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The Seeker’s Guide to Soul Contact, Part 24

September 12, 2018October 13, 2018 Joseph Dewey

Day 304

Creating Reality

The Seed Thought:

Give love and acceptance to all and you will have all the love and acceptance that you can handle.

How many times have you heard people complain about how badly others treat them? They are not loving enough, generous enough, kind enough and, instead, treat them badly. To listen to them it would seem that they were cursed with the exceptional bad luck to be surrounded by people of a terrible temperament.

The seeker must realize that there is a lot of truth in the statement, “We create our own reality.” If most of the people around us seem negative then we need to examine the thoughts that we ourselves are producing to create that reality.

This reminds me of a story.

A guy moves into a new neighborhood and has his first encounter with the guy next door and asks, “What are the people like in this neighborhood?”

The guy responds, “What were they like in your last neighborhood?”

“They were a bunch of S.O.B.’s, backbiters, irresponsible, and just out for their own selfish purposes.”

To this the neighbor responded, “Well, that’s pretty much the way that you will find them here.”

The guy was wise enough to know that reality is largely created by our own thoughts and perception.

Understanding this principle is very useful in the selection of friends and romantic relationships. If a person complains about a string of terrible relationships in the past then it is best to avoid that person or you will shortly join the list. If the person complains about all the friends that betrayed him then you’d better distance yourself or you will join that list also.

A complimentary principle here is that like attracts like. Positive people are attracted to others who are positive and the negative to negative. The positive ones create their own heaven on earth and the negative ones their own hell.

If the seeker sends out love and acceptance to the maximum degree possible he will draw others who recognize and appreciate such vibes and people will come into his life who reciprocate that which was given out.

Seed Thought of the Day:

You can dispel hate with love, but you cannot eliminate love through hate.

Day 305

Love and Hate

The Seed Thought:

You can dispel hate with love, but you cannot eliminate love through hate.

This roughly corresponds to the thought that light can instantly dispel darkness but no amount of darkness can extinguish the tiniest light.

I say the correspondence is approximate because few correspondences are exact yet they are close enough to reveal the principle involved.

Light immediately dispels darkness, but a show of love does not always cause an immediate effect. What does correspond exactly is when love is received. When love is given and then received all hate involved is instantly evaporated just as a light instantly causes darkness to no longer exist.

On the other hand, when one truly accepts love into his consciousness there is no amount of hate that can take it away for love and light are closely related. It is of great importance then that the seeker keeps his focus of attention on both light and love. When the focus is maintained then no amount of darkness, negative feelings or hate can extinguish them.

Once a truth is registered in consciousness no amount of darkness can cause the seeker to snuff it out. Similarly, once the fires of love are registered in the heart the seeker will always choose that feeling over hate.

Jesus was a great example of this principle. In the midst of the agony of crucifixion by his enemies, who hated him, he demonstrated the dominance of love over hate by saying:

“Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

Likewise the love of the true disciple cannot be diminished by those who hate him. He will instead look upon them as if they are little children who know not what they do. He will have faith that the day will come that the love of God will manifest in their hearts and from that point on be the dominate force.

Those who are polarized in hate have never fully registered spiritual love. What they see as love is merely selfish desire. Spiritual love is completely unselfish accompanied by a desire for equal sharing.

Seed Thought of the Day

Those who focus on an end of the world apocalypse often create an underlying energy that leads to the end of their personal world in disaster.

Day 306

The End of the World

The Seed Thought:

Those who focus on an end of the world apocalypse often create an underlying energy that leads to the end of their personal world in disaster.

This is a good time to review lesson 88 dealing with the principle of energy following thought. Because we are all a part of God we all have within us godlike powers. We thus have within us power to manifest our thoughts for thoughts are indeed things and create things. The only reason this creative power is not more apparent is that most have within them many thoughts in opposition to each other. You may have a goal you want to achieve but other thoughts take you on the easy and perhaps more enjoyable road in the opposite direction. You may want to make a great accomplishment, but opposing thoughts do not believe it is possible.

Remove the opposing thoughts and all things become possible.

Easier said than done.

Today as in ages past there is a large percentage of the world who believe we are in the end of days, that we are approaching an apocalypse that will manifest great tribulation in the near future. Fortunately, not everyone has this belief, as there are also many with the opposing belief that mankind has a promising future ahead of them.

These two opposing beliefs interplay and from them is produced a world of uncertainties where a apocalypse seems possible, but so does a better world. How this plays out is largely determined by whether positive or negative thinking dominates.

Meanwhile, even if we have no outside apocalypse the power of focusing, and sometimes even hoping for one, has a powerful effect and such thinking is often powerful enough to cause great tribulation within one’s own world.

A great example of this was David Koresh and the Branch Davidians. They believed the apocalypse was very near and the days of fire and tribulation were at their doors.

It turned out that they were correct, but the fire and tribulation only applied to them and not the world itself. After a confrontation with the authorities their whole compound went up in flames burning many of them alive and destroying their movement.

Their thoughts were directed toward the end of the world and the end of their world came to pass.

Many end of the world thinkers do not suffer such a dramatic ending, but still suffer their own personal apocalyptic scenario. Some suffer financial disaster, devastating breakups of relationships or painful end-of-their world health problems.

The old adage of being careful of what we think applies here. The seeker must focus his mind on seeing both the outer and inner world in as positive and peaceful terms possible. This will aid in making his personal world more of a heaven on earth rather than a hell.

Seed Thought of the Day:

No great truth will come without effort. We must seek it in our quiet moments. As we become sensitive to the inner voice we will all discover truth in some odd places.

Day 307

Holding the Light

The Seed Thought:

No great truth will come without effort. We must seek it in our quiet moments. As we become sensitive to the inner voice we will all discover truth in some odd places.

I have discovered what I consider to be many significant truths in my life that are outside of mainstream thinking. When I have taught them to others I notice an interesting response. Part of the receivers merely registered the information as data with no understanding of the underlying principles. When discussing it later with them it is as if they had never heard of the teaching before, though they may recall a few words that were said.

Then there are others who heard the same teaching, but seemed to have a light turned on inside of them. These seem to grasp more than a few words but assimilated the ideas or principles therein.

What is the difference between the two groups?

The difference is the second group made an effort to understand, whereas, the first just basked in the teaching as one would enjoy a movie for entertainment purposes only.

The seeker must understand that greater understanding does not come by osmosis. When a greater light is available the student must see it as a trigger rather than something just passing by. If he sees it as a trigger then it will act like an alarm clock reminding him to wake up and pay attention. When he pays attention he then applies the principle of holding the mind steady in the light. When the mind is then steady in the light it is as if the light is no longer just passing by, but now held firm as the sun shining in its strength at noonday.

When this occurs the student claims the understanding as his own and it will always be with him.

The student must have his internal antenna up at all times to detect signals of truth. If he keeps up this awareness at all times he will find truth in unexpected places. It could be something like an interview in the media, a comic book, a movie or even a casual statement from a friend. Flashes of greater light comes from other sources than the scriptures or great literature.

Jesus said: “Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.” Matt 24:42

This is equally true if worded as follows:

“Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour greater light will come.”

Seed Thought of the Day:

Perfection is in the eye of the beholder. Even Jesus was rejected because he was seen as a flawed character.

Day 308

Perfection

The Seed Thought:

Perfection is in the eye of the beholder. Even Jesus was rejected because he was seen as a flawed character.

All religions teach about the perfection of God and Christians are big on the perfection of Jesus. This doctrine uses the Bible to justify this, but what is not realized is that theologians rely on a mistranslation. The Greek word for “perfect” in relation to Deity is TELEIOO and the corresponding TELEIOS. This word does not really mean perfection as we think of it today but more literally means to finish, accomplish, or complete.

Here is the main scripture that refers to the perfection of Jesus:

“Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him.” (Hebrews 5:8-9)

“being made perfect” all comes from the one word TELEIOO. This does not mean perfection as we define the word but it implies that Jesus finished his learning so he could do his job.

The Greek word AKRIBELA corresponds to the English perfection implying exactly correct performance. This word was not applied to Jesus but to the attitude of the authorities who crucified him.

Perfection is indeed in the mind of the beholder. What one considers as the perfect response to a problem will be seen as flawed to another.

Many see God as the perfect creator yet take a look at his creations, All humans are different and all have some flaws. It is close to impossible to find a perfect natural diamond or crystal, but easy to find those with flaws.

And take a look at the planets in our solar system. Only earth has perfect enough conditions to support human life.

Even when we look at the creations of God we must admit that perfection among them is difficult to find and then what one sees as perfect another will find flaws.

Instead of seeking a flawless perfection the seeker should seek the perfection of TELEIOO as did Jesus. In other words, the pilgrim will seek to do a work in harmony with the will of God and continue until it is finished, or TELEIOO.

This is doable whereas an exacting perfection in this material world is not.

Seed Thought of the Day

The inner voice must be awakened by focused attention.

Day 309

Focused Attention

The Seed Thought:

The inner voice must be awakened by focused attention.

Focused attention is a key to success in almost any arena of life where achievement is involved, yet it is perhaps the most ignored.

And why is this?

Because focusing one’s attention takes effort and it is the line of least resistance to take the easy way which is to attempt to reach the goal with little or no effort.

The main lesson learned by the life of God as it passed through the animal kingdom was the paying of attention. A wild animal has to learn to pay attention or it will starve or get eaten or killed by a predator. Deep within each human are all the knowledge and lessons of the lower kingdoms which are: the knowledge of the mineral, the feeling of the vegetable and the focused attention of the animal.

All these qualities can be retrieved by human consciousness, but not by osmosis. The individual has to pay attention to the Spirit within if he wants to correctly manifest and use them.

Here is why paying attention to the inner Spirit is difficult for the beginning seeker. From the time of his beginning as a human life all he has felt from within are the feelings generated by his personality self. For a long period of time he is not even aware that there is something else to perceive.

Eventually, he hears others speak of the inner voice or Spirit or has an experience where the Still Small Voice seems to speak. Finally, he realizes that if he pays attention that there is something more within than his own personality feelings and thoughts.

At first the seeker just “waits upon the Lord.” Then after waiting and waiting he either gets discouraged and ceases his quest or realizes he must do more than wait. Instead, he learns that he must be actively involved in directing consciousness toward the union with Spirit and the Higher Self.

Just as a person building a model ship within a bottle must pay a lot of focused attention to the project, even so must the seeker who seeks consistent communion from within must do likewise.

Seed Thought of the Day

Only by descending into the darkest depths can the fullness of love and light become known.

Day 310

Earth School

The Seed Thought:

Only by descending into the darkest depths can the fullness of love and light become known.

We often complain about problems we have as humans. Many either blame God or refuse to believe saying, “If there was a God then why would He allow pain and suffering?”

The seeker needs to realize that this earth plane is a school and without problems to solve the student learns very little.

One of the most important lessons to be learned is love and the principle is illustrated in this story:

“And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster box of ointment, And stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.

“Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him: for she is a sinner.

“And Jesus answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on. There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?

“Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged. And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head. Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet. My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment.

“Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.” Luke 7:37-47

This does not mean that we have to become great sinners to learn about love, but it does illustrate the fact that great difficulties provides opportunities for it to manifest.

The woman had a great weight on her shoulders which was relieved by Jesus, causing her to feel a surge of love. When a person encounters difficulties of any kind and receives help from another that brings relief, then love will be manifest.

Great love is often manifest when a group of people undergo a harrowing experience together. For instance, those in the military who go through great battles where they have to depend on each other to survive establish a brotherhood and closeness that few realize. Comrades in sports also establish a strong link.

Such a brotherly love cannot manifest between two who do not go through points of tension together.

Any shared experience involving problem solving bring two or more people closer together and helps love to be known.

The seeker will not realize the power of love through mere osmosis, but must descend to the depths and get his hands dirty if necessary. Peace and love exist most profoundly together when they follow a resolved conflict or problem.

Seed Thought of the Day:

It is difficult for us to clarify with our consciousness that which lies outside our consciousness.

Day 311

Expanding Consciousness

The Seed Thought:

It is difficult for us to clarify with our consciousness that which lies outside our consciousness.

One of the problems with a lot of gurus and self proclaimed prophets is that they elaborate on many things outside of their consciousness while expecting students to accept merely because they say that what they teach is true.

One of the things that is beyond the consciousness of all these characters are the details of future happenings. One can examine future trends and cycles compared with the past and give some accurate indications, but no one has proven they can accurately predict the details of the future.

This gives the seeker a reliable key to weed out the self-deceived teachers. All one must do is examine their writings and see if they have made any serious predictions that did not come true. Amazingly, most of them do make specific predictions and all who have that I have examined have failed prophesies. Generally, close to 100% fail.

So, if a person claims to be of such high consciousness that he can predict the future, and then fails, one must ask – what else has he taught that is not true? What other levels of consciousness that he thinks he is accessing that is illusion on his part?

As sincere seekers, however, we do want to expand our consciousness and stretch ourselves to reach our next level. This is a right direction to take, but problems develop along the way. When the individual touches upon his next level he finds himself on unfamiliar territory and at first has difficulty in articulating what he has perceived. Sometimes he will merely say that it is impossible to put into words.

The truth is that anything can be put into words for the Word is God and with God all things are possible. The difficulty in putting a new experience into words is that the seeker merely has not yet completely processed it and does not comprehend it in his physical brain consciousness.

Therefore, you will sometimes encounter those relating true experiences but giving a description that is not accurate. This is again an important reason that the seeker develop his own soul contact so he can discern for himself the real from the unreal.

Seed Thought of the Day:

The inner spirit only recognizes that which is true and does not see error. Therefore the soul vibrates positive for us when truth is spoken or presented.

Day 312

Perceiving Truth

The Seed Thought:

The inner spirit only recognizes that which is true and does not see error. Therefore the soul vibrates positive for us when truth is spoken or presented.

The Higher Self lives in a realm where only truth exists which is quite different from the earth plane where unlimited illusions exist.

Here, there are a number of problems with our communications. Some of them are:

(1) Outright lies.

(2) Distortions and exaggerations.

(3) Incomplete communications giving the wrong idea.

(4) Honest communications, which are misunderstood and interpreted incorrectly.

(5) Bias on the part of the receiver causing him not to register what has been said.

In the realm of Spirit these limitations are virtually non-existent for deceptive communication is impossible. Think… if you could read someone’s mind then they could never lie to you.

This earth plane is foreign territory to the soul. When it begins to merge with the lower self and peers out into our world it is like entering a foreign country with different customs and language. It recognizes truth but error and deception are not in its consciousness.

The question that arises then is this: Is the soul any help to the seeker in perceiving error?

The answer is yes and the reasoning is simple. When a true principle is enunciated to a seeker with soul contact he will feel an inner vibration that tells him that there is truth in what is being presented. If there are no true principles then the seeker will draw a blank or a stupor of thought.

Remember the consciousness of the soul focuses on principles rather than data. If the sender is giving out true principles then the data is usually reliable, but it is up to the seeker to verify them if they are of importance. If the seeker gets nothing from the soul then the data is generally filled with distortions and should be investigated to discover the truth.

Then there are times that the soul becomes aware of certain directions of people in your life and will perceive that they will be of benefit or harm to you. If the knowledge is considered important it will send you either a positive or negative impression on these people and it will then be up to you to reflect and figure out how to deal with them in your life.

When the seeker first establishes soul contact these impressions are so faint they seem to be a part of his imagination, but as he places attention on them the link becomes stronger and the seeker becomes confident in what he receives, for he has proven them correct many times.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Never substitute the master within for a master without.

Day 313

The Master Within

The Seed Thought:

Never substitute the master within for a master without.

In addition to the word “master” one could use “teacher” or “authority.”

It is human nature to look at a confirmation from an outside authority before they will accept something as true. And why do they accept a particular authority? For the average person this occurs largely by chance. Such authorities may come from the groupthink of a religion he is in or a political party or group accepted by family and friends.

Once something is proclaimed by this outside authority it is accepted as true, even if it makes no sense when critical thinking is applied. The mind directed by outside authority is so clever that it can take the most illogical pronouncements and rationalize them into acceptable logic for the unthinking conscious mind.

The problem for beginning seekers is this. Before achieving soul contact that which comes from within is not directly from the soul, but filtered through the astral/emotional body which distorts reality. After they have relied on this they have found they have been wrong most of the time. These inward impulses caused them to marry the wrong person, take the wrong job, and choose the wrong friends or maybe a bad belief system.

Therefore, it seems safe for this person to rely on an outward authority who seems reliable. One thing that seems enticing is that if something goes wrong he is absolved of responsibility. He can now just use a version of “I was just following orders” excuse. He can thus make mistakes and remain innocent of failure within his own mind.

What is not realized by those who substitute the voice of a strong authority within for that which is without is that there is a guidance that comes from within which is reliable. To contact it the seeker must rise above emotional contact to the spiritual contact of the Inner Voice through the Spirit from the Higher Self.

This whole course is dedicated to assisting the seeker in finding and securing this contact. Once the contact is made the test is whether the seeker will learn to trust the inward master over the outer self-proclaimed ones.

Seed Thought of the Day:

There are certain words stimulating thought that take the ear back to the vibration of spirit that cannot be corrupted. These are called, “Eternal Words.”

Day 314

Eternal Words

The Seed Thought:

There are certain words stimulating thought that take the ear back to the vibration of spirit that cannot be corrupted. These are called, “Eternal Words.”

There are words that pass away and then others that do not. Jesus talked about this principle when he said:

“My words shall not pass away.” Matt 24:35

What is the difference between words that pass away and those that do not?

First, words that pass away are those that:

(1) Merely repeat something that has already been said.

(2) Do not make sense.

(3) Do not offer a new insight.

(4) Do not clearly enunciate a truth or a principle.

Eternal words that do not pass away, such as those spoken by Jesus, are:

(1) Words that bring additional light to the minds of the receivers.

(2) Words that are original in presentation and not just a repetition of things past.

(3) Words that either clarify a true principle or clearly present a new one.

For example, some of the words of Shakespeare are so enlightening that they bring greater understanding to the mass consciousness and, therefore, do not pass away. Here is an example:

“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”

This is knowledge we should know, but passes over the heads of many; therefore, Shakespeare’s words helped to anchor this important truth and thus will not pass away.

Others may quote and reword this, but it is the original thought offered by the master writer which shall not pass away.

Jesus knew that his words would not pass away because this master soul knew that he was presenting truth and principles in a way that had not been done before, and that these words lifted the consciousness of the receivers to a new level.

Words that do not pass away come from the higher self to the mind of the seeker and should be sought. Often, these eternal words are something tailored to an individual consciousness to bring a greater awareness. When this happens to the seeker the light from the experience will stay with him or her from that point on. Let us all seek the light that comes from eternal words and cherish them.

Seed Thought of the Day:

If we try to solve the equations of the higher realms before we learn our basic lessons, we will neither know the mysteries of the higher or be able to live successfully in the lower. What this leads to is the seeker becoming the dreamer within the dream rather than the knower waking from the dream.

Day 315

Basic Lessons

The Seed Thought:

Here is one of the best commentaries on this idea made by Djwhal Khul:

“What do I mean by the dangers of atrophy? Simply this: Some natures become so polarised on the mental plane that they run the risk of breaking connection with the two lower vehicles. These lower bodies exist for purposes of contact, for the apprehension of knowledge on the lower planes and for reasons of experience in order that the content of the causal body may be increased. Therefore it will be apparent to you that if the indwelling consciousness comes no lower than the mental plane and neglects the body of emotions and the dense physical, two things will result. The lower vehicles will be neglected and useless and fail in their purposes, atrophying and dying from the point of view of the Ego, whilst the causal body itself will not be built as desired and so time will be lost. The mental body will be rendered useless likewise, and will become a thing of selfish content, of no use in the world and of little value. A dreamer whose dreams never materialise, a builder who stores up material which he never employs, a visionary whose visions are of no use to gods or men, is a clog upon the system universal. He is in great danger of atrophying.”

Letters on Occult Meditation – Page 97

Most of us have met aspiring individuals who focus on fanciful ideas floating around in their heads while ignoring down to earth realities which must be dealt with. These people usually dwell in poverty on the material plane as well as in relationships for they do not cross their Ts and dot their Is in the world of experience.

The seeker must avoid this trap and render to Caesar that which is Caesar’s and take care of essential business. When he does this he can then focus with peace of mind upon higher ideals.

Seed Thought of the Day:

I cannot alter the will of God, or even the whims of fate, but can adjust my mind and heart to create a positive outcome.

Day 316

Accepting Limitations

The Seed Thought:

I cannot alter the will of God, or even the whims of fate, but can adjust my mind and heart to create a positive outcome.

Harmonious with this thought is the Serenity Prayer used by 12 step programs which reads:

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,

Courage to change the things I can,

And wisdom to know the difference.”

There’s also the famous quote of Clint Eastwood from the movie, Magnum Force:

“A man’s got to know his limitations.”

The seeker must realize that there are things that are under his control and then others that are not.

The individual does not have power to control the weather, who is elected president, what time the sun will rise or decisions made by others. He may have a small influence on some large events, but overall he has to accept that such things will happen with or without him and must be incorporated into his reality.

Then there are other items over which we do have power. The most important is the power of decision itself. We have the free agency to make decisions within the realms of our ring-pass-not.

Within our limitations we have full power over:

(1) Words we speak.

(2) Books we read

(3) Friends we select

(4) Careers we pursue

(5) Our entertainment

(6) How we use our time and much more.

Any time we pursue a positive goal there will be hurtles to overcome, but if we make the best of the powers we have, and do not give up, a satisfying result can be obtained.

Along the way to success many seekers make the mistake of not taking their limitations into consideration on one hand, and not relying on decisions within his power on the other. Thus when they fail they often succumb to the temptation to see themselves as victims.

The fact is that we are all in the same boat and face similar advantages and disadvantages. The differences which exist are more related to consciousness than circumstances. There is a way for seekers to achieve most any desire if they persist within the light.

The path to the unlimited is through wisely dealing with limitations.

Seed Thought of the Day:

You are an authority on yourself more than anyone else. Do not let anyone else define who you are.

Day 317

The Highest Authority

The Seed Thought:

You are an authority on yourself more than anyone else. Do not let anyone else define who you are.

Perhaps you have been called a liar, hypocrite, racist, bigot, sexist, hater etc. and you knew that you were none of those things. You explain your true views but the attacker insists that he is right, even though he is unable to present any evidence of your inner thinking.

The guy has the gall to believe he knows your actual thoughts better than you know them yourself.

A problem occurs when the seeker may doubt his own authority over that of a negative person trying to define him. In all cases the seeker needs to examine his own thoughts and not let an outside authority convince him that he is thinking or believing something other than what is real.

Can some really be convinced that they think differently than their real thoughts?

Some time ago Dateline arranged an experiment with college students. They had unsuspecting victims participating with a group of about a half dozen that knew what was going on. The group was shown a set of four lines and of the four there were two of equal length and two obviously unequal. They were then asked to pick the two lines that were equal. They showed the lines on TV and it was obvious which two were the correct match.

The next thing they did was to have the planted students all give the same wrong match. Then when it became the victim’s turn you could tell he began to doubt what his eyes and reasoning were telling him. Some of the victims gave the right answer for a round or two but, one by one, each victim gave in and started giving the wrong answer as the right answer, even though they knew within themselves that it was wrong.

The interesting thing about watching their faces on TV was that they all looked a little depressed when they started knowingly giving the wrong answers as right answers. It was almost like the poor kids were selling their souls.

Even so, some will allow others to define them in ways that defy perceived reality.

Does this mean that introspection of ourselves always produces a reliable assessment of ourselves?

Yes and no. Each of us knows for sure what we think and feel at any given moment. Such thoughts and feeling truly represent what is occurring inside, but that does not mean that one’s thoughts and feelings represent true reality.

For instance, one may believe his thoughts and feelings represent a very giving person, but when contrasted with that of 100 other people he may find that he is really in the bottom 10%. It is true that he feels that way, but truth is not born out in his actions.

Thus in dealing with other people the seeker should accept that each individual is the world’s greatest authority on what he thinks and feels, but at the same time question their accuracy if they do not seem to reflect reality when contrasted with humanity as a whole.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Creation begins with thought, then contemplation, next a feasible plan, then the plan into words and finally the words into sustained action.

Day 318

Creation Principles

The Seed Thought:

Creation begins with thought, then contemplation, next a feasible plan, then the plan into words and finally the words into sustained action.

A thought marks the beginning of all creation and rightly so for thought is associated with the life of God. We have heard that God is love, but even more foundational is that God is thought for not even love could exist without thought.

And what produced thought one may ask? Thought and intelligence is manifest though the eternal interplay of cause and effect. Thus, cause and effect, as well as thought, are the two eternal principles that are co-dependent and have always existed and will always exist.

This seed thought is a formula for successful creation as all successful endeavors begin with a thought and then is followed by contemplation upon the thought or the idea.

This second step often lacks attention and focus thus leading to disaster or incomplete creation. The seeker must take the seed idea and allow it to come to life within the womb of the mind and heart to then give birth to a workable plan or blueprint for success. If there is not enough thought applied to create a workable plan then all the effort in the universe will not produce success. There will occur failure after failure until sufficient contemplation is applied to create a workable plan.

The next step is to put the plan into writing or some type of physical blueprint or model that can be shared. This sharing will draw others who will assist in the creative effort.

The final step is to sustain action directed at the final creation until success is achieved. This is the second major step where failure happens as many give up when difficulties present themselves. But, if the plan is good then it is only a matter of time and energy expenditure before the creation will manifest.

Seed Thought of the Day:

True peace comes not through suppressing dissent, but in allowing conflict to be resolved through maximum freewill.

Day 319

True Peace

The Seed Thought:

True peace comes not through suppressing dissent, but in allowing conflict to be resolved through maximum freewill.

Many there are who are deceived into thinking that peace is equated with a vacuum of physical dissent from opposing beliefs. This false peace manifests in tyrannies where the slightest disapproval of the “Dear Leader” brings imprisonment or death. Such draconian measures do cause the appearance of stillness, or false peace, on the physical plane, but where is the peace in the minds and hearts of the loved ones of the one who was martyred? The hearts of the spouse and children of such a person are ablaze with rage as the crowds shout with approval to the tyranny that persecuted him or her.

This false idea of peace manifests not just in authoritarian governments, but in all nations and groups throughout the world. Lack of agreement may not be met with death or imprisonment but it usually reveals disapproval and lesser, but still effective, punishments meted out such as, loss of job or status, loss of love or family association, unfriending, shunning or threat of damnation from a religious group. These threats in a free society are often almost as effective in creating a false peace as the tyrannies. This is especially true of a religion that holds the threat of eternal hell over the head of a true believer.

On the other hand, the threat of ostracization is very powerful in any group where the thinker represents a small minority. Just having to deal with being the sore thumb in the group is a difficult situation for many to handle.

The fact is this. If free speech is allowed with no draconian punishments attached there will be disagreement and conflict, but just as light is only revealed through contrast even so truth that leads to peace on all levels is only revealed through the contrast of truth and error. Without that contrast manifesting through the principle of freedom then ignorance through false peace will prevail.

There is a principle called “harmony through conflict” which tells us that a certain amount of conflict must be resolved before true harmony and peace can manifest. The true seeker must not seek to suppress conflict, but to resolve it through the promotion of true principles.

Seed Thought of the Day:

The higher nature can fulfill the lower but the lower cannot fulfill itself.

Day 320

Fulfillment

The Seed Thought:

The higher nature can fulfill the lower but the lower cannot fulfill itself.

The bureaucracies of the world illustrate the truth of this principle. They create a problem and then those who created the problem attempt to solve it and wind up making things worse. To solve the problem, requires thinking, unencumbered by the deficiencies of the ingrained groupthink, so an efficient solution can be presented.

With humanity in general, problems are attempted to be solved on three levels.

The first is the emotional level in connection with the computer aspects of the brain. The decisions here are determined by what feels right which often disregards reasoning to the contrary. This is by far the most popular method of decision-making and greatly flawed, for what one desires to be right or true is often set with many flaws.

The second is the thinking part of the mind, which uses reasoning and logic. A minority are polarized in this even though it is much more accurate and can correct many of the mistakes made by the feeling nature.

The third is the intuitive/spiritual approach through soul contact. Whereas, the mind can reach a dead end and slay the real, soul contact always reveals true reality and is the most reliable of the three. Unfortunately, only a handful of people are centered here.

Each seeker desires the greatest possible fulfillment, but to find this he or she must realize that the lower nature does not have the power or intelligence to fulfill itself. The emotional nature consistently sabotages its own desires and understands not the path of peace and happiness.

The reasoning mind sees at a higher level and can do much to assist the emotional nature in reaching stabilization. It has its limits and eventually reaches dead ends in its reasoning.

The intuitive/spiritual self sees from the widest angle of vision and can fill in the gaps and errors created by the mind. Because the Higher Self is linked to the Life of God it is the source of the most complete fulfillment for humanity.

When soul contact is not perceived the seeker needs to use his reasoning powers as the highest point of decision, but influenced by positive desire. But when those flashes of inspiration come through the soul he has the ultimate guide on the path of fulfillment.

Seed Thought of the Day:

The most potent control happens when the person does not realize he is being controlled and the strongest prison is that where the prisoner thinks he is free.

Day 321

The Strongest Prison

The Seed Thought:

The most potent control happens when the person does not realize he is being controlled and the strongest prison is that where the prisoner thinks he is free.

The average person has numerous implanted mindsets that control his thinking of which he is unaware. He thus thinks he is in charge of his thinking and destiny when he is a slave to direction that comes from a source outside of himself.

This can result in a situation where the person is a slave to an outside will while thinking he is following his own.

There is an advantage to being a slave and realizing that you are a slave. In such a situation one will fight for his freedom. The problem is exacerbated when he is a slave, but does not know he is a slave and truly believes that he is sacrificing of his own free will. In this situation he will not fight for his freedom and will remain in slavery until light is shined on his ignorance.

So, what are some situations where a person is in a prison of sorts but does not realize it? Here are a few.

(1) In religion. The believer sacrifices time and money to support his religion when none of his beliefs are his own. Instead, he was raised in that religion and is enslaved by the belief system implanted in his. He doesn’t think to question it.

(2) Even if he is a convert to a religion he can be enslaved by it if he accepts all beliefs as coming from an all-powerful God who is not to be questioned. He donates money not questioning how it will be used and supports teachings, not thinking them through.

(3) Politics. Just like religion many are slaves to beliefs instilled into them by their parents, friends, groups and teachers. Many give their support as slaves to a master without even thinking through their beliefs.

For instance, reporters have taken the stand of candidates that are hated by various individuals and told them they come from a politician they love and they instantly support such issues, obviously showing slavery to an ideal rather than reason.

(4) Average citizens. In the United States the average person pays over 50% in taxes when all of them are considered, but many do not believe we pay enough and do not consider them slaves to the system. Consider that in ancient Rome it was common for slaves to run a business and only pay a third of the profits to the slave master.

The seeker must free himself from implanted thoughts that control him. He will do this by examining all his beliefs and testing them out in the light of his heart, mind and soul. Then when he understands why he believes what he does he takes a great step toward liberation.

Thought of the Day:

As the seeker transverses the valley of the shadow of death in the blackest pitch, a hand extending love or light is seen with overwhelming joy that could not be experienced in the light of day.

Day 322

Extending Love

The Seed Thought:

As the seeker transverses the valley of the shadow of death in the blackest pitch, a hand extending love or light is seen with overwhelming joy that could not be experienced in the light of day.

The biggest complaint about God is that we live in a world where we have to endure many negative things such as pain, suffering, loneliness, depression etc. They claim that if there is really a God then there would be no suffering or deprivation – that all would be bliss and peace instead. Why would God want anything else?

The answer is that it is not some god on a throne that wants all the difficulties that surround us in this world, but ourselves. We are the ones who volunteered to come here and were happy to do so. Therefore, if a person wants to blame anyone for a difficult situation he finds himself in he must blame himself.

“So when did we volunteer to enter a world with pain and suffering?” asks the skeptic.

The answer is that you are an eternal being who came from a higher plane where there is perfect peace and bliss. You decided you wanted a new and different challenge that would expand your awareness and appreciation for the things of the spirit. We could call this the Bodybuilding Principle. Behind this is the truism, “No pain, no gain.”

In other words, to build a strong body which can handle great challenges with ease the person has to put himself through a strenuous program that takes great effort and is quite uncomfortable over periods of time. But, after going through such an agenda, the person sees great progress toward his goals.

Even so, before birth we planned and agreed to the life we have now in hope of obtaining a great benefit from it. Ironically, some of those who are now in the most painful of circumstance were most eager to plunge into it because of the benefit that would be later realized.

Two great realizations come to the seeker as an increase of light and love and these often manifest in the most difficult of situations. When a seeker feels crushed by negativity or overwhelming circumstances and experiences a hand extending in loving support he will feel a sweet spiritual uplift that is priceless.

There are many out there who need a word of cheer or encouragement, or assistance, and the seekers who have the strength can do much to increase the flow of love in the world by reaching out and doing what they can to help. The reward will be beyond anything money can buy.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Human nature generally takes the easy way and just wants to be told the answer by some authority instead of being forced back upon their own souls.

To Access the next section (#25) go HERE.

Links for the first 23 sections of this series.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19, Part 20, Part 21, Part 22, Part 23

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The Seeker’s Guide to Soul Contact, Part 23

September 9, 2018September 15, 2018 Joseph Dewey

Day 286

Unnatural Results

The Seed Thought:

Eat too much unnatural processed food and get unnatural manmade problems and disease.

I came across a teaching many years ago that registered as truth to my soul. It goes like this.

Nature is a far superior chemist compared to humans as it has spent billions of years perfecting its processes. The closer we get to consuming fresh natural ingredients the healthier we will be.

Somewhere in nature is a cure for any disease.

Most every attempt science has made to duplicate, synthesize or improve nature has resulted in a cheaper, but inferior product.

In the end, you do not save money when using synthetics or processed food for you pay a lot extra with future medical bills accompanied by pain and suffering.

When I first became interested in natural products way back in the Sixties the only place you could find health related natural foods was in a health food store and most of what they had were supplements. It was difficult to even find whole wheat bread and there was no such thing as purified drinking water.

You couldn’t get a good salad anywhere. There was nothing in fast food restaurants and even fine restaurants served you a salad with only iceberg lettuce with a bunch of processed ham and dressing thrown on top.

Outside of making one myself I couldn’t find a good salad anywhere until about 1972. Fifty miles from my residence a health food store opened up a decent salad bar. I visited it whenever I could and I seemed to be a great success. It always had a big line and they had lots of good ingredients.

At the time I thought that within 30-40 years the whole country should be converted to healthy natural foods and we should be a much healthier nation.

Reality turned out to be somewhat different than I expected. The knowledge available about natural foods and cures has indeed expanded, but in this process the health of the nation has deteriorated.

How could this be?

The answer is that some have paid attention and incorporated natural foods, but the majority eat more junk than ever and, thus, overall health health has gone downhill.

There are a lot of people who give lip service to healthy eating, but in reality consume many processed foods. Sometimes friends will insist they eat healthy, but then when watching what they order I see they order soft drinks with artificial sweeteners (terrible for your health), processed bakery goods and sweet items with lots of sugar.

One of the first things a seeker needs to do is read the labels of any packaged item they buy. If the ingredients include names that you do not recognize then it is probably full of chemicals that would make you instantly sick in large individual quantities. A rule of thumb is to be suspicious of anything with more than three or four ingredients.

Because humans are far inferior to nature as chemists the seeker needs to stay as close to natural foods as possible, else his body will be greatly weakened over a period of time.

Some say that they cannot afford natural foods, but the healthiest food you can eat is actually very cheap. Sprouts are top of the line as far as healthy foods go and if you buy your own seeds and sprout them yourself the cost is very low. They will be some of the cheapest foods than you can eat.

Many books have been written on natural foods and health. The true seeker should seek some of them out and keep up on the latest thinking.

Seed Thought of the Day:

There is no such thing as infinity. If there were the universe could not be expanding. There is a number to everything.

Orthodox thinking accepts the idea of infinity as a given – but is it?

Day 287

A Number to Everything

The Seed Thought:

There is no such thing as infinity. If there were the universe could not be expanding. There is a number to everything.

The common thinking is that the universe is infinite, but the truth is that nothing has been proven to be infinite. Many things seem to be infinite but when examined they are always composed of a specific number.

Just consider the number of human beings on the planet as an example. If you met a new person every second you could only get through a third of the current population by the age of 80. If you greeted new baby every second you would only be able to see 20% of them. To such a person it would seem that there are an infinite number of humans, just on this planet.

This number pales in comparison to the number of cells in the average human body, which number around 30 trillion. In other words, there are 4000 times more cells in one human body than there are humans on the earth.

Now if we take just one cell and count the atoms which make it up we will come up with an even larger number of about 100 trillion. If a person were shrunk down to where he could see the cells and started counting it would indeed seem that the human body had an infinite supply of cells. The same goes with atoms in a cell. They would seem infinite to anyone who started counting them.

The components of most creations seem infinite to those lives within them. Many ancient people thought there was no end to the earth. Some thought the few thousand stars were all that existed. Now we have discovered that we live in a galaxy with over 200 billion stars and in the universe we can observe there are as many as 2 trillion galaxies.

What we have discovered in what we know is that the components of creation are so numerous that they can seem infinite, but are not and still have a finite number to them.

The bottom line is there is a definite number to everything.

Another conundrum is found in the idea that the universe is expanding. The only thing that can expand is something that is finite. If the universe were indeed infinite it could not expand. If the universe were to expand to twice its size would you then have two infinities? There is no such thing. The truth is that if we could expand out vision enough we would see that the universe has an end and has within it a specific number of galaxies, stars and atoms.

A more correct wording would be to say that God and the universe, or the universe of universes are unlimited.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Who says there is no intelligent design? Billions of intelligent humans over thousands of years have been trying to duplicate the human body, and cannot match the intelligence in its design, or even a single organ as the eye, or a single cell within the eye, or a single atom within the cell. They cannot even reverse engineer these creations.

Some good food for thought for the atheist.

