TURN TO REASON, RETURN TO GOD

Spiritually speaking, you will be led to the edge of your own private resources. At that point, you will stumble over a necessary 'stumbling stone.' You must 'lose' at something, and then you begin to develop the art of losing. .-- from a "Daily Meditation" of Fr. Richard Rohr

The Buddhas do but tell the way, it is for you to swelter at the task. -- The Buddha

Too often when we're sweltering at the task, it feels that we must be "doing it wrong." And just believing from our eyebrows up what we have been told, that this is the "right" way, does not immediately calm our doubting mind.

But that is the way of still more spiritual growth, developing the art of losing. Of detaching. Of subtracting rather than adding on. Yet our reasoning mind will kick in: Put into words, that sounds doable, but put into action? Isn't that what once invited rues, regrets and remorses? Our learning of mirror image, the difference between spiritual and reason, stays our debate.

We must go down that wrong road again to realize we are on the wrong road. There...a clue that we're making progress...a paradox. It takes as long as it takes for us to become willing to turn from our own reasoning thoughts, to seek help, and to seek help not from out there but from within, from an invisible, inaudible Higher Power.

Maybe this is our great test: To walk our spiritual-growth way, stumble, slide over to reason, feel uncomfortable, return to spiritual, feel comforted...all the while with blinding flashes of the obvious to light our way.

Maybe.

If it is not, for sure we will be shown...if we continue to seek still more spiritual growth.

God can and will intervene in our life in our behalf.

Thank you.