It's me, mike hillebrecht

I stated in the last posting about the spiritual tool of forgiveness and how it is the heaviest tool to wield. Much of the focus on that tool was dealing with how your ego in its groping for dominance is willing to risk being ignorant on a matter in an effort to appear right. Recognizing how this trait in each person is prevalent throughout our daily activities we need to first accept forgiveness for our own ignorance so that we can then forgive others.

As easy as it is to say this, the “doing” part of it is where we get stuck over and over again. This brings us to the next spiritual tool which in many ways is the catalyst towards forgiveness as described in David R. Hawkins M.D., Ph.D. book “Transcending the Levels of Consciousness”.

Spiritual Tool #6

Approach all of life with humility and be willing to surrender all positionalities and all mental/emotional arguments or gain.

Humility is where our ego/pride dies. It is said that pride goes before a fall. When the fall occurs – and it always does – humility is all that is left. The natural response is to either then to ask for forgiveness for our self from others as the final nail to the death of our ego or allow our ego to resuscitate itself is the dark recesses of shame and guilt.

Our ego seeks to parade about thinking it is capped with a jewel-encrusted crown which causes all to fall in obedience. Rarely are we capable of recognizing how the mental stabbing pains of carrying such a crown is really the crown of thorns which is the only head piece our ego truly deserves to wear.

Read this next statement out loud. I do not KNOW anything. This is a true statement. It is not meant to demean, humiliate, or disgrace you. Understand that to KNOW something, you must BE that thing. You can learn about something through reading, listening, or viewing videos, however, all you have is partial information. Until you BE-come all your information is simply data points on a continuum of knowledge.

Did you have difficulty accepting the claim about not knowing anything? Most people do. The reason is really quite simple: They refuse to surrender who they believe they are and the narrative they project to underscore their belief.

Humility is all about surrender. As this tool declares spiritual seekers are willing to relinquish their hold on the positions that have taken; the mental gamesmanship it takes to maintain every position; and the emotional arguments bent on gaining the upper hand towards any position. Surrender in this manner is not weakness or defeatist – it is acceptance to the truth. You do not KNOW anything.

This entire concept is probably turning your ego over and over attempting to justify a response. Justification is only a device employed by the ego to stay in a perceived position of superiority. But are you willing to give that perceived position up? Are you willing to forego the mental dialogue you’re conducting right this moment in order to be humble?

Humility is a responsibility. Many run from taking any type of responsibility in many areas of their lives. There are those who take responsibility to justify their actions not only with themselves but to those around them. This too is the work of the ego.

There are the rare few who responsibly chose to remain humble at all costs – even at the cost of life itself. Christ is the prime example of humility. His actions during the drama leading up to and during the crucifixion represent the surrender of positionality and the mental/emotional argument for the gain of his life. His final words of, “Forgive them Father for they know not what they do…” demonstrates how humility and forgiveness work hand in hand.

This burden of this tool might seem too heavy to bare. I submit to you how it might be best if you ease into it in areas of your life where your ego feels less threatened. Every victory you have with humility, even small ones, work to diminish the ability of the ego to hamper your spiritual journey. You have chosen this lifestyle so live it to its fullest, humbly.

Whether you realize it or not, everyone is on a journey towards spiritual enlightenment. Many travel the path intentionally, while others only experience it when they cross over with their last breath. For those of us who are serious about reaching for all that we can spiritually achieve in this life the search for tools to ensure our progress becomes a vital aspect of our journey. David R. Hawkins M.D., Ph.D. in his book “Transcending the Levels of Consciousness” has described what he calls spiritual tools which any devotee can employ to transcend into spiritual enlightenment.

Through the past few postings, I have been exploring some of these tools which include kindness, reverence, asking for wisdom, and intentional looking. The tool in this post is possible the heaviest one to handle and is taught broadly across all spiritual traditions.

Spiritual Tool #5

Forgive everything that is witnessed and experienced, no matter what.

This tool, more than other, is a direct assault on your ego. Each of us lives a perceived reality which is entirely shaped by our ego. The minute-by-minute chatter which goes on in our head is the egoic justification we endure to center our reality wherein we are the sole victor. This is happening to everyone, every day, all the time. Your reality and the reality of your neighbor are not identical no matter how much you might think they are. The only common denominator is how you’re both seeking to not be seen as wrong or weak.

