Dear Friends,
“The Solution Lies in Practice, not Theory”
Scripture inspires in us an appreciation of the beauty and wisdom of nature. Job encourages us to “ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee, or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee” (12:7, 8). Job reminds us that the earth was made by God, “in whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind” (12:10).
Now, although I have shared these quotes from Job, the message is not necessarily about Job, yet we can learn from his experiences. Most of you know the defining quote found in Job: WHAT I FEARED MOST HAS COME UPON ME. And yet we have the realization too of how “tuned in” to God he was, which proved ultimately to be his “saving grace.”
Recently while I was sorting papers and doing some filing at home, I came across an article by Dr Stewart Bitkoff entitled: “How to be spiritual amidst this chaos?” And I believe it was somewhere in 2015 that I printed the article…..yet how applicable in our world today. Sometimes we need guidance on maintaining our spiritual focus; we need to be reminded that each of us is that embodiment called Truth. And, of course Truth is part of all belief systems, traditions; in fact is the fulcrum common to all creation!
So in considering how to be spiritual amidst the chaos we find the solution lies in practice and not in theory. Job is a good example as he went through all sorts of trials and tribulations, yet his saving grace was keeping his focus on God; knowing God/Truth to be the solution.
Let us not forget that God, this Inner Presence, is doing exactly what IT is supposed to be doing, even as our bodies age and die. We are in charge when we mindfully make a decision, through awareness, to notice all the gifts of Life around us. Yet even when we seem unaware, the process of Life continues at the deepest level of our being.
Awareness is our greatest gift. It is only when we are aware that we can lift ourselves out of the quagmire of fear thinking and believing. Job, who even whilst going through what seems to us today, the most dramatic experiences, remained centered in Truth; aligned or focused as he acknowledged God and that the earth was made by God…. “in whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all.”
And despite what befell Job; despite him acknowledging that what he feared most had come upon him; he maintained his focus on Truth – coming back continuously to first cause, God. God at the center of all Life. As stated by Paul: “in Him we live move and have our being.”
Even in the so-called chaos that has been experienced over many, many years; the chaos that also seems prevalent in life today, we need to be mindful and have reverence for ALL LIFE – and the Great Mystery which lives us.
Through our times of contemplation; our times of meditation, we are aligned with the Mystery of Life and we experience IT! And without trying, we recognize it in all aspects of creation. And from (or through) our awareness comes our experience…..and we realize the solution lies in Practice, not in theory. Our living of life is not a theory, but a practical experience. And the experience is first in mind and then in manifestation.
By living life in a balanced way with God/Truth as the fulcrum of our focus we allow ourselves to be guided to the solution. And we know the solution or solutions in life are not always according to how we would have them be; yet all through life – all through creation – is the underlying intelligence, calling us to BE STILL…..AND KNOW.
In Closing……
There is no such thing as God and. It is for that reason that the only demonstration there is for us to make is the demonstration of God’s presence. In demonstrating God’s presence, we demonstrate life eternal, and infinity of supply, brotherhood, peace, joy, protection, and safety. In His presence there is fullness of life—nothing is absent. When we have God’s presence, we have God appearing as good, as clothing, as housing. But there is one requirement: to have His presence—not meaningless affirmations or the mouthings of the deep truths of Scripture, but His presence.
Where God is, fulfillment is, and through the realization of Omnipresence, all things already exist. God is forever functioning to maintain and sustain the infinite and eternal nature of this universe appearing as. God appears as the daily manna: I am the bread of life—not I will have or should have or will demonstrate it, but I am it; and this I appears on our table as daily bread. It appears outwardly as transportation or clothing. In the beginning before time began, God gave Himself to us, and in the giving, infinity was bestowed upon us. Joel Goldsmith—The Thunder of Silence
Bountiful blessings,
Mallory