It has been said that “life here is just an illusion”, and I often wonder exactly what is mean by that. As I thought about it, I was reminded of that old television program “Fantasy Island.” A place where visitors to a unique resort island were able to live and act out their fantasies - played out as desired.” I asked myself, are we just actors in a television program? Is life here on earth just an illusion?
It does seem that we are just actors in a play, Hollywood movie or on some fantasy island, called earth, where we interact with other people to learn the lessons of this life.
I remember one of the programs where a group of people were acting out their fantasy as Soldiers. Soldiers that were given the job by their commanders to rescuing several captives in an enemy camp. During the raid on the enemy camp, one of the soldiers was killed. After the captives were freed and the fantasy was completed, the people in the fantasy went to Mr Roarke, the director of Fantasy Island (played by Ricardo Montalban), asked him “why did that person die, we thought that this was just the acting out of our fantasy where no one gets hurt or dies?” Mr Roarke said to them, “It was his desire to die as a soldier while rescuing someone in captivity.” In reality, the man was dying and wanted to die as a soldier, not in a hospital. Life is like that. We act out our part with the hope that we will all come through life with out a scratch or die of natural causes from old age.
Some people make it seem that they are accomplishing their goals, really living their personal fantasy, and all is well with them. However, in reality they may be suffers from not being able to fulfill their fantasy. Suffering from mental illness/anguish, or suffering from some kind of physical illness that others don’t even know they have. Or maybe they have a terminal illness they just don’t talk about. They suffer in silence.
You have all seen the thousands of Television programs that portray people being killed in war enactments, by criminals or by an act-of-passion, or even by “supposed ordinary people”; or stories about the hero policeman who, each week, captures the criminal, and jails them for punishment, all in less than an hour. The moral of the story is, “if you break the law, you will be caught and punished no matter what or who you really are.
Life may be a fantasy for some, but it sure seems to be very real for others. Life is filled with every sort of experience. We “make or break our life” depending on how we look at it. Some people act out their fantasies on a daily basis, while others seem to get further and further into the depths of despair and suffering. What on earth can be done to change things? Can anything be done?
One of the things that Spiritualist’s teach is Natural Law. Natural Law works in every part of our life and we all have the opportunity to use our knowledge of those laws to change anything that comes our way in an instant. We merely need to know which laws we can apply that will help us make the appropriate life decisions. As true Spiritualist we study these laws and make every effort to abide by them. They are God’s Laws.
Christianity teaches that a strong belief in God and His son Jesus, accepting him into their hearts and confessing their sins to God is all that is necessary for the changes that are needed in one’s life. We teach that a strong belief in God, the source of all creation, is all that is needed. All choices in life are up to you and me, as long as we get the results that we want. The ultimate goal is to find happiness and a little joy in our personal fantasy world.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
When We Meet Others
“Hello, my name is John, what’s your name?”
“Joe”.
“Nice to meet you Joe, how are you?”
“Fine”
“Good”.
How many times have you and I been introduced to some one and experienced the same kind of scenario that I just presented? I would say…about a thousand times, provably many more.
What happened when we were introduced to someone? It is said that we make a judgment within a few seconds of meeting someone else. Yes, a few seconds.
If I ask you if you had made a judgment about that person you just met, you would provably say no. It is a fact proven by countless surveys and studies by psychologist that we do indeed make judgments. It is in the way we were brought up. It is a defense mechanism that we all engage in all the time. When I look at a television program, I cannot help but to make a judgment as to whether or not I will like the program and even the actors.
If I meet a man or woman for a job interview, I am being judged by that person as to whether or not I have the qualification they’re looking for and if they believe that I will fit into the corporate structure of the company. I sit there doing the same to them. It is a fact of life.
One of the things that we are judged on more than anything else is our religious beliefs. It seems that it only takes a few minuets for person we have just met to start to talk about religion and inquire about our personal beliefs. “My beliefs are mine I say”. The other person, if a “born again Christian,” will further his/her inquiry even more not wanting to abandon the subject. How many times has that happened to you?
I would say that being judged by others is so natural that we just cannot help ourselves. That is one reason that I get a little upset when I talk to people. I want my idea and beliefs to be mine and not be judged for them. However, as you know, it happens all the time.