As Christ hung from the cross, his uttered, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” This is the model which Christians use to teach forgiveness. Yet, most people will confess that Christians are the most unforgiving people on the planet. How is this possible? It might be found in this tool at the juncture labeled, “…no matter what.”

Yes, someone trampled on your ego. Feelings/pride got bruised or hurt and you felt less they who you think you are. So what? Besides you, who really cares? You can stop reading here if you want, but isn’t running away what you always do when your ego is confronted with a truth it can’t surmount?

For a moment let’s both agree on this one thing: we are ignorant.

Our ego likes to think that we know everything about everything and everyone. We don’t. This is how you have created a perceived reality. Socrates said that men can only choose what they believe to be good. Ignorance is a poison to belief. In other words, none of us knows what is good because we lack the fullness of the knowledge of good.

How many of those involved in the crucifixion of Christ thought what they were doing was good? Probably all of them. Yet, he asks the Father to forgive them because of their ignorance.

Human ego when confronted by spiritual truth cannot survive so it will often fake its death and resurrect itself as spiritual pride. The spiritual pride of many Christians believes that they have the Truth, and therefore are beyond ignorance in spiritual matters. Their ignorance is not recognizing how having Truth and being Truth operate on different realms of existence.

For now, let’s both agree how none of us wants to hear someone say to us, “…forgive them Father for they are ignorant of…” If that claim doesn’t raise the cockles of your ego than you haven’t been paying attention – no matter what!

Look Christ, Buddha, Krishna all proclaimed how all error is due to ignorance. You are not immune. Some of your biggest mistakes in life have been because you just didn’t know. Regrettably, your ego still to this day will not allow you to forget it either.

Please understand that there is huge difference between being ignorant and being stupid. I am in no way saying that you are stupid. Your ego does a better job of that than I might even consider myself capable of. However, ignorance is the touchstone of our bond. Yes, we are ignorant in many differing fields. There is no harm in admitting this unless your ego thinks it keeps you from being all you desire to be.

Let’s try to keep a front line of defense against our ego by being humble enough to say, “Forgive me Father for being ignorant.” Maybe we can then begin to forgive – no matter what!

David R. Hawkins M.D., Ph.D. in his book “Transcending the Levels of Consciousness” has described what he calls spiritual tools which any devotee can employ to transcend into spiritual enlightenment. As I have shown in the past few posts there is a simplicity to the use of these tools, but they are extremely effective in attacking our ego/pride. This fourth one has similar results.

Spiritual Tool #4

Intend to see the hidden beauty in all that exists – it then reveals itself.

There is a verse in the Hebrew wisdom scriptures which says, “As a man thinks, so is he.” This might seem counter intuitive, but your mind is not who you are. You can think about any of a number of things (and you do daily) but they are not who you are.

The key to this tool is intention. We see things all around us and our ego is searching how it might benefit us or cause us harm and should then be avoided. Rarely do we intentionally look for, or even at something because it drains our mental resources (i.e., suspends the function of the ego). The closest act of intentional looking might be looking at a painting in an a museum, however, even this act is fraught with self-talk about what was the artist thinking, who were they trying to paint the picture for, was the artist on some type of simulants that cause such piece to be produced, or any of a number of other mental mechanisms to justify why you’re looking at a price-less piece of work.

There is the saying that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The question this bring up is whether the beauty seen was intentional sought after. As this tool claims hidden beauty reveals itself when intention is applied in the looking. This is not obvious beauty but rather the beauty which is veiled from our first glance. What and even where might this hidden beauty be witnessed?

Think for a moment of every place you avoid; or even people you keep away from; or medical conditions you find it unbearable to be around; or difficult social situations where you try desperately to leave before being overwhelmed by the anxiety they create within you. Your ego has programmed you to resist these types of encounters because it assumes there to be no value for you within them.

In the Hebrew creation narrative, God creates the world and all which is within it and declares that it was “good” and “very good.” The probability of “beauty” being enveloped within the good/very-good proclamation I would say was pretty darn high then and still is today.

In this world it is very evident that ugliness retains a prominent hold on our eyesight. The repeated viewing of this has the ability to lower our level of spiritual consciousness. This tool is a remedy to this issue by intentional directing our sight out of what our ego has declared as the repulsiveness of life into a mindset which is inclusive of all.

