Relying on the Cloud of Knowing

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven..". - Mathew 6:19
In today's world of data and technology many of us store our treasures on computer hard drives where viruses and mechanical breakdowns can cost us dearly. In the last several weeks, not one, but all three of us in the house, have been touched by the untimely shock and agonizing consequences of computer breakdowns and viruses.  When these techno disasters occur we are immediately confronted with the pain of separation from our precious files, contacts, calendars, and emails. With one momentous glitch we are cut off from our now customary means of communicating, scheduling, creating, learning and more.  In an instant the technology that we took for granted becomes glaringly precious, and we see how reliant we have become on that which wears out, breaks down and predictably fails.  

After the last episode involving the UCOD office PC when several of us who access the data were "locked out" by hardware failure, I decided to explore a better way.  I discovered "cloud computing." Simply put, cloud computing is an evolved technology that permits storage of data and programs on the web that is accessible to anybody with internet access and permission. The data is more secure, the hardware less likely to fail, and ultimately should offer a much more reliable way to work with and safe keep our precious data. Is it perfect? No. But it's a move away from isolation, vulnerability and limitation to a more robust and reliable environment.

Whether or not we have computer breakdowns, each of us faces from time to time, the loss of something precious to us. In this world of materiality and sense consciousness it is so very natural to invest value in things that can be lost or broken. If we have invested our well-being or peace of mind in ephemeral things, we will surely be ripped off by failures that are bound to happen in this time-bound dimension. 

There is a better way. It's an evolved spiritual idea, that calls us to recognize a greater dimension of life and Being that is not subject to the aforementioned inclination toward failure and disappointment.  Jesus called it the Kingdom of Heaven.  He likened it to a precious pearl of great value; an imminent reality, closer even than our breath.  It is a cloud of knowing - a milieu of loving awareness capable of satisfying our deepest yearnings for a fulfilled life. It is accessible to each of us, according to our willingness to know its Presence in us....as us. 

This is why we pray, or contemplate, or meditate. So that when stuff breaks or wears out, as it surely will, these events might serve to awaken us to a deeper peace and wholeness than earthly imposters offer us. Being driven to our knees by life is not such a bad idea. Often times when I'm at my most exasperated self, I finally let go, and surrender my willful resistance to life. In those precipitous moments I am a candidate for greater insight, and within reach of the compassionate cloud of knowing. 

You and I can take refuge in this sacred place of awareness. Even when life is breaking down all around us, we can nonetheless be safe and comforted here. And by resting in this place of knowing, we can refresh our perceptions, and find innovative and creative ways to deal with life that can ease and bless our days on earth.

 

In, Through, Up & Out

Had a bad day, a sad day, a down day lately?   It happens, as the expression goes, to the best of us. Despite our spiritual foundation, our commitment to spiritual practice, self-awareness, familiarity with the terrain of our personal mind field, we can be tripped up, and fall from a state grace, joy, or peace.  When this happens, our response can make all the difference as to how we climb back to our natural God given state of joy and peace.    For many of us, our first response to such negative emotions is denial and/or guilt.  Usually carried by the thought, I am spiritual; I can't be, or I shouldn't be feeling sad or depressed!  That's simply not true.  We all have egos; we are in this world to work out our feelings of separation from God.  Whatever feelings arise, they are feedback to what we believe is true in any given moment.  For that reason, we must acknowledge them. To deny or repress those feelings would ensure that we remain in darkness, painfully ignorant of what is going on in us. Until we can recognize that these feelings exist in us, we can't begin the spiritual correction process.  Of course, our egos would rather deny these feelings or blame them on circumstances or other people. However, when we deny or project, we ensure that the problem remains beyond our reach, and therefore unsolvable.   It is the good news-bad news of authentic spiritual understanding.  On the surface, we confront what appears as the bad news; that the problem lies within us.  The good news of course is that we have control over our inner experience, which means there is a way out of our suffering.  By admitting, I am feeling sad, I firmly establish this situation as my personal experience, with nobody or nothing to blame. When I take responsibility for my experience, I have correctly located the problem, where I can deal with it and find my way out.    So how do we get free when we're mired in negative emotions? The answer is a reversal of the problem. A Course In Miracles says, "A sense of separation from God is the only lack you really need to correct."  My ego does not want to hear this but it just happens to be the truth:  My sadness (fear, anger, etc.) is a result of a decision that I made.  That decision was to see another person or myself or a situation without love.  Some form of judgment on my part is blocking my heart and preventing God's love from flowing through me.  This is spiritual angina, and it hurts like hell. My only way out is to see through eyes of Truth, which corrects my misperception, and cast healing light on everything I see.  If I listen to Spirit's voice, I am shown the truth in any situation, and am blessed by the reversal that turns my darkness into light.   Here is the systematic process offered by ACIM:   I must have decided wrongly, because I am not at peace. I made the decision myself, but I can also decide otherwise. I want to decide otherwise, because I want to be at peace. I do not feel guilty, because the Holy Spirit will undo all the consequences of my wrong decision if I will let Him. I choose to let Him, by allowing Him to decide for God for me.

