"Give us this day our daily bread"
Give us grace for today; feed the famished affections.
Give us this day our daily bread, our daily communion with God, our daily grace, our daily experience of His unconditional Love. That Love feeds all famished affections. ThatLove satisfies all our deepest yearnings. That Love supplies all our true need.
And being filled up full with the Love of God, we have the natural ability to reflect His Love to everyone around us. With our famished affections fed, we awaken to our right to love our neighbor as ourself - to reflect the unconditional love of God to all those famished hearts we see around us.
If our famished affections are fed, we can have no sense of debt or lack or burden of owing or being owed. Because God is awakening us to see that Love forgives all debts by proving there actually are none! Love awakens us from our false witnessing of others (or ourselves!) as lacking, as debtors and tresspassers! And when you receive the incredible Love that is the only source of real forgiveness, you begin to learn how to forgive - love- like God does. And all sense of others owing you vanishes.
"Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors."
And Love is reflected in love.
There is no "you owe me" in the recipe of the Bread of Life! Instead God insists we eliminate that ingredient of a personal sense of indebtedness out of Life. God insists on being reflected completely in us, so that we may not only see others as God already sees them, but (usually harder) see ourselves as He sees us. And right this moment, God sees you (and everyone!) as debtless, flawless, complete, with every need supplied by - who? by Him. Always by Him.
"And lead us not into tempation, but deliver us from evil."
And God leadeth us not into temptation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.
And once you've awakened to - glimpsed - your true nature as God's loved image and likeness, do you think you'd fall back into tempation again? Well, maybe. But it becomes increasingly harder, especially as you pray, really pray, the Lord's Prayer.
Praying the Lord's Prayer makes you much more aware of the lies of evil. Why? Because you are tasting your daily Bread of Life. You are tasting the Truth. You are learning what the real meal - the real deal - tastes like. And how satisifying it is. And what a contrast it is to the cheap junk-food evil seems to offer up.
And isn't this then how God leads you? Isn't this how God delivers you from all the Liar's lies: sin, disease, even death? By giving you, through the Lord's Prayer, a taste of your daily Bread, your daily communion with God, your daily experience of God?
And once you taste what God, Love, really is - taste that True Bread - and feel it feeding, awakening, and enlivening you, the contrast is so sharp that you can spot the trial, the temptation - the Liar - a mile away.
So "Give us this day our daily bread." Give us grace for today; feed the famished affections - ours and everyone's. And learn how that Grace forgives and teaches forgiveness, how God loves and reflects love in you, as you. And so know that God will always lead you from trails and deliver you from any sense of evil. Why? Because God actually is the only presence, the only power, the only glory of Life, Truth, and Love there ever was, is, or will be. God is not only over all, He is All.
And you know what? He loves you.
Amen.
Showing posts with label temptation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label temptation. Show all posts
Friday, July 24, 2009
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Does God tempt us and try us?
"And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil."
And God leadeth us not into temptation but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.
This verse of the Lord's Prayer specifically challenges the old theology that says God is vengeful, capricious; that He throws hurdles - trials - at us to tempt us and test us.
Think how often God is mistakenly portrayed this way in popular theology - not only during Jesus' time, but even in our own! People still hear (and fear) "If you do [fill in the blank] God will punish you!"
But in this verse of the Lord's Prayer Jesus says NO to this way of thinking.
His entire prayer is a radical departure from such a view of God. In Jesus' view, God is "Our Father." And Jesus shows us our Father's name and nature are to be hallowed - adored - because our Father is Good. His all-harmonious kingdom is one you want to be in. You want God's will to be done right here where you are just as it is in Heaven. Why? because His will for you is good! How do we know? Listen to Jesus:
"...what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?"
And what does God give you?
Your daily bread. Your daily communion with Him. Your daily experience of Him.
And His presence shows you your forgiveness as you forgive others. His Love and forgiveness for you is reflected in your love and forgiveness of your neighbor.
And He leads you - not into temptation - but always delivers you from everything that would tempt you or try to separate you from Him: sin, disease, and even death.
Why? Because that's what happens when you open yourself to the kingdom, the presence, of God. That's what happens when invite His will to be yours. And His is the glory that envelopes you. Here. Now.
And God never leads you into trials or temptation but always delivers you into His presence, His care and authority, His Allness, His glorious Love.