One important caveat to this tool is the quantum mechanic nature of its use. One of the revelations which the science of quantum mechanics has produced center around the split slot experiment. I’ll attempt to paraphrase what this experiment produced.

A devise was setup which held a piece of cardboard which had two slits cut through it. A light beam was shot at the slits and then measured on the opposite side as to how it passed. The scientists were trying to determine if the light exited as a particle or as a wave since are the two forms of how light travels. Every time the experiment was run, the researchers found precisely what they were looking for. When looking for a particle, this is how it appeared; when looking for a wave, this too is how it appeared. At first this did not seem possible. It was only after intense debate and verification that it was discovered how the light always became whatever the researcher was attempting to measure! It seems that the intention of the viewing always shaped the outcome to meet it.

This is precisely what this spiritual tool is describing. Intend to look for beauty and that is what you’ll see. Conversely, if all you intend to look for is the opposite of beauty, that is what you’ll see. It is all up to you, it always has been. It’s not rocket science…but then again…

In this post I am going to piggy-back on something I wrote from the previous post. The reason has to do with what the third spiritual tool is as defined by David R. Hawkins M.D., Ph.D. in his book “Transcending the Levels of Consciousness.”

Spiritual Tool #3

Presume no actual reliable knowledge of anything at all. Ask God to reveal its meaning

The spiritual journey is a progressive execution of your ego. As you transcend into higher levels of spiritual awareness your ego is going to fight back like a drowning victim thrashing in the water. Ascension only comes as the ego dies.

This is what I said in the prior posting:

The one thing your ego does not like is not knowing. It is seen as a sign of weakness. Yet can you seriously be expected to know everything?

From an early age we are indoctrinated in institutions of learning ranging from pre-school to elementary, middle, and high school, then to college or university. Church life is even structured toward varying class levels to bring the congregants into the “knowledge of God.” All of this grasping for knowledge about any subject matter is merely a salve to your bruised ego. But how?

There is a saying in the church which claims, “To be too spiritually minded is to be no earthly good.” This is purely an egoic statement since it is often expressed against those who believe in the purpose of this third spiritual tool. In the mind of the people making this accusation asking, praying, or seeking God about a matter which clearly can be addressed from the wealth of “knowledge” already available is simply operating from a master/slave mentality.

Any response from an adherent who employs this mode of operating is often rebuked with, “You have the mind of Christ. Why don’t you use it?” Pride/ego takes many paths to keep oneself in positions of superiority – even against God.

Consider what this tool is revealing. We live in an age of media saturation where powers are manipulating the narrative of any event to shape the thoughts and actions of people around the globe. Pick any topic and you can find any number of authors who profess to be experts, analysis who have the inside track, and commentators who assemble viewpoints for the masses to digest. But is any of this balanced? No, since every topic has at least two viewpoints to consider. If there are more than two, prepare for a frenzy of mudslinging to establish dominance.

This tool reveals how within this entire mess there is NO RELIABLE knowledge. Just look around you and witness the truth of this declaration. From health matters to worldwide war people/nations are operating with no reliable knowledge yet believing they know reality.

One of the truths associated with God is the character of being ALL KNOWING. Every moment of every day God knows everything and what it means. God even knows what your lack of knowledge means! So why not ask? Oh yeah, your ego still wants to play the role of god for your life. How is that working for you?

This a continuation from my previous post. I am looking at what thought patterns, or tools, lead a person into spiritual enlightenment. The genesis of these writings came from the book entitled “Transcending the Levels of Consciousness” by David R. Hawkins M.D., Ph.D. These tools are simple to use yet produce a profound result when applied to our daily lives. They can be use singularly or as a collective whole to lead you into a transformative spiritual lifestyle.

The path toward spiritual enlightenment is the progressive death of our ego. Using these tools will reveal just how great are the narcissistic manipulation it inflicts upon us ruling as a champion of our actions to the severely singular judge of our intentions.

The first tool of kindness opened the portal of our thoughts about just who “deserves” our kindness. Trying to justify kindness clearly exposes the depth of our ego’s influence to protect us at any cost. This second tool will ride upon this same crest.

Spiritual Tool #2

Revere all of life in all of its expressions, no matter what, even if you don’t understand it.

