Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Happiness is Within

Tags

God's Love, Grateful, Happiness, Happy, Inner Calm, Inner Peace, Thankful

Image by Ruslan Gilmanshin from Pixabay

“Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude.” – Denis Waitley

Have you ever taken the time to listen to one of your friends who likes to complain? Their relationships suck. Their jobs suck. Their lives suck. Every time you talk with them they complain about this or that. Have you ever wondered why people seem to enjoy wallowing in their own pity party?

 

Life is short. Why do people complain about everything and continue to do so? It’s like they are on a revolving record that never ends. Woe is me. Why can’t I get a break? Perhaps they fail to realize that happiness is cultivated within.

Life is a blessing. Life is an adventure. You are alive. You are gaining experience. God loves you. What else do you need?

I used to be on the “woe is me” roller coaster. I didn’t like my job, my marriage was falling apart, and everything I tried to do, failed. One morning I woke up and asked why do I lose when others win? I began looking inward.

What I began to realize is what today’s quote states. The answer that came through to me was this: Be happy with what you have.

I’m not advocating that you should settle. If you want something better, strive for that. While you are striving to improve your current conditions, you can still be grateful for what you have.

When gratitude took hold, I naturally became happier. I began to realize that I had enough. I had all I needed. I had a great life.

I didn’t need a new toy to be happy. I didn’t require my wife to be something she wasn’t. My happiness was no longer cultivated by things outside of me. My happiness blossomed because I made a choice—to be happy. When you realize that nothing outside of you should impact your happiness, your life will transform.

Being happy is a great way to live. Everything is brighter. Everything is joyful. Everything takes on a new light. Sure there is still room for disappointment. Sure, life will still hand you a few surprises. Be happy regardless.

If you are having difficulty with cultivating happiness, there are many books you can read on the topic. You can also take courses on happiness. They are available everywhere. I have taken a few. These courses didn’t teach me anything new, but confirmed that I was doing the right things.

 

Happiness is a mindset. You either choose to be happy or you choose to be something else. I choose to be happy, because it is so much better than being pissed off all the time. Your life changes when your attitude changes.

It starts with brutal honesty. There are a lot of folks out there that “pose” happiness. They walk around with smiles on their faces in public, they whistle or sing beyond what is normal. They carry around a facade of happiness, but anyone who pays attention can “feel” the anger, resentment, and sorrow. You can lie to yourself all you want, but you cheat yourself out of a fulfilling and happy life when you fake happiness. Be honest with yourself. Are you happy? If not, learn what happiness is. Learn how to cultivate it. Take little steps to make changes in your attitude and outlook.

When you arrive at that place where nothing can affect your happy outlook, you’ll know the feeling I am advocating. Happiness cultivated within, cannot be thwarted by other people, outside circumstances, or the weather. You carry your happiness with you. 

I wish all of you a terrific Thursday!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Spiritual Saturday – Divine Love

Tags

Divine Love, Emotional Love, God Loves, God's Love, Loving Hobbies, Loving People, Loving Work

“On the outside, divine and emotional love may look the same, but divine love is joyful, thankful. It gives itself fully. Let love be what it will. Don’t let the mind tell you one is human and the other divine.”—Harold Klemp The Language of Soul

Love. It is emotional, nurturing, giving. I remember when I was growing up that I always wondered what love was. I had no idea. Then came the first girl I met and the feelings I had for her. Initially, it was a crush, then, over time, it became something else. It grew to a trusting feeling that just knew she would always be there. She was in my corner. She got me.

Like all first loves it ended after a time. She went off to college; I went off to the Army. We stayed in touch for a while, but then the letters became more infrequent, and it slowly faded away. Then I met other girls and love took my heart again.

Then I began to wonder how love worked with our passions, like the job we do or the hobbies we have. I began to look at my life as a soldier. I wondered could I truly love my work? So, I began putting everything I had into my work. Something happened. My military career took off.

Love is still a mystery. It has so many facets, yet is so simple at the same time. I read that “God is love. God loves. IT loves because that is ITs nature.” – Harold Klemp. Imagine an entity that loved all. That is God. God loves you regardless of how evil you are, how good you are, how selfish you are or how altruistic you are. God loves you if you just robbed a bank, loves you if you cheated on your wife or husband, or sacrificed yourself to save another.

