Past, Present and Future

The new motto or focus of my life is to stay grounded in all areas, spiritually, intellectually, emotionally, etc. When I've thought about the "power of now" or staying in the present moment, it's been more of an attempt to almost "stop planning" or "stop looking at the past." While all of that is well and good... I mean we should just "be present." I completely agree 

with that.

Embrace Who You Are

"The way you are, the way you feel right in this moment is perfection."

All spiritual teachings approach spirituality from different viewpoints or planes.  For me to approach spirituality from a different plane does not invalidate other teachings, it simply just offers teachings from another, different plane.  Truth is inclusive, not exclusive.  It is possible, when truths are contained on different planes, for all truths to be simultaneously true.  It is with that awareness that I write the following.

Taking Care of Myself First

"If I take care of myself and my basic needs, I contribute to my own personal power and sense of self worth."

Like many things in life, there are many different approaches that achieve the same goal.  On the spiritual path, I have found that my instinctive approach to something is completely backwards.  I tend to look at the goal and then work backwards from that.  For example, I may be unhappy with a particular circumstance.  Conventional wisdom wants me to put all of my attention and energy on changing the circumstance.

I always have two choices.  I can try to change the circumstance or I can accept it for what it is.  I always have this choice, too: focus on the inner life or focus on the outer life.  Focusing on the inner life may mean that I accept the circumstance as part of the Cosmic plan.  If I focused on changing the circumstance, what do I feel?  I feel that I am out of alignment with Life.  I am working upstream.

This is not to say that I can never change my circumstance.  This is simply saying that I should first accept it and consider if there is anything within me that needs to change.  Perhaps I need a perspective shift that will allow me to view it in a new light.  I might see that the circumstance does not need to change at all.  Or, the circumstance changes of its own accord.  As I put out higher and higher vibrations, the vibrational field around me will eventually match.  In other words, as I become a more positive, accepting person, my circumstance will improve to be lighter and freer than it was before.  This may be because of my perspective change, the influence of my attitude and actions on others, or the causal effect of external, mysterious forces.  The point is that rather than take the seemingly correct action of attempting to change my external reality, it may be helpful to consider an inside-out approach.

Another example where an inside-out approach may be warranted is when I want to increase my own sense of personal power and self-worth.  One road may be for me to directly attempt to empower myself through perhaps trying to control others or manipulate my circumstance.  Or, I may try to inflate my self-worth through elevating myself in relation to others or accomplishing things that improve my external image.  Rather than attempt to increase these areas directly, it may be more helpful to look deeper at their origin.

Is other words, I need to look at what needs to change within me.  To change me, I take positive actions that invest time and energy into myself.  If I take care of myself and my basic needs, I contribute to my own personal power and sense of self worth.  This is because deficiencies in my personal power may be related to an undeveloped sense of self.  To cultivate a sense of self, I need to devote time and energy into fostering it.  By simply spending time on myself, I am increasing my self-worth through my actions.  I am investing my limited resource of time on me which builds my worth.  If I practice self-care, I am watering, nurturing and fertilizing both my physical body and soul.  This, in turn, is putting money into my "personal power bank."  I am building up a reserve of power that I can draw upon to mindfully wield when challenging situations arise.

Practice Unconditional Acceptance

"Unconditional love needs unconditional acceptance. We can learn to receive this love through living a life of gratitude."

We often speak of unconditional love. If we fully grasped the meaning of unconditional love, we would realize what a difficult concept this is. It is easy to love those that are lovable but difficult to love those that are unloveable. We love saints and popular people but dislike sinners and the outcasts. Placing no conditions on love means even loving mass murderers and other egregious sinners. This is truly a difficult thing to do, yet this is exactly how the Universe loves us. It is when we start to comprehend the scope of this love, that our hearts begin to open.

How is it possible that the Universe has unconditional love for us? Conditions upon things are attached to our physical reality. A condition means that "I will do this for you, if you do this for me." However, a condition is a form of doing. Lack of conditions means we are in a state of being. In loving us, the Universe loves us for our being, for who we are not what we can do.

If we are looking at the spiritual side of life, where there are no opposites, all in life is good. Pain reminds us that we are alive, teaches us a lesson and may push us towards the spiritual world. Death is just a changing of clothes as we move on to the next role in the Divine play. Trials are put there in our life to remind us of our spiritual heritage. We see that all in life is good from a heavenly perspective which helps us better understand the mystery of unconditional love.

The paradox is that the Universe has unconditional love for us yet the nature of our Being is that we are unconditional love. This is because God is love and we are also part of God. To feel unconditional love or, more accurately, to be unconditional Love, we must remove the things that block it. Unconditional love needs unconditional acceptance. We can learn to receive this love through living a life of gratitude.

We limit unconditional love if we ourselves put limits on its acceptance. Unconditional acceptance is opening our hearts wide open to ourselves. Putting conditions on accepting love is like saying "I will be a lovable person if I lose weight" or "...if I stop lying." We are lovable just as we are, inwardly and outwardly. We are complex, beautiful expressions of an infinite God just as we are. We do not have to learn unconditional love; we are unconditional love. We have to learn how to be empty vessels to allow this love to bubble up in us from the eternal Spring.

Gratitude is simply being grateful for everything in our lives. As we are gracious, our hearts begin to open more and more. Living a life of gratitude implies a state of Being that is gracious. Be thankful for all that is in your life. Write these things down every day; say them aloud. In doing so, your true nature emerges. To the extent that you are thankful, to that same extent you will be more in touch with your inner nature of unconditional love.

Why Acceptance Works

"By accepting something, I am willing to go with the flow of life, knowing that I have a Higher Power orchestrating events and situations in such a way that the greatest good will be realized."

Why does acceptance work?  In other words, why does accepting someone or a circumstance out of my control actually improve the situation?  This is because, by accepting something, I am releasing control over it.  When I am in control of a situation, I am too close to it to make good decisions.  Accepting something or "turning something over to God" actuates my Higher Self.  My Higher Self operates in a different plane of existence and has access to unlimited resources that I am not aware of in my day to day existence.  By accepting something, I am willing to go with the flow of life, knowing that I have a Higher Power orchestrating events and situations in such a way that the greatest good will be realized.  I am demonstrating with my actions that the greatest barrier to my success in life is myself, my limiting beliefs and shortcomings.  If I will just lay "self" down, then I am able to tap into a very real power that will help me.

Another fantastic side-effect of acceptance, is that my thoughts begin to change about that which I was opposing.  My thoughts were originally negative: wanting the situation removed, focusing only on myself and feeling the associated bad feelings with being out of alignment with my circumstance.  If I accept, there is a subtle shift in my mood and outlook.  My energy is no longer focused on negative emotions nor is my thought addicted to controlling the situation.  That which I think about will come to pass.  If I am caught up in negative emotion and feel trapped, I will stay trapped and continue to feel badly.  Acceptance yields the benefit of me not having to come up with a solution and releases me from mental bondage to a difficult situation.  As my thoughts become lighter and freer, I will find that my situation will change.  This change will not be of my own doing.  Often times, the way "out" is very different from what I originally imagined.  Sometimes, it's me that has to change.

It's like a child who is too short to reach a counter where a toy sits. The child may struggle indefinitely trying to reach the toy. In reality, the child is just too short to reach. Maybe there is a bigger and better toy sitting right at the feet of the child and all that she has to do is look down to see it. 

In the same way, if I just accept a situation as it is, my myopic view will expand to see the infinite possibilities that exist in life. I will maybe see the reason for the obstacle, a way around it, or even a better alternative to that which I am struggling to obtain.