It seems that there has always been a difference of opinion between those who believe that we are predestined to things and that we have little or no choice, and those who believe that we are completely free to choose as we wish.

I read a quote this morning that I think says it all.  The quote said:

            "Man was predestined to have free will."

                                                            Hal Luyah

I don't know how you feel about this, but I really like it.  To me, it says that the Infinite, the Absolute, God, decided to give us the ability to choose and to be responsible for our choices.  It makes the most sense.

Have you ever had a time when you were not awake, but not asleep either?  You mind is going a thousand miles an hour and everything seems perfectly clear.  You life has purpose and the way to accomplish your goals and dreams seems to be within easy reach.

I believe those times are when we are linked most closely to the Self that resides within us.  The little self, sometimes called the ego, is not in control as it is most of the time when we are fully awake.  There is no cry of danger or sell-doubt.  The larger Self, the divinity that resides within us is free to dream and explore ways to do what we were meant to do.

If we were able to hold this reality, and I believe it is more real than what we experience when fully awake, we would be so much more productive.  We would use the creative force of the Absolute in all that we do and this world, this universe, would be a much different place.  Wars would cease, famine eliminated, diseases cured.  We would be the reflection of God in bodily form.  We would be the Incarnate.  Who needs to go to heaven when you live there?

As I was doing my yoga this morning, I looked down and noticed the light on my laptop as the battery charged.  My laptop is an old one and it takes over an hour to charge the battery.  It got me to thinking about how we are much like that battery charger.

The power of God, of the Infinite, flows through us.  It does so, as the bible says, according to our faith.  We receive and pas on this power in the amount we are used to and capable of handling.  The sad part is that most of us have become so used to a trickle charge instead of a 220 line.  At that rate, we can't even feel the flow.  We become numb to the fact that it is happening at all.

It takes little effort to renew the ability to have this power, this Prana, this Ki, strengthened to the point that it once again becomes the creative power of the Absolute, and I don't mean the vodka!  Which would you rather be; a trickle charger or a nuclear power plant?

It is really hot today where I live. The thermometer is nearing on hundred degrees F.  I don't know about you, but that's hot, as far as I am concerned.  I like the heat much more than the cold, but this is getting near the limit.

Speaking of hot, I saw an interview with Joel Osteen on 60 minutes.  As part of this, 60 minutes interviewed a theologian asking what he thought about Osteen's message.  He called Osteen a heretic.  Now I might be a bit prejudice about people who are called heretics since I am in their camp.  The thing is, this theologian said that Osteen talked too much about good things and not enough about hell.  Osteens' answer was that people knew how and when they were wrong, he wanted to give them hope.

I agree with him.  Religion has turned off so many people because it has wanted only to scare the hell out of people (yes, pun intended).  Religion has very seldom been about giving people hope or telling them that God loves them, even thought scripture says that.  When one reads scripture, and here I am talking from a Christian tradition, the central message is of hope.  If this is true, and it is, then why do so many preachers, priests and theologians want to ignore that message of hope and dwell on the negative.  That seems to come from someplace other than God, the Infinite source of all. 

To be a heretic means to choose what to believe.  I guess Joel Osteen, myself, and a few others choose to believe that God loves us, makes a way for us, gives us ways to live that are truly remarkable, and is more than an evil tempered Tyrant. Here's to choice!

Yesterday, I failed to write anything in my blog.  I could have sworn that I did it.  I even checked it off on my list of things to do.  I guess I need to check a little more closely when I do that.

Speaking of letting things slip by; how many days, weeks months, years, have you let slip by?  I think if we are honest, we all have too many of those, including years, that have gone by unnoticed.  We get caught up in the business of the day and pretty soon, many days have gone by and we have no idea where they went.  Have you ever eaten a meal and later wondered what it was or what it tasted like?  This is much the same thing.  We go through life and then, all of a sudden, we look back and can't remember what we did, where we were, or who we were with.

Being in the moment is one way to be more aware of what is going on around you.  Another is to simple slow down enough to enjoy, savor, what you are doing.  We all have a choice in how we live our lives.  We can either live them as if we were constantly in a rush to bail out the ocean one bucket at a time, or we can purposely and purposefully live our lives.  We are, so why not be?

Last night, just before dark, my wife and I saw someone we know.  This person was about twenty-five yards away and the evening was changing from dusk to dark.  The person was wearing what might be described as a minister's shirt.  You know the kind, black with the type of collar that would allow the insertion of a white priests or clergy collar.  Now I have to admit that I do not know this person well.  I have no idea what they do for an occupation.  He could be a member of the clergy, a hit man, or anything in between.  What got to me is my wife's comment.

My wife commented that if this person were clergy, that would explain his usual sour disposition.  This piqued my interest because I myself am a member of the clergy.  Is the general opinion that people who are professional members of the priesthood or clergy always sour and disagreeable.  I mean this statement came from my wife who has been married to one for many years.

I have to admit that my own view would probably be that many of them are indeed, sour faced and disagreeable.  I don't like talking to other ministers because I hate always feeling as if I have to be very careful of what I say in case they become offended, or worse, feel the need to correct my errant beliefs.

What does that say about the state of religion?  What does it say about the people who are, supposedly, there to help us on our faith journeys?

If we listen, it is surprising what we will hear.  Sit in meditation and listen for guidance and you will most often get it.  The trick is to expect it, listen for it and then respond to what is given.  It isn't easy to do this; we so often want to discount what we hear and what we receive. 

This isn't something new; we have been doing this for years.  Think about the last time you asked someone for advice. You listened, but more than likely, you listened for that advice that agreed with you already chosen direction.

When we ask the Infinite for some advice, some direction, we need to listen and believe that we are being given the thing we need.  Try it.  See if it isn't true.  Try it and see where it might go.  This is called faith.

Lessons learned and acted on are sweet lesson indeed!  This morning I woke feeling somewhat apprehensive and just a little upset. You see, I had to go to the dermatologist this morning and get a couple of spots of pre-cancer cut off of me.  It really isn’t a big deal, but I knew it was not going to feel good and there was so much I wanted to do this morning.  I hated the idea of wasting most of my morning just to get hacked on.

 
The other thing that bothered me was that I needed to do some work outside that included spraying some of my lawn.  It is the kind of thing that cannot be watered or rained on for forty-eight hours afterward.  This morning was bright and clear and it would be my only chance for a week.  I hurried and got it done before the Appointment, went and got hacked on and came home.  Shortly afterward, it rained so hard, and hailed, that there was no way my spray was not washed away.  There went $20 down the drain.

 
I started to get really bummed.  I wasted the morning, was now way behind in the work I had to do and now the rain washed my lawn stuff away.  In the past I would have been on the slippery slope of the downward spiral.  I stopped, took a breath, and said to myself, “This will not, cannot, ruin my day.”  The bad feeling left and no matter the weather outside, the sunshine broke out in my mind and things were right in the world again.  That’s how it’s supposed to be!

 
We must all work on those things in ourselves that need changing and continually strive to feel the opposite emotion, live the opposite life.  We are created to be so much more than we are, but we cannot continue on the way we have and expect things to change.  Change today!  You’ll enjoy the result.