Day 288

Divine Complexity

The Seed Thought:

Isaac Newton, who is considered the greatest scientist of all time, marveled at the technology that went into the creation of the human body and noted that the eye alone was so complex that some greater or Divine Intelligence had to be involved in its creation

‘Imagine walking through a forest and stumbling across an iPhone lying at your feet. You pick it up and wonder how it got there. A friend walks by and tells you that all the elements of the forest just came together at the right moments and created it.

This may sound hard to believe, but at the other end of the scale we have scientists digging among ancient ruins and finding ancient tools so deteriorated that it looks like natural forces could have created something so elementary.

“Absolutely not,” they say. “These elementary tools are solid evidence that ancient intelligent man was here and they are intelligent human creations.”

Now consider the difference in the intelligence involved in the creation of a rough-looking hammer and an iPhone. If the hammer is proof of intelligent design then the iPhone is a million times the proof.

On the other hand, the human eye is many times more complicated than the iPhone and the body as a whole many times more complex than that. You would think that the existence of an Intelligent Designer would be so obvious that no one would question it.

Is it possible that the complexity is so overwhelming that the point is just ignored?

The truism, “You can’t see the forest for the trees” comes to mind.

Seed Thought of the Day:

The greatest gift that one person can give to another is to stimulate that love which is in the soul to light the soul of another, like the passing of a candle.

The implications of this thought are great.

For an interesting story that illustrates the blindness of those who do not see Intelligent Design click on this link.

Day 289

The Greatest Gift

The Seed Thought:

The greatest gift that one person can give to another is to stimulate that love which is in the soul to light the soul of another, like the passing of a candle.

That part of us which is eternal is that originating point of light in Divine Space called the monad, or originating intelligence. This monad is born in the world of souls, or spirits, into a body (called the egoic or causal body) composed of a high grade of mental matter.

This soul is focused on divine attributes and is most centered on love; especially love of the whole rather than just the part.

When the seeker obtains soul contact his consciousness moves beyond love of self and those who only bring obvious benefit to self. Instead, he develops love of humanity as a whole and realizes that within each person, even those who are annoying to the personality, dwells the soul which is enflamed with the love of God.

The problem is that this great love has not penetrated the veil of separation between God and humanity. We as true seekers who have a realization of soul love can assist in the following ways:

(1) Realize that this divine love is not only within you but all others and is seeking to manifest.

(2) Realize that the love of the soul dwells even in the most irritating people. See that side of them that is on the inside more than the personality flaws on the outside.

(3) Show love to all no matter how they treat you.

(4) Realize that energy follows thought and look for love to be lighted in unexpected places.

Forgiveness is a key to making this happen as the seeker must purge himself of all grievances toward his fellow men and women. Advice on accomplishing this was discussed earlier and these teachings are always good to review.

May the Force (of love) be with you.

Seed Thought of the Day:

If you hear a report you do not like, do not shoot or attack the messenger, but investigate the message. Your preconceived notions could be wrong.

Day 290

Don’t Shoot the Messenger

The Seed Thought:

If you hear a report you do not like, do not shoot or attack the messenger, but investigate the message. Your preconceived notions could be wrong.

When the average person hears a message he does not like or that runs contrary to his mindset his first reaction is not to sincerely examine the message for truth, but to attack the messenger. And how does he do that?

First he will figure that since the guy is on the other side (usually assumed to be the side of evil or the devil himself) that this person must evil or at best some reckless, unreliable reprobate.

Next he will assume that the guy has many flaws that signal a red flag.

Finally, he will look for and find those flaws, even if the guy is as innocent as Mother Teresa.

Then, when he is satisfied that the guy is in league with the devil he will assume it is safe to reject everything that comes out of his mouth with no need at all to examine the veracity of the arguments presented.

The true seeker will not only reject this approach but be personally abhorred by it. The sincere seeker after truth realizes that no earthly teacher is flawless and all people have a mixture of truth, error and distortion in their belief systems. He will not reject anyone because they are a flawed character and will not accept any because of claims of infallibility. Instead, he will look at the actual words and works of the person and run them by his own soul to test them for approval. If they register well with his soul he will incorporate them and, if not, he will either put them on the shelf or reject them depending on the clarity of the inner voice.

Many true messengers have been rejected, persecuted, imprisoned and put to death because their message was not honestly examined for they were identified as being in league with evil. The day of enlightened messages and true messengers is not over. Let us be among the few who can embrace them when they surface.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Insanity is when you disagree with reality
Justice is when realty bites.
Happiness is when reality is embraced.

Day 291

Facing Reality

The Seed Thought:

Insanity is when you disagree with reality
Justice is when realty bites.
Happiness is when reality is embraced.

Why would anyone disagree with reality? Well, it happens more than one may think. You’ve probably done it yourself since over 90% of the human race is polarized in a reality distortion field.

And what is that?

It is human emotion, which emanates from our emotional body, often called the astral body.

Communication with the soul, which is the one reliable registrar of truth, occurs when the higher part of the mind receives from this higher part of our selves. To get that truth impressed upon our consciousness it has to go through the emotional self and then to the lower mind centered in the physical brain.

Unfortunately, the emotional self acts like a mirror and creates a reverse image of truth. Consider this. When you look in a mirror it seems that you are seeing yourself and surroundings as they are, but you are not. If in doubt just hold up a newspaper headline and try to read it. Difficult isn’t it? Everything in the mirror seems normal, but there is a subtle reversal that distorts reality.

This is what the emotional self does. Instead of allowing you to see things as they are it represents to you a version of truth that seems real, but is not. It tends to believe what it wants to believe rather than what is.

This is a form of insanity forced upon us all until the time comes that we are forced by others or circumstances to look at the true reality. This is like holding up a newspaper headline in a mirror and actually seeing the reversal. When this happens the distortion can no longer be denied.

At first this reality bites because you liked believing what you wanted to believe, even though it was false, but you can only stare at the reversal so long without admitting to yourself that it is a distortion of reality.

When the reversal is finally accepted the seeker begins to access and trust the higher part of his mind that can see without distortion. After a period of time in doing this, he finds that the truth brings much more satisfaction and happiness than did his previous desire to embrace illusion.

When the seeker looks back on his youth and sees what he desired and embraced then compared to what he desires and embraces now he can often see how he has moved toward the truth and that move has always brought him to a greater degree of well being and happiness.

If we expect truth to verify all our desires, we develop a mindset that becomes an enemy to truth. Let all true seekers become friends with reality.

Seed Thought of the Day:

The language of the soul is the communion of true principles.

Contemplate on what is meant by the language of the soul.

Day 292

The Language of the Soul

The Seed Thought:

The language of the soul is the communion of true principles.

Many people who seek for soul contact think that the Higher Self will give them answers in literal English, or their native language. They also think the soul cares about personality details in their life such as finding a parking space.

First, let me clarify that your soul is only interested in helping you with issues that you cannot solve on your own or that will have significant impact beyond that which you personally desire. It is particularly interested in things that have impact on the group of souls with which you are associated.

Secondly, the seeker should not expect answers to come in complete sentences. If words do come to the speaker from the soul they will usually be impressions that are interpreted by the mind.

Overall, the Higher Self understands, absorbs and sends knowledge much faster than we do because it deals with principles and knowledge is received and sent as impressions that convey much more than words, but understanding of how things work or why things are the way they are.

Specific details are sometimes accessed through the soul by retrieving the Akashic records, the Book of Life containing a complete record of earth history and the lives thereon. The problem is that few are able to accurately access them through the soul and many get pieces of information with numerous gaps and when put together by their physical brain much distortion is the result.

This is why we hear many teachers giving conflicting accounts of what they have received.

Dealing with principles in connection with the soul is much more reliable than data for the seeker has an inward sense that tells him when a principle revealed is true whereas details are much harder to discern.

If I were to say that aliens have a hidden base on the moon, then how many could confirm this through the soul?

Very few.

But if I were to say that a great purpose behind all creation is the evolution of life from matter in the direction of Spirit then this idea may register as correct.

Because principles are the language of the soul I have focused on the principles behind reality in most of my writings.

Seed Thought of the Day:

The desire for the truth must be the only desire in the consciousness, as the truth is sought.

Day 293

The Eye Single

The Seed Thought:

The desire for the truth must be the only desire in the consciousness, as the truth is sought.

Jesus threw some light on this idea:

“The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!” Matt 6:22-23

The Master gives us some expansion on this thought since light and truth are often synonymously written together. If we focus 100% on the side of light and truth, then we will be filled with light and always be able to distinguish truth from error. On the other hand, if we take our focus away from light and truth the opposite will happen. The person will be full of darkness.

What does this mean?

In light you can see clearly and in darkness you cannot. Therefore, the one in darkness will not see reality as it is no matter where he looks – unless he makes a firm decision to look within to the Source of light and develop a love for what is revealed.

Again, we go back to that basic principle which tells us that, “energy follows thought.” If the seeker’s thoughts are directed toward light and truth then he will draw them to his consciousness, but if his thoughts are only on verifying what his lower desires want to be true he will draw darkness and error into his life.

As one contemplates this seed thought he may be inclined to ask: “Does not everyone desire truth? After all, who desires to be wrong?

It may help if we break down the approach of the two sides.

On the side of light and truth, as mentioned in the seed thought, “the truth must be the only desire in the consciousness.”

If this is so, then what is different that is in the mind of the one who is in darkness and illusion? Surely all people think they desire the truth.

Yes, even the ones in great darkness think they desire the truth as much as the next guy, but there is one difference. Above the desire for truth the one in darkness desires to be right and only to have his preconceived notions verified. He thinks his desire to be right is the same as another’s desire for truth. Such thinking is a grievous error.

A desire to be right is linked to satisfying the lower emotions and, as discussed earlier, the lower emotions always distort and reflect in reverse the true reality.

A pure desire for truth is linked to the higher mind, the soul and God who is the Source of all things. The lower self fights tooth and nail to hold on to desired beliefs, however wrong. The seeker reaches a great milestone when he finally lets this go and focuses on soul contact rather than favoring the lower emotions.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Good must co-exist with evil to have meaning, just as light needs the darkness of a shadow to be seen.

Day 294

Good Needs Evil

The Seed Thought:

Good must co-exist with evil to have meaning, just as light needs the darkness of a shadow to be seen.

We often think that we see light but we do not. What we see are merely the effects of light.

In the depths of space above the earth there is a massive streaming forth of light from the sun, but if you were up there in a spacesuit you would see nothing but the blackness of space no matter how much you tried to see it. You would see something though when you looked at your spacesuit where the rays of light strike and cast differentiation, contrast and shadows. You need the shadow land of physical form to see the effects of the light of the sun. Otherwise, the rays of light would move on forever undetected through space.

Light and darkness are just one of the many manifestations of duality, but they all have one thing in common. They need each other to be revealed and understood.

Like a light shining in darkness, if only good existed then this quality could not be seen, but would be invisible to all. God had to create the universe with contrast and the duality of good and evil so that which is good could be seen, understood and appreciated. Before creation we could not have appreciated God as being good because there was no evil to reveal what was good.

We may not appreciate the manifestation of evil, but without it we wouldn’t have a clue as to any path that would lead to the beautiful, the good and the true.

I guess we could say that evil is a necessary evil.

The path of the seeker, therefore, must be to see manifestations of good and evil as points from which to navigate toward a good and desired end

Seed Thought of the Day:

Unquestioned, unproven or unearned authority is always a destroying energy.

Why would this be true?

Day 295

Following Authority

The Seed Thought:

Unquestioned, unproven or unearned authority is always a destroying energy.

The first question that may come to the mind of the seeker is this: What if the material from such authority is correct and the person follows it and benefits? In that case would it not be destructive?

We can answer that with this scenario.

Let us suppose you came across Bernie Madoff before he was caught and he gave you an investment tip that paid off. You followed it merely because he was an established authority on Wall Street. After this he advises you to invest with him and make over 15% interest. You think to yourself that he is an authority and was right last time so you will trust him even though the 15% seems unrealistic in most cases.

In this case your unearned authority being right just set you up for a great disaster.

The problem with unearned authorities that are not thoroughly tested is that it is only a matter of time before they give you information or direction that is wrong and will lead to negative results.

There are a handful of seekers who question and test their authorities to the best of their ability. When this rare authority passes all their tests then should they accept without question?

Even here the answer is no.

Why?

Because no human being is infallible. We all are subject to error.

So what is the difference in the way the seeker should handle the earned and unearned authority?

With the unearned authority the seeker needs to be skeptical of everything he says and check out the truthfulness to the best of his ability. When he says something that doesn’t seem to make sense you figure the chances are that there is error or distortion involved.

Concerning the more reliable earned authority the seeker gives additional weight and accepts most things that sound reasonable and registers well with the soul. If he says something that seems odd or unreasonable you do not automatically reject it, because he or she has been correct numerous times in the past. Instead, you seriously consider it and check out all the details possible. If you cannot prove the information true or false you put it on the shelf thinking that additional knowledge will bring further light in the future.

The wise seeker will not follow any authority if he cannot make sense of his words, except the soul itself, for a true communication from the Higher Self can be trusted as long as the seeker interprets correctly.

There are those who see me as having no earned authority in their minds and these should only go by the authority of the words themselves in connection with their minds and souls.

Some see me as an earned authority as they have tested my teachings numerous times. These still question me if I say something that does not seem reasonable to them. This is what they should do as I am not infallible and the language itself often does not depict real truth as it is.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Answers to prayers can be very disturbing if one is not thoughtful about what is asked.

Have you ever gotten what you asked for and then been disappointed or upset with the results?

Day 296

The Gold Principle

The Seed Thought:

Answers to prayers can be very disturbing if one is not thoughtful about what is asked.

Everyone wants love, right? Let us suppose you pray for it with enough faith to cause God to deliver. How would this come about?

The greatest manifestations of love come through painful circumstances that reveal who our real friends are. Here are some possible circumstances.

(1) Jack suffers a financial disaster and can’t even afford Christmas presents for his kids. A friend gives him $500 to help him out. Both Jack and the friend share an experience of love they had not realized before,.

(2) Jimmy is confronted by bullies in a park and they start slapping him around. Just as it looks like the worst is yet to come a stranger comes along, puts his own safety at risk causes the invasive kids to flee. Jimmy now feels a love toward this stranger that he will never forget.

(3) Jane as just escaped from a terrible and abusive husband. In a down and out situation she meets Lyle who protects her and helps her out. They wind up getting married and Jane realizes that her love and appreciation for him is much greater than it would have been if she hadn’t passed through her bad first marriage.

Love is just one quality that is enhanced through difficulties. Patience is developed by dealing with obnoxious people. Dealing with terrible circumstances creates wisdom. Tolerance is to be acquired by handling intolerant people.

The bottom line is that quality attributes are formed through the Gold Principle. And what is that?

To achieve the quality of pure gold requires a refining of the material through great heat, allowing the impure elements to be removed so just the pure material remains.

This principle also applies to us humans. The idea of no pain no gain applies. To develop good qualities will often demand that we go through some fires of adversity.

In the first half of my life I often asked God to bless me with various good qualities. I can now see that it is no coincidence that this part of my life was extremely difficult for me. Now, in the latter part of my life, I do not ask for such things for I figure I could use a little rest and am happy to savor the positive results of the troubles I have passed through. Life seems to present enough trials without praying for virtues that will bring on more difficulties.

Don’t let this discourage you from seeking to improve yourself. It will take courage to do what it takes to progress, but courage is one of the finer virtues.

“And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.” Mal 3:3

Seed Thought of the Day:

When one is filled with love and is receiving love he will never give up his journey on the path.

Why does love give the seeker power to persevere?

Day 297

The Motivation of Love

The Seed Thought:

When one is filled with love and is receiving love he will never give up his journey on the path.

There are three categories of seekers who pursue the Path to the soul.

The first are those who focus on the mind, almost to the exclusion of the heart.

The second are those who focus on the heart, almost to the exclusion of the mind.

The third are those who balance the two energies and exercise an interplay of mind and heart in their decisions as they move forward.

The first person may absorb considerable knowledge but without being tempered by the love energies of the heart he is in danger of being diverted toward the dark path of selfish desire.

The second is highly focused on the love energies of the soul and is not likely to pursue the path of selfishness, but without the aid of the mind he is likely to make numerous detours into the land of illusion. The love of the soul will eventually guide him out of the illusion toward the balance of mind and heart.

The third is the rarest, but with a balance of the two energies he will avoid the path of selfishness as well as the fog of illusion and proceed until the goal is reached.

So, how is it that love motivates the seeker to not give up until liberation is achieved?

The key to successful and continuous soul contact for the seeker is to be involved in unselfish service. This requires him or her to feel a genuine love toward his fellow men and women and follow the Christ Principle, previously mentioned. To follow this principle the seeker will, through the impetus of love, stretch forth his hand, to lift up others to where he is and in turn someone higher will lift him up. All connected to this principle form a chain linked to the one God, bound together by the power of love.

As long as the seeker recognizes the love of God which is in him he will not cease in his motivation to stay on the path and maintain his place in this great chain of Christ.

The words of Paul express this well:

“But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will. For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. For the body is not one member, but many.” I Cor 12:11-14

Love manifesting through consciousness produces the dominating good in the universe and gives impulse to all spiritual evolution.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Since we all have the knowledge of God available within us, the only reason we need a teacher is to remind us to ask questions and search for the truth – not to be the truth for us.

Day 298

The Key to Knowledge

The Seed Thought:

Since we all have the knowledge of God available within us, the main reason we need a teacher is to remind us to ask questions and search for the truth – not to be the truth for us.

Socrates had the idea that all of us, whether we be high or low have access within us to all truth. An acquaintance disagreed with him on this so to demonstrate he called in a lowly uneducated servant and proceeded to ask him a series of questions. This caused the servant to think and reflect until he came up with answers as intelligent as most philosophers of the day. The friend was impressed and most readers had to admit that Socrates had a point.

This approach verifies the idea that the Kingdom of God is indeed within, as was said by Jesus, and that the key of all knowledge is also there as taught by many wise individuals of the past.

This thought is in harmony with a previous seed though which says:

It takes as much intelligence to come up with the right questions as it does to recognize the right answers.

The first major step toward true enlightenment for the seeker is when he begins to ask himself questions. In saying this I’m not talking about questions from a teacher, a quiz or some outside source, but self-generated questions.

This is where a good teacher, book or video comes in handy. They can present some questions and answers that may generate more questions until the seeker begins to formulate his own questions and initiate his own search for answers.

If a teacher does not stimulate the student to ask questions beyond that which he teaches then his value is minimal compared to another who does provide such stimulation.

In the end though, the responsibility is on the seeker to ask questions and look within and without for the answers.

Here is a stimulating parting thought:

The Ark of the Covenant represents that secret place within you where the Spirit of God, and Christ consciousness is found. Within all human beings is available all knowledge written by the ﬁnger of God.

Seed Thought of the Day:

When love is truly demonstrated, it does not have to be mentioned.

Does the mentioning of love sometimes occur when it is better to be silent?

Day 299

Show Instead of Tell

The Seed Thought:

When love is truly demonstrated, it does not have to be mentioned.

Have you noticed that many of those who claim to be loving are often not that loveable; whereas, others who never promote themselves as loving are much easier to love?

This relates a principle that manifests though numerous concepts.

For instance, those who present themselves as masters or spiritual giants are often quite ordinary.

Those who claim a high IQ often lack common sense.

Those who tell you how to live your life often have a life which itself is in shambles.

It comes down to this. If you want to be known as a person with positive characteristics, the way to achieve this is not by broadcasting that which you see as your virtues.

Instead, that is the worst way, generally backfires and creates reverse the intended effect.

The seeker should not worry about what others think of his virtues. He needs to merely proceed as a servant of humanity and spread love and helpfulness where he can without thinking of praise or reward. In doing this, whether he realizes it or not, the reward is built in and will manifest in some way.

True, some people you help may not appreciate it, but the next guy will appreciate enough to make up for it.

Those with a good heart will recognize the one who acts in a spirit of love and he will never have to remind the receiver of his good deeds.

The stable servant will realize that the reward for good deeds is a sure thing. He can keep this principle in the back of his mind and then place the idea of praise out of his mind as he goes forward in service with the realization he is on the right path.

All of us know what love is when we feel it, and when we feel it we do not need anyone to explain it to us.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Every creation and life in the universe is a center from which all things in its periphery must be discovered.

Day 300

The Universe of You

The Seed Thought:

Every creation and life in the universe is a center from which all things in its periphery must be discovered.

The more you think about it the more each of us are like an entire universe.

We marvel at the vastness of our Milky Way galaxy, which is called an island universe, having over 250 billion solar systems within it, of which our sun is only about average in size.

On the other hand, our bodies contain over 30 trillion living cells within them and each cell is composed of around 100 trillion atoms. Remember that a trillion is a thousand times as much as a billion so the vastness of that which is within us is great indeed.

You, as a conscious self-aware entity, are only one out of billions living on this small planet. Even so, we begin our awareness centered on one thing, ourselves. From there we explore the universe within and without. At first we seem to be of ultimate importance in the scheme of things, but the more we explore the universe the smaller we become. The seeker slowly discovers he is a mere drop in a great ocean of life.

Does this mean that we are insignificant?

No. As consciousness expands the seeker discovers that there is one life, or one great ocean, of which he is both the part and the whole.

The universe needs each one of us to be complete and we need all the other parts to experience the wholeness, or holiness.

Seed Thought of the Day:

When the world around you seems to fall apart after you have given your all, what should you do?

Give some more.

Day 301

The Extra Mile

The Seed Thought:

When the world around you seems to fall apart after you have given your all, what should you do?

Give some more.

The Master said, “he who endures to the end shall be saved.” (Matt 10:22)

This is more literally translated as “he who endures to the end shall be delivered.”

Most people associate this with some type of spiritual salvation in the next world but when you look at the expanded meaning one can see that a universal principle is at play as covered somewhat on day 218.

We are delivered from failure when we just keep plugging away at a project until it is successfully completed. The problem many seekers have is they give up when the going gets tough. This problem occurs to those seeking to accomplish goals on the material plane as well as salvation in the spiritual.

As the seeker begins to tread the path he finds that much seems to be required from him. It seems that he has to just give and give and give and often gets very little in return. Not only does he have to sacrifice material pleasures, but that sacrifice is generally not appreciated. In fact he often has to endure the opposite which is criticism and attack when all he is trying to do is perform a service that will be a benefit for others.

Many a disciple has fallen short after giving and serving for a season and then becoming frustrated because of lack of success or lack of appreciation and support from others. Often his greatest disappointments come from those closest to him.

Many thus reach a point where they throw up their hands and say, “That’s it! I can’t take it any more. Not even God is helping me so why should I continue? It is time for me to resume the normal life.”

Such people do not endure to the end and thus do not achieve the prize. They may return to an easier life, but a feeling of dissatisfaction with themselves will linger.

Then there are other seekers who feel discouragement and do not consciously quit, but linger on with one foot planted on the goal and the other foot in limbo. This may be the worst situation of all and such a disciple is reported to be even disgusting to God for the scripture says:

“I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.” Rev 3:15-16

Of course, to have this principle work the seeker must have a goal that is feasible and worthwhile. If there is something wrong with the idea pursued then the flaws will be revealed to the sincere seeker and can be corrected.

As the disciple works on the goal he needs to realize that all who have succeeded in the past have reached points of discouragement and thought of quitting, but they continued anyway. Their motivation was not their own success, but the need that is out there.

The world needs the light and love that true disciples can give.

Let all true seekers hear the call and be one of them.

Seed Thought of the Day:

To unlearn is to learn and before we do we must often undo, else our efforts are in vain.

Day 302

To Unlearn

The Seed Thought:

To unlearn is to learn and before we do we must often undo, else our efforts are in vain.

There are times when the pilgrim reaches an important crossroad where he encounters evidence that his beliefs and labors are based on illusion rather than reality. At that point he has to make a choice, which is this.

“Do I stop and examine this evidence and risk finding out that all my labors have been mislead and possibly of no value or even negative – or should I just ignore and dismiss them, and move forward and hope for a positive outcome?”

Most go with the second alternative and either ignores or dismisses the evidence that the current labors are a waste of time. Why would a person do this and go contrary to the highest he knows?

The main reason is this. When a person has invested years, or maybe even a lifetime of effort in a certain direction it is devastating to discover that one has wasted so much time. Who wants to face the fact that his life’s work was in vain? The natural inclination is to take a second look and see if all the labors can be justified, built upon and continued.

The second problem deals with the ego. If the person has been wrong all these years when others have been correct then this signals that he has been dense at best and utterly stupid at the worst. It is very difficult for the seeker to accept the fact that he has been wrong when the truth should have been obvious all along.

The natural inclination here is to look for the good in the ideals he has espoused and use them to justify his continuing onward in the illusion.

If this then goes against the highest he knows something strange happens that drives him even deeper into illusion. He then consciously justifies himself to the degree that the truth deep in his consciousness is suppressed. After the suppression is complete the pilgrim’s lower self becomes convinced that he has been right all along and that his current path is the highest and the best.

It then seems to him he is following the highest he knows because he has no conscious recollection of rejecting he highest he once knew. This is a sad situation indeed, but one that all seekers go through for numerous lifetimes until the repercussions of the mistakes become so pronounced and so painful that he is finally forced to unlearn all the mistakes that were the result of his previous learning.

As painful as this turning around is and as frustrating as it may be to realize how much time and effort has been wasted, from the vantage of the soul this is a great day, the beginning of real learning. In the end all the illusion was not a waste of time, but a school designed to teach the student how to enter the path of real learning.

Thus, the seeker must backtrack on the wrong path to enter the right one, to acknowledge error to see truth and to unlearn to learn.

Seed Thought of the Day:

One of the main causes of depression is in the avoiding of difficult decisions that must be faced.

This presents good food for thought to expand on the last quote.

Day 303

Facing Reality

The Seed Thought:

One of the main causes of depression is in the avoiding of difficult decisions that must be faced.

Medical authorities examine the causes of depression on a physical level, as if all that composes our makeup is physical mater and interactions thereof. They tell us that because of bad luck many just randomly suffer from chemical interactions in the brain that cause depression. Yes, they acknowledge that certain experiences such as a lost love, lost job or just pure boredom can contribute, but all people undergo difficult situations, but not all people suffer from depression. The difference they say is in the brain chemistry of the depressed.

So, does random brain chemistry cause depression or does the thought process of the person cause the problematic brain chemistry?

A few researchers are discovering evidence that thought is indeed a powerful factor. This is something that spiritual students have known for thousands of years.

The question for the spiritual student is this: What is the difference between the thinking of the one who suffers from depression and the one who does not?

Before we get to the core answer we must acknowledge that there are seemingly physical behaviors that affect our moods. A bad diet, particularly the overuse of refined sugar, has an effect as well as physical activity or the lack thereof. But even here one has to admit that these things are the result of choices made by the mind of the person. Mind thus makes decisions and decisions affect moods.

Many problems that filter down to the creations of negative brain chemistry are psychological in origin and the result of thought, or wrong direction of thought.

Each individual has some degree of connection with the Higher Self and has a sense of the right thing he should do in various circumstances. When the right choice is difficult then it is often avoided or replaced with an easier decision that merely exacerbates the problem.

When the right decision is avoided the person will take one of several alternatives.

(1) He will feel bad that he took the easy route and reflect with distress about what he should be doing.

(2) He will ignore or dismiss the effects of his wrong choice.

(3) He will suppress disturbing memories so it will seem to his current consciousness that no wrong decision has ever been made.

In each of these situations the internal psyche knows the true reality and the effects of the wrong decision continue to stand in need of attention.

The person in the first situation keeps the problem in his consciousness and is most likely to face the problem and solve it.

In the second it is shoved to the back of his mind making the solution more difficult.

The third is most problematic for the guy lives as if the problem does not exist – except it does and only sincere internal reflection will bring the solution back to his consciousness.

The seeker must always remember that energy follows thought and make sure the thought is headed the right direction. When this is the case the flow of vital force will be unimpeded and the seeker will have a positive feeling about life.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Give love and acceptance to all and you will have all the love and acceptance that you can handle.

For the next in this series (Part 24) go HERE

Links for the first 22 sections of this series.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19, Part 20, Part 21, Part 22

Index for Older Archives in the Process of Updating

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The Principle of Goodwill

August 23, 2018September 15, 2018 Joseph Dewey

The Principle of Goodwill, Part 1

Understanding Goodwill

Establishing goodwill among the people is essential in the creation of the new age of peace looked for by disciples, masters and prophets for thousands of years.

DK tells us that goodwill is “an expression of the will-to-good which animates the New Group of World Servers.” (Discipleship in the New Age, Vol 1, Page 784) He says that it is less associated with the second and sixth ray attribute related to being a loving person than focusing on the will aspect.

In other words, the power inherent in goodwill is manifest when the seeker dedicates himself to manifesting an idea that will be of benefit to humankind. He says for instance, this could even be something such as a scientist working on a useful invention.

On the other hand, the standard idea of goodwill is not to be neglected for it “is the lowest aspect of the second Ray of Love-Wisdom, implemented and strengthened by the second aspect of the first Ray of Will.” (Rays and Initiations, Page 647)

We are told that those who embrace the true concept of goodwill will cause quite a conflict at first making them seem like the agents of evil rather than good to many:

“The over-shadowing of all disciples and initiates, and the consequent stimulation of their natures and of their environment, must inevitably produce conflict; the outpouring of the stimulating love of God into the hearts of men must equally and inevitably produce conflict; the line of cleavage between men of goodwill and the unresponsive natures of those uninfluenced by this quality will be made abundantly, usefully and constructively clear. It will be obvious also that when Christ establishes the “centre or focal point of the divine Purpose” in some definite place on Earth, its radiation and implementary potency will also produce the needed conflict which precedes the clarification and the renunciation of obstructions. (Rays and Initiations, Pages 617-618)

Because goodwill is an aspect of the first ray those embracing it will be seen by many centered in the second, and especially the sixth ray, as troublemakers to say the least.

Further DK says:

“Let the soporific of beautiful peace talk die out and let sane methods of establishing goodwill and right human relations precede the discussion of peace. The world talked itself into a dreamy state of idealistic rhapsody about peace between the first phase of this world war and the present one. This must not again occur and it is the task of the intelligent humanitarian to prevent it.” (Externalization of the Hierarchy, Page 444)

DK says this about a quality necessary in disciples to manifest the new age.

“For this a broad tolerance and an unprejudiced mind are essential, and these qualities are rare in the average student and the small town man. (Externalization of the Hierarchy, Page 242)

Notice that he says that a “broad tolerance and an unprejudiced mind” are rare in the average esoteric student. That is much different than the way the mass of students view themselves. Most think that because they support feel good political views that they are in the path of goodwill, tolerance and open-mindedness.

But most are not, according to DK.

That said, those who feel they correctly understand the path to goodwill need to do all in their power to reach out and extend a hand toward unity and overlapping areas of agreement. To this end Curtis Harwell and I wrote the Twelve Principles of Synthesis. Hopefully we can start here by agreeing with essential spiritual principles:

THE TWELVE PRINCIPLES OF SYNTHESIS

We believe in the equality of men and women, the equal rights of each race and in the sacredness of all life.
We believe that we have the capacity to see Eye to Eye with each other through the application of the principles of non-deception, open communication and contact of higher intelligence that lies within.
We accept the responsibility of maintaining our bodies, emotions and minds in a state of maximum health and vitality. We Seek not to hurt but to heal.
We believe in the principle of Harmlessness, for when we harm another person, we only harm ourselves. We shall not inhibit, restrain, or oppress the free will or privilege of any individual to explore new concepts and philosophies.
We believe in the principle of Free Agency, and that there is a power within that enables us to proceed with purpose and accomplish many great and important works pertaining to the coming Age of Enlightenment.
We desire to initiate a New Age of Peace, prosperity and spiritual attainment through the intelligent application of the principles of Love, Knowledge and Wisdom.
We acknowledge the Christ-God-Consciousness as the single creative source manifesting through the Universe, and that this Power lies within each one of us.
We affirm that the power of Love is the greatest unifying principle and send only the pure Love of Christ/God to all.
We believe in the principle of Service, for when we serve one another, we serve ourselves. We retain only that which we have given away.
We disclaim all totalitarian and secular controls over our lives, and affirm the power of the people to enjoy a free, democratic society with maximum liberty for the individual.
We promote World Peace through the complete elimination of nuclear and doomsday weapons, international aggression, and the eradication of world hunger and poverty.
We seek not to be separative and isolated but to unite and join hands with all spiritually-minded groups and individuals who desire to bring Peace on Earth and Goodwill to all Humankind.

The Principle of Goodwill, Part 2

Our Responsibility

Dk’s writings seem to express hope that goodwill would have taken several steps forward by now. Unfortunately, darkness has descended to the extent that the goodwill between the left and the right is a minefield compared to its existence after the World War II.

At the beginning of the Great War he said this:

“The will to demonstrate goodwill activity has not been aroused; it will be automatically aroused in the general public once the world disciples have invoked and evoked the inflow of this higher dynamic energy.” (Externalization of the Hierarchy, Page 153)

Then near the end of the War he said this:

“Unity is the goal of the immediate future; that hatred is retro-active and undesirable and that goodwill is the touchstone which will transform the world. (Discipleship in the New Age, Vol 1, Pg 65)

Now, instead of basking in goodwill with both sides of the political spectrum sending positive vibes to their brothers on the other side we have division and utter hatred surfacing, not only in the United States but all over the world.

Do esoteric students share part of the blame here? Evidently the answer is yes for in the above quote he says the world disciples have the power to invoke world goodwill.

Has it been invoked?

No. Instead it appears the little goodwill we had in the past has been reversed and buried. Now it is so bad that if the other side does do something helpful to mankind the first step is to attack, distort and discredit the accomplishment.

Unfortunately, world disciples have failed to invoke world goodwill in this generation yet unity and goodwill is supposed to be a supreme goal to prepare the planet for the reappearance of the Christ.

Since a certain amount of world goodwill is a prerequisite for his return is it any wonder that the powers of darkness have sent thoughtforms to political leaders and their acolytes that cause them to fear and attack those who are not their direct supporters?

Have some members of the New Group of World Servers also unknowingly picked up the threads of hatred and add to it with their subtle, and sometimes not so subtle, support for attack?

Obviously, someone is falling down on the job because those with power to bring goodwill have not manifested it.

Did DK think that one political side should attack the other to the extent that they would shut down or suppress their right to speak?

He said, “We endeavoured to make clear that differing forms of government and varying ideological systems were right and possible, provided that human beings lived together in goodwill and recognised their blood brotherhood. (Externalization of the Hierarchy, Page 178)

Are the political right and left living “together in goodwill?”

Many esoteric groups seem to associate goodwill with a lack of conflict. They think that if the other political side is allowed to be heard then arguments will follow and goodwill will disappear. By suppressing views of their political opposite they think they are preserving goodwill because only the views of the “good guys” remain.

This approach is caused by entrenchment in great illusion. Look at the extreme of this idea. All opposition is suppressed by the Dear Leader in North Korea. Kim Jong Un may believe that he is surrounded by people of goodwill because of suppression, but in this he is greatly deluded.

Goodwill can only be fully manifest by the Will-To-Good, not by the suppression of the will. Yet many DK students in their own sphere suppress this Will-To-Good by refusing to hear and understand the views of their bothers and sisters on the path.

DK gives us direction here:

“my group of special workers such as yourself, must contact these groups, bringing them together on one point only, and that is Goodwill. Each group must necessarily be left free to proceed with its own destiny and mode of work. Unity is a necessary ideal and is the reverse side of Goodwill. Unitedly, when the right time comes, these groups must issue a great manifesto to the world—identical manifestos being issued in each country by all the groups who stand for world unity and goodwill. Thus they will make the word “goodwill” carry power throughout the planet, whilst the disciples and aspirants will, through their thought, make the word “unity” carry hidden power. Thus a vast band of men of goodwill will be working unitedly, yet independently, and there will be made available—in moments of world crisis—an organised, ready and world-wide public opinion of such strength and organisation that it cannot be ignored. (Discipleship in the New Age, Vol 2, Page 457)

The Twelve Principles of Synthesis would be a good start toward spiritual union. Here is another possibility directed at political union which would be supported by most aspirants.

Principles of Political Unification

(1) I seek that which is good for my country and the world above that which is good for my party.

(2) I support the principle of free speech. I shall be allowed to express my political and spiritual views, however repulsive, without legal restrictions and allow all people the same privilege.

(3) I support the principle of freedom and work toward securing the greatest possible freedom for individuals and groups in every situation. I accept the principles of freedom enunciated in the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights.

(4) I commit myself to sending goodwill and the spirit of friendship to all involved in the political process, especially those with differing political views.

(5) Even though the majority may not always support my views I realize that the majority view, when people are properly informed, rarely will lead us on a dangerous path. I therefore seek to honor the will of the people. When I disagree with the will of the people I will not seek to forcefully control them or change them but will use peaceful means to inform and educate them.

(6) There are a number of issues that cause division, heated debate and anger. Examples are abortion, gun control, social programs, drug legalization, military activities and others. Most cannot be resolved in the near future through the conversion of the other side to another. I support this unifying approach: To support the principle of fairness on controversial issues both sides must be heard even though the other side may be repulsive to me, for free speech and thought is the most important principle and the prime directive of unification and ultimate peace. I therefore commit to the principle of fair play realizing that both sides deserve to be heard and have their representatives in positions of power.

(7) I believe in integrity and honesty and will seek to be truthful no matter what the opponents do. I seek not to distort or lie for the benefit of my party or for personal gain.

(8) I accept that we must be fiscally responsible and will do all in my power to create a balanced budget, except in times of national crisis. I will only support programs that can be funded or continued without increasing the burden on the taxpayer.

(9) I agree that the people are taxed enough and seek to keep the budget within the range of current tax revenues (or preferably lower) and to not raise the percentage of taxes on anyone.

(10) I agree to put the security of my country and the world above the views or actions of my own political party. If others of my party sabotage national security or undermine a just effort toward the elimination of threats I will be just as critical of them as the opposing party.

(11) I accept the fact that there is great waste and inefficiency in government spending and commit myself to eliminate waste and increase efficiency wherever and whenever possible.

