The Heart's Desire

This Sunday, I will continue with my series of talks based on Deepak Chopra’s book, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success. I will be exploring the concepts of ‘desire, ’intention,’ and ‘detachment.’

In the Buddhist tradition, the second noble truth is that desire and ignorance are the cause of all suffering. The Christian tradition also seems to teach that one should not desire things, often citing Matthew 6:19-20, “Do not store up treasures on earth…but store up treasures in heaven…”  Books and movies like, The Secret, encourage us to use the law of attraction to manifest our desires. Some denounce that concept as too materialistic. Desire is a natural aspect of our nature, but often we feel guilty for engaging our desires. To better understand the innate drive called “desire”, to learn to honor and respect it, rather than attempt to avoid it, let’s explore it.

Abraham, through Esther Hicks, teaches that desire is the beginning of all creation.

Charles Fillmore, the co-founder of Unity, says, in the book Prosperity, “Desire is the onward impulse of the ever evolving soul. It builds from within outward and carries its fulfillment with it as a necessary corollary.”

Marie Watts, in The Ultimate, says, “Mind is never impoverished. Within Its infinite Self-containment all that It can ever desire eternally exists. Every right desire and the conscious power of fulfillment of that desire are contained with this all-knowing Mind.”

Deepak Chopra says, “We are each multidimensional beings, and the different levels of our being give rise to different desires. At the physical level, our body has certain needs and desires for food, water, comfort, nourishing touch and other essential elements for health and vitality. The subtle or psychological level of our existence, which includes our mind, ego, and intellect, desires emotional security and connection. And the causal or spiritual level wants to express itself and experience oneness, expansion, and unity.”

I offer that true desire is born of Love. It is Love loving Itself, and Love perceiving Itself as the impulse toward manifestation. The fulfillment of desire rests in its complete acceptance and allowing of the one who receives the conscious awareness of it.

At the foundation of all true desire is the expression of Love. God, as Love, loved Itself into being as the only begotten idea for humankind, the Christ. The Christ is the essence of each of us, and as Love in expression, must therefore also be Love. Love cannot create anything unlike Itself for it knows none other.

Encoded in the very essence of us is the desire to realize ourselves as the Christ and to be the Christ in expression as Love. The ways in which we do that are unique to each of us. I have often wondered why there are more than seven billion humans on the planet. The answer must be that it takes each and every one of us to complete Love’s calling to bring Love into manifestation. Each of us has a role to play in the unfolding of the desire for Love realized and demonstrated on the earth.

Embedded in the heart of each of us is our unique expression of Love in the world. We can choose in every moment to open to the conscious awareness of it as it calls to us from the depth of being. Within that, love reveals itself to us as our heart’s desire.

As we awaken to Love’s call as desire, we are drawn to listen for the still small voice of Love at the heart of our being which speaks to us through many avenues, including inspiration and intuition. Inspiration and intuition are our personal guides to the fulfillment of our heart’s desire.

Inspiration is present in every moment and may make itself known to us if we are open to the acceptance and conscious awareness of it. It may manifest through the voice of a friend or trusted guide, in the pages of a book, in the silence of meditation, in times of connection with nature, or even on a billboard as we drive down the street.

Intuition is our connection with the “inner knower” that guides us toward Love’s fulfillment. We must allow ourselves to be aware and awake to the life that is present in every moment as we follow our intuition, usually one step at a time.

As we respond to inspiration and follow our intuition, we are guided to what we need. We often mistakenly think of a “need’ as something that is lacking, and we frequently feel tension when considering a need. Eric Butterworth, Unity Minister and author, helps us to reframe the concept of a “need” when he states in his book, The Universe is Calling, that “a need is a vessel to be filled.”

When we choose to think of a “need” as a vessel to be filled, we awaken to a different perspective. Rather than viewing “need’ from a consciousness of lack, we can instead think of it as a container that when filled helps to facilitate the fulfillment of desire, thus the expression of Love.

Before the so-called need is met in the physical form, the vessel must first be filled with the divine substance of our consciousness. Substance is not matter. It is not present in physical form. Emilie H. Cady in Lessons in Truth says,

“God, then, is the substance (from sub: under and stare: to stand) or the real thing standing under every visible form of life, love, intelligence, power.” 

The vessel called “need” must be filled by the conscious awareness of God (Love). Once the need is filled with divine substance in our consciousness, then the physical manifestation must occur. It is the law.

We fill the “need” in consciousness by setting a clear intention. Intention is the method by which we focus our minds on the manifestation of our heart’s desire. Setting a clear intention sets up a field of energetic vibration that draws into itself all that is in resonance with it and all that will assist us in giving expression to our desire.

Granted, because the manifestation of our desire usually happens over time, it is often essential for us to practice our power of faith. As Paul said in his letter to the Hebrews, “faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)

Even when the evidence has not yet appeared in the physical, through the practice of faith, we know beyond all appearances that as we remain open and willing to follow where Love leads, that every “need” is met because true desire contains the power of its fulfillment. We trust that as we remain true to Love’s call, that the need is met in perfect time and in divine order.

As we practice our power of faith, we release all attachment to our ideas of outcome and surrender to the intelligent, loving working of the Universe to bring into demonstration that which is in perfect alignment to our desire. It may be something greater than we have even begun to imagine. This is the practice of detachment.

Desire is born from the Love expressing in us, through us, as us. It is not, as we sometimes believe, born from the awareness of something lacking. True desire contains its own fulfillment, thus we need not seek it in the external. We must seek it only from within. As Charles Fillmore, the cofounder of Unity, stated, “Desire…builds from within outward and carries its fulfillment with it as a necessary corollary.” 

Desire is the impulse of Love moving as us. Inspiration and intuition guide us to what is needed in every moment. Intention draws us to and draws to us that which is needed to manifest our desire. Through the power of faith, we know that every “need” is met. Therefore, we can detach from the outcome knowing and trusting the Goodness of God in all things. Step by step we are led toward the fulfillment of our heart’s desire.

Honoring the desires of our hearts by listening deeply for the still small voice at the center or our being, acting on our inspirations, following our intuition, setting a clear intention, exercising our power of faith to bring into manifestation all that is needed to fulfill our desire, and detaching from the outcome, we honor the God within us, and we demonstrate Love in the world.

As we honor the desire that moves us toward a greater expression and experience of Love, that which we truly are, we bring the consciousness of Heaven to earth. Isn’t that The Heart's Desire?