Divine love is charitable. It gives. Human or emotional love is love too. Humans need someone or something to love. Each of us receives love and gives love in our own way. The love we receive has to go somewhere. So we give it to others in the form of a smile, our time, or a quick pat on the head for our dog. We give it to the things we enjoy, whether it’s writing a blog posting, mowing the lawn, or doing the laundry. It is said that when you give of yourself without any expectation of reward; you experience divine love. It is also said “to get love, you have to give it.” – Harold Klemp.

So love what you do. Love your friends, your parents, your brothers and sisters. Love your fellow man, despite his or her weaknesses. Give of yourself. Give to others. Give to a cause. Give to your employer. Give. It is that simple.

Some people will take your love and not give anything back. It hurts when that happens. Maybe you have given your all at work and it just isn’t a fit. Maybe you love someone and they can’t love you back. That’s ok, extend your good will to all. This is divine love. It is an unemotional love that you wish for everyone. It is charitable. It doesn’t care if someone misuses it or fails to reciprocate it. God’s love comes to us, regardless. God loves.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Daily Quote – Living With Change

Tags

Adapting, change, Gaining Experience, God's Love, Our Reality, Walter Scott

“We build statues out of snow, and weep to see them melt.”  – Walter Scott

This quote reminds me of the temporal nature of this reality we live in. Our bodies age and die, attitudes change, new ideas emerge and the old is thrown away. This is the nature of our existence. So why do anything if it is all going to fall away?

Simple. We are here to gain experience and learn how to give and receive love. The changes that occur around us provide the necessary tapestry to gain the experience we need. When I look back on my life, it has been an absolute whirlwind.

I have traveled all over the world, experienced some very “exciting” things, from jumping from an airplane, falling in and out of love (multiple times), and learned a great deal from the people I have interacted with across the globe. One of the things I’ve learned is explained by this quote. Change is a part of our reality, but yet, people are the same everywhere.

We all want to be safe, we want our families to be taken care of and protected. We want our children to have a better life than the one we had. I don’t care if you are in Europe, the Middle East, or Asia–the people all want the same things. Sometimes I think God put me in all of these places to learn this fundamental truth.

Yeah, we speak different languages, we have different holidays, cultures, religious rites and rituals, but nonetheless, there are timeless truths that apply to all of us in the human race. Love, safety, improving our circumstances, and taking care of our loved ones are all part of the overarching needs all peoples pursue in one way or another.

Another thing we learn about change is that it isn’t the change that causes problems, it is our inability to adapt to the changes that cause the difficulties we experience. Once we stop fighting change, we relax, and life gets better–it smooths out. This life is all about learning this fundamental concept. The waves of life will hit you in the forms of splitting up, financial woes, health problems, death, and so many other things that just come about. When I realized that I could survive these things and be happy while I survived, my reality changed.

I survived by being creative and maintaining an attitude that I could not control what other people did, what happens in the world, or anything else. The only thing I could potentially control is my ability to accept things as they are, adapting to the changes, and moving forward. The one thing that has helped me do this is depending on something that does not change–God’s love for me.

If you take a moment and realize that God loves you, regardless of the shape or form that IT takes in your life, you’ll find that the change or whirlwind going on around you becomes a joy in your life. Without change, life here would be so boring. The change is what makes our lives worth living. We may not like all of the changes that take place, but change happens regardless of our personal preferences.

Health is good than bad. Marriages are good sometimes and not so good at other times. Our loved ones are happy and healthy and then, one day, they’re gone. No one is immune to the changes that occur in our lives. No one. So, you can either be upset with life, upset with the changes you dislike, or you can wake up and realize that without change life would be mundane, boring, and not as rich as it is now. You will also realize that without change, challenges, and hard times you will not grow. Who is motivated to change just for the heck of it?

We change to adapt to our ever-changing environments. Sometimes we adapt well. At other times we fall on our face. After a time, we get up, dust off our clothes, and start over. We find that after all of our pain, comes a sunrise and we learn that we are stronger, better, and more loving.

I hope this posting finds you well.

Until next time.

Dave