Staying Current

With so much taking place that needs our attention, it is important that we stay alert to what each day holds. There are, no doubt, some things that demand our wisdom and care, but there are also spaces in the day that need our creativity and our imagination.  To be “up” for this as yet unformed element of our daily lives, we must stay flexible and welcoming to possibilities as yet unknown.

We can remain up-to-date...            

With better brain health now part of normal living, it is quite reasonable to expect our mental health to keep up with more inspired physical health.  Therefore we can remain up-to-date in our expectations for more expanded lifestyles, both physically and mentally.  We can expect to live fuller lives as functioning individuals at every level, not only during our youth but on into great age.

There are many challenges to healthy living...            

There are many challenges to healthy living these days as we confront the physical disorders around us.  Not only do we need to be more careful in our physical activities, but we also need to be sure that we think clearly about the power of our mental activities.  Perhaps more than ever, we need to make sure we are as fully aligned with the Divine Spirit as we can possibly be.  We may ask:  What does my expanded sense of Oneness with God look like, and how can I bring this more forward in my personal life?

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Breakthroughs

Could we actually encourage and promote breakthroughs in our lives?  Could breakthroughs become regular occurrences more than occasional highlights?  To both questions, I say a hearty “yes” because breakthrough thinking can become a regular mental adventure rather than something extraordinary that smashes through ordinary events of the day.  Breakthroughs can become an expectation that we can contemplate rather than just an occasional surprise outcome.

An ordinary flow of events...          

 It may be that most of our days are guided by run-of-the-mill planning and an ordinary flow of events, but this is not a “given.”  Our lives are not ordained to hum along untouched by unusual insights or colorful physical demands.  In fact, through curious ideas and one-of-a kind questioning, we can indeed set ourselves up for breakthrough thinking on a regular basis… if we are willing to become unsettled by thoughts and circumstances that we cannot fully regulate.

"Leaky margins",,,       

Being unsettled does not mean being out of control, but it can mean allowing our minds to have “leaky margins” when it comes to what we will allow space in our thoughts.  Who said we are not adventurous, that we are not capable of high flight just because our days move in a certain accord?  There is a “God spot” in all of us that is open to what we do not yet know about ourselves.  Maybe we should become a little more curious about what that is!

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Forward March!

 How often have we been admonished to go forward, keep up the pace, do not lose ground or lag behind!  Often throughout our lives, I’ll bet.  And to keep up with the demands of our lives, we mightily step up, sometimes without thinking of the energies expended in doing so.  Perhaps we might consider for a moment just how energetic we must be as we get out of bed each morning. 

...It is "expected"            

With some regularity, most of us get up around the same time each day, aware of what is wanted and needed from us, sometimes with enthusiasm… and sometimes not so vigorously.  We do so, however, because it is “expected,” because we have obligations, etc., which is all well and good, but what if we simply took each day as a singular opportunity?  What if we kept our vision clear and on point so that we did not complicate the needs of the day unnecessarily? 

Would this not help us gather our energies for clear usage and simple procedures?

 Everything does not have to be a big deal....         

 Everything does not have to be a big deal.  Couldn’t we just take each demand and let it become a possibility of surprises that could open before us?  The days do keep marching on before us, and if we can help ourselves insert a little more joy in what we do, wouldn’t that be a real gift to ourselves!!

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Is Patience still a virtue?

For many years and in many cultures, it has been said that patience is a virtue.     An entire mindset has been built on the idea that swift gratifications are often not nearly as valuable as steady, well-considered thinking, but in these days of fast actions and instant information, we have to ask:  Is patience still a needed quality?  Can we be satisfied and, indeed, expanded by outcomes that sometimes seem to pop up before our eyes?  While excellence can sometimes come in an instant, I think those of us who engage in what can be called “long-haul thinking” would more likely opt for the clarifying establishment of patience as a valuable quality of mature brain usage.

We will need a patient hand...            

We all know that some things of beauty cannot occur without measured thoughts and actions.  Many works of art would not come into being without the time and energy needed to allow their fulfillment to take place.  Therefore, like it or not, there will be many instances where we will need a patient hand in realizing wonderful outcomes.  We might as well become skilled at the development of carefully-crafted means that get us where we want to go because,   in our use of developed skills we will more regularly participate in the expanding fullness of our own lives, a fulfillment eagerly to be sought…

 

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Stop, Look and Listen

 

            One of my fond memories of youth is a familiar injunction that children will remember.  It was a bold statement emblazoned on signs and posters everywhere, and it said:  Stop, look and listen, and it was a good, attention-getting device.  Simply put, it really meant, “Pay attention… Get your thoughts in order so you’ll know what is going on!”  And it would probably be a good thing to have these words thrust before us today, whether we are young or old, because we seem to spend a lot of time just “schlepping” through our days!   So many people seem to be walking around in a daze that it does not surprise me when some actually walk into objects!  They simply are not observing what is in front of them!

The mind we use is the Mind of God...          

 In our spiritual practices, some of us believe that the mind we use is the Mind of God.  We believe that this is a spiritual gift given to everyone, and we may use it any way we wish, whether wisely or carelessly.  If we believe this to be so, we should stop a minute and ask ourselves how we are using this peerless treasure!  Do we, for instance, stop, look and listen to what is going on within and around us!  Or are we just breezing through our days, letting ourselves be pulled errantly in every direction!

These are important ideas...          

 Yes, these are important ideas to be considered by users of the Divine Mind!  Imagine what our lives might be like if we did, indeed, stop, look and listen!

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Continual Newness

 

            Try as we might, no matter how much we may wish to stay fixed on a few facts, we cannot avoid the onset of newness on a daily basis.  Every day as we awaken, we are greeted with something new, beginning with a sun that sits in the sky differently than it did the day before.

“ Nothing new under the sun…          

Therefore, even if we declare that there is “nothing new under the sun” happening in our lives, we would clearly be mistaken.  In fact wisdom would suggest that we leave an open spot in ourselves for the surprises… large and small… that will take place in our circumstances.  Not to do so will set us up for all sorts of uncomfortable events.

A perpetual sense of newness…        

The benefits of such open-endedness should be obvious, for if we encourage an unfinished arena within us, there will be a hesitation to resist many unexpected changes that can take place over time, thus encouraging a kind of anticipation of the unknowns that lie around the corner.  This can also encourage a perpetual sense of newness, which encourages as well a more youth-oriented mind set.

            Nothing the matter with growing older as long as the approaching years do not hinder our curiosity nor keep us from the natural investigations of the unknowns that continually loom before us!

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Wholeness

 

            When we are assessing our health, we should take time to consider our level of Wholeness.  How “complete” are we? Does anything seem to be missing, and are there areas of ourselves that seem to need more attention; for instance, which kind of track does our thinking take?  Are we as present and positive to our lives as we should be, or are we “letting ourselves go” in some ways?

We give way...          

 In busy times and especially when times seem harder or more demanding, I think that sometimes we give way to what is at hand and do not always take the loving and positive care of ourselves that we should.  Our own lives, especially our own thoughts, will always be closer to us than anything else.  We cannot, nor should we, expect that others can think for us or choose the directions our lives will take.

No one else can bring our gifts...            

Taking responsibility can be challenging at times, especially when our surroundings are not always encouraging.  Nevertheless, no one else can bring our gifts but we ourselves, and it is part of our display of Wholeness when we know and appreciate this.  “One day at a time” is a good motto to keep before us, especially when there is much to think about and difficult choices to make. 

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