You Probably Don’t Want to Hear This (and Neither Do I) — But It Has to Be Done

If we're going to have a true forgiveness practice, we're going to have to forgive the shooters.  I know. This is a really hard one.  Yes, I’m talking about the shooters, the people who commit acts that seem unforgivable. And yes, we’re going to explore why forgiveness matters even here

Forgiveness Unblocks the Divine

Forgiveness serves many purposes, but one of the most profound is that it reconnects us to the divine. When we only forgive some of the transgressors, we block ourselves from fully experiencing unity with the great Oneness. True spiritual freedom comes when our forgiveness extends without limits—even to those whose actions shock or horrify us.  And remember, forgiving them does not mean condoning or approving their actions. Forgiveness is about freeing your own heart and opening to love, even in the face of what feels unforgivable.

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

Stepping Into Their Shoes

When we begin the difficult work of forgiving “shooters” or anyone who commits acts of extreme violence, a helpful step is empathy. Try to imagine what could cause someone to behave this way. Often, these individuals feel alienated, unloved, or harshly judged. Many were bullied as children, had few friends, or never felt they belonged. It’s not an excuse, but understanding their suffering can soften our hearts and open the door to forgiveness. 

Society’s Role

We can’t ignore the environment that shapes these behaviors. When society normalizes games where children simulate shooting others for hours, what mindset are we cultivating? We are literally training young minds to think in terms of guns and violence, numbing them to the horror and suffering that such actions cause. This societal conditioning contributes to a cycle of pain that extends far beyond the individual.

Why Forgive Anyway

It’s hard. It may feel repugnant. But forgiveness is about freeing ourselves first. Resentment, anger, and fear keep us trapped, while forgiveness releases us and opens the way to love, clarity, and peace. Extending forgiveness—even in these extreme cases—connects us to the higher truth of our shared humanity and to the divine Oneness that unites us all. 

The Simple Truth About Forgiveness

It really is simple to forgive these people. Just remember: they are all children of God, too. God created them, and He loves them. If He can love them, we can at least extend forgiveness.

God sees all of us beyond our crazy actions on this psycho planet. He knows our true goodness because He created us exactly in His own image. He is pure love, and in our ultimate truth, so are we.

All you have to do is hold that thought for these poor, misdirected souls. Feel it in your own heart for a moment or two. That’s what forgiveness truly is: a moment of seeing the higher truth.

Want to go deeper into forgiveness?

• Explore how forgiveness reconnects us to divine compassion in Unblocking our Connection to Love.

• For a little Halloween-inspired forgiveness see What's Behind the Costume. 

• My book, Forgiveness is the Key to Happiness, offers heartfelt guidance, spiritual tools, and real-life practices. Read it on Amazon →

• Let daily affirmations support you too — discover the Forgiveness Metta Card Deck for a gentle morning practice of peace and release. View the deck on Etsy 

• Browse more forgiveness tools, art, and daily reminders in our Etsy Shop 

• Want to receive free weekly forgiveness coaching emails? Sign up and get insights, tools, and inspiration to deepen your practice of forgiveness → Sign up here

Let these tools light your path — because forgiveness sets you free.
— Sue Pipal

Why the World Feels Like a Psycho Planet — and How Forgiveness Frees

What’s Going On Here?

This place is nuts. 

Psycho Planet

Photo by 愚木混株 Yumu on Unsplash

I used to think I was relatively happy, but as I began to study A Course in Miracles (ACIM), it dawned on me just how much true tragedy and difficulty we all accept as normal every single day. We accept rejection. We accept disappointments. We accept frustration, refusals, and the constant “No” that seems to be part of life at every turn. We accept lack—or only some instead of all. 

Life’s Challenges Have Always Been Crazy 

We rarely even blink at the craziest things. We might shake our heads a little, but mostly, we accept that this is just “the way of things” on earth. Why are things set up so that only a few win while so many lose? Only one becomes the head cheerleader, the captain of the football team or the class valedictorian. 

You didn’t get the job. You didn’t get the partner you wanted. Your body isn’t healthy, and you suffer real pain. You don’t feel utterly and completely loved and accepted anywhere. Your favorite pets pass away. Your children face rejection and disappointment. 

In the past, all of these usual trials—illness, loss, frustration—already made life feel like living on a psycho planet. But now, everything has amped up. Extreme political strife, global instability, and constant scary news make it all feel so much crazier than even in the not-so-recent past. 

Seeing the Higher Perspective 

What exactly are we accepting? Are we crazy? Well…yes, ACIM would say that we are. We are accepting a crazy, ego-based interpretation of life. In fact, as egos, we actually created much of this insanity ourselves. 

Choosing Love and Forgiveness 

It’s all in the perspective we choose. Flip the switch from fear to love and focus on what’s working: the good people who help others, the truths we share in common, the beauty that surrounds us in nature, and the brilliance of humans who have created amazing music, mathematics, literature, and art. 

And beyond that, forgive everything that’s crazy. And I mean everything. These days, it’s pretty much an all-day job—but it has to be done. Every time the crazy starts to peep out at you in the world, forgive it. Let it go. And then, when it shows again—even if it’s five minutes later—take a moment to forgive again. Then return your focus to the love, the good, and the beautiful. 