Here is an indication how the spiritual life is not linear in thought but rather non-linear. For the majority of our lives we have conducted ourselves in a “cause and effect” model of reality. We’ve associated events to be the result of certain actions, like seedtime and harvest time. Your daily planner and to-do lists are other examples of linear thinking. Computer operating systems are the premier example of linear affairs since sequential processes must be successfully performed in order to take the next step towards activation of the system.

While these spiritual tools are numerically ordered, they are not spiritual sequential. There is no order to their use simply because the spiritual life is non-linear. This is difficult to comprehend for those who spend their entire day thinking about what the next thing will be to do. Spirit life is not about “doing” more than it’s about “being,” and often it’s not knowing where “being” is. I’m going to stop here since this is a topic which will be expanded throughout these writings. Let’s move on.

“Revere.” How often have you used this word? I’ll bet you can count all the times on one hand. Society has lost the art of reverence. We don’t respect anything of anyone these days. Sure, there may be a few outliers in far away places who still tip their hat to ladies on the street or take it off when they enter a room; who hold the door open for someone; who bow their head at the restaurant before eating; who brake for small animals to cross the street; who tear up at the sight of a newborn child or the embrace of a grandparent.

There is a name for the Creator which many follow called “The Ground of All Being.” All of creation came from within this fertile soil and subsists through it. In the fourth gospel, the writer identifies this divine soil as the Logos and claims, “…all things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made.”

Can you revere a seed? Do you stand in awe of what it does? Do you admire the life which springs forth from it? Have you ever given thanks for the seed? Have you ever felt smaller than the seed simply by recognizing the power it has within it, a power you still haven’t been able to fathom or comprehend? Do you fear the relationship the seed has with the soil as a picture of your life.

Many are filled with knowledge about a multitude of things. They gained this knowledge through books, teachings, podcasts, and a whole host of media outlets. This “knowledge” often diminishes the necessity of reverence for the subject matter. When we take our “knowledge” and begin to “be” what we’ve thought, a moment of awe happens. Suddenly, “being” is a whole lot different than “knowing.” This moment is what revering is about.

The one thing your ego does not like is not knowing. It is seen as a sign of weakness. Yet can you seriously be expected to know everything? How does your ego feel about not knowing how a seed knows when to sprout; or how butterflies know how to travel from North America to South America; or how dogs are able to detect cancer in a human body; or how a boy meets a girl and falls in love.

Take a moment today to revere all which surrounds you. Maybe it is the person who you were kind to or maybe it is something else. Let the moment be unknowing. Just be…revering.

Over the next few writings, I am going to be commenting on some materials which I have been reading for some time now, the genesis of which can be found in the book entitled “Transcending the Levels of Consciousness” by David R. Hawkins M.D., Ph.D. I’m not going to explain the basis and practice of Dr. Hawkins work simply because it is impractical on this venue to fit over 40 years of work which produced over 20 books into a couple of posts and be able to provide it justice. If you want to learn more about Dr. Hawkins work, I suggest that you start with his book “Power vs Force.”

What are spiritual tools?

Tools are a means to an end. A hammer allows you to drive a nail; a hoe enables you to break up the soil; a whisk helps you combine ingredients. We use tools all day long to make our physical life easier.

Spiritual tools are not implements or gadget which will get you to enlightenment faster. Rather they are thought patterns which over the many of millenniums of human existence have been recognized as truths which shape the path towards spiritual enlightenment.

Recognize how the term “spiritual enlightenment” does not resonate with Western religious traditions as much as it does with Eastern religious traditions. In the West we have been opposed to anything which isn’t found in the words of Christ. However, truths which Christ spoke were already present in the teaching of the Buddha, Confucius, the Vedas, and many other religious communities which have sought the higher meaning of the divine life. Even the Hebrew writings tell us to get wisdom, and in getting wisdom, get understanding. So, consider these tools a wisdom lesson toward your spiritual enlightenment.

The following are what Dr. Hawkins has defined as spiritual tools. They are simple to use but produce profound results when applied daily in our lives. Using just one can transform you and your community; using all can transform the world.

Tool #1

Be kind to everything and everyone, including oneself, all the time, with no exception.