Is there anything that we can do about it? I don’t think so. Even if I myself try not to judge, I do. The Bible says “Math 7:1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.” And if you are going to judge than as it says in John 7:24: “Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment." Something we all do. It becomes an almost impossible for anyone to live by these two verses of the Bible because our way of judging is really a defense mechanism that directs our actions towards others. This does not mean that we can at least try. We must.
The reason for the title of this article is because it seems that we are Christian when we want to be and non-Christians at all other times. Oh you say! Yes it is true none the less. We are Christians when it suits us, and non-Christian when it suites us as well. I know a man who always ends his prayers with “In the name of Jesus.” This would indicate to most Christians that here is a man who is a real Christian. Just because we use those words to end a prayers does not mean anything. We could as well end our prayer with in the name of “Bromo Shave.” It would have the same meaning to us because we have already judged that person as being a non-Christian; a person who just goes through the motions of a Christian.
Everything that we do has strings attached to them. Our friendships, our marriage, the work we do for others, the people we come into contact with. You say to me “didn’t you just say that we all judge others all the time?” Yes I did and that is why I say that we all have strings attached to everything we do in life. You and I do also. The above was just an example I used here, (real or factious, you decide).
Like you, I am tired of being judged by others and I have done everything that I can think of to make the changes in my life so that I judge in the proper way as described in the Bible, I hope that you will also.
“Joe”.
“Nice to meet you Joe, how are you?”
“Fine”
“Good”.
How many times have you and I been introduced to some one and experienced the same kind of scenario that I just presented? I would say…about a thousand times, provably many more.
What happened when we were introduced to someone? It is said that we make a judgment within a few seconds of meeting someone else. Yes, a few seconds.
If I ask you if you had made a judgment about that person you just met, you would provably say no. It is a fact proven by countless surveys and studies by psychologist that we do indeed make judgments. It is in the way we were brought up. It is a defense mechanism that we all engage in all the time. When I look at a television program, I cannot help but to make a judgment as to whether or not I will like the program and even the actors.
If I meet a man or woman for a job interview, I am being judged by that person as to whether or not I have the qualification they’re looking for and if they believe that I will fit into the corporate structure of the company. I sit there doing the same to them. It is a fact of life.
One of the things that we are judged on more than anything else is our religious beliefs. It seems that it only takes a few minuets for person we have just met to start to talk about religion and inquire about our personal beliefs. “My beliefs are mine I say”. The other person, if a “born again Christian,” will further his/her inquiry even more not wanting to abandon the subject. How many times has that happened to you?
I would say that being judged by others is so natural that we just cannot help ourselves. That is one reason that I get a little upset when I talk to people. I want my idea and beliefs to be mine and not be judged for them. However, as you know, it happens all the time.
Is there anything that we can do about it? I don’t think so. Even if I myself try not to judge, I do. The Bible says “Math 7:1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.” And if you are going to judge than as it says in John 7:24: “Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment." Something we all do. It becomes an almost impossible for anyone to live by these two verses of the Bible because our way of judging is really a defense mechanism that directs our actions towards others. This does not mean that we can at least try. We must.
The reason for the title of this article is because it seems that we are Christian when we want to be and non-Christians at all other times. Oh you say! Yes it is true none the less. We are Christians when it suits us, and non-Christian when it suites us as well. I know a man who always ends his prayers with “In the name of Jesus.” This would indicate to most Christians that here is a man who is a real Christian. Just because we use those words to end a prayers does not mean anything. We could as well end our prayer with in the name of “Bromo Shave.” It would have the same meaning to us because we have already judged that person as being a non-Christian; a person who just goes through the motions of a Christian.
Everything that we do has strings attached to them. Our friendships, our marriage, the work we do for others, the people we come into contact with. You say to me “didn’t you just say that we all judge others all the time?” Yes I did and that is why I say that we all have strings attached to everything we do in life. You and I do also. The above was just an example I used here, (real or factious, you decide).
Like you, I am tired of being judged by others and I have done everything that I can think of to make the changes in my life so that I judge in the proper way as described in the Bible, I hope that you will also.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Spirituality
In my never ending desire to define and experience true spirituality, I find that the Bible is one of the most profound books on the subject available. It provided guide lines that an individual can follow that, when fully understood, provides one with a life that is free from all negativity.
The Bible teaches in the book of John 13:34 “love one another as God loves you” and “do unto others as you would have them do unto you “(Math 7:1). Two ideas and verses within the Bible that provides a person with all they need to get along in this world. Yes, two verses that the Master Jesus lived by in his daily life and preached. In fact, the life of Jesus was a life filled with God’s love – totally.