And God leadeth us not into temptation but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.
This verse of the Lord's Prayer specifically challenges the old theology that says God is vengeful, capricious; that He throws hurdles - trials - at us to tempt us and test us.
Think how often God is mistakenly portrayed this way in popular theology - not only during Jesus' time, but even in our own! People still hear (and fear) "If you do [fill in the blank] God will punish you!"
But in this verse of the Lord's Prayer Jesus says NO to this way of thinking.
His entire prayer is a radical departure from such a view of God. In Jesus' view, God is "Our Father." And Jesus shows us our Father's name and nature are to be hallowed - adored - because our Father is Good. His all-harmonious kingdom is one you want to be in. You want God's will to be done right here where you are just as it is in Heaven. Why? because His will for you is good! How do we know? Listen to Jesus:
"...what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?"
And what does God give you?
Your daily bread. Your daily communion with Him. Your daily experience of Him.
And His presence shows you your forgiveness as you forgive others. His Love and forgiveness for you is reflected in your love and forgiveness of your neighbor.
And He leads you - not into temptation - but always delivers you from everything that would tempt you or try to separate you from Him: sin, disease, and even death.
Why? Because that's what happens when you open yourself to the kingdom, the presence, of God. That's what happens when invite His will to be yours. And His is the glory that envelopes you. Here. Now.
And God never leads you into trials or temptation but always delivers you into His presence, His care and authority, His Allness, His glorious Love.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Temptation and desire ...and prayer
"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil."
And God leadeth us not into temptation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.
"Our Master said, 'After this manner pray ye' and then he gave that prayer which covers all human needs." That prayer is the Lord's Prayer.
What Jesus is telling us is, after this manner therefore express your desires. Put your deepest yearning into these words. Phrase your honest needs this way.
Your yearning, your desires, are a form of prayer itself, probably the most honest form of prayer. And the answer to your every prayer is found here in the meaning -the spirit - of the Lord's Prayer.
Mrs. Eddy wrote: "Thoughts unspoken are not unknown to the divine Mind. Desire is prayer; and no loss can occur from trusting God with our desires, that they may be moulded and exalted before they take form in words and in deeds."
Does that mean you can trust only your holiest desires to God? Or does it also mean you can actually trust all of your desires, all of your genuine honest heartfelt, soul-felt and yes, body-felt, desires to God? Yes, it does.
Mrs. Eddy makes another astute observation: "Honesty is spiritual power. Dishonesty is human weakness, which forfeits divine help." She also writes: "We should examine ourselves and learn what is the affection and purpose of the heart, for in this way only can we learn what we honestly are."
The best place to start your prayer is by examining - and honestly acknowledging - your real desires. Not the desires you think you should have. Not the ones that other people think are good for you. Not the ones society as a whole preaches about. But yours. What you feel deeply and sincerely - good, bad, or indifferent!
And oh everyone - including you - is "praying" this way all the time! It's just that most people never realize that what they're cherising in their heart, what they're desiring, what they're focusing on, is actually a prayer.
And what everyone - including you - usually forget to do, is to actually trust God with those desires. Instead, you trust your desire to the ego's self-indulgence! And then your prayer gets answered with busyness instead of Life, entertainment instead of Truth, part-time pleasures instead of Love - fantasy instead of Reality!
But that's OK. Everyone does it. Just pay more attention. Don't let the ego's little temptations lead you down its deadend roads. Instead, be aware of what you are honestly desiring in your heart. Notice it. Bring it out into the open. Don't be afraid of it. NEVER be afraid to be completely honest with yourself about your heart's true feelings! and NEVER be afraid to completely trust those feelings, those desires, those deep deep yearnings to your Father-Mother God.
And God never leads us into tempation, but always delivers us into holiness, and wholeness, and Life!
And God leadeth us not into temptation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.
"Our Master said, 'After this manner pray ye' and then he gave that prayer which covers all human needs." That prayer is the Lord's Prayer.
What Jesus is telling us is, after this manner therefore express your desires. Put your deepest yearning into these words. Phrase your honest needs this way.
Your yearning, your desires, are a form of prayer itself, probably the most honest form of prayer. And the answer to your every prayer is found here in the meaning -the spirit - of the Lord's Prayer.
