Leverage episodes into opportunities.
~~~~~
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Dear Daughters (12-29-2009)
Each and every EPISODE of fear that creeps into our mind and overwhelms our body can be leveraged into OPPORTUNITIES to incrementally strengthen our faith in God and our belief and trust that He will only let happen in our lives that which is for the good of our soul and others. If you believe in God in this way, then it shall be so for you and your life.
This fearlessness must always be tempered with Jesus' reminder "Do not put the Lord your God to the test." (Matthew 4:7).
Always maintain a healthy respect for fear. Never overcome fear with reckless abandon. The only time we should go into harm's way is when we are called to render an act of love to a person in desperate need.
An excellent illustration of this philosophy is that of Mother Teresa walking unharmed to and from across the active line of gunfire in Beirut as she tended to the needs of orphans and the handicapped trapped under rubble caused by the bombings in Lebanon.
You are not putting God to the test when you put yourself in harm's way in this manner.
~~~~~
This fearlessness must always be tempered with Jesus' reminder "Do not put the Lord your God to the test." (Matthew 4:7).
Always maintain a healthy respect for fear. Never overcome fear with reckless abandon. The only time we should go into harm's way is when we are called to render an act of love to a person in desperate need.
An excellent illustration of this philosophy is that of Mother Teresa walking unharmed to and from across the active line of gunfire in Beirut as she tended to the needs of orphans and the handicapped trapped under rubble caused by the bombings in Lebanon.
You are not putting God to the test when you put yourself in harm's way in this manner.
~~~~~
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
The Needs of Jesus
So the next time you give water to the thirsty, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, care for the sick or visit the prisoner, declare to them that you have come to tend to the needs of Jesus.
~~~~~
~~~~~
Love God or Be God
The fallen nature of human beings is a manifestation of the choice of the first human being to be equal to or above God.
This choice had truly powerful (and grave) consequences when you consider that the first man was in a state of perfect existence at the time he made that unfortunate (for the rest of us) choice. Given the perfect existence in which his choice was made, it was a true exercise of free will (a spiritual act governed by spiritual laws).
The desire to be god is a truly powerful temptation of the spirit. It's power to seduce cannot be taken lightly or underestimated. The higher your are in your spiritual perfection, the greater the seduction.
I give credit to the New Age movement for helping mankind come to an awareness and higher level of understanding of mankind's spirituality. However, I have observed that the movement (and its teachers) are ultimately unable to resist the seduction to committing the same grave mistake that the first man did.
Nevertheless, all spiritual beings have this free will to exercise. There is no avoiding the choice.
Love God or be god. What is your choice? Make your declaration and declare it out loud to the universe.
~~~~~
This choice had truly powerful (and grave) consequences when you consider that the first man was in a state of perfect existence at the time he made that unfortunate (for the rest of us) choice. Given the perfect existence in which his choice was made, it was a true exercise of free will (a spiritual act governed by spiritual laws).
The desire to be god is a truly powerful temptation of the spirit. It's power to seduce cannot be taken lightly or underestimated. The higher your are in your spiritual perfection, the greater the seduction.
I give credit to the New Age movement for helping mankind come to an awareness and higher level of understanding of mankind's spirituality. However, I have observed that the movement (and its teachers) are ultimately unable to resist the seduction to committing the same grave mistake that the first man did.
Nevertheless, all spiritual beings have this free will to exercise. There is no avoiding the choice.
Love God or be god. What is your choice? Make your declaration and declare it out loud to the universe.
~~~~~
The Significance of Acts
The love that propels an act is what is important; not the act itself.
~~~~~
~~~~~
Sunday, December 20, 2009
True Freedom
True freedom is freedom from the inclinations of our imperfect human nature. True freedom is that which liberates our spirit (soul) from captivity in an imperfect body and mind.
Freedom of our spirit simply means that the love that is within us all is able to flow unimpeded.
~~~~~
Freedom of our spirit simply means that the love that is within us all is able to flow unimpeded.
~~~~~
The Why of Jesus
God can readily alter the physical laws of His creation but He never alters the spiritual laws (the laws that govern the connection of spiritual beings). This is why Jesus had to endure the human suffering that He endured as the spiritual offering for the redemption of mankind from the choice of the first man (Adam's choice to be god made while he was in a state of perfection).
Here in a nutshell is the WHY of Jesus. In understanding the WHY, perhaps we can begin to seek to know the WHO of Jesus on this Christmas Day.
~~~~~
Here in a nutshell is the WHY of Jesus. In understanding the WHY, perhaps we can begin to seek to know the WHO of Jesus on this Christmas Day.
~~~~~
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Praying for Deliverance
When we pray to the Father in light of our suffering and anguish, pray for the strength to endure the suffering (rather than to be spared the suffering) and the faith to see beneath the suffering and recognize the opportunity within that is meant for the good of our soul and others.