(12) I accept and support the idea that we can save ourselves much grief by learning from the mistakes of history so we do not repeat them. It is therefore of extreme importance that the youth be accurately taught, without censorship, national and world history in a way that is of interest and will be absorbed by them. I will oppose all those who revise history in distorted fashion for political gain.

(13) I agree that extremism has been and is the cause of many problems in the world and seek to not impose extreme views on the people. If I happen to have extreme views which I believe to be of value to will seek to persuade by education rather than by law or force. It is also a problem when political opponents are called extremists when over a third of the public support them. Such accusations are extremism in disguise. I seek to not be extreme myself in distorting the image of opponents by calling them extremists when such is not true. For instance, it is not extremism to be simply for or against abortion as there are many on both sides of the equation.

(14) I support the elimination of poverty but realize there are two approaches to this. The first is to give a helping handout and the second is to provide circumstances so the person may help himself. Extremists on this issue have warred against each other and have been the cause of much division. I reject extremism on both sides and seek to recognize the value of both sides. There are times of helplessness when people need direct assistance and times when they need encouraged to stand on their own feet. I do not support handouts to those who are capable of helping themselves and refuse to do so.

(15) I support the separation of church and state, but reject extremism on both sides. I reject the extreme that the government should endorse any specific religious influence on public policy even though all religions have the freedom to express their views. I also reject the other extreme that any mention of God, religious values, or the public display of religious symbols is to not be tolerated.

(16) I support equal rights for all races, both sexes and members of all religions and ideologies. I recognize that the large majority both sides of the political spectrum seek what is best for all races and minorities (even though the opposition has a different approach) and refuse to manufacture accusations for political gain.

(17) I recognize that the large majority both sides of the political spectrum seek what is best for the environment but again both sides have a different approach. Two extremes causing division are: First aiding then environment even if there is strong economic and job loss. The second is seeking profits at the expense of the environment. The truth is the two are interdependent. A strong economy can provide funds to help the environment and a healthy environment provides for a good long term good economy. I seek therefore to work with both sides of this issue and will seek cooperation rather than assigning blame. I seek to aid the environment without harming the economic structure.

(18) I recognize we are a nation of laws and will not support the subversion of law for political gain. I will condemn such subversion of those who share my views as well as those who do not.

(19) I will only support the establishment of necessary law as well as the elimination of bad, as well as useless laws that clutter the system.

(20) In the end, I support the example of John Kennedy who, while campaigning, found good things to say about his opposition and instead of tearing down he said “we can do better.” I support the idea of converting by good works and ideas rather than tearing down the opposition.

The Principle of Goodwill, Part 3

Two Versions of Freedom

World War II was preceded by a great conflict on astral and mental levels. One side (which became the Allies) leaned toward democratic government with guarantees of personal freedom, even if speaking against authority, and the other (which became the Axis Powers) believed in a concentration of power with minimal individual freedom to speak contrary to that power.

The first allowed the individual to determine his own destiny while the second felt that the leadership was smarter than the average citizen and needed to control them for their own good.

Today we face a similar division. One side wants to centralize control with more laws, regulations and restrictions while the other side wants decentralization with fewer laws, regulations and restrictions. The first leads to diminished individual and group freedom while the second leads to an increase.

One can see this division in many of the conflicts throughout history. The American Civil War was a prime example.

The interesting thing is that the side fighting for diminished freedom of the whole will never admit it. Instead, they will always make the claim that they are the true freedom fighters.

For example, the South during the Civil War made the claim that they were the ones fighting for freedom while the North were the true tyrants. Remember the words of John Wilkes Booth after he shot Lincoln which was, “Death to tyrants!”

So, how could a rebel nation fighting for the right to hold slaves claim that they were fighting for freedom? Here was their reasoning.

They maintained the blacks were an inferior race that couldn’t handle freedom and needed benevolent caretakers such as themselves. They were better off being slaves under their control than being on their own.

Secondly, they maintained that the free labor of the slaves allowed the superior white race to have more freedom and comfort for themselves.

Hence they maintained they were fighting or the freedom and welfare of all.

We can now see on hindsight that they were really fighting for the freedom of one group at the expense of others.

Hitler also maintained that he was he one fighting for freedom and often said so. In his mind he was fighting for the freedom of Germans who supported him who were superior in intelligence and would control the rest of he world for their own good.

Both Hitler and the South saw their reasons for victory as a win win for all.

On hindsight most can see that it would have been a great setback for freedom if either Hitler or the South had obtained victory.

Again, we have a tremendous astral conflict going on, but this time with two political divisions manifesting throughout most of the world. However, the epicenter is in the United States.

Again, both sides see themselves on the side of freedom. Unfortunately, there is bias on both sides which interferes with people honestly discerning where the principle of freedom lies. Many only look at their own desires. If they get their way then they think freedom prevails, even if it is at the expense of the many.

The dedicated disciple needs to understand the true Principle of Freedom which is this:

“That which manifests maximum freedom for the one and the many.”

This is freedom as seen from the right hand path. From the left hand the definition is somewhat different.

“That which manifests maximum freedom for the self even at the expense of others who are not willing to cooperate of their free will.”

When we look backwards we can easily see where the sympathies of each side was, but just before and during the conflict the vision of many were clouded.

The same applies today. Half see the selfish version as the best. The vision of the majority will not become clear for some time which would be after this conflict plays itself out and the people can again look backwards with clear hindsight.

In the meantime DK indicates that they key to preventing this conflict from materializing on the physical plane is goodwill.

At the beginning of World War II he said the cause of the war was that:

“…the spirit of goodwill was not expressed dynamically and practically, but theoretically and negatively; the aspirants of the world had no true sense of values but were content to give a little time to the spiritual life and to other people, but much time was lost in individual, personal aims. A spirit of inertia settled down upon the better inclined and upon the more understanding people; nothing that we could do served to arouse them to powerful action or to sacrifice personal temporary values to the lasting and universal values. The individual remained more important to himself than did the good of the whole.”

In other words, because of inertia the true principle of freedom had its biggest threat.

He presented steps to heal the conflict

(1) “A close personal watch over every word said or written, so that nothing said or written by any of you will have in it hate or bias of the wrong kind and your minds and hearts will be kept clear of all undesirable reactions. This is the personal and practical thing to do and the difficult task set before each of you who read my words.”

(2) “Study and apprehend clearly the issues which lie behind this conflict, so that there is no inner wavering as to the rightness of the side on which your interests lie—the side of the Forces of Light. Parallel this with an understanding appreciation of the problem of those who are bewildered by the emphasis and the dynamic activities of those through whom the Forces of materialism are working. At the same time, also, kill out all hateful criticism in your minds.”

(3) Groups claiming to support goodwill need to work together on shared positive values.

See: The Externalisation of the Hierarchy, pages 140-142

The Principle of Goodwill, Part 4

The Responsibilities of the Disciple

DK says this to aspirants:

“The function of the New Group of World Servers is dynamically to ‘force’ the energy of the will-to-good into the world; the average man and woman, responding unconsciously, will express goodwill.” (Discipleship in the New Age, Vol 2, Page 38)

Most of the DK students in existence today see themselves as part of the New Group of World Servers. But whether or not they are doing the works of such servants will be manifest in their actual actions. In reference to the above injunction one must ask:

Are they extending the hand of goodwill, outreach and cooperation in such a way that can filter down to the “average man and woman”?

So who should we be extending goodwill to?

The Master himself gave us the answer:

“For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?” Matt 5:46-47

Let us translate this into modern understanding for esoteric students:

“If you only show goodwill to those who have the same political view as yourself then what is the benefit? Do not the unenlightened biased partisans do the same? And if you are only friendly to those of your own political beliefs how is your light any greater than a typical bureaucrat?”

Furthermore, DK clarifies what is expected of the true servants of the race:

“When the contrast between the way of love and goodwill and the way of cruelty and hate is being clearly defined on earth, disciples must exercise an unprejudiced attitude. To this group comes the difficult task of standing firmly on the physical plane against that which is destructive and hateful (in the true sense of the word), doing all that can be done to bring the destructive agencies to an end and to final powerlessness and, at the same time, preserving an inner attitude of complete harmlessness and loving understanding. For, my brothers, there are principles and ideals in the world at this time worth struggling for, but whilst the struggle is on it is necessary consciously to preserve and create that field of living, loving energy which will eventually bridge the gap between the two opposing factions and groups and so enable later contact to be made. Some of you are not thinking with sufficient clarity about the issues involved, being unduly engrossed with the outer signs of the struggle and so losing the long range picture. (Discipleship in the New Age, Vol. I, Pg 771)

Good advice on several steps modern servants should be taking.

(1) Exercise an unprejudiced attitude.

(2) Take a firm stand against that which is destructive and hate – “in the true sense of the word.”

(3) Bring “destructive agencies to an end and to final powerlessness and, at the same time, preserving an inner attitude of complete harmlessness and loving understanding.”

(4) “Consciously to preserve and create that field of living, loving energy which will eventually bridge the gap between the two opposing factions and groups and so enable later contact to be made.”

Those in the esoteric community are divided into two political camps; some on the left and some on the right. What are the numbers? There is no way to know for sure but from my experience 80-90% of them are on the left and maybe10-20% on the right. In fact, the left as such a domination that when participating in the various groups it often seems that members are universally on the left.

Why is this?

Because those leaning right are in such minority that they would cause a disturbance and possibly banned from the group if they spoke up.

Normally, I say nothing political to the various esoteric groups I visit, but then I discovered an esoteric group that was organizing to discuss politics from a spiritual prospective. “Great,” I thought. “Maybe I can give political views in harmony with DK’s that will provide interesting discussion.” This I did and within a few weeks I was banned from the group with no explanation given.

It turns out that this group did not want to discuss politics from a spiritual angle at all but merely wanted to reinforce their own left wing views while attacking those on the right with no one like me to counter them.

That said the serious question that needs to be addressed is this. Which group of esoteric students are most faithfully obeying the directives of DK for the New Group of World Servers?

The Principle of Goodwill, Part 5

The Freedom to Speak

Let us go through some teachings that DK espoused with political implications and see which group of students comes closest to supporting them.

First and most important is the right to free speech.

The securing of basic human liberties is the foundation of the spiritual progress of humankind and DK spoke often about its importance:

“if freedom of speech, freedom of religion and a truly free press and radio are the outcome of this war, a great step forward will have been made by the entire human family.” (Problems of Humanity, Pg 24)

He says dark forces are on the side of “the death of liberty, the death of free speech, the death of freedom in human action, the death of truth and of the higher spiritual values. These are the vital factors in the life of humanity; the death of the physical form is a negligible factor in relation to these, and one easily righted again through the processes of rebirth and fresh opportunity.” (The Externalisation of the Hierarchy, Pg 232)

Back in the Sixties you heard both the left and the right use the word “freedom” in their dialog. That was a good thing even though it was from different perspectives.

Not so much today. When freedom is used by the left it is often in connection to how dangerous it is if not restricted. For instance, in England Tommy Robinson was jailed for attempting to tape and expose Muslim rapists. For this supposed hate they threw him in a hot prison dominated by Muslims where he had to subsist in solitary confinement on a can of tuna fish a day and dealing with feces being thrown in his cell. After the13 months his health deteriorated and he lost over 40 pounds.

Who spoke up for such injustice?

Not the left, but the right. Worse still many on the left applauded his ordeal.

The left has been doing everything in its power to shut down free speech. Having one news media (Foxnews) leaning right is too much and they make every attempt to shut it down by attacking and intimidating its advertisers.

Does the right follow these same anti free speech tactics? Rarely, if ever.

Similarly the left has tried to block the speech of radio commentators such as Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Michael Savage and others by intimidating their advertisers.

The UK banned Savage from even entering their country, lumping him in with terrorists. He may be controversial, but he is no physical threat to anyone.

Has the right responded by a similar attack on free speech?

No.

When someone from the right has a march the left will generally have a counter march and show up in much greater numbers than the original marchers, who had the legal permit. The leftists do everything in their power including violence and blocking roads to stop them.

The right will rarely organize a countermarch to the left but merely allow the group to make their statement whatever it is.

Have you read any news reports of the right blocking streets, wearing masks and violently attacking protesters originated by the left? I cannot find an example.

A similar problem exists with speeches and rallies given by those on the right. The left has two plans of suppression for free speech.

First they will try to prevent the conservative person from being given a chance to speak.

Unfortunately, this often succeeds, but if it doesn’t then they will try to prevent the speaker from giving his address.

Berkley provides just one example of many.

Milo Yiannopoulos was authorized to speak there and left wing demonstrates showed up in great numbers hurling Molotov cocktails at officers and caused $100,000 worth of damage. The speech was forced to be cancelled because of the physical threat.

A short time later conservative writer Ben Shapiro was scheduled to speak and this time it took an expenditure of $600,000 to provide enough security to protect those who wanted to listen.

You would have thought that such steps would not need to be taken as Shapiro was not a Trump supporter and by no means radical. Even so, the left showed up again.

Thanks to the huge show of force by police violence was contained and only nine arrests of leftists were made.

Trump and supporters are accused of promoting violence by the media, but such accusations are unjust. During the campaign, before the Secret Service was available in force to secure the area, rally after rally was infringed upon by Leftists. Again, they first tried to prevent the meeting altogether but if they did not succeed they tried to enter the building and make so much noise and interference that the event would be frustrated.

Trump supported throwing the intruders out and this was portrayed as violence by many.

Where were the people on the right who tried to prevent Hillary or Bernie Sanders from speaking?

Such counter interference was pretty much non existent. There was definitely nothing organized.

Now we get back to goodwill and the will-to-good.

Would true esoteric students of goodwill support such an infringement on a basic freedom such as speech? Would they even be silent about it if they understand the will-to-good?

Yet I have not heard a peep from anyone in the left leaning spiritual community even expressing a desire to see the situation as it is and move to correct it with truth, justice and goodwill.

It is not goodwill to do all in your power to shut down free speech by force. It is not goodwill to be silent when a great injustice is committed.

I think all esoteric students need to ask which side of free speech would the dark brothers take and what would be the stand of the Spiritual Hierarchy? How can one claim to be an agent of goodwill without supporting free speech?

The Principle of Goodwill, Part 6

Harmlessness

Harmlessness and goodwill go hand in hand. These two ingredients mark a definite and observable demarcation between the tactics of the left and right hand path.

DK, who of course represents the right hand path, places much emphasis on harmlessness. There are times he supports fighting fire with fire when there are difficult choices, but given two choices he always supports the choice that creates the less harm.

If we look at two sides of an issue and examine how they handle their differences we can easily determine which chooses the least harmful path on the physical plane?

And why do I use the physical plane for reference?

Because that which is seen as being harmful on the emotional and mental planes are subjective and often misinterpreted through a biased view.

For instance, Jesus was seen as such a harmful character that they crucified him. He offended so many people that he said, “Blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.” Matt 11:6

Then, on the other extreme, the Nazis were offended by many that they considered harmful to their feelings and thoughts.

Whereas, it is difficult to prove who did something harmful on the level of thought or emotion, harm on the physical levels is pretty black and white and easy to discern by the unbiased observer.

For instance, the Jews were seen as very harmful emotionally to the Nazis, but on the physical level they did not attack their fellow Germans, whereas, the Nazis did attack them. First they harassed them and later sent them to prison and death.

It is obvious on hindsight which group had works that ran contrary to goodwill and harmlessness.

Physical plane actions also reveal who chose the harmful path in the days of Jesus. Even though Jesus and his followers were accused of being the harmful ones it was the accusers who crucified Jesus and imprisoned and put his followers to death. Jesus and his followers did their best to return evil with goodwill.

Now let us look at the political right and left concerning harm and harmlessness. Let us hone it down to those for and against Trump to see if the right leans to the right hand path and the left to the left.

Those sympathetic to the left have done all in their power to portray Trump and supporters as being violent and the anti Trumpers as being the peaceable ones.

First we ask where the accusations of violence come from. Has Trump personally committed any violent act?

None we know of.

So where does this accusation come from?

It comes from how his enemies feel about his words. They do not like the way he says things.

On the other hand, about half the country likes the way he says things and do not see him as promoting violence, so just as in the past we have accusations of violence based on subtle interpretation, whereas what we need to look at are the actual physical acts.

Almost all accusations of violence come from Trump rallies where protesters from the left attempt to invade create a disturbnce and prevent the flow of free speech.

Picture yourself after having a long wait to attend an event, you get settled down to listen to a speech and a bunch of rabble rousers come in making noise and throwing tomatoes. Most people would grow quite impatient and support their removal even if they had to be a little rough.

Several times when this happened Trump ordered them removed from the building saying he would pay the legal expenses if there were repercussions to forcibly removing the invading protesters.

There was only one instance I can find where a Trump supporter was overly aggressive at a rally and this was not connected to any order by Trump to get them out of he building. One Trump supporter was charged with a misdemeanor for punching an invading protester. Trump was blamed for this though he said he dis not condone the action.

The important point to note is the first aggression at all these Trump rallies came by the anti Trumpers. They invaded the Trump rallies and forced the Trump people to get them removed or cancel the rally.

On the other hand, there was no effort by Trump supporters to disrupt Clinton or Bernie meetings. Can you imagine what would have happened if Trump supporters had blocked streets and invaded a Bernie rally. Such people would have been risking their lives.

If the anti Trumpers are upset over Trump merely speaking at a private meeting just imagine how much more upset they would be if their own space were invaded.

Fortunately, the Trump supporters held their peace and we do not have an example of this.

So which activity here represents the left hand path?

It should be obvious that it is the group that supports the invading of rallies to shut down speech. This is what the Nazis did to their enemies. They did all in their power to disrupt speech of opponents and instigate violent reaction. I do not recall reading of anyone, especially Jews, reacting in kind and disrupting Nazi meetings. Such a person would have been risking his life.

One thing we know that is far off the mark of goodwill and harmfulness is physical violence, especially when it is not done in self-defense.

Of course, when there are millions of people on both sides you are going to have a few odd characters that will get out of line so we need to look at the overall picture.

On the right the are maybe a dozen violent acts by Trump supporters but in all cases I can find they are lone wolfs acting on their own, often frustrated by anti Trumpers interfering with an event.

Among the anti Trumpers you have some lone wolfs also, but numerous acts are organized and applauded by many on the left including some politicians.

Breitbart is keeping a running tabulation of harassment and violent acts from the left against Trump supporters. As of the date of this writing they have a list of 555 known acts of aggression.

This list which includes many organized efforts far overshadows a handful of lone wolf acts from the right.

So where do the alternative and esoteric spiritual people stand on this issue? Do they silently, or even vocally, support acts of violence and hate by the left? Do they figure the violence is okay because Trump and supporters are asking for it? Some actually make this argument but it is the same reasoning as saying a well-dressed woman is asking to be raped.

Violence must be blamed on the violent. There is no excuse if there is no first physical aggression.

Those who have real goodwill in their hearts must condemn all aggressive acts except those in response to physical threat. This must be done whether the source of violence is on the left or the right. Many alternative folks condemn Christians for being hypocrites for not living up to the example of Christ. Let us who try to follow the path of enlightenment not get caught in the same trap.

The Principle of Goodwill, Part 7

Right Speech

Concerning speech DK advised to “gain that control of speech which has often been your goal but seldom your achievement, and remember that the most powerful factor in the control of speech is a loving heart. Wild and fearful talk, hateful gossip, cruel innuendo, suspicion, the ascribing of wrong and wicked motives to persons and peoples, and the divergences of attitude which have separated the many different nations in the world are rampant today and have brought the world to its present distressing situation. It is so easy to drift into the same habits of speech and thought which we find around us and to discover ourselves participating in attack and the spirit of hate. Guard yourselves strenuously against this and say nothing which could inflame hate and suspicion in connection with any race, any person, any group or any leaders of groups and nations.”

Externalisation of the Hierarchy, Page 82

Right speech is indeed a principle to which people on both sides need to pay attention. Unfortunately, both the left and the right spend too much effort pointing fingers at the negative speech from the other side believing that the problem has nothing to do with themselves, but only the other guy.

Let’s face it, all the rank and file will push back when pushed and use words that attack rather than words of truth, love and goodwill.

Many who claim to be non partisan say that “both sides do it” as if there were some equal division of blame, but there is never an equal division. There is always more of an ingredient on one side than the other. Previously we saw that there was more attacks of harassment and violence coming from the left. It makes sense that attack through negative speech has a similar division.

I have experienced this myself when I have visited numerous forums that claim to be open for both sides. On such sites I find much more name-calling, insults and attacks coming from the left. The right gets in a little dig now and then but they seem to try and argue more from reason and a mental level rather than destroying the messenger. The unjustifiable act of calling an opponent a Nazi also comes much more frequently from the left. Often the accuser does not seem to have any knowledge of Nazism.

I have found that the moment a person of the right merely mentions, God, patriotism, Trump, conservatism, evolution, morality, immigration or a number of issues that the left on the forum make all kinds of false assumptions and attack.

Let us take the subject of God, for example. This is a curious subject since over half of the left claim to believe in God and around 25% of the evangelicals in the United States are Democrats.

You’d think then that the mere mentioning of God would cause some of the left to defend the belief, but such is rare. I do not recall this happening once in all the political groups in which I participated. There seems to be an anti God thoughtform against which leftists should not betray.

When I speak of mentioning God I am not talking about the typical Sunday School version, but any version at all. On such forums I will often use the phrase “Higher Intelligence” since that is most universal and least offensive.

It doesn’t help. Those on the left immediately assumed from any mention of intelligence beyond human that you are a right wing religious fanatic who probably follows and donates to TV preachers.

The name I am most often called on these sites is a liar, next comes hypocrite and then extreme right wing or Nazi, none of which are have any basis in reality. I find that the name calling surfaces when you produce facts or reason that cannot be easily refuted.

When possible I look for areas of agreement and will state some, but to no avail. If you do not buy into the whole agenda you are the enemy and must be destroyed.

Yes, this name calling happens on both sides but I challenge readers to go to sites where both sides are allowed to post and see who uses the words “liar, hypocrite and Nazi” the most often.

“But, says one, “Isn’t Trump the worst example of negative speech in the history of humanity?”

Trump certainly has flaws in the speech department and uses wording that I would not consider if I were a candidate or president, but he is not the demon as portrayed by his enemies.

If you follow him closely you will notice this about him. Those who are in harmony with him and civil are treated to very positive words and praise. On the other hand, those who draw first blood and attack are immediately attacked back. This is his first ray quality surfacing to which average second and sixth ray people do not understand and easily take offense . If you do not attack him first you are generally out of his crosshairs.

If the media attacks him, he attacks back, if a friend turns against him he will do the same and if someone being interviewed attacks he will surely hear from the Donald soon.

Now some of his words and actions condemned by the media are fairly harmless yet condemned by those just looking for a way to take him down.

An example of the fake news he is always complaining about is found in this New York Times article published shortly after McCain’s death.

First here is the headline:

“Trump Relents Under Pressure, Offering ‘Respect’ to McCain”

Now, here is the first part of the story followed by the link to the whole.

“In the Senate chamber on Monday, John McCain’s desk was draped in black and topped with a vase of white roses. The majority leader, Senator Mitch McConnell, rose to praise Mr. McCain as a colleague and hero who “spotlighted many of our highest values.” Outside, an impromptu memorial took shape as the flags over Capitol Hill flew at half-staff.

“In only one building in Washington were Mr. McCain’s legacy and achievements greeted with anything like ambivalence: the White House.

“President Trump, under enormous public and private pressure, finally issued a proclamation of praise for Mr. McCain on Monday afternoon, two days after the senator’s death, and ordered the flag to be flown at half-staff seemingly in the only place it wasn’t already, the presidential complex.”

LINK to full article

Now, when you read this it sounds like Trump mean spiritedly refused give condolences or to lower the flag for McCain.

WRONG.

Here is the truth.

Immediately after his death Trump tweeted “deepest sympathies and respect” for McCain’s family.

Concerning the flag the protocol for such events was established by Eisenhower who proclaimed America should finally have some guidelines as to how long the flag should remain half-staff after years of confusion prior.

In his proclamation, Eisenhower said upon the death of a US Senator, the flag should at least be flown half staff on the day of, and day following, that person’s death.

That was the exact amount of time that President Trump initially honored Senator McCain at the White House.

Some complained that was not long enough so Trump complied and lowered the flag again. The truth is that Trump went beyond protocol to show respect for a guy who had done all in his power to sabotage his agenda.

Would Obama had done the same thing for Ted Cruz?

Doubtful.

Would he have been criticized if he just went with standard protocol?

Of course not.

Is there hypocrisy of Biblical proportions?

Definitely.

Indeed Trump is more justified in fighting back than assumed by the media, but even most supporters will admit that he is not a good example of harmless speech. A more diplomatic and harmless approach to speech would have not roused such a firestorm as is now approaching him.

That said, even if one attempts to speak in the most harmless manner he will still offend many. Just the presentation of truth in a clear concise manner will infuriate those in darkness. Just note that Jesus was crucified for being offensive.

I do not recall ever calling anyone a derogatory name yet I have roused anger in many places just expressing my views as politely as possible. As it turns out when you cross the beast of ignorance it doesn’t matter if you do it Trump-style or Gandhi, you are in danger of unlimited attack.

That said, the disciple and students of the Ancient Wisdom have no excuse for name-calling or to condone it. The key, as DK says, is a loving heart. We need to look upon the soul, or the Christ within, both of Obama and Trump, as well as their supporters and seek dialog, understanding, pure reason and open dialog as to how to reach shared goals.

And indeed, there are shared goals, but the difference often lies in how to achieve them.

The Principle of Goodwill, Part 8

Harmony Through Conflict

The Fourth Ray is aptly named “harmony through conflict.” This ray is of particular importance for this planet.

DK says this about this ray:

The fourth Ray of Harmony through Conflict is a controlling factor in human affairs at all times, and peculiarly today.

The Principle of Conflict is the agent of the Principle of Harmony and produces the strains and the stresses which will lead, finally, to liberation. … Conflict produces: War-Renunciation-Liberation. Humanity is subjected to crises of discrimination, leading to right choice.

The Principle of Conflict is today active in all nations, in all religions, in all organisations, leading to the emergence of the New Age. Conflict produces points of crisis, then a point of tension, and eventually a point of emergence.

This Principle of Conflict is preparing the way for the return of the Christ, Who will inaugurate the new era of harmony.

Rays and Initiations, Pg 639

In addition he says this:

This ray of harmony through conflict (the conflict of the pairs of opposites) is necessarily concerned with the bringing in of that vibratory activity which will lead to unity, to harmony and to right relations, and to the release of the intuition.

Esoteric Healing, Pg 132

And the keynote of the ray is:

“Two merge with one.”

So the allowance for the free exchange of conflicting thoughts and ideas is a key that leads toward both liberation and unity.

What many students fail to ask is – what would be the result if conflict is suppressed – if only one view is allowed to be expressed or heard?

Would this mean the benefits of this ray would not materialize causing division to continue and even frustrate the plans for the return of the Christ? After all he said, “This Principle of Conflict is preparing the way for the return of the Christ.”

Do many alternative spiritual people have this completely backwards, thinking that the suppression of conflict creating an artificial peace is what is needed?

Yes. Unfortunately I believe this to be the case.

The question that needs to be asked is this. Why do so many alternative spiritual people and even many DK students go so far out of their way to avoid conflict and settle for the illusion of peace and unity, instead of the real thing, that will exist after conflict is resolved?

It is basically this. Many are drawn to the Ancient Wisdom because they are seeking a more peaceful world. They want to bask in peace, love and unity that seems to be missing in the material world. As often happens though, a positive desire on an emotional level can lead to being trapped in an illusion on the mental side. By seeking to avoid the great battleground, the Kurukshetra, the aspirant is delaying his next step toward liberation.

There are certain principles that play out in the world we see about us that continue to play out on a higher level when the seeker becomes a disciple.

Right now, students of the Ancient Wisdom are divided into two camps where the principle of Harmony Through Conflict needs to be applied. One group aligns itself with the political left and the other the right.

Those on the left constitute the great majority (80-90%) and their influence is so universal among students that it seems to many that there is almost complete unity.

Those on the political right constitute a minority (10-20%) and often do not even mention their opposing views for fear of rejection, chastisement or just sensing the thoughtform and not wanting to disturb it.

Consequently, on many spiritual sites, if politics is discussed the thought is projected that only one view is acceptable. Then we have many instances where any form of political controversy is just avoided, as if none even exists.

Both of these approaches suppresses the principle of harmony through conflict.

What then should students of the Ancient Wisdom do to allow true unity to manifest from the conflict of the actual interplay of both sides?

Answer is quite simple. The majority consisting of the political left need to over come their fear of hearing contrary ideas and realize that the sincere discussion and understanding of other points of view are necessary ingredients on the path to unity.

Those on the right need to overcome their fear to speak up and not be afraid of whatever label that may be tacked on to them. By speaking up civilly and when on subject one can cause the left to become aware that there are other views out there besides their own. A free interplay of ideas will make both sides aware of the need for unity. It is essential that both sides approach any such discussion with goodwill realizing that all are disciples to some degree wanting the truth.

Is unity even possible?

Certainly. The main reason anyone has a view that runs contrary to truth is because of a lack of knowledge and understanding. If they only hear one side of an issue then such knowledge and understanding will remain static. But, when there is an honest exchange of ideas, knowledge and understanding will increase on both sides bringing them both steps closer to unity, or harmony through conflict.

To this end several of us have created a group on Facebook called “Esoteric Politics and Freedom.” So far it appears that only those from the right, or who are fairly libertarian have joined. It is a new endeavor at this point and we hope that there are some from the left that will join in and civilly give their divergent views and why they endorse them.

Unfortunately, this seems to be the only spiritual group on Facebook that invites views from both sides of the equation. Let us hope it is not the last.

The Principle of Goodwill, Part 9

The Principles of Unification

So far this treatise has presented two sets of affirmations presenting principles that can lead to the greater establishment of goodwill and unity. The first were the Twelve Principles of Synthesis. These are twelve statements designed to be accepted by adherents of the Ancient Wisdom as well as other alternative spiritual students.

The second consisted of 20 affirmations of political unity. Even though the political division we see about us seems more pronounced than ever we still have many goals in common of reaching the same end result.

Again, the goal is for both sides to be reminded that they do have many goals in common and need to more reasonably consider the means to accomplish them.

Now, I end this treatise by presenting a third set of principles designed for synthesis, goodwill and unification.

The first was designed for alternative spiritual students, the second for those of political interest and this final one is for the masses who have a religious or spiritual inclination.

In this world the various different religions place much emphasis on their differences and why their belief is superior to others. Many do not realize how much the majority of religions have in common. Presented here are16 Principles of Unification that illustrate spiritual believers have more in common than is normally realized.

The 16 Principles of Unification

I believe there is good will and a desire for peace in the great majority of people, groups and religions and accept the idea of peaceful co-existence as an ideal for which to strive. I further realize that the majority of people wish to live in peace despite their differing beliefs.
I acknowledge that there exists a higher intelligence typically thought of as GOD but referred to by a variety of names.
Even though this Being or Intelligence is called by differing names and descriptions, I acknowledge that this same God is over all mankind and that we are children of God, brothers and sisters. Essentially, humanity is one family.
I believe that the will of God would include the best possible outcome for all of humanity. The goal of “Peace on Earth, Goodwill to Humankind” is a goal I embrace.
I embrace the Principle of Love and seek to love my neighbor as I do myself. I seek to do unto others as I would have others do unto me. I seek to serve both God and humanity.
I embrace the Principle of Light in that I seek greater understanding. I realize I have knowledge of some things but do not know all things about either God or humankind, and therefore seek to know more. I believe that I can progress in knowledge and understanding of spiritual principles. I seek to ever expand my learning. I am open to a fresh outlook when greater light and truth are revealed to me.
I accept the Principle of Cause and Effect and embrace the simple idea as taught in all spiritual movements that good and loving deeds, actions and thoughts will bring positive results, while harmful actions will bring destructive results. I therefore seek to do good to all mankind that good will return to me.
I accept the Principle of Freedom. I allow all people to worship, speak and believe how, where or what they may, so long as they comply with the just laws of the land (laws which protect the whole of the people). I do not support imposing my beliefs on others by force.
I accept the Principle of Communion. Through prayer, thought or contemplation, I can gain a greater awareness of God’s purpose, God’s will and God’s love.
I believe that my existence will continue even after the death of the physical body, and therefore seek to live mortal life in such a way that the afterlife of myself and others will be a happy experience.
I believe in the Principle of Sharing to assist those less fortunate than myself. I support the elimination of poverty, disease and ignorance from the human condition that all may live abundantly. I realize that this must be accomplished through working with the free will of humanity, not through force, and that sharing includes more than the material.
I believe that true spiritual principles and facts are in harmony with proven science as is all truth no matter where it is discovered. In all situations I seek to know the truth rather than settle for that which is false.
I accept the Principle of Harmlessness and in this spirit I do not support any first aggression toward any nation, group or individual. If there is no first aggression, there will not be a second.
I support the Principle of Harmonious and Good Relationships and seek to be an ambassador of goodwill with my family, friends, groups and nations that all may benefit from contact with me. I embrace kindness in all my contacts.
I support the Principle of Honesty and seek to tell the truth consistently.
I accept the fact that beneficial teachers, innovators and servants of humanity have appeared in times past for the benefit of all and realize that others will yet manifest. I seek to prepare my mind and heart to accept the good, the beautiful and the true when they present themselves.

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People Under the Earth

August 11, 2018 Joseph Dewey

Aug 3, 2018

People Under the Earth

There are several passages in the scriptures, if taken literally, would indicate that there are people living under the earth. Here are several:

“And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither UNDER THE EARTH, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon.” Rev 5:3

Here it is taking about all the places where “man” lives. One of hem is “under the earth.”

Then we have this:

“that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and UNDER THE EARTH.” Phil 2:10 NIV

Apparently there are people under the earth who can bow to the name of Jesus.

This idea is also found in LDS scriptures:

“And this shall be the sound of his trump, saying to all people, both in heaven and in earth, and that are UNDER THE EARTH–for every ear shall hear it, and every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall confess, while they hear the sound of the trump, saying: Fear God, and give glory to him who sitteth upon the throne, forever and ever; for the hour of his judgment is come.” D&C 88:104

Again, we have references to people under the earth.

Who do you think they are?

If we accept the wording of the scriptures there is no getting around the meaning presented that there are people under the earth. Some think this refers to the dead in the spirit world or even hell, as it has been a natural inclination to see heaven as up and hell as down.

On the other hand in speaking of Zion the scripture tells us of the day that “The Lord hath gathered all things in one. The Lord hath brought down Zion from above. The Lord hath brought up ZION FROM BENEATH.” D&C 84:100

The prediction is that Zion shall descend to the surface of the earth, but what is the Zion that comes from beneath the surface?

Was Isaiah talking about Zion in the “lower parts of the earth” when he said:

“Sing, O ye heavens; for the LORD hath done it: shout, ye LOWER PARTS OF THE EARTH: break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein: for the LORD hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Israel.” Isa 44:23

And perhaps Zion from beneath bears a witness of God:

“And behold, all things have their likeness, and all things are created and made to bear record of me, both things which are temporal, and things which are spiritual; things which are in the heavens above, and things which are on the earth, and things which are IN THE EARTH, AND THINGS WHICH ARE UNDER THE EARTH, BOTH ABOVE AND BENEATH: all things bear record of me.” Moses 6:63

That which is in the earth is a great mystery that Christ will reveal when he comes:

“Yea, verily I say unto you, in that day when the Lord shall come, he shall reveal all things– Things most precious, things that are above, and things that are beneath, THINGS THAT ARE IN THE EARTH, and upon the earth, and in heaven.” D&C 101:32 & 34

Indeed we are supposed to “Teach ye diligently and my grace shall attend you, that you may be instructed more perfectly in theory, in principle, in doctrine, in the law of the gospel, in all things that pertain unto the kingdom of God, that are expedient for you to understand; Of things both in heaven and IN THE EARTH, AND UNDER THE EARTH;” D&C 88:78-79

Looks like the church is ignoring the command to teach about what is under the earth.

The scriptures indicate that a remnant of the ten tribes may be under the earth for it is written:

“And they who are in the north countries shall come in remembrance before the Lord; and their prophets shall hear his voice, and shall not longer stay themselves; and they shall smite the rocks, and the ice shall flow down at their presence. And an highway shall be cast up in the midst of the great deep.” D&C 133:26-27

This tells us that they are under a layer of rock and above this rock is ice. They will somehow “smite” the layer of rock followed by the ice and make a great highway through the ocean to return.

Indeed the book of Esdras tells us that the ten tribes went to new land faraway that required a miracle for them to enter and that they shall someday return.

“Those are the ten tribes, which were carried away prisoners out of their own land in the time of Osea the king, whom Salmanasar the king of Assyria led away captive, and he carried them over the waters, and so came they into another land. But they took this counsel among themselves, that they would leave the multitude of the heathen, and go forth into a further country, where never mankind dwelt, That they might there keep their statutes, which they never kept in their own land. And they entered into Euphrates by the narrow places of the river. For the most High then shewed signs for them, and held still the flood, till they were passed over. For through that country there was a great way to go, namely, of a year and a half: and the same region is called Arsareth. Then dwelt they there until the latter time; and now when they shall begin to come, The Highest shall stay the springs of the stream again, that they may go through: therefore sawest thou the multitude with peace. But those that be left behind of thy people are they that are found within my borders. Esdras 13:40-48

Joseph Smith is quoted several times as saying they are hidden in the north:

“I asked where the nine and a half tribes of Israel were. “Well,” said he, “you remember the old caldron or potash kettle you used to boil maple sap in for sugar, don’t you?” I said yes. “Well,” said he, “they are in the north pole in a concave just the shape of that kettle. And John the Revelator is with them, preparing them for their return.”
Benjamin F. Johnson, My Life’s Review, pg 93

“I have heard Joseph say that ‘John was among the Ten Tribes beyond the North Pole.”
Oliver B. Huntington Journal, January 13th, 1881

Ezra Booth reported Joseph as saying this at the first conference of the church, ”The condition of the ten tribes of Israel since their captivity… has never been satisfactorily ascertained. But these visionaries have discovered their place of residence to be contiguous to the north pole; separated from the rest of the world by impassable mountains of ice and snow.”