Give Me The Growth... Keep the Change!

The well worn phrase," the only thing constant in life is change" needs an update in my opinion. The way I see it, and I'm finding agreement among many observers of life,  the rate of change has increased.  From the speed of technological advancement, to the immediacy of our communication capabilities we live in a maelstrom of change.  It is unlikely to slow down anytime soon. Collectively we have created this pace and set in motion the mechanics and means for its continuance.  We may not like it but here we are in its current. 

So what can we do to navigate through the rushing waters of change so that we are not engulfed by it, but rather carried to a desirable downstream destination? The answer is of course the reverse of the problem. We need to change. Sorry to be the bearer of the obvious but it's the only wise response. Resistance doesn't work. Trying to slow down the river is dam hard, and ultimately futile.  Arguing against change provides only egoic satisfaction (this shouldn't be happening) and equally pointless. 

In this quickening age it has become increasingly necessary to recalibrate our responses and adaptations more frequently.  Many of us feel that an evolutionary impulse is behind the wholesale disruptions of long standing beliefs, structures and institutions that now are under assault by the forces of change.  In other words, we are being forced to confront the disruption and disappearance of norms in our life, out of a universal intention to break us free from our identification with forms. In spiritual terms this would be the Divine impulse having its way with us, morphing our awareness into a truer version of ourselves.  Jesus called this building your faith upon a rock, where the winds of change and shifting sands of impermanence could not disturb your essential self.

Each day we hear about weather disasters where powerful forces are tearing at the surface of the earth and everything upon it.  Upsetting change has always been with us.  Fortunately, our deepest nature remains undisturbed and undiminished through it all. It is always with us as well. This is the pearl that remains hidden within us while the weather is fair and pleasant.  However, when the storms strike in our lives, and the structures that have defined us, such as jobs, finances, and health, are forcefully upended by winds of change, our essential, pure selves often get laid bare. On those days, we can see with the eyes of spiritual masters, seeing what passes away and what remains. Stripped of externals, we stand on the bedrock of our true nature, and behold the grace of change for having revealed who we really are.  Seen in this way, change becomes transformation, an ally with our deepest impulse to know ourselves as God knows us.

