I am the Beloved

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”

~1 John 4:7-8 

According to the dictionary the meaning of “beloved” is being cherished, treasured and dearly-loved.  It takes a relationship to be the ‘beloved.’

From the moment we are born on this earth we have the need to be loved.  It is hard-wired into our human existence to be loved.  Babies who are not experiencing being cared for beyond their physical needs such as being cuddled and touched often grow into uncaring and selfish adults.  As humans we find ourselves challenged to find the balance between our physical (external) and spiritual (internal) needs.  We are very much aware of our five physical senses but only claim the “6^th sense” as a tool for intuition.  We know now that there are equally spiritual senses corresponding to the five physical senses.  More and more people have ESP (extra sensory perception) experiences.  And that is nothing to laugh about because even science has recognized the “other” invisible world as real and measureable.

In a book called “Doorway to the Soul” Ron Scolastico discusses the deep hunger for love, connection, and spiritual experience we may feel at a certain time in our life. Some people may get restless, frustrated, or even depressed because they cannot find fulfillment in their physical activities only.

“Our greatest fulfillment lies in giving ourselves to others.”

~Henri J.M. Nouwen, Life of the Beloved: Spiritual Living in a Secular World

All other creatures just have to grow, taking in the sun, water, food, etc. and they fulfill their given purpose.

As humans we have one added (often overlooked) aim and that can only be achieved when we use our free will.  To become fully aware of this faculty of our mind we have to discover our true identity.  We were created in the image of God, our heavenly parent.  To learn that we are children of the all-powerful, all-knowing, and eternal Creator of this infinite universe is a lot to digest.  For many of us we cannot fathom that we have infinite beauty, goodness, and love hidden inside of us.  It may be a tremendous challenge to take off the many filters of our own perspective, taught beliefs, and adapted opinions.  It takes a lot of effort and good intentions to find the deeper realities.  Could changing our attitude about our true identity be the missing link to internal peace?

“It is easy to hate and it is difficult to love. This is how the whole scheme of things works. All good things are difficult to achieve; and bad things are very easy to get.”

~ Confucius

 

It takes humility to discover that blessedness and being the “beloved.”  One place to start is to be grateful for life itself, for what we have, where we live and whom we come in contact with.  Becoming aware of God’s presence takes practice; the rewards are infinite.  Practicing consideration and kindness to others takes the focus away from ourselves.  Paying attention to those connections we discover infinite power, power to change and to grow ourselves spiritually.  With the right intention comes even greater fulfillment.

 

What is Mercy?

 

“Mercy is the ability to see through and beyond that which appears, to that which is eternal and never changes.”

~ Michele Longo O’Donnell

According to the dictionary mercy is a form of compassion or forgiveness shown towards someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm.

In her book “The God That We’ve Created” Michele Longo says that mercy is not compassion; compassion is compassion; mercy is not forgiveness; forgiveness is forgiveness.  She builds her insight on the words of James:

“For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment.”

~ James 2:13

She says that mercy is from a higher atmosphere of thought.  Mercy excels over judgement.  It is more desired than judgement.  Mercy is the judgement of God.  God sees all his creation, especially his children, with mercy.  When mercy touches our hearts … we are changed forever.  We see ourselves as new creatures, we can change our lives and can even be healed.

Because God sees us as we truly are: our core true, innocent nature, we are governed by his love and truth.  Traditional teachings tell us that God judges us according to our sins.  That would make us fear God because judgement is governed by fear.  Michele suggests that we are governed by mercy with love and truth.

 

Cast Down Your Bucket Where You Are

The only thing I knew about Booker T. Washington was that he found many ways of using peanuts.  In the process of my research I learned that he wasn’t a farmer after all rather than a teacher and educator who became a leader of the newly emancipated African-Americans after being liberated from slavery.  George Washington Carver who was a student of his school in Tuskegee, Alabama was the one who experimented with growing better yields of peanuts, sweet potatoes and pecans. 

