•  
Support crystalwind.ca with your donation and help spread spirituality and positivity. Blessings!

This article was posted by CrystalWind.ca

A+ A A-

Sustaining Spiritual Growth

Sustaining Spiritual Growth

My dear friends...

There is a tendency to dismiss the experience of Self-Awareness if it is not both immediate and eternal.   In actual practice it is most often neither.  

One rarely finds one's way to Self-Awareness with the first step on the journey (this is not impossible, mind you, but it is rare), and one rarely remains in this place the first time one arrives there.   One wants to , but one rarely does.   So much is calling us back.   So much is pulling us, tugging at us, drawing us back into the Life That We Have Led, and at times that seems like what is "real," and the life of an Enlightened One, the life of an Enlarged Being, seems very "UNreal"...and can even seem unwanted.

To live the life of an Enlarged Being, so many of the short-term pleasures that can lead to long-term damage to ourselves and others have to be by-passed, set aside, avoided, skipped, that we can begin to wonder, what is the point of it all?

A moment of Self-Awareness, a moment of experiencing a true Enlargement of Self, can bring us renewed clarity about that, and suddenly the point becomes clear once again, but following such a moment we have to rely on our memory of it to stay in the place of discipline that is required to return to it and remain there.

On the surface, the word discipline and the word joy seem to be strange partners.   "Hard work" and "bliss" do not seem to go side-by-side.   Yet it can be hard work to experience bliss -- until it is not anymore.

There does come a time when the "hard work" aspect of it falls away.   There is a time when we realize that obtaining enlightenment and experiencing bliss is not hard work at all, and that we just thought it was.   It is one's attitude that makes the journey hard work, and one's perspective that makes remaining at journey's end difficult.   It is all really quite easy.

The first step, then, in sustaining enlargement of the Self is to alter one's attitude and perspective - and this can be done quickly with a change of expectation or requirement.   Remember, Conversations with God says that Requirement does not exist.   It is an illusion.   The idea that we are Required to sustain the experience of soul Enlargement forever is just that: an idea.   You can change your mind about that and decide that sustaining the experience for just a few moments is just as valuable and noteworthy.

This slight shift in perspective alters everything.   It suddenly places the experience of Enlargement within reach.   It is not necessary to sustain the experience of Enlargement forever in order to experience it at all.   Nor is it necessary in order for your more limited experience to have any value.

The value of a less-than-eternal experience of Enlargement is that we suddenly know Who We Really Are.   We have encountered that experientially.   This is miles ahead of our having encountered it intellectually.   We have made our grandest idea about ourselves "real" in our experience.

This can make all the difference in the world in terms of our willingness to continue forging ahead in our personal work, moving forward along the path, continuing on our spiritual journey.   We've had a taste of honey and that can be not only instructive, but also explosive, if we don't become too discouraged by the fact that it was temporary.

So, the first thing that I tell people who wish to move from Contentment to Enlargement along the Path to Self-Awareness is that even a momentary experience of your Larger Self is enormously valuable and can be marvellously awakening.   So go for the here-and-now experience, and let eternity take care of itself.   And what is the fastest way to have the here-and-now experience?   Ironically, it is to not require it to be everywhere-and-forever.

(This is, as well, a wonderful insight for persons wanting to create a romantic relationship.   Do not worry about promising each other everywhere-and-forever.   Often, such a promise only gets in the way.   Let everywhere-and-forever arrive one where/when at a time.)

Link together a string of less-than-eternal Enlargement experiences and suddenly you approach the doorway to infinity.

I, personally, have set aside my need to have the experience of my Enlarged Self sustained forever in order for it to be real.   I am happy now to create and have the experience for a moment or two, or an hour or two, or a day or two.

I have learned that life is a question of balance.   As my father used to say, "All things in moderation."   Enlargement in moderation leads to Enlargement forever.   In the days when for me it was "all or nothing at all," it was, more often than not, nothing at all.   I had set my expectations too high.   I had required too much of myself.   Now I wonder why I did that.   God certainly did not require that of me.   I wonder what I was thinking...

How little is 'enough'?