This seems easy to do at the beginning of the day, but then you look in the mirror and suddenly you’re confronted with the reality of your ego, the narcissistic driver of your life which seeks dominance and worthiness as a precursor to all of life’s activities past, present and future.

It’s easy to be kind to those who are kind to you, but Christ even said what good is that. Can you be kind to those who cut you off on the road; those who curse you simply because you walked past them; the clerk who got your order wrong; the spouse who made a joke about you to their friend; a co-worker who habitually leaves early at the end of the day, and so many other nuisances that strike at the heart of your ego. And these are just the “everyone” of this tool.

Can you be kind when the battery of your vehicle is dead because the lights were left on; when your mobile phone or computer fails to respond; when a dog continues to bark throughout the night; when fall leaves plug the catch basin causing your yard to flood; when the government…yes, even here! No exceptions after all.

The key to this tool starts first with you. Many of us are merciless to ourselves. We don’t feel we measure up to some perceived ideal which either we created or was thrust upon us by someone else. We hate what we’ve become through a series of bad choices, or we’ve placed a laser focus on a past event which went wrong, and this has become the entire narrative for the failure of our being. We’ve put labels on us that we repeat incessantly in the shower, the car, on walks with friends, when we wake up in the morning and even when we go to bed. We need to lighten up.

Spiritual enlightenment is a process of death to your ego. Your ego is not only the well spring of pride, but it is also the fount of condemnation. It can turn on a dime from gregarious support to hell-driven criticism. Your ability to be kind to yourself first is the governor to how your ego responds in all circumstances. Give yourself some grace and see grace open up for you.

Finally, notice how this tool does not tell us what being kind looks like. When we were children we had parents, family members, even teachers tell us to be kind when an action was deemed to be unkind. Now that we’ve grown, moral relativism dictates many of our “kind” actions to those around us. Honestly, if you’re going to be a seeker of spiritual enlightenment, relativism of any style is not “kind” to your journey. You know what kindness is – don’t skimp on it just to fit the circumstances.

It’s time to put on your your big boy spiritual pants. What is about to come at you will never be preached from the pulpit. The reason is simple: it requires you to acknowledge how life is not what you perceive it to be but rather how it actually is.

The first noble truth of Buddhism is that life is suffering. This is an English translation which seriously does not capture the fullness of the meaning around the word “suffering.” This word for suffering actually is “dukkha” and its contemporary meaning is better described as:

Disturbance, irritation, dejection, worry, despair, fear, dread, anguish, anxiety; vulnerability, injury, inability, inferiority; sickness, aging, decay of body and faculties, senility; pain/pleasure; excitement/boredom; deprivation/excess; desire/frustration, suppression; longing/aimlessness; hope/hopelessness; effort, activity, striving/repression; loss, want, insufficiency/satiety; love/lovelessness, friendlessness; dislike, aversion/attraction; parenthood/childlessness; submission/rebellion; decision/indecisiveness, vacillation, uncertainty.

Take a moment at look at your own life. How many of these occurrences have been the primary drivers in the events of your life? I don’t need you to be the brave little “faith cherubim” here. If you are going to put on the armor of God to walk in this life you better expect your blood to flow onto the ground daily.

Let us get something straight here. Buddha was over 500 years before Christ. Why should this matter to you if you claim to be Christian?

Pro 4:7 Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.

Joh 1:16 And of his fullness have all we received, and grace for grace.

With the crucifixion of Christ, did the suffering of life end with it? No! In many ways, the crucifixion was the ultimate picture of how to enter and endure the lucid embrace of suffering. Many preach today how Christ took all your suffering for you. Yet, we still suffer. If they aren’t lying, then what in the world does it mean that Christ took our suffering?

Let me step back a moment and ask a different question. Have you ever considered how suffering is merely a self-defense mechanism for a wounded ego? In other words, we suffer because our pride has been attacked. Before you pass this off as rubbish consider the following.

Right this moment, there is a dialogue in your head which has been on-going for…since your birth! I don’t know what it is, but I can bet dollars to doughnuts at least once during the day you are justifying your bruised ego from some encounter which went sideways. Often, this event was days, weeks, even years, if not decades ago, and since then, a multitude of other events have transpired with similar results creating further dialogues of justification. You have been suffering the slings and arrows which attack who you really think you are trying to embody.