The anguish-filled prayer of Jesus at the Garden of Gethsemane is a perfect example of this.
~~~~~
The anguish-filled prayer of Jesus at the Garden of Gethsemane is a perfect example of this.
~~~~~
God's Calling for the Youth of Today
God calls upon all the young people of the world, whose ways are not yet set, to answer His calling to spearhead the bringing forth of the spiritual renaissance of all mankind.
God calls upon the youth generation of today. This is your calling, your calling from God. This is your time, your moment in the history of mankind.
Start with your own spiritual awakening and this will in turn awaken young people to theirs.
Rise up to your calling and fulfill your God-given role.
~~~~~
God calls upon the youth generation of today. This is your calling, your calling from God. This is your time, your moment in the history of mankind.
Start with your own spiritual awakening and this will in turn awaken young people to theirs.
Rise up to your calling and fulfill your God-given role.
~~~~~
Loving Your Religion
It is God whom you should love; not the religion that introduced you to Him.
By all means, value your religion in recognition of whatever good it has brought and continues to bring into your life...just don't fall in love with it.
~~~~~
By all means, value your religion in recognition of whatever good it has brought and continues to bring into your life...just don't fall in love with it.
~~~~~
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Loved Drowned Out
What a tragedy it is when the love of two people who truly love each other is overwhelmingly drowned out by the painful noise that completely overshadows it resulting in two sides who are able to sense only what is on the surface and thereupon react in a manner that takes the emotional noise to higher and louder levels in a continuing, vicious and destructive cycle.
People can try to intervene and enlighten (and they should) but only the grace of God can open the eyes of both sides to realize what is happening to them and break the cycle and allow the love within to surface.
This is where prayer (in particular, the prayer for such grace) would be the primary answer to this endpoint.
~~~~~
People can try to intervene and enlighten (and they should) but only the grace of God can open the eyes of both sides to realize what is happening to them and break the cycle and allow the love within to surface.
This is where prayer (in particular, the prayer for such grace) would be the primary answer to this endpoint.
~~~~~
A Call to Heed
It is not so important to establish the truthfulness of abuse (in any of its many forms) as it is to listen to and heed the agony resulting from the perception (valid or mistaken) of it.
It is only when the source of the perceived abuse tunes in to the love within themselves can they truly begin to heed the outcry of the child on the receiving end of it and thereupon start the process for finding a corrective course of action that would bring about healing and put an eventual end to the destructive and dehumanizing perception.
For those of us who are trying to help and intervene in such situations, the effective approach must always start with bringing the love that is buried within back to the surface.
Always remember that this is one intervention that must be done with great love. We cannot succeed unless we do so.
~~~~~
It is only when the source of the perceived abuse tunes in to the love within themselves can they truly begin to heed the outcry of the child on the receiving end of it and thereupon start the process for finding a corrective course of action that would bring about healing and put an eventual end to the destructive and dehumanizing perception.
For those of us who are trying to help and intervene in such situations, the effective approach must always start with bringing the love that is buried within back to the surface.
Always remember that this is one intervention that must be done with great love. We cannot succeed unless we do so.
~~~~~
Light Bulb Moment
It is only while we are in the depths of our own pain and anguish over the absence of love from those we seek it from that we have the opportunity to come to realize how we ourselves have paid no heed to the immense love that God has for us.
~~~~~
~~~~~
The Foundation of Human Love
The love of a mother and father that a child believes to be true beyond all doubts is the foundation upon which all love from others (in all its many forms) can build and rest upon.
If this foundation is not set (usually during the child's formative and development years), that child will pass through his/her lifetime completely incapable of ever truly believing the love coming from others no matter how true.
This is the most tragic form of disability of all.
~~~~~
If this foundation is not set (usually during the child's formative and development years), that child will pass through his/her lifetime completely incapable of ever truly believing the love coming from others no matter how true.
This is the most tragic form of disability of all.
~~~~~
Saturday, December 12, 2009
The Church of God
This entry is dedicated to my beloved daughter who turned eighteen this month. May our Lord (our Father) shower her (and all our daughters) with His grace that will enable her to attain in her youth, the level of spirituality and unwavering faith that took me five decades to reach.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Each day, I increasingly perceive signs (in various forms) that give support to my belief that we are indeed at the dawn of the age of spirituality...the time of mankind's spiritual renaissance...a time that immediately precedes the final "show of hands" by all spiritual entities.
This is the age when the human race as a whole finally rises to a whole new level of spiritual consciousness...a consciousness that transcends religion and all its associated institutions (man-made social structures that are meant to bring us to know and love God fully but which, due to their man-made nature, inhibit us from moving forward beyond a certain point of realization and understanding).