Choosing this perspective is the first step toward stepping off the psycho planet and into a life rooted in love, gratitude, and forgiveness. 

Want to go deeper into forgiveness? 

Explore how forgiveness reconnects us to divine compassion in Unblocking our Connection to Love . My book, Forgiveness is the Key to Happiness , offers heartfelt guidance, spiritual tools, and real-life practices. Read it on Amazon → 

Let daily affirmations support you too — discover the Forgiveness Metta Card Deck for a gentle morning practice of peace and release. View the deck on Etsy → 

Browse more forgiveness tools, art, and daily reminders in our Etsy Shop → 

Want to receive free weekly forgiveness coaching emails? Sign up and get insights, tools, and inspiration to deepen your practice of forgiveness → Sign up here 

Let these tools light your path — because forgiveness sets you free. — Sue Pipal

Why Some People Are Here to Test Our Forgiveness

The Challenge of Life’s Hard Moments

On a global level, it can sometimes feel as if many of us are moving backward rather than forward. War, crime, poverty, political strife, greed, and selfishness…so much of the world seems stuck in fear.

Seeing Life Through a Higher Lens

According to Colin Tipping’s teachings, some of us may actually be here to provide others with forgiveness opportunities. In fact, we may have agreed to certain “trespasses” even before we were born.

Think about that for a moment. What could be more for the higher good than sacrificing a little—or even a lot—of our personal comfort or growth in order to allow someone else the chance to learn, heal, or awaken?

Photo from Unsplash

Small and Large Scale Forgiveness

Sometimes, this happens on a small scale—with friends, family, or colleagues. But occasionally, it may appear on a grand scale: a particularly difficult or even evil person may challenge an entire community—or even the world.

Does this perspective make it easier to forgive people who make our lives difficult? Perhaps. Seeing others as unwitting teachers rather than enemies can change our hearts and free us from resentment. Forgiveness isn’t about approving of bad behavior; it’s about recognizing the higher truth that even the hardest interactions can serve a purpose in our growth.

Want to go deeper into forgiveness?

• Explore how forgiveness reconnects us to divine compassion in Unblocking our Connection to Love.

• For more on the topic of world leaders, How to Forgive Cruel World Leaders.

• My book, Forgiveness is the Key to Happiness, offers heartfelt guidance, spiritual tools, and real-life practices. Read it on Amazon →

• Let daily affirmations support you too — discover the Forgiveness Metta Card Deck for a gentle morning practice of peace and release. View the deck on Etsy →

• Browse more forgiveness tools, art, and daily reminders in our Etsy Shop →

• Want to receive free weekly forgiveness coaching emails? Sign up and get insights, tools, and inspiration to deepen your practice of forgiveness → Sign up here

Let these tools light your path — because forgiveness sets you free.
— Sue Pipal

The Truth of Who You Are: Immense, Magnificent, Eternal

Photo by Aleksandr Ledogorov on Unsplash.com

Remembering Your Divine Magnificence and Eternal Nature

In a world filled with distractions, it’s easy to forget the truth of who we are. We are not limited by time, space, or circumstance. At our core, we are immense, magnificent, and eternal. These words are a reminder of the divine essence within you—a presence that transcends the physical and connects us to all that is. When you remember your true nature, you unlock the power to live in peace, love, and grace, knowing that you are always connected to the Source of all creation.

Let this truth guide you today: You are not just a person, you are a reflection of the divine, existing everywhere, always, and in perfect harmony with the universe. Embrace this truth and watch how it transforms your life.

Want to go deeper into forgiveness?

• Explore how forgiveness reconnects us to divine compassion in Unblocking our Connection to Love. Read it here →
• My book, Forgiveness is the Key to Happiness, offers heartfelt guidance, spiritual tools, and real-life practices. Read it on Amazon →
• Let daily affirmations support you too — discover the Forgiveness Metta Card Deck for a gentle morning practice of peace and release. View the deck on Etsy →

Let these tools light your path — because forgiveness sets you free.

— Sue Pipal

Are you really, truly happy?

A Surprising Discovery in a Book Club

When I was in my early 30s, I joined a book club. One meeting, I remarked that it seemed like all the books we had been reading were filled with angst. “Where are the happy people and the happy stories?” I wondered.

I was surprised when my book club friends all looked at me blankly. “Sue, the world is not about happiness,” they said. I was shocked. This was a group of successful career women, many with corporate husbands, lovely homes, and small children cared for by nannies. On the surface, we looked happy—but not so.

The Hidden Struggles Beneath the Surface

As we went around the room, each woman confessed she didn’t feel happy much of the time. They spent most of their lives navigating monstrous “to-do” lists, keeping their households running, excelling at work, and caring for everyone around them.

Beneath their exterior success, they were disappointed in unmet expectations, struggled with feeling unconnected, and often felt distant from family and friends. Every one of them battled fear, rejection, and inadequacy.