Chances are you may have even catapulted the “other” onto a pedestal of hate where you view them daily and seethe with anger over the injustice your ego has had to endure. Vindication, you believe, is your key to freedom. Freedom from suffering. Suffering of your own choosing…

Let’s see if there is some understanding here. Did Christ die for you? Watch out how you answer this! The knee-jerk Christian response is yes, however, Jesus is who died, not Christ. This isn’t splitting hairs but real theology. Christ is the anointing power of God. Since God is eternal, His power is too. It cannot die. Mortals die. Jesus was mortal and died. He arose because the Christ, the power of God, came upon him and dwells within him. This is what God did for all of humanity. This is what grace accomplished – for all.

Jesus died so Christ could dwell in you. Jesus died so Christ could dwell in your “other”. Jesus died so Christ could dwell in all throughout the ages.

Your bruised ego, or battered lowly self-esteem, suffers as a result of ignorance. You ignore Who dwells within you so you can appear to be someone you’re not. Until you can accept this, not one thing you do or think freaking matters! You read that correctly. Grace proclaims that “it” doesn’t freaking matter for anyone but you.

There is suffering in this world because people prefer to be human rather than divine. They prefer to worship their ego rather than the Christ within them.

I recognize how some, if not most, will claim that I am denying the need to address issues which all humanity faces. There could be the claim that I am living a delusional life. Guess what? It doesn’t freaking matter!

Christ tells us to love our enemies. How is that working for you? Every enemy you have is simply the result of a bruised ego. Christ loves them the same amount in which He loves you. There is no difference. You’re being asked to live life in the same manner. However, your bruises won’t permit you to consider how the “other” is equal to you in every way. You can’t even bring yourself to think how your “other” is just as bruised as you are. You are both so alike that this truth frightens you. You need to be…better?

In Christian parlance this is translated as needing to have more faith. It doesn’t freaking matter! It never has throughout your entire life. Grace assures this even without faith for it. No amount of effort on your part is going to change it, period. Conversely, no lack of effort will change it either. It has already been declared “done” before the foundations of the world.

The Buddha says that life is suffering. Christ says it is if you want it to be (which is entirely your choice) but it is not how you were conceived to live life. You are as divine as Jesus right this moment, with all your warts, scrapes and bruises. Grace established it. When are you going to live like it?

Nobody ever gets to the place they’re going by continually looking backwards. Even in a church service.

Back in the days before there were cars, people who built roads which connected the various communities always laid out the road in a winding fashion rather than in a straight line. Today this seem rather ridiculous with our wide swathes of freeways stretching into the horizon and the knowledge that the shortest distance between two points is in a straight line. However, back then, when the propulsion of a wagon was by horse, mule, or oxen a straight path was a invitation for the animal to fall asleep “at the wheel” so to speak. A long windy road kept the animal alert to dangers which might be lurking around the corner.

Our lives are not lived out in a linear manner. Rarely do we ever get from point A to point B without going through point X first. Despite all of our planning and efforts to make the journey go quickly and smoothly, the path through life resembles more of a plate of cooked spaghetti rather than dry pasta right out of the box.

What am I trying to get at here? Life is not the destination: it is the journey; or more succinctly, where you are right this moment in the journey.

When you go on a road trip these days, often people stop at rest areas, which kind of a funny name for a place where human waste is deposited, and resting is often prohibited during certain hours of the day. Stopping at one of these locations, beside relieving the bladder from too much drinking and stretching cramped muscles, gives most an opportunity to notice the countryside which has been whizzing by them. There might be a breeze which isn’t conditioned by a manufacturer somewhere else; there are often smells which no car freshener dangling from a rear-view mirror can replicate; there is also a community of travelers, who share some part of the journey which is unfolding before you. Everyone knows their destination and recognizes how this stop is merely a temporary pause and not where they intend to be planted at the end of the day. In some ways, it is a resting place from where you’ve been to where you’re going, and yet, most fail to rest in the moment.

Most western religious experiences today are what the title of this post claims: rear-view mirror drives home. Yes, this claim is a paradox; how can one move forward when looking at the past? You can’t, obviously. This doesn’t stop leaders from their agenda of reminding you just how unjust you are and the compelling need for you to seek forgiveness for your past so you’ll be able to experience the rewards of God’s heavenly mercy in the future.