As a minister, it is my duty to express what God has placed on my mind, to my congregation. To express in my counseling secessions with individuals who come to me for help. It is the divine within that stresses the right way of doing things.
When one follows that teaching of the Bible one goes from knowing about God to knowing God personally. From the very beginning, God never intended that man should be separate from Him. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth, and all there in – an expression of God’s love. It was only when Adam and Eve partook of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil that they understood that it was possible to make choices based on two aspects of their new knowledge of right and wrong. Duality was not a part of God’s purpose for man, or of the Garden of Eden, but it came into existence. One may now ask, was it wrong for Adam and Eve to gain the knowledge of right from wrong? The answer lies in the hearts of man in general, not in God. When man eat of the fruit, God knew that man would have a strong tendency to choose wrong over choosing right. You might say, this is the reason God put Adam and Eve out of the Garden instead of just forgiving them and allow them to continue living there in the garden.
In my search for meaning to what man believes spirituality is, I have searched high and low and found that it is basically in the hearts of man and therefore undefinable. That is not to say that the word cannot be defined because Webster defines spirituality as: 1: “Concerned with sacred matters or religion or the church "lords temporal and spiritual"; "spiritual leaders"; "spiritual songs" 2: Concerned with or affecting the spirit or soul "a spiritual approach to life"; "spiritual fulfillment"; "spiritual values". We go on to look at the way in which the Wikipedia on line encyclopedia defines spirituality. “Spirituality, in a narrow sense, concerns itself with matters of the spirit, a concept closely tied to religious belief and faith, a transcendent reality, or one or more deities. Spiritual matters are thus those matters regarding humankind's ultimate nature and meaning, not only as material biological organisms, but as beings with a unique relationship to that which is perceived to be beyond the bodily senses, time and the material world. Spirituality also implies the mind-body dichotomy, which indicates a separation between the body and soul.” In another encyclopedia, it says “The term spirituality is defined as living the Christian life with a consciousness or sensitivity to religious values. Striving or aiming for perfection and making particular use of prayer are therefore very important considerations in many different Christian circles. However, it must be emphasized that spirituality assumes various forms in several Christian traditions, for instance, from the solitude of the Orthodox monks to the activism of the Pentecostals.”
In yet another encyclopedia it says “Spirituality is about making sense out of nonsense, shining light on the darkness that is around you. Spirituality is about improving ones self and being able to help others as well too. Growing and expanding yourself, thoughts, knowledge and wisdom.”
Ones definition of spirituality is individually defined and no one can say that they are right or wrong but that their definition is totally there’s.
We strive in our lives in such a way as to always do what is right, because it is the way our parents taught us and society expect us to act. But, that is not to say that we are not individuals who have earned the right to express ourselves in our own way. Our way, for us, is the only way. However, if you can give me a reason to modify my definition of life, I will listen and if I like what you have to say, I may adopt it for myself. This is free will working for our highest good.
The Bible teaches in the book of John 13:34 “love one another as God loves you” and “do unto others as you would have them do unto you “(Math 7:1). Two ideas and verses within the Bible that provides a person with all they need to get along in this world. Yes, two verses that the Master Jesus lived by in his daily life and preached. In fact, the life of Jesus was a life filled with God’s love – totally.
As a minister, it is my duty to express what God has placed on my mind, to my congregation. To express in my counseling secessions with individuals who come to me for help. It is the divine within that stresses the right way of doing things.
When one follows that teaching of the Bible one goes from knowing about God to knowing God personally. From the very beginning, God never intended that man should be separate from Him. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth, and all there in – an expression of God’s love. It was only when Adam and Eve partook of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil that they understood that it was possible to make choices based on two aspects of their new knowledge of right and wrong. Duality was not a part of God’s purpose for man, or of the Garden of Eden, but it came into existence. One may now ask, was it wrong for Adam and Eve to gain the knowledge of right from wrong? The answer lies in the hearts of man in general, not in God. When man eat of the fruit, God knew that man would have a strong tendency to choose wrong over choosing right. You might say, this is the reason God put Adam and Eve out of the Garden instead of just forgiving them and allow them to continue living there in the garden.
