I'm thinking about one of my favorite "words to live by:" ...our toes get stepped on, seemingly without provocation, invariably we find we have made a decision based on self that later placed us in a position to be hurt.
I know of nobody on first hearing that who accepts it just as it stands...we usually reject it out of hand, in fact. Staying with my own first, gut-bucket reaction, I heard that no matter the cause for my hurt, I was to blame. Fortunately, spiritual growth stops gut-bucket reacting...at least long enough for second thoughts.
I have come to the belief that the Sermon on the Mount, that living by the precepts of the Sermon, is our no-fault insurance. Face it, the Sermon is all about giving over, giving up, giving in...to others. What else is Agree with your adversary quickly and If someone slaps you upside your head, turn the other cheek, or Resist not evil?
There is the key to our decision based on self. Our decision to do or not do, go or not go, be present or not be present...all self-based. The reasoning mind responds with a loud, Well, duh!
Our spiritual need takes us deeper, and we realize it's all about surrendering. Life itself is all about surrendering our egoic self. We recognize the principle of One, and glimpse that spark of the divine where we each give over, give up, give in...not to others, as such, but to the Father within who does the works.
Mystics, saints and walking-around students of the spiritual...you and me, we...believe that our sincerest desire is to find the spark of divine within us. According to Meister Eckhart, We have to make contact with this divine spark by emptying ourselves or letting go. And then we will know the unity that already exists.
There. We begin thinking of our unprovoked, stepped-on toes as leading us up that stairway to heaven.
Thank you.
No comments:
Post a Comment