I was very much moved when I read Booker Washington’s biography Up From Slavery.  I was mostly impressed by his humble and grateful attitude regarding his upbringing.  He never blamed anybody for his circumstances or was resentful for his life.  Even after being freed his family was very poor and had little to eat.  Even young children had to work from morning till night in the salt mine, coal mine or the mill.  But because of his determination to make something of himself he found a way to learn, adopt and even go to school.  His desire to learn was so strong that he eventually was accepted at the Hampton School in Virginia.  He was so motivated to learn that he started out with night classes at Hampton’s.  He spend the whole day working for a white family doing basic homemaking chores.  Because he wanted to do a good job, he excelled in all his doings which not only gave him the confidence of his employer but also helped him eventually to work at the school in the same way, while going to classes.  He became an exemplary student and showed many of the new pupils how to learn physical skills while also absorbing the book knowledge. 

“I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.”

~ Booker T. Washington (1856-1905), Up From Slavery: An Autobiography

In time, his supervisor, General Samuel C. Armstrong chose Booker to open a new school in Tuskegee, Alabama, to further the education of the children of the freed slaves in the south.  In all his doing Prof. Washington encouraged the students to apply their physical skills.  In fact, the whole curriculum of the school was designed so that the students worked half a day and the other half was for studying and recreation.  Dr. Washington saw the Tuskegee school as his life’s work.  He invested himself completely and won the support not only of his own people but also the influential white folks.  He traveled all over the country presenting his work with the students at Tuskegee which resulted in the financial support of many of the former slave holders as well the generosity of Northern businesses.  During that time he became a well-spoken public orator which gained him even greater funding.  His address known as the Atlanta Compromise Speech in 1895 brought him more fame and requests for presentations and appearances to benefit the cause of the black people.

“Those who are happiest are those who do the most for others.”

After some 18 years of total dedication to the education of the black population of the south, some of his supporters decided that he needed a break.  Some of his Northern benefactors got together to plan a trip to Europe.  Mr. Washington in his humility didn’t want to accept at first the expenses for the fare across the Atlantic.  None-the-less, he benefitted greatly, not only from the rest and relaxation the voyage provided for him and his wife, but also from the many new contacts he made while overseas.

“Character, not circumstance, makes the person.”

He often reflected on how far he had come ‘up from slavery’ meeting with presidents, royalties and high society.  He always went back to his own roots deeply planted in his faith in the greatest benefactor, God.  His involvement was never political: rather, he proposed education and raising the standard of living for his own people.

To say the least, I was very moved reading the accounts of Dr. Booker T. Washington’s experiences following his way with strong determination, hard work and deep faith.  His motto never changed: cast down your bucket where you are.  This is a great lesson for all of us, be grateful for what you have and where you are, but follow a greater vision with passion and persistence. 

 

Know Thyself

Know thyself (Gnothi Seauton) - It was inscribed above the entrance of the Apollo temple in ancient Greece and the Delphic maxim.  People believed that the Oracle would tell them their future and would guide them to the truth for their life.  It has always been man’s desire to ‘know thyself.’  This knowing is not based on feelings or even thinking.  It is an awareness of how ‘to be thyself.’

“If most of us remain ignorant of ourselves, it is because self-knowledge is painful and we prefer the pleasures of illusion.”

~ Aldous Huxley (1894-1963), English Writer of Brave New World

Awareness

For all of us the question is: who am I?  Who we are does not depend on beliefs, on how we feel or what we think about.  Even education can only help us discover better how to perceive the inner world.  Who we are is inborn.  New Age teachers suggest that it is all about becoming the observer of our feelings and thoughts.  It is their idea of creating consciousness by becoming aware of one’s awareness, to become self-aware.  Self-awareness is not being identified with feelings, thoughts or external circumstances because we are just observers of them, like a radio positioned on a certain dial.  Self-awareness or mindfulness (Zen) creates a window into ‘beingness,’ the ultimate essence of reality. It takes us into the NOW; it also helps us to bring the unconscious into consciousness.

"Observe all men; thy self most."

~ Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), American Founding Father

I learned of who I am from studying the Divine Principle.  Reverend Sun Myung Moon taught me that I am the child of God, the creator.  Living in harmony with that knowledge gives us joy.  It also lets us know, through our conscience, what we are to do; without it we are miserable.  Traditionally, people have been looking for a leader to follow.  By learning who we are, we discover the vision for our life (like a calling) and can become the pure channel of God’s love.  We also learn that God does not judge or punish us.  We rather do this to ourselves. 

"But I have no leisure for them at all; and the reason, my friend, is this: I am not yet able, as the Delphic inscription has it, to know myself; so it seems to me ridiculous, when I do not yet know that, to investigate irrelevant things."

~ Socrates

Talk to yourself

It all depends on how we talk to ourselves.  Positive affirmations help to keep a certain attitude and keep us aligned with the center. 

“I call to remembrance my song in the night: I commune with my own heart: and my spirit made diligent search.”

~ Psalm 77:6

Communication with the Divine is available to all of us.  Jesus (Lord’s prayer Luke 11:1-13) taught us how to pray and other religious teachings have introduced us to meditation.  The Buddha who has been called the “Awakened One”  has demonstrated how to be mindful and present by listening to the silence within us.

Life is Fair

I always hear people say; life is not fair.  We all come into this world in different circumstance, countries and families.  Each of us has already a history though our ancestries.  The law of Karma works for everybody the same way.  Some of us have a heavier burden than others.  None-the-less, we are here on earth to learn certain lessons and to heal our past (or that of our ancestors).

Be a victor or a victim, that’s the question. Being in the realm of abundance or scarcity, it comes down to our choice.  We may not recognize it that way, but the truth that sets us free, declares:

“The Truth that sets you free is that you can experience in imagination what you desire to experience in reality, and by maintaining this experience in imagination, your desire will become an actuality.”

~ Neville Goddard (1905-1972), spiritual teacher à The Power of Awareness

Do we believe to be ‘little me’s’, nobody loves me, we have nothing to give or others take advantage of us? It all depends on how we see ourselves.  When we gain awareness of who we are we discover the source of abundance within us, a power of endless possibilities.  The fullness of life lies right before us when we approach it with gratitude and compassion.  Everyday situations become an endless spring of giving and contribution when we step away from ‘poor me.’

The Oracle (Know thyself) - The Matrix (1999, L. & A. Wachowski)

The Essence of Knowledge

Most of us identify ourselves with the content of our lives, knowing about our lives: what we perceive, experience, do, think, or feel; our goals, ambitions, and situations.  To know ourselves in essence is to be who we are without identification of the ego.  It is not what we know about ourselves but what we know of ourselves.

We are part of long lineage who has existed for thousands of years.  Some people believe that we came into this world with a clean slate.  It has now been scientifically proven that we don’t just inherit physical DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) but also Spiritual DNA which is our divinely embedded design for personal development, spiritual identity and function.  We are here to learn certain lessons, heal relationships, and grow spiritually.  After all, we have an eternal existence, we may as well make the best of it.

“What is there other than content?  That which enables the content to be—the inner space of consciousness.”

~ Eckhard Tolle (1948), author and spiritual teacher à A New Earth
 

Why do we only use 10 % or whatever small amount of the human brain?  We all know that we have greater potential.  Is it because we approach the discovery from the wrong angle?  Do we have to enter the formless realm of consciousness to come in contact with the universal intelligence? By connecting with that universal intelligence we become conscious participant of our lives and can realign ourselves with the wholeness of life.

"It is a myth that we only use 10% of our human brain."

You Are Worthy
As children of the creator, God, we are worthy and have the value of all of creation.  Because of the “Fall of Man,” Satan has claimed rights to accuse man and claim us partially.  When we are listening to the voice of Satan, the loud, nagging voice we get discouraged and disempowered.  God’s voice is the small voice, imperceptible and subtle, but none-the-less there, when we create awareness and discernment.

The greatest deficiency from knowing ourselves comes from our feeling of unworthiness. Know that without you God cannot be happy.