In my search for meaning to what man believes spirituality is, I have searched high and low and found that it is basically in the hearts of man and therefore undefinable. That is not to say that the word cannot be defined because Webster defines spirituality as: 1: “Concerned with sacred matters or religion or the church "lords temporal and spiritual"; "spiritual leaders"; "spiritual songs" 2: Concerned with or affecting the spirit or soul "a spiritual approach to life"; "spiritual fulfillment"; "spiritual values". We go on to look at the way in which the Wikipedia on line encyclopedia defines spirituality. “Spirituality, in a narrow sense, concerns itself with matters of the spirit, a concept closely tied to religious belief and faith, a transcendent reality, or one or more deities. Spiritual matters are thus those matters regarding humankind's ultimate nature and meaning, not only as material biological organisms, but as beings with a unique relationship to that which is perceived to be beyond the bodily senses, time and the material world. Spirituality also implies the mind-body dichotomy, which indicates a separation between the body and soul.” In another encyclopedia, it says “The term spirituality is defined as living the Christian life with a consciousness or sensitivity to religious values. Striving or aiming for perfection and making particular use of prayer are therefore very important considerations in many different Christian circles. However, it must be emphasized that spirituality assumes various forms in several Christian traditions, for instance, from the solitude of the Orthodox monks to the activism of the Pentecostals.”
In yet another encyclopedia it says “Spirituality is about making sense out of nonsense, shining light on the darkness that is around you. Spirituality is about improving ones self and being able to help others as well too. Growing and expanding yourself, thoughts, knowledge and wisdom.”
Ones definition of spirituality is individually defined and no one can say that they are right or wrong but that their definition is totally there’s.
We strive in our lives in such a way as to always do what is right, because it is the way our parents taught us and society expect us to act. But, that is not to say that we are not individuals who have earned the right to express ourselves in our own way. Our way, for us, is the only way. However, if you can give me a reason to modify my definition of life, I will listen and if I like what you have to say, I may adopt it for myself. This is free will working for our highest good.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Are we above the law?
These are two questions that have been going through my mind this morning and they have become real questions. How many people in this world believe that they are above the law? It is obvious to me that there are a lot. You ask how I can say such things for there are a lot more who are honest and upright in their dealings with other people. Laws are written for our benefit. They are written to give us a means of knowing where we stand in relationship to each other. In reality, laws are not, nor have they ever been required. But, because man cannot control himself, laws are necessary. If we believe that we don't have to abide by human made laws, what about the natural laws that are God's laws?
There are a number of people in my life who have said to me “I don’t accept your credentials, your ordination or believe that you have done the work that was necessary for you to receive a college, university or have done the work that has lead to a PhD degree. In fact, they say, “that they don't believe that I went to University in the first place.” They think that all I have claimed is nothing more than illusion. The laws of the state or country I live in, or lived in, have made laws that permit colleges, universities and seminaries to issued degrees to students that are recognized by every other state, province and country in the world. Who or what gives some people the right not to accept what the law has deemed as proof of study and experience?
It is not a question of whether or not a person can prove that they have done the work; it is the fact that it is believe that some people are above the law and will not accept the truth. I have found that in my life that there are far too many people who have the same kind of thinking that I have described above. The real question is why? Why can’t the truth be accepted?
Friends, you and I are not above the law. When a college, university or seminary issues a degree, honorary or not, we must accept the truth. We must accept that the person did do the work necessary and is well qualified for the degree(s) they received.
When an ordained minister ordains a person, people should accept the person’s ordination without question. If the government of a state, province or country have made laws that give a college or university the right to issue degrees, or an ordained minister the right to ordain a person who are we to question them?
I have gone on about whether we are above the law because I want all of us to take personal responsibility and to accept truth as it is/was given to us. To believe that not all people make claims that is a total fabrication. There are natural laws that govern us and guarantee that we can never get away with any errors in judgment in this - physical world. We are accountable for every decision and act in our lives. We make errors in judgment, and we must be willing to make amends for them, here, or we will make amends in the here after.
I am also thinking about all the people who have never gone to college or university; people who have dropped out of school before completing the fifth grade. I also wonder about those people who totally disregard and belittle the work and experience of those people. Those people have gained experience in life that is far greater than all the degrees in the world. [The school of hard knocks.] The question becomes, who are we to judge other people’s education and life experiences?
Folks, we have a decision to make, and that decision is about whether we are to be a little more trusting and caring of others. To live within the law and believe that laws are made for us, not against us. We need to give others the benefit of the doubt and accept them as who they are, and that they have done the work they have claimed.