The Promise & Peril of Transformation

Did you ever wonder why Jesus willingly entered Jerusalem knowing what awaited him there?  I mean after the Palms, high fives, and Hosannas celebration, Jerusalem became a nightmare for Jesus.  Just what was he thinking? Now we know according to traditional Christian doctrine, Jesus passed through those gates with informed consent to bodily sacrifice, undertaken willingly to save humanity from the consequences of its sinful ways. According to this interpretation, Jesus death is seen as no less than the supreme purpose of his life. In Unity, we look at the same circumstances through a different lens of understanding and come up with a remarkably different interpretation.  We believe that the supreme purpose of Jesus' life was to realize and demonstrate a transformative relationship with God.   His success in overcoming the limitations of a mind/body identification and full realization of his oneness with God made Jesus the profound example of what's possible for humanity. Jesus had obviously made great progress in overcoming the illusions of mind/body identification when he entered Jerusalem on this fateful week, yet the grandest lesson of all awaited him there. Most of us could not imagine a more gut wrenching faith-destroying scenario, than abandonment and betrayal by friends, and bodily torture and crucifixion.  Was Jesus tempted to back away from this dreadful fate?  Yes, we know he doubted his mission in the Garden by his passionate plea that the cup of his fate be taken from him. However, Jesus ultimately knew that a complete realization of his spiritual essence would need to stand up to all tests.  If love were the greatest power in the universe, it would not fail him even through this horrendous ordeal.  It was only in going through the most convincing illusion of separation from life and love, that Jesus could establish for himself (and all of us) that Life and Love are eternal truths, not vagaries of human life. Stripped of the last vestiges of his ego, Jesus  was able to emerge from the tomb of darkness, and bear witness to the Light of truth that nothing can extinguish nor diminish. He fulfilled his supreme purpose and was transformed by his difficult journey. Perhaps you are facing the prospects of a difficult journey right now in your life.  You may feel trepidation as you contemplate the risks of what lies ahead. You may be tempted to back off and take a safer course.  I invite you to ask yourself this question before deciding how to proceed:  What is my supreme purpose in this life?  What is infinite Love and Life seeking to express through my life right now? From that deeper sense of self, you may find guidance and strength to take a truer course.  I have not always walked courageously into risky situations. Sometimes I saved my skin, and abandoned my spirit. During those times when I did muster the courage to face the dragons of uncertainty and fear I was often rewarded to discover something much greater and truer in me. This is the promise and peril of the spiritual life. When we are committed to a journey of transformation, when our desire to know Spirit intimately, as an indwelling presence that never leaves us, we are drawn through the refining fire of circumstances.  This can be painful as the narrow gate of truth strips away our entrenched but false beliefs of who we think we are that our true self might emerge on the other side of change. The gates of transformation are wide open for you. Go ahead and enter, trembling if you must, knowing God goes with you.

Become A Miracle Worker

" Today the promise of God's Word is kept. Hear and be silent. He would speak to you. He comes with miracles a thousand times as happy and as wonderful as those you ever dreamed or wished for in your dreams. His miracles are true. They will not fade when dreaming ends. They end the dream instead; and last forever..."                                                         - A Course in Miracles, Workbook, Lesson 106 Who of us has not longed or prayed for a miracle in our lives.  I can recall several times of agonizing distress when the consequences of an impending disaster felt unbearable, and I cried out with a plea for a reversal of a frightening situation. One particularly difficult situation involved our youngest son's preliminary medical diagnosis that might have meant his very short life would soon end.  Even though  at the time I was ensconced within the faith lined walls of a seminary, I could not help but ask for the physical miracle. One of my faith-filled classmates took me aside during one insufferable day of awaitinging the prognosis, and gently reminded me that the outcome of our son's health was beyond our control, and did I want to pray for peace of mind. I did, and we did. Our son survived and has thrived.   Who of us can be faulted for becoming attached to our children and wanting them to live long and healthy lives?  Or clinging to preferences for what seems precious and important. Yet we know that the young die, and the good suffer, and the stories of seeming injustices and unfair outcomes can show up on anybody's doorstep. Knowing this common and difficult reality surely has driven me to seek a deeper faith, than one built solely on outer manifestations. Even though it is much easier said than done, it remains my core belief that finding peace in the midst of challenge is the highest outcome of a faithful life, or as answered prayer. Why is peace of mind the summa cum laude of spiritual effort? Because it is unconditional, unequivocal and immune from the caprice of good fortune and misfortune.  This peaceful abiding place allows for the "good cheer" that Jesus described as beyond appearances. It is the Elysian field where our sense of wholeness is restored. Jesus called it the Kingdom of Heaven within.  No matter how much we may want for our life to morph according to our preferences, such outcomes, no matter how spectacular, do not offer lasting peace. You know the treachery behind the promise. The mind that creates a preference, will only concoct a new elusive desire on the heels of the last fulfillment. No sooner are you satisfied, than you are wanting again. It never ends, and never ends in lasting peace.   The nature of our ego-mind (relentless desire), and its spiritual alternative (the choice for true freedom and inner peace) are the core teachings of A Course In Miracles.  The course defines a true miracle "as a shift in perception." This teaching is the true "Secret" if there ever was one.    Even if we can't set it right, with God's help we can see it rightly. By asking for a shift, and being receptive, we can  become the way of greater peace, greater love, greater joy, and greater abundance.  From this unalterable, eternal and unambiguous place, we bring a completely new awareness to our lives and conditions.  This is how we become miracles workers ---by releasing our perceptions and letting the Divine look through our eyes and love through our hearts. Is this easy? No, but neither is a life of suffering from trying to create heaven from the outside in.