Mrs. Eddy wrote: "Thoughts unspoken are not unknown to the divine Mind. Desire is prayer; and no loss can occur from trusting God with our desires, that they may be moulded and exalted before they take form in words and in deeds."
Does that mean you can trust only your holiest desires to God? Or does it also mean you can actually trust all of your desires, all of your genuine honest heartfelt, soul-felt and yes, body-felt, desires to God? Yes, it does.
Mrs. Eddy makes another astute observation: "Honesty is spiritual power. Dishonesty is human weakness, which forfeits divine help." She also writes: "We should examine ourselves and learn what is the affection and purpose of the heart, for in this way only can we learn what we honestly are."
The best place to start your prayer is by examining - and honestly acknowledging - your real desires. Not the desires you think you should have. Not the ones that other people think are good for you. Not the ones society as a whole preaches about. But yours. What you feel deeply and sincerely - good, bad, or indifferent!
And oh everyone - including you - is "praying" this way all the time! It's just that most people never realize that what they're cherising in their heart, what they're desiring, what they're focusing on, is actually a prayer.
And what everyone - including you - usually forget to do, is to actually trust God with those desires. Instead, you trust your desire to the ego's self-indulgence! And then your prayer gets answered with busyness instead of Life, entertainment instead of Truth, part-time pleasures instead of Love - fantasy instead of Reality!
But that's OK. Everyone does it. Just pay more attention. Don't let the ego's little temptations lead you down its deadend roads. Instead, be aware of what you are honestly desiring in your heart. Notice it. Bring it out into the open. Don't be afraid of it. NEVER be afraid to be completely honest with yourself about your heart's true feelings! and NEVER be afraid to completely trust those feelings, those desires, those deep deep yearnings to your Father-Mother God.
And God never leads us into tempation, but always delivers us into holiness, and wholeness, and Life!
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Temptation and human sexuality
"Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil"
And God leadeth us not into tempation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.
If God leads us away from temptation, if He delivers us from sin, then where does human sexuality fit into the picture?
You could just as easily ask, where do bees and flowers fit into the picture?
Sexuality appears to be a temptation - evil - only when you put moralism first and spirituality last. Putting the letter ahead of the spirit is what corrupts this natural part of Life. Suppressing your natural being through human will or through blind obedience to mortal "morality" invites all sorts of problems, from perversion to self-hate and self-destruction.
Mrs. Eddy doesn't say a lot about human sexuality, but her guidance around eating and drinking may be examined in the light they shed on sexual appetite. See how Mrs. Eddy clearly shows her humanity for the differing states and stages of human consciousness:
"Admit the common hypothesis that food is the nutriment of life, and there follows the necessity for another admission in the opposite direction,--that food has power to destroy Life, God, through a deficiency or an excess, a quality or a quantity. This is a specimen of the ambiguous nature of all material health-theories. They are self-contradictory and self-destructive, constituting a "kingdom divided against itself," which is 'brought to desolation.'
"The fact is, food does not affect the absolute Life of man, and this becomes self-evident, when we learn that God is our Life. Because sin and sickness are not qualities of Soul, or Life, we have hope in immortality; but it would be foolish to venture beyond our present understanding, foolish to stop eating until we gain perfection and a clear comprehension of the living Spirit. In that perfect day of understanding, we shall either eat to live nor live to eat. "
So perhaps you can paraphrase it this way:
"Admit the common hypothesis that [sex] is the nutriment of [love], and there follows the necessity for another admission in the opposite direction,--that [sex] has power to destroy [Love], God, through a deficiency or an excess, a quality or a quantity. This is a specimen of the ambiguous nature of all material [moral]-theories. They are self-contradictory and self-destructive, constituting a "kingdom divided against itself," which is 'brought to desolation.'
"The fact is, [sex] does not affect the absolute Life of man, and this becomes self-evident, when we learn that God is our Life. Because sin and sickness are not qualities of Soul, or Life, we have hope in immortality; but it would be foolish to venture beyond our present understanding, foolish to stop [expressing our sexuality] until we gain perfection and a clear comprehension of the living Spirit. In that perfect day of understanding, we shall either [have sex] to [love] nor [love] to [have sex]."
So is human will power going to help you express your sexuality?