“‘Know Thyself’ was written over the portal of the antique world. Over the portal of the new world, ‘Be Thyself’ shall be written.”

~ Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), Irish Poet and Writer

The belief that we are not good enough is a product of the fear based society, and seems to have become built into our physical existence.  If we can accept that we are worthy because of the truth within us and pursue its virtues with integrity, competence and humility a whole new world of possibility will open up for us.

“Knowing others is intelligence, knowing yourself is true wisdom.”

~ Tao Te Ching,  Laozi (6^th Century) Chinese Philosopher

We are living now at a time when we can truly know ourselves.  Never before in all of human history have we had access to so many resources and teachings.  By living mindfully in the present moment, we can be truly alive because we are in direct contact with the Divine Creator, Infinite Intelligence, and our Heavenly Parent.

 

 

What is the Ego?

“Most people are so completely identified with the voice in the head—incessant stream of involuntary and compulsive thinking and the emotions that accompany it—that we may describe them as being possessed by their mind.  As long as you are completely unaware of this, you take the thinking to be who you are.  This is the egoic mind.  We call it egoic because there is a sense of self, of I  (ego), in every thought—every memory, every interpretation, opinion, viewpoint, reaction, emotion.  This is unconsciousness, spiritually speaking.  Your thinking, the content of your mind, is of course conditioned by the past: your upbringing, culture, family background, and so on.  The central core of all your mind activity consists of certain repetitive and persistent thoughts, emotions, and reactive patterns that you identify with most strongly.  This entity is the ego itself.

In most cases, when you say “I,” it is the ego speaking, not you, as we have seen.  It consists of thought and emotion, of a bundle of memories you identify with as “me and my story,” of habitual roles you play without knowing it, of collective identifications such as nationality, religion, race, social class, or political allegiance.   It also contains personal identifications, not only with possessions, but also with opinions, external appearance, long-standing resentments, or concepts of yourself as better that or not as good as others, as a success or failure.

The content of the ego varies from person to person, but in every ego the same structure operates.  In other words: Egos only differ on the surface.  Deep down they are all the same.  In what way are they the same?  They live on identification and separation.  When you live through the mind-made Self comprised of thought and emotion that is the ego, the basis for your identity is precarious because thought and emotion that is the ego, the basis for your identity is precarious because of thought and emotion are by their very nature ephemeral, fleeting.  So every ego is continuously struggling for survival, trying to protect and enlarge itself.  To uphold the “I-though,” it needs the opposite thought of “the other.”  The conceptual “I” cannot survive without the conceptual “other.”  The others are most other when I see them as my enemies.  At one end of the scale of this unconscious egoic pattern lies the egoic compulsive habit of faultfinding and complaining about others.  Jesus referred to it when he said:  ‘Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?’ At the other end of the scale, there is physical violence between individuals and warfare between nations.  In the Bible, Jesus’ question remains unanswered, but the answer is, of course: Because when I criticize or condemn another, it makes me feel bigger, superior.”

A New Earth – Chapter 3 -- page 59

I have been fascinated reading about the ego.  Nobody I have read about has ever identified the ego as Eckhart Tolle did.  The above excerpt is only a small part of Chapter 3.  I have read his book before, and it becomes clearer to understand after reading it again.  No wonder it has become a popular reading after Oprah introduced it on her show.

“Somebody becomes an enemy if you personalize the unconsciousness that is the ego.  Non-reaction is not weakness but strength.  Another word for non-reaction is forgiveness.  To forgive is to overlook, or rather to look through.  You look through the ego to the sanity that is in every human being as his or her essence.”

~ Eckhart Tolle – A New Earth

Blessings

Blessings come in so many different ways.  Among the most cherished are children.  I am sure those dads who celebrated Father’s Day yesterday will agree with me that children are the greatest miracle of all.

Blessings are among many of God’s favors and protection.  But we humans can also give our blessings to others through prayer and benedictions.

Since God gave the original blessing to Abram (Genesis 12:1-2), the three major religions Judaism, Christianity and Islam have a common beginning.

