Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

Bible, Goals, God, Gratitude, Life, Love, Thanks, Travis Barker

“Thank you for life, and all the little ups and downs that make it worth living.” – Travis Barker

Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/travis_barker_468582?src=t_thankful

Life is a grand adventure! We learn, love, and laugh. We travel, we try new things, and we meet new people. When our cycle ends, others take up the mantle. Life continues.

I enjoy thinking about my life. The ups and downs, loves and heartbreaks. The scary and the serene. All these experiences weave themselves into a quilt with little facsimiles scattered about.

I look at all the technological changes that provide us access to so much information, music, and other forms of entertainment. I look at the technologies that provides us the ability to create a document, create a movie, create music, or even create a program of our own making.

Here’s what I’m up to:

Physical

I came down with a flu or cold a few days ago so the workout routine is out until I beat this bug.

Mental

I’m reading 4 books. I’m reading The One Thing, 2136, Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad, and Beyond Good and Evil. All these books are engaging. I’m goaled to read 12 books by the end of March.

I’m running through a JavaScript Project currently, employing the use of Objects, which is exciting. I had no idea that JavaScript was an Object-Oriented Language, but sure enough, it is.

I am still working on a section a day for my book and it is coming along nicely. By the end of next week, I’ll have my initial rough draft. I’m a little over schedule because I wanted to be finished by the end of 2018, but with my vacation visit to Phoenix, I over estimated how much I would get done while I was there (I had too much fun!).

Spiritual

I’m working through my bible and am on the 12^th discourse of my spiritual study for the year. I’ll be starting a new course in the next month or so.

I’m looking for ways to interact with more people. Last year I got a lot done but was a hermit for most of the year focusing on the important work of book writing and the rest. I am going to look at some different venues this year to work on my book writing, so I can continue to get my work done but interact socially with other people.

My book discussion is set for the 14^th of this month. I look forward to that.

Social

I’m still scanning my area for something fun to do this quarter.

Well, that’s it for today folks!

Until next time…

Dave

Advertisements

Daily Ramblings – Spiritual Saturday

Tags

Dedication, Discipline, Doing your Best, God, Spiritual

“Give your best effort each day, and leave the rest to Spirit.”—Harold Klemp The Language of Soul

All of us have an internal measure of what our best is. Do that. It doesn’t matter if you make mistakes or fail. Do your best.

When I was in the Army, my first few years were a little rough. I did what I could to get by. I didn’t really dedicate myself as much as I should have. Then, I got the idea that maybe, just maybe, I should give everything I had to be the best soldier I could be. The day I decided to do that was the day my career changed forever.

You see, I put everything I had to keep my uniform looking a little better than the next guy’s uniform. I took pride in what I was accomplishing. I kept my room and my equipment a little cleaner than the other guys. I began studying regulations, field manuals and reading military history. I began putting extra effort into the gym at night when the other guys were going out and chasing girls.

I gave it my all and it paid off. This is all this quote is talking about. You give everything you have, and God will step in and give some help. That’s the way it works.

If you think your job sucks, your relationships suck, your life sucks, give everything your all. You will slowly begin to see that your job improves, your relationships improve, and yes, your life will improve. You will be expressing your gratitude for this life by giving life everything you have. That’s exactly what God put you here to do.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Spiritual Saturday

Tags

God, Happiness, Love, Soul, Spiritual Enlightenment

“The reason for spiritual enlightenment is not to escape life, but to learn how to live it richly, to enjoy it.”—Harold Klemp The Language of Soul

When many of us think of a spiritually enlightened individual we tend to think about a monk in a cathedral laboring over a manuscript or in a cave contemplating the greater things of life. Spiritual enlightenment is something that should be shared with the world. This is what this quote is about.

Spiritual enlightenment, regardless of each of our personal definitions, is about connecting with God. In Eckankar, we call this connecting with the light and sound. The light and sound are metaphors for what we hear internally and what we see. We are taught that when you gain spiritually, these gains are gifts. These gifts, in turn, should be shared with others. It’s almost like a fountain. The fountain works because it sprays its waters upward, the drops return to the pond surrounding it and the fountain uses the same water over and over.