No. But your spiritual sense will. Your intuition, your hope, faith, understanding of where God, Love, is leading you - listening to this instead of to your animal urges - is what will really satisfy you.
Is blind obedience to moralism or cultural expectations going to help you? Is peer pressure? Are pronouncements from people too wooden to care anymore about sexual expression, are they going to help you understand your way forward?
No. But your own spiritual growth will. Your own step-by-step demonstration of your true spiritual nature will. Your practicing unselfish love will. Your practicing seeing past just a sexy body to the beautiful spirit of the person who attracts you, yes that will help you grow. And so will practicing loving your *own* beautiful spirit and knowing it's worth sharing - that too will help you embrace your loving sexuality.
Human sexuality is not "dirty" or evil as much as moralistic people might want you to believe. But sexuality can take on unhealthy expression, just as it can with eating or drinking. So let your spirituality inform your morality (and not the other way around). Practicing from that standpoint will awaken you and your spiritual sense will definitely guide you.
And don't be disappointed if you don't succeed at all this spiritual growth stuff right away. It takes practice. And practicing means failing sometimes. Maybe failing a lot of times. But that's how you learn. And you need to have patience with yourself as much as you do with someone you love.
And as you practice (and fail and practice some more), remember what Jesus gave us as the two great commandments that cover all the law and the prophets: Love God with all your heart, soul, and mind; and love your neighbor as yourself.
Note: this implies that you do love yourself!
And remember Mrs. Eddy's wise counsel:
"Emerge gently from matter into Spirit. Think not to thwart the spiritual ultimate of all things, but come naturally into Spirit through better health and morals and as the result of spiritual growth. "
And so do love yourself! Be patient with your human needs. Treat yourself with kindness and understanding as you strive to learn your way to a life of real Love and not just superficial sex. Divine Love wants you to have the full meal, not just mortal junk food.
Divine Love will lead you, and will deliver you. Divine Love will guide you - and your sexual expression - as surely as Love guides you in fulfilling your need for food and drink - or guides the bees to the flowers. Let inspiration and intuition awaken your spiritual nature - and your sexual expression will follow in whole and healthy and loving ways.
Remember:
"Thoughts unspoken are not unknown to the divine Mind. Desire is prayer; and no loss can occur from trusting God with our desires, that they may be moulded and exalted before they take form in words and in deeds. "
"Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil"
And God never leads us into temptation, but delivers us from self-will, self-indulgence, and self-hate and into Love's warm and open and intimate embrace.
And God leadeth us not into tempation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.
If God leads us away from temptation, if He delivers us from sin, then where does human sexuality fit into the picture?
You could just as easily ask, where do bees and flowers fit into the picture?
Sexuality appears to be a temptation - evil - only when you put moralism first and spirituality last. Putting the letter ahead of the spirit is what corrupts this natural part of Life. Suppressing your natural being through human will or through blind obedience to mortal "morality" invites all sorts of problems, from perversion to self-hate and self-destruction.
Mrs. Eddy doesn't say a lot about human sexuality, but her guidance around eating and drinking may be examined in the light they shed on sexual appetite. See how Mrs. Eddy clearly shows her humanity for the differing states and stages of human consciousness:
"Admit the common hypothesis that food is the nutriment of life, and there follows the necessity for another admission in the opposite direction,--that food has power to destroy Life, God, through a deficiency or an excess, a quality or a quantity. This is a specimen of the ambiguous nature of all material health-theories. They are self-contradictory and self-destructive, constituting a "kingdom divided against itself," which is 'brought to desolation.'
"The fact is, food does not affect the absolute Life of man, and this becomes self-evident, when we learn that God is our Life. Because sin and sickness are not qualities of Soul, or Life, we have hope in immortality; but it would be foolish to venture beyond our present understanding, foolish to stop eating until we gain perfection and a clear comprehension of the living Spirit. In that perfect day of understanding, we shall either eat to live nor live to eat. "
So perhaps you can paraphrase it this way:
"Admit the common hypothesis that [sex] is the nutriment of [love], and there follows the necessity for another admission in the opposite direction,--that [sex] has power to destroy [Love], God, through a deficiency or an excess, a quality or a quantity. This is a specimen of the ambiguous nature of all material [moral]-theories. They are self-contradictory and self-destructive, constituting a "kingdom divided against itself," which is 'brought to desolation.'