One may or may not accept the Ten Tribes or any physical humans live under the earth but if one literally believes all the scriptures it is difficult to dismiss the idea.

One thing I can guarantee is that there are indeed many mysteries below the surface of the earth and someday they will be revealed.

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The Zion Society

July 17, 2018August 18, 2018 Joseph Dewey

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part One

A Wonderful Ideal

I spent 20 years being an active Mormon during the years 1958-1978. Then the church discovered that I thought that the prophet was not infallible, as I disagreed with him on a point of doctrine, and they immediately threw me out. I was glad to go as the great repetition of simple ideas in church was becoming increasingly boring and a waste of time. My only regret was the effect it had on my family as my wife at the time stayed a true blue Mormon.

My membership though was not a waste of time as I took away from the church an important teaching emphasizing a beautiful ideal – that of Zion.

The concept of Zion did not originate with Mormonism, but was greatly enhanced by it. Among the Jews, Zion was synonymous with Jerusalem or Israel and prophecy speaks of a time that it will be reestablished with power and unity.

In Mormonism Zion is presented as a gathering of the pure in heart who will live together in unity, love and equality having “no poor among them.”

Since the days of Joseph Smith numerous attempts have been made by the church and breakoffs to create a Zion Society and each time they have failed.

And why have they failed?

Basically for the same reason pure communism has failed. It turns out that most individuals are motivated to seek for their self-interest, which creates unequal status which can only be countered by strong authority. Strong authority thus surfaces to enforce equality. This evolves into a situation that is less equal and a more pronounced class difference than laissez faire capitalism.

You wind up with a small authoritative class that controls and gives orders to the submissive class. Then when the authoritative class realizes that it has been given a blank check to do what they want they reward themselves with as much luxury and perks as the system can bear.

Thus the ideal of the classless society evolves into a great duality of class beyond anything envisioned.

In spite of failures many thinkers have contemplated how to create this ideal society that was envisioned. After all, there are indeed many who would like to live in a society where brotherly love and equality dominate, including myself. Many efforts to create such a society began with good intentions, but eventually turned into a tyranny.

Why?

Because human nature does not gravitate toward the equality of sameness, as they see themselves as distinct human beings. Even the greatest supporters of equality see themselves and their needs as being different from their neighbors.

Because of this basic human trait any flawed goal toward equality will evolve into the two classes I mentioned. The movement grows to the few at the top who control with tyrannical powers, and the rank and file who must obey or be punished.

Does this mean that the idea of equality, sharing and brotherly love is a flawed idea that needs to be discarded?

Indeed not, as in the end the good that is in humanity always prevails, but only after much pain and learning through trial and error.

To move humankind to their next step in societal evolution we must look at the next level to be achieved in realistic terms. Anyone who expects all participants to always be willing to work and share instinctively when they need benefits for themselves is living in illusion.

Any step toward a Zion Society has to factor in human weakness into the equation. Also the idea of equality needs to be defined. Are we talking about sameness, equal rights or something else?

Above all, we want to avoid a tyranny. How can we do this?

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Two

Problems with Utopia

Zion is basically a vision of a utopia, the ideal society, where all have their needs met and people live in unity, equality and brotherly love. The actual word though is traced back to, the original Jerusalem, the city of David, which was far from a utopia, often fighting wars of survival or conquest and far from an ideal unity, suffering from regular insurrections and hostility.

Its flawed beginnings did not hinder the prophets from dreaming of a time of a perfected Zion. For instance, Isaiah said:

“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth! Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the LORD shall bring again Zion. Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem: for the LORD hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem.”

Isaiah 52:7-9

Beautiful words indeed, especially the part of seeing eye to eye. Such unity and harmony has been the dream of many besides the LDS clear back to the days of Socrates. Since then, many have attempted utopia, some based on scripture and some on other ideas. There have been hundreds of experiments ranging from communist societies and states to hippie communes, to religious groups – all seeking equality, union and all things in common.

The communists expressed a catchy ideal that was thought to be workable:

“From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.”

The citizens embraced the “needs” part, but were not that cooperative with the “according to his ability” part. When one saw his neighbor not doing his share then the individual asked himself, “Why should I work extra hard to support that lazy guy?” The greatest communist enterprise, the Soviet Union, thus fell apart through lack of cooperation and incentive from the lowly citizen.

Communist China under Mao had similar problems with millions of people dying of starvation. Their salvation has been in making a switch to a more capitalistic approach. Now they have their own capitalistic billionaires and are in some ways more capitalistic than the United States. They have at least taken their people to a higher level of prosperity.

On the other hand, North Korea tried to stay true to the communist ideal and the result is that you have a nation with the people starving, often resorting to eating tree bark, grass or even dirt to survive.

The only thing close to the Zion ideal that has prospered over a substantial period of time are the Amish and related groups. They do not exactly have all things in common as each person is over his own business or enterprise, but they are expected to share so no one goes without. They have achieved the desirable goal of having no poor among them. Their survival can be attributed to the fact that each has a certain amount of freedom over his own stewardship, goods and money, but the rules and restrictions are so great that few from modern society would have any attraction to the limited living conditions.

Each member has to give up all modern technology (with a small handful of exceptions). Your home would have no electricity, no phone, no internet, no modern appliances. You would be told how to dress, when to grow a beard, and have to make all your own clothes according to specifications. Basically all the elements of your life would be rigidly controlled.

There are a number of communal groups, including some breakoffs from the Mormon Church, who have maintained their organization for a period of time, but all of them suffer from rigid control by strong authority and offer little hope for a happy life.

On the other hand, most who dream of Zion, do not visualize themselves living a life in the dark ages before electricity with every aspect of their lives controlled by excessive rules and regulations.

The question any visionary must ask is what are the principles that can be followed that will create a definite Zion society?

Before we answer that question maybe we should first look at what does not work. There is no example of any substance on the planet we can point to of a Zion society that one can join that does work, but there are plenty of examples in history of failures.

(1) The main reason for failure is that a strong outer authority controls the rank and file members. Such an authority often claims to be the voice of God on the earth and, if such is believed, the member will be extremely fearful of doing anything contrary to commandments given out.

Outer authority, which takes the place of God speaking to the individual, is the mark of the beast. The mark of the beast in the forehead is control of the mind and the mark in the right hand is control of the labor of the participants. Thus all but a few currently have the mark of the beast as most allow outer authority precedence over the inner.

(2) Leaving it up to God. Many just “wait upon the Lord” and if they do act it is because someone tells them that they speak for God or interpret the scriptures correctly and they must be followed. Because of such claims corrections are often not made because that would be admitting that God is fallible.

(3) Waiting for some perfect plan. A Zion society will not just manifest in perfection but must be ironed out in the process of fallible human endeavor. God is not going to come down and lay it out for us in black and white.

Why?

Because we learn by doing. If humanity uses their minds and intelligence to create Zion then it will become a permanent fixture, but if someone just gives it to us on a silver platter it will be a temporary thing no matter how perfect the blueprint is.

The scriptures give us some of the ideals that will compose a Zion society, but is lacking in supplying most of the details. The end is given, but not the means.

Why?

This scripture explains it well:

“For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward.

“Verily, I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness;

“For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward.” D&C 58:27-28

So, if strong outer authority that takes precedent over the inner voice of the Spirit to the individual is a prime cause of failure then how are we to proceed? Should we recognize no outer authorities then?

If too many rules suffocate should we have no rules?

If too much hierarchy interferes should we have no hierarchy and no recognized leaders?

Or is there a point of balance somewhere in between?

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Three

The Prime Directive

There is one decisive principle that, when applied, will make things work efficiently, and when not applied dooms a work to failure.

This is the Principle of Freedom.

The problem with this principle is that many have different ideas as to what freedom is, but they are basically divided into two camps which I will label the light and dark side.

The Dark Side:

A person in this group will see freedom from his individual perspective or at best freedom for the group to which he belongs. If the majority have to suffer a loss of freedom or even slavery so his minority will have what they want so be it. His idea of freedom is enhanced.

Example: The Southern States fought for the extra freedom a minority received from owning slaves and benefitting from slave labor. Abraham Lincoln contemplated this idea of freedom and was amazed that the whole Confederate nation could stand behind it.

The Light Side:

A person in this group will value the freedom of all individuals everywhere. JFK said it well: “The rights of every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened.”

The true principle of freedom can be summed up as follows:

“It is the removal of restrictions either imaginary or real, so the power of decision has complete freedom within the sphere of its plan. Thus the true principle of freedom lies in the idea that the spiritual energy to accomplish is released so its life can flow through the ideas and thoughts of the individual until all positive desires are fulfilled.”

The true principle of freedom is not created by anarchy where all are free to do whatever they want with no restrictions. Such anarchy is counter to freedom and creates mob rule where tyranny is the end result negating freedom. A certain amount of law is necessary to maintain maximum freedom, but excessive law and regulations suppresses freedom. Thus the quality of good judgment must come into play for too great of a shift to the right or the left takes freedom away.

For example: We do not want the burglar to have the freedom to enter our homes and take what he wants. In this case the burglar’s extra freedom greatly diminishes the freedom of others. The net effect is that the loss of freedom without appropriate law is much greater than the freedom granted to the burglar.

Thus the Principle of Freedom supports the idea of maximum freedom for the whole rather than total freedom without law, or a state of anarchy.

How does this apply to the creation of a Zion Society?

The Principle of Freedom must be the prime directive in the creation of any benevolent, productive society, especially anything claiming to be constructed on the principles of Zion.

Without maximum freedom the people will be denied a fullness of happiness and joy. With it all things are possible and the true pursuit of happiness becomes reality.

We conclude then that true freedom, which is a state of maximum freedom, is found at some point between the two extremes. That point cannot be found by any mathematical equation, but is only discovered through unbiased judgment followed by experimentation and then by fine-tuning corrections.

When someone with great authority proclaims an exact path that must be followed and allows for no correction, because of supposed infallibility, disaster is always the result. No great work is ever completed without many corrections being made. Just like you cannot even drive a city block without making many corrections with the steering wheel, neither can the laborers in the vineyard of the Lord create a work of beauty unless they are allowed to make corrections as they go.

As with the Principle of Freedom, even so with correction; judgment must be applied. The correction should not distract from the original inspired purpose but should steer the workers more correctly to the straight and narrow path.

Good judgment and common sense must be applied to building Zion just as it is in creating a work of art.

Both extremes, or a lack of freedom, will prevent the manifestation of the good, the beautiful and the true. Let us choose this day where we will stand.

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Four

Defining Zion Qualities

We have established that Zion must be built upon the Principle of Freedom. Unless maximum freedom for all is incorporated them maximum pursuit of happiness cannot be a reality. If there is not a goal of happiness and fullness of joy available then the society would not be Zion. Conditions in Zion must be conducive to happiness.

So, what do the scriptures tell us for sure about Zion, a condition where people will dwell together in peace and happiness? This scripture sums it up in a sentence:

“And the Lord called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them.” Moses 7:18

In addition to this the scriptures stress equality and sharing as important ingredients:

“Nevertheless, in your temporal things you shall be equal, and this not grudgingly, otherwise the abundance of the manifestations of the Spirit shall be withheld.” D&C 70:14

“For if ye are not equal in earthly things ye cannot be equal in obtaining heavenly things.” D&C 78:6

The main ingredients composing Zion seem to be:

(1) There are no poor among them for they dwell in a state of equality.

(2) Being of one heart and mind, or seeing eye to eye.

(3) They dwell in righteousness.

(4) They will gather and build the New Jerusalem – the city of Zion.

“and righteousness and truth will I cause to sweep the earth as with a flood, to gather out mine elect from the four quarters of the earth, unto a place which I shall prepare, an Holy City, that my people may gird up their loins, and be looking forth for the time of my coming; for there shall be my tabernacle, and it shall be called Zion, a New Jerusalem.” Moses 7:62

(5) Just government. There has to be a competent government over the people. The exact form is not specified in the scriptures, but we can assume it must be fair and allow the principle of freedom to prevail while maintaining civil order.

Let us examine these five components starting with:

“There are no poor among them for they dwell in a state of equality.

There is a lot of discussion among thinkers about how far people of good will should go with the principle of equality. Some think having equal rights and opportunity under the law should be as far as we should go and others think we should go even further than the communists and have all people, small and great, yield up all their possessions for the people to have in common.

Then others think the point of truth is somewhere in between.

The scriptures stress equality, but do not give us much detail on exactly what this means or how it is to be accomplished. This is where our own thinking comes in to fill in the blanks since we should think for ourselves as much as possible and not have to be commanded in all things.

First let us look at what is agreed upon by most spiritual thinkers concerning equality.

(1) It is basically agreed that there should be equality of opportunity under the law. The law, government and authorities therein should not favor one class, group or race above that of another.

(2) The great gap in possessions between the rich and poor and management and labor is detrimental to the spiritual health of the whole.

(3) Leaders should not have special privileges that sets them apart from their followers as special beings deserving much more than the rank and file.

(4) Leaders need checks upon them so they do not turn into dictators or tyrants.

(5) No matter how great one’s accomplishments may be he or she should avoid an attitude of superiority, maintaining the realization that we all have unlimited potential.

In addition, there are several points generally agreed upon that spiritual equality is not:

(1) Equality does not mean sameness.

(2) We are all unique individuals, each one different from any other human alive. We are not equal in intelligence, talents and abilities.

(3) Each person is different in the amount of labor and intelligence he applies to his goals and will produce different results.

And what are the major points of disagreement?

(1) How far we go in pushing the idea of equality toward sameness.

(2) How much authority and force should be applied to see that participants conform to any established idea of equality?

(3) Lacking a unifying messianic figure as a leader how should we proceed toward establishing Zion principles? Or should not take any initiative?

In the end if we lack specific agreed upon revelation from on high we must proceed with the highest we know and all individuals involved must check with the Holy Spirit of Truth within them to gain assurance that we are headed the right general direction.

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Five

What is Equality?

Just like the spiritual principle of freedom does not give absolute freedom, neither does the spiritual principle of equality insist on absolute equality. For instance, the desired goal of maximum freedom for all does not allow anyone the freedom to rape, pillage and plunder fellow men and women.

The same principle applies to equality. We do not seek absolute sameness. Instead, the goal is maximum possible equality for all while applying the prime directive of maximum freedom.

It is said that the War in Heaven was fought over free will. The adversary wanted to reach the ideal by forcing us to do right, which was rejected by God in favor of a plan offering free will, even though that would result in numerous mistakes along the way.

This war over free will continues to this day and thus the Principle of Freedom is the prime directive for the forces of Light and Love and must be taken into consideration in any step toward the creation of Zion.

We see the results of these two ideas manifesting on the earth. The side against free will operates through tyrannies, cults and authoritarian groups controlled by strong leaders who insist all thinking and decisions be made by an elite group who know what is best for the rank and file.

On the other side, we have countries with at least a degree of freedom that allow their citizens some freedom of choice in reaching goals. At present, the Principle of Freedom is not dominating, but this must be changed so when Zion is established the free will of humanity will reign supreme and demonstrate the power of freedom over slavery of the human mind.

So then, taking into consideration the Prime Directive of maximum freedom and equality let us define the Principle of Equality.

True spiritual equality is not sameness for sameness can only be the result of tyranny that negates the Principle of Freedom. True equality consists of the following.

(1) Equal opportunity under the law. There should be no restriction under law or authoritarian decree that limits access or achievement of any individual, group or class of people.

This will not result in sameness of opportunity because those governed by the Principle of Freedom will differ in circumstances and mental state which will result in advantages or disadvantages creating different outcomes.

(2) Acquire the mindset that supports abundance for all and sharing rather than forcing the rich to give their wealth away.

Every time wealth has been taken by force with the idea of redistribution disaster has been the result.

One of the prime examples of this failure occurred when Pol Pot took over Cambodia in the Seventies. He was a big believer in equality by sameness and mandated that all people have all things in common including property, dress, communal meals with all capitalism forbidden. He even tried to eliminate cash and killed those who even smelled like an upper class.

As a result millions died through starvation and extermination.

Thus one of the most aggressive attempts at forced equality was also one of the greatest failures in history.

Instead of attempting to force the rich to share the key is to teach the principle of free will sharing while providing opportunity for the poor to achieve abundance.

Studies show that an increase in money does result in an increase in happiness until the point is reached where basic needs are met. After this point additional wealth makes little difference to happiness.

Therefore, if the inhabitants of Zion through free will create a situation where the basic needs of all are met the foundation will be laid to establish a society where maximum happiness becomes possible.

A huge problem created by inequality of the deprived poor compared to the rich is that many of the poor who are going without or having difficulty paying their bills focus on the differences in outcome. On the other hand, the focus of one who has his needs met tend to be away from the material differences and other goals in mind. Creating a situation where basic needs are met will take us more than halfway to the goal of seeing ourselves as equal participants rather than on the outside looking in.

(3) Teach correct principles so equality can manifest through free will sharing. Many who are rich are presently willing to donate to a hospital, library or college if they are willing to put their name on a building or room. In Zion we do not want to feed the ego, but what if the rich were to realize an even greater feeling of worth through using their wealth to assist in the building of Zion or just in helping others there. People tune into the public consciousness and if our values change the motive for sharing will also shift.

So, what would equality look like in the ideal Zion society? There would not be sameness. Jones may figure he needs a storage shed in his back yard and Smith does not. Jones builds a shed and thus has a possession that Smith does not have.

The bottom line is that Smith could have built a shed if he wanted one so he does not feel neglected because of an unequal possession.

In the ideal society basic needs would be met and if someone feels they need something beyond that he would have freedom to acquire it.

We’ll go into more detail as this treatise continues.

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Six

Oneness

We re told that the people of Zion must be of one heart and one mind. “for they shall see eye to eye, when the LORD shall bring again Zion.” Isa 52:8

Unfortunately, we are a long way from this goal for it is rare to find two people, even in a marriage or close friendship, who fit this criteria.

There are two types of oneness which can manifest in this mortal situation.

(1) Oneness that conforms to strong outer authority. This is limited to the circumference of such authority.

(2) Oneness through the eyes of The Spirit. Since Spirit does not disagree with Itself two seeing through Its eyes will see eye to eye on all essential principles with no limiting circumference.

Let’s talk about oneness through authority first. This is created when a group of people attach themselves to a strong authoritative leader or system.

A number of churches are examples of this. The evangelical churches do not have a strong central leader, but they have a system with several strong doctrinal points accepted with the strong authority of a group mindset about Jesus and salvation.

On the other hand. the LDS achieve significant oneness in their flock through strong authority in the form of their leaders with the prophet being the central character. When he says something concrete it is accepted without question by most members.

This oneness by authority is even more pervasive in some political states. For instance, in North Korea, Kim Jung-Un is the supreme leader and any lack of acceptance will put a citizen’s life in danger. Thus we have what appears to be oneness under strong authority.

What do all these states of oneness have in common?

They all adhere to an outer authority with fear of punishment attached if one questions or thinks outside of the accepted mode. In religion the punishment is hell and in political systems it is loss of possessions, freedom or life.

This oneness through strong authority is artificial, and not true oneness, for as soon as the authority is removed from two or more who seem to be one, and they start thinking for themselves, they will no longer be one.

Why is it that true oneness is so rare with those centered in the material world?

The feeling or emotional nature accounts for much of the difficulty with oneness as the emotional nature distorts reality. Two people with different bias can see the same event and offer two totally different interpretations or descriptions of it. The emotionally polarized person may hear words spoken and repeat them according to how it made him feel rather than stating the actual words.

The lower mind can also be an enemy to oneness as it often interprets according to a belief system and the belief system may have many errors and run contrary to that of a partner or associate, keeping them from being united.

True oneness comes not from reliance on strong authority filtered through lower mind and emotions, but from the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is one as the Father and Son are one and does not disagree with Itself.

The Spirit, however, is not focused on details of our everyday living, but on principles for the language of Spirit is the language of principles. A true principle may reveal a thousand facts, but it may take a thousand facts to cause a mortal to see one principle.

When two or more see true principles through the eyes of the Spirit then any disagreement on data will be inconsequential. No group of Spirit infused people will have the same favorite color or song, but they can all agree on the principles behind color and music.

The path to spiritual oneness is simple, yet there are few who are willing to take the step which is this.

When a fundamental difference occurs they must spell out the two sides and articulate where they think the true principle lies. Then they must seek a revelation through the Spirit in prayer, meditation and contemplation. If the two are in harmony with Spirit they will both receive the same answer.

If this does not happen then one or both of them have misdirected focus and are not ready to participate in a Zion Society.

Zion will eventually consist of a united and tested core that is sensitive to the mind of God, who see eye to eye through free will, and will be able to guide those in the outer court of the temple toward the inner Holy of Holies.

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Seven

Dwelling in Righteousness

The next thing we are told about the inhabitants of Zion is that they will “dwell in righteousness.”

The trouble with this injunction is it is subject to a wide interpretation. That which is righteous to one may be seen as evil to another. For instance, the works of Jesus were seen as the work of the devil by the Jewish authorities and that which they thought of as righteous was strict obedience to law and was seen as misplaced focus by Jesus.

Perhaps it will help if we break the word down to its core parts, RIGHT-USE-NESS.

To be righteous is to make RIGHT USE of all the powers, opportunities and talents that are available to us. Looking at it this way we can easily discern that Jesus was on the righteous path rather than his critics.

Why?

Because he made right use of all that was available to him in the loving service of others.

On the other hand, the Pharisees, Sadducees and scribes directed their attention to being seen as strictly obeying the law to be “seen of men” and for serving self rather than serving others. Right use of what we have manifests love whereas misplaced attention centers on the elevation of self at the expense of love.

Therefore, when we are told that the inhabitants of Zion dwell in righteousness we can assume that these are people motivated by love for their fellow men and women and take joy in serving and benefitting them.

Because of right use of resources there will be no poor among them and because of right use of intelligence they will live in harmony seeing eye to eye on basic principles.

So, what are other examples of a people dwelling in righteousness? Of the many, here are a few.

(1) They would live in harmony with nature and avoid poisoning the soil, water and air.

(2) They would stress a healthy lifestyle and diet.

(3) They would support the Principle of Freedom as mentioned earlier. They will not seek to benefit themselves at the expense of another.

(4) They will value the inner authority of the Spirit over the outer authority of one claiming to speak for God. An outer authority will only be accepted if what he says is verified from within.

(5) They would teach the people correct principles.

(6) They would emphasize goodwill and brotherly love.

(7) Harmlessness would be emphasized.

(8) Inclusiveness would be emphasized toward all people of goodwill who support Zion ideals.

(9) Law, regulation and control over the people would be minimal.

(10) The Law of Christ would dominate over the Law of Moses. In other words, instead of being strictly ruled by hundreds of black and white commandments the guiding principle would be the love itself.

Jesus talked about this principle when he was asked what was the greatest commandment:

“Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” Matt 22:37-40

There we have that which was the directive of the great life lived by Jesus. It was not a black and white adherence to all the law and words of the prophets, as was attempted by those who crucified him. Instead he taught that the truth behind all the law and the prophets is manifest through applying the higher law of love in your life.

For instance, if you naturally love your neighbor you will not steal, nor murder, nor betray your spouse or do harm to any other human. If you love God you will naturally do all in your power to follow that which comes to you from the Inner Voice.

Concerning this Zion situation where this higher law is followed it is written:

“But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD.” Jer 31:33-34

In other words, the people of Zion will follow the example of Christ and have the law of God written in their hearts. Instead of trying to follow black and white words from stone tablets all they need to do to fulfill the law is to check with the Christ within their own hearts.

Everyone shall know the Lord because all will be in contact with the Lord of Love within their own hearts.

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Eight

The Gathering

The Tenth Article of Faith in the LDS church proclaims that they “believe in the literal gathering of Israel.”

The strange part about this is that even though this is put forward as a foundational belief they are making no effort to gather their people.

They say they are gathering the members by making converts that mingle with the members and gather together on Sundays in church. But isn’t this what all religions do? The people of all churches gather together in meetings, yet they do not claim that it is a literal gathering of Israel.

Is the church missing something?

Indeed they are, for the understanding of the gathering is a mystery that goes over the head of most of the flock. Take note of this scripture:

“Therefore I will unfold unto them this GREAT MYSTERY; For behold I will gather them as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, if they will not harden their hearts.” D&C 10:64-65

Here we are told that the gathering is a “great mystery.” So, what is so mysterious about it? Isn’t the basic idea that the saints should gather together a pretty simple concept?

Yes and no. No because if it were simple the church would be obeying their own commandment and creating gatherings as specified in their scriptures. Take this one, for instance:

“Those who call themselves by my name and are essaying to be my saints, if they will do my will and keep my commandments concerning them, let them GATHER THEMSELVES TOGETHER unto the places which I shall appoint unto them by my servant Joseph (or another servant), AND BUILD UP CITIES UNTO MY NAME, that they may be prepared for that which is in store for a time to come.” D&C 125:2

The founder, Joseph Smith, correctly attempted to implement the gathering principle by gathering the members into communities and near the end of his life building the city of Nauvoo as a gathering destination.

After Joseph’s death the church continued to follow this commandment for a season. They created Salt Lake and other cities as gathering places, but as time passed and the world moved in with them they saw no necessity for any literal gathering and dropped the idea, but still dangle a possible future gathering before the members.

What is overlooked is a major purpose of a literal gathering that was stated in the scripture just noted:

“that they may be prepared for that which is in store for a time to come.”

A literal gathering of Saints into communities of like-minded thinkers is essential to the protection of the pure in heart so they can be prepared for possible calamities to come. There are a number of potential events that could create chaos among the population centers of the world and the people of the United States would be particularly vulnerable. Here are several:

(1) A nuclear war. This is the most feared possibility and if it happened mob rule would occur and there would be no safe place to go.

(2) Just a couple nuclear devices exploded in our atmosphere by a rogue state creating a magnetic pulse that could take down the electrical grid. Again, we would have mob rule within days, over half the nation would die and there would be no safe place to go.

(3) A solar flare would create a pulse that could also take out the grid. In 1859, a massive geomagnetic super-storm, known as the Carrington event, sent powerful coronal mass ejections toward Earth taking out telegraph lines, even starting them of fire. We are overdue for another such event and totally unprepared. We are extremely dependent on our grid and if taken out the world would be in chaos with nowhere for people to go for safety. Again millions, perhaps billions of people, would suffer and die.

(4) A drastic economic collapse. There have been many predictions made of such an event and again such an event would produce mob rule and there would be no safe place for any average person.

Now the LDS church seems to think that because a few have some food storage that there would be safety for the members, they would share the food and all would be well.

This thinking is pure fantasy. Once the masses start starving within a week or so of the collapse there would be little sharing and each person and mob will be out for themselves. It is a well-known fact that Mormons store food so this will make members targets above any other people. Mobs would search out Mormons and attempt to steal their food.

In tough times food storage will benefit members, but in a total collapse they would become targets.

On the other hand, a successful gathered community would be prepared as a gathered unit to weather any storm, be self sufficient, and protect itself from mobs.

Scripture predicts that the authorities would stray from the gathering concept:

God compared the gathering Of Israel to a tower and after He commanded its construction, “They began to say among themselves: And what need hath my Lord of this tower? And consulted for a long time saying among themselves: What need hath my Lord of this tower, seeing this is a time of peace? (That is persecution has subsided so why gather. It is no longer necessary) Might not this money be given to the exchangers? For there is no need of these things. (After all it costs money to gather together and build cities) And while they were at variance one with another they became very slothful, and they hearkened not to the commandments of the Lord. And the enemy came by night and broke down the hedge; and the servants of the nobleman arose and were afrightened and fled; and the enemy destroyed their works, and broke down the olive trees. Now behold, the nobleman, the Lord of the vineyard called upon his servants, and said unto them, Why! what is the cause of this great evil? Ought YE NOT TO HAVE DONE EVEN AS I COMMANDED YOU, and after ye had planted the vineyard, and built the hedge round about, and set watchmen upon the walls thereof – built the tower also, and set a watchman upon the tower, and watched for my vineyard, AND NOT FALLEN ASLEEP, lest the enemy should come upon you? And behold, the watchman upon the tower would have seen the enemy While HE WAS YET FAR OFF; and then ye could have made ready and kept the enemy from breaking down the hedge thereof, and saved my vineyard from the hands of the destroyer.” D&C 101:47-54 Then the Lord tells us he will call a faithful servant to fulfill his will which would be accomplished “after many days.” Verse 62 Then He speaks clearly a few verses later and said: “They shall continue to gather together unto the places which I have appointed.” Verse 7.

One might ask how would the gathering enable us to “have seen the enemy while he was yet afar off?” Verse 54 The reason he would have been seen while he was yet afar off is because the gathering always draws opposition and the enemy would have continued to show himself while he was yet weak or afar off. If the gathering had continued then the Church would be prepared for the enemy today. As it is, with the dissolution of the gathering, the Church does not draw the evil men to oppose them. They appear as friends and the saints eat and drink with the drunken and cannot see the enemy afar off; yea, they cannot see him until it is too late.

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Nine

The Great Mystery

The scripture said that the gathering is a “great mystery.” A mystery is something that goes over the heads of the majority. It is interesting that the gathering principle is taught throughout the Bible as well as the the LDS scriptures yet understanding is sadly lacking.

Here are some of the reasons for a literal gathering that you will not hear in church.

(1) A gathering can create a place of refuge in times of great trouble.

(2) A gathering of lights creates an ensign, a standard of light and love that will attract the lights of the earth as well as reveal works of darkness.

(3) A gathering of lights will stimulate the intelligence and creativity of the group. It will cause new productive ideas to manifest and flourish.

(4) It will be a center of peace. Since Zion, or the New Jerusalem, is the gathering of the pure in heart and such people are good natured and peaceful, they can set an example of peaceful living and cooperation. After all, the name Jerusalem comes from the Hebrew YeRUWSHALAYIM which means “to instruct or show the way to peace.”

(5) It will prepare a place where Christ can manifest and be accepted. He will finally have a place on earth “to lay his head.”

(6) The gathering will create communities of people willing to share of their wealth so all will have abundance, not only of material goods, but of spiritual and educational.

(7) The greatest mystery behind the gathering is the principle itself. It is the principle is behind all progress toward higher states of living.

The Gathering principle is basically this:

All evolution in the universe is driven forward through gathering. Small units gather together and create greater units more complex with greater powers than themselves alone.

Subatomic particles gathered together and created atoms. Atoms gathered together and created molecules. Molecules gathered and created all kinds of beautiful geometric forms and compounds. These particles gathered and created living cells. Cells gather and created all kinds of living things..

Humans, being the most advanced lives known to us, gathered into families. The families gathered and created tribes that offered more advantages to secure survival. Later tribes gathered and created kingdoms which offered more advanced civilization. More recently, we have had a gathering of freedom loving people throughout the world to America which created a government more advanced than one ruled by an authoritarian king. A new system of representative democracy was created that greatly advanced free market competitive enterprise, freedom of speech and freedom in general.

Now we are approaching the next step forward in spiritual and social progress by a gathering of lights and people of goodwill who will create a Zion society where cooperation rather than competition will be the keynote. The new creation will be an advance over the government we have now comparable to the advance that a democratic government is over a land ruled by an absolute king or dictator.

There are a lot of people looking forward to a future gathering, but not seeing any steps now that can be taken, except maybe being a good person so he will be chosen of God when the time comes.

What is not realized is that a true Zion Society will demand an enormous change in people and huge change in human behavior takes time. It does not come overnight.

Seekers through their own initiative can gather in different ways to prepare for a greater gathering that will involve the building of actual cities.

The main avenue of preparation now is the internet which itself seems to be a fulfillment of prophecy concerning the gathering.

Perhaps Jesus saw the internet age when he said:

“For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known. Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops.” Luke 12:2

Indeed – in this age of technology that which was before kept secret is broadcast to the housetops for the whole world to access.

In addition to this he said that

“The kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, (the Internet) that was cast into the sea (the peoples of the earth – See Rev 17:15), and gathered of every kind” Matt 13:47-50

A name synonymous with the internet is the “super highway”. Isaiah talks of a highway for the remnant of his people that will take the people through a great deep similar to the highway that took the Israelites through the Red Sea.

“And there shall be an highway for the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria; like as it was to Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt.” (Isa 11:16)

This highway shall evidently be “cast up” in the midst of a future red sea, or ocean:

“Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people.” (Isa 62:10)

So we see that even the ancient scriptures are harmonious with the idea that the internet will play a huge part in the great gathering to come.

The gathering of minds will precede the gathering of bodies.

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Ten

Attempts at Zion

So, what kind of government can we expect to have in Zion?

Before we answer that we perhaps should look at the governmental attempts in the past of those who have tried to create the sharing and equality aspects dreamed of by those desiring such a society.

In a nutshell what has happened is basically this. The idealists had good intensions but did not realize that few humans would diligently apply their labor and their means only motivated for the good of the whole. It is human nature to need some type of personal motivation. The dreamers discovered that even the most dedicated become enraged when they see their neighbors taking it easy while expecting others to make up for their deficits. The question which always arises is this. “Why should I have to work twice as hard to support those who are just plain lazy?”

Thus you will often have groups who start out with a relaxed attitude turning into a tyranny before the group finally winds up self-destructing. This happens because they conclude that people are just too lazy on their own and need to be forced to do their part. Then when force is applied minimal results are produced because human nature needs some personal incentive and such incentive always produces more results than force. When force is applied the people use their wits to outsmart the authorities and beat the system rather than working hard to contribute to it.

That being said, what kind of government should a group have that desires to create a Zion society? Fortunately we can learn from past failures. After examining them we can at least determine what not to do. The failed groups reveal to us that neither extreme works.

The first extreme is where a powerful authority rules the group and strict rules are incorporated where the individual has little room to exercise his own initiative, or even speak his mind if it disagrees with the group mindset.

The other extreme occurs when the group has the idealist mindset that everyone is equal and no hierarchy or leadership is needed. This occurs when a conclusion is reached that either people can instinctively govern themselves or that each has a personal connection with God and God or Jesus will tell them all to do the right thing so efficiently that self government will just automatically happen.

This approach also fails, for if anarchy does not result it devolves into an “every man for himself” situation where the situation became chaotic. After this occurs the group either dissolves or a handful take control, assume authoritarian leadership, and the individuals lose their agency as did the authoritarian group that they at first despised.

The early Mormons under Joseph Smith, before the creation of the city of Nauvoo, tried to establish an order where the members had all things in common, but individual self-interest ruled and the effort was not successful.

“Many of the new converts had belonged to a religious society known as “Disciples.” Even after joining the Church, these converts continued to practice what was called “common stock,” or the holding of all property in common. But discord arose among members over the manner in which this system should operate. Some considered that what belonged to one member belonged to anyone in the branch. “Therefore,” wrote John Whitmer, “they would take each other’s clothes and other property and use it without leave, which brought on confusion and disappointments, for they did not understand the scripture”

“Church History,” Journal of History, Jan. 1908, p. 50).

By the time hey moved to Nauvoo Joseph seemed to come to a realization that the way they had gone about living the Law of Consecration just did not work.

It was observed that Joseph in Nauvoo “was determined that no man should be brought before the Council in Nauvoo till that time, etc., etc. The law of consecration could not be kept here, and that it was the will of the Lord that we should desist from trying to keep it; and if persisted in, it would produce a perfect defeat of its object, and that he assumed the whole responsibility of not keeping it until proposed by himself.” DHC 4:93

Latter he said this:

“I preached on the stand about one hour on the 2nd chapter of Acts, designing to show the folly of common stock. In Nauvoo every one is steward over his own.” DHC 6:37

Concerning this, Richard Bushman wrote this in his biography of Joseph Smith:

“He (Joseph Smith) was interested enough in schemes of economic reform to invite John Finch to lecture in Nauvoo while visiting the city. Finch was associated with Robert Owen, the Scottish industrialist-turned-socialist who had founded a utopian community at New Harmony, Indiana. Prevailed on to stay two extra days, September 13 and 14, 1843, Finch talked on “the present wretched condition of the working classes, and the causes of their misery” to an audience of nearly two thousand people. On the second day, discussion went on for five hours. Though Joseph listened to Finch, the Prophet said he “did not believe the doctrine.” A few weeks later Joseph preached on “the folly of common stock,” the idea of the communal sharing of property, much discussed in that decade.

“Joseph accepted the economy of private property and individual enterprise. Even under the consecration of properties, individual stewards operated independently in a market economy, though they were obligated to return their “surplus” to the bishop.

Joseph Smith, Rough Stone Rolling, Richard Lyman Bushman, Page 502

So, Joseph seemed to learn from experience, but this did not stop Mormons under Brigham Young from experimenting with united orders where the group had all things in common. Predictably none of them succeeded and fell apart after a short time.

That said the question remains, which is this.

What kind of government or organization can be created that will be workable? What kind of government will allow for individual freedom, yet avoid breakdown from lack of structure?

This has been on the minds of many who have contemplated Zion.

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Eleven

Inspired Government

We have discussed elements of government that are undesirable in Zion or anywhere else. The question remains as to what is desirable, workable and in harmony with the will of God?

Now some say that hierarchy needs to be eliminated that people in Zion will be so enlightened and in communication with God that all citizens will just know their place and what to do at any given moment.

The problem with this idea is that it runs contrary to common sense, scripture and recorded history. Never in history has there been a successful city, state or nation that has not had a hierarchy.

Now the rebellion against the idea of hierarchy is understandable because it is the tendency of almost all governments in history to gravitate toward authoritarianism or totalitarianism.

On the other hand, rejecting hierarchy because of past abuse is like rejecting the use of money because it has been used for many destructive purposes in our history. Money is a neutral power that can be used for good or evil and many us it for good purposes from building libraries, feeding and housing our families, spreading goodwill etc.

The same can be said for hierarchy. The power behind it can be used for good or evil. Hierarchy in government and the military enabled us to defeat Hitler as well as establish the free nation of the United States with Washington in charge.

The Book of Revelations makes it clear that there is hierarchy in heaven with God in charge and Christ under him. Under them are the twenty-four elders and numerous angels.