Just like the fountain, we can look at love like water. If we get love, we share it. In turn, that love comes back around to us and the cycle continues over and over. This is simple right?

Think about this for a moment. When do you really feel good? When you serve others.

Serving others isn’t about working for them or giving them gifts. It can be as simple as saying hello or passing along a smile. It can even be the act of wishing others well in a non-personal way. It is this passing along that gives us the greatest joy.

Yeah, when you get a brand-new car or a new techno-toy it’s terrific, but the joy is fleeting. I’ve found that the giving of self to others delivers a longer-term happiness, a happiness that goes deep down to your core. It is hard to explain.

When you give your son or daughter a birthday party, the feeling you get when they are smiling and excited and happy is priceless. When I was a young boy, maybe around the age of 6 or 7, I remember being so happy on my birthday that I cried and hugged my Mom. At that moment, we were all in the family’s only car late at night to pick up my father from work. Even at a young age, I knew we didn’t make much and the gifts and the little cake my Mom made were what they could afford. I didn’t care. It was the passing of love from Mother to son that made the whole day.

It’s interesting when you think about these little moments that stick with you. They stick with you because the love that came through was true and pure and selfless. This is the same way you can feel when you realize that you are here because God loves you. You—Soul.

“Soul exists because God loves it.” – Sri Harold Klemp. This is one of our core beliefs in Eckankar. When you think about others, when you do things for others, when you serve others, you’ll discover that the feeling of love inside grows and grows. This love stays around. We call this divine love. Divine love is composed of all types of love, even romantic love. The key to understanding what divine love is is to simply understand that it is charitable. Divine love is giving, serving, sharing, selflessly without regard for reward, it simply is.

Until next time…

Dave

 

Daily Ramblings – Today’s Quote – Harold Klemp – The Plus Factor

Tags

God, Harold Klemp, Path to God, self-improvement

Today’s Quote:

“No matter how much insight we gain about God, there will always be something that lies beyond the horizon of our understanding. That is simply the nature of truth.” Harold Klemp – The Language of Soul

As an Eckist, this is quote refers to the plus factor. It relates that regardless of what we do, we will never be able to understand God in its entirety. There will always be one more step to take, one more level to achieve.

I think this is a tremendous thing! It means that our journey towards being our best self will never be over. Imagine how boring life would be if there were a final place where we finally make it? I think that would be a terrible place to be.

I enjoy stretching myself. I enjoy the ups and downs of self-improvement. We never stay in the same place. We are either progressing or slipping backward a bit. That’s ok. This is how it works. I see this in the gym, my writing, my reading, and even my spirituality.

What I find most interesting is that each time we hit a new high, we begin to realize we are more capable now and our view of what’s next becomes clearer. Then we reset our sights on something higher and continue.

The path to God is the same. Imagine yourself at the bottom of a mountain. You begin walking upwards. You take a rest after a while and look back. You are now much higher in the worlds of God and can see more. This new awareness changes us. It allows us to see better and make better decisions. We can see the mistakes we made in the past, we can see the various routes we took and can visualize where we made mistakes. It doesn’t make sense to dwell on these mistakes, mind you, but it does point out that we will always fumble about as we move forward, regardless of the task. This is the nature of things.

Each time we take a rest, we are higher still. We can see more, are aware of more, and are literally changed beings. Continuing on with my metaphor of a mountain, imagine how hard it will be when the air begins to thin, the path becomes more treacherous and steep. This requires, even more, transformation as we progress. Our path to God and perfection never ends. It continues forever.

I hope everyone had a great Wednesday!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Daily Quote

Tags

God, Happiness, Harold Klemp, Quest

Today’s Quote:

“The quest for God is the quest for true happiness.” – Harold Klemp – The Language of Soul

Yeah, I don’t have anything to add to this one. This is what we are here to do.

