An Invitation to Share: The Companion Guide to a Path to Peace

By George Sifri MD and David Sifri

When we take the time to reflect on our life experiences in a setting of stillness, we find ourselves opening our hearts and minds to the unseen. We begin to better understand our spiritual journey, to feel more connected with love, and to sense a oneness with the universe. We come to see meaning and beauty in our experiences and to hold sacred our individual truths.

As we continue along this path, we develop an increased awareness of who we are and why we are here. We move into a limitless world of peace, joy, and love.

An Invitation to Share is meant to help readers with such an undertaking by leading them back to their own truths through questions, exercises, and accompanying true stories. By identifying, embracing, and living our truths, we come to follow our own path to peace ... we come to lead richer, more fulfilled lives.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Archway Publishing
• Release date: Nov 7, 2016
• ISBN: 9781480834095

George Sifri MD

George Sifri earned medical and law degrees from The Ohio State University and completed an internal medicine residency at Vanderbilt University. His professional interests and seminar presentations focus on healing through spirituality. David Sifri earned his bachelor’s degree at the University of Miami. He is pursuing postgraduate studies in psychology.

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Copyright © 2016 George Sifri, M.D.

David Sifri

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide. Used by permission. NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® and NIV® are registered trademarks of Biblica, Inc. Use of either trademark for the offering of goods or services requires the prior written consent of Biblica US, Inc.

Scripture taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-4808-3407-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4808-3408-8 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4808-3409-5 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016913122

Archway Publishing rev. date: 03/19/2024

Her appreciation arose from the depths of her being

Her prayers were offered with tenderness and innocence

Her faith was rich with mystical wonder

Her truth tempered by a loving heart

Thanks for everything, Mom

I love you

It is through the sharing of our most personal spiritual experiences that we will come to fully appreciate the beauty of the divine within and around us. For each of us has a sacred and meaningful piece of the puzzle.

CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

Introduction

It All Begins with Awareness

CHAPTER 1     Can We Be Spiritual and Not Know It?

CHAPTER 2     What Is Spirituality?

CHAPTER 3     Spirituality Is a Feeling

CHAPTER 4     We Need to Find Our Own Spiritual Path

CHAPTER 5     We Foster Spirituality through Appreciation

CHAPTER 6     Spirituality Amid the Joy of Laughter

My Path to Peace

CHAPTER 7     On the Wings of Love

CHAPTER 8     The Power of Spirit

CHAPTER 9     The Story of My Journey

Quieting the Noise

CHAPTER 10   Spiritual Love Beckons; We Need Only Listen

CHAPTER 11   Trust Your Intuition

CHAPTER 12   Ask Yourself, Is This Thought Love-Based or Fear-Based?

CHAPTER 13   Fear Is an Opportunity

CHAPTER 14   We Quiet Our Fears through Trust

CHAPTER 15   Does Spiritual Love Judge?

