The Light in the Woods

2/28/10 Inspirations                  Meditation, contemplation, scripture study, litany and liturgy – all processes done to remove the world from our thoughts long enough to bring the Creator to the forefront are things good for peace of mind. But to acquire pure inner peace that lasts because it becomes the nature of our spirit, this is the ultimate comfort state.

We begin by ascribing all that is to God. We see Him as a loving God, ever merciful and ever forgiving. Only this kind of God makes us worthy of this kind of love. Then we acknowledge that if we give over our lives to God first and foremost, we will not only honor Him but gain for ourselves knowledge and grace through a new perception of His ongoing gifts to mankind. We will see too the nature of God’s reality – the kingdom to which we were born and still wait for our faulty, worldly perception to catch up to.

We live assured of pure joy, and we catch glimpses of this waiting reality. Through God’s loving attention we get heightened sensory input triggered by seeing the things around us in a fresh, God-toward way. The more attuned we are to things that are important to God, the more willing we are to receive these gifts from Him, and the more adept we are at appreciating them.

This, finally, is how we maintain a constant inner peace – by armoring ourselves against worldly strife with our focus on the bliss of reality that’s being covered up by worldly influences. When we recognize the joy of God, we immerse our spirits in Him to the point where we can exist happily even within the stress of our daily lives. This is inner peace, available to all.

1/28/10 Insights from Study                  To demonstrate the goodness of God everyday, we live expressively, showing by our very being that when we are with God we shine as dew, and when we are feeling away from God we are cold, dead sticks. We don’t have to be holy to passively instruct our neighbors – they also can pick up on the ramifications of the absence of God through our restless evil and misfortune. One way or another we demonstrate the presence of God, either by our welcoming of it or by our rejection of it.

But if you want to calm your demeanor, empty your spirit of all that isn’t God to make room for His peace. You can do this in mere seconds by the deliberate giving over of your self to God in prayer. Let Him know you want to be a good influence on those around you. God can always use workers to lead through their good example, as there is no shortage of those who lead us into temptation.

12/10/09 Insights from Prayer             I go alone to a quiet place to talk and listen to my Creator. This is exactly where I’m supposed to be. No fear, no doubt, no despair, no guilt – just doing what God means for me to do. This is the way it is in the Reality of heaven; for this reason I am at peace here. I am content with what I have because I turn my face toward the thing of real importance. If enemies pound at the door I don’t hear them here in my cocoon of safety. If there are corners where I, the temple of God, haven’t swept properly, I acknowledge this and immediately dismiss it. For here and now I exist only to honor my God by receiving His love and offering my own to Him. I go away refreshed, and I don’t grow faint from the clanging and screeching and wailing and shrieking of the world, so satisfied am I with the promise for that world that is the thing I hear above all else.

11/12/09 Inspirations              Imagine if there was no such thing as time or space. You would look out on the world from where you stand and say to yourself — ”This is what is. What is here and now is everything there is, just as it is.”

That’s the way things are in Reality – in God’s kingdom, the world as it is without the scales that cover our eyes. In God’s kingdom, this eternity – life without time or space – is the beautiful sum of God’s love. But to us, infinity is frightening because we have become used to the illusion of time and space, and we cannot really imagine existence without them.

And so we try to imagine heaven but fail in that we keep returning to the earthly measurements of time and space. “OK, so there’s heaven and it’s wonderful and it never ends. Except, everything must have an end!” No, just when you’ve expanded your mind to include a life that goes on forever, you’re already imagining the end that must come. You circle around infinity, trying to both embrace and erase within your understanding the concept of endlessness, but you can’t do it, and this frightens you to the point where you can no longer contemplate heaven without unease. But you’ll be back, because as frightening and incomprehensible as eternity is, you would rather face it in consciousness instead of in the black and silent nothingness that would be it’s alternative.