“And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

~ Genesis 1:28

Giving each other blessings helps us to feel good.  Being kind and serving each other, gives positive feedback to our body.  Through that kind of mind/body unity we create a base for God to sanctify us.  In the Divine Principle (3.1) we call that the first blessing or being fruitful.

The achievement of the first blessing is very crucial because it becomes the foundation for all the second and third blessing.

 

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."

~ Galatians 5:22-23

As this bible quote suggests, there are the fruits of the spirit which we are to emulate.  Once we have incorporated these values mind-body unity becomes much easier.

Through the second blessing we experience the love between man and woman.  Husband and wife create a family by having children.  Each blessing helps us to grow more and contributes to our maturity. 

As experienced adults we can fulfill the third blessing by taking care of the natural world and reap all the benefits from the creation. 

When we look upon our world today, we can certainly find problems everywhere.  Unfortunately, we are trying to find solutions in an external way.  Looking at the diagram above, we can see that the trouble lies in the first blessing.  To become fruitful means to be mature, responsible and caring to oneself, to others and to the environment.  For most of us to love ourselves is the hardest thing of all. 

There is a book out called “The Gentle Art of Blessing” which talks about the health benefits of blessings.  Blessings even have a positive effect on our DNA.  Since we are all spiritual (energy) beings, we respond well to positive vibrations.  Blessings are the ultimate benevolence.  They infuse us with holiness and remind us of our true original potential.

I am closing this blog with blessings to all who come by to read it.  Bless yourselves and others and you will never be the same.


 

Satan's Activities in Human Society

Satan accuses and deceives mankind

Satan is constantly accusing all people before God, as he did Job, in order to drag them into hell. (Job 1:9-11)   However, even Satan cannot perpetrate his evil activity unless he first finds an object partner with whom he can form a common base and engage in give and take action.  Satan's object partners are evil spirits in the spirit world. The object partners to these evil spirits are the spirit selves of evil people on the earth, and the vehicles through which these evil spirit selves act are their physical selves.  Accordingly, the power of Satan is conveyed through evil spirits and is manifested in the activities of earthly people.  For example, Satan entered into Judas Iscariot, (Luke 22:3)  and Jesus once called Peter “Satan.”  (Matt. 16:33) In the Bible, the spirits of evil earthly men are called “angels” of the devil. (Matt. 25:41)

The Kingdom of Heaven on Earth (à Eschatology) is a restored world in which Satan can no longer instigate any activity.  To realize this world, it is necessary for all humanity to eliminate their common base with Satan, restore their common base with God, and engage in give and take action with Him.  The prophecy that in the Last Days God will confine Satan to a bottomless (Rev. 20:1-3) pit signifies that Satan will be utterly incapable of any activity, since here will no longer be any counterpart with whom Satan can relate.  In order to eliminate our common base with Satan and be capable of judging him (I Cor. 6:3), we must understand the identity and crime of Satan and accuse him before God.

However, God endowed human beings and angels with freedom; therefore, He cannot restore them by force.  Of their own free will, human beings are to bring Satan to voluntary submission by upholding the Word of God through fulfilling their responsibility.  Only in this way can we be restored to the original ideal purposed by God at the creation.  Because God works His providence based on this principle, the history of the providence of restoration has been repeatedly prolonged.  (àPredestination2)

Divine Principle -- The Fall of Man: Section 4.2 -- Satan's Activities in Human Society

As a master of persuasion, Satan easily deceives mankind into focusing on anything but God. Through the theory of evolution, for example, he has convinced millions that God doesn't exist.

~  Satan's Work in OurWorld

This is an excerpt from the Divine Principle taught by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon.  Rev. Moon had personal experiences with the fallen archangel Lucifer who became Satan.  To really understand our human problems today, we cannot avoid learning about the true nature of Satan who is the only enemy of mankind.  All the other antagonists are psydo-representatives who challenge us in different ways to make us suffer or change and become stronger.  Rev. Moon discovered the origin of Satan, how he works in our lives, and how he covers his activities in lies and deceptions.   Even though the story of the Fall of Man sounds like a fairytale, it is the symbolic account of what happened to our human ancestors Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.  Similar versions are found in other religious teachings.  The facts are that we have to look for the root cause of evil and how we can eliminate it.