Jesus acknowledged, “my Father is greater than I.” John 14:28 The fact that Jesus was subject to one higher than him is evident from many scriptures:

“Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.” John 4:34

This famous scripture foresees a future government or hierarchy with Christ in charge:

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.” Isa 9:6-7

Now some may agree that eventually Christ will be our governor, but in the meantime we should not concern ourselves with any organized effort, but just wait on the Lord.

But those waiting for a new Moses to come off a mountain with great signs of fire and lightenings will be waiting in this world and the next. They will be equated with the man who buried his talent in the earth.

These people forget that we “should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness.” D&C 58:27

Yes, there are plenty out there that claim revelations telling us about the order of Zion, with them in charge, but none that make enough sense to bring people of goodwill together.

On the other hand, we should be able to agree on governing principles taught by the prophets, with gaps supplemented by some logic and common sense.

One thing solidly taught in LDS scriptures is that the Constitution was inspired and the government based on the United States Constitution was a step in the right direction. The revelation says:

“According to the laws and constitution of the people, which I have suffered to be established, and should be maintained for the rights and protection of all flesh, according to just and holy principles; That every man act in doctrine and principle pertaining to futurity, according to the moral agency which I have given unto him, that every man may be accountable for his own sins in the day of judgment.

“Therefore, it is not right that any man should be in bondage one to another. And for this purpose have I established the Constitution of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I have raised up unto this very purpose, and redeemed the land by the shedding of blood.” D&C 101:77-80

It is interesting that the principles of the Constitution were not created just for The United States, but to maintain “the rights and protection of all flesh.”

Further we are told:

“And now, verily I say unto you concerning the laws of the land, it is my will that my people should observe to do all things whatsoever I command them. And that law of the land which is constitutional, supporting that principle of freedom in maintaining rights and privileges, belongs to all mankind, and is justifiable before me.

“Therefore, I, the Lord, justify you, and your brethren of my church, in befriending that law which is the constitutional law of the land.” D&C 98:4-6

Thus we see that the rights and privileges of the Constitution “belongs to all mankind, and is justifiable…”

Joseph added this:

“Hence we say, that the Constitution of the United States is a glorious standard; it is founded in the wisdom of God. It is a heavenly banner; it is to all those who are privileged with the sweets of liberty, like the cooling shades and refreshing waters of a great rock in a thirsty and weary land. It is like a great tree under whose branches men from every clime can be shielded from the burning rays of the sun. … We say that God is true; that the Constitution of the United States is true; DHC 3:304

Then we are given this:

“Have mercy, O Lord, upon all the nations of the earth; have mercy upon the rulers of our land; may those principles, which were so honorably and nobly defended, namely, the Constitution of our land, by our fathers, be established forever.” D&C 109:54

The prayer here is that the principles of the Constitution should “be established forever.”

Does this mean that the Constitution is perfect as written? No. It was created through fallible men, but according to the scriptures the basic principles in it are inspired. Joseph Smith did indicate one flaw. He said:

“Although it provides that ail men shall enjoy religious freedom, yet it does not provide the manner by which that freedom can be preserved, nor for the punishment of Government officers who refuse to protect the people in their religious rights, or punish those mobs, states, or communities who interfere with the rights of the people on account of their religion. Its sentiments are good, but it provides no means of enforcing them. It has but this one fault. Under its provision, a man or a people who are able to protect themselves can get along well enough; but those who have the misfortune to be weak or unpopular are left to the merciless rage of popular fury.” DHC 6:57

What Joseph is saying here is that the Constitution is inspired and the principles are just, but corrupt leaders can abuse their power and negate the freedoms we are supposed to have. When this happens we have little power to correct the situation.

Within the United States we see that our leaders and judges often defy the Constitution. We also see even more egregious examples in some third world countries that have many principles of the Constitution incorporated in their own documents, yet rule as if it were a lawless dictatorship.

So how can more power of correction be applied to a government to insure that Zion will not suffer corruption? In addition, how can we use these principles to insure that any gathering of the pure in heart will be free to live Zion principles? That is the next subject of contemplation.

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Twelve

Ingredients of Zion

We’ve talked about what will and will not work within a Zion society. Now let us concentrate on the positive. What are guidelines that should be incorporated into a Zion society?

The prophets have emphasized a number principles upon which we can build.

Perhaps the most important of all was sounded by Paul who said, “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” II Cor 3:17

Joseph Smith, who suffered tremendous persecution, increasingly stressed this principle for his life experience taught him of its great value.

Secondly, the principles of the Constitution are endorsed by the scriptures, especially those that protect our freedoms.

Thirdly, a Zion society should provide maximum free will incentive to take us toward oneness, spiritual consciousness, brotherly love, equality and abundance for all. Jesus expressed the goal, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” John 10:10

Using these guidelines, along with the scriptures, let us present some essential ingredients that must exist as we take steps toward Zion.

(1) The seeker must realize that Zion will not be created in one giant step. Any great ideal that requires change in human thinking takes time to incorporate. The various steps must be adapted to the capacity of the people to assimilate.

For instance, it took the civilized world thousands of years to arrive at the consciousness that would allow a group of people to develop and be governed by the free principles of the Constitution.

Our next giant step is to move from a competitive society to a cooperative one. We must realize that effective cooperation takes time to establish.

(2) Maximum freedom would require the right balance of hierarchy, leadership and government. Leaders will do their part in freeing the citizens from being involved in too many details yet the people will have their say on important issues and who will lead them.

(3) The basic freedoms of the Bill of Rights need to be embraced with emphasis on free speech, freedom of the press and freedom of assembly.

(4) The principles of Zion must be presented to the world so that like-minded thinkers will be attracted to gather under its banner. Those attracted to Zion will come from many different spiritual backgrounds.

(5) Instead of relying on taxes Zion will operate from free will offerings and donated labor. A10% tithe would be expected, but other free will offerings will be encouraged.

(6) The poor will be assisted but they are not entitled to a free lunch. This principle is laid out in the scriptures:

“Thou shalt not be idle; for he that is idle shall not eat the bread nor wear the garments of the laborer.” D&C 42:42

“For you know that you ought to imitate us. We were not idle when we were with you. We never accepted food from anyone without paying for it. We worked hard day and night so we would not be a burden to any of you. We certainly had the right to ask you to feed us, but we wanted to give you an example to follow.

“Even while we were with you, we gave you this command: ‘Those unwilling to work will not get to eat.’ Yet we hear that some of you are living idle lives, refusing to work and meddling in other people’s business. We command such people and urge them in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and work to earn their own living.” II Thess 3:7-12 New Living Translation

Those who are in need can expect help as long as they are willing to give back as they are able.

(7) Like attracts like. A core group of people who are sensitive to the Spirit and willing to follow it must be gathered. Joseph spoke well when he gave this advice:

“If we start right, it is easy to go right all the time; but if we start wrong we may go wrong, and it will be a hard matter to get right.” DHC 6:303

If we start with a good core group that is a living link between heaven and earth then the desired end will become possible.

For ideas concerning a step toward Zion check out this link:

LINK1

For information on creating a core group to link heaven and earth read The Molecular Relationship. Here is the link for the free book.

LINK2

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Thirteen

Unique Creations

There is one thing that most planned social or spiritual communities have in common that cause great repulsion to many high quality individuals.

And what is that?

It is sameness.

Take a look at the Amish, breakoffs from the LDS, such as Warren Jeff’s FLDS bunch and other fundamentalists, cults such as the Branch Davidians that went up in flames and various new age compounds.

Many of them have such similar dress and hairstyles that it is difficult to tell them apart.

Many are indoctrinated with the same material and discouraged or prohibited from learning anything from the outside evil world.

Many are forced to eat the same food and are restricted as to what they can drink.

Many insist on eating together in a common area.

Many restrict access to entertainment and only that which is approved by authorities is allowed.

There are an excessive number of rules to create uniform behavior patterns.

Many of them are against using modern technology and its advances.

Most of them have an authority figure at their head that must be obeyed or members will be shunned or excommunicated.

This extreme drift toward sameness occurring in planned experiments in equality and sharing is abhorrent to most spiritual or intelligent people – the type that is needed to build the real Zion.

It is no wonder that those close to the Spirit, though they may seek spiritual unity, embrace the uniqueness of each individual and feel encouraged to explore it.

And is it any surprise that this is the case? To understand all we have to do is look at the creations of God. Did the Supreme Power create sameness or diversity?

Creation is full of wonderful and beautiful diversity. Just as each snowflake is different so is each person, each flower, each animal, each planet, solar system and galaxy. If sameness was the goal of the Creator then all the planets and stars would be the same.

Just look at the difference between the earth and the moon as an obvious example. Or look through a telescope and see the difference between Saturn and the Earth.

When considering the virtues of individual and diverse interest and expression the question which arises is this. Can we have a society which allows the freedom of the individual to pursue his destiny, yet still attain the necessary unity and equality needed for a Zion society?

The answer is a resounding yes for unity is a much different thing than sameness.

My wife and I are a good example. We are united on accepting spiritual principles, yet as people we are very different. We accept and often enjoy those differences and do not let them interfere with the important aspects of spiritual unity.

In our spare time she loves to devour health related books whereas I concentrate on alternative spiritual ones. This lack of sameness does nothing to interfere with unity as sharing diverse knowledge is beneficial to both of us.

Just take a look at the solar system for a great example of unity, wherein also is expressed great diversity and uniqueness.

Each planet, asteroid, comet and moon is very different from each other yet the system as a whole has a unity that hums away through the ages.

Taking this into consideration what will a Zion society look like that has a unity, yet allows for tolerance.

The most important quality that will exist in such a society will be the realization that there will be a minimal number of rules and regulations. The reason is expressed in this scripture: “I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts” Jer 31:33

Those with a degree of enlightenment know what is the appropriate behavior and do not need a large list of rules to govern their lives. They do not need to be told what to wear, what to eat, which movies to see or music that is acceptable.

Joseph Smith seemed to realize this near the end of his life for he said:

“I also spoke at length for the repeal of the ordinance of the city licensing merchants, hawkers, taverns, and ordinaries, desiring that this might be a free people, and enjoy equal rights and privileges, and the ordinances were repealed.” DHC 5:8

Behavior will be narrowed down to one thing: Practice harmlessness. Avoid those things which will harm yourself and others and focus on those that are beneficial to all.

Participants will avoid as much as possible the development of lists of what is harmful and what is not.

Of course, the citizens of Zion will not be perfect, and as it is in the process of creation there will be obvious harmful infractions that may have to be dealt with, but these will be things universally acknowledged to be harmful such as robbery or physical attack. Minor things such as difference in dress wlll not require laws and regulations.

Joseph commented on how to deal with harmful infractions:

“Advise your legislators, when they make laws for larceny, burglary, or any felony, to make the penalty applicable to work upon roads, public works, or any place where the culprit can be taught more wisdom and more virtue, and become more enlightened. Rigor and seclusion will never do as much to reform the propensities of men as reason and friendship. Murder only can claim confinement or death. Let the penitentiaries be turned into seminaries of learning, where intelligence, like the angels of heaven, would banish such fragments of barbarism.” DHC 6:205

If Zion can have a successful beginning where it creates an ensign of unity, yet allowing maximum individual freedom of activity and expression, then many who have been repelled by the numerous cult-like gathered groups would be attracted to this one.

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Fourteen

The Laborers in Zion

Many dream of Zion wonder what they can do to further its cause. Others figure they just need to sit back and wait for God or some prophet to tell them what to do as do the people in the LDS church, for example.

The church is gathering people into churches, similar to other religions, but it is not building communities and cities where Zion principles can be applied.

Joseph Smith said that, “We ought to have the building up of Zion as our greatest object.” DHC 3:390 and “without Zion, and a place of deliverance, we must fall.” DHC 2:52

Unfortunately, there is no place of deliverance at this time. If we had a major calamity there would be no place of refuge for a deserving people.

Revelation tells us to seek the cause of Zion:

“Now, as you have asked, behold, I say unto you, keep my commandments, and seek to bring forth and establish the cause of Zion.” D&C 6:6

Nephi warns us to not let the laborer in Zion perish:

“Wherefore, if they should have charity they would not suffer the laborer in Zion to perish. But the laborer in Zion shall labor for Zion; for if they labor for money they shall perish. II Nephi 26:30-31

Where are the laborers for Zion? We find none in the churches and the few claiming to be building Zion are in the cults merely seeking for power.

Indeed, in this time of world tension the need is here to remind the pure in heart that the call to build Zion has never been rescinded.

Since the call has never been rescinded and those believers who cease to labor for Zion are condemned (D&C 101:47-54 previously quoted) then all those who accept the concept as being in harmony with the will of God are under an obligation to continue to labor for Zion.

The question arises which is “What can we do?” After all, there is no recognized living prophet saying, “Thus saith the Lord,” telling us what to do next.

The simple answer is this. If you do not have new instructions take a look at the old instructions. Maybe seekers cannot find new instructions because they have been slack on fulfilling that which has already been given.

Taking all this into consideration what then can the sincere seeker after Zion do to re-establish himself as a laborer in Zion?

The laborer today is somewhat limited. Here is what is not readily available.

There is no land readily available on which to gather and build a city.
There are no Zion conscious people physically gathered that could provide a place of refuge for people of goodwill.
There is no significantly recognized ensign or standard lifted up under which the pure in heart can unite to create Zion.

The laborer in the vineyard must consider the limitations he is under and move forward to the best of his ability. After all, this is what Joseph had to do.

All the revelations concerning the building of Zion were given a few years after the church was formed. When the saints were driven to Illinois Joseph received confirmation that Nauvoo was a gathering place, but no new instructions on the creation of Zion. He had to go by what was already given and used his highest intelligence to more forward. He realized that the minds of the people were not prepared for the type of equality previously tried where attempts were made to have all things in common. Concerning this in Nauvoo he said:

“I preached on the stand about one hour on the 2nd chapter of Acts, designing to show the folly of common stock. In Nauvoo every one is steward over his own.”

DHC 6:37

There may be an ideal of common stock which could be lived if all people were perfect, but Joseph realized they were not and needed individual incentive. He therefore created a stewardship principle with responsibilities of private ownership. The people were much more compatible with this plan.

In addition to this he bought 20,000 acres of land in Iowa for a continuation of the gathering. This required no revelation; instead, Joseph used his own judgment in this expansion.

He also seemed to realize that there were many non Mormons who could make good citizens of Zion for concerning these new lands for gathering he said:

“I desire all the Saints, AS WELL AS ALL LOVERS OF TRUTH and correct principles, to come to this place as fast as possible, or [as rapidly as] their circumstances will permit,” DHC 4:178

He thus invited “all lovers of truth” Mormons and non-Mormons to gather to build Zion.

Today the laborers in Zion must follow in the footsteps of Joseph, take what was given in the past as a guide but take steps adapted to the capacity of people of goodwill with the realization that this is a step. If the laborers in the vineyard follow the highest they know and create a first step, then a second step will be given followed by a third until Zion will manifest in all its glory.

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Fifteen

What We Can Do

Since the commandment to build Zion has not been rescinded and is still in full force this question become paramount in the mind of a supporter of the principles therein: Exactly what is it that the voluntary laborers in the vineyard are supposed to do that heads in the direction of Zion?

First, let us look at what we cannot do because of limitations of the present world.

(1) We cannot invite all the world to gather to a certain place to build a city that can also be a refuge because no place of significance exists in the present world.

(2) Supporters of Zion cannot have their own civil government for all lands on the planet are ruled under some kind of external government.

Now some say this is just cause for doing nothing today and just wait for all governments to collapse. Then Zion will be built.

On the other hand, Joseph initiated the creation of Zion under a more abusive government than we have today. Governments today are worthy of criticism, but no state or national government in the United States have given an extermination order to eliminate an entire religion as did governor Boggs of Missouri.

In addition, Joseph taught that one of the purposes of the gathering to build Zion was to create refuge to protect the people in the event of a collapse, or the fall of Babylon, and if we did not do this we would fail in our purpose.

(3) There is no group of people who are united on what a laborer in Zion is supposed to do in present time. The current LDS church says the time is not ripe for any new gathering and the break-offs wander in the darkness of tyrannical rule, only accepting those who submit to the arm of flesh.

Some non-LDS gatherings are closer to Zion than anything related to the church, but lack the vision to implement its ideals. They are also very limited in the numbers they can assimilate.

(4) There is supposed to be an “ensign” lifted up that will attract the lights from all nations and there is nothing like this available. Just like the U. S. Constitution and a free government was an ensign that caught the attention of the world and attracted freedom-loving people, Zion will need a similar ensign that will attract the pure in heart. At present, no such ensign exists.

Considering these limitations the sincere seeker after Zion is still left wondering what he can do. One thing we do know for sure is that the principle of gathering is the core ingredient in establishing Zion. Without it, Zion cannot manifest.

Therefore, the first item the seeker needs to consider is exactly what he can do to assist in the gathering of those who have Zion in their hearts.

We already discussed a step that is available now and was actually predicted by the scriptures and that is the Internet. It is that great “net” predicted by Jesus and the superhighway predicted by Isaiah. On the Internet, in many places, are people gathered into groups to discuss every topic you can imagine. Fortunately, there are numerous spiritual groups composed of people of goodwill seeking to share ideas compatible with a Zion society.

Therefore, one definite step the laborer in Zion can take is to join some of these positive groups, share ideas and find others whose thinking is in reasonable harmony with his own. If he cannot find any then he can start his own group and send out his own “ensign” as a signal to which like minds can gather.

As it stands today there and many thousands of prospective inhabitants of Zion gathered together on the internet sharing ideas and ideals. The only thing that is lacking among them is a unifying ensign put forward which will pierce their hearts, brighten their hopes and excite their spirits to a degree that many will want to participate.

What could possible happen to attract the pure in heart to a new gathering?

To answer this question we can look at the past. What was the most successful gathering of all time and what caused it to happen.

Mormons would say that it was the gathering related to the teachings of Joseph Smith, but there was one before that which paved the way for the idea of Zion to even manifest.

And what was that?

It was the gathering of people from all nations of the world to the new land of America. Consider these questions:

What was it about America that drew others to gather there?

What was the ensign?

We have all heard the idea that history repeats itself. In the past we have had first a general gathering to America that was followed by a more specific gathering that was an attempt to build Zion.

If this cycle repeats then how do you suppose the corresponding events will manifest?

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Sixteen

To Save Rather Than Destroy

As noted in Part fifteen, the most successful gathering of all time was that which resulted in the drawing of people throughout the world coming to America, particularly, the United States. What then was the ensign that drew the people?

In the beginning, before the creation of the United States, the great draw was opportunity and greater freedom. There was a new land discovered offering people an opportunity to improve their physical lives, and there were also fewer restrictions giving a chance for more freedom which would improve the spiritual life.

After the Revolutionary War and the creation of the United States that ensign became emblazoned in the words of the Constitution forging a country offering such heretofore opportunity that the saying went abroad that “the streets were paved with gold.”

People from all over the world sold all they had and left friends and family in hope for a better life. We thus saw the lifting up of an ensign never before seen in the known history of the world.

Is it possible that we could have a repetition of such a significant event? If so, how could it happen?

The problem is that every square foot of inhabitable earth is claimed by some government of the world so there is no known new land to be colonized. The only new lands would be in outer space such as the moon or Mars. One of the best possibilities would be hollowing out an asteroid and creating an artificial world within it. Another possibility is building cities that orbit the earth. I am sure that different types of colonies will exist in different parts of the Solar System, but it will be some time before technology can make such things available, so we will put that one on the table for now.

Any gathering that is under the dominion of an existing government can have some spiritual value, but will not create the excitement that a new land could offer.

Is the possibility of a new land an impossible dream then?

No there are a number of possibilities.

There could be a great apocalypse, caused by nuclear war or some natural calamity that would destroy existing governments. If this happened survivors could gather and create a new system.

Believers in numerous religions have been waiting for this “fall of Babylon” for hundreds, and in some cases, thousands of years.

There are several problems with waiting for this prophecy to materialize before doing anything.

First, the prophecy was made 2000 years ago and still it has not occurred. Even if it is literally accurate it may be another thousand yeas before it may happen.

Secondly, the prediction may be interpreted incorrectly. Perhaps the fall of Babylon will be on a spiritual level rather than physical.

Thirdly, predictions can be reversed if the people change. The most notable example in the scriptures is the story of Jonah prophesying to Nineveh.

Jonah was told to go preach to Nineveh but he didn’t want to go there because the Nineveh people skinned people alive and they were really terrible people. So Jonah was terrified about the people in Nineveh that he tried to escape the mission. Then the Bible says that God caused a big fish to swallow Jonah and spit him on the shores of Nineveh. At that time he saw there was no way out so he decided to give the message very quickly and get out of there.

So he goes into Nineveh and says, “Forty days will not pass that fire will come down out of heaven and burn you all up. You guys are going to get what you deserve.” Then Jonah goes up on this mountain top where he could look down on Nineveh and wait for the forty days to pass because God told him that they had forty days.

The people in Nineveh got together and wondered if what he had said was true. “Maybe we ought to change our ways. We don’t want to be swept up by fire.” They actually believed him and asked God to forgive them. After the forty days passed the scriptures tell us that God decided to forgive them.

On the fortieth day Jonah was waiting and no fire came down out of heaven and he grumbled about it and said, “What’s the big idea God? You made me out to be a false prophet. I told these people that they would die in forty days but they aren’t dying!”

During the forty days a big gourd had grown up then died next to Jonah. God said, “Do you realize that you’re more concerned with that big plant that gave you shade than you are about these several hundred thousand people whose souls have been saved? Where are your priorities Jonah? You should be happy to be a false prophet.”

Obviously, God only wants to use destruction as a last resort and is willing to delay or reverse such directions. This is illustrated in the response of Jesus to a question from James and John.

A certain city refused entrance to Jesus and his disciples. James and John were somewhat irritated and said to their Master: “Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of Spirit ye are of. For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.” Luke 9:54-56

Numerous Christians do not realize what manner of Spirit they are for in their prayers many of them are praying for the day of fire when many of their neighbors would be destroyed. If they really want to follow Jesus they should seek to save rather than destroy those with differing beliefs.

Is it not obvious that God would much rather save his children rather than destroy them? Assuming this is true, what then could be in store for the laborers in Zion?

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Seventeen

The New Gatherings

It is a fact that everything goes in cycles including history. A cycle has a beginning, an end and then an interlude. After the interlude another cycle begins that has both similarities and differences.

In the recent past there have been two gatherings that point the people toward Zion.

The first was the gathering from throughout the world to the United States. The great draw or ensign was freedom and opportunity. Few came here with the idea of being closer to the Spirit but what was not realized is that those who are close to it have a great desire for freedom and making the best of opportunities offered.

Thus the United States became a net that drew in people of every kind, some of the best along with some of the worst.

Then came the second gathering initiated by Joseph Smith where they looked at the fish gathered by the great net and attempted to gather from it the good ones in harmony with the Spirit. The ensign there was enhanced spiritual life and new knowledge and revelation.

Both gatherings fulfilled a step, but the desired end result was not achieved in either one.

The United States is no longer an ensign for the freedom of the human spirit as too many laws, regulations, controls, drift from the Constitution, taxes and struggles for political power suffocate the original beacon of liberty.

Similarly, the LDS have completely abandoned the gathering principle, telling the people it will not happen until God speaks from another Mt. Sinai and tells them what to do.

For some time then we have been in the interlude, between cycles. We are fortunate that the time of a new cycle has already begun.

Like last time, this time there will be a general gathering for the sake of freedom and opportunity. Then from that net will be gathered those who are in harmony with Spirit.

The initial step of the first gathering has already occurred and that is the creation of the internet, the net which allows individuals of the same mind to gather in groups and communicate.

So, what is the next step? How can a new ensign of freedom be set up when every particle of inhabitable land is claimed by some restrictive government?

There are three possibilities.

(1) Gather within a current country, like the United States, where there is some freedom. Create communities with desirable living conditions occupied by good people that will attract others to join.

That which can be created here will be limited by the outside government which is in control, but such an effort is better than no effort at all.

The other two possibilities will require a significant investment by likeminded people. Correspondingly, those who laid the foundation of America made great investments and many obtained financial backing of investors who stayed behind.

(2) Buy large tracks of land in third world countries. If the investment were significant the group could make an arrangement with the government in charge to grant them autonomy so they could govern themselves.

And why would they do this?

They would do it if the benefit to them was significant which would be:

More prosperous people would be coming to their country and spending money there.
The gathering would be a tourist attraction bringing more visitors to the country who would spend money.
In addition, the group could offer a one time monetary amount for a guarantee of independence. If the one time deal doesn’t work a reasonable offer could be extended over a decade or two.
The group could offer to assist the native citizens in improving their lives.

The question which may arise is, What if the government doesn’t keep its agreement and decides it wants to confiscate the lands?

This is always a possibility, but the chances are that a betrayal would not happen for the first few years. Such an agreement would only be made when it was seen that there was sincerity on both sides.

Then, after a significant gathering takes place the inhabitants would be strong enough to defend themselves if some type of invasion occurred.

There are a lot of people thinking in the direction of an independent gathering, but do not have the strength in numbers to pull it off. On the other hand, if such an event did happen a new ensign would be lifted that would attract many in the scattered little groups who desire a better country and more freedom.

Once this gathering is accomplished by one group, others will follow. If the country involved benefits, then other third world countries will volunteer to be next in line.

Next we will look at the third option which is marvelous indeed.

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Eighteen

Zion Upon the Waters

As pointed out earlier there is not a square foot of inhabitable land that is not claimed by some country. No matter where prospective gatherers buy land they will be subject to some external government, unless they make a deal with a third world government.

The scripture says: “ye shall have no laws but my laws when I come…”

If this is true then the Zion that will be built just before the Second Coming will not be subject to any laws, but those that exist in Zion.

Now many believe Zion will have its own laws because there will be some type of world wide collapse and the willing will be able to start anew. However, believers have been waiting 2000 years for such an event and it has not happened. If we have to wait another thousand years then should we do nothing but wait for the day when the wicked shall burn as stubble?

The answer is no.

Why?

Because the command to build Zion is still in force just as much as the command to not steal. Why pick one commandment to obey and disregard another?

So, then, outside of colonizing space is there a third way to create communities with their own laws?

There is one that has been greatly overlooked. We forget that over two-thirds of the planet is covered by water and no nation has control of the high seas. Presently, the international waters are open to all.

Is it possible that part of the reason the planet is covered by so many international waters so that gathering places can be created in our time?

So, how will we gather upon the waters?

The answer is quite simple. We will build floating cities upon the seas. This came to me around thirty yeas ago and I couldn’t find anyone else who was thinking this direction. Since then I see many have picked it up and have placed significant funds into research and development of floating cities. Some designs are said to be hurricane proof and others are capable of moving to desirable new locations when needed.

The enterprise of building cities on the seas that will have their own governments even has a name. It is called “Seasteading.” Google the word and you will find much interesting information available.

Just like the first gathering of the last cycle to America was composed of a great variety of people so will the gathering on the seas. The first ones will not create Zion but will pave the way for “Zion upon the waters.”

Where have we heard that phrase before?

Here it is: “And it shall be said in days to come that none is able to go up to THE LAND OF ZION UPON THE WATERS, but he that is upright in heart.” D&C 61:16

The fact that Zion upon the waters must be built before Christ comes is foreshadowed in this scripture:

“Wherefore, prepare ye for the coming of the Bridegroom; go ye, go ye out to meet him. For behold, he shall stand upon the mount of Olivet, AND UPON THE MIGHTY OCEAN, EVEN THE GREAT DEEP and upon the islands of the sea, and upon the land of Zion.” D&C 133:19-20

When Christ comes we will go “out to meet him.” And where will we go? We will go to “the mighty ocean, even the great deep.”

And how will we do this? We will build cities on the sea in preparation for him and there we will have a place for him to stand upon the mighty ocean and teach his people.

So, then, in the coming cycle many will gather and build cities on the land and the sea. This will later be followed by cities under the sea and those that float in the air.

This new gathering will be like the net spoken of by Jesus that will draw in people of all sorts.

Then will come a gathering from the gathered to build the cities of Zion. This will not happen very quickly as hoped for by many believers.

Consider that we are over 2000 years away from the gatherings predicted in the Bible and it’s been almost 200 years since first taught by Joseph Smith and yet we do not have one established Zion society. Even so, many keep deluding themselves that all will happen within the next few years – its always just around the corner.

Seekers of Zion must start thinking of the long term, instead of expecting instant change engineered by God Himself.

We have been given the basic instructions concerning what Zion is supposed to be and God does not like to keep repeating Himself. It is up to us to take the ball and run with what we have before we can expect more.

THE ZION SOCIETY, Part Nineteen

Linking Heaven and Earth

There is one more possibility for a new land on which to build a new Zion society free of external control.

Within the next 150-200 years we can expect some fairly dramatic earth changes causing some major disruptions. Some existing lands will be submerged and others will rise. If, in the midst of such chaos, the Zion societies are prepared then they may be the only people ready to move to the new land ready to create a government there. I would suggest they call it “New America” since this would create gathering opportunity similar to the first America.

And why would the cities of Zion not be destroyed by the disruptions?

“And the earth helped the woman (Zion) , and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood (opposition) which the dragon (enemies of Zion) cast out of his mouth.” Rev 12:16

The earth is a living entity and decides to cleanse itself every now and then. When it does it preserves benevolent souls who are gathered and destroys those who are harmful to its life as mentioned in the scriptures:

“that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.” Rev 11:18

Periodically, the earth destroys them that cause destruction upon it, but will help and preserve those who are harmless as it is written:

“Wherefore, he will preserve the righteous by his power, even if it so be that the fulness of his wrath must come, and the righteous be preserved, even unto the destruction of their enemies by fire. Wherefore, the righteous need not fear; for thus saith the prophet, they shall be saved.” I Nephi 22:17

It will be a difficult yet rewarding path to the building of Zion and will take longer than most believers think. We must do more on our own of our own individual initiative than has been generally thought. God will not do for us what we can do for ourselves. When we do all we can on our own then we become deserving of divine assistance and not before.

In the meantime, what can one do who desires to be a laborer for Zion?

(1) He can study the various efforts being made, where free will is preserved, to gather and create a people of one mind.

(2) The believer needs to assess himself and ask himself if he feels a personal call to assist in the creation of Zion. If so, he must check with the Spirit to see what he should be doing in the immediate future.

(3) All who have Zion in their hearts need to be currently make an effort to communicate with others of a like mind to themselves and form relationships. In addition to doing this in the flesh, we now have the Internet to assist us in this endeavor. Then, when an obvious ensign is lifted, those who are ready will recognize it and respond.

To pave the way for a gathering of the pure in heart who are of one mind and heart a number of things must take place.

Outwardly, much of it will be done by freedom loving people who are not on any particular spiritual path. They will help pave the way for gatherings on the internet, on land and on the seas.

On a more spiritual level something that must take place will be the creation of a seed, or seed group that is capable of sprouting and growing into Zion. This seed group will correspond on a later turn of the spiral to the Twelve who were selected by Jesus, who on the day of Pentecost were so in tune to the Spirit that they were one mind and became linked to the Christ and the powers of heaven.

The seed group today will consist of not just twelve men, but twelve males and twelve females which correspond to the twelve ancient ones before the throne. (Rev 4:4) When such a seed group can be gathered and all see through the eyes of the Spirit and become of one mind and heart then a new Pentecost can happen and heaven and earth can be linked and Zion can have its true beginning in this cycle.

I have written an entire book explaining the principles that will enable a seed group to make this happen. It is called The Molecular Relationship and is available free HERE

“When the LORD shall build up Zion, he shall appear in his

glory.” Psalms102:16

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The Seeker’s Guide to Soul Contact, Part 22

June 30, 2018August 6, 2018 Joseph Dewey

Day 277

Toxins

The Seed Thought:

When negative emotions are dissipated our physical vehicles will vibrate in much greater harmony with nature and resulting disease will no longer consume us.

It has dawned upon the consciousness of humanity that a polluted physical environment, such as toxins in air, water and food, are detrimental to our health and well-being. Less realized is the effect of the toxins that invade our emotional thinking and feeling nature. These toxins often do more damage than the physical ones.

For instance, you will often see two family members who breath the same air, eat the same food and drink the same water, but one is healthy and the other is not.

Why is this?

Yes, it is true that there may be some other factors besides those affecting the emotional nature, but negative emotional implants are often a significant factor in the difference.

The problem with clearing the emotional self is that the most destructive negative emotions are often disguised as something positive. The most harmful emotions are grievances unexpressed, or not communicated, that fester in the victim until a disease will manifest. The victim often sees the suppression as a virtue because he is avoiding upsetting the sender of the offense.

Unfortunately, the grievance does not go away when suppressed but acts like boiling water in a teapot. The inward pressure keeps increasing until something gives. The victim either explodes and strongly expresses emotion or continues to hold it in and is sapped of vital energy leading to disease.

While those who suppress are in danger of congestive disease such as cancer, those who over react and strongly express emotion are in danger of inflammatory disease.

The seeker must reach a balance and find ways to express himself so a grievance is not held, yet maintain a degree of self control so he does not overreact,

He who holds his emotions in a state of balance and peace takes a major step toward good health. If he also avoids other pollutants and gets reasonable exercise and sunshine the chances of having good health for life are high.

Seed Thought for the Day:

Light can only reveal when a shadow is cast. If you are in space and look through millions of miles of the sun’s rays shining through the void, but with no duality from shadow, there is only blackness.

Much enlightenment can be found by reflecting on light itself.

Day 278

Revealing Light

The Seed Thought:

If you look up at the sky you will see many stars, but consider this. The light you see from a star has traveled trillions of miles through space without being seen until it hits your eyes. Between you and the star, the photons making up the light still existed, but did not reveal themselves until they lit on your eyes.

If you look up at the sky again, but between the stars, you will see only blackness. Yet a few miles above the atmosphere in that blackness there is a full spectrum of the sun’s rays with enough light to blind the eyes.

Why then do we see blackness instead of light?

Because light is that which reveals in this world of form and its effects cannot be seen unless form interacts with light. Form has contrast and contrast revealed by light create shadows, which makes our 3-D vision possible.

Now there are various types of shadows. A shadow on the moon which has no atmosphere is completely black having no light at all. A typical shadow on the earth only blocks out part of the light because of light refraction in the atmosphere. One could also say the light spectrum which can manifest any color from white light are shades or shadows of a complete light.

When we consider that light is that which reveals then we realize that light goes beyond the physical. Light is also that which reveals to the mind, or our understanding. Teachings that reveal are called enLIGHTened.

We realize our sense of physical sight is precious indeed. Perhaps we should place even more value on our more spiritual sense that perceives greater light and truth. The result of this higher light follows us after death and the results are more permanent.

The words of Solomon come to mind here:

“Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.” Proverbs 4:7

Today’s Seed Thought:

All symbols are neutral until someone interprets them and that interpretation gives them power.

Day 279

Symbols

The Seed Thought:

All symbols are neutral until someone interprets them and that interpretation gives them power.

If you were to attend a party and come across someone displaying a swastika on his shirt, what do you suppose the reaction of the guests would be?

They would be horrified and avoid the guy like the plague. If anyone did approach him it would most likely be to ask him to leave.

On the other hand, if you were able to go back in time, before World War II and attend such a function you would be in an era where the swastika was seen as a spiritual symbol, even used by the United States military and embraced in the artwork of American Indians as a positive symbol.

It was also in use representing good fortune by numerous European nations such as Denmark, Ireland, Finland and Poland.

Numerous ancient religions used the symbol, often representing divine activity of some sort. The word “swastika” itself comes from the Sanskrit and denotes “conducive to well being or auspicious”.

It is unfortunate that Hitler was able to take a symbol of positive meaning for millennia and alter its meaning in public consciousness to something repulsive, that may never be seen again in a positive light.

The pentagram is another symbol used for good and evil. Many place the five pointed s tar on top of their Christmas tree having nothing but positive feelings about this while others see the five pointed star, the pentagram as a satanic symbol.

Early Christians used it as a symbol of the five wounds of Christ while now they shun it and fundamentalists associate its use with Satanism.

It is difficult for a company or national movement to create a logo without someone accusing them of being in league with the devil because of some perceived hidden meaning.

Despite the fact that the meaning of symbols can be distorted to mean something good or evil – this does not distract from the fact that they can be intelligently deciphered and used as an extremely effective way of communicating.

For instance the Triangle represents the three aspects of the Trinity and the square represents the foundation of the New Jerusalem that links heaven and earth.

All shapes, like all letters of the alphabet, can be placed together to represent the good or evil in the mind of the one creating the message. The seeker must see the symbols in the context of their use and interpret them with judgment rather than in black and white.

Seed Thought of the Day

There is no first cause for cause and effect are eternal. There is only a first cause of a cycle of creation.

There is a lot of food for thought in this statement.

Day 280

First Cause

The Seed Thought:

There is no first cause, for cause and effect are eternal. There is only a first cause of a cycle of creation.

We have often heard philosophers and spiritual leaders speak of a “First Cause.” But when you think about it this cannot be a real event.

Consider this reasoning: If there was such a thing as a “first cause” then before this event there could have been no such thing as cause and effect. If there were no cause and effect then there would have been nothing in existence, not even God. If indeed God or any life exists then cause must also exist because all life creates cause and God would be no exception.

If cause and effect did not exist then there could be no first cause, for cause cannot come from no cause, and effect cannot exist unless there is first a cause.

There is no such thing as a first cause from an eternal perspective for cause and effect is eternal just as the One Great Life we call God is eternal. Lives, great and small, eternally create cause and effect and the natural law of cause and effect expand and enhance the life experience.

All things that have a beginning, including this temporary universe, had a first cause, and hence an ending effect, but before any first cause of the cycle of a planet, a galaxy or universe, there were previous causes.

Cause and effect is the prime law of the universe used by intelligence to create ends to the various cycles in which the good dominates over the evil.

Seed Thought of the Day:

The false teacher will seek to be fed by the sheep. The true teacher will seek to feed them.

This is a simple statement that seems to point out the obvious, but there is more truth here than meets the eye.

Day 281

Good and Bad Shepherds

The Seed Thought:

The false teacher will seek to be fed by the sheep. The true teacher will seek to feed them.