This is why humans, all humans, are pre-programmed for trust in the Creator, whether we acknowledge it or not. We with our minuscule capacity for knowledge can only be immobilized by fear or comforted by faith.  Without this faith that something higher than we are will make everything all right, we are lost in our own home and afraid to leave it.

There are some who claim that when a person finds comfort in faith in God, that in itself is evidence of their delusion; in “real life” we don’t get what we want by wishful thinking, we get it by luck or hard work. But those with faith in God are functioning above and beyond this temporal, worldly life, and worldly measurements do not work there. On this higher plane we do get what we want by wishful thinking. It’s called prayer, and if we pray to be in sync with God’s master plan, we will of course be comforted. The mightiest prayer is “Lord, Your will is done – help me be content in that and I will have comfort in all things.”

The antidote for fear is faith. If you trust in the goodness of an all-wise and all-powerful Creator, what is left to fear?

8/15/09 Inspirations            You can ask God for anything and He can give it. He can give you anything and He can give you everything. But He never gives you everything, because He’s very careful to give you what you need.

A parent may be able to serve his child all the ice cream the child could want, but He doesn’t do it, because that isn’t what’s best for the child. In the same way, not all our prayers are answered in the way we want them answered. We aren’t in a position to know what’s best for us, so the wisest thing we can do is leave the decisions up to God.

This is an important concept because within it lies all the secrets to a peaceful life, not only in our relationship with God but also in our dealings with others. Think of it this way – if everyone on Earth understood God’s responsibility in providing for us each as we require, what would be the need for the human power grab that is the cause of so much human suffering? If everyone conceded that God knows best, wouldn’t that logically be the end of human striving for position in favor of human striving to honor God?

We don’t kid ourselves that such a thing will come to pass, but if we understand that God thinks of us as individuals, our individual acceptance of God and His desires should be sufficient for us. We are justified if we do our part, and we bless God when we go further by encouraging others to do theirs. But never should we take over things that are better left to God, and never should we question the answers God gives to our prayers.

8/4/09 Reflections         I know that all I have is designed for my good by a loving God. I know it and I welcome it, because I don’t care for glory or fame or riches. These things are given by other humans; the God who created me has better gifts than these. Who would best know what I need? Who would care to provide it? And being blessed by the All-powerful, All-present, and All-loving, why would I seek honor among lesser entities?

In my relationship with God I have riches even I can’t imagine yet, and I dedicate all I have to gratitude for God’s graces and to the acceptance of whatever He has designed for me. Of course there are times when I don’t like or understand what God declares, but that’s only because I’m human and imperfect. With God’s help I ignore my doubts, fears, lack of understanding, and shaken faith. I am held up by the Author of Life Himself – how can I fall?

My time is better spent in the silence of His presence than anywhere else imaginable. There you’ll find me because that’s where my peace lies. If I venture out, letting my human weaknesses control me, then I itch to get back, and I learn all over again why I am content in God’s care – if I leave it I’m unhappy. This is my proof and validation; another gift that I can pick up and bring along with me on the path back to God.

8/1/09 Insights from Study       Rejoice in the good things; rejoice in the bad – for all changes are designed by our Creator for our good. It doesn’t matter how things look to us – God sees it how it is, and orders it how He knows is best for us. We should be grateful for our release from responsibility as long as the true master is all-powerful and all-loving. It’s our humility that brings us inner peace; the allowing of our acceptance of God’s work, and our position as obedient receivers, that results in happiness with all God’s decisions.

God allows and welcomes our participation, and free will makes life interesting. But when we start to believe that human free will is all there is, that’s when we see God’s beneficence as something working against us. We and our pride are the cause of our misperception of reality, and our misperception of reality is the cause of our spiritual unease. Regaining the humility of our place in God’s plan brings us back into proper perception, and proper perception eases the soul and restores inner peace.

Pray to receive this most basic favor, the gift of humility, that allows you to release yourself from responsibility for what you cannot control. God will welcome such a prayer, for it honors Him and brings to you the peace God desires for you.