Journey Without Distance

"I will arise now and go to my Father..." Luke 15:18 In perhaps Jesus' most famous parable, he shared a story about a directionally challenged young man who followed his sense guidance only to end up far from home and miserable.  The prodigal was certain he would find his joy in the world. He followed his desire for a better life, convinced that it could be found somewhere out in the world.  In the end, when he hit the skids, he realized his navigation error: what he longed for was not in the world but back home. We can all relate to this story because, at least spiritually, we've discovered the errancy of our guidance.  Many of us come to ourselves and realize that we've been looking for our happiness in all the wrong places, in all the wrong faces.  Because this world is such a powerful opiate that dulls our spiritual sense of direction, it is a tough dysfunction to correct. Under the influence of this illusory world, we are convinced that something or someone will give us what we need.  When the quest does not pay off, we usually convince our self that a new something or new someone is what we need.  Yet, no matter how many times we set out to find peace or fulfillment or love in the world, our journey is doomed to failure. It can be no other way.  The reason we can't find fulfillment in life is not because we're not looking but because our perspective is backwards.  Our understanding of cause and effect is upside down.  In our confusion, we think the source of our well-being is outside ourselves.  A valid spiritual solution is one that reverses our mistaken guidance and turns us in the direction of our true home, where our needs can truly be met. When we reverse our thinking and turn our attention from the world that constantly changes, to the eternal self (the indwelling spirit) we find fulfillment that is unwavering and unconditional. This reversal of worldly thinking is the teaching of A Course In Miracles, which I've referenced in many of my Sunday talks. This Sunday we begin a  series of lessons based upon the themes and teachings of A Course In Miracles. A.C.I.M. has been called a self-study program of spiritual psychotherapy and a modern day interpretation of the teachings of Jesus.  A.C.I.M. has many parallels with Unity's philosophy and teachings and we will look at how its teachings can help us turn our lives around, call off the search in the world and return us to our home in God.

Let it Begin With Me

Every Sunday at Unity Center of Davis, we conclude our service by standing together and singing the Peace song.  The first and last lines proclaim, let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.  There is a variation of this refrain, that our ego sings many more times during the week that goes like this: Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with: her, him, that situation, this dilemma, this preference, that shift, this resolution, that outcome, and on and on it goes. The false self that sings this refrain is not connected to the whole of life, and clamors to reclaim the fragments of happiness that it believes are in the world of outer conditions and other people.  When I am identified with my false self, I feel separated, and frustrated, and it is easy to blame my inner turmoil on what someone or something is withholding from me. It may take two to tango, or reach accord, but only one can only find peace inside oneself. Real and lasting contentment, the peace that Jesus referred to as passing human understanding, is not an effect of getting what we want in life, nor a negotiated agreement, nor the laying down of arms.  A Course in Miracles says, Nothing outside yourself can save you; nothing outside yourself can give you peace. Ultimately, peace is the recognition of a deep sense of well-being in which this moment is acceptable just as it is. Peace is more than the absence of conflict; it is the presence of a reality beyond the duality of your way or my way.  Rumi referred to this as a place beyond right or wrong, and a place where we could meet each other. The conflicts, which disturb our peace, are always some version of unskillful attempts to get our needs met.  When we drop below the surface mind that thrashes and lashes out we can see more clearly what is really true. This is spiritual insight that first takes us inward, opens our eyes to seeing in a new way, and brings us back to the world with a more holistic, compassionate perspective. The field beyond right and wrong is the unified field of our essential oneness, the great web in which we are united with every form of life. Once glimpsed, the ramifications of lashing out, or polluting, or blaming in order to redress some inner dissatisfaction, are seen more plainly as self-defeating. While we are evolving toward this enlightened perspective, we need constant reminders of the way to peace.  I know of no better technique to correct my perception than calling upon Spirit to help me see rightly.  Even when judgments are railing in my head and I am at war with everything and everyone one, there is the voice of Truth, that sees through the appearances and remains undisturbed.  This voice can lead me beyond the field of right and wrong, to the still waters of peace.  If nothing else we can sing the familiar refrain whenever we need to remember the way to peace, Let there be peace, and let it begin with me.