Reflection for Christmas

Become perfect as the spirit of your Heavenly Father and the body of your Earthly Mother are perfect. And so love your Heavenly Father, as he loves your spirit. And so love your Earthly Mother, as she loves your body. And so love your true brothers, as your Heavenly Father and your Earthly Mother love them. And then your Heavenly Father shall give you his holy spirit, and your Earthly Mother shall give you her holy body and then shall the Sons of Men like true brothers give love to one another; and then shall all become comforters one of another. And then shall disappear from the earth all evil and all sorrow, and there shall be love and joy upon earth. And then shall the earth be like the heavens, and the kingdom of God shall come. For love is eternal. Love is stronger than death.

-The Essene Gospel of Peace, 1937 (1981), Edmond Bordeaux Szekely

It is the season to remember that one of the ways in which God becomes visible to us is through love. Love is a verb; we act for God, moving through the world. It is through us that God becomes visible.

This is the miracle of the incarnation.

May you bring the Spark of the Divine into the world this day and every day.

Merry Christmas!

Saved Through Blood

There is a thread of blood throughout the Biblical stories. One infant is saved, but all those innocent first-borns of Egypt must perish. If you love me, you will kill your only son. To save all of you, my only son will be killed. To keep you safe, you must send your sons and daughters to die. God's message seems to be "Let's kill someone first, then you'll be free to continue on your journey."

The stories are bloodthirsty, violent, full of hatred.

Perhaps when the Bible was written, the language of blood sacrifice was the most meaningful way to get a point across. Something may have to die for life to flourish and reach its full potential. Dreams, habits, opinions, people, governments, love, prejudice, beliefs.

Or maybe the Biblical point is that we must fight for freedom. We can't just sit back and let events wash over us. In the Biblical days, fighting meant literal battle. People understood that language, those images. I have grown up in relative peace. Those images don't speak to me. For others who know war and battle, there must be great empathy for the people of the Bible.

There are many ways to fight, however. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi used non-violent methods, but they fought. We can make a choice about how we will fight against oppressive government, injustice, hatred. Jesus made a choice about how he would fight. His choice was to try to change people's hearts, but his frustration levels led to wrecking the Temple market.

For us, as individuals, freedom from stagnant beliefs, harmful habits, negative thoughts, toxic relationships does mean a fight, a struggle, a jihad. A righteous inner journey.

If you acknowledge that you are a Co-Creator, that your thoughts can create as surely as actions can, and that you are a follower of Jesus, what choices do you make when you take a stand, when you struggle? What choices should you make?

Do you lead with blood or with your compassion? Do you think in terms of battle and victory, or negotiation and partnership?

Remember, you are creating the world in which you want to live.

Creative Thoughts

Yesterday, I spent the day at the Triangle Caregivers Conference in Raleigh, North Carolina. I was among the 60 exhibitors who brought services and products to display for the 400 attendees. By the way, my service is presentations on the eldercare process and my products are my latest book and healthy chocolate. (Unabashed self-promotion, here).

The keynote speaker was a dynamic bundle of energy, Cheri Britton, who hails from Asheville, NC in the western end of the state. In her presentation, she shared that human satisfaction in life is not determined by the external circumstances in which we find ourselves, but by what we think about those circumstances. Her premise was that "What you think...you are." Negative thoughts, angry internal dialogues lead to negative energy that surrounds us and draws more negativity. She promotes BOOM thinking:

• Put the Brakes on your thinking. Stop and acknowledge what you're thinking and feeling.
• Observe what's happening when you are negative. Is there a trigger, is there a stressor, what are the feelings, what's leading to the negative thoughts?
• Obliterate the negative thought. You find what you look for so reframe the thought to place it in positive-- or at least more neutral--ground.
• Make a new mindset. What would you rather think? Switch your thinking to focus on what you want.

As I listened to Cheri, I realized that she was presenting in a humorous and practical way something that many spiritual teachers have been telling us--we are Co-Creators with God. As spiritual beings engaged in human endeavors, we have the power to co-create by "thinking" something into existence.

Dr. Wayne Dyer, in his book 10 Secrets for Success and Inner Peace, two of the ten secrets deal specifically with creative thinking. #6 is "You can't solve a problem with the same mind that created it." and #10 is "Wisdom is avoiding all thoughts that weaken you." All the other secrets discuss different ways in which your mindset and your thoughts can affect your entire inner landscape.

Psychological counseling knows from experience the value of affirmations that a client creates for himself and repeats over and over until those affirmations replace the negative mindspeak and the client moves about in the world with more confidence and a more positive attitude.

As you intend, so shall ye create. Yoda's famous "There is no try." points to the power of intention. It is somewhat difficult to imagine that by simply changing your thinking you may change your life, your opportunities, your connections. But there is nothing simple about changing your thinking, so ingrained it can be. Repetition, practice and that spark of the Divine we all have can do the job, if we allow them.

Do you think you're a Co-creator with God? Are your thoughts creative? Can you change your life by changing your thoughts?

Think about that...