7/13/09 Insights from Study       When we see life clearly enough to understand our own futility in the world, we paradoxically understand that the most we can ask for is to use ourselves in the way God desires. We are therefore both aware of our smallness and encouraged that this awareness itself makes up open to great abilities.

It’s an awesome privilege to be made small in the world because the smaller we are, the more room for God we have in our spirits. God works best in us when we are open to improvement and appreciative of help. When we use our independence to invite God’s guidance, we are putting to use powers much greater than our own; for a purpose blessed by the Creator.

This doesn’t require the things we’ve learned are effective; it takes a miracle. But miracles are given to us daily, if only we can recognize them. And miracles are far more effective than what we can do on our own.

To invite miracles into our lives we need to understand what pleases the Miracle Worker. It isn’t how we flex our muscles or develop our intellects – these things are good for human interaction but aren’t necessary to prepare ourselves to welcome the working of God in our spirits. What’s needed is the ability to tune out human nature and the demands of the world long enough to see our true nature. Only when we see how small and helpless we are will we welcome God’s interaction. Only when we welcome God’s interaction will we appreciate the peace humility brings.

God doesn’t expose us to trials and suffering because He’s mean and wants to cut us down to size. He wants us to learn from them that because we are vulnerable we can gather up all our troubles and offer them to God as His responsibility. It’s God’s love for us that energizes this cycle of need and provision. It’s God’s love that makes us long for the miracles that bring us closer to Him.

6/28/09 Inspirations          “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”

In case of conflict large or small, it doesn’t matter if afterwards my neighbor makes concessions to me or not. How he treats me is irrelevant. But however I treat him I’m treating God, and that’s what matters.

If I overlook the hurt done to me, I am mirroring God’s mercy. If I give my antagonist a chance to make things up to me without being condescending, that’s God’s method of encouraging repentance. And if I do things as God would want me to do them, I am benefiting both my neighbor and myself, and pleasing God as well.

It isn’t easy to refrain from a snide response or a quick putdown – we have this sense of justice for ourselves that keeps us ever watchful for opportunities to come to the aid of our egos.  But there is also a certain satisfaction in counting to ten and holding our peace. And often we find that this, much more than instantly standing up for ourselves, impresses and subjugates those who would treat us badly.

Being quietly and humbly righteous is the best way to “get back” at somebody because it defuses the situation, gives you the moral high ground, and makes them think twice about their own behavior and how they feel about yours. If done subtly, there’s no better response, because it opens the way for your better nature to show through, and it’s a response that pleases God. And it may even provide an opportunity to correct the situation and even make an enemy into a friend. This is an example of helping others through your own good example, and it’s available for all social situations.

But if the Patience Plan doesn’t bring about all these highly desired outcomes, it does address the thing that is of most importance – it furthers your right-relationship with God. If it does nothing else, your patience brings you closer to God and His own attributes.

5/31/09 Inspirations                 You are in the deep sea of “Godness”. You are drowning because you insist on breathing through your lungs instead of through your spirit. You’re afraid to trust God to keep you alive, so you flounder and fight against your environs. You know only your body and its wants, so you pay heed only to the body’s way. But immersed in God, you can have peace by breathing Him in through the spirit; forcing everything that’s not God out to make room. Breathe God in deeply — don’t try to fight His overriding presence. Don’t try to survive in a bubble of humanity; you were meant for so much better than that. Poke through that bubble; take a deep breath. Breathe God in; feel the peace of letting go. This is what you were meant for. The world you think you experience is only superficial – God is reality and you crave your return to Him. Open up every fiber you have in your being to saturation by God. Let Him bathe every cell you have in His warmth and peace. Things will look entirely different to you – things will appear as they really are and you will suddenly understand those who have gone before you on this journey. When you see from God’s viewpoint, everything will be clear. But you have to take in that first deep breath of God’s presence, letting it fill your spirit with goodness, and forcing the world’s badness out with finality. Away with it goes your attachment to the body, to the world, to the illusion of life without God. You are home, and breathing is easy.