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Today's
Meditation:
What
does it mean to be "awake" in the sense that
Ralph is talking about? I think we all could come up
with different definitions and explanations, but I think
that the most important element that he wants to get
across to us is that we must recognize, accept, and live
life with the fact that we all are part of Divine
Being. Our oneness with God--whatever we perceive
God to be--is the fact of our lives that most of us refuse
to live. We fool ourselves into thinking that we're
separate from God and somehow unworthy of God's love, but
the fact is that God is in each of us, and since that's
true we are living lives that are connected to all other
lives.
All
major religious leaders talk of connection to one degree
or another. Some seem to want to stay short of
actually empowering people, so they put limits on the
connection. But the connection is there, and we all
feel it in our hearts. The question is whether or
not we recognize the feeling for what it is and whether we
honor that knowledge through the ways in which we live.
My
greatest difficulty is the constant awareness of God in
me. My consciousness of that holy part of myself
often ebbs lower than any tide I've ever seen as I get
caught up in my day-to-day living and simply forget to be
aware. Other things have my attention, after
all. And as I get more caught up in the daily life
and become less aware of the holiness that abides in me, I
act less in line with how I would like to act, and more in
line with societal expectations and norms.
In
other words, my consciousness fades. But I do know
that I am a part of the Divine Being, and I am confident
that one day I will act the part. After all, I
continue to work at improving my awareness and maintaining
it, so one day I'm bound to meet with success. And
when that happens, I'll finally be treating all other
people as they deserve to be treated. And that in
itself will be reward enough for all my efforts.
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