Religion (and the institutions that are borne of it) is NOT the true church of God. Neither is the church of God a physical structure of any kind (a truth that any enlightened form of religion readily acknowledges). I express this perspective even as I am someone who believes in the value of going to church (religious place of worship) to spend a quiet and undistracted moment with God and one who believes in the value of attending religious services regularly.
Rather, the true church of God is the collective set of all ACTS OF LOVE by ALL human beings who chose to love Him irrespective of their religion or lack of it.
For it is with our secreted acts of true love that we truly praise God. And from these hidden acts blossom forth visible manifestations that serve as a beacon of light for others who wish to seek Him.
This is the true church...the church of love...the church that Jesus, who is the Christ, established here on Earth.
~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Each day, I increasingly perceive signs (in various forms) that give support to my belief that we are indeed at the dawn of the age of spirituality...the time of mankind's spiritual renaissance...a time that immediately precedes the final "show of hands" by all spiritual entities.
This is the age when the human race as a whole finally rises to a whole new level of spiritual consciousness...a consciousness that transcends religion and all its associated institutions (man-made social structures that are meant to bring us to know and love God fully but which, due to their man-made nature, inhibit us from moving forward beyond a certain point of realization and understanding).
Religion (and the institutions that are borne of it) is NOT the true church of God. Neither is the church of God a physical structure of any kind (a truth that any enlightened form of religion readily acknowledges). I express this perspective even as I am someone who believes in the value of going to church (religious place of worship) to spend a quiet and undistracted moment with God and one who believes in the value of attending religious services regularly.
Rather, the true church of God is the collective set of all ACTS OF LOVE by ALL human beings who chose to love Him irrespective of their religion or lack of it.
For it is with our secreted acts of true love that we truly praise God. And from these hidden acts blossom forth visible manifestations that serve as a beacon of light for others who wish to seek Him.
This is the true church...the church of love...the church that Jesus, who is the Christ, established here on Earth.
~~~~~
The Gulf
The width of the gulf that grows between ourselves and others is directly proportional to the degree of fear we have for the pains that are naturally borne of human relationships in all its many forms.
~~~~~
~~~~~
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Dear Daughters (12-5-2009)
Actions speak louder than words. At some point in our lives or another, we all get to realize the wisdom of that well-known saying. And more so than not, we buy into it to the detriment of our personal relationships and subsequently our spirit. This is so because one very crucial component is missing in that line of wisdom. That component is the reality of our perception...our perception of other's actions or of their words.
Our perceptions are formed and colored by a wide spectrum of factors that include social/cultural norms, our upbringing and every human relational experience we have had in our lives to date and the resulting emotions that were borne of those interactions. These perceptions can be true and they can be absolutely false. They can even have compounding effects such as in the manner when we start with a false perception (that we never realize was in error to begin with) and this, in turn, influences a subsequent perception that is also false thereby creating what I will refer to as a "reinforcement of falsehood" and so forth and so on in this ugly cycle.
What is the moral of the story? We need to develop a habit of questioning our automatic perceptions and validating as much of them as we bravely and feasibly can. A healthy amount of skepticism over our perceptions can do wonders for your personal relationships in all its forms and degrees. By this I mean your relationships with co-workers, children, parents, friends, enemies, significant others and all strangers that our life path brings us in contact with. It definitely takes a great amount of courage, skill and patience to go through the validating process and to come out with the true and correct perception. It is a worthwhile life skill to learn and develop and one that will take time to do so.
Start learning and practicing that skill now. I wish I realized this when I was in my twenties. I probably would have achieved more with my spiritual growth by this juncture in my life if I did. Nonetheless, I count myself blessed that I have even managed to arrive at this valuable realization at all. It is a source of true inner peace for me.
~~~~~
Our perceptions are formed and colored by a wide spectrum of factors that include social/cultural norms, our upbringing and every human relational experience we have had in our lives to date and the resulting emotions that were borne of those interactions. These perceptions can be true and they can be absolutely false. They can even have compounding effects such as in the manner when we start with a false perception (that we never realize was in error to begin with) and this, in turn, influences a subsequent perception that is also false thereby creating what I will refer to as a "reinforcement of falsehood" and so forth and so on in this ugly cycle.
What is the moral of the story? We need to develop a habit of questioning our automatic perceptions and validating as much of them as we bravely and feasibly can. A healthy amount of skepticism over our perceptions can do wonders for your personal relationships in all its forms and degrees. By this I mean your relationships with co-workers, children, parents, friends, enemies, significant others and all strangers that our life path brings us in contact with. It definitely takes a great amount of courage, skill and patience to go through the validating process and to come out with the true and correct perception. It is a worthwhile life skill to learn and develop and one that will take time to do so.
Start learning and practicing that skill now. I wish I realized this when I was in my twenties. I probably would have achieved more with my spiritual growth by this juncture in my life if I did. Nonetheless, I count myself blessed that I have even managed to arrive at this valuable realization at all. It is a source of true inner peace for me.
~~~~~
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