This problem of teachers, gurus, pastors, or, as the Bible calls them, “shepherds”, feeding themselves above assisting the followers is an ancient one. Here is an instance from Old Testament days:

“Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock. … I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them.” Ezekiel 34:4&10

Jesus also complained about this to the Jewish authorities:

“But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer.” Matt 23:13

Unfortunately, there is a built in temptation facing all those teachers in authority to feed themselves rather than the flock. After all, it is the tendency of the natural man to think of his own comforts above those others. There is also a tendency to see oneself as superior in intelligence and spirituality over the rank and file and thus more entitled to benefits.

If the teacher follows these natural tendencies (which many do) then he will wind up feeding himself above the flock. To pacify the flock he will promote himself as a great benefactor far beyond that which he deserves.

We have all encountered stories of preachers and gurus who have milked their followers of cash and used millions for their own luxury. Among Christians, Jim and Tammy Bakker were a prime example. Among gurus was the Bhagwan of the Rajneesh sect who boasted of owning 93 Rolls Royces while demanding sacrifice from followers.

Payment for the shepherds goes beyond material possessions. Some value prestige and praise above material possessions and seek to nourish their own ego above all else. Many develop a messiah complex and let their followers know in no uncertain terms that they are right up there with Jesus or Moses in importance.

Fortunately, there are a few teachers who have resisted the natural tendency, made soul contact, and have used the power of spiritual will to negate the natural inclination to inflate ego or pocketbook at the followers expense.

These see themselves as fellow travelers with their students and realize that helping them also helps themselves move forward and thus can sustain the moving forward of the group seeing oneself as being one in a chain linked together.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Because of wrong focus, the only way the soul can get our attention is through pain. He who suffers great distress must ask what Higher Intelligence is attempting to teach him.

Have you suffered great distress before? What did you learn from the experience?

Day 282

Right Focus

The Seed Thought:

Because of wrong focus, the only way the soul can get our attention is through pain. He who suffers great distress must ask what Higher Intelligence is attempting to teach him.

The key phrase in this thought is, “Because of wrong focus.” If our focus is where it should be and our attention is directed to listening to the inner voice then the soul will not have to use extraordinary measures to get our attention.

Unfortunately, it is the nature of us flawed human beings, even seekers of enlightenment, to take the easy path and listen to the outer voices over the inner.

Just imagine the choice the seeker has when his doctor tells him to take a certain drug or treatment that the Higher Self sees as destructive. Which voice is easier to register and speaks louder to his consciousness? If the doctor places great fear of health or even death in his mind then that creates a voice that calls the seeker to attention much more than the soul. To obey the voice of the soul in such a circumstance requires three things:

(1) The seeker must have heard the voice enough times to be aware when it is speaking.

(2) The seeker must have tested the voice in the past so he knows it is reliable.

(3) He must be willing to follow the voice.

If the soul attempts to communicate with the individual and he refuses to tune in and listen then the soul will withdraw and let him learn of his bad decision through the pain which will naturally occur because of his chosen path.

Then there are other times that the pilgrim reaches a point where a certain direction needs to be taken for him to learn his next lesson. The guy just is not paying attention and continues in his old familiar paths. Because this next step is necessary if he is to move forward in his progression the soul will speak as loudly as it can through the inner voice, through dreams and though signs appearing in his life.

Unfortunately, at one time or another, most of us go through a period where we just ignore all these attempts of the soul to communicate. When such a dead end is reached the soul then decides to apply more drastic measures. It may create an accident, a disease or painful personal situation that the seeker just cannot ignore. Even here many an individual does not get the point and continues in his old ways.

If this ignorance continues then the soul will tighten the screws even more until the pain increases to be almost unbearable. Finally the seeker will look up to the skies and exclaim in anguish, “Why, God!!!”

At this point the soul will see an opening and do its best to send a message.

If the seeker listens and responds he can then change direction (repent) and follow a path that will lead him away from the pain to the peace that passes all understanding.

If he continues to ignore the voice he is in danger of increased suffering while blaming God and rejecting all things spiritual and following a dark path.

Thus let the seeker be aware, listen and follow the voice that leads to progress and peaceful pastures.

Seed Thought of the Day:

There is no such thing as giving and getting nothing in return. There is always a return, but not always in kind.

Is it wrong to give with the thought of getting something back?

Day 283

The Karma Bank

The Seed Thought:

There is no such thing as giving and getting nothing in return. There is always a return, but not always in kind.

In the past when I have taught this principle some have replied that we shouldn’t even be thinking about such a thing. They criticize me for even bringing up this principle, as if it is wrong to think about it.

The truth is that it is never wrong to reflect on true principles, even though that truth may be offensive to some. Truth is never offensive when it is understood and placed in its right perspective in relation to the whole.

Should we only give because we will get some material benefit?

Of course not. If all only gave when a physical return is immediate or obvious then no one would give blood, we wouldn’t give to charities and no one would help the homeless and the hungry.

Do we need a selfish motive in order to give?

No.

Do we need a motive?

Of course. We do nothing without first being motivated.

So what is the motive for those who sacrifice time or money to help others?

Basically it is because it is the right thing to do.

And why are we motivated to do the right thing?

Even when we examine this answer we come back to self interest. Here are some answers to that question.

(1) The God of my religion demands generosity and if I do not assist others I may go to hell or at best offend God.

(2) I feel guilty if I do not help others in need. Giving makes me feel better.

(3) Being a big giver increases my status with associates.

(4) Giving makes everything better for everyone including myself.

There is some interest in every decision we make, even if it is merely expressed in the good feeling we receive, vs. a bad feeling if we turn away a plea for help.

So, if we give – is all we can expect back is a good feeling about it?

No. There is a universal law of cause and effect. The good feeling you get from giving is a bonus. In addition to this your giving creates ripples in the waters of karma that builds up momentum and brings back to you benefits in life when you need them. If you give $100 you may not receive back exactly that amount, but someone may stop and help you when your car breaks down and the help will be worth more than $100 in your mind.

It is a scientific fact that a cause must produce effect. It helps the seeker to understand that his good works are like putting money in the bank of karma. If he understands this he can lose himself in giving, not worry about the payback, but realizing that he is laying the foundation of a happy existence for himself and others.

Seed Thought of the Day:

The most common misuse of authority lies in making you think you are not being manipulated when you are totally manipulated.

Have you been, or are you currently being manipulated?

Day 284

Groupthink

The Seed Thought:

The most common misuse of authority lies in making you think you are not being manipulated when you are totally manipulated.

How can one be controlled and manipulated yet be totally oblivious to what is occurring? It happens much more often than you may think.

The mob mentality is the most obvious example. If a mob gathers that starts fires, breaks windows and overturns cars it will gather many people gleefully joining with the bedlam who are otherwise peaceful. On their own they would not consider breaking the window of a struggling business, but when identifying with the mob this suddenly seems like a good idea.

This mob mentality extends on a number of levels to everyday humans and even influences us toward benevolent activity as well a malevolent. For instance, an individual may have no inclination to give to a certain charity, but when he finds out that all his friends are giving to it he decides to join the crowd and also give.

This mob mentality expressing itself through acceptable channels is often called “groupthink.” Overseeing groupthink are always a handful of decision makers at the top who decide that which is acceptable for the group to embrace. This is handled in such a way that the individual believes he is thinking his own thoughts when he is really following implanted instructions. If the implants were something different his thinking would also be different, but to this he is oblivious.

For instance. a member of a church or political party may think he independently embraces all their ideology when he is actually responding to implants that tell him what to think.

This reminds me of a time a friend asked a true blue Mormon what he thought of a concept not covered by standard Mormon doctrine. The guy appeared somewhat confused and finally responded:

“I’m not sure, Let me check with my Bishop to find out what I think.”

Now that is an honesty that you do not get everyday, but this subtle attitude occurs in all groupthink. This is illustrated in amusing interviews circling around where the subject is asked what he thinks of (a politician he likes) statement on a subject. He is then given a quote from the guy he hates, but totally accepts and defends it. This also works in reverse.

Instead of thinking for himself the unwitting subject is just a foot soldier for the acceptable guy, right or wrong.

The seeker must continually check with his thinking process to make sure he arrives at conclusions through his own reasoning rather than an implant from someone else.

Today’s Seed Thought:

You are intelligence in matter, which is your body. It is logical then that the body we call Earth correspondingly has great intelligence manifesting through its elements.

Use the Law of Correspondences discussed earlier to see where it takes you here.

Day 285

Intelligence In Matter

The Seed Thought:

You are intelligence in matter, which is your body. It is logical then that the body we call Earth correspondingly has great intelligence manifesting through its elements.

The most common view of God is that He/She/It is a living Spirit that exists everywhere in the universe. In other words, God is omnipresent. Some type of omnipresence is taught by most any religion that can be found.

The seeker needs to follow this idea of omnipresence to its ultimate conclusion, which is this.

If God is omnipresent then Its life dwells within the form of a galaxy, a sun, a planet, a human, a cell or an atom.

Yet many scientists disagree and tell us that there are just two types of matter – organic and inorganic. The earth is mostly inorganic and the other planets seem to be 100% inorganic so the idea that they an house any type of inherent life is not scientific. They say that matter itself does not have consciousness.

You don’t say.

Are you not in a physical body made of all types of matter?

Do you have consciousness?

Then, are you not an example of consciousness in matter?

Therefore, if consciousness can exist at one place in matter then is there any reason that it cannot exist in other places, like a planet or sun or instance?

Then among organic life forms we see that life operates in different time frames. When photographing plants using time lapsed photography we see that plants move in various directions depending on outside stimuli, similar to a way that a human might, but at a different reckoning of time.

Is it not possible then that the life and consciousness of a planet, or the universe itself, is centered in a different rate of time? For instance, some esoteric thinkers tell us that a heartbeat for earth takes about 25,000 years. If we could do super time-lapse photography for the earth or solar system we may be surprised at the conscious life that would be revealed.

I submit that the life of God is indeed omnipresent and life is everywhere, even in what is called inorganic matter.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Eat too much unnatural processed food and get unnatural manmade problems and disease.

For the next section in this series (Part 23) go HERE.

Links for the first 21 sections of this series.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19, Part 20, Part 21

Index for Older Archives in the Process of Updating

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The Seeker’s Guide to Soul Contact, Part 21

June 26, 2018July 2, 2018 Joseph Dewey

Day 257

Your Greatest Teacher

The Seed Thought:

The person in your life who irritates you the most is your greatest teacher.

There is a lot of profound meaning behind this seed thought.

Many seekers see their ideal teacher as a kindly older man or woman who gently prodded them onward toward success, but if you ask someone about the point in their life where the greatest lesson was learned you will usually receive an alternate view.

The greatest lessons in life are often learned from:

(1) A bad marriage

(2) A betrayal

(3) Someone who deceived you.

(4) A co-worker or friend who is obnoxious.

Yes, we can learn useful knowledge from a wise teacher, but the great learning in life comes from lessons in handling actual life experiences. Nice, friendly and loving people do not teach us many lessons, but negative people are great at it. Here are a few:

(1) Patience. How can you learn patience unless you deal with contentious people that require us to practice it?

(2) Forgiving nature. No forgiveness is required toward a kind and loving teacher, but we have all met the person who tests our forgiveness mode to the limit.

(3) Love. Jesus explained this well when he said,

In other words we learn true love through showing love to difficult people.

Generally we are not thankful for such negative people, but, realistically, maybe we should be.

Today’s Seed Thought:

Today we’ll present two seed thoughts since they are related:

99% believe they are thinking out of the box while less than 1% do.

Those who believe they are thinking out of the box usually just move to a different spot within the box.

What is the box?

Day 258

The Box

The Seed Thought:

99% believe they are thinking out of the box while less than 1% do.

Those who believe they are thinking out of the box usually just move to a different spot within the box.

The first point to be considered is, what is meant by “the box”? In common usage thinking outside the box represents original thinking that is outside the mainstream.

Actually what is called “the box” is very near to what is called the ring-pass-not in Ancient Wisdom. The ring-pass-not basically represents the limit to one’s consciousness. In other words, it represents a limit of the seekers function, beyond which he is unable to see or understand.

The box does not represent an individual ring-pass-not, but a group or humanity as a whole or kind of a representation of the whole. This means that there are many whose thinking is in the box, but a few who can see beyond it.

As far as scientists go the box excludes the idea that God or any type of Divine Intelligence had anything to do with creation and life. The box for religious believers would be the opposite.

As far as humanity goes the box excludes the idea that we have ever been visited by aliens. Making any assumption on this happening is beyond the ring-pass-not of many.

Then there are boxes beyond the consciousness of perhaps the 99% mentioned, such as the existence of the Masters of Wisdom or that we have a Higher Self that assisted in the creation of this world and life within it.

No one likes to believe his thinking is constrained by the box, but many who think they are being original are just repeating what someone else has said. Breaking though the box and making real progress is difficult and takes great effort.

Edison thought out of the box when he envisioned the light bulb. The Wright Brothers did also when they inwardly knew they could fly as the birds. Let us always attempt to see where the box is and move beyond it.

Seed Thought of the Day:

When awakened from sleep the dreamer still exists but with greater awareness than before. Then at death we wake again to a greater more real existence.

Can you see how this thought aligns with the Law of Correspondences?

Day 259

Awakening

The Seed Thought:

When awakened from sleep the dreamer still exists but with greater awareness than before. Then at death we wake again to a greater more real existence.

When you see that a teaching is in harmony with the Law of Correspondences you can rest assured there is some truth there. However, the full truth is not found in an exact black and white correspondence for various levels have differences as well a similarities. To see the full truth requires the use of intuition.

When we look at the similarities of the two levels there does seem to be valid correspondences. Many spiritual teachings tell us that we have a higher self and that we as individuals are a partial reflection of it. And what happens when we dream? Our dreams are a partial reflection of our human consciousness. We are partly in the dream but not all there. For instance, the dreamer does not normally realize that:

(1) He is dreaming and his real self lives in another world.

(2) He doesn’t seem to have power to view things logically.

(3) Odd happenings do not make him realize he is dreaming.

Now just as a handful are capable of lucid dreaming even so a handful are aware that we have a higher self in reality and not just theory.

It would be productive for the seeker to contemplate the difference in consciousness between the self when it is asleep and then awake. Then shift consciousness to comparing our consciousness now to what it will be when we awaken after death. Thinking on this brings some interesting enlightenment.

Seed Thought of the Day

One act of helpfulness shows more love than a thousand prayers.

Day 260

The Act of Doing

The Seed Thought:

One act of helpfulness shows more love than a thousand prayers.

The idea here was well expressed in the parable of the Good Samaritan as follows:

Jesus said: A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead.

A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.

But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him.

The next day he took out two denar and gave them to the innkeeper. “Look after him,” he said, “and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.”

“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

Luke 10:30-37 NIV

Now there is nothing wrong with prayer or positive thoughts, but if thought is not followed up with correlating action then the thought or prayer was based on illusion and does not represent the real intent of the thinker.

Many do not examine their thoughts and prayers to see if they really match their intent. If they do not then they are not real thoughts and will not produce the literal results represented by their group think words.

A thousand prayers that do not represent the true thinking that will be followed by no action has less power than one solid action of helpfulness. Such an action represents true thought, true prayer and true intent to be of service.

Today’s Seed Thought:

True humility is recognizing your proven abilities and acting accordingly.

Day 261

True Humility

The Seed Thought:

True humility is recognizing your proven abilities and acting accordingly.

A common idea of humility is that of a person who downplays his talents, but this idea sometimes reveals that the humility is based on illusion instead of reality.. We can call this false humility the pool shark syndrome.

The poll shark enters a room where he is an unknown quantity and acts like a simpleton who knows little about pool. He manages to get involved in some playing, but doesn’t show his skill and acts like a novice. He performs this act until he or a partner place a huge bet on him to win. Then when it really counts he shows his skill.

As it turns out the humility thing with him was an act designed for his benefit in the end.

So how does this pool shark syndrome work out in ordinary life? We see it quite often when you join a friend or associate and participate in some performance that requires skill and the guy indicates to you that he isn’t much good at it, but then when you get playing or performing he is much better at it than expected, perhaps better than you, making you feel a little humiliated, being bested by a supposed amateur.

The natural inclination here is to hurl compliments his direction, to which he will smile and reply with an “aw shucks” attitude.

Unrealized by many who have dealt with this type of person is that he performs because there is something in it for him. For the pool shark it is money, but for false humility it is praise. It gives the actor a high to be seen as performing way beyond expectations.

What is true humility then? True humility uses no deception, but acknowledges what is. If you are a good golfer you do not pretend to be a novice, but neither do you present yourself as greater than you are.

Of course, the most common perception of lack of humility is the guy with some talent who shoves it in your face. This is very obnoxious and is registered by most everyone.

Here are a few rules for one with talent in presenting himself.

Do not present yourself as having greater or lesser ability than you have.
Only talk about your talent when appropriate and appreciated by the listener. A good time is when it blends into the conversation.
Never project the thought “I am great and you are not.” This is easy to do when the ego gets out of control. If you are a good golfer you might say something like:

“I put a lot of time into improving my game and it’s starting to pay off.”

This approach doesn’t project superiority, for if any of us puts in a lot of time we can develop a skill.

Watch your internal ego. If you feel superior, that feeling will be communicated on some subtle level and will not be appreciated. One with a skill that has true humility will appreciate his or her skill, desire to be of service, but will realize that others can be just as good as himself of they put in the needed effort.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Even the hardened atheist will sense the presence of Divinity when witnessing the birth of his or her own child.

Is this a true statement? Why or why not?

Day 262

The Great Miracle

The Seed Thought:

Even the hardened atheist will sense the presence of Divinity when witnessing the birth of his or her own child.

Long before we knew of the complexities of the human body, the cell, or the DNA all humans marveled at the miracle of birth, especially of their own children. Particularly impressive is the first child, not because it is the most special as a individual, but because it is an initial demonstration of a miracle of which you are a participant.

We tend to overlook the miracle of life when we are in its midst and it is so ubiquitous, but actually witnessing your child’s birth hones down the attention to the miracle behind the birth of each of those lives.

In Darwin’s day the cell was thought to be a mere blob of nebulous protoplasm. It would be interesting to see how his theories would have been affected if he had understood its complexities.

Newton, considered the greatest scientist of all time, marveled at the complexity of the human eye and concluded that this proved that a Divine Intelligence was at work.

Through the study of the complexities of life scientists have been able to make many discoveries that have been useful to humanity. On the other hand, they have found life so complex that they have not been close to duplicating the intricacies behind it. Despite all the advances in computer technology they have not been able to duplicate the computer power of a single strand of DNA.

Now imagine how much easier it is to copy something than creating it? When scientists duplicate something in nature they think they have done something great, but this accomplishment is nothing compared to an original creation that is not a copy, which implies real creative thinking.

Many inclined toward atheism negate all the evidence of an obvious Divine Intelligence behind the tremendous complexities of life, but even the most hardened unbeliever embraces a special feeling of a miracle beyond understanding when watching his or her own child come to life.

Those who recognize a Divine Hand will cherish that memory throughout their life, whereas the one who refuses to give credit where it belongs will have to shove that great spiritual moment into a black hole of his own creation.

Seed Thought of the Day:

He who takes offense when no offense is intended is the one creating the problem.

There are many who would benefit through the contemplation of this thought.

Day 263

Neutralizing Offense

The Seed Thought:

He who takes offense when no offense is intended is the one creating the problem.

Have you ever offended another inadvertently, having no intention to hurt any feelings? Most people of goodwill have had this happen a number of times.

Often the offense occurs because the message was not correctly understood. Then the speaker tries to correct the communication and clarify that no harshness was intended. But instead of accepting the clarified communication the individual’s consciousness reverts back to the original words and his original negative interpretation. He may say something like, “But you said…”

The strange thing the quote is often not accurate. It will generally reflect what he felt you said rather than what you actually said. It makes you wish you had a recording of the conversation so you could vindicate yourself.

Actually, a recording does not help much for this type of distorted quoting happens on the internet where there is a full recording and the offended one will still insist you said what you did not say.

What he felt you said is what he believes and nothing seems to change his mind.

In this situation the root of the problem lies not with the speaker who means no offense, but the one taking offense.

An extremely important step toward soul contact is the obtaining of the ability to neutralize your emotional self to the disturbance of your peace because of the offensive statements from others. This includes offensive statements where offense is intended.

Once the person takes offense the lower emotions become the focus of attention and the peace necessary to commune with the soul evaporates. The seeker must learn to instantly forgive, or better yet, view the problem as something which needs no forgiveness because the offender just does not know any better. He could be seen as a mad dog trying to bite you because he is just painfully lashing out. You do not hate the dog, but feel sorry for it and stay out of its way if necessary.

Seed Thought of the Day

Where you witness humor that makes people of all beliefs laugh, there you see light.

What is the link between humor and light?

Day 264

Humor – Light and Dark

The Seed Thought:

Where you witness humor that makes people of all beliefs laugh, there you see light.

There is duality in all things in this world and humor is no exception. There is humor generated by shining light on a subject that all can appreciate and then there is dark humor based on mean spirited and often distorted attack. The light humor is based on an element of truth presented in a unique fashion. The dark is based on attacking perceived enemies and may contain no truth at all but merely appeals to their base desires.

In the old days political humor was fairly light from both sides. Will Rogers was a Democrat but his humor was appreciated by all. So it was with Bob Hope, a Republican, who was universally appreciated.

In this generation we have a divide that has taken us into dark humor. The humor from the right is only appreciated by the right and humor from the left is only appreciated by the left. Few are even making the attempt to create political humor that can be universally appreciated.

About the only jokes appreciated by both sides are those making fun of Congress as both sides rate the institution low. Here is an example:

“A stopped clock is right twice a day. That is twice as reliable as Congress.”

On the other hand, both sides have made jokes comparing the president of the opposing party to Hitler and Nazis. That is not funny and insulting to those who voted for him. Such mean spirited humor has little relation to truth as none of our presidents have been much like Hitler. Those making such accusations need to study history.

Those on the path of light and soul contact will reject humor that is not based on universal truth but will cultivate humor that all can appreciate. Of course, there are always a few who are easily offended and do not like any humor outside of the parameters of “Leave it to Beaver” or their own mindset on purity. People on the path of light are flexible and roll with the punches as long as humor is in good fun.

Remember that person back in grade school that made the class laugh and tried the patience of the teacher? We generally remember him or her with fondness because of the monotony that was broken and perhaps an original thought thrown in the mix.

Where do you suppose that person is now? Probably enjoying a great life and having the last laugh.

Here is a parting thought on humor:

It is impossible to feel hate, anger or despair in the midst of laughter from harmless humor.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Truth is my religion, reason is my politics, love is my God, freedom is my sword and light is my path.

Sounds like a good motto. Does it apply to you?

Day 265

A Positive Creed

The Seed Thought:

Truth is my religion, reason is my politics, love is my God, freedom is my sword and light is my path.

Here we have idealistic statements from which any seeker can benefit from applying them in his life.

(1) “Truth is my religion…”

Many seekers are members of a church but one who is true to himself will follow truth when the religion takes the path of error. In other words, his true religion is not founded on the decrees of an organized body but by truth that is verified by his own soul. Sometimes that which he finds to be true will be found in a religion and sometimes not.

(2) “Reason is my politics…”

We live in a generation where much that is happening in politics defies reason. Some seem to be making unreasonable arguments just to further their agenda.

Much political progress could be made if the politicians would make truth and reason their priorities rather than doing anything necessary to insure their side wins. Without reason and truth as a standard the people will lose every time.

(3) “Love is my God…”

Every believer says that God is loving, but then when you hear them speak of what God is going to do to those who merely do not believe as they do it is obvious that many believe in a mean God.

On the other hand, Jesus told us that God has better things in store for us than parents do their own children which would mean that He will go the extra mile in helping us.

With each breath the seeker should believe in the love and goodness of Divine Life.

(4) “Freedom is my sword…”

Freedom is an extremely important principle and is that which creates the dividing line between light and dark. The wise seeker will live and let live and have faith that others will learn from their mistakes without having to be forced to obey the ideal of apowerful authority.

I have written a lot about this principle and would advise seekers to check them out.

(5) “Light is my path…”

Those in darkness cannot even see the path ahead so the seeker must do all in his power to seek and embrace the light which is available. If he does this while moving forward more light will come and the path ahead will be clear.

Seed Thought of the Day:

“Who do you think you are?” is a mantra from the dark side to discourage the seeker.

How is this statement used to discourage those from progressing along the Path?

Day 266

A Dark Mantra

The Seed Thought:

“Who do you think you are?” is a mantra from the dark side to discourage the seeker.

All things in this realm require some degree of judgment to maintain accuracy and this thought is no exception. There are times when the question, “Who do you think you are?” may not be too far off the mark to ask.

For instance, I met a guy a while back who claimed to have the power to teleport himself from one part of the planet to another. Now if someone listening would have asked him who he thought he was, he would have been somewhat justified.

On the other hand, I have never asked someone this question in my life because incorporating it is a favorite tactic of the dark side to cause seekers to doubt themselves.

Even if the guy was a charlatan he could have stated that he was a son of God and could manifest all the powers of heaven right here on the earth. If he had said this he would have been stating a truth, even though many merely pretend such manifestations.

I didn’t sense any positive spiritual affirmation about the guy and felt he was deceived about his own abilities so I asked him to describe a specific teleportation event and how it came to transpire. He evaded answered or giving any details by telling me that I was not ready to hear about it.

I then asked him that if I was not ready then why did he bring the subject up?

He had no answer.

Instead of challenging who he was or any potential he may have I asked for details. Sincere inquiry is the approach of the light whereas attacking potential with a “who do you think you are?” attitude is the approach of the dark.

I first discovered this dark mantra through a powerful supernatural experience that temporality made me doubt myself. It is very liberating to the seeker when this tactic is seen for what it is so the way can be cleared from him or her to move onward into the light and fully accept all the Divine gifts of love and light that is just waiting to be accepted.

When the Seeker hears the question, “Who do you think you are” from either an outside or inside source he needs to realize that the thought is coming from a darkened mind that does not want you to take your next step into the light. Ignore this voice and tune into the voice of your Higher Self. It will tell you, that yes, you have unlimited potential and all things are possible and will let you know whether you are ready for the next step under contemplation and what you must do.

Seed Thought of the Day:

True inclusiveness looks far beyond skin color to the hearts of people of all beliefs to find common threads to bring them together without infringing on free will.

In this generation of political divide how can this thought guide us toward greater union?

Day 267

Inclusiveness

The Seed Thought:

True inclusiveness looks far beyond skin color to the hearts of people of all beliefs to find common threads to bring them together without infringing on free will.

If all people were of the same race would the division and animosity of humanity be healed?

The answer from all thinking people to this question would be no

There are many obvious examples of great conflict where those of the same race had as much or more conflict than manifests in different races.

During World War I and II the war in Europe consisted the same race battling out their differences. When the Japanese entered World War II they also invaded China and warred against fellow Asians.

The great American Civil War put brother against brother and white guy against white guy because of political and moral differences.

Native Americans had plenty of tribal wars between their own race and practiced slavery before the white guy showed up.

The root cause of conflict is in the mind rather than external differences. When external things like race enter in it is a mental interpretation of the differences, which create the problem. Those who see all humanity as brothers and sisters do not contribute to the problem because their thinking is on the side of inclusiveness.

Despite our problems, humanity has made a lot of progress in the direction of inclusiveness during the past few centuries. Most people at least try to see all humans as fellow pilgrims as themselves just struggling to get along the best they can.

Today many attacks of racism are really attacks on different modes of thinking that have little to do with race, for the cause of conflict is always a difference in thinking. People tend to label those differences in the most demonic way possible for their own advantage.

To solve the conflicts today we must look at the internal cause rather than the external and internal mindset is the cause of division today more than in any other age of recorded history.

The tendency is to categorize and reject our fellow humans who merely disagree with us on religion, politics, science, medicine and other matters. If a greater effort were made to see how an opposing view was arrived at and to allow others to have differing opinions without condemning them much progress can be made.

Another step we can take is to honor the laws passed by representatives of the people even when they are against belief system. None of us get our way all the time and to maintain peace all must have some tolerance of an imperfect world.

Recognizing this the seeker will peacefully work for constructive change and refuse methods of force and violence to initiate change.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Look not for Christ to come in the clouds of heaven, but first seek him in your own heart and reveal him through your deeds. Others will then see the Lord of Love coming amidst the clouds and fog of humanity.

Day 268

Second Coming

The Seed Thought:

Many there are who look for a warrior type of Christ who will appear in the heavens and destroy all but a few righteous who will then live on blissfully with Jesus.

Of course, such people fully expect to be in the saved category and escape destruction to live the heavenly life.

Many people who place a lot of attention on the end of days do so because they have not been able to put their life together in a satisfactory way. Because their lives are full of frustration they look to the coming of Jesus to create a better life, one flowing with milk and honey.

Much more productive than waiting for your neighbor to burn as stubble is to become an instrument in the hands of God and take part in manifesting his basic teachings which are often ignored.

Jesus said he would be with us until the end of the world so perceive him manifesting in your own heart and consciousness and go forth and serve others as you would imagine that Christ would do if he were in your body.

You say you cannot do miracles like Jesus did? You may not have the faith to heal with a touch, but you can touch the spirit of the afflicted with words of comfort and assistance.

You have power to do much more than you realize and when you go forth and serve as if Jesus were in your body you will no longer need to look to the clouds of heaven, but you will find the Lord of Light and Love has already made an appearance in your own heart. That is enough to fill your life with joy and if you should live to embrace the Lord that would only be icing on the cake.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Thought is more powerful than action, for thought precedes action.

Day 270

The Image of God

The Seed Thought:

If we are truly in the image of God then we must seek the answers to suffering from within ourselves.

Just contemplating the one line from scripture can bear much fruit:

“Let us make man in our image, after our likeness…” Gen 1:26

Image comes from the Hebrew TSELEM, which indicates a projected shadow or phantom. In modern language we might translate this as a hologram.

Likeness comes from DĔMUWTH which indicates an exact or close resemblance. The fact that both of these words were used together indicates the writer wanted to put a lot of emphasis on the idea that we are created to manifest all the attributes of God.

It is interesting that the two words were used together in this scripture:

“And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:” Gen 5:3

This was not said of the bad son, Cain, but of Seth, a son that was like his father in every way. No wonder the idea promoted in early Christianity that we are the children of God was promoted so extensively.

If we are indeed in the image and likeness of God just as was Jesus then why do we not manifest Divine attributes as did Jesus? Perhaps the answer is merely that Jesus realized who he was and we do not.

If we have great but unrealized creative powers within us and nourish them with negative thinking then those powers will create negative situations in our life. Could it be that our suffering that we often blame on an outside God is really created by our own godlike powers that are recklessly used?

If we realize that this is the case then it is indeed our duty to guard our thoughts and intentions carefully and make sure all of our words and actions lead us to a path that ends in positive creation.

“For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” Proverbs 23:7

Seed Thought of the Day:

He who cannot see shades of gray cannot see the full truth.

Is the truth always black and white or is it often buried under layers of deception?

Day 271

Peeling the Onion

The Seed Thought:

He who cannot see shades of gray cannot see the full truth.

To see shades of gray does not mean that the truth cannot be clear or pinned down to a point of reality as it is. The reason it is important to see shades of gray is that a black and white truth is often obscured by many layers that cover it up and cause distortion. Therefore, if one looks at the distorted truth and interprets in black and white terms he will be mislead and eventually confused.

One must always approach the discovery of truth with the idea that what appears to be true may really represent the truth which is covered by layers as if it were hidden deep within the layers of an onion.

Let us take the laws of Newton, for example. Newton did a great job of observing reality and describing it in such a way that seemed like settled truth. Then along came Einstein, who peeled off a layer of the onion and said, “Hold on, there is more,” and showed us with his theories of Relativity that Newtonian laws were not absolute.

The later on, Neils Bohr and others, embarrassed Einstein by peeling off more layers with revolutionary views on quantum mechanics Einstein refused to accept.

If we had stuck with the black and white views of Newtonian Physics and refused to see the layers of truth hidden by shades of gray we would have blocked out the full truth and suffered for it. For instance, by using only Newtonian physics we would not be able to establish accurate communications with satellites making GPS impossible, as well as many features in mobile communications.

Another place where there are many layers of truth is in creation itself. In the old days there were just two camps on this. The first group only believed that what could be seen or felt as being real. The second group with a spiritual inclination believed in invisible worlds as well as the visible.

Now the centuries have passed many layers of the onion has been peeled away so even the hardened scientist believes that a large part of reality consists of what was formally not considered. They now believe in invisible reality beyond the senses such as radio waves, microwaves, ultra violet and infrared light, gamma rays, radioactivity and much more, Many are now supporting theories that there are many dimensions and there is no such thing as empty space. Beyond this many spiritually inclined still believe in realms of the invisible not yet conjured up by science.

We are still far from proving the full truth of reality, but we have moved ahead a few steps by refusing to accept the black and white in front of us and plunging into the shades of gray.

The true seeker will refuse to take the black and white approach and always remain open to the possibility that there is more truth to his favorite subjects than meets the eye.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Any time there are two choices before us one is always better than the other. If we do not make the choice then our lives will be controlled by the choices of others, which is a type of slavery by default.

There is a lot to consider in this thought. Contemplate this and see what comes to mind.

Day 272

Two Choices

The Seed Thought:

How many times have you heard a citizen say something like, “I’m not voting because it doesn’t matter who gets in, things will not change.”

This attitude not only applies to voting but to many decisions in life. Often we leave decisions to others because we feel that what we think does not count.

Eventually, what happens to a person when he has gone default on numerous decisions is he finds his life is not working. Relationships fall apart, government does not work, his health is collapsing and purpose in life seems to be void. Then he complains to God, or just the “Them” who seems to be controlling the system as if outside forces have complete control of his life and he is the victim.

That said, one must acknowledge that there are some decisions which are fairly inconsequential and make little difference. If your spouse is most comfortable with the thermostat at 73 degrees and you at 72 then letting her have control over the device is neither here nor there. One degree will not make much of a difference.

The problem is that many seekers default on decisions that do make a difference. For instance, in voting, one candidate will always come closer to your belief system than the other and in the end who we wind up with making our laws does create a great effect in our lives.

Would you leave it up to someone else to decide who is going to be your marriage partner? Yet many leave it up to chance as to the people who become involved in their lives and how much influence they have.

Are your beliefs the result of your own decisions or have they been planted by others who have decided for you what you are supposed to think? This is a much bigger problem than is realized by the masses as once an implant is made it feels like the belief is the result of the receiver’s own mind.

The seeker must carefully examine all the choices that come his way and be careful about placing any on default. Taking charge of that which we have under our power will lead to more power and fewer limitations.

That is what this earth school is all about.

Seed Thought of the Day:

Some people are like wild animals. You can appreciate them as fellow souls, but need to stay out of their way.

Think of a couple people in your life to which this thought may have been applied.

Day 273

Wild Animals

The Seed Thought:

Some people are like wild animals. You can appreciate them as fellow souls, but need to stay out of their way.

This thought encapsulates The Lion Principle, which I have written about in the past. (LINK) This can basically be defined as follows:

“The lion being a dangerous animal does not mean it does not have a correct place to live out its life or cannot be appreciated. Its nature should signal to us that we need to stay out of its way, or contain it, or we will be in danger of being eaten. Even so, it is with certain people who are destructive. You can still see the spark of God at their core, but at the same time it is best to not place yourself in a vulnerable position to them.”

How many times have you heard friends complain about people in their life causing them problems when following the Lion Principle would provide a simple solution?

A common problem is the battered wife who goes back to her abuser when she could have freed herself. Then there are those who move from one abusing person to another. That is like leaving one lion cage and moving on to another. It makes no sense but most make this mistake at one time or another.

The seeker may not have physically dangerous people threatening his life but all of us meet people who are irritating or just waste our time that we are better off just avoiding. Sometimes it is best to not play “Mr. Nice Guy” and just avoid these people.

“But I can’t avoid them,” says one.

If this is the case then the principle of “energy follows thought” needs to be examined. If you keep drawing the same people or situations this is a sign that your thoughts are sending out synchronistic vibes that draw these things to you. If so, examine your thoughts, desires, habits and intentions and try to pinpoint the patterns that need to be changed.

In the end, if The Lion Principle was universally applied then irritating people would have no other friends besides other irritating people which would force positive change upon them.

Seed Thought of the Day:

All truth is logical once it is understood.

This may seem to be an obvious truth, but is it? Are there many who accept illogical things as being true? Why does this happen?

Day 274

Truth and Logic

The Seed Thought:

All truth is logical once it is understood.

If you were to grab your iPhone and travel back a couple hundred years in the past and showed the people videos and played music to them they would consider you a great magician. What you are showing them is not logical according to their understanding.

Miracles or magic do not transcend truth, but are merely based on truth, which is beyond current understanding. Once the principles behind the construction of the iPhone are understood then it is no longer seen as a magical device, but one that is intelligently constructed through the use of true principles.

Now you and I do not understand all the true details that went into the phone’s construction and how it works but what we do know makes sense. And because we know that no real magic is involved we also know that if we were to quiz an Apple engineer on additional details that they would also make sense once we understand them.

“But what about quantum physics?” asks one. That is not logical is it?

Part of what makes truth logical is that it is consistent and the quantum world is no exception, contrary to the thinking of many new age philosophers.

For instance, a photon or electron can be registered as either a particle or a wave. Some in metaphysics think this is because the particle just whimsically decides what it wants to be, but this is not the case. Instead, it is 100% consistent in that when measured it behaves like a particle but otherwise it is a wave. 100% of the time it has potential characteristics of either a particle or a wave.

Another mysterious happening is “quantum entanglement” where two paired particles have complimentary opposite spins no matter how far the distance of their separation. But once again the circumstances that make this happen are always the same. All these things follow consistent law which is one of the aspects of truth. There are a number of things we do not understand in the quantum world but that doesn’t mean truth there is not logical any more than the truth was not understood in our iPhone example.

Truth is consistent and operates in harmony with law even when it is not understood, but once understood then all the details are reasonable and logical.

We do not yet understand what creates gravity, but we do know it exists and conforms to law. All we know about is conforms to logic and all future discoveries will also make sense when understood.

