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Pastors Pen
Feeling is Believing.
I never trust "reason" completely because I find that the reasons we give for
the actions we take are often really just rationalizations for decisions
that we made more on the basis of feeling than reason. In other words, we do what
we do because we want to, and later we justify it with "reason." This
tendency to justify feeling with reason is not unique to you and me, dear reader, it
is a universal human trait and one well worth examining. Let us explore this
trait a bit more.
In "The Power of Now," a book we have been studying, Eckhart Tolle, the
author, tells us that if ever we are unclear or confused about our beliefs, it is
more productive to examine our feelings than our thoughts. Our feelings, he
asserts, will give us much greater insight to our personal truth than will our
thoughts. That is not to say that our feelings will give us deeper awareness of
a greater, cosmic "Truth" - simply that our feelings offer greater insight
into our personal truth (belief) than do our thoughts. In other words, If you
want to know where I stand on an issue, ask me how I feel about it, not what I
think about it.
How can we use this information to improve the quality of our lives? Is this
just another metaphysical theory of human dynamics and personality structure,
or does it contain something of practical value? These ideas fit well within
the frame of Religious Science. Religious Science is an eminently practical
philosophy concerned with providing a proven way to experience greater peace,
joy, love, health and abundance. So how do we get there from here?
Why aren't we living "The Good Life"? What are the obstacles to its
attainment? The primary reason (and perhaps the only reason) that we are not living
the life we claim to desire is that we don't really want to. Science of Mind
postulates that our experience is the out-picturing of our beliefs. Most often
our beliefs are the result of our feelings, and our thoughts are just makeshift
justifications that we throw together later. In other words, in one way or
another we usually get want we want out of life. The problem is that too often we
focus on what we want to avoid than on what we want to achieve. Too often we
are driven by desperation rather than drawn by inspiration. Too often we are
motivated by the fear of loss than by the expectation of gain. Too often we
settle for less to avoid disappointment.
The solution to this dilemma is at once simple and profound - Consciousness,
Consciousness, Consciousness. Simply asking ourselves the powerfully
liberating question, "How do I really feel...about myself, my job, my health, my
finances, my family, my dog, my cat, my whatever," opens the door to tremendous
possibilities for transformation. There is a Power for good that is truly greater
than we imagine, but it can only enter our lives from a place of truth and
acceptance of our own personal here-and-now. By this I mean accepting the lesser
truth about who we really are and how we really feel as the first and most
important step towards experiencing the Greater Truth of Who We Really Are,
expressions of a Divine Idea within the Mind of God.
That's what our Spiritual Community is all about, discovering and supporting
this truth in ourselves and in each other. When you come to church, if we've
done our job, you'll find God sitting on either side of you. And if we've
really done our job, you'll find God sitting in the middle.
See you in Church,
Love,
Rev. Patrick
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