I WENT TO the hospital in 1987 with chest pain. While in the recovery room after an angioplasty, my heart stopped beating and I stopped breathing. It was then that I had an out-of-body experience. The vision was so powerful that at first I could not comprehend it. Then, gradually, over the next few days and weeks, I gained more and more understanding.

One of the messages within it was an instruction to write a book. I did so (A Simple Guide To Spiritual Healing, 2001). Time passed, and I came into the presence of a great psychic who knew that I write articles. She transmitted the following message to me: "You must write from the highest source." Later, I was in a room with a man who was dying. Just before he died, his face relaxed; he looked peaceful and content. He turned his head to me, looked me in the eyes and smiled. I heard these words: "Write a letter from God."

Here follows a letter from God. I make no special claims, and am not from any elite group, nor am I sanctified in any way. I am an ordinary, everyday person compelled to share a message.

The Universe
Behold the infinite universe! Look at it! Look at the stars on a clear night. Peer through your most powerful telescopes. All that you perceive is but a small part of the whole.

Look through your most powerful microscopes and see the wonders of the tiniest particles of matter. All that you perceive, from the tiniest particle of matter to the largest star in the universe - all this was created out of the power of love. The power of love created the universe; and the power of love holds it together. This is the one law.

The dynamic and complex nature of solar systems, the formation and workings of galaxies, all the intricate nature of the universe - all this flows from the one law.

The Earth
The Old Testament and ancient lore tells of the Garden of Eden. Scientists are trying to find out if, in fact, it existed, and if so, where it was. I will tell you now. The Garden of Eden is the earth.

I gave it to you. It had everything that was needed for life. There was enough of everything to sustain life for billions of years. For thousands of years you have waged war, you have set off many nuclear bombs, have cut down great forests, and reduced verdant land to dust. You have eradicated many species of plants, insects and animals. Most of the Garden of Eden has been destroyed.

Earth is your only home. It is the mother of all earthly life. Why, therefore, do you continue to destroy it?

Everything That Is
I have created all that is. I am the mother and father of the universe. I do not play favorites. My love is like the rain: it goes out to all.

I love you without conditions. Once you truly believe this, you can breathe new vigor, new hope into your life. Let go of all ideas that attempt to tell you that you carry the sins of your father. You were not born in sin. When you came to this earth, you came from Me. You came free from sin. There is no such thing as original sin.

It is not necessary for you to be a Christian to receive My love. This applies to all religions... You do not have to be a Moslem, Hindu, Jew, Buddhist or any other faith in order to receive My love. Each of these religions has wonderful aspects; each should be honored. If you are a Christian, then seek Me through Christianity. But do not tell your neighbors that your religion is the only true religion. Would you tell your neighbors that your mother and father are the only good parents, and therefore that all other people are condemned?

Each religion has its tenets; each one can lead to Me. You can also come to Me directly. I am as close to you as your breath! Do not give your power away to others. You do not need your minister, your rabbi, or your guru to lead you to Me. The Pope is no closer to Me than you are. In the world of spirit you are equal to him and to other religious leaders.

Do not give your power away to others. You gave your power to Jim Bakker. He is a good man, but when he was a televangelist, he was not listening to Me. You gave your power to Jimmy Swaggart. Now some of you are giving your power to Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell.

I tell you that there is a power greater than these. It is within you. I have given each of you a power to reach out and overcome this world. When I created you, I put a little spark of Myself in you. This spark will always be there for you. It is to light your way. It has deep knowledge, and can remind you of who you really are.

I bless and honor your churches, synagogues, temples and ashrams; for some of you increase in spirit when you go to them. Yet My love goes out to all, whether they worship in a church or choose instead to meditate under a tree by themselves.

It is not necessary that you prostrate yourself before Me. This is of no interest to me. I would rather that you be of good cheer, that you show kindness, forgiveness and patience with others. Live in harmlessness. Leave the world a better place for your having lived in it.

The road to Me is not complicated. You do not need to study ancient rituals, nor do you have to learn long, complex words. These rituals and the recitation of long words from the past do not help you to approach Me. The Bible is a beautiful, inspired book, and should be honored. Yet it was copied by man; and man made mistakes. It was changed by religious leaders to fit the theology of the time.

You may call me Yahweh, Jehovah, Allah, Wakantanka, Brahma, or God. All these names, and many more, are all right. There is no magic in any of them; I accept them all. The old religions refer to Me as a male entity. Some people worship a female God. I am neither male nor female. I am God!

I speak to you in many ways. To hear Me, you have to open your heart. You have to allow Me to come in. If you will go to a quiet place, still the mind and open your heart, you can hear My voice.

I have created a world where humans have free choice. Therefore, I will not come to you unless you allow it to happen.

Commandments
One of the characteristics of your religions is the development of rules. Jews and Christians follow the Ten Commandments; Buddhists are taught the Eightfold Path. Other religions have other rules. Some religions are very strict about their rules, some are more relaxed, and see the rules as guidelines rather than requirements.

For instance, Christians are taught that the Ten Commandments come from God. Therefore they are inviolate and are written in stone. It is taught that you can not change or argue with these rules. They are absolute and unchanging.

The Eightfold Path of the Buddhists, on the other hand, are rules which are derived from logical thought. They were created by Buddha. The attitude about these rules is more relaxed. The idea is to try to follow the rules, to do the best you can. It is a lifestyle.

The Eightfold Path and the Ten Commandments have both proved helpful to the world and have withstood the test of time. Yet there is nothing magic about these rules. When you look at these rules, you may see life as a constant struggle: the task of abiding by the rules. The Old Testament contains a series of difficulties, wars and tribulations.

I suggest that you change your view. My desire is that you be happy. Therefore, ask yourself, "How can I be happy?" Here are some ways:

Whether you follow the Eightfold Path, the Ten Commandments or other precepts, all the rules of moral behavior merge into one rule: the rule of love.