Now when we apply this principle to everyday life and people we see many examples in thinking that do not make sense. If a friend tells you something that he thinks is true, but makes no sense to you then one of two things is true. (1) He is correct but you do not understand him or (2) He is incorrect and he doesn’t know what he is talking about.

Many people included noted teachers and gurus tell us things that are not true. The seeker must always apply this rule and be skeptical until a teaching makes sense. Here are words to the wise:

If you follow a belief system that requires you to accept that which is not logical or reasonable – that is not faith but gullibility.

Seed Thought of the Day:

There is no such thing as hard work for one who works at what he loves.

Day 275

First Love

The Seed Thought:

There is no such thing as hard work for one who works at what he loves.

The seeker of truth is more particular as to how he uses his time than is the average person. It is more likely than average that friends will hear him complain about his day job – that it is not what he wants to do. He wishes that he could be free to read, study, teach, meditate and basically work on the spiritual path rather than working for money to survive in this world.

Seekers in this situation make three common mistakes.

(1) They feel resentful that they have to work at a job they do not like. This causes them to have a negative implant that clouds their vision so positive paths cannot be seen.

(2) Some will prematurely quit their job so they can do what they really like and end up in a poverty conscious state that limits them even more than before.

(3) Everyone has some free time, but a wrongly focused seeker will often not make good use of it. Here is a seed thought to steer the seeker in a positive direction.

“If you feel forced to labor for that which you do not love then devote your free time in excelling at that which you do love. In time the beloved skills will dominate.”

When you find someone who is working at what he loves you will generally find in his history that he first worked at a number of undesirable jobs.

For instance, we have all heard famous actors, who work at what they love, tell stories of being waiters, busboys, carpenters, factory workers, limo drivers etc. They did what they had to do to survive while making best use of their spare time.

Seekers who are waiting for their big break before they do the desirable work will generally die waiting. No matter how busy there is always some free time that can be accessed.

I started the main trust of my writing in 1997 when I was working 80 hours a week just to pay the bills. The only free time I could find was after 2 AM, so I wrote daily between 2 AM to 5 AM and tried to catch catnaps during the day.

In the vast majority of cases you’ll find that those who are working at what they love first paid their dues and did what was necessary to arrive at that plateau.

From that point on there will be no such thing as hard work.

Seed Thought of the Day:

It takes as much intelligence to come up with the right questions as it does to recognize the right answers.

Why are good questions more rare than purported answers?

Day 276

Asking Questions

The Seed Thought:

It takes as much intelligence to come up with the right questions as it does to recognize the right answers.

Many seekers do not realize how rare it is to find people who come up with original questions, or questions that are not forced upon them. This really dawned upon me when I was a young guy, a lifetime ago, teaching Sunday School. In a class of about 40 people I asked this question:

“Let us suppose that Jesus were to show up here in this room at this moment and tell us that he is willing to answer any question that you want to ask. What would you ask him?”

I then waited for hands to go up. I was expecting at least a half dozen; after all, I knew that I personally would have many questions and would have considered such an occasion an opportunity not to be missed.

I waited and not one hand was raised. I then prodded the group saying, “Surely someone here would have a question for Jesus.”

Still no hand went up.

I then called upon a lady that I considered to be the most enlightened one in attendance and put her on the spot, “Surely you would have some question for your Lord.”

She stumbled a moment and then mumbled something about asking how to be a better church member.

I was disappointed to say the least and this was a moment of awakening for me. I was previously in the illusion that most church members were full of questions and wanting to know the mysteries. Instead, I found at this moment that this was a wrong assumption. As time marched on I found that the desire to know was even less than I had imagined.

Those with a burning desire to know, and especially those willing to look outside the box of their belief system, are few and far between.

If you are a seeker, really desiring more knowledge, and you find another like yourself, then make him or her a friend for life.

Yes, you can enjoy a picnic, ballgame, or reunion with non seekers, but for the real fun of sharing higher knowledge you have to find fellow seekers who are full of questions like yourself.

As the seeker examines the difference in the quality and scope of questions between the orthodox and the seekers he will find that the questions from the masses will only be on some subtle approved list dictated by the belief system in which he finds himself. The true seeker will stretch his mind outside of the box and seek to know the truth no matter where it leads or who approves of the answers.

Seed Thought of the Day:

When negative emotions are dissipated our physical vehicles will vibrate in much greater harmony with nature and resulting disease will no longer consume us.

Why is this true?

For the next in this series (Part 22) go HERE

Links for the first 20 sections of this series.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19, Part 20

Index for Older Archives in the Process of Updating

For Free Book go HERE and other books HERE

JJ’s Amazon page HERE

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The Seeker’s Guide to Soul Contact, Part 20

June 2, 2018June 5, 2018 Joseph Dewey

Day 240

Wholeness

The Seed Thought

God needs all Its creations for Itself to be complete for the ALL is God, not the All minus one.

You will often hear spiritual teachers say that we do not need anyone else to be complete, that we are complete within ourselves. Now I’m not saying that this idea has no truth in it for contrasting points of view are often merely two presentations of the various true parts of the elephant.

The truth in the statement is that the seeker must look to his own decisions and thinking if he wants to find fulfillment in life. No one else is going to come and do this for him.

The greater truth is that we do need each other. Perhaps nothing illustrates this better than stories of mentally ill parents who lock a child in a room and keep him alone there for years. If the child is placed there at the age of eight and discovered at age 12, 16 or 18 he will still see himself as an eight year old. Because of no outside contact is growth basically reached a standstill. The poor kid was definitely not complete with only himself as company.

The universe outside is important just as is the universe inside. The outside provides necessary stimulation and the inside provides the processing.

Now the seed thought takes our thinking a quantum step further. We not only need each other for completeness, but God needs us and God just does not need some of us, but all of us.

But why would God need all of us? Wouldn’t He be much better off to just scrap the negative people and assimilate the good ones into heavenly bliss?

Believe it or not such thinking is contrary to the teachings of the Bible which says that God “will have ALL men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.” I Tim 2:4. God is called “The Saviour of ALL men.” I Tim 4:10. God is “NOT WILLING that any should perish, but that ALL should come to repentance.” II Peter 3:9.

God created us out of his own essence and thus we are all in his image. That perfected essence reflected itself into the kingdom of souls and our souls, or Higher Selves, further reflected themselves down to the human kingdom where we have forgotten who we are. In coming here for the great experience many wander on wayward paths, but their essential self remains in the bosom of God. We will all return to our point of origin, but some will merely take more time than others.

Today’s Seed Thought:

Many of those accepted by the masses as authorities today will be equated by future generations with the flat earth believers of yesterday.

So, what is taught by authorities today that is likely to be seen as obviously false in future generations?

Day 241

Future Consciousness

The Seed Thought:

Many of those accepted by the masses as authorities today will be equated by future generations with the flat earth believers of yesterday.

When I wrote this thought a couple years ago I knew that there were still a few stragglers who believed in a flat earth, but I never actually encountered one. I thought that the thousands of pictures from space taken by many nations as well as private business had settled the question forever.

In this I was mistaken as conspiracy ideas promoted on the internet media have captivated the thinking of many on this subject. A recent CBS poll revealed that a whopping 44% of millennial are now not sure the earth is round. Many of this group embrace the medieval belief that it is a flat disc or square floating in space and the sun and moon are small globes just a few miles above us in the sky.

Now science will have to prove the round earth all over again. When the ordinary citizen can travel to space or the moon on vacation and look back and see the globe earth with his own eyes the case should finally be settled for good. But even here the diehards will find some reason to still believe in a flat earth.

The point of the seed thought remains valid. Many things accepted by the authorities of the past are now seen to be quite ridiculous. For instance, medical authorities in past centuries did not think it was necessary to wash their hands when performing surgery or for childbirth.

It would indeed be interesting to go 100 or 200 years into the future, look back and see where the thinking of our authorities was astray.

Let us say that the climate actually got cooler over the next 100 years. How would authoritative views on global warming be affected?

Perhaps orthodox medicine will recognize the value of many alternative health treatments they now consider heretical.

Perhaps some political ideas will be proved right or wrong beyond a doubt and people will be much more united in thought and look back on our divisiveness as primitive.

Indeed there will be revolution in thought in education, science, finance, politics, religion and all areas of life. It is interesting to contemplate how they will manifest.

Today’s Seed Thought:

What better way is there to learn than from experience? — To painfully experience the effects of our own causes forces us to stare reality in the face.

There is a lot of truth to be gained by reflecting on this thought. How many times in your life have you suffered from bad decisions that caused you to stare a new reality in the face?

Day 242

Facing Reality

The Seed Thought:

“What better way is there to learn than from experience? — To painfully experience the effects of our own causes forces us to stare reality in the face.”

The biggest complaint against God, as well as the prime foundation argument against the existence of a Higher Power, is the fact that there is a lot of pain and suffering in this world. The conclusion of the lower mind is this:

“If there is a God then he is a mean and uncaring S.O.B. that I want nothing to do with.” The other is that, “There cannot be a God because if there were he wouldn’t allow us to have such pain and suffering.”

Most believers do not claim to understand pain and suffering but merely believe that all will be understood once they get to heaven. In the meantime they proclaim that “God works in mysterious ways.”

A book could be (and probably has been) written on this subject but I’ll attempt to reduce the explanation down to a greater seed where contemplation will reveal more light.

There is one great law, which co-exists with eternal Divine Intelligence and that is Cause and Effect. God Itself is limited by this co-existing force. We are in the image of God and as such are also limited by Cause and Effect. Once we make a decision we reap the benefit from it as well as suffer any consequences involved.

The problem is this. Each decision yields one of the following:

(1) Mostly benefits.

An example would be the choice of a healthier diet. This is mostly beneficial but there is still some pain in refusing that piece of chocolate cake.

(2) Mostly painful repercussions.

This could be a bad choice in a marriage partner, though after it is over the person did admit he learned some lessons.

(3) A mixture of the two.

This could be represented in a choice to go to college, which results in a higher paying job, yet the person had lots of painful experiences with finances and classes as he struggled to graduate.

Cause and effect governs our universe and it matters not if we be human, angel or God, each decision made has the result of some pleasure and pain, success and failure, good and bad attached to it.

To attempt to negate cause and effect is to negate life itself. If the seeker were to ask God to take away all possibility of pain he is really asking for non existence, for if he exists he must decide and if he has freedom to decide he will have to face the effect effect of the pain and pleasure that follows.

Pain teaches us the lesson of what needs to be corrected. It forces us to stare reality in the face so we can apply intelligence to make corrections so good will dominate over evil.

Today’s Seed Thought:

“The real path forward in spiritual evolution will demand all the talents, intelligence and strength the seeker has to successfully complete the journey. If you are not being challenged then you are doing something wrong.”

Day 243

The Path Forward

The Seed Thought:

The real path forward in spiritual evolution will demand all the talents, intelligence and strength the seeker has to successfully complete the journey. If you are not being challenged then you are doing something wrong.

It is common for us humans to work intensely so we can arrive at the day when we can just relax and enjoy life. We tend to see the easy times as the most desirable and do everything in our power to avoid difficulties that really challenge us.

On the other hand, look back on your life at an experience that was pleasant, but required no effort on your part. Then take a look at one that was a great point of tension that challenged all your resources.

If you had to give up the memory and learning from one, which would it, be?

If you are like most people you would give up the pleasant one, but not trade the difficult one for anything in the world. That difficult experienced forged by fire what makes up a valuable portion of yourself in this present reality.

Does this mean we should not have pleasant restful periods in life?

Of course not. Periods of rest and refection and needed, but the Biblical injunction to rest one period out of seven is a good one. In other words, six periods out of seven we should be laboring at a goal that challenges our abilities. There are two ways this will happen.

(1) The seeker will assess his abilities and choose a work which will challenge his resources and strength. If he succeeds he will experience great joy. If he fails he will reassess and eventually achieve progress and satisfaction.

(2) If he gets stuck in a rut and attempts to stay in the cycle of rest and pleasure the soul will step in to rouse him out of his spiritual sleep. His life path will then be set on one of difficulty that cannot be avoided and he will be forced to go back to work. If he accepts the direction he can awaken, achieve and have joy. If he resists he will suffer greater and greater pain until he finally yields in this world or the next.

Conclusion: It is wise for the seeker recognize correct periods of rest and labor, and during the time of labor seek to challenge himself to the maximum amount possible until the goal is achieved. At this point his rest will recharge the spirit within giving power to plunge into a new cycle of achievement.

Today’s Seed Thought:

There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who have a sense of humor and those who do not. We are attracted to those in the first category and tend to avoid the ones in the second.

Why?

What is the deeper meaning behind humor?

Day 244

Flexibility and Humor

The Seed Thought:

There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who have a sense of humor and those who do not. We are attracted to those in the first category and tend to avoid the ones in the second.

Humor is difficult to define. If it were just a black and white thing we could all be good comedians, but instead the art is very subtle. To add to its complexity what is funny to one person, race, party or national group may not be funny to another.

Humor that is mean spirited or truly insulting to many is limiting but more universally appreciated humor represent jewels in the use of words.

Humor also changes with the times. I have an old book of jokes I was recently reading through of which most would get you ostracized in politically correct circles today.

After much thought here is how I would define humor:

“Humor, or that which is funny, is created when the dialog takes an unexpected but pleasant twist. There is an element of mild, or sometimes outrageous, surprise, and often subtle truth, in those statements that make us smile or laugh.”

Notice that from this definition that humor requires a certain amount of flexibility. To appreciate a joke one must allow the expected flow of information to be interrupted with something unexpected. Now that something unexpected could even be interpreted as something insulting. This requires the hearer to be flexible enough to look at the words through the viewpoint or intent of the speaker.

The creator of humor should be very flexible. He must be able to look at the rigid thinking that prevails in the establishment and think of unexpected approaches that go against it.

In short them the two kinds of people are those who are flexible and those who are not. The flexible one will appreciate a wide variety of humor and the inflexible one will be very narrow in what is accepted.

The flexibility of humor is generally missing among those in society who cause us grief such as tyrannical dictators, abusive people and those who seek to destroy themselves or others.

Flexibility is a key characteristic for the seeker to acquire in maintaining soul contact.

Today’s Seed Thought:

It may take a thousand facts to create the understanding of one principle, but one principle can reveal a thousand facts.

Contemplation on this can bring much enlightenment.

Day 245

Principles vs. Facts

The Seed Thought:

It may take a thousand facts to create the understanding of one principle, but one principle can reveal a thousand facts.

A fact is merely a piece of information that anyone can incorporate into his or her brain memory. It can likewise be programmed into a computer. A principle is a different matter. A principle is the underlying truth that makes all facts valid. It requires judgment to use and cannot be programmed into a computer.

It takes a certain point in the evolution of the human being to comprehend the difference between a principle and a fact but when one does, and learns to go within and touch the soul, then all the understanding and vision of a principle is revealed in a flash. Sometimes a book can be written about a principle revealed in one instant.

A principle is that which demonstrates the intelligence of God and makes things in the universe work toward a dominating good.

Example of a fact. You are either male or female.

Principle behind the fact: Male and female are energy states corresponding to the positive and negative particles that make up the universe. They are both equal in importance. The male represents the sending, radiant, visible energy while the female represents the magnetic, receiving invisible energy that holds creation together.

Memorizing facts, especially those needed for regular use, is helpful, but the memory is limited in how many can be accurately retained. Fortunately, in this day and age search engines such as Google are a big help. Billions of facts are now available at our fingertips so we do not have to clutter up our computer brains with unnecessary details.

When a principle enters the consciousness there is a registration made higher than the brain. Principles are the language of the soul and, as such, when the seeker registers one it is synchronously understood by both himself and the soul. This imbeds the memory of this higher knowledge in factors that go beyond the physical brain to the higher mind that survives death. Thus, the understanding of a principle, will stay with us always, unlike facts that come and go.

Today’s Seed Thought:

To say that life is unfair is to say that God is unfair. When all things are considered throughout the life of the soul, all is fair.

Many today are complaining that life is unfair, but what is the real truth of the matter?

Day 246

Life is Fair

The Seed Thought:

To say that life is unfair is to say that God is unfair. When all things are considered throughout the life of the soul, all is fair.

When I was young, back in the Fifties and Sixties the idea of the fairness of God and life was in wide circulation. The basic idea accepted was that any unfairness is just temporary and that all things will work out fairly in the end – if not this life, then in the heavenly spheres.

Then one day (I’m not sure of the year) I heard someone in the media make the declarative statement that life is not fair and we must just accept this as a fact.

From that point until the present I have heard this repeated many times. The statement seems to have permeated public consciousness to make them face the fact that, as far as this one life goes, life is indeed not fair. Some are born into poverty, ill health and lack of opportunity whereas others are born into an advantaged life. Humanity seems to be facing up to the fact that there is lots of unfairness to go around.

Some seem resigned to the idea that God is unfair and that is just the way it is, but there must be a higher purpose in it.

Others acknowledge the unfairness of life but think things will be worked out in the next world so there will be no justified complaints.

When you think about it both life and God would both be unfair if there were only one life. To see this we can just look at the difference in the lives of three individuals who died at different times.

(1) A baby who died in infancy. According to most beliefs this individual will never know what it would be like to live a full mortal life, to select a career, find a purpose, get married, have children etc. On the other hand, if Hitler had died as a baby he would have escaped being history’s most infamous villain.

(2) Jim is 20 years old, in his second year of college, and is in love with a wonderful person. Just as he is looking forward to a great future he is involved in a car accident that takes his life. All his hopes for a productive happy life are taken away, whereas, many of his friends continue on and are able to follow their dreams.

(3) Albert lives to the age of 93. He has had a great life with mostly good health and an abundance of resources. He married the love of his life and has numerous great kids and grandkids. He feels very gratified with his life as it nears its end. Is this sense of gratification something Albert has by some random flip of the coin by God that Jim and the baby will never have for all eternity?

Fortunately for all this is not the case as each of us live many lifetimes in this life of mortality. If we lived only one life there would indeed be unfairness, but when we consider that we live many lives experiencing being rich, poor, healthy, unhealthy, advantaged and disadvantaged then at the end of our learning (for life is a classroom) each of us will be satisfied that our overall earth experience has been fair and that we have had a well-rounded series of lives that allowed us to reach a fulfilling liberation into the Kingdom of God.

If the seeker has not considered reincarnation, then this is the time to think about it, especially in relation to fairness.

Today’s Seed Thought:

If a teacher is right about everything, and you believe and follow the teachings without confirmation from within, you have found nothing.

Why would you have found nothing if the teacher teaches the truth?

Day 247

The Stopped Clock

The Seed Thought:

If a teacher is right about everything, and you believe and follow the teachings without confirmation from within, you have found nothing.

They say a stopped clock is right twice a day. He who accepts a teacher, or teaching, because it sounds good, glamorous or in agreement with his desire nature but does not check with his own soul is like a stopped clock. How close he is to the truth will depend on where he is at the moment just as with the hands of a stopped clock.

Those seekers with the stopped clock mentality will find themselves in one of three basic situations.

(1) He is fortunate to find himself close to the truth (symbolized by the correct time).

(2) He has a teacher who mixes truth and error.

(3) His source of knowledge is way off the mark.

Now you would think that the guy in category one would have a great advantage, but, unfortunately, the advantage is fleeting just as one looking at a stopped clock at the correct time of day only has the truth for a few minutes and then it is gone. The one who accidently accepts the truth still does not know how to find it and as soon as he moves on he will most likely glom on to a teacher full of errors that he cannot discern.

Soul contact and learning to trust and verify with the inner voice is the greatest step the seeker can take on his journey to the sacred feet of the Logos. If he places his trust without rather than within he will not be able to hold on to any spiritual truth that he comes across, as a new teacher, full of cunning, will be able to draw him away from it with a few enticing words.

Jesus advised the disciples to build on a foundation of rack rather than sand. Relying on the inner voice is the foundation of rock and the other voices are like sand that can be blown in any direction by the winds of glamor and illusion.

Today’s Seed Thought:

The principle of freedom is a key that must be understood before one can make a conscious decision for the path of light.

Why is this such an important truth?

Day 248

A Core Principle

The Seed Thought:

The principle of freedom is a key that must be understood before one can make a conscious decision for the path of light.

If one had to point to a single core difference between the path of light and darkness it would be the Principle of Freedom.

The problem though is that there are different understandings of what freedom is so the real principle is not realized by many who are thus captured by propaganda from the dark side.

Have you ever heard of any dictator, no matter how insidious, proclaim that he is against freedom? No. All leaders, good and bad along with their followers proclaim themselves as supporters of freedom. Hitler was big on stating that he was fighting for freedom along with most other dictator warriors. The Southern States, during the American Civil War, loudly proclaimed themselves as fighting for freedom as they struggled to maintain the institution of slavery.

Obviously, the light and the dark, both have a belief in some concept of freedom. The seeker must realize that it is of prime importance that the difference is understood so he can make sure he is on the right side. If he does not understand what that right side is then he may find himself unwittingly on the side of those who are attempting to push humanity toward the dark side of ultimate slavery, which would be the opposite of maximum freedom for the human spirit.

Here are the two viewpoints on freedom.

Light: Supports circumstances, laws, and viewpoints that promote maximum freedom for the largest possible number rather than the few.

Dark: Supports circumstances, laws, and viewpoints that promote maximum freedom for the elite leadership and select supporters at the expense of the many.

For example, if Hitler had won the war the Nazi leaders and some of the German people would have had quite a bit of freedom if they stayed in lockstep with the dictator, but the most of the world would have been enslaved.

Today we have the largest political division since the Civil War. The seeker must examine both sides and see where maximum freedom applies. For instance, who is seeking to limit free speech and who is supporting it? Who is seeking to expand restrictive laws and regulations and who is seeking to keep them to an efficient minimum?

There are those on both sides of the political spectrum who do not fully embrace the true principle of freedom and this causes confusion on the part of many. This also puts an added need for discernment and good judgment on the part of the seeker. He or she will only know he is on the right side when soul contact is achieved, as some are only right because they are stopped clocks. (See previous lesson)

Today’s Seed Thought:

There is a religion of peace. It is found deep in the human heart.

How is this a key to finding peace?

Day 249

Finding Peace

The Seed Thought:

There is a religion of peace. It is found deep in the human heart.

Everyone wants peace but few find that state of mind where the cares of the world and personality do not interfere. Still fewer find the “peace that passes all understanding.”

So, what is it that keeps the seeker from enjoying a peaceful state of consciousness that is essential to soul contact? There are a number of items with which to deal.

(1) Guilt. This is the biggest culprit. Any for of active guilt can rob the seeker of peace day in and out. Then there is suppressed guilt the person tries to put on the back burner. This robs the seeker of inner connections to the peaceful spirit and comes back later to bite him with a vengeance when consciously surfaced.

The solution to the problem of guilt was discussed in days 14-17 as well as to a lesser extent in later days. The seeker is advised to review these, especially if guilt is still a problem.,

It is absolutely essential that the seeker put guilt into its right place and context. This is a prime aspect of “salvation.”

(2) Personal problems, such as financial, job security, threat of loss of love, ill health and others.

These type of apparent problems from the outside can greatly affect the average seeker. Many of them could be quickly solved by an exercise of will and taking corrective action.

Then there are some that pose a real difficulty. For instance, it is distracting enough to suffer personal financial setbacks, but suppose you don’t have enough money to feed and house your children. How could the seeker be smiling in peaceful bliss while his kids are complaining they are hungry or homeless?

In these distracting situations the seeker must ask two questions. First, “How did I get into this situation and how could it have been avoided?” The second question is, “How can I get out of this situation so I can focus on higher things than mere survival?”

There is a solution to every problem. The seeker must realize this and dig his way out of the hole into which he has placed himself.

Even in situations of real concern the seeker must give himself some free time to push back all the cares of the world, no matter how severe, and seek that state of inner peace which is always available.

(3) Difficult Relationships. The seeker may suffer insults and attacks from family members, friends and business associates. These types of interference are under the immediate control of the seeker who has soul contact. An instant decision can neutralize any emotional attack and cause it to be as if it never was. On the other hand, if someone threatens something physically destructive appropriate action needs to be taken.

After appropriately dealing with these three problems the seeker, through the power of directed will, can then focus his attention on the peace of the soul, or the Christ consciousness, that lies deep in the human heart. Since the heart center has a reflection in the head and both are linked to the soul and vibrate with love energy we have an exceptional opportunity to access, not only regular peace, but the peace that passes all understanding.

An attitude of mind that can really help the s seeker here goes beyond inward thinking to outer service. If the seeker feels a love and connection to all people plus a desire to be of service to them he is creating his own path to peace.

Much more could be written on this but the seeker will greatly benefit from a periodic reflection on this seed thought.

Today’s Seed Thought:

Happiness is found in the quest for the good, the beautiful and the true. Peace and rest are yours when they are achieved.

Day 250

The Journey and Destination

The Seed Thought:

Happiness is found in the quest for the good, the beautiful and the true. Peace and rest are yours when they are achieved.

It has been said that life, happiness, success and other positive things are found in the journey and not the destination.

On the other hand, it is the allure of the destination that motivates us to take the journey.

For the athlete it may be the Olympic medal and adoration that motivates him or her to expend intense energy to reach that end. But then on reflection he finds the benefits of the end result rather fleeting whereas his reflection on the struggle to attain is a great source of learning and satisfaction.

This same process occurs with one striving for financial success, developing a talent or any other path to a desired objective. The seeker may tell himself that when he achieves the goal he will be happy, but when all is said and done and reflection occurs he finds that the real satisfaction occurred on the journey. Each step forward brought a degree of happiness and fulfillment.

Does this mean that only the journey has value, but there is little to be gained from the actual destination?

No. Not at all, but it does mean this.

The positive results from the journey and destination are different and the seeker needs to realize this so he can take full advantage of both of them. What needs to occur in the mind is a correction of a popular illusion which is this:

The journey is hell and the destination is happiness and heaven.

As the journey begins many difficulties are often encounter which makes it seem like the journey is the unhappiness part whereas happiness will happen at the destination. What is overlooked is that, even though the journey may be fraught with difficulties, each step taken calls forth degrees of happiness and satisfaction to the pilgrim.

The destination may bring a few moments of fleeting happiness, but that is not where its virtue lies. If the seeker sees the destination as something final where he will obtain satisfaction for the rest of his life then this stopping place will turn from a place of fulfillment to one of dissatisfaction and misery, the opposite of what was hoped for.

How then must the seeker view the destination in order to receive maximum fulfillment?

In order to enjoy the full benefits of the destination he must not view it as an ultimate goal or achievement, but a temporary rest where he can enjoy peace and relaxation while he reviews his past journey and contemplates his next great adventure.

When the seeker sees the journey and destination as two parts of a great cycle and accepts the true benefits of each he will then have his mind prepared to receive maximum benefits of each.

Today’s Seed Thought:

Don’t trust a person who cannot (or will not) answer a simple yes or no question.

Thinking on this reveals some interesting insight.

Day 251

Yes or No, Please

The Seed Thought:

Don’t trust a person who cannot (or will not) answer a simple yes or no question.

Many times I have watched a political debate or interview and the guy is asked a simple question that can be answered by a simple yes or no, but instead of answering he changes the direction away from the it in what seems an obvious avoidance. When this happens I sometimes feel like standing up and shouting at the guy on TV, “Just answer the question – a simple yes or no, please!”

This avoidance happens with advocates in all walks of life. We see this in salespeople, preachers, educators, scientists, but it is particularly pervasive with political people.

And why is that?

Because political candidates and advocates will often say what we want to hear, and avoid telling us what they actually want to do.

For instance, he may be asked if his plan would cause a raise in taxes. He knows the answer is yes, but doesn’t want to tell us for fear of losing votes so instead of answering yes or no he will go off on a tangent explaining the benefits of his plan.

I have seen many an interviewer ask the yes or no question two or three times, but with no success. The person usually gives up after two attempts, but I keep thinking to myself, “Go ahead, ask again and again until the scoundrel answers the question.”

The basic principle behind this thought is this. He who avoids answering a yes or no question has something to hide. There is a reason he will not answer.

Does this mean that in all circumstances the person is in the wrong for avoiding the answer?

Usually such a person is in the wrong, but there are exceptions to all things as noted by Solomon.

For instance, if you were in Nazi Germany and the SS was searching for your child to torture and asked you if you knew where he was, there would be justification in avoiding a “yes” answer.

But if a crafty SS officer was aware of this principle he may figure the parent was avoiding the answer because he was hiding something and would be correct.

The scriptures tell us that God does not clearly tell us all truth in black and white, “It is the glory of God to conceal a thing.” Proverbs 25:2

Jesus himself concealed many things and avoided clearly telling the people he was the Messiah, totally unlike the would-be messiahs of today. There is only one record of him being asked a yes or no question about his calling and this is recorded in Mark, the oldest gospel,

“Again the high priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed? And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.” Mark 14:61-62

There is no record of him being asked such a question earlier though he went out of his way to avoid stating it to all but a few close disciples.

That said, nine times out of ten in today’s world the yes or no question is avoided because answering it will reveal hypocrisy and deception. The guy just doesn’t want his true motives revealed. When the seeker understands this principle he will have an extra tool in delving for the truth.

Today’s Seed Thought:

Those preaching religious or political truth generally only see a tiny piece of a jigsaw puzzle when thinking they have the whole picture.

Can you think of an example of this? How about yourself? Do you think you see more of the picture than you actually do?

Day 252

The Whole Picture

The Seed Thought:

Those preaching religious or political truth generally only see a tiny piece of a jigsaw puzzle when thinking they have the whole picture.

This parable may be the most effective teacher of this principle. Also there is an expanded version in my book, “The Lost Key of the Buddha.”

The Three Blind Men and The Elephant

A man of vision came across three blind men who were complaining about their limitations. “Follow me,” he said, and learn a great lesson from the elephant. He directed them to approach the elegant animal and give their description.

One man embraced a leg and said, “I perceive that an elephant is like a great tree.” The other man took hold of the tail and disagreed. He said, “No, my brother, I feel and know the elephant is like a rope.” The third man felt an ear and replied, “You are both wrong. The elephant is like a great carpet.”

After giving them time to digest their findings, the man of vision explained: “You are all correct, and you are also all wrong.” Then he took the three blind men and had each feel all of the three distinct parts. They responded in amazement: “Now we see that the elephant is a more complex being than we ever imagined. We condemned each other in ignorance, for one of us was as correct as the other.” Then they become curious and asked: “Tell us, Is there even more to the elephant than this?”

The man with eyes to see responded: “Yes, there is much more. You still have an incomplete view. I will take you around the elephant and you can feel the other parts.” To their amazement and joy, they discover that the elephant had not only one leg, but four and not one ear but two and many other previously unknown parts. He had a trunk, eyes, mouth, teeth and a large body they never realized existed.

After they felt all the parts, the blind men said: “We have now felt the whole elephant and our consciousness has greatly expanded, for we realize that before we knew nothing, even though we thought we knew all. Now we still realize that our understanding is imperfect because we do not see. Tell us, how can we see?”

The man with vision said: “I was once blinded as you are, but it does not have to be so. There is nothing wrong with your eyes. You merely have a film over them that needs to be washed off in pure water.”

He then handed them a pitcher of water and they each washed their eyes with it and the dark film dissolved. To their joy they found they could see. Looking about, they saw the elephant and asked: “What is that strange creature over there?”

The man replied: “Did you not recognize it? That is the elephant!”

Immediately, they realized: “Yes, of course, that has to be the elephant, but I never thought it was so large,” says one. “I never would have believed it was so small,” says another. “I never realized it was so beautiful,” says the third. But they all did agree that what they saw correlated with every previous fact they had discovered about the elephant. The discrepancies entered when they compared the way they felt and what they imagined about the elephant with what they actually saw. All Three of them admitted that they had erroneous thoughts and feelings about the elephant that were completely unfounded.

To their added joy they saw that there was much more to see than an elephant, but a complete new world to explore. Now that they could see they found that they were, in reality, just beginning to gain true knowledge. Everything else that they had experienced up until this time was merely a step to prepare them for true seeing.

Thus the three previously blind men stepped forth into the world of seeing. They explored, experimented, and begin to serve their brethren.

Today’s Seed Thought:

If the zealot holds sacred the idea that 2+2=5, then the one who says 2+2=4 is the enemy.

Why do you suppose this is often true?

Day 253

The Zealot Within

The Seed Thought:

If the zealot holds sacred the idea that 2+2=5, then the one who says 2+2=4 is the enemy.

Most of us have encountered a real zealot at one time or another. They are not only found in religious/spiritual thinking, but business, investment, multi level, politics and other mindsets.

These zealots are very proactive in presenting their ideas as if they are absolute truth, but many things in the presentation often have flaws seen by a person of reason.

When such flaws are pointed out the zealot will often stop in his tracks, pause, give a look of displeasure as if you have insulted his god or religion, and either defend or attack. Unfortunately, it will often be an attack or insult.

Rarely will the zealot consider reason, or even an established fact, as a reason to alter his thinking. 2+2=5 and that is it. Any evidence to the contrary is considered an insult or an attack.

Now the real zealot stands out like a sore thumb in a group, but the majority of people have parts of the zealot in them wanting to get out and proclaim something not in harmony with reason and ready to attack those who disagree.

The seeker must always examine himself, his motives and thoughts and neutralize these negative aspects of zealotry.

Take global warming for example. Maybe the guy has an illogical reason to support it or to be against it. A person can be right, but by accident, because he has assumed things rather than checking out the facts. So even if you think you are right (which all zealots do) you may be right for the wrong reason.

The seeker who has rid himself of zealotry will not be offended if he is challenged.

Neither will he automatically reject contrary arguments.

Neither will he refuse to examine data that does not seem in harmony with his thinking.

The seeker will be open to all things yet maintain positive discernment so real truth is not lost.

Seed Thought of the Day:

The person who can’t come up with good solutions to every-day simple problems ought to consider that he could be wrong on the big stuff as well.

Day 254

The Big Stuff

The Seed Thought:

The person who can’t come up with good solutions to every-day simple problems ought to consider that he could be wrong on the big stuff as well.

We’ve all seen this guy. He has big plans – maybe he even wants to change or save the world from itself. His mind is full of idealism and feels he knows how things should be. On top of that, he gives you lots of advice on what you should be doing and thinking. You should follow him because he will show you the way to greatness.

The strange thing about these individuals who are full of hype is that few have demonstrated success in their own lives with everyday problems, or even small things. The seeker needs to ask, “If one cannot demonstrate mastery over the small things then why should he be trusted concerning the greater ones?

If one cannot hold down successful employment so he can pay his bills then why should we believe he has a true once-in-a lifetime business opportunity – or the solution to the world’s monetary problems?

If a guy can’t hold together a romantic relationship, secure the love of his children or establish enduring friendships then what on God ‘s green earth gives him the authority to tell you how to run your life of establishing sound relationships?

Then if some guru has no original thoughts or principles of his own but only borrows from others then why should he demand to be respected as if he were the mouthpiece of God?

It is a natural human inclination to desire respect and to see our words be valued by others, but many prematurely expect this to happen before they have demonstrated any ability deserving of such respect.

For instance, the chances are over 90% that the last guy who called you up with once-in-a-lifetime money making opportunity was in desperate financial difficulties himself.

The seeker must examine himself for this flaw for it often manifests on very subtle levels and many are tempted to indulge in it from time to time. He must ask himself:

Do I seek to give advice that is beyond my knowledge and experience?

Do I want to teach when I really should be applying myself more as a student?

Do I want to tell others what to think when my own thoughts are unstructured?

Of course, there is nothing wrong with giving your opinion, especially if it is asked for, but the error made is in placing oneself as an authority when expertise has not been demonstrated.

If the small things in a person’s life are not under control then maybe the big things are not working either.

The Law of Correspondences applies here.

Seed Thought of the Day

Understanding and dealing with your weaknesses and limitations is a key to unlimited power.

Many ignore their limitations when seeking for greater power. Why is this a mistake?

Day 255

Limitations

The Seed Thought:

Understanding and dealing with your weaknesses and limitations is a key to unlimited power.

Let us say that you wanted to become a track star, but you have a recently broken leg. Would it do you any good to try and compete when on crutches? Of course not, you would be likely to do more damage to yourself and set back your physical condition even more than it is.

The wise thing to do is to come to reality with your limitation (the broken leg) do what you can to speed up the healing and next get yourself back in shape. Then, after you have removed the limitations that set you back you will be able to compete again.

Many beginners on the spiritual quest completely ignore their limitations and figure they can become a spiritual giant in one great leap. While there is nothing wrong with looking ahead to a finishing goal, it will not do much good if the seeker has a spiritual broken leg that needs healing.

Exactly what are some of these hindrances and limitations often ignored by the beginner? Here are a few.

(1) Some teacher may have told the student there is no such thing as limitation. Some gung ho students embrace this idea, but this is like a coach telling the athlete that there is no such thing as a broken leg. Not helpful.

(2) A teacher may have taught of a great shortcut. By embracing his teachings the student can be instantly saved with nothing further to accomplish, obtain instant godlike status or even skip over a thousand lifetimes.

There are no great shortcuts to achievement. Indeed, some paths are shorter than others, but the shorter ones usually require greater effort. For instance, the student may graduate from college in three years instead of four or five, but a greater effort is required, so even though the time is shorter it is not really a shortcut.

(3) The beginner often thinks the mind needs to be put aside and one must rely on the feeling nature to make spiritual progress.

This is a great mistake, especially for the seeker polarized in the lower feeling nature. The higher mind, capable of pure reason is essential in taking the seeker toward oneness with the Higher Self. He higher mind will also incorporate the best of the heart and love-wisdom energies.

(4) A lack of the development of talents which can be used in service to humanity. Many seekers overlook developing their talents so they can be useful instruments for service. This takes great effort which many do not want to expend.

Clint Eastwood was right when he said, “A man’s got to know his limitations.”

The seeker must find them, remove them and take the next step.

Today’s Seed Thought:

As below, so above but with a divine and rational twist.

This applies to the Law of Correspondences that we discussed earlier. Is the correspondence of the above to the below exact? Why not?

Day 256

As Above – Almost

The Seed Thought:

As below, so above but with a divine and rational twist.

