click the button below to contact Anne by email. Anne is also available to officiate at weddings and funerals.