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Balanced Living

There is a Divine Polarity to all of life. Magnets have positive and negative poles. Most of our learning comes to us in that manner. We find out what we do not want after we get it, and thereby learn what we really do want and need. Sounds like an oxymoron, doesn’t it?

Some examples are:

Joy vs. Sadness

Truth vs. Lies

Peace vs. Chaos

Beauty vs. Ugliness

Life vs. Death

Love vs. Hate

Light vs. Darkness

Laughter vs. Tears

Good vs. Bad

Have you ever been in a relationship with someone, and, after it is over, said to yourself, “Well, I’ll never do that again! I will change my choices. I will ask more questions. I will be able to see that quality in someone else before I get involved.” Yet, sometimes history repeats itself?

We learn by bumps in the road, apparently, as a species.

I love the Pushmi-Pullyu in the Doctor Dolittle series. I have found that life is not all one thing or all another. It is usually a mixture of both polarities. The questions is: Can you separate them out clearly enough to be able to change your choices?

Add in the idea that rarely is anything simple. Usually, it is some of each. Whether it be a job, relationships, raising children, or any other topic that comes to mind. I personally know people who stay in a bad relationship because they have become vested in it–stuff rules as do habits. So they stay in the same old toxic atmosphere year in and year out. You can say the same for a job. Vesting dictates because one cannot afford a lower wage or whatever it takes to make a change. Raising children has its joys and its heart aches because these are little beings with an idea of how they want life to be and seek it out at their level, which may not be the wisest course. In short, simplicity is difficult, if not impossible, to find. That does not mean that one should not seek it. It only means that it is a gem of great price and should be sought after with due diligence.

There are positive aspects of all the above. Having been in a bad marriage or relationship, one can then seek more wisely to find a mate who is more compatible. If one is unhappy with the workaday life they have created, for whatever reason, one can seek that which will make them happier. Some Wall Street workers quit that life style and go to the country, finding a different way to live. Some go to college so they can change their resumes. In short, one can seek that which will give him/her a more positive balance in living.

Life is not like walking a tight rope without a safety net. Mankind can learn, grow, and change at will. Fear keeps us from doing that. It has been said that Fear of the Unknown is the greatest reason for not seeking a better answer. What one knows is better than looking for a challenge. The sameness of daily living is secure, no matter what the Happiness Quotient is.

I have been fortunate because I have accepted the challenges and sought Change and Balance in Living. I know what I want my life to look like. I have had to learn Forgiveness of myself and others in my journey. I have never thought that I would rather live alone than try to find that certain someone who will be my  Best Friend for the rest of my life, someone I could grow old with, and someone who will be on the other end of this relationship. After all, relationships are TWO-WAY STREETS, not one-way. If one person is giving all the time while the other is taking all the time, no Happiness Quotient can be found.  I have said that relationships are like a waltz, and I would rather dance through life with my partner than have somebody who is out of synch and not on the same page. I have been most fortunate to find my Best Friend. I would wish the same for you.

I started this article with many positive qualities which I consider necessary for my life. I endeavor to achieve my balance with them in some way, every day. I look for them. I accentuate their presence in my life. Instead of dwelling on the negatives, which are also present daily, I look for some way to lighten the day with laughter and the other ideas.

How about you? Are you willing to look at your Happiness Quotient and seek new ways to find Balance in Living? You will find that it is worth the time and effort to think about, seek, and find. Even if your life is good, it can always be better. Are you interested?

May your journey be blessed in every way. 🙂

 

The Light of God

This poem was written by James Dillet Freeman when he was a young man for all soldiers of WWII. It is a favorite of mine, and I begin each day with this prayer:

The Light of God Surrounds me…

The love of God enfolds me…

The Power of God protects me…

The Presence of God watches over me…

Wherever I am, God is.”

This is the shorter version, which many people are familiar with. I usually change the “me” to “us” because I am praying for all of my loved ones; hence, the last line is, “Wherever we are, God is.”

The longer version goes like this:

“The light of God surrounds me…

The Love of God enfolds me…

The Power of God protects me…

The Presence of God watches over me…

The mind of God guides me…

The Life of God flows through me…

The laws of God direct me…

The power of God abides within me…

The Joy of God uplifts me…

The Strength of God renews me…

The Beauty of God inspires me…

Wherever I am, God is.”

I find great comfort from this poem. Sometimes my mind just stays in the problems that I see in my own world as well as the world at large, both personal and loved ones’ worlds, just going round and round. I have to remind myself that I need to move my FOCUS to the ANSWER. It is perfectly obvious that there is no resolution to the issues involved unless one moves to an answer-seeking posture. I am not talking supplication here (as in begging to take some problem away). It has been said that “The way out is the way through.” That means that we are asking for our highest good as well as that for our loved ones. If we know specifics in the answer, we can look to them; however, it can limit the answer. But the generic “highest good” works very well, as does wrapping whoever we are concerned about in White Light, which is the highest God there is.

I had a friend whom I told the White Light idea to before she left on a trip. During that road trip, there was an accident that was imminent. She immediately wrapped them in White Light, and the accident was avoided. She knows the White Light saved them as nothing else could have.

It has been said that “Ye have not because ye ask not.” In Matthew 7:7,8, it says, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asked receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.”

This is talking about the ANSWER, which is a change of FOCUS. In our loving concern, especially for loved ones, we get stuck in the problem and chaos. We WORRY and fret, perhaps even shed tears. In the end, one must turn them, the problem, and our concern and worry over to God. We have to LET GO AND LET GOD do what is best. That is a tall order.

Are you willing to change your focus? Are you willing to give True Prayer a try? It means that you have to pray believing. Can you do that?

If you do, it will change your life and the lives of your loved ones. I can promise you that. God’s blessings be upon you, every minute of your day!

 

 

Divine Inner Companion

An old hymn from my childhood says, “You’ll never walk alone.” It goes on with, “Walk on through the wind, walk on through the rain, though your dreams be tossed and blown…”
How many times has that happened to you?
Life rarely comes to us in ways the we like. There are many problems and seemingly irresolvable issues that occur to all of us at one time or another.
Rarely, can we estimate if it is a mountain or a mole hill when we start to climb. As we continue, we can multiply whatever it is and make it an even steeper climb, or we can look at the facts of it (division) and turn it into a mole hill so we can have an easier time of it. The multiplication happens because of the emotions we generate. The division happens when we decide to ACT in lieu of REACT to a problem/situation.

If I turn within and commune with my Divine Inner Companion, I can depend on it that I will ACT. I am more rationale and can see things differently, perceive the situation more clearly, and can come up with a resolution more easily.

In the days of yore, when I was not connected to God, I would stumble along blindly, falling, hurting myself, and wailing away at the Universe because I was unhappy and things were not working. My grief multiplied, exponentially.

My epiphany came like the popular poem:

Footprints

“One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand; one belonged to him, and the other to the Lord.

When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life.

This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord about it. “Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you, you’d walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I don’t understand why when I needed you most you would leave me.

The Lord replied, “My precious, precious child, I love you and I would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering, when you see  only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.”

I was never alone. I had just let go of His hand. He was always there for me. I was just disconnected. Life’s problems just wore me out. Only when I turned within and reconnected could I feel His Presence. After the chaos that went on when I was “alone,” I determined that was not for me.

How about you? What form of chaos do you live with daily? Are you feeling alone? Only you can change it. Only you can light your candle so you can see through the darkness and find your path. Are you willing to take that action?