Every one of them was secretly bitterly disappointed that their husbands did not love them in the way that they had once hoped they would be cherished and loved, that their bosses and co-workers did not see them as shining saviors for the companies they worked for, that they struggled with feeling unconnected and distant from their closest friends, and were heart-broken to find themselves physically separated from parents and families who often lived significant distances away.

Their lives were a constant state of worry, inadequacy and disappointment.  Each one battled daily with fears of rejection and abandonment.  Each one lived a surface life of success and happiness but underneath resided a deep-seated terror that the gig was about to be up.  Each lived with a terrible and secret fear that their real truth would somehow rise to the surface, and the whole structure they had worked tirelessly to create would shatter to the ground.

The truth is that when the lights go out in the middle of the night and we’re alone with our thoughts, every one of us feels achingly lonely, remorseful and terrified.

What We Really Feel Is Guilt

Much of what we call unhappiness is actually guilt. We feel guilty because we are living separately from God.  Denying that guilt drives us to chase accomplishments, possessions, and the symbols of success.  It’s the pride of self our egos cling to that separates us from knowing our true relationship with God.  And clinging to these trappings, activities, and illusions only moves us further from the peace and joy that are naturally ours. 

It’s by our own choice that we live in unhappiness. 

This is because the “world” is actually structured so that we can be happy.  There is only one thing that we need to do to attain it.  And this one thing is forgiveness.  When we forgive and see everyone else in the world as a valued loveable soul created by God, we begin to learn to chose love over fear.  Over time, continuously choosing love releases the blockages we have built that prevent us from having a relationship with our creator. Life gets easier and happiness grows. 

Forgiveness: The Key to True Happiness

In my book, Forgiveness is the Key to Happiness, I provide many easy-to-use processes that help you forgive anybody and any event in your life—past or present. Develop a daily habit of forgiveness, and watch your life transform from fear to love.

Want to go deeper into forgiveness?

• Explore how forgiveness reconnects us to divine compassion in Unblocking our Connection to Love. Read it here →

• My book, Forgiveness is the Key to Happiness, offers heartfelt guidance, spiritual tools, and real-life practices. Read it on Amazon → | Barnes & Noble → 

• Let daily affirmations support you too — discover the Forgiveness Metta Card Deck for a gentle morning practice of peace and release.

• Receive free weekly forgiveness coaching emails and insights to deepen your practice → Sign up here

Let these tools light your path — because forgiveness sets you free.
— Sue Pipal

Forgiveness is the Key to Happiness is available at:

Amazon.com

Barnesandnoble.com

Balboapress.com

Abundance Affirmations--Pair them With Forgiveness

The Power of Affirmations

Affirmations are a simple but powerful way to invite abundance into your life. They help reprogram the mind, shift perspective, and open your awareness to opportunities, blessings, and joy that might otherwise go unnoticed. But affirmations work even better when paired with forgiveness.

Why Forgiveness Enhances Abundance

Unforgiveness blocks energy. Holding onto resentment, guilt, or anger can create invisible barriers to abundance—whether that’s peace, love, joy, or even material prosperity. When we forgive, we clear the space in our hearts and minds, making room for the positive energies of life to flow freely.

Daily Affirmations to Pair with Forgiveness

Here are some affirmations to repeat daily, ideally after a moment of self-forgiveness or forgiving someone else:

• I release all that no longer serves me and open to the abundance of love and joy.

• I forgive myself and others, and I am free to receive all good things.

• Every day I attract opportunities, love, and blessings in perfect timing.

• I am worthy of abundance in all areas of my life.

• My heart is open, my mind is clear, and I trust the flow of life.

Bringing It Into Your Daily Life

Pairing affirmations with forgiveness is more than a practice—it’s a lifestyle. Each time you notice resentment, guilt, or judgment creeping in, pause, forgive, and then repeat your affirmations. Over time, this habit transforms not just your mindset, but the energy you project into the world, attracting more of the goodness and abundance you seek.

And Before Bed

Another great affirmation which I use frequently to help me wind down for bed and sleep deeply is a simple meditation.  Breathe in and say "I accept".  Then breathe out and say "the love of God".*  Repeat this over and over.  Again, this is another great tool, but if you want lasting happiness, forgive first and then meditate.  Make forgiveness a permanent part of your bedtime ritual and watch your life change.

*From The Way of Mastery

Sweet Dreams!

Want to go deeper into forgiveness and abundance?

• Explore how forgiveness reconnects us to divine compassion in Unblocking our Connection to Love.

• My book, Forgiveness is the Key to Happiness, offers heartfelt guidance, spiritual tools, and real-life practices. Read it on Amazon →

• Let daily affirmations support you too — discover the Forgiveness Metta Card Deck for a gentle morning practice of peace and release. View the deck on Etsy →

• Browse more forgiveness tools, art, and daily reminders in our Etsy Shop →

• Want to receive free weekly forgiveness coaching emails? Sign up and get insights, tools, and inspiration to deepen your practice of forgiveness → Sign up here

Forgiveness is the Key to Happiness is available at:

amazon.com

barnesandnoble.com

balboapress.com