When I first began my conscious spiritual quest, I believed that if I meditated and engaged in other spiritual practices every day I would eventually become enlightened, transcend the cares of the world, and live in a perpetual state of bliss. In fact, if I am totally honest, I held on to that dream until fairly recently. I hoped that when I “arrived” I would no longer have to deal with the concerns of everyday life. I took the idea of being “in the world, but not of the world” to heart and believed that my purpose, through spiritual practice, was to transform beyond the human experience.
My attitude was, “Alas, I am here in this physical world, and I don’t have to like it nor do I have to deal with all of that painful stuff that comes along with being human because I can choose to practice staying connected in Spirit.” After all, in John 17:14-19, Jesus said that he was not of the world and neither were his disciples. So I figured that being a disciple of the Christ (connecting with and following my Divine Nature within) would give me a pass on this worldly stuff.
I have since discovered, and I am continuing to learn that living a “spiritual life” is not about escaping the world, but about living more fully present while in it and responding to it accordingly from a consciousness centered in divine nature. Further, as I stated in last week’s post, in addition to waking up, it is vitally important for me to grow up. When I say, “Grow up” I mean not only to mature in my spiritual understanding, but also to grow in my ability to live my spirituality and be the expression of an awakened consciousness in my daily life. This necessitates that I consciously develop my innate capacities and abilities as well as learn and practice skills that will assist me in living my spiritual values and highest ideals.
This awareness has given me a new perspective on the slogan, “in the world, not of the world.” Rather than focusing on being “not of the world,” my emphasis is now on being “in the world.” I now see this as a reminder to be fully in the world and to show up to the best of my ability in every situation in every moment, holding to the expanded awareness of my Divine Nature. This does not mean that any of us has to be perfect or do things flawlessly all the time. It does, however, require that we have the intention to grow in our ability to be present as the best version or ourselves possible in each moment. In order to achieve that, you and I must be willing to continually learn new skills and hone them through practice. As the saying goes, “practice makes progress.”
Rather than approaching life with an “Alas” attitude, I am choosing to meet life with an “Oh Boy!” attitude - as in “Oh, Boy! I get to be in this physical experience learning and growing in my ability to live from my highest ideals and values. I get to do this every day that I am here, and be the best version of the Christ I can be at any moment. And, when I don’t live up to my best potential, I get to try again tomorrow.”
Most of us are taught how to survive in the world. Some of us are also privileged to be given instructions to thrive socially and economically. We are not, however, routinely taught skills that help us to become self-aware, self-actualized, compassionate and caring citizens of the world who respect and value each other and all expressions of Life.
There is a great deal of pain and suffering in the world. If we are to help relieve it, we must learn to be with it within ourselves and for others. We must learn skills that help us respond to it through our words and actions. As we learn and grow in our capacities to live from our spiritually awakened consciousness through actions that are in alignment with them, we embody “being in the world, but not of it.”
We are a global community, and we are co-creating this experience. We share the planet Earth and her resources. We breathe the same air. Our very survival depends upon us taking it upon ourselves to learn how to interact with others who are different from us. We must learn skills to foster self-awareness, self-compassion and self-forgiveness so that we can extend the same to others. We must learn interpersonal skills that serve to connect us. We must learn about our own worldview, and learn to hear and respect that of others.
Prayer, meditation and other spiritual practices help us to connect consciously with aspects that are “not of the world.” They are essential practices that strengthen us and prepare us to do the work that is required of us to “be in the world” – fully, authentically and wholeheartedly. I encourage us to know at the depth of our being that we are not defined by any aspect of the world, while also holding to the awareness that we are in it and therefore responsible to it. Let us take our responsibility to heart and bring the best version of ourselves to every moment.
My attitude was, “Alas, I am here in this physical world, and I don’t have to like it nor do I have to deal with all of that painful stuff that comes along with being human because I can choose to practice staying connected in Spirit.” After all, in John 17:14-19, Jesus said that he was not of the world and neither were his disciples. So I figured that being a disciple of the Christ (connecting with and following my Divine Nature within) would give me a pass on this worldly stuff.
I have since discovered, and I am continuing to learn that living a “spiritual life” is not about escaping the world, but about living more fully present while in it and responding to it accordingly from a consciousness centered in divine nature. Further, as I stated in last week’s post, in addition to waking up, it is vitally important for me to grow up. When I say, “Grow up” I mean not only to mature in my spiritual understanding, but also to grow in my ability to live my spirituality and be the expression of an awakened consciousness in my daily life. This necessitates that I consciously develop my innate capacities and abilities as well as learn and practice skills that will assist me in living my spiritual values and highest ideals.
This awareness has given me a new perspective on the slogan, “in the world, not of the world.” Rather than focusing on being “not of the world,” my emphasis is now on being “in the world.” I now see this as a reminder to be fully in the world and to show up to the best of my ability in every situation in every moment, holding to the expanded awareness of my Divine Nature. This does not mean that any of us has to be perfect or do things flawlessly all the time. It does, however, require that we have the intention to grow in our ability to be present as the best version or ourselves possible in each moment. In order to achieve that, you and I must be willing to continually learn new skills and hone them through practice. As the saying goes, “practice makes progress.”
Rather than approaching life with an “Alas” attitude, I am choosing to meet life with an “Oh Boy!” attitude - as in “Oh, Boy! I get to be in this physical experience learning and growing in my ability to live from my highest ideals and values. I get to do this every day that I am here, and be the best version of the Christ I can be at any moment. And, when I don’t live up to my best potential, I get to try again tomorrow.”
