As we celebrate Independence Day on July 4th, I thought it might be fun to invite you to join me in taking up our spiritual independence and make this July 4th, 2009 an especially memorable independence day for all of us.

One of my favorite books is The Four Agreements by Miguel Ruiz.  In it, Ruiz talks about making four new agreements with ourselves.  He writes if that if we will but follow these four simple agreements with ourselves, that we can experience a whole new level of freedom and abundance.  The Four Agreements are:

Be Impeccable with your word.
Speak with integrity.  Say only what you mean.  Avoid using your word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others.  Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.

Don’t take anything personally.
Nothing others do is because of you.  What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream.  When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of needless suffering.

Don’t make assumptions.
Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want.  Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness, and drama.  With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.

Always do your best.
Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick.  Under any circumstance, simply do your best and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse, and regret.

If you find these as helpful and inspirational as I do, I invite you to make them a part of your daily life.  Refer to them as you begin your day.  Hold them in your heart as a touchstone for times when outer appearances may be challenging.  Find ways that you can make your practice of them unique.  Rejoice in your God-given mind that is free to choose the good!

Your Spiritual Independence Day was last modified: December 11th, 2015 by Rev. Nancy Oristaglio