There are a number of people in my life who have said to me “I don’t accept your credentials, your ordination or believe that you have done the work that was necessary for you to receive a college, university or have done the work that has lead to a PhD degree. In fact, they say, “that they don't believe that I went to University in the first place.” They think that all I have claimed is nothing more than illusion. The laws of the state or country I live in, or lived in, have made laws that permit colleges, universities and seminaries to issued degrees to students that are recognized by every other state, province and country in the world. Who or what gives some people the right not to accept what the law has deemed as proof of study and experience?
It is not a question of whether or not a person can prove that they have done the work; it is the fact that it is believe that some people are above the law and will not accept the truth. I have found that in my life that there are far too many people who have the same kind of thinking that I have described above. The real question is why? Why can’t the truth be accepted?
Friends, you and I are not above the law. When a college, university or seminary issues a degree, honorary or not, we must accept the truth. We must accept that the person did do the work necessary and is well qualified for the degree(s) they received.
When an ordained minister ordains a person, people should accept the person’s ordination without question. If the government of a state, province or country have made laws that give a college or university the right to issue degrees, or an ordained minister the right to ordain a person who are we to question them?
I have gone on about whether we are above the law because I want all of us to take personal responsibility and to accept truth as it is/was given to us. To believe that not all people make claims that is a total fabrication. There are natural laws that govern us and guarantee that we can never get away with any errors in judgment in this - physical world. We are accountable for every decision and act in our lives. We make errors in judgment, and we must be willing to make amends for them, here, or we will make amends in the here after.
I am also thinking about all the people who have never gone to college or university; people who have dropped out of school before completing the fifth grade. I also wonder about those people who totally disregard and belittle the work and experience of those people. Those people have gained experience in life that is far greater than all the degrees in the world. [The school of hard knocks.] The question becomes, who are we to judge other people’s education and life experiences?
Folks, we have a decision to make, and that decision is about whether we are to be a little more trusting and caring of others. To live within the law and believe that laws are made for us, not against us. We need to give others the benefit of the doubt and accept them as who they are, and that they have done the work they have claimed.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Tolerance
Being tolerant of other is not an easy task. Intolerance is a plague on humanity. No one is free from it. We all partake of intolerance at one time or another, and there are natural laws that apply to intolerance that should make us sit up and take notice of our actions. One natural Law is the Law of Cause and Effect, another is what you sow, you reap.
If you sow intolerance, you will reap intolerance. If you sow hatred, you will reap hatred. If you kill, you will be killed. If you think that you got away with dishonest illegal actions and you have fooled a lot of people, you didn’t. You will reap the consequences in one way or another.
Intolerant acts cause a great deal of heartache and suffering that has lead to drug use, alcoholism, wars and suicide. You may say that intolerance is OK at times. It is only a response to other people’s action or fear. Oh?
Intolerance generates negative karma. Karma is the effects of a person's actions that determine their fate in this life and the next incarnation.
Even ministers have to deal with intolerance in their life. They are supposed to tolerate the actions of others even if they believe that those actions are “stupid”.
Intolerance in this world is what causes all of the problems. Religious intolerance is one of the greatest.
What about a nation’s intolerant of their neighbor, just because of difference in language, a different culture, or arguing over a few feet of their national borders?
Is there anyone who can provide the answers to all of the intolerance in this world? Well, maybe one and you can guess who it is - yes its God. But is God a human being? If God is would He be able to put up with all of the intolerance of His people?
No human on this earth can put up with intolerance. We are taught from birth that we are somebody and we MUST defend who we are. And it doesn’t matter who the other guy is. Sound familiar?
I hope that you are better able to tolerate others. And I would like to have you think about just how much others affect you in your daily life and whether or not you’re able to live a life of tolerance. It’s our personal responsibility to do so.
If you sow intolerance, you will reap intolerance. If you sow hatred, you will reap hatred. If you kill, you will be killed. If you think that you got away with dishonest illegal actions and you have fooled a lot of people, you didn’t. You will reap the consequences in one way or another.
Intolerant acts cause a great deal of heartache and suffering that has lead to drug use, alcoholism, wars and suicide. You may say that intolerance is OK at times. It is only a response to other people’s action or fear. Oh?
Intolerance generates negative karma. Karma is the effects of a person's actions that determine their fate in this life and the next incarnation.
Even ministers have to deal with intolerance in their life. They are supposed to tolerate the actions of others even if they believe that those actions are “stupid”.
