Category: Time/stress

Block out the noise

Published on by lindseybiggsLeave a comment

I love this scene in the movie Race (2016). It shows us how clearly we want to stay tuned in to God, divine Love, and the messages God is communicating to us, and tuned out to evil, negativity, fears that the world tries to impose on us. We all have that capability to stay tuned in to God. God’s messages are ones of fearlessness, strength, poise, gentleness, inspiration, and calm. They counteract chaos and fear with the sweet assurance of knowing we are as God’s beloved children.

Jesus referred to this as going into your closet and shutting the door to pray (Matthew 6:6). We want to close out all those other voices — the world, the doubts, etc. — leave them outside the door. Don’t take them in to that prayer closet with you. You want to be so still, so quiet, that you can hear God’s angel thoughts speaking directly to you telling you that you are calm, safe, loved, cared for, worthy; telling you how much God loves you.

The LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea. Psalms 93:4

When we glimpse God’s love it’s like the radiant sun that melts our doubts and fears away. This is the “secret place of the Most High” (that Psalm 91 mentions) where want to dwell mentally. And we can take that “secret place” with us in our workplace, the grocery store, our homes. This is where we hear and feel God telling us that we are children of our loved divine Father-Mother, made in Spirit’s image and likeness. We can see those around us as dwelling in that secret place as well, whether or not they recognize it. In this way we glimpse God’s love as a comforting embrace where we all live and move together.

Through the love of God our Saviour
All will be well;
Free and changeless is His favor;
All must be well;
Precious is the Love that healed us,
Perfect is the grace that sealed us,
Strong the hand stretched forth to shield us;
All, all is well.
(Christian Science Hymnal, No. 350)

Prayer of liberation

Published on by lindseybiggsLeave a comment

Jesus prayers were “… deep and conscientious protests of Truth, — of man’s likeness to God and of man’s unity with Truth and Love.”*

Recently, I’ve been thinking about prayer as being a “protest of Truth” — a recognition of who and what God is and our oneness with God as the spiritual image and likeness. How do we make this deeply practical?

To me, this means acknowledging God as infinite Love, and each of us as the spiritual image and likeness of Love. That means we can’t have anything that isn’t derived from Spirit, God. We reflect the peace, love, and joy that proceed from God. This is the law of our being. When our prayers goes from wishing to see more of God in our experience to a recognition of the underlying facts of our being, this prayer results in awakening and healing. We awaken to who we really are as spiritual children of God, and we experience more health and greater freedom from limitation.

Isn’t this what Jesus really embodied? The liberation of humanity from sickness, lack, inequality — a false bondage that didn’t have any authority from the Father? Didn’t he embody the reality of divine Love so that everyone who he came in contact with felt the effect and power of that Love? The people he came in contact with were healed, transformed, revitalized, and shared the good they experienced with others.

There have been many people throughout the centuries who have embodied that spirit of liberation, –Nelson Mandela, Mary Baker Eddy, Martin Luther King, Jr., and others, — that resulted in greater peace and freedom for others. They have protested mentally and physically to a greater possibility that wasn’t yet visible to others. They discerned the integrity and worth of each child of God regardless of physical circumstances.

Each of our prayers can be a “protest of Truth” to this greater, deeper reality that Jesus saw beyond the physical. He understood our unity with Truth and Love and the spiritual rights we each have as the image and likeness of God. He demonstrated that the Father’s will for each of us is goodness, health, love, and worthiness. He proved that the breaking down of physical, social, and emotional limitations is for each one of us — and it is really the breaking down of every mental imposition which says “you can’t”, “you are less than others”, or “God doesn’t know or love you”. By standing up to these negative inner and outer voices, we can demonstrate the establishment of God’s will here and now. We can usher in the goodness of His presence and our completeness, wholeness, and exemption from anything that doesn’t proceed from our Father, God.

Prayerful protests keep us awake to who and what we are, so that we don’t drift along with materialistic thoughts. They keep us active and alert to the inner divine power that governs us. This spiritual power loves, embraces, and keeps us mentally and physically secure. We can have confidence in the power of good that lives within us.

Live your freedom today! Praying with a powerful protest of Truth and Love brings freedom to mind and body, and shines a bright light in the world!

*Mary Baker Eddy, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 12)

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Being awake to God’s goodness and love

Published on by lindseybiggsLeave a comment

It can be hard to keep awake mentally and spiritually with so many technological and other distractions. Even though Christ Jesus lived so many years ago, he gave us practical wisdom to deal with these distractions. He said,

“what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.”*

Watch our thinking. Be mindful. Be proactive in thought. Watch what is going and coming from our consciousness. Much of our spiritual practice consists of being watchful of our thought: what am I focusing on? Is this really helping me progress? How is my relationship with God? How am I thinking about my fellow humans? Is this promotive of my spiritual identity? What am I believing truly has power in the world?

Being watchful and aware of our consciousness is a great practice to cultivate. Better health, more harmonious relationships, and greater opportunities come from being alert. They stem from our oneness with God and are inherent in our relationship with God.

God’s will for us is freedom, harmony, and joy. We can experience these as we draw closer to God and become more aware of God. This is a daily practice — moment by moment. We can always be checking in — am I focused on divine Truth, Life, and Love right now? How can I be a healing presence in this moment? Can I magnify the good? As we are more mindful of our own thoughts, we inevitably bring healing and bless those around us. We will uplift the atmosphere at the office, we will bring healing to our family relationships, we will comfort and strengthen ourselves and others.

When his students asked Jesus what some of the essential ingredients were to healing, he replied “prayer and fasting”. (Matthew 17:21) Fasting doesn’t have to be only about food. The definition of fasting can be expanded to include anything that would detract our attention from Spirit; anything that would take our focus off good. This could mean depriving ourselves from being news junkies and tuning in to what God is saying; or depriving ourselves of selfishness and being more generous; it could mean depriving ourselves of worry and doubt by focusing more on faith and trust. We can fast from materialism and anything that would try to captivate our attention — anything that doesn’t allow our thought to move forward towards progress, health, and healing. This type of fasting doesn’t deprive us of anything. Rather it allows us to “feast” on God! It keeps us so focused on God, that we become better, more satisfied, healthier, and happier.

Spiritual author and teacher, Mary Baker Eddy, wrote to a student,

“Keep awake by loving more.”**

Loving God primarily, and loving our neighbor as ourselves, keeps us awake to God’s presence. It keeps us tuned in to God, to be aware of all that God, good, is saying to us. God’s guidance and love are like radio waves filling the atmosphere — we just need to tune in to hear exactly the right message. Being awake to Spirit, enables us to see and know who we really are, helps us feel the love and peace of God’s presence, and inspires us with right activities that bless and heal the world.

So, we don’t have to blend in with the crowd — doing what others do and thinking what others think. We have power and authority over our life and consciousness. We can take our thinking into our own hands and feel the peace, love, and assurance coming straight to us from the Divine. We know that God’s will for us is only peace, only goodness, only love, courage, and strength. And we can bring these into our experience by keeping them close in our thought.

Know, then, that you possess sovereign power to think and act rightly, and that nothing can dispossess you of this heritage and trespass on Love.***

*Matthew 13:37
**We Knew Mary Baker Eddy, Vol II, p. 117
***Pulpit and Press, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 3
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