Until Next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Daily Quote

Tags

Contribute, God, Harold Klemp, Love, Talent

Today’s Quote

“Become an expert in something. You need to be grounded in something. When you do something for God, for the highest principle, you do each step until it sings.” – Harold Klemp – The Language of Soul

We are all put on this Earth to contribute. We all come here with inherent talents that are uniquely our own. Harold Klemp stresses the need to do whatever you do for God. If you truly do this, you will do the very best you can. When you do this, you’ll feel a completeness within. This completeness is love.

Love what you do. Put love into all you do. To get love, you have to give it. Give it to every task you do and it will be returned to you.

Until tomorrow…

Daily Ramblings – Daily Quote

Tags

Einstein, God, Love

Today’s Quote:

“Before God, we are all equally wise – and equally foolish.” – Albert Einstein

God is God to everyone and all. God loves all without discrimination, without pretense, without antecedent. God is love. We are because of God’s love.

Have a great weekend everyone!

To all of my readers that are Fathers, Happy Father’s Day (in the US)!

Daily Ramblings – Daily Quote

Tags

Einstein, God, Neils Bohr, Playing Dice

Today’s Quote:

“God does not play dice.” – Albert Einstein

This quote goes nicely with my belief system. My belief is composed of two primary tenets:

• Everything is in its rightful place in the universe.
• There is no “chance” in the universe.

I think what is imperfect and blind is the human consciousness, which can barely see the end of its nose. Subsequently, what we see is flawed, not because it is, but because we (the critics) are flawed. We see things the way we are, not the way they really are. Make sense?

If you are ever in a position where life just “sucks”, keep these in mind. Then, realize that you are going through a “challenge” for a reason. It may take you a while to figure out what that reason is, but there is always a purpose behind our day-to-day experiences. There is always a lesson to be learned.

This is only my take. If you have a different one, please feel free to reply to this quote. I’d love to hear what you think. By the way, if you are curious about where this quote came from, it is part of the back and forth between Einstein and Neils Bohr, who was a proponent of Quantum Theory, which conflicted with some of Einstein’s theories.

Hope everyone is having a terrific Tuesday!

See you tomorrow…

Daily Ramblings – Problems are Blessings?

Tags

Blessing, challenge, God, Learning, Loving, Self-realization, Testing, trouble

“No problem is given man which is greater than himself. Each being is tested according to his capacity; none are tested beyond it. Each problem which man encounters has a spiritual solution, and each person has his troubles at the point where he is most negative and vulnerable.” – Paul Twitchell – The Shariyat Ki Sugmad

Two Critical Points

This is a quote a came across a few years ago. This quote has two critical points that have proven themselves to be true more often than I can recall. The first is that we are never given a problem that is beyond our capability to solve. The second is that we will always be tested where we are weakest.

This is comforting, isn’t it? If we are never going to be hit with a problem we cannot solve, we have nothing to fear, because regardless of the problem, we will overcome it. Some problems may be overcome in the short-term, while others may take years to get through. The point is that if a problem is no larger than our capacity to solve it, there’s nothing to worry about.

Let’s examine the next point. If we are self-realized, meaning we know ourselves well, then we should be able to predict where that next test or problem is coming right? Well, yes and no. The human mind cannot grasp an omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient being. Subsequently, God knows you better than you ever will and IT knows exactly where you are your weakest. So, prediction of your next challenge may not be so easy to see.

When are we really learning? Are we driven to God and improvement when things are going our way and easy, or are we driven to God and improvement when things are tough? You guessed it. The learning and growth opportunities are typically brought about when we are presented with a problem and things are tough.

The Good times – The Bad times

This is human nature. We relax and enjoy the times when there are no problems. We get into gear when the problems arise. These periods of rest and challenge fluctuate throughout our lives. God knows when you need a break, God knows when it’s time to test you again, and God knows exactly where you need to be tested.

Why do the tests exist at all? The tests are designed to teach us to be more focused on others than ourselves. They are designed to teach us about divine love. They are designed to teach us how to solve the problems we have so that when others run into those same problems we can help them (We’ve already been there and done that.)