"The fact is, [sex] does not affect the absolute Life of man, and this becomes self-evident, when we learn that God is our Life. Because sin and sickness are not qualities of Soul, or Life, we have hope in immortality; but it would be foolish to venture beyond our present understanding, foolish to stop [expressing our sexuality] until we gain perfection and a clear comprehension of the living Spirit. In that perfect day of understanding, we shall either [have sex] to [love] nor [love] to [have sex]."
So is human will power going to help you express your sexuality?
No. But your spiritual sense will. Your intuition, your hope, faith, understanding of where God, Love, is leading you - listening to this instead of to your animal urges - is what will really satisfy you.
Is blind obedience to moralism or cultural expectations going to help you? Is peer pressure? Are pronouncements from people too wooden to care anymore about sexual expression, are they going to help you understand your way forward?
No. But your own spiritual growth will. Your own step-by-step demonstration of your true spiritual nature will. Your practicing unselfish love will. Your practicing seeing past just a sexy body to the beautiful spirit of the person who attracts you, yes that will help you grow. And so will practicing loving your *own* beautiful spirit and knowing it's worth sharing - that too will help you embrace your loving sexuality.
Human sexuality is not "dirty" or evil as much as moralistic people might want you to believe. But sexuality can take on unhealthy expression, just as it can with eating or drinking. So let your spirituality inform your morality (and not the other way around). Practicing from that standpoint will awaken you and your spiritual sense will definitely guide you.
And don't be disappointed if you don't succeed at all this spiritual growth stuff right away. It takes practice. And practicing means failing sometimes. Maybe failing a lot of times. But that's how you learn. And you need to have patience with yourself as much as you do with someone you love.
And as you practice (and fail and practice some more), remember what Jesus gave us as the two great commandments that cover all the law and the prophets: Love God with all your heart, soul, and mind; and love your neighbor as yourself.
Note: this implies that you do love yourself!
And remember Mrs. Eddy's wise counsel:
"Emerge gently from matter into Spirit. Think not to thwart the spiritual ultimate of all things, but come naturally into Spirit through better health and morals and as the result of spiritual growth. "
And so do love yourself! Be patient with your human needs. Treat yourself with kindness and understanding as you strive to learn your way to a life of real Love and not just superficial sex. Divine Love wants you to have the full meal, not just mortal junk food.
Divine Love will lead you, and will deliver you. Divine Love will guide you - and your sexual expression - as surely as Love guides you in fulfilling your need for food and drink - or guides the bees to the flowers. Let inspiration and intuition awaken your spiritual nature - and your sexual expression will follow in whole and healthy and loving ways.
Remember:
"Thoughts unspoken are not unknown to the divine Mind. Desire is prayer; and no loss can occur from trusting God with our desires, that they may be moulded and exalted before they take form in words and in deeds. "
"Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil"
And God never leads us into temptation, but delivers us from self-will, self-indulgence, and self-hate and into Love's warm and open and intimate embrace.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
The Lord's Prayer & The 10 Promises (Part 3)
"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil"
And God leadeth us not into temptation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.
"Thou shalt not kill."
"Thou shalt not commit adultery."
This verse of our Lord's Prayer seems especially relevant to these two commandments - or promises - about our relationship with God, and therefore with each other.
God never tempts us to "kill" the pure - unadulterated - sense of ourselves or of others any more than He would tempt us to literally kill ourselves or someone else.
And God leadeth us not into temptation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.
"Thou shalt not kill."
"Thou shalt not commit adultery."
This verse of our Lord's Prayer seems especially relevant to these two commandments - or promises - about our relationship with God, and therefore with each other.
God never tempts us to "kill" the pure - unadulterated - sense of ourselves or of others any more than He would tempt us to literally kill ourselves or someone else.
God is Life. His assurance to us is: "I am come that [you] might have life, and that [you] might have it more abundantly." And this abundant Life includes no adulteration and no murder.
Why? because God is Life itself - and you are God's image and likeness.
Think of it:
* God made you inately and completely pure, like Him. God never leads you to be tempted into adulterating that purity.
* And God made you to live and live abundantly, like Him. You are not made to be tempted into murdering that joyous Life, whether with harsh words or a bullet - either yours or anyone else's.
God feeds your famished affections - not your famished lusts - and He feeds you with grace, abundant grace, for today.
