BE STILL AND KNOW

You don’t have to figure it all out or get it all right ahead of time. You just have to stay on the journey. All you can do is stay connected to the Source, which connects you to everything else. --   Fr. Richard Rohr, "Daily Meditation," October 1, 2014.

It came to me this morning that the biggest danger in thinking a problem through is we often wind up just honing our reasoning mind. (Which, may I say, is the last thing that needs honing because our reasoning mind, sometimes known as our attack mind, always legislates for itself.)

I pondered that, and it came to me that probably more arguments are won by not saying a word than all the fancy dancing on the head of a pin trying to think of the killing topper. Nor is "winning" silently turning our attitude loose to do our dirty work for us, nor is it responding in kind to disrespect, gibes or jeers. "Winning" is our own peace of mind, gifted to us simply by our staying on the journey, the spiritual course.

It is our reasoning mind that will not accept that and wakes us at 2:00 AM to tell us what we should have said, how we could have won. And there's our gold...that is the gift, the gift of another opportunity to learn the practical value of "thank you," the greatest gift of all for it buys us peace of mind.

A very practical hint: Nothing shuts our attack mind up quicker than agreement...and at 2:00 AM, all we really need is to shut our attack mind up. A silent "thank you for sharing" will do it. We agree, we turn over and go back to sleep; we disagree, and we're awake the rest of the night, thinking, "I shoulda said this...no, I shoulda said that, etc., etc., etc."

Be still and know that I am God. Be still and know that I am, God.

Thank you.