Often, we are afraid to receive. When you’re searching, listening and feeling, receive and own the gifts bestowed upon you.
Ned Lips – Author

Listen and watch, including my interview with Beth Thater Maune, gifted Healer, Shaman, and Universal Channel, on my YouTube channel, Resetting Your Life, http://bit.ly/NedLipsAuthorYouTubeChannel or listen wherever you get your podcasts by searching Ned Lips. I’m the only one.
As your connection with the universe around you deepens and you become increasingly aware of who you truly are, what your passions are, the universe of spirits or God, however you perceive that concept, will provide you with gifts. They may be offers of positions that will guide you toward your joy, opportunities that you’ve been seeking, people who know more than you at this point and want to help, money from out of nowhere, or simply a smile, gratitude, a hug or forgiveness.
Pay attention to the gifts, receive them but do not covet them. They may be temporary and you may need to release them. Feel them in your heart of hearts. Understand, but don’t question, the motivation of the giver. Determine for yourself whether the gift, which you very well may have earned, is right for you but do not be afraid to receive it if it is.
Change is frightening, but this entire process is about change. It is about Resetting Your Life along your perfect path. Often you need others, allies, and gifts to find your way and to persevere. The journey is seldom easy and will likely take a long time.
During Sarah’s battle with the living Storm, a battle we all must fight in one manner or another, Sarah’s spiritual teacher, Asha, provides her with ethereal powers to defeat the Storm and to thrive in the new world. It is only when she agrees to receive them and knows that she can and deserves to win, that the Storm, her Storm, is defeated. This is from Reset, pages 15 – 16.
The Horse, the Bear, the Elephant and the Tiger spirits exploded with the force of the grand red Storm itself, into and from every aspect of her being, every pore of her physical body, into every inch of the world of nature. A vast oneness united her to the entire universe of the wilds she loved. From the dark, violent abyss, her soul opened into the warmth of nature, the smells of wildflowers, the souls of all living things. She could feel them at once as part of her as it all settled gently within her spirit—stronger, powerful, freed.
She could see it all, vast, expansive, beautiful, hers. Some of the red energy from the Storm was now a part of her. She could feel it, angry and beaten, as its spirit moved on.
It was over. They had won. They were one.
Reset page 15 – 16
Everyone thinks they know what is right for you. This has been a theme from the beginning of these podcasts. Understand that not all gifts are designed to guide you along the path that is right for you. Some are given to keep you within the path that the giver feels is right for you, or which the giver needs you to follow, to further their objectives.

Sarah is sidetracked by those she loves in First Steps, keeping her trapped in a brutal marriage. From First Steps page 17.
When should she have realized that Robert was becoming a monster?
He asked her to forgo the rallies for equality and justice that had been so important to her. These, and other issues, were simply not discussed in the household. Herb and, thus, Robert were adamant opponents, considering the protestors to be unpatriotic. When she pointed out that the Constitution protected their rights of free speech, Herb made fun of her “legalese jibber jabber.” Robert laughed, perhaps with Herb, but it seemed more at her, as she looked back.
Mother and Mallory came to her defense, but they were not really supporters of her causes so much as they supported her. Whenever Mother would stand up for Sarah, Herb would get up with that big belly laugh and come after Mother. She’d squeal and run around the table. Mother would mock complain, “Herb!” as he reached her and gave her a big mustachioed smooch. Everyone would laugh, and Sarah would be forced to smile.
Then Herb would give Sarah a big hug, gazing down at her with his sparkling brown eyes. They separated with a big pat on her back, which would knock her forward. She came to believe that Herb loved her as much as he did Robert. Robert never came to her aid. He’d take a drink and watch, as though he knew she’d be guided into behaving properly. He was right, of course. It didn’t take long for her to suppress those thoughts in favor of peace and harmony in the family. Mother had even told her that she appreciated it.
First Steps page 17
Love, or perceived love, can be a gift or a weapon. Look at the gifts others have bestowed upon you and know, in your heart, whether they are opening a door for you or slamming one closed. Stand up for yourself. Stand up for your right to be happy and joyful. Refuse the gift that closes you in to someone else’s path for you, and gratefully accept the gift that guides you farther along your path.
Understand that even the latter gift may not last long. After walking through that door, the route your heart of hearts knows is right for you may take you away from the gift and the giver. Be gracious and thankful, but move in the way that you know is right for you.
As you grow along your path, searching deeper into your passions and loves and dreams, you will find that the decisions become easier, though not always easy.