Intolerance in this world is what causes all of the problems. Religious intolerance is one of the greatest.
What about a nation’s intolerant of their neighbor, just because of difference in language, a different culture, or arguing over a few feet of their national borders?
Is there anyone who can provide the answers to all of the intolerance in this world? Well, maybe one and you can guess who it is - yes its God. But is God a human being? If God is would He be able to put up with all of the intolerance of His people?
No human on this earth can put up with intolerance. We are taught from birth that we are somebody and we MUST defend who we are. And it doesn’t matter who the other guy is. Sound familiar?
I hope that you are better able to tolerate others. And I would like to have you think about just how much others affect you in your daily life and whether or not you’re able to live a life of tolerance. It’s our personal responsibility to do so.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
The Law of Personal Responsibility
The Law of Personal Responsibility is a primary natural law that can guide us on our spiritual path.
Accepting the law of personal responsibility wipes out self-pity, resignation, passive endurance, smoldering resentments against the injustices of life, and the masochistic game of harping on one's case against life.
Yet this apparently hard law is the most hopeful, encouraging, liberating, and strengthening truth of all truths. It enables us to resolve whatever problem we may have. It opens up life with all its rich possibilities. It forces us to see things in their true light and, uncomfortable as this may first seem, it leaves us with a lot more self-respect, integrity, and hope than the helpless resignation to circumstances life is supposed to bring about without us doing. It makes defeat unnecessary because it also removes, among other things, your childish illusion of omnipotence, which is just as unrealistic as the illusion of being life's passive victim. Accepting our own limitations and the limitations of others increases our power to direct our life meaningfully.
The law of personal responsibility is the guiding principle in the search for the root of our obstructions. Contemplating the fulfillment or the lack of it in our life gives us a blueprint of the areas where an inner corresponding attitude is responsible for either. This approach is diametrically opposed to the usual way, but it is indeed a reliable and truthful one that must always lead to results, provided we go deeply enough and are truly honest in the endeavor.
Whenever we arrive at a juncture on the path from which there seems no way out, or where we cannot see how to change, how to resolve the problem, we can be quite sure that we have not yet found an important tool to unlock the door, no matter how profound previous insights and changes may have been. A total insight always shows the way out. Thus, recognitions can be differentiated. Are they of the kind mentioned here? Or are they merely leading to them? The former always give a sense of joy, liberation, hope, strength and light. They infuse new energy into our system. The latter may have a temporarily debilitating effect on the personality. The former enable us to recognize the most unflattering facts about ourselves without in the least diminishing our sense of worth and integrity -- on the contrary, this sense increases. The latter type burdens the insight with guilt.
When we have experienced the difference between these two types of recognition, we can protect ourselves from hopelessness, or at least realize that the hopelessness is in itself a sign that the way out has not yet been found. Rather than weakening us, the hopelessness can then be an incentive to surge on with all our vigor until the real way is open.
When we finally see that an unfulfilled longing or painful conflict of long standing is the result of an inner attitude with concomitant behavior patterns, we are no longer a helpless tool in the hand of fate. If such an attitude is completely seen, observed in action, and accepted for what it is, we may still be unwilling to give it up -- for whatever reasons and misconceptions -- but at least we see a vitally important connection between our inner life and the outer manifestations of it. It is then possible to embark on a special search for the reason why we so stubbornly hold on to a destructive attitude.
Accepting the law of personal responsibility wipes out self-pity, resignation, passive endurance, smoldering resentments against the injustices of life, and the masochistic game of harping on one's case against life.
Yet this apparently hard law is the most hopeful, encouraging, liberating, and strengthening truth of all truths. It enables us to resolve whatever problem we may have. It opens up life with all its rich possibilities. It forces us to see things in their true light and, uncomfortable as this may first seem, it leaves us with a lot more self-respect, integrity, and hope than the helpless resignation to circumstances life is supposed to bring about without us doing. It makes defeat unnecessary because it also removes, among other things, your childish illusion of omnipotence, which is just as unrealistic as the illusion of being life's passive victim. Accepting our own limitations and the limitations of others increases our power to direct our life meaningfully.
The law of personal responsibility is the guiding principle in the search for the root of our obstructions. Contemplating the fulfillment or the lack of it in our life gives us a blueprint of the areas where an inner corresponding attitude is responsible for either. This approach is diametrically opposed to the usual way, but it is indeed a reliable and truthful one that must always lead to results, provided we go deeply enough and are truly honest in the endeavor.
