"No matter what we have gone through, what our past disappointments have been, or what mistakes we think we have made, we can begin again."—Unknown
I’ve always liked this statement.
It serves as a reminder that each of us has an emerging self that carries a vision within us, a spiritual idea that is unique for us, and part of a divine plan. The emerging self is yearning to express its uniqueness and to be carried away by the inspired ideas of the living God.
God’s idea for our life is beyond any imagination. But first, we must catch a spiritual idea. Then we must have a big, clear, and courageous consciousness to allow this idea to be the activity of our life.
If life is not what we want it to be at any given moment, it's not God or anyone causing that. Whether the circumstance is a lack of peace, scarcity, discord, or just an overall feeling of being locked in, victimized, and unhappy, external circumstances do not determine our happiness; happiness comes from the very depths of our souls.
Our life experience is like farming. The seed is the idea, the field is our mind, and the crop is our life. The quality of our life depends on the nature of the consciousness in which we plant our ideas. For a spiritual thought to prosper, our field of consciousness must be clear and pure. We can attempt to cultivate a good idea, a good dream, or a good vision for our life, but if the field is full of weeds—filled with the energy of resentment, hatred, anger, or revenge—it will choke out every good dream.
To keep our consciousness clear, we must practice the spiritual principle of forgiveness. To begin anew, soar to new heights, and manifest the vision and dream encoded within our soul, we must purify our awareness to allow this vision to come through.
The Buddha said resentment and unforgiveness were like burning coal. A person picks it up from the fire to throw it at someone else, but it sticks to the thrower's hand like molasses and burns their own flesh.
There was once a man who had a great deal of anger and resentment at his ex-wife. He talked about it any time he got into a conversation. He told people what she had done to him and how he was accused and mistreated. He spewed so much venom, hatred, and vengeance that he became ill every time. He did this for 12 years only to discover that she had been dead for 10 of those 12 years.
Thoughts of resentment and hostility perpetuate inner stress and convert natural wholeness and well-being into ill-being. No one suffers like the person blaming. It functions as a spiritual suicide.
Sometimes purifying our awareness must begin by forgiving ourselves. Occasionally I am asked what the turning point was for me to get involved in ministry. Honestly, if I'd come up with a thousand things to do, being a minister would have been the LAST on the list. It wouldn't even have made the list.
However, I said I had gone through the challenges of drugs and alcohol and lost everything I thought was important in my life. I beat myself regularly, loudly repeating, "God, are you getting this?" I was trying to let God know I was beating myself up before God beat me up.
At one point, I had my revelation and engaged in the process of self-forgiveness. As an individual who has made every mistake a human being could make and lived to talk about it, I can tell you that what we've done in the past doesn't matter. Once we let it go and release it, we have cleared that field of awareness. We cancel any sense of unforgiveness toward ourselves. Then we're able to see the possibilities for our life.
When we have an unforgiving consciousness, we restrict ourselves and no longer see the blessings in front of us, or what God has in store for us to fulfill our dreams and plans.
Forgive. Unleash the power of Forgiveness. Then witness how your dreams and visions unfold in ways beyond what you ever imagined.
Peace and Blessings,
James