We covered this in the series dealing with the Law of Correspondences on days 201-207, but this short seed thought gives the heart of the principle.

Most of us have heard the statement “As above, so below” and vice versa, but “with a divine and rational twist” adds a new thought which is necessary to see the whole truth.

For instance, the atom of the world below is said to be like a miniature solar system. There are indeed similarities, but there are also substantial differences.

The human cell has been compared to a great city, both having an electric communications system, transportation devices, garbage disposal and many other similarities yet there are again great differences.

Parts of the earth such as the great waters, land, oil and vegetation is said to correspond to blood, flesh, lubricants and hair in a human body. Again the comparisons point toward a truth, but are not exact.

There are two great truths revealed here.

(1) A black and white interpretation usually misses important aspects of the truth.

(2) God does not repeat Itself in creation but makes “all things new.” Rev 21:5 Just as we look around the world and the universe we see that everything is created with a difference, demonstrating great variety, even so, God creates differently above than below. There will be similarities and the seeker will therefore need to look on one level and use intuition to discern the truth on a differing level.

Seed Thought of the Day:

The person in your life who irritates you the most is your greatest teacher.

The truth behind this is pretty obvious when you think about it.

Next in this series, Part 21

Links for the first 19 sections of this series.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19

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The Seeker’s Guide to Soul Contact, Part 19

April 17, 2018May 13, 2018 Joseph Dewey

Day 219

Contemplation and Seed Thoughts

If you have incorporated the lessons from this course so far you have taken a number of steps that will bring you in closer rapport with your Higher Self. The most important ingredient is to recognize truth when it stares you in the face. This sense of correct perception is only developed by one with a sincere heart. This is why we wrapped up the lessons with the 24 Principles of Discovery. These principles are designed to be used by all. No extra sensory perception or mystical skills are needed. All the seeker has to do is use his common sense and an honest approach to apply them. Some of the other exercises take significant effort and spiritual sensitivity, but these just require an effort all can make.

Once one has the basics of discovery down then he has taken a giant step toward soul contact for the soul lives in a realm where truth prevails and truth attracts truth. To attract the attention of your soul you must love the truth and seek to find it.

If, then, you ever feel out of sync with your Higher Self go back and review the Principles of discovery. They will set you in the right direction so you can take the greater steps provided in this course and to you through your own soul.

The course will finish with a year’s worth of lessons providing additional seed thoughts for your contemplation. These will be followed by several questions that are designed to cause your mind to reach out to your soul for understanding.

The practice of contemplating seed thoughts is one of the best ways for the seeker to strengthen the link between himself and his soul. Energy follows thought and if you daily apply thought on a seed thought to increase understanding you cannot help but strengthen the link between yourself and your soul.

The lessons on seed thoughts were on Days 74-76. It may be helpful to review them.

Seed thought for the day:

“Words and other forms of earthly communication veil truth, even if they come from God.”

Questions:

(1) How and why do words veil truth?

(2) Have ever you tried to explain things with clarity yet were still misunderstood? (A hint is found in this question.)

(3) How do you see beyond the veil to see the truth behind the words spoken or written?

(4) How do you know when your words are understood?

Day 220

Words Veil Truth

I’ll just make a few comments on yesterday’s seed thought. The understanding that words veil truth is very important because it opens the door to greater understanding.

Those who have not opened this door like to see words as black and white in meaning, only conforming to their definition. Yet everyone uses words a little differently and to understand an author one must get a feel of his thinking so you can interpret him as he intends, not as you think the meaning should be.

The words of Jesus were about as simple and plain as word could be yet they are interpreted hundreds of different ways by the thousands of sects.

The common phrase we are looking for here is, “reading between the lines.” This refers to an intuitive perception that the wise reader must gain, for it is impossible for an author to give all the possible details in a script. If he even tried to do this the work would bore readers to death.

I have written many short seed thoughts for my readers consisting of just a sentence or two. To make it quotable it cannot be long, so much has to be unsaid. Consequently, the reader must do so reading between the lines and see the point that is being made. Here is the one I wrote today which will also be the seed thought.

“The only good thing about a failed life is the biography makes for interesting reading.”

As I expected some readers missed the point and stated that we learn a lot from failure.

What do you suppose I really meant here and what do you suppose a failed life is? Then, on the other hand, what would constitute a successful life?

Day 221

The Failed Life

Yesterday’s seed thought:

“The only good thing about a failed life is the biography makes for interesting reading.”

Comment:

First the seeker must understand what is meant by a failed life. If you read my intent correctly you would have come up with something like this:

“A life that does not live up to its potential and falls short of what was expected by the Higher Self.”

Of course, there are lessons to be learned by examining any life and within each life are learning points. Most would consider dictators like Hitler, Stalin or Mao failed lives for none of these advanced soul purpose. These men and others used their talents to advance a material agenda leading to reduced freedom of the human spirit.

They may have learned certain individual lessons but they failed to be of spiritual service to humanity.

Even though these men were on the side of failed spirituality they did have interesting lives. Hitler, perhaps the greatest villain of all time, has fascinated historians and other writers since his emergence.

One failed life does not equate to all effected by him being failures also, Because of Hitler and World War II many lessons were learned and hopefully the errors will not be repeated.

A suicide represents another failure and any person committing this act in his prime of life will be disappointed in himself when arriving at his life review.

Most failures in life are caused by either bad decisions or just plain inertia and lack of will to move forward.

Now let us look at the next seed thought:

“There is nothing too good to be true.

Nothing can be withheld by those who persevere.”

Questions:

(1) How would a black and white literalist miss the truth behind this thought?

(2) What is the real truth behind the words?

Day 222

Seeing the Principle

The Seed Thought:

“There is nothing too good to be true.

Nothing can be withheld by those who persevere.”

A contrarian may read this, object and say. “That’s not true. There are a lot of good things that cannot come true. If six individuals want to be the richest person in the world only one can achieve this and chances are none of them will.”

The contrarian can find a reason to object to anything positive as it is much easier to take the negative route than the positive. In doing this though he will often miss the core meaning that is being presented whereas most seekers will get the general idea behind the thought which is this: All things which are good and desirable can be achieved or acquired. Of course, this will not happen instantly but can over a period of time.

You may not become the richest person in the world, but can have all the things that make life worthwhile that this person may have.

We have all heard the phrase “too good to be true” applied to obvious scams and there is truth in that application. But get rich quick schemes are not necessary to achieve that which is truly good. Nothing which has a true benefit for the soul is too good to be true. All of us can achieve much more than realized and should not be discourages by some telling us that such achievement cannot be accomplished or is too good to be true. This quote from Napoleon Hill encapsulates the intended thought:

“Whatever your mind can conceive and believe the mind can achieve regardless of how many times you may have failed in the past.”

Here is today’s seed thought:

Follow the highest you know in darkness and in light. Soon your next step will be revealed to you.

Questions:

(1) How is this direction different than advice given by the preachers of the world?

(2) What if the highest you know is wrong?

(3) When are you most tempted to not follow the highest you know?

(4) Why does following the highest you know lead to revelation?

Day 223

The Highest You Know

The Seed Thought

Follow the highest you know in darkness and in light. Soon your next step will be revealed to you.

This thought runs contrary to that demanded by the preachers of the world. They basically do not trust their followers to go by their own inner light and follow the highest they know. Instead they merely demand that they follow God and what that turns out to be is the highest the preacher knows.

Sometimes the highest the seeker knows is wrong, but if he or she is honest in heart then he will discover his error, correct it and get settled on the strait and narrow path to truth. Thus by following the highest one knows turns out to produce valuable lessons.

The greatest temptation to neglect the highest one knows comes when an outer voice attempts to become the seeker’s greatest authority. When an authoritative outer voice demands to be followed suffer dire consequences then the seeker is often tempted to follow that rather than follow the proven inner voice which indeed represents the highest the seeker knows.

The highest the seeker knows comes from that which is received and formulated within his own being and if he follows this above the clamoring voices without then the communication lines to the soul become strengthened which leads to insights and then revelation or unlimited knowledge.

Today’s seed thought:

When the extreme seems normal the one who has balance seems to be the extreme.

Questions:

(1) Are there things that are called extreme today that were considered normal a few years ago and are there others that were seen as extreme a few years ago that are normal and acceptable today?

(2) Are you one who is balanced in the middle or on an extreme?

(3) Why is one who is balanced in the middle seen as an extremist by many?

(4) How does one find the middle point of maximum truth?

Day 224

The Middle Way

The Seed Thought

When the extreme seems normal the one who has balance seems to be the extreme.

A lot of truth can be revealed when contemplating this thought. Indeed, there are many things that are called extreme today that were considered normal a few years ago and there are others that were seen as extreme a few years ago that are normal and acceptable today?

For instance in the nineteenth century there were many practices and beliefs that were common that would be considered extreme today. There were Bibles and prayer in all the schools and many public buildings. Public buildings were often used for church services. Those people would have considered our idea of the separation of church and state extreme as does the present generation look upon their interpretation.

In our past public hanging and dueling to the death was the norm but today that would be viewed as extreme action.

Anything other than heterosexual identities was considered extreme perversion, whereas today the alternative people are widely accepted and those who maintain the old views are seen as extreme.

From 1917 to 1965 the United States had restrictive immigration laws that people of today would declare to be extreme and racist, but the people of that time would see us as the extremists.

People’s views change like a pendulum moving back and forth over a reasonable center.

The question the seeker must ask is how close he is to the midway point of balance. Most people have difficulty in accessing this objectively as most extremists think it is the other guy who is extreme, and not himself.

The strange thing for the one who does manage to balance himself between the two extremes is that he will often be accused of being extreme by both sides. The reason for this is simple. Most people view themselves as being normal and those who differ as the extreme.

Finding the point of balance in the center takes an open mind willing to study both sides of an issue and then use good judgment to pick a position. The true seeker will access the soul in doing this.

Today’s seed thought:

The fact that we exist, or that God or anything exists, is the greatest miracle of all, and boggles the mind of the highest initiate.

We look at the world around us and marvel at the unseen hand behind the beautiful planet, the flowers and the teeming life, but often overlooked is the greatest miracle of all which is that anything exists at all. Contemplate this thought and see where it takes you.

Day 225

The Greatest Miracle

The Seed Thought

The fact that we exist, or that God or anything exists, is the greatest miracle of all, and boggles the mind of the highest initiate.

Seekers appreciate seeing the intelligence of God manifest in the creation of all life with its beauty and great complexity. This is especially revealed in modern research into DNA, which turns out to be more complex than anything we can copy or duplicate at this time. The complexity of life on the microcosmic scale has convinced some open minded scientists that a great intelligence is at work.

Scientists also came upon a great mystery when they discovered the universe is expanding. They reverse engineered the expansion and came to the conclusion that the whole universe was once contained in a single point smaller than an atom. That point, they call a singularity, exploded in what is now called the Big Bang and from that incident came all there is.

Where this point of condensed essence came from or what caused the explosion they do not know. Unfortunately, most scientists do not want to consider that Divine Intelligence had anything to do with it.

Science and philosophers are happy to look at the effects of existence, but ignore the greater question which is this.

Why does anything exist? Many think it is a fanciful thought that God in some form could be real, but is it not just as amazing that anything exists at all? If at one point there was nothing, not even God, then how could there be something at another point?

I will share the results of my contemplation on this. The one thing that is eternal is the principle of cause and effect. This principle has always been and the interplay produces intelligence, which is also eternal. Cause and effect directed by intelligence has created all there is including the manifestation of all life, Divine and otherwise, in the universe.

Today’s seed thought:

In the end, love is One, but in its discovery it is many.

Contemplate the meaning of love and the truth contained in this statement.

Day 226

Oneness

The Seed Thought:

In the end, love is One, but in its discovery it is many.

Many spiritual teachings emphasize the oneness of God and all life for God is seen as the embodiment of all there is. This is a little like the idea that the human body contains around 37 trillion cells, each having a life of their own yet form a greater life which is you. You are one life, yet represent many lives.

Another example of oneness is found in the example of the ocean. Each drop of water in the ocean identifies with the whole. It is not until the drop of water is separated from the ocean that it is seen as a separate thing. Then when the drop is placed back in the ocean it again becomes one with the ocean.

Right now we are like drops of water that are separated from our source who is God. The end of our progressions is to become one with God and manifest the injunction of Jesus:

“Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.” John 17:11

We are more like a cell in the body of God than a drop in the ocean, for the drop loses its identity when merged but the cell maintains a separate life while being one with the body.

In this reality we have left our Source and are gaining experience through the illusion of separateness. To get back home each of us must discover love. Love is that great force which draws all creation back to its center. To get back to that oneness of being requires the seeker to experience love one individual at a time at first. After he or she learns from many people, one at a time, the seeker will eventually move on to embrace all life and share a oneness on higher levels. Love is thus discovered through many individuals, but reaches its apex in oneness.

Today’s seed thought:

None of us want disease and pain, but disease and pain are often caused by what we want.

How is it that our wants and desires often cause us problems and how do conflicting wants amplify our problems?

Day 227

Conflicting Desires

The Seed Thought:

None of us want disease and pain, but disease and pain are often caused by what we want.

The problem with our desires is that we have a lot of them and they conflict with each other.

For instance, a lot of people want to be rich, but generally material success requires the investment of a lot of time and energy on the goal. Many successful people have had to sacrifice numerous things they desired to attain it.

Here are some desires that many find to be in conflict with the desire to be rich.

(1) Spending more time with family.

(2) Enjoying leisure time

(3) Sleeping in

(4) Developing talents.

(5) Surfing the internet

(6) Spending time on spiritual development

In other words, there are many desires most of us have that that keep us from being as wealthy as we may desire. Most desire more wealth, but they desire other things more. The desire that is strongest in the mind at the present will win out.

If your kid has a ball game at the same time you could be making a business deal and you go to the ball game it doesn’t mean that you didn’t desire to make a successful deal, but it does mean that you desired to support your kid more than you desired the financial gain. The strongest desire will always win out.

Now let us apply this principle to the seed thought.

Everyone desires good health and the desire for good health is pretty powerful. You would think that we would not let any other desire take prominence over this, but unfortunately we do.

Good health requires us to eat nutritious food but we often desire junk food and yield to them because we like the taste or like how they make us feel at the moment. Because the negative effect on our health is not immediate many let their desire for harmful foods take prominence over health.

Exercise is also essential for health and we often let the desire to do other things take precedence over the desire for adequate exercise.

Knowledge of what creates good health is essential yet most would rather see a good movie than read a health related book.

Yes, we all want good health, but there are many other desires competing for our attention that will take us away from the goal.

The solution to the problem is simple yet difficult. The seeker must use the power of will to control and direct desire so the important desires dominate.

Today’s seed thought:

If a teaching seems to make no sense do not trust it until it does make sense.

Do you know people who believe things that make no sense?

Why do they follow something that is not logical?

Now search your own beliefs. Can you logically explain them all? Why not?

Day 228

Making Sense

The Seed Thought

If a teaching seems to make no sense do not trust it until it does make sense.

This seems like a logical and obvious truth yet if people search their belief systems they will usually find a number of beliefs that they accept that make no sense. Here are just a few common ones.

(1) Catholics believe that when they take the Eucharist that it is transformed into the literal flesh and blood of Jesus.

When you stop and think about this it indeed makes no sense and I’m sure many good Catholics doubt that it is true.

(2) Many who believe in a literal physical resurrection reject cremation because they think the elements that composed their body will be needed to bring them back to life.

On the other hand, the body is completely renewed with new elements every fourteen years so even nature does not require you to keep possession of the elements of your body.

In addition many humans in past ages have died and become fertilizer for plants that have been part of other human bodies.

(3) Too literal of an interpretation of the Bible lead many into illogical errors such as

The universe was created in six 24-hour days.
The earth is no more than 10,000 years old.
The earth is flat and surrounded by a dome.

(4) Conspiracy theories. To deny the existence of conspiracies is not logical, but to see a conspiracy under every rock is even more illogical.

Every major event has conspiracies associated with it and many of them do not make a lot of sense. Most real conspiracies involve a small number of people and usually involve taking someone out.

I remember when the tsunami happened in Indonesia in 2004 I figured that even though it was a natural event that some would find a conspiracy involved. I jokingly wrote this:

“Too much attention has been placed on the problems in Iraq lately and Bush needed a diversion. He thought he would kill a few Islamic terrorists in Indonesia, at the same time as creating diversion, so he dropped a 100 megaton atomic bomb in the Indian Ocean on a fault line. This created the largest earthquake in recent memory causing the giant Tsunami which killed over 150,000 Moslems and left millions homeless. This sent an underground message to the terrorists to not mess with Texas.”

Then within days of writing this, conspiracy theories popped up along this same idea.

Not every big event has a conspiracy behind it but most have anomalies that could provide fodder to drive conspiracy thinking.

Sooner or later the seeker will find that all things that are in harmony with his or her soul will be logical and make sense to the reasoning mind. If your Higher Self has not revealed the truth of a teaching to you then the safest course is to not accept it until it makes sense.

Today’s seed thought:

Evil is that which pulls us backward in evolution and good is that which pushes us forward.

Think of at least three questions you can ask yourself about this thought as you contemplate it.

Day 229

Right Direction

The Seed Thought

Evil is that which pulls us backward in evolution and good is that which pushes us forward.

This seed thought directs the mind toward a different idea of what good and evil is than is presented by the orthodox view. And what is the orthodox view?

The standard idea is often presented somewhat nebulously with statements such as.

“Good is being on God’s side.” But who defines what that is?

“Good is obeying the commandments and following scripture.” But many have different ideas of how to do this.

“Good is to support your church and its leaders.” But what if they are in error?

Then evil is the opposite of the above and particularly applies to those who follow the tricky devil.

The problem with the standard idea of good and evil is that all of us can be classified as good or evil by someone’s definition of the term.

This new seed thought cuts through the illusion and defines good or evil by direction. If you are headed in the direction of spiritual progress you are following the forces of good, even though you may make a few mistakes or have some beliefs that would classify you as evil in the mind of the fundamentalist.

On the other hand, if you are not applying yourself and retrogressing in spiritual progress you are on the path of evil even though you may have as squeaky clean image and be quite pious.

It is advisable for the seeker to reflect often on this though and ask himself regularly the question: “Am I moving forward or backward?” The path forward always takes us toward greater freedom and removal of limitations. The path backward restricts our freedoms and increases limitations.

Today’s seed thought:

The true glory of accomplishment is in initiation, not imitation.

Finding three questions around this thought should be no problem.

Day 230

To Initiate

The Seed Thought:

The true glory of accomplishment is in initiation, not imitation.

It is the natural tendency of us humans to want the rules laid out for us. We want to go from A to B to C and achieve D. We are willing to work hard if the path is clear and all we have to do is follow it.

Instead of going where no man has gone before the inclination is to follow in others footsteps and achieve as they have achieved.

Now there is nothing wrong with learning from others and following a path to achievement that others have paved. We have all done this to a degree. A certain amount of this process is essential to everyone’s leaning.

However, there comes a time in the life of the seeker where he must take the path less traveled by and forge some new ground on his own. Instead of just copying what others have done he or she will be impressed to do something original.

I was just watching he mini series about Picasso and noted how he had to rebel against family and teachers to forge his own path. He didn’t want to just be a good artist in the orthodox sense, but wanted to do something new and different in the trade.

Now we cannot all be a Picasso, but all seekers can find something to support that is not just a carbon copy of what has been done before. It can be something that applies to the individual’s life or support of some group endeavor to initiate the good, the beautiful and the true.

To initiate something new requires something more than following rules or connecting the dots. It requires original thinking, that for many is a greater effort than hard labor on a sure thing. To move forward with initiating requires creative thinking and risk, and many would rather take any alternative than take a risk.

The difference between the two paths may be illustrated by two people attempting to create a work of art. The first guy is doing a paint-by-numbers picture. When finished his paining looks very nice, but a thousand other people have done the same thing and gotten the same results.

The second guy wants to paint a unique picture. First, he has to study the art and then paint in a unique and creative way. When finished he has a painting unlike any other – one that has the possibility of having a high value.

Sooner or later the seeker tires of painting by numbers and wants to initiate by the light of his soul.

Today’s seed thought:

Be still, reach into the silent place, and know who you are.

How do you become still? What is the silent place? Who or what are you?

Day 231

Stillness

The Seed Thought:

Be still, reach into the silent place, and know who you are.

One of the prime obstructions to soul contact is a lack of stillness. There is always a lot of movement going on in the three worlds of human endeavor – composed of the physical, the emotional and the mental. To obtain soul contact the seeker must still the outer voices that tempt him to shift attention away from the point of stillness within that must be accessed.

On the physical plane we have television, the internet, social media, family members and friends wanting attention as well as numerous interesting things to do that either delay or take us away from the point of stillness.

To test the advantage of stillness, just sit in a chair and remain perfectly still for three minutes. You’ll notice that this simple act by itself will have a calming effect.

Perhaps the greatest tempter of the consciousness away from stillness is the emotional self. We have all kinds of emotions, good and bad, that easily capture the attention of many and make it extremely difficult to find that silent place.

Just imagine that you worked for three hours creating a file on your computer and you trashed it by accident. Most would be quite upset by this and would have difficulty in stilling the emotional self shortly thereafter and finding the silent place. Yet this is what the seeker must do. He must learn to override the emotional distractions, still the outward emotional noise and focus within.

Realistically few can expect to still the emotional body right after an upset, but when properly focused he should be able to do this within a few minutes.

There is an excellent line from the Course in Miracles which says, “I am not upset for the reason I think.” Searching for the true reason behind the upset can aid the seeker in calming himself.

The third distraction is the mind. The seeker cannot find the point of stillness if the mind is racing with all kinds of thoughts that have little to do with the spiritual quest. Yet when linked with consciousness the mind can be a great friend to the seeker aiding him to focus within where the fountain of wisdom can be found.

When the seeker stills all, in the three planes of human activity, he will then open up the silence within to consciousness, the point of contact for the soul.

Today’s seed thought:

In the higher realms 1+1=1

This is an interesting and somewhat paradoxical thought. See what you can do with it.

Day 232

One Body

The Seed Thought

In the higher realms 1+1=1

In a nutshell the principle implied is this. The higher we ascend and the closer we get to our Source the more the oneness of all things is realized.

There is one great life that permeates the universe of which we all are a part. We as part of that life participate in wholeness. Creation came from One that multiplied Itself into the many. Even though we seem to be many different individuals we are still merely an extension of the one. Therefore, one plus one, or you and me, are part of the one Source and one Life. In the end we equal one.

Perhaps the best earthly example of the oneness of life is our body, which is composed of trillions of cells with individual lives but as a whole the body is one life which represents you. Even so, all life in the universe composes the body of God, or the One Great Life.

Paul spoke very clearly concerning this oneness:

“Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are diversities of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is THE SAME GOD THAT WORKETH ALL IN ALL. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to EVERY MAN to profit withal… (Then Paul enumerates on the gifts of the Spirit.) For as THE BODY IS ONE (space) , AND HATH MANY MEMBERS (the many stars and lives), and all the members (human lives) of that ONE BODY (GOD), being MANY, are ONE body, SO ALSO IS CHRIST (GOD). For by ONE SPIRIT we are all baptized into ONE body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into ONE SPIRIT. For the body (GOD) is not one member (Life), but MANY (All lives together)…Now Ye are the body of Christ (GOD), and members in particular.” I Cor 12:12-14, 27

The task of the seeker is to live in this world of the many differentiations while realizing oneness through higher conscious ness.

Today’s Seed Thought:

Truth is spiritual wherever it is found. There is no such thing as spirituality without truth.

Why is truth spiritual?

Is even truth about negative things spiritual?

Are there those who put themselves forward as spiritual that do not represent truth?

Go ahead. Ask more questions.

Day 233

Truth and Spirituality

The Seed Thought:

Truth is spiritual wherever it is found. There is no such thing as spirituality without truth.

Maybe the first question to ask here is exactly what qualities must a thing have to be spiritual? When you think about it there is nothing more important than truth. Finding the truth no matter what it is takes is a step toward another truth and in the direction of Spirit.

A lie clouds the picture, makes it difficult to see things as they are, hinders the discovery of more truth and takes us away from Spirit.

Some figure that there are times it is better to lie than to tell the truth. Let us say a guy has an affair, but his wife is suspicious and asks and he insists that her imagination is just going wild. He figures he is saving her some hurt by lying to her.

Yes, sometimes the truth hurts, but the hurt is amplified when the truth reveals not only a traitorous act, but lies to conceal them.

Even if betrayal is concealed the one betrayed still senses the truth on subtle levels and this diminishes the relationship.

Overall, if the seeker is centered in the truth, even in difficult situations, he or she is centered in the Spirit for the Higher Self knows only truth and cannot be deceived by its reflection.

Unfortunately, there are those who put themselves forward as spiritual teachers who are not centered on truth, some of them willing to blatantly lie to get followers. Because like attracts like the deceived will gather to themselves others who are deceived and love not the truth.

The job of the seeker is to find the truth wherever it lies, To find it he must first develop a love for the truth and plan his life so he will not be tempted to lie and deceive. If he loves the truth, he will find the truth and become the truth through finding and merging with his own soul.

Today’s Seed Though:

True freedom is not imposing your will on others so you can have what you want. It is creating maximum freedom for all, often at the dismay of those in power.

Think of examples where people are willing to take away the freedom of others so they can have what they want.

Day 234

True Freedom

The Seed Thought:

True freedom is not imposing your will on others so you can have what you want. It is creating maximum freedom for all, often at the dismay of those in power.

There are two ways to define freedom. The first is to see it only in terms of you, the individual. The second is in terms of maximum freedom for the whole.

In the first case a few individuals may get maximum benefit, but it may be at the expense of many who suffer loss of freedom.

In the second case all will have freedom of opportunity within the rules of a civil society but some will still complain they do not get all they want.

No society can provide enough freedom to satisfy 100% of the citizens. The best that can be hoped for is maximum freedom for all within the group. Some think that an anarchy would provide maximum freedom but in this they greatly error. Anarchy would produce great suffering for the majority which would lead to tyranny.

The most significant example of the first case is the Old South before the Civil War. They maintained that they needed slaves to be free and when they fought the North because of slavery they maintained they were fighting for freedom. One of those supposed freedoms was the freedom to have slaves.

Yes, the ownership of slaves did provide a little more freedom to a few in the upper class, but it drastically reduced the freedom for the whole which is the goal that should be pursued by the seeker.

The problem of putting the freedom of the individual or class over the freedom of the whole persists today. This is most obvious when it comes to taxing citizens and the government borrowing money for different causes. There are many groups willing to tax people more than they are willing to pay and borrow additional money from the Federeal Reserve to benefit a few while the whole marches toward less freedom.

There are many who support unnecessary and restrictive laws that will cause the majority to have less freedom.

Freedom is seen by many as undesirable because in a state of maximum freedom there will still be some crime and problems.

The seeker must ask this. Which nation on the planet seems to have the lest problems with crime and rebellions citizens?

North Korea would be at the top of the list. There you never have a school shooting or hear of a bank robbery. But would any U.S. citizen want to live there?

No.

Why?

Because it is a living hell. Common people eat tree bark, grass and even dirt to survive.

Freedom requires reasonable enforcement of law and order so the many can have a pleasant life, but a happy medium must be reached so the majority are happy with the freedoms they have.

Today’s Seed Thought:

Light dispels darkness but darkness cannot dispel light. Even so, truth, revealed and understood, obliterates that which is false.

There are many questions that can be asked about this thought. For instance, if this is true them why does it take so long for some truths to be accepted?

See if you can think of more questions – and their answers.

Day 235

Something and Nothing

The Seed Thought:

Light dispels darkness but darkness cannot dispel light. Even so, truth, revealed and understood, obliterates that which is false.

The first question the seeker would want to ask is why this is true? Why is it that light can dispel darkness but darkness cannot obliterate light? In other words, you can shine a flashlight in the dark and instantly reveal that which was hidden in the darkness, but there is no darkness beam you can project to hide that which is revealed by light.

The reason for this is that light is something and darkness is nothing. You can project light because it is made of something, which science says are photons, but you cannot project that which is no-thing.

When something is revealed the illusion of nothing no longer exists.

I didn’t realize what real darkness was until I visited Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico. There the guide took us into a cavern and turned out all the lights. The absolute darkness was amazing. I thought I had been in the dark before, but this made me realize that I had not.

Then when he turned on the light the darkness instantly vanished and I could see all the beauty of the caverns.

Light is the foundation of all creation and its wavelengths in their varying degrees create all the visible universe. Thus is creation produced by the real, but separated by the unreal.

When the real is brought to our consciousness the unreal that hides it no longer has effect.

The real represents truth and darkness is that which hides the truth. When the truth is no longer hidden it shines forth for all to see.

Why then does it take so long for some truths to be seen by all?

Let us suppose there are 100 people placed in a large dark room and they are told that somewhere in this room is a real gold coin, but in other locations are 99 false coins. The false coins have a somewhat gold color, but are not true gold. Each person is given a small penlight with which to search. All those who acknowledge the true coin will receive one.

After a lot of searching many think they have found the true coin. Jim found the true coin first, but kept the information to himself. After a time some realized the coin they found was not real for it did not have the right color or weight as true gold. Finally, a couple who did find the true coin started proclaiming it. Someone noted that if several combined their little lights into one light and shined it on the true coin that the true color of the gold would become obvious.

After a time the whole group gathered together and combined their lights and shined them on the true and false coins. After this happened the whole group realized which one was the true coin.

This is somewhat the way it is with truth that has not reached mass consciousness. It is hidden in a corner and only a few find it at first, but as more light is shined in its direction it becomes obvious and is eventually accepted by all

A book could be written on this thought alone, but at this point we’ll leave the rest for the seeker to contemplate.

Today’s Seed Thought:

Words and other forms of earthly communication veil truth, even if they come from God.

Wouldn’t a communication from a Divine Source be so clear that there would be no misunderstanding? Explain.

Day 236

Veiled Truth

The Seed Thought:

Words and other forms of earthly communication veil truth, even if they come from God.

Perhaps the most universally accepted words as being seen as coming from God are the Ten Commandments. Yet even with these ten injunctions the interpretations vary quite widely.

For instance, the scripture simply reads, “Thou shalt not kill.”

There are some that think this should apply not just to humans but also to animals. Others criticize the believers because the ancient Israelites supported the death penalty for numerous crimes. In addition, they went to war with God’s approval and killed many of their enemies. Supporters explain that God meant we should not murder as in what we call the first degree.

Whatever the case the words from God hide the real truth from many.

Another commandment that caused a wide variety of interpretations was the Sabbath “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work.”

This commandment caused numerous attacks on Jesus by the authorities. When they read that one is not supposed to do any work on the Sabbath they literally interpreted that to mean “any” and they accused Jesus of breaking the commandment by working at healing on that day.

The Jews at the time of Jesus had hundreds of rules that defined what constituted work. For instance, you were told you could take so many steps and beyond that number you were working and breaking the commandment.

Believers cannot even agree on the day for the Sabbath. Many believe it has to be Saturday whiles others say Sunday is fine. Then many Muslims consider Friday as a day of rest.

This only tells us that the real truth behind the Sabbath is hidden from most who read the words.

The truth is this. No matter how clearly an author tries to place thoughts into words some will not interpret the meaning as intended. The reason is that human words are an imperfect means of communication.

What is the solution then?

The seeker must always look for the full truth hidden between the lines and this will only be seen when a measure of soul contact is achieved. Without soul contact the person will interpret only in terms of black and white and often miss the mark. With soul contact the seeker will get a sense of what the author was trying to convey and will often see the principle behind the message. When the principle is seen the reader will not only get the true intent but often will see more truth than was written.

Today’s Seed Thought:

Once the seeker reaches that point where he is totally dedicated to following the highest he knows, then illusion must be dispelled or he will become dangerous.

This thought is quite provocative and runs contrary to orthodox religious thought which is this: “The ultimate goal is for the person to become obedient to God in all things.”

On the other hand, what if the guy is sincere, tries to be a good follower, but has some wrong-headed ideas that would harm others? That cannot be good.

Think on this.

Day 237

Dispelling Illusion

The Seed Thought:

Once the seeker reaches that point where he is totally dedicated to following the highest he knows, then illusion must be dispelled or he will become dangerous.

It is a common belief among the spiritually inclined that the end of the spiritual quest is reaching a point where one has taken in all the good teachings in the scriptures and other good works and follows them to the best of his or her ability.

There are all kinds of ideas as to where the endpoint is ranging from merely accepting Jesus as Lord, to performing good works to the end, to having your calling and election made sure through a personal revelation.

The truth is that progression is an endless path. Could you imagine reaching a point where there were no other challenges to face or new goals to pursue? When you think about it this would be hell as eternal boredom would follow.

Yes, reaching a point where the seeker is doing his best to live the good life is a good accomplishment, but it is just a step. Little understood is that the next hurdle has dangerous illusions to overcome. This is the point where the seeker takes the path of darkness or light. If he inadvertently takes the path of darkness he can still backtrack for a period of time, but when he reaches a point where he realizes he is on the dark path and still continues then his path is set and no return becomes possible.

There are many dangerous illusions that tempt good people. Here are a few.

(1) “I have reached the end of the spiritual road and now I can relax.” The person thus ends his progression into the light and entropy pulls him backwards.

(2) Children are born in sin and people are basically evil. This causes the person to focus on the dark rather than the light.

(3) (A certain race or group) is a blight on civilization and needs to be destroyed. Many people of otherwise good intent are captured by this illusion and become dangerous.

(4) It is better that my wife and children die than face the troubles we have. This thinking is voiced by numerous people, of otherwise good intent, who killed themselves and their family so save them from problems they faced.

Once the seeker reaches that point where he follows the highest he knows his job is then to dispassionately examine his beliefs to make sure they are correct and that they will aid him in continuing on the path of light and truth.

Today’s Seed Thought

He who listens to the inner voice can find more truth in the National Enquirer than one who is in illusion can find in the Bible.

Why do you suppose this is true?

Day 238

Sensing Truth

The Seed Thought:

He who listens to the inner voice can find more truth in the National Enquirer than one who is in illusion can find in the Bible.

For many believers, the Bible is the gold standard for truth and the National Enquirer and other tabloids are right down at the bottom of the list. Yet even though the Bible contains many valuable truths the reader can be led astray on many things if he does not read by the light of the soul.

One who is numb to the inner voice can read the most inspired writings and be deceived but one who is sensitive to it can read the most radical writings and not be deceived, but see the truth behind them.

The errors the mistaken reader makes with inspired writings are:

(1) Interprets literally in black and white. For instance, the Bible refers to the “four corners of the earth.” Some still claim that the earth is flat with four actual corners.

Black and white interpretation will always yield many mistakes by the reader.

(2) They interpret in the light of what authorities in their life have told them.

For instance, if their authorities tell them that salvation consists of X, Y and Z then every individual interpretation will favor this.

(3) The self-deceived will interpret in harmony with their lower desires. If they want a thing to be true then any words to the contrary will either be ignored or irrationally explained away. For instance, those who want the earth to be flat tell us that the many thousands of actual photos by numerous countries showing otherwise are fake.

On the other hand, one who listens to the true inner voice is very difficult to deceive. He can read a tabloid claiming that the president met with aliens and see the probable truth with an open mind.

Now the inner voice will not whisper the words, “No, the president did not meet with aliens!” Instead, it reveals principles which gives the whole picture. Such a seeker will know that there are indeed other life forms in the universe, yet the possibility of the event being true is extremely small. Obviously the tabloid is going for an attention-grabbing headline.

The true seeker will be extremely accurate in understanding principles, which filters down to a high accuracy with facts, though no one is 100% accurate with black and white data.

Today’s Seed Thought:

Every possibility is manifest somewhere and every possible experience that can be lived is being played out somewhere. You as an individual are going through an experience unique to yourself, slightly different from any other life in the Universe.

There is a lot of food for thought here. Reflect and see where it takes you.

Day 239

All Possibilities

The Seed Thought:

With over seven billion people on the planet one can only imagine how many possibilities are playing out in human lives alone. It is staggering to think about.

Some are in great pain, suffering from hunger, disease and depression. Others find great joy discovering the love of their life and meeting with great success. Some are free to do as they wish where others have their lives controlled beyond that which the free person even wants to consider.

But when we consider the magnitude of the universe the possibilities are magnified exponentially.

The earth resides in this solar system consisting of nine planets, plus five known dwarf planets, lots of moons, asteroids, comets and the sun itself. The earth is the only one with life as we know it, but there are many other possibilities of life upon and within the various spheres.

Now, this solar system is only one of many within the Milky Way Galaxy. And what would that number be? Most scientists believe it to be over 250 billion.

Just think. If only one in a million solar systems within the galaxy had intelligent life on its surface that would mean there would be 250,000,000 earthlike planets in this galaxy alone and I would suspect that this is a very conservative number.

But, the Milky Way is only one galaxy out of many. How many?

Astronomers can only calculate the number in the observable universe and the current estimate is two trillion galaxies of which the Milky Way with 250 billion solar systems is fairly average.

Two trillion galaxies – that is 2,000,000,000,000, which is two thousand times a billon and if only one out of a million solar systems have an earthlike planet the number of earths would be 250 million times two trillion, a very large number indeed.

These numbers only apply to that part of the universe we can observe through telescopes. Scientists can only guess at how many more stars and galaxies are in the rest of the universe. Is the universe ten times larger than we can observe, a thousand times or maybe infinite? Or could the universe with trillions of galaxies be only one of many similar universes?

Whatever the case, the numbers are mind boggling and the probability is this. There are trillions of other intelligent life forms out there. Some will look like us and some will look very different from us. Spiritual students know that the One Great Life we call God permeates every other life in the universe which means that the life of God is experiencing every possibility that can be imagined. The variety of experiences on this earth alone are enormous, but beyond the imagination of humanity when considering the universe itself.

That’s enough food for thought for now, but much more can be had by further contemplation on this seed thought.

Today’s Seed Thought:

God needs all Its creations for Itself to be complete for the ALL is God, not the All minus one.

Some will register this to be true and others will not – so why or why not is this a true statement?

To go to the next section (Part 20) go HERE

Links for the first 18 sections of this series.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18