Whenever we arrive at a juncture on the path from which there seems no way out, or where we cannot see how to change, how to resolve the problem, we can be quite sure that we have not yet found an important tool to unlock the door, no matter how profound previous insights and changes may have been. A total insight always shows the way out. Thus, recognitions can be differentiated. Are they of the kind mentioned here? Or are they merely leading to them? The former always give a sense of joy, liberation, hope, strength and light. They infuse new energy into our system. The latter may have a temporarily debilitating effect on the personality. The former enable us to recognize the most unflattering facts about ourselves without in the least diminishing our sense of worth and integrity -- on the contrary, this sense increases. The latter type burdens the insight with guilt.
When we have experienced the difference between these two types of recognition, we can protect ourselves from hopelessness, or at least realize that the hopelessness is in itself a sign that the way out has not yet been found. Rather than weakening us, the hopelessness can then be an incentive to surge on with all our vigor until the real way is open.
When we finally see that an unfulfilled longing or painful conflict of long standing is the result of an inner attitude with concomitant behavior patterns, we are no longer a helpless tool in the hand of fate. If such an attitude is completely seen, observed in action, and accepted for what it is, we may still be unwilling to give it up -- for whatever reasons and misconceptions -- but at least we see a vitally important connection between our inner life and the outer manifestations of it. It is then possible to embark on a special search for the reason why we so stubbornly hold on to a destructive attitude.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Lessons ?
Hello all:
Like so many people, I have attended many different denominational churches in my life, setting through sermons that were, for the most part, uplifting and inspirational. When I have talked to the minister later on, they told me that they believed that their sermons had their origin in God. Sermons on friendship, pride, the Ten Commandments, the Pauline Epistles, life situations in general or just lessons that the minister believed he/she were inspired to give.
The majority of those ministers used Bible verses to emphasis their sermons. They took verses from both the Old and New Testaments and often combining them to get their point across. They took lesson from their own life, their family, and the life of men and women they have known or from the lives of historical people. They took lessons from men who fought in the various wars and conflicts in the world. Those ministers took the time to prepare a sermon that they believed that their congregation needed to here. Sermons on subjects that were impressed upon them by God or the Holy Spirit from the writings of various philosophers and men of high education like Aristotle, Plato, Einstein and others.
Some ministers have said that they had prepared a sermon on one subject, only to be impressed to talk on another subject at the last minute. The wording of their sermon they believed was from God. They truly believed that they were being taken over by God to deliver a sermon that was needed by someone on that particular Sunday morning or maybe several people in the congregation.
You may have read some of the articles on this blog that have reminded you of a sermon that you have heard, and believed that they are directed directly at you. If so, then they have done their job to remind you of something in your life at that time, or to get you to think and spur you into action to do something about a possible problem in your life, or personality. The subject of the article may help all of us stay on our spiritual path.
God bless
Like so many people, I have attended many different denominational churches in my life, setting through sermons that were, for the most part, uplifting and inspirational. When I have talked to the minister later on, they told me that they believed that their sermons had their origin in God. Sermons on friendship, pride, the Ten Commandments, the Pauline Epistles, life situations in general or just lessons that the minister believed he/she were inspired to give.
The majority of those ministers used Bible verses to emphasis their sermons. They took verses from both the Old and New Testaments and often combining them to get their point across. They took lesson from their own life, their family, and the life of men and women they have known or from the lives of historical people. They took lessons from men who fought in the various wars and conflicts in the world. Those ministers took the time to prepare a sermon that they believed that their congregation needed to here. Sermons on subjects that were impressed upon them by God or the Holy Spirit from the writings of various philosophers and men of high education like Aristotle, Plato, Einstein and others.
Some ministers have said that they had prepared a sermon on one subject, only to be impressed to talk on another subject at the last minute. The wording of their sermon they believed was from God. They truly believed that they were being taken over by God to deliver a sermon that was needed by someone on that particular Sunday morning or maybe several people in the congregation.
You may have read some of the articles on this blog that have reminded you of a sermon that you have heard, and believed that they are directed directly at you. If so, then they have done their job to remind you of something in your life at that time, or to get you to think and spur you into action to do something about a possible problem in your life, or personality. The subject of the article may help all of us stay on our spiritual path.
God bless
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