Intentions versus Goals

While we were discussing the “Universe of Possibilities,” (chapter 2 of the Art of Possibility  one member of our small group discussion insisted that we need concrete goals to achieve any kind of objective, not just have wishes and ideas and think of possibilities.  He pointed out that we need to get out of the “la-la” mentality and not only have good intentions.  Being an engineer, he is used to laying out plans clearly and realistic.

Not until a few days later I became aware of a good explanation how goals and possibility fit together.  Here we go:

For a goal to manifest we need a clear decision and a plan.  The intention is created in the NOW while goals are plans for the future.  A goal without the intention behind is an empty wish.  Although we know we can never truly be certain as to the exact outcome of any event, we can be certain about our intent.  The intention is the outcome you want to achieve.

An intention and a dream are two vastly different things. Watch as Cheryl Richardson explains the difference between a "soul goal" and a "head goal." Plus, find out what lesson Oprah learned about intentions.

Goal setting is warrior mentality – conquering and gaining step by step.  Goals take time and discipline to be accomplished.  It is easy to get discouraged and give up.

Intentions are dreams and passion coming from the gut and more spiritual in nature.  Children play-act their dreams and are absorbed by a world of phantasy which adults often don’t understand.

Goals are mechanic and realistic; intentions are creative and make goals possible.  The difference is in “HOW” – allowing the process be determined by the universe by surrendering the outcome.  We are not in control on how it should happen but BEING certain that it will happen.   Allow the magic of the universe to surprise us.  Create the definite intention for the outcome and surrender the process to the universe.  Intentions come from the heart, goals come from the head.

Dr.Wayne Dyer wrote a book “The Power of Intention:”

 

The “Power of Intention” is related to the “Law of Attraction.”  Dr. Dyer has pulled together the ancient spiritual principles in order to help us realize our unlimited potential and explore infinite possibilities.

“Inch by inch, life's a cinch. Yard by yard, life's hard.”

~ John Bytheway

In my own life I have made plans and have created goals which ended very often after a short time because I became discouraged or ‘somebody’ talked me out of it.  I know now that with a well-defined intention I can build up my way to achieve any goal. 

Every Path Leads Home

I have been part of the Religious Recovery Group for about a year now.  Having met Wayne Holmes years ago at a Toastmasters Club I thought that I knew something about him.  I knew that he was an aspiring author, a dedicated father and husband and a loyal citizen.  When I met him again as the founder of the Religious Recovery Program, I discovered his deep love for the Devine and his profound desire to help his fellow man who has been disappointed, discouraged and betrayed by their various religious experiences.

Wayne describes in Every Path Leads Home the different religions he has studied, and the many various disillusionments he has encountered.  Through all this he has strengthened his faith and is dedicated to serve his God the best he knows how to.

The Religious Recovery Program described in the book follows somewhat the 12-Step (in his case 13 steps) Program of Al-Anon.  These steps are complemented by 13 stones which provide a guideline to follow and challenge us to awaken to new possibilities of spirituality beyond religion.

The Religious Recovery Program encourages religious tolerance and to build relationships beyond traditional religious segregation.  Therefore, Every Path Leads Home goes further than doctrines and promotes forgiveness, reconciliation and acceptance.

Even though, I am very happy with my faith,  I am still working on an authentic way of life.  In the past forty something years of pursuing my spiritual journey I have dealt with plenty of criticism, rejection, persecution and misunderstanding both within the church and from the outside.  It is only natural when we look at human relationships that problems arise.  When men lost their connection to the Divine during the Fall of Man, we also lost our connection with each other.  Mankind is now like a big family of children who are fighting among each other because their parents have been absent.