Just a moment of the experience of Enlargement is enough to shift us out of Contentment and on to the next step on the Path to Self-Awareness.

Earlier it was said that " stopping is a sure and certain sign that you are ready to start ...for good...and, ultimately, to sustain the Enlargement of Self at your new level."

Those last four words are the key here.   "At your new level" means just that: at the new plateau.   At your new plateau you may be able to sustain the experience of your Enlarged Self for ten minutes.   Or for ten hours.   Or for ten days.   Whatever that is for you, honor it.   Do not diminish it, or yourself, because of the process.   Rather, embrace it for what it is, move into gratitude for it, and simply seek to create it whenever it serves or pleases you and brings you joy. 

With Love,

nealedonald_sig

Credit

© 2022 ReCreation Foundation - Neale Donald Walsch is a modern day spiritual messenger whose words continue to touch the world in profound ways. His With God series of books has been translated into 27 languages, touching millions of lives and inspiring important changes in their day-to-day lives.
Source Here

© 2022-2024 crystalwind.ca. All rights reserved. We track all IP addresses. Using a VPN will now also get tracked to original source IP.

Pin It

© CrystalWind.ca 2024. All content (articles, imagery, fair use) & design protected. Written permission required for copying. All rights reserved.

Join the Conversation Now! Comment Below! arrow down small 11

CrystalWind.ca is free to use because of donations from people like you. Please help support us! 
Blessings!

Follow this blog

Featured Writers

crystal-wind-oracle-mobile-app
Cut Through The Illusions!
Available On
Apple  | Android | Amazon
NEW Expanded Version - 53 cards!

Spirit Animal Totem Of The Day!

CrystalWind.ca is free to use because of
donations from people like you.
Donate Now »

CrystalWind.ca Donation!

Unlock Your Light: Join Lightworkers Worldwide on CrystalWind.ca!

 

 

Follow Us!

 

Who is Online Now

We have 24028 guests and no members online

Featured This Month

Page:

Yule Blessings

Yule Blessings

Yule The Winter Solstice or Yule is one of the Lesser Wiccan Sabbats, and it ... Read more

Yule - The Winter Solstice

Yule - The Winter Solstice

Yule, or the Winter Solstice is one of the lesser Sabbats of the Witches calen... Read more

Scorpio Mythology

Scorpio Mythology

The Meaning Behind the Scorpio Zodiac Symbol Read more

Scorpio

Scorpio

Art by Lisa Iris - www.lisairis.ca October 23 - November 22 Spirit: To penet... Read more

Unakite

Unakite

The Stone of Birth - The Stone of Vision Read more

Twas The Night Before Yuletide

Twas The Night Before Yuletide

Yule Chant Brightly burns the Yule log tonight Magic dances in firelight Ho... Read more

Birth Totem - Snake

Birth Totem - Snake

Birth Totem Snake Birth dates: October 23 - November 22 Read more

Malachite

Malachite

The Emotional Mastery Stone An absorbing stone, malachite is excellent fo... Read more

Freeze Up Moon

Freeze Up Moon

Snake – Copper and Malachite – Thistle – Orange October 24 to November 21 ... Read more

Yule By The Hedgewitch

Yule By The Hedgewitch

Yule Yule is a solar festival and one of the Minor Sabbats. This is when the ... Read more

Labradorite

Labradorite

The Magic Stone Labradorite allows complete polarity shifts to occur, jus... Read more

Sun in Scorpio

Sun in Scorpio

An Overview of Sun Sign Characteristics for Scorpio Read more

Winter Solstice - A Season of Giving

Winter Solstice - A Season of Giving

CELEBRATING THE WINTER SOLSTICE The December solstice is also known as the ... Read more

Yule

Yule

Yule Ritual Celebrated on the Winter Solstice, around December 21 each year.... Read more

Gods and Monsters of the Winter Solstice

Gods and Monsters of the Winter Solstice

La Befana Because Santa Claus has presided over the Yule festival for the las... Read more

© 2008-2024 CrystalWind.ca. All rights reserved. Site Creation by CrystalWind.ca.
Web Hosting by Knownhost.com

 

 

X

Right Click

No right click