"For example: if the bad person were to say to himself, prior to performing an act of violence, /What am I doing? This violent life I am leading is getting me nowhere. I am not only hurting this person, but I am hurting myself -- my family -- my victim's family. What kind of a life is this? I will stop this life here and now. I will replace this black ball of hatred inside me with a brilliant ball of light -- of love. Of love for my fellow humans and for myself/." "If this was said and acted upon, the angels in Heaven would rejoice. For it would mean that another lost soul had returned to the Father. "It is not always necessary to go through a harsh experience to learn a lesson. Prayerful contemplation can bring about the desired change of heart much easier. But it seems mankind is determined to take the painful way to spiritual growth. "Some people think that bad experiences are punishment by God. Of course, this is not true. If it is punishment, it is ourselves punishing ourselves. The experiences are the result of our own wrong thoughts and actions, the result of our listening more to our own mortal mind, rather than our higher self. The resulting pain from our having to live in our self-created environment prods us on to improve. "Of course, self-improvement can be quite slow, and it may take quite a bit of this self-inflicted pain before the truth finally dawns on us. We are where we are because of the actions of the past. If we want to improve our lot in life, we'd better start improving ourselves. "Criminals, for example, think that they can take a short-cut to happiness by robbing and stealing. They think that, if they have a lot of money they'll be happy. But by taking that money dishonestly, the farther from true happiness they'll be. "True happiness is of a spiritual quality, and must come from within. If these people had instead chosen the spiritual path, the substance they were seeking would come to them naturally. "Our Scriptures talk about the importance of seeking first the Kingdom of God, and that the rest would be added to us. These ancient writers knew what they were talking about. But how many people of today pay any attention to this kind of advice? They think they know better. "People on the mortal realms can be so foolish. Riches galore are all around them, but they cannot see these spiritual riches because of the need they feel for material things. "They misinterpret a deep longing inside them, trying desperately to fulfill themselves. But their task is a hopeless one, for no material possession, of itself, can fill the void. "Most interesting," said the Scarecrow. "Certainly makes you think," the Tin Woodman said. "I didn't know I knew these things," said the girl. "Although I have the feeling that all I have said, I have known all along."