Problems are Blessings

When you really look at it, the rest periods we receive are a blessing, but so too are the rough spots. It really depends on how you look at the situation. The rough spots are stepping stones. These stepping stones are for learning to be greater than we were yesterday. So, enjoy the good times, but also be thankful for the tough times. Without these tough times, we wouldn’t have anything to compare to them and we will miss out on enjoying the really good times that always come.

When we can truly feel blessed when trouble comes we will have finally understood that there are no troubles or rest periods. The life we have been given is a blessing because we have been held in the arms of God the entire time.

Until next time…

Problems…

Tags

God, Golden Wisdom, problem, problem-solving, Question, Solutions

“Be alert during the day for clues about your problem from other people. The Holy Spirit works through them too. So be aware and listen.” – Harold Klemp – The Spiritual Life

Problems, challenges, issues, we all have them. Some of them we create, while others are put in our laps by others. How do you solve your problems? Many search the Internet. Others confide in their friends and loved ones and ask for advice. Others avoid the problem altogether hoping it will just go away.

I have come to the realization of a few pieces of wisdom I’ve gained over the last 50 or so years of my life.

• Problems don’t go away
• Everything is in its rightful place in the worlds of God
• God never gives us a problem we cannot solve
• God will give you the answer if you ask

Problems don’t go away

Yeah, I’m one of those folks who procrastinate. When a problem comes my way, my first solution is to just ignore it. This obviously is not a good way to solve one’s problems. Problems always stick around. Once I learned this, I begin to brainstorm how to solve it. Once I’ve brainstormed, I put together a plan and create discrete action steps to begin working on.

Everything is in its rightful place in the worlds of God

God is perfect. If God was anything but perfect, our Universe would collapse on itself. Subsequently, we have to assume that an architecture, laws or principals exist to avoid this, even if we don’t have the full picture. Assuming this, the “problem” we see as a problem really isn’t a problem at all but a misunderstanding of this architecture.

God never gives us a problem we cannot solve

One of my beliefs is that this reality we exist in is a classroom. It is a classroom for our true self to learn and become better equipped to serve God. Subsequently, the lessons God gives us are for our betterment.

God will give you the answer if you ask

We do the best we can on our own by brainstorming the problem, putting together a plan to solve the problem and begin the work of moving through our plan step-by-step. We can also ask questions.

Problems or lessons are hard because we are charting new territory. We are doing something we have not done before. The reason we label these things as problems are because we don’t know the answer. Think about this for a moment.

If you are hit with a problem and you’ve solved that problem in the past, it isn’t a problem, is it? We already know how to deal with it and we do. The only way for God to stretch us is to present us with problems or lessons we have not dealt with before. The act of solving the problem is where the learning is.

Let’s say we’re stuck. We are hit with a problem and we have no idea where to begin to solve it. This is where asking a God a question can help. Simply ask a question like: What is the solution to this problem that will be good for me and for the good of the whole? Then keep your eyes, ears, and mind open for the answer. Sometimes the answer will come intuitively. You’ll just get an idea and it gets you moving. Other times the answer will come when you are reading a book, magazine, or an article online. You may be watching television, listening to the radio, or overhear someone in a coffee shop speaking about something related to your problem. Heck, you may even see your answer on a billboard.

For me, it comes in a variety of ways, sometimes in a combination of things. The key is to keep an open mind and be aware of anything that comes to provide you with an answer to your question. Now, there’s one more thing you’ll need to do. If you get an answer, you need to verify or confirm it.

Confirming something is all about the doing. Let’s say you get an idea that leads you along a certain path to solving your problem. As you are moving in this direction, you solve the problem. This is the confirmation you need. In another case, you may be moving in a direction from one of your gained insights only to find that you are moving in the wrong direction. This verifies that the solution you received was a little off. Then you ask the question again and continue moving along until you’ve solved your issue. In some paths, these insights are labeled the “Golden Wisdom”. In others, they would be a revelation, an “ah-ha” moment, or a paradigm shift.

Try this out the next time you have a problem you just can’t seem to get traction on. Do your best on your own, but when you’re stuck, ask the question. You’ll be surprised at what you receive.

Until next time…