What has God/dess taught you?

[Raevyn]

What major teaching, lesson, or answer, has God/dess brought to you? How has your matron/patron turned around your life, changed your outlook, or helped you solve problems? How has the divine made a remarkable impact on your life?

In my case, as I realized this morning, Sekhmet supported my mourning, but encouraged me to rise again. She let me lean on her as I stood up again, and gave me strength as I solved some things. She gave me wisdom and helped me understand some things I needed to learn, and showed me strength, courage, and independence. She helped me to realize "inside, I stand alone".

When Sekhmet almost destroyed mankind, after being sent out by Ra to punish and after she let her wrath get out of hand, she was ashamed. She realized the tools of fury, wrath, and strength had become her masters.

Yet, Djehuti was sent out by Ra, because the Netjeru still loved Sekhmet and understood her, and what she had done was Ma'at. What had been destroyed was needed for Ma'at.

This taught me independence, strength, and emotions like wrath and depression, and the appropriate use of destruction, conflict, and war, can be essential tools in the quest for Ma'at. At the same time, it shows me that the tools must not become the master.

[Melysande]

What major teaching, lesson, or answer, has God/dess brought to you? How has your matron/patron turned around your life, changed your outlook, or helped you solve problems? How has the divine made a remarkable impact on your life?
There's been more than one thing. Four things, actually.

1. Be careful what I wish for, because I nearly always get it. (Some days, I have some serious "wish"craft going on, without even actively meaning it.)

2. Patience. Seshat has been trying to teach me this one all year long. Not exactly sure how well I'm doing with it, but so far, so good.

3. Just DO It. They helped give me the courage I needed to do what I wanted despite being scared out of my wits. (Not that my friends didn't give their share of loving guidance, either.... ;) )

4. Optimism produces the very success it desires and expects. I think I'm going to leave that one in my signature, because it's just so true. It was a quote from the World Spirit Tarot Deck guide book. I tend to view tarot card readings as messages from Them to me, so to get that little quote from them at just the right time was invaluable to me.

[Flar's Freyja]

Be careful what you wish for - because you'll not only get it, it will come with its own set of challenges. And it might just turn your whole life upside down. This year, I was blessed with the perfect relationship with full knowledge right from the beginning that I'm not going to get to keep it for very long. I had to decide whether I even wanted to accept this gift, and I'm grateful that I did. It has totally changed the way I view every single area of my life and has brought other individuals into my life that teach me so much just by their very existence.

She has taught me what abundance really means and that there are many things that no one, no matter what they do or threaten to do to me, can take those things away from me. Fear and anger used to be a large part of my life and those emotions rarely surface these days.

And She's taught me patience and acceptance. I know that my needs and desires will always be met and I know that they may not manifest in conventional ways - so when something that I'd hoped for doesn't happen, my disappointment is very short-lived and things always work out for the highest good.

[Danustouch]

Several things. And these are only lessons which apply to me, i'm not saying they are lessons that everyone needs to learn, or that they apply to everyone's path, but..that they applied to me, and my lessons.

1. That Heritage matters. - Who I am, is partly who my family is. All of the traditions I was raised with. The beliefs of those who came before me. The values of those who came before me. I needed to search for the value in them. The worth in them. The truth in them (not all..but some) and learn from them.

2. That Fertility, and Nurturing, isn't always about having a child, sometimes, the lesson in fertility and nurting, is learning to allow your spirit to be fertile, and nurturing IT. And that it's Okay to admit that you DO need to nurture yourself. And that you even need others to help you do that. That sometimes, you do need a sense of "being mothered" or taken care of..and that you don't always have to do it all on your own.

[Mnemosyne]

I have had such an emotional year. Through all the turbulence, I believe that the my goddess has stayed by me. She has taught me two thing. One, STRENGTH. I have the strength within to me to get through difficult situations. Two: patience. Happiness just doesn't come over night. I have to be patient in order to get though tough times. I believe that my goddess, Athena, represents strength and patience and leads me to find these two qualities.

[dhardas]

Tremendous joy in being a woman.

That the power and beauty of a woman is not in the aping or imitation of men.

That it is the natural rose that grows, blooms, and then fades that is prized over the artifical rose.

[Armitage]

That no one could see if all was dark, or all was light, but that we see through the intermingling and interplay of both, and existence is such. Order and chaos, dark and light, energy and matter...one can't exist without it's opposite in our perception because everything holds the tension between both.

[Tranquility]

Well, for myself i have received a few visions from the god/ess more than i expected, but in a good sense, and i haven't really full interpreted them, i have learned things, but not really lessons yet, in the process of analyzing them i have learned so much, but not really gotten to the core of what the god/ess is really trying to tell me.. i still haven't interpreted all 3 yet, only 1 have i gotten somewhere

[Evenstar]

The Goddess has taught me many things since she has called me to her service. One of the most important being that I am only one drop of water in the sea of creation. Every day should be lived as though it was your last. It is kind of hard to explain, but my whole outlook on life has changed. It's just a feeling I get at the little things in life. The everyday miracles. Like the sun rising every day and the changing of the seasons. And the moon never fails to take my breath away. I feel that She has granted me wisdom to see things that before were unclear to me. You probably know what I mean.

[Chibi-Fallon]

Even if a situation turns out badly, it doesn't mean you're not a much better person for it. And you shouldn't dwell on how crappy it is that it had to happen, but rather how great it is that you had the chance to become a better person even if means having to go through stupid stuff.
Crazily enough I was just reflecting on this subject in math class. Soooo boring in there...:zzz:

[Sylv]

when you're sad, sing. when you're happy, sing. when you're angry, sing. :D
being an idealist is extremely painful, but extremely rewarding.
that sometimes you just have to close the book and do something.
creating your own belief system doesn't mean you have to view the deities as archetypes.
love is wonderful, but sometimes you dislike people: and it's usually for a reason.
the world isn't all light and that's good: how else would we make shadow puppets? :rolleyes:
and that there is no substitute for being in nature.

[RedEgg]

Originally posted by Raevyn

What major teaching, lesson, or answer, has God/dess brought to you? How has your matron/patron turned around your life, changed your outlook, or helped you solve problems? How has the divine made a remarkable impact on your life?
I've learned quite a few things:

1. First and most importantly, that there are truths within most if not all religions, and that every religion has value and has something positive to teach. Also that there are universal truths that you can find in all religion.

2. That love really is the highest of the virtues, and that all virtues are rooted in love and all vices are rooted in lack of love.

3. That peace and co-existence are the only ways to true happiness in the world.

4. That I am more in control of my life and more in control of the goings-on in the world than I ever thought I was, and that instead of looking for a change in the world I should be the change in the world.

5. That the Gods have given us so much free will that they don't intervene nearly as much as we think they do and/or as much as we'd like them to, and that very often they do not take sides.

These have all been invaluable lessons that I'm still working to put into practice, even though I learned them quite some time ago.

[Loba]

So much, so much, so much, so much....
Impossible to enumerate all the things She/He thought me.

One thing that comes to my mind, and today i realised often, was to give worth to what i have. Enjoy the moment, the present. Even if i have no place to go, an empty pocket, or some cold, i still have the light of the sunshine to be happy with, or the clouds, or the wispers of the wind, or the simple sound of a bird.

Loba

[Mnemosyne]

I like this thread. :)

I've already answered, but it's time for an update. Lately, the Goddess has taught me that things happen for a reason. Don't get discouraged if things don't go your way; they will work out in the long run. Have faith- the Goddess will be by your side.