Church should be a rest area on your spiritual journey. You should be able to relieve your bladder from the propaganda Kool-Aid you’ve consumed throughout the week; stretch your spiritual muscles which have been cramped into the bucket seat of a world agenda hooked on crack; even reestablish the vision of a divine purpose and experience the breath from the rarified air of divine worship in a community of oneness with other travelers.

Paul recognized the propensity of humanity to devolve into the realm of the “would a, could a, should a” mindset when traveling on the path. He instructed the people in Philippi to think on the good things which lay about you and are off in the distance. Keep your target in mind – not how far short you are from it.

I was recently asked what I saw as the biggest failure the western church has committed against its congregants. While I recognize how there are many issues which could have been mentioned, I recognize whatever transgressions have been made, they only came because the perception of what the institution of church is supposed to be has been replaced by an authoritarian model designed by the will of man to keep people suppressed from the revelation of their true divine nature. If leaders across the expanse of western church began to focus solely on the meaning of the teaching Jesus gave about being one with the Father, it would turn the gaze from the rear-view mirror towards the destination of all humanity.

I have been writing about the grace message on this platform for at least the past eight years. I have been attempting to unfold this message in a number of ways in order to adjust your perceptions about your true divine nature, not what you have been force-fed from the pulpit of one whose purpose is to control you. Some have caught the vision I have been trying to uncover while others are still looking at their rear-view mirror trying to make a journey with no clue of what it looks like right in front of their nose.

The following are some of the writings I have made over the years to help in our journey. Take a moment to rest and read what the territory is like. May they be a reminder of where you’ve come from as well as fuel for what lays ahead. We’re all in this together and the last thing we need is a compass which only points south.

IN and OUT

A Pair of I’s

A New Cycle

Mind-less to Mind-filled

One or Pride

Suddenly

Act 2:2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.

Act 9:3 And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven:

How many are waiting for a suddenly from God? I hate to be the one bearing bad tidings, but this will never happen. Suddenlies do not happen in the Kingdom of God. The never have and they never will.

I offer the two verses above to extend this matter further to you. In each one the “suddenly” came as a result of a shift in perception of the person(s) involved. The “suddenly” was an unexpected event in time. In an eternal realm where God is all-knowing, how could something ever be “unexpected”?

A “suddenly” in your life is a reactive mechanism of your ego. The purpose of your ego to insure your survival at all costs. You’ve probably heard of the “fight or flight response” in animals. In fact, it is fight, flight or freeze. Each of these responses are means to the assessment of the danger which the animal is confronted with and how best to survive the threat.

This is what perception is about: assessing the available information within a given situation to make a choice of actions. The trouble with our perception is that it never has all the information required to make a well-form decision for action. You know this to be true if you ever experienced a “suddenly.” New data came unexpectedly which changed the entire scope of the situation causing an expansion of your perception.

Across the nation there is a freeway system which allows traffic to drive at a speed higher than can be traveled on the side roads. This system has multiple lanes running in both directions and there are a few chosen exits which allow the drivers to leave the freeway to travel into the communities which are dotted along the route. In many locations there is also a frontage road which runs parallel to the freeway which allows drivers to turn onto many other roads which come up to the freeway but don’t access it directly. There are times when a frontage road will merge with a freeway and then later divert from the freeway.

Consider this: The frontage road is your perception. The speed is comfortable for you; it has many roads coming up to it, some you have been down often yet, many roads you have never driven down, you only know they are there. The freeway is what the eternal realm is like, fast with few diversions. There may be a day when you’re travelling down the frontage road and “suddenly” you’ve merged onto the freeway. You speed up to keep from causing an accident. The scenery is speeding by, but you don’t have time to look at it cause you’re trying to keep yourself in your lane. Then, suddenly, you’re back on the frontage road and slowing down to match the pace of those there too.

In this example your daily perceptions travel a well-known path towards your journey in life. In a moment you intersect with the divine realm, and everything speeds up and you’re trying to navigate the territory around you relying on your old perceptions. Unless you adapt to a new mindset, your old perception will pull you out of the divine realm back onto your well-worn path. Suddenly only occurs in a moment of time. It’s what you do after that moment which marks your life’s trajectory.

