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Hearts Awaken...Spirit Connection. Part I
Flnding and Creating A Spiritual Life includes:
1. Knowing we have the desire and the need to Connect-- it is built into us, and we can nurture that and help it to grow. This need of ours is Spirit's First Law.
2. Coming to Believe: Doubters can test the realness of Spirit by "acting as if" there is a Greater Power-- that way, we open to information that may confirm this belief. Many seekers of spirit find themselves confirmed of the existence of God after doing this for a time. Of course, anyone who finds no further proof is free to discontinue the experiment.
3. Communicating with Spirit--Talking, asking, Giving thanks, and listening.
4. "Thy will, not Mine": Learning to step down from (Gods) throne and let Spirit be the major player -- relinquishing self to Open to Spirit's Bigger View...
The desire to Connect:
Spirit's First Law
Is that We Are Spiritual Beings Craving Truth & Connection. We all have needs deep inside us for this, and our souls will accept no substitutes. The "hole" in us that calls out for SpiritLove must be filled by Love & Spirit-- If we end up trying to fill it with material things we will run into a bottomless pit of addiction.
Coming to Believe
The existence of "Something Greater"-- Spirit or God-- cannot be proved by science, but it CAN be proved by experience! The test is this:
put aside your withholds & non- belief temporarily-- You still don't have to actually believe that there is a GodSpirit, but just agree to "act as if" there is one, for, say, a few short weeks. This experiment is what made me, and many others, into believers.* Read More
Faith is a quiet assurance inside that must be used in order for its truth to be proven .
"Faith trials" can include:
"Believing"-- Just for Today, that:
Things will be OK;
That there is enough love in the universe for you,and that you are loved:
That "Something Bigger" has your best interests at heart-- and all humanity's;
That Spirit cares about you and wants you to be happy; That your needs will be met...
That there is Something that Knows All-- and that we ain't it!
You might want to keep a journal of your experiences, better yet, have someone to share your explorations of faith with. Spirit so often works through people, and we never need to be alone in our journeys...
Communicating
The starting point of Communication with God-Spirit is called prayer. It does not have to be anything formal-- it can be a simple, sincere desire to understand or "let go" of old ideas, negative qualities or emotions; soul- searching, faith- filled waiting; a longing or intense connection with something beautiful as in nature or a painting; heartfelt thankfulness, or a visualization of Goodness coming to you in some form, or...
Just Ask
Our heartfelt wishes are known even before we speak them, but it is beneficial to express them aloud or silently. Rather than imposing of limits on what we want, or how we want it, a prayerful life includes wanting what Spirit has for us. We can ask for the willingness to open to this, or to the admission that we don't "know it all", and Something else does...
A spiritual life includes being able to "go with the flow", admitting that what we want may not always be the best plan for us. The inner desire to flow with the will of Spirit is the most important element in prayer.
Just Talk
You can just talk to Spirit as if it is another person-- a very special, wise Being who cares about your needs. Ask for help with your decisions, your cares and concerns and dreams. Get quiet, share the good things and be thankful...
Give thanks
Developing the quality of
thankfulness is a way of life that no one can take away from you, and it will help you through many challenges. Even if you have to search, make an effort to find the things that have brought you joy and dwell in the feeling of thankfulness for as long as you can stand it.:)) Try to increase your gratitude as time goes by: make lists of gratitudes; send quick thanks for every small pleasure. A great sense of companionship, communion, and Connectedness will result from your time spent in thankfulness; truly it is worship, and can lift you into an amazing sense of holiness springing from a place you may never have known existed.
Listen
In your quiet heart, imagine what Spirit has to give or say back to you; advice, love, praise, understanding, rejoicing. Let yourself imagine feel the presence of one who has great love, care and concern for you. This alone is healing.
"Thy will, not mine"
Ask for and seek the Will of the One Greater. If this Wiser One exists, it doesn't need my help in deciding what is best for me... I had to ask myself: If there is a Greater Will, what purpose will it serve to fight that? This is the essence of the spiritual life. When I stopped fighting the Stream of life, and instead asked what I could put into it, I was finally able to relax. I found my energies were so much more focused and effective when working with the way things were, (Spirit) rather than trying to force my puny, ill-informed will on a Force which would win out anyway, in the end...
Pay the Price
Give up anything that stands in the way; your self- centeredness, your need to have things your way, your fears, your self- image as a rebel, your pride, your destructive habits or complacency: all of this adds up to a great big zero when held up next to the immense rewards and benefits of a Spirit centered life. The truth is, you won't know what Spirit's will is until you let go of your own fearful grasp on controlling things. Only when you are willing to do this Greater Will, can you discover what it is.
Reap the rewards
Some of the results of living a life in synch with Spirit include:
Better health
Less worries, more relaxed experience of life
Natural thankfulness tending to override the difficulties of both physical and mental tests
Facing challenges with confidence and inner peace
You will be living by better values and will have better self -esteem
Greater appreciation for life and for the goodness that comes to you
More energy, less stress, more spontaneous joy in life, and more trust in the world
More forgiveness and tolerance for yourself and others
You will be able to be more honest, more trustworthy
You will find yourself developing more virtues
You will want to serve others and get great peace from doing so
Well, the list is endless, and as long as you continue your journey, you will continue to reap greater and greater rewards.
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* More on " Acting As If"... there is a god
The first I heard of this concept was in a 12 step program. They believed that there is a place in us all that calls out for Spirit, and that trying to fill it with other things resulted in their own negative addictions. For many of their patrons, "Acting as if" was key... Once they saw that their choice was between unhappy binging in their addictions, and finding a Spiritual way, they were willing to try this on. After all, if it was fruitless, the experiment could be discontinued... In case after case, when recovering addicts put aside their withholds & non- belief temporarily, "acting as if" there was "Something Greater"; they "came to believe" in that Something Greater...
I asked myself: Why was I so unwilling to put my disbelief aside for even a brief time at first? If the reasoning that gave rise to my disbelief was on solid ground, wouldn't I feel sure it would stand firm through such a test?
Today I see my attachment to disbelief as no more "reasonable" than my belief is now... and it can be seen as every bit as personal, stubborn and "unproveable" ( ie., arguable) as the attachment to one's own faith can be...
Whether one believes or does not believe, his or her experience is easily filtered through that belief system and taken as proof of its truth...
Faith must be used in order for its truth to be proven: but based on science alone one cannot prove definitvely that there is no god. In fact, many scientists believe in god through the very mysteries unveiled by their fields of study, and there are growing number of scientists who say that science points clearly to the existence of a god or Creator....
I was open to put my non- belief on the line and to try this experiment in my own life, and I'm glad I did! The choice is ours; but it seems clear that there is a great Power here to be tapped!
May you also move beyond Self...
To A Space Beyond the usual Limits of the mind where we see More Clearly, Freely, Creatively...
This is our Journey...
Without some action on our part, Time itself will close the "Window" of our knowing--
Only doing Something can we keep in touch with our Awakening..
Doing nothing-- ie., no "decision" is still
a decision , & Detours & wanderings can go on for years…
That's why we share many tools for ongoing engagement and awakening the Spirit- Mind, and call you and the Frieins of Earth * Heart to the investigation of truths that are of import to ourselves and our world...
Basic Spirituality --" Book I": is getting "rave reviews" & is available free through teleconferencing! 
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