Reading Wayne’s book Every Path Leads Home is one other step to bridge the gap between God and man.  The book is a resourceful testimony of finding the spiritual path rather than the religious.  Although religions have had their purpose throughout human history, their true purpose of bringing man back to God has often been distorted. None-the-less, the many various religions have become mainstreamed into Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism.   Rev. Sun Myung Moon speaks about the unification of all religions on the return of the “true man.”  Most major religious teachings are talking about the return of their leader/founder.  This Messiah/Savior concept has Jews expect the Jewish Messiah, the Christians wait for Christ’s return, the Muslims anticipate the Mahdi or Isa (Arabic name for Jesus), while the Buddhists believe in the arrival of the Maitreya, and the Hindus wait for the Kalki. 

During this time where we are all looking for connecting in a new way with the Divine, we often have a spiritual awakening where nothing of the past makes sense any more.  We may interpret it as disappointment or betrayal and wait for other bad things to happen.  Or we can also use it as an opportunity to reinvent ourselves to live a more authentic life.  

 

When Calls the Heart

I truly enjoyed the series “When Calls the Heart” on Hallmark Chanel with 12 hourly segment each week. 

The movie is slightly based on the book with the same name by Jeanette Oke, a Canadian Christian writer.  I read the original story as well and discovered it quite different from the movie. 

The series describes the life of a young woman, Elizabeth Thatcher, who follows her dream to the Canadian West.  She is deeply moved by her faith as she is confronted with the pioneering life and encounters many problems many of us face: loneliness, misunderstanding, disappointment, rejection and grief but her faith, perseverance and commitment sustain her and show her the value of listening to God and obeying His voice.

Today, I finally understood why I was so moved by the story.  It reminded me in many ways of my own life.  I had been restless and searching for more than seven years when I got my call from God.  Finally, at the beginning of 1973 I met a lady from the Unification Church who introduced me to the study of the Divine Principle.  I wrote once before of my experience of coming to America.

Following this call from God, I experienced all the same emotions Elizabeth was faced with.  I didn’t go to the Canadian Wilderness, but rather became a pioneer to experience people and situations in this country with different belief systems, diverse backgrounds, and most of all unusual behaviors which challenged my own faith in humanity.  Through it all I have come to depend more on my internal guidance and trust in God.

While watching the movie series and also reading the book and other writings of Jeanette Oke, I learned to appreciate her approach of always going back to the basics: prayer and study of the word.  Our faith becomes often weak, and we forget who is really directing our lives.

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

~ Hebrews 11:1

What I liked most about the show is that it allowed things to happen naturally without forcing them.  It permits God to work in our lives when we agree to the truth and be agreeable with others.  I refer here to the way the relationship between Jack and Elizabeth developed.  Both of them in their own way were resolved to not marry.  Jack was honor-bound to his job as a Mountie with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, while Elizabeth didn’t want to marry a Western Canadian and wanted to pursue her courier as a teacher.  Except the Lord had different plans for both of them, and they finally surrendered to the love they felt for each other.

 

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

~ Matthew 5:16

I am deeply grateful to God for allowing me to delight in a modern-day show, using it to renewing my faith and discovering the burning light within me.

Chronos Versus Kairos

Time is a dimension in which events can be ordered from the past through the present into the future, and also the measure of durations of events and the intervals between them.

The ancient Greeks had two words for time.  The first was chronos, which we still use in words like chronological and anachronism, and kairos was the other.  Chronos refers to clock time – time that can be measured – seconds, minutes, hours, years. 

Where chronos is quantitative and exact, kairos is qualitative and expansive. It measures moments, not seconds. Further, it refers to the right moment, the opportune moment; the perfect moment. The world takes a breath, and in the pause before it exhales, fates can be changed.

  

“The Greeks had two words for time: chronos and kairos.  Kairos is not measurable, it is ontological.  In kairos we are, we are fully in isness… fully, wholly, positively.  Kairos can sometimes enter, penetrate, break through kairos: the child at play, the painter at his easel, the saint at prayer, friends around the dinner table, a mother reaching out her arms for her newborn baby, are in kairos.”

