| |
Returning to God is Your Lifework
Returning to God – the God of your understanding – is our greatest lifework. I’ve had moments of knowing God within me. Sitting in stillness I have known the still, empty, yet-full, eternal spaciousness within me… which is always there… always the same. In this moment I know we are a part of the Sacred Mystery which we call God. (Although, now trying to describe this piece of God within me - which also is much greater than what I am - the truth is muddied by words.) The more I remember this piece of God within me and practise returning to God the better off my life and work are. However, too easily I forget and become caught in habitual thinking, emotions and reactions. Likely you know what I mean. When we get lost in worry in the middle of the night about our kid, our job, money, our marriage or… We know worry is to NO avail still the thoughts scurry round and round. Returning to God is the only way back to peace. And if we listen carefully we will always here the sweet voice of our God calling us back home. Listen! Listen! If we are in our God everything else in our life tends to be easier to bear and aligns in ways we cannot imagine, orchestrate or control. How do we find our way back home? Become a Navigator Returning to God calls us to become navigators within our inner world. “The Way” lies in navigating through life’s ever-shifting experiences from the helm of our True Self, or God within. Externals, like the wealthy, high-class people upon the opulent, elegant Titanic cannot buy us lasting happiness or security. In order to navigate through our fearful thinking and reactive behaviours we need to first of all be aware we have ‘lost’ our way. When we feel ourselves succumbing to our fearful, depressed, angry, insecure feelings – we can feel the feelings but then, would be best served by carefully observing our thoughts. If we feel the feeling and do not feed the feelings with the sad story lines we tell ourselves we will soon notice the feelings change, shift, move on. Be gentle with yourself in this process. This is not about blaming or judging ourselves. Getting hi-jacked by our negative thoughts which then fuel our feelings is part of the human condition. Just today, I was telling our nineteen year old son this is something I have to work at every day. “There is a heaven and hell and it is right in here,” I told him as I tapped my head. And, life IS difficult. Ever-growing numbers of people are losing their jobs, homes, financial security, loved ones and facing a myriad of life challenges. Also our western world values are turned inside out. Shrewd marketing trumps up the value of external things and the value of knowing the ground of our being is lost. Angst and fear mount. Yet, as we learn to navigate within ourselves we become familiar with habitual emotional, thought and behavioural patterns we have run from for a lifetime. Eventually we get the knack of shifting these patterns. When they pop up and threaten to possess us yet again, we most-worthy navigators say, “Hey, I am lost again. Returning to God is the answer!” Then, we pray for help, be still, return to our breath, observe the old stories, and let go. Over and over. Returning to God sounds simple… and it is. But it is not easy. However, returning to God time, and time again, is what our lifework is all about. As the great, thirteenth century, Sufi, poet Rumi wrote about God calling us home: “Come, come again and still again, even if thou hast broken thy truth a thousand times.” We learn to have compassion for our frail humanness as we observe ourselves. Returning to God within can help us bear life’s burdens and, at times, shine a ray of light upon our suffering. Returning to God we grow our beings and our connection to our God. If you would like monthly reminders nudging you toward your True Self and Gifts:Enter your email address in the box below and receive our Complimentary E-zine: "Your Lifework Newsletter."
“You may call God love; you may call God goodness; but the best name for God is Compassion.” Meister Eckhart, 14th century mystic and theologian “The ultimate power of God, the universe and humanity is compassion.” Hildegard of Bingen, 12th century mystic, doctor, scientist, and abbess.
For more ideas on Returning to God and Communicating with God click on this link.
Teresa Proudlove is a storyteller, speaker, facilitator, mentor, internationally published writer and entrepreneur whose purpose is to help people express their True Self and gifts. Living her passion, Teresa has led thousands of people through her “Livelihood” workshops. With wisdom and heart Teresa inspires people to follow their God with her candid real-life writing, speaking, and retreats.
Would you like a mentor to help you return to your True Self, God and Gifts? If so, you would likely be interested in my Mentoring Program. The purpose of my mentoring program is to help you return to your True Self - your Inner Guidance - so as to live from that place. Only when we are connected to our True Self (God, Higher Power, Inner Guidance, or however you choose to define this) can we live our life authentically and fully express our gifts. As your mentor I’ll assign exercises – daily, weekly, monthly and then, together we will listen to what is true for you. A large part of what I do is to listen for your ‘music.’ This holy music is clearly audible in a person’s voice when they are speaking from their truth. I then, reflect your inner wisdom back to you. This in turn, helps you to hear, define, believe in, and follow your Inner Guidance. In this manner we learn to live from our True or Authentic Selves. If you are interested and would like more information in
Teresa's Mentoring Service click here.

|