Every religion, Eastern and Western, has the same archetype of benevolent guides in Heaven helping us, whether they are called bodhisattvas, deities, devas, or angels, as they are called by the monotheistic religions of the West. Angels can unite people across religious and spiritual divides. Angels are something we all agree on. Nobody fights about angels.

The angels and the archangels will help you with world peace to the degree it affects you. But they have to honor everyone's free will - including the will of people who like to use weapons or to give orders to soldiers. They cannot usurp such people's free will. Say to the angels, "I affirm or ask for world peace to the degree it affects me." Think of the world as an array of intersecting circles. The part of the world with the intersecting circle that has you in it is what the angels can and will help with.

No matter where I am in the world or what's on my schedule, I begin each day by reading an inspirational book and then meditating and praying. I adopted this healthy habit many years ago to ensure that my first thoughts of the day were positive.

Most people who are on a spiritual path realize their thoughts are crucial to their experiences. If you have negative thoughts, you draw and attract negative experiences to yourself. But knowing that and ruling your behavior by it can seem like two different things.

The angels are thoughts of love sent from God. Since God is continuously expressing loving thoughts, there are an infinite number of angels. They are very real messengers, sent by God, to help us feel peace and joy.

Signs usually come in threes. The same book is recommended to you several times within the space of a day, for example. You overhear someone mention the same company three times in a week. Or, you get the same feeling again and again. Notice your feelings. Again, true divine guidance feels safe, even if it does feel intimidating. False guidance feels edgy, shaky - like you're sneaking under the wire. It doesn't feel right.

I have learned from my own pain is that God's plan for all of us is peace. Being a role model to peace, and spreading peace through being peaceful ourselves. It's about choosing peace instead of pain - this is the bottom line.