God forgives your debts, your mistakes, your willfulness, as you live your practice, as you live His Love and share it with others.
God leads you into "paths of righteousness for His name's sake" and delivers you from sin, disease, and death - because God is love. And "when we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us. This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we're free of worry on Judgment Day—our standing in the world is identical with Christ's."
God leads you - not into trials - but delivers you from the trial of sin, the trial of sickness, the trial of death - and even from the temptation to believe those "trials" are any part of His will or His reality for you. Because they aren't.
Jesus knew this. And Jesus repeatedly proved that God doesn't send us evil by healing everyone he encountered of sin, disease, or even death! And his prayer affirms this: God never leads you into trials and tempations, but always delivers you from every belief of evil, every tempting sense of separation from your true authentic healthy whole and holy being.
Every time you pray the Lord's Prayer, you are praying the spiritual Truth that Jesus actually thought and understood. You are dwelling with the Mind of Christ. You are living at the point of Truth, Life, and Love. You are experiencing God's reality: home & heaven. Here. Now.
And as Jesus' Prayer shows you, you are already purely whole, holy, and safe.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
And lead us...
"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil"
And God leadeth us not into temptation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.
And lead us not inot the tempation to think we are nice little egos, "independent workers, personal authors, and even privileged originators," but deliver us from this evil parading as a personal id and ego, a mortal being, an animal self, separated from God. Deliver us from this evil - this mistaken upside down view of who we really are.
Instead, think more about being - reflecting and understanding - God's true nature instead of patting your "ego" on the back for how clever and creative and smart it is. God is the great I Am - not you. Don't get your relationship to God confused: you are not God. You are God's reflection, God's expression, God's inseparable manifestation. You are God-being.
Focus on that.
Ask yourself: how much "being" am I doing? How vibrant is my reflection of God's nature? How active is my expression of Love? How rich and fruitful and alive is it? How conscious am I of Mind? How much do I listen to divine inspiration, to the inspired intuition that is constantly present in thought?
The answer may depend on how clean your mental "window pane" is. Is your thought clear and clean for the Light of God to shine through you, as you? Can you see it? Does everyone around you see it? Do you share it freely? or do you think you can hoard it to yourself? think that it's personal to you? think it needs to be guarded or doled out only to those whom you deam "worthy."
If the latter, then you have things horribly backwards. Let that go, and reverse course! Take your light out from under that dismal bushel basket of the human ego and let the Light of God shine! This is not only your true purpose, it is your divine right.
God never leads us into the temptation to think we are separate little egos that must fend for ourselves. Therefore we can rejoice that God delivers and awakens us to our true purpose: to reflect the unconditional, glorious, Light of Divine Love - to everyone, everywhere.
And God leadeth us not into temptation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.
And lead us not inot the tempation to think we are nice little egos, "independent workers, personal authors, and even privileged originators," but deliver us from this evil parading as a personal id and ego, a mortal being, an animal self, separated from God. Deliver us from this evil - this mistaken upside down view of who we really are.
Instead, think more about being - reflecting and understanding - God's true nature instead of patting your "ego" on the back for how clever and creative and smart it is. God is the great I Am - not you. Don't get your relationship to God confused: you are not God. You are God's reflection, God's expression, God's inseparable manifestation. You are God-being.
Focus on that.
Ask yourself: how much "being" am I doing? How vibrant is my reflection of God's nature? How active is my expression of Love? How rich and fruitful and alive is it? How conscious am I of Mind? How much do I listen to divine inspiration, to the inspired intuition that is constantly present in thought?
The answer may depend on how clean your mental "window pane" is. Is your thought clear and clean for the Light of God to shine through you, as you? Can you see it? Does everyone around you see it? Do you share it freely? or do you think you can hoard it to yourself? think that it's personal to you? think it needs to be guarded or doled out only to those whom you deam "worthy."
If the latter, then you have things horribly backwards. Let that go, and reverse course! Take your light out from under that dismal bushel basket of the human ego and let the Light of God shine! This is not only your true purpose, it is your divine right.
God never leads us into the temptation to think we are separate little egos that must fend for ourselves. Therefore we can rejoice that God delivers and awakens us to our true purpose: to reflect the unconditional, glorious, Light of Divine Love - to everyone, everywhere.
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