We live in time-based reality. We are fixated on what happened yesterday, last year, decades and centuries ago. Or we are planning events which will happen in an hour, tomorrow, next week, a year or more. Rarely do we ever stop to experience the moment called Now. It is only here in this moment of time where we can experience the eternal realm in its fullness. It is here where you meet the God who is all-present, all-knowing, all-powerful, Love.

Only here will your perceptions be smashed and expanded in the same instance. Only here in Now will you understand through experience what Oneness is. Only in Now will you realize the abundance of life all around you. It is in Now where the corrective lens of Grace will radically alter your comprehension of Being All in All.

Now is the time. Focus on Now. Suddenlies disappear in Now.

These writing of mine have been a grace-oriented message for the most part. This posting is possibly the most grace-oriented message I can offer to date. It has everything to do with your life, how you live it and what your expectations are for it.

Allow me to preface this by stating how I am not going to be a cheerleader for your life. If your ego needs this, then seriously you have not an idea where you’re going.

This is a truth which you will wrestle with for the next few days, or possibly even weeks. No one truly lives in reality. We live in what we perceive reality to be and have developed mechanisms, or stories, which allow us to live comfortably a story line which soothes our ego.

Recognize how commonplace this seems because everyone is doing it. Grace exists to enable us to maintain our false sense of reality. In this context, grace allows us to permit others to live in the same illusion as long as we accept our limitations to be seen as perfect in the eyes of others. We invent a new tale to soothe our bruised ego if we ever fall short of perfection in their sight.

There is a high probability where most who are reading this are those who attend a religious meeting at least once a week, if not more. In the time you spend in this community you are instructed to live a life dedicated to the precepts of some particulate writings. Somehow you have determined that the 2-3 hours of weekly dedication will write the script for the remainder of the 165 hours in the week.

Look, I’ve been there. The Lord’s Day is easy to deal with. Monday, however, is when the hounds of hell are loosed. Your best prayer on Monday morning is, “Lord, help me make it to Wednesday night service!”

What happens from Sunday to Wednesday and then Thursday to Saturday night is your life. It is here where we craft the stories which allow us to overcome the difficulties and embrace the few moments of an awe-inspiring touch of the divine. How does your story go?

Your ego is always attempting to survive the attacks which assault you. Yet, according to your ego, everything is an assault. If an event can be used in a testimony service, it is an assault on your ego.

Now I recognize how some might say that this is not according to the meaning of the message of Christ where we are to be overcomers. Regrettably, there is a large faction of believers who are constantly striving to become overcomers without understanding how everything has been overcome through Christ. To these folks, their life story is a never-ending battle against the forces of evil.

Don’t get me wrong here. “We battle not against flesh and blood but against principalities, against powers, against rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places…” This is a claim which most of these people would like to proclaim as the anthem to their plight, but when Reality reveals itself, these folks soon discover they are merely shadow boxing.

his is the beauty of grace. It allows you to be foolish in your endeavors and assumptions until you come into the knowledge of what the Kingdom of God has secured in and for you. Your ignorance in everything is surpassed by grace.

Allow me to reveal a divine secret to you. God is not concerned with everything that you are concerned with. Even your concern for them does not register with Him in the way you believe it should. God’s grace is greater than your ego.

Whatever story you tell yourself to motivate yourself to continue living a worthy life, grace fills in the gaps and misrepresentations of a glorious presentation of God’s love for all through you, His chosen vessel.

So now that I’ve spoken to the chosen, please allow me to speak to those of you who feel you are not in this special group. I recognize that you have a story to your life which, in your eyes, keeps you far and away from the chosen. You have experiences which many do not have and often distance you from what the “chosen” deem as acceptable. My response to this is simple: Bullshit!

Throughout the gospels the message of grace is proclaimed through those who never measured up to the standard of the prevailing “religious group.” I don’t care about your past story simply because the Father doesn’t either. Read that again as many times as you need to accept it as truth.

What story do you want to live by? One of mud, maggots, and misery? How has that been working for you? Or one that doesn’t allow your ego to have any part in it? What does that even look like?

Gal 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

These words express the thoughts of one who took a path in life which actually sought to destroy what God had intended for goodness. If you examine closely, you will find the death of an ego, the revelation of Reality, and a life story common to all mankind. Despite what you may be going through, ultimately this too is your path. The story of all the ages.