~ Madeleine L’Engle – A Circle of Quiet
 
Chronological time does not allow us to get lost in the moment.  We are always aware of the clock and that time is moving on.  Our society is very chronos-oriented; we are overly scheduled, trying to cramp in more and more in a day, in a minute, etc.  Being so time-bound, we are victims of the clock.

 “and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted…”
~ Ecclesiastes 3

Fortunately, we are discovering more and more the other aspect of time: kairos allows us to get lost in the moment, truly experiencing quality time over quantity. Kairos is expansive, full of possibility, and we can enjoy play, passion and the experience itself.  We can lose our self-consciousness, doubts and fears.  Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi calls it being in the “flow.”  In that synchronicity we can experience a higher dimension or the spiritual reality and ultimately unite with our Creator, the Heavenly Parents.

Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity.

– Henry van Dyke (1852-1933), American author, educator, and clergyman

I was inspired to write this article by reading a book "The Art of the Possible” by Alexandra Stoddard.  She writes therein about the path from perfectionism to balance and freedom.

Who is Brer Rabbit?

We all may have heard of Bugs Bunny but only the older folks among us may remember stories of Brer Rabbit.  Brer Rabbit is a character in folk tales of African-American and Native American origin.  He is also known as the “trickster” character because he can even outsmart the other characters in the stories.  

In folklore, the animal trickster represents an extreme form of behavior which people may be forced to use in extreme circumstances in order to survive.

Brer Rabbit is representative of how a smaller, weaker, but cleverer force can overcome a larger, stronger, but less clever power. He continually outsmarts his bigger animal rivals, Brer Fox, Brer Wolf, and Brer Bear.

Author Joel Chandler Harris used and popularized these characters in his series of Uncle Remus tales. One of the most well-known Brer Rabbit tales is a story of Brer Rabbit and the Tar Baby. Brer Fox has been trying and trying to trap the rabbit and finally discovers a way to do it. He sets up a tar “baby,” and when Brer Rabbit encounters it, mayhem ensues.

 

Br’er Rabbit and the Tar Baby

The rabbit becomes stuck to the tar baby and the more he fights against it, the more stuck he becomes—that alone could be a lesson for readers. But it doesn’t stop there. Brer Rabbit manages to trick the fox into throwing him into a briar patch. It sounds like a horrible punishment—at least that’s what we think at first. But, the rabbit has lived his life in the briar patch, so he easily works his way free.

Though the Uncle Remus stories were written in the late 1800s, the stories of the “trickster” rabbit go back centuries in time and will be passed along for centuries more. Brer Rabbit will continue to triumph and get into and out of sticky situations by outsmarting his foes.

Storyteller Diane Ferlatte/ Brer Rabbit's Dance

 

"They cannot distinguish even between Negro demonstrators and negro spectators.”

~ Wyatt Walker

I read about the “tricks” of Brer Rabbit in a book called David and Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell.  Mr. Gladwell writes about ‘Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants.’  In his book, Malcolm goes into a lengthy account of the Civil Rights Movement and how in 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King and Wyatt Walker together used the “Brer Rabbit” ideas to their advantage.  E.G., when they organized street protests, they waited until the early evening when the black residents were walking home from work.  They became onlookers and were mistaken for part of the demonstrations, therefore increasing their numbers.

"We need to remember that our definitions of what is right are, as often as not, simply the way that people in positions of privilege close the door on those at the bottom of the pile."

~ Malcolm Gladwell

Mr. Gladwell makes his point well: Underdogs have to use whatever they've got.

I was very moved by the book because in one way or another we all feel like underdogs at times.  Malcolm’s referrals to the bible reminded me that all throughout human history God has been on the side of the underprivileged; this is the history of restoration.  Because of the Fall of Man, man(kind) lost his proper position and became the underdog.  Once we recognize this weakness, it can become our strength, with God on our side.

If you like to read some more Brer Rabbits stories, here are the links: A Brer Rabbit Story

 
The Origins Of The Br’erRabbit Stories