Most of us are taught how to survive in the world. Some of us are also privileged to be given instructions to thrive socially and economically. We are not, however, routinely taught skills that help us to become self-aware, self-actualized, compassionate and caring citizens of the world who respect and value each other and all expressions of Life.
There is a great deal of pain and suffering in the world. If we are to help relieve it, we must learn to be with it within ourselves and for others. We must learn skills that help us respond to it through our words and actions. As we learn and grow in our capacities to live from our spiritually awakened consciousness through actions that are in alignment with them, we embody “being in the world, but not of it.”
We are a global community, and we are co-creating this experience. We share the planet Earth and her resources. We breathe the same air. Our very survival depends upon us taking it upon ourselves to learn how to interact with others who are different from us. We must learn skills to foster self-awareness, self-compassion and self-forgiveness so that we can extend the same to others. We must learn interpersonal skills that serve to connect us. We must learn about our own worldview, and learn to hear and respect that of others.
Prayer, meditation and other spiritual practices help us to connect consciously with aspects that are “not of the world.” They are essential practices that strengthen us and prepare us to do the work that is required of us to “be in the world” – fully, authentically and wholeheartedly. I encourage us to know at the depth of our being that we are not defined by any aspect of the world, while also holding to the awareness that we are in it and therefore responsible to it. Let us take our responsibility to heart and bring the best version of ourselves to every moment.
We have a choice in every moment as to who we are. The divine "self" - who in reality one actually is - is already perfect and does not require "improvement" or a "best version" to bring out. It is only the self-centered merely human self that seeks a "better version" .
ReplyDeleteIs it possible that the "self-centered merely human self" is also perfect? Is it possible the world, as it is right now, is perfect? Are we not God's creation? Is it possible for God to create something that is not perfect? May I have a cocktail before I even attempt to grapple with any of these thoughts?
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DeleteDavid, thank you for your blog today. You have focused in on a topic that is central to my own spiritual journey. At various times along the path, I have thought the way to happiness was to "manifest" all my desires. In other words, to get stuff, which is definitely being "in the world." Having had some success with that approach, I discovered that having things brought its own set of circumstances, some of which I did not particularly like. That understanding eventually led me to a more spiritually oriented approach to living, where most of the time, I am trying to tune in to God's will for me. It feels good, but at times this path seems lto lead me to being rather isolated from the world I live in. Your essay suggests an approach that would bring one's spirituality into the world, and I like that idea. Still I wonder, "Is it really my job to transform the world?" I think that by trying to be the best person I can and by allowing Spirit to express through me in a way that suits me, I am doing God's will. And even though I may not understand exactly how it works, that behavior will contribute to positive changes in the world.
ReplyDeleteSpirit does not express "through" you. You are spirit. "Trying to be the best person you can be" is very trying and only maintains the false self-centered "only human" identity.
DeleteThis may be true. And there may be other truths, which are true, that may totally contradict this truth. I want to purchase a book that can teach me all the truths I need to know for me. Maybe I need to write it?
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DeleteAnonymous; Well, I think there is some kind of trying or effort involved, because I have tried just thinking "I am Spirit, so I am just going to hang out and see what happens." The result? Not much, actually a little depression. I know some spiritual traditions suggest we are already all we need to be. In The Course in Miracles there is a passage where it says, "finally we realize we need do nothing.." (my paraphrase.) But that realization is preceeded by a pretty rigorous course of daily lessons from the Workbook, in which the student is required to spend a lot of time working on disciplined thinking and meditation So I still maintain that there is some effort or trying required to transcent the illusions of suffering that dominate this world. Maybe in the end you can realize "You are Spirit," but nobody ever got there withour some effort.
DeleteSo the challenge is how to bring the divine "self" into full expression while we are in our human forms "in the world". I too believe that spiritual practices do "strengthen us and prepare us to do the work that is required of us to 'be in the world' fully, authentically and wholeheartedly." It is being vulnerable to the turbulence in life and trusting that we can make a difference in ourselves and in the world. It is our world to love.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the "challenge of bringing the divine self into full expression", one needs to ask oneself, who is asking the question.
DeleteThe idea that perfection is a destination is not one of my truths. I am perfect. You are perfect. The Universe is perfect. These are some of my truths.
ReplyDeletePerfection does not mean finality or arrival because it is not a destination. Our destination will never be final as much as the Universe will always be perfect. (Apologies to Sister Rose Marie, who tried to teach me that I should never use the word always. Or was it that I should always use the word never? Maybe it was I should always never use the words always and never?)
Perfection can change. It does. We do. And yet we are perfect. I believe it. As soon as I get my mind around that idea, I will apply for Unity Sainthood!
The Universe was not made for any individual but for the collective. Our small, tiny, eensy-weensy, little bit of the Universe is exactly what we have decided it should be. No one else is responsible for the way things are so let us accept that responsibility. It's our responsibility to change the world as much as it is our responsibility to decide whether those changes were "better" or "worse" or "didn't make a bit of difference". However, the Universe will remain perfect before we make changes, while we are making changes and after we make changes. That's my truth. Anyone can join me! But know this: everything I say may be wrong.
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DeleteAs always, thank you. Just the reminder and set of possibilities that will help me continue to expand, transcend and transform my limiting beliefs from where I am on my journey right here and now.
ReplyDelete