Peace through Love

CHAPTER 16   We Must Learn to Love Ourselves

CHAPTER 17   Guilt Remembers

CHAPTER 18   True Love Begins with Self-Love

CHAPTER 19   The Unloving Actions of Others Are Not Personal

CHAPTER 20   When We Look for the Best in Others, We Find It

CHAPTER 21   Reaching Out

CHAPTER 22   Love Is Present in the Now

Communing with God

CHAPTER 23   We Are One with Nature

CHAPTER 24   We Connect through Feelings

CHAPTER 25   When We Feel Unease, It Is Time to Reconnect

CHAPTER 26   The Intimate Connection of Prayer

Find and Express Your Truths

CHAPTER 27   Life Gives Us the Opportunity to Express Who We Are

CHAPTER 28   Live Your Passion

CHAPTER 29   Tell the Universe Your Truths

CHAPTER 30   Give What You Would Like to Receive

CHAPTER 31   Empower Yourself and Others

Staying Connected through Adversity

CHAPTER 32   Pain Is Not Suffering

CHAPTER 33   Grief Is a Feeling of Separation from Love

CHAPTER 34   Forgiveness Is Love

CHAPTER 35   Be True to Yourself

CHAPTER 36   Courage Enables Us to Soar

CHAPTER 37   Our Spiritual Journey Is Just Beginning

Surrendering to God

CHAPTER 38   Somewhere … A Miracle Is Unfolding

CHAPTER 39   Beyond the Ephemeral

CHAPTER 40   Embarking on a Mystical Journey

CHAPTER 41   Reaching for the Summit By David Sifri

CHAPTER 42   A Ray of Light Pierces the Darkness

CHAPTER 43   And the Truth Shall Set You Free By David Sifri

About the Authors

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

How does one ask a good question?

This was largely the topic of my daughter’s college honor’s thesis.

Although by Suzanne’s senior year I had been working on An Invitation to Share for approximately ten years, her exploration of this area was pivotal in helping me to gain a greater understanding of how to ask a meaningful question. As we shared our thoughts and experiences with one another in a setting of wonder and excitement, I came to better appreciate the potential within this marvelous tool.

So I offer my thanks to this passionate girl who inspires me with her energy, courage, and insatiable curiosity.

Love ~ Truth ~ Faith

INTRODUCTION

An Invitation to Share is written with the intention of leading readers back to their own truths. It is composed of questions (reflections) and exercises (suggestions) along with some accompanying true stories. Please feel free to focus on those aspects of the guide that you find most meaningful.

Some of the questions and exercises in the various chapters are similar. This is by design.

I believe our world is more interesting when we share our thoughts and experiences with one another. This guide is intended to lend itself to such interaction if the reader feels so inclined.

Please note that the words God, the divine, the eternal, and spirit are used interchangeably throughout the text.

With love and peace,

George Sifri

We walk along a path

Guided by our intuition

Wondering what lies ahead

As we rest for a moment

We ponder the meaning of life

Only to find that

The truth lies within

PART I

It All Begins with Awareness

CHAPTER 1

Can We Be Spiritual

and Not Know It?

We often meet people who exude love but do not consider themselves to be spiritual. This provides us with the opportunity to reflect on how we individually view and define spirituality.

REFLECTIONS

1. Do you consider yourself to be a spiritual individual? How would you define such an individual?

2. Can you describe some of the most spiritual people you have ever met? What separates these people from other individuals?

3. How do your values/beliefs affect the way in which you live your life?

4. If we are all a part of the divine, are we all spiritual? Consider this question as you read the following story.

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Surrounded by steam, I slowly lowered myself into the bathtub. I allowed myself to drift as I sank into the enveloping warmth and wetness.

The bathtub was bordered on three sides by twelve inches of off-white tile rich with grayish-golden streaks. A one-inch ribbon of rectangular tiles accented by elevated braids ran midway through the tiles, adding a softness to the coldness of the surface.

On one corner of the ledge that encircled the bathtub sat a brightly burning, ten-inch white candle. The bathroom blinds were closed, the candle providing most of the light in the room.

As I watched the candle closely, I noticed the flame constantly changing shape and intensity. It would flicker from left to right, brighten and dim, and take on multiple shapes and sizes, all within a span of seconds. When I looked at the tiles around the candle, I could see a slightly clouded reflection of the flame, wavering like the original but lacking its definition—the detail in the elevated tiles further obscuring the flame’s reflection.

I also noticed that the light radiating onto the tiled wall never fell below the level of the flame itself; the thick wax of the candle eliminated the transmission of any of the fire’s nuance to the surrounding tile. Yet as I gazed directly at the candle, I could see the light from its flame penetrating its wax, causing the top third of it to appear brighter—allowing me to see farther into its depth.

With time, I came to see the burning candle as the light within each of us and the surrounding tiles to be the universe. As we look toward the universe, we see the reflection of the light on the tiles. Although an image of the candle can be glimpsed from this perspective, the true splendor of the flame cannot. The light is less intense outside the candle. There are more shadows.

On the other hand, if