If you enter into a state of love, your understanding, your thought and your speech will reflect this. If you are in a state of love you will not take the name of God in vain, nor will you dishonor your parents. Most assuredly, you will not kill. You will not commit adultery, steal or lie. All these things run against the concept of love. In a state of love you not only honor your parents, you honor all people. In that state you have compassion for others, you are kind. You walk in gentleness and harmlessness.

So all rules become merged in one rule.

* * *

The Priest
The letter from God is interrupted here by a story. Many years ago Bob Baker told me of this experience:

He was a priest. His parish had been beset by a number of problems. Several people in the parish had died, including two teenagers. Also, a controversy had arisen within the church. He tried to mediate the dispute and was not making any headway. He tried to minister to those in need, but felt that he was not doing any good. He also had serious questions about some of the tenets of the church.

Week after week he worked hard to be of service to people, yet he felt he was not able do any real good. He felt that he was a failure. His spirit began to flag, and he sank into depression. He even began to doubt in the existence of a loving God.

One morning, when the church building was empty, he decided he would go into the sanctuary and pray. He went in, sat down in a pew on the front row, and bowed his head. He was in misery.

"Dear Lord," he prayed, "I am sorely troubled. I reach out to you now, for I can not bear this burden alone. I desire a sign from you; give me a sign; come and touch me. Come down to me now. I surrender. Jesus! I ask that you come down now and touch your humble servant. I beg you for a sign of your love. Yes! I ask that you come to me right now and kiss me on my face, right here on the right side of my face!" With that, he lifted his hand and pointed to his right cheek.

"Amen," he said; and he waited.

Time went by. Minute after minute passed. Nothing happened. He began to feel uncomfortable, sitting on the pew. Yet he was determined. He waited. The church was dark, but some light came in through the windows. He looked down at the floor. He thought of all the people that had walked on this floor, how the floor was solid and level, how it had served its purpose well, holding up for many, many years. He thought of the people in the church, the people who had walked on this floor, and who looked to him for salvation. Then, he felt a great outpouring of love for the people of his church - then love for all the people of the earth.

A ray of light came in from a window and illuminated a patch of the floor about 6 feet in front of him. A cricket jumped into this patch of light. He saw the cricket, and the love he felt went out to the cricket. "Hello, little fella," he thought.

He looked at the cricket for awhile. Then the cricket jumped toward him, waited a few seconds, and then hopped toward him again, landing just in front of his feet. He continued to watch the cricket. Then the cricket jumped up on his knee. "How remarkable!" he thought - "That the cricket would come right up to me and land on my knee!"

The cricket and the priest looked at each other. Thereupon, the cricket jumped up, brushed against Bob's right cheek, and landed on his shoulder.

Bob was thunderstruck! God had answered his prayer. The spirit of God had moved in the cricket! And kissed his right cheek! Hallelujah!

Bob remained seated for quite a while. He first gave thanks to God, and then he made a vow that from that moment he would serve others as never before, and that he would never, so long as he lived, ever doubt the existence of a loving God.

From that moment his life changed. He began to be a driving force for service to humanity. He began to give talks all over the world. His talks were helpful to people, particularly to those that felt downtrodden or depressed. He became a great motivational speaker. He was a living example of love in motion.

God speaks to all of us. Even in the midst of his depression, Bob was open and receptive. He paid attention.

* * *

Return To God
The darkness of this world brings up fear. While you are in the darkness it is hard to see the light. You suffer agony when you see death, destruction, violence and selfishness. You are trapped by the negativity of this world. How do you get out of this trap?

Behold the Giant Redwood Tree! What makes sap go up the tree, up to the uppermost branches? Scientists may try to explain it to you; they will do a good job. Some of you will be convinced by their explanation. Yet they cannot build a tube that can do what the Redwood Tree can do.

The world was created with love. In love, all things are possible. Yes, it is so. Love is the basic building block of the universe. It allows the creation of the Garden of Eden. It inspires mankind to be bountiful. It holds the universe together.

This is difficult for you to see. You read the newspapers and see the killings, rapes and robberies. You see man's inhumanity to man: the corruption in governments, big businesses and, alas, the Catholic Church. Then you are overcome, and you feel that love cannot contend with the real world.

The denseness of this world appears to overcome love. Yet, in truth, the denseness is an illusion. It was love which created the world; and it is with you now. Without it, nothing in your world would exist. There are many ways in which you can find this love. Here are some of them:

When you enter into a state of love, you can help Me create the love that holds the universe together. Let go of your fear. Overcome your hate. Do not judge. Do not desire that which is not yours. Do not hurt people. Speak the truth. Live in peace. Let thankfulness be the way of your life.

Realize that you are not separate from me; that I am with you and will never leave you. I am with you as you read these words. Listen!

© Stanley Peele, 2006

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Stanley Peele has been a judge for 38 years; and is presently an emergency judge. He is a mediator, counselor, newspaper columnist, writer, and visits people in the hospital and nursing homes. He has been married to his wife, Carolyn, for 48 years.

Stanley has also done spiritual counseling and healing work for 40 years, and wrote the book, "A Simple Guide To Spiritual Healing." In addition, Stanley has worked as a crisis counselor, helped found the Family Service Agency of Chapel, Janus House, Oasis, plus a Parenting After Divorce program, and a Big Brother-Big Sister program in Chatham County, NC. In 1977, Stanley helped start a Teen Court program, which failed. He also helped start, and still participates as a judge in the present Teen Court program - a program where the attorneys, defendant, jury, bailiff and clerk are all teens.

Stanley’s mission is to help people discover their soul's purpose. Other than that, he says, he really hasn't done much. But we at PLW beg to differ!