questions

When was the last time you looked in the mirror and saw the infinite?

Today I have a special message just for you. Yes you, the person reading this. You might wonder, “How do I know you?

Well to keep this simple, let’s say I know you because you and I are one. We share the same collective consciousness. Our souls are connected. Our hearts have the same infinite love waiting to be expressed. We come from the same source.

I could go on but I think you get the picture. Beyond our separate stories there is so much we share.

Not only do I know you, I know what is possible within you. That is why I am writing to you today

No-Doubt Peaceful Warrior

I have been bothered by self-doubt most of my life. I thank the 12 years of Catholic Schools as one of the major contributors to this deeply rooted lack of belief in myself. At the base of this belief runs a mixture of ideas that there is something not okay about who I am.

First off I want to say, I know this old message is a bunch of mind-noise BS but that doesn’t stop it from rising inside of me from time-to-time.

Through years of personal introspection and my work as a mental health professional, I have come to understand that the ego-mind uses self-doubt as a way to remain in charge. If thoughts of self-doubt are consistently part of my psyche, I am more readily under the control of my ego.

Between Sparkle And Uncertainty

Last night as I was doing my walking meditation I saw the waves sparkle under the bright moon. I love to be in the sparkle of life when beauty shines, when life fills us with encouragement, when inspiration flows like a giant endless river.  Lately it seems I have been dancing on the edge of sparkle and uncertainty. I am sure this is where there is much growth but sometimes the uncertainty can weigh heavily on the mind. When it does, I have to remind myself that happiness is just a choice away and easy to come by if I live in the appreciation of the moment. Self-reminders are a good thing to carry in your thoughts and your pocket.

There is a lot going on of late with my new movement idea bubbling to the surface and my just published book. These times are ripe for creation, can you feel in the air? The creative flow is there also like happiness when I am in the now. As I have said often, “now is where all the action is.” In this moment if I take the time to tune inward then inspiration and intuition are their waiting. Give the moment a try, pose a question, sit quietly and listen for guidance and be ready for inner messages, images, impulses, synchronicity and other forms of deeper guidance.

The next thing I wanted to talk with about is my new book. Awaken:100 Questions to Expand Your Mind and Open Your Heart.  This book is a life changer, if you take the time to explore these questions. I am not claiming any special powers to change your life, but I am promising you that if you ask yourself the important questions, you will be deeply affected by those questions and your responses to them. As counselor I have seen people’s lives change just be the asking of a simple question.  I know when I turn inward and ask myself questions I am forever altered by the exploration.

Questions are powerful because they invite us to expand our thinking, to broaden our viewpoint, and to go searching for what is truth for us.  Questions also have the ability to open us up to more love, greater compassion, and ways to be more engaged in the world. Just a simple question like, “how can I be more kind to those I love,” will give you an abundance of ideas that will enrich the lives of yourself and those around you. 

It is my guarantee that if you read this book your life will be enhanced in many ways. These questions have great power.

The Better World Together movement has been percolating now for a few days and I am getting lots of ideas, which I will share with you soon.  I welcome your ideas too. I can be reached at josephteach@hotmail.com

Experiment Update: Also if you read my posts regularly you know I started this experiment about inner focus versus action with the belief that my inner work was more important for success than my outer actions. I am now well into week two and what I am noticing is that my focus on inner work is more rewarding than my focus on action. When I am in the introspective mode, I fee most alive. When I meditate or do other practices, I feel fully present and inspired.

This week I have been doing actions with much less inner focus and I have noticed worry and fear more in my awareness. Actions are great and may at times help with the concerns but they are not near as effective at soothing the heart or quieting the mind. Of course this may seem obvious that inner work has a greater inner benefits. It is not near as obvious as when you take time to highlight both inner work and outer actions and see which best enhances the quality of your life.

Through this experiment I have become even clearer about the importance of taking the time to tune inward throughout my day so that my actions are always guided by my inner knowing. I will now integrate that into my daily routine. My plan is to now take at least 5-10 minutes every couple of hours to tune inward in addition to longer periods of inner practices in the morning and in the evening. I want to fill my life with the vibrations of this inner work so that all my actions sparkle with inspiration. 



Is It Time Yet For The Great Search For Truth?

The world is so incredibly complicated. Yet many people are absolutely sure they are right about what needs to be done. This baffles me because there are no easy solutions. How can they be so sure? Even the experts don’t agree about what to do about the problems we face in the world today.

This got me curious about where this sureness of opinion comes from. Maybe they know more than the rest of us? It seems unlikely they know more than the experts. Maybe they go looking for information that supports their points of view? All of us want ideas that support the way we see things. Isn’t however important to see if what we claim is true? If we don’t question our points of view then we have this way of seeing things that is not based on any clear thinking.

Political points of view often fall into this unexplored category where ideas are just repeated over and over even when there is no proof they work or sometimes even clear evidence they don’t work. How come these so called answers to our problems aren’t investigated by those who jump on the bandwagon? Do they think the importance of finding the truth isn’t relevant or necessary?

Thank you, if you have hung on this far. It is probably time for me to get to the point. My point is that we always need to question our thoughts and our opinions. If we don’t then the beliefs we hang on to are from a closed mind. Closed minds are a waste of human potential.

I will even venture to say that people who are absolutely sure they are right about their ideas are most often wrong. They are wrong because their minds are run by the need to be right not by the need to find the truth.

This need to be right is a great problem in humanity. It is driven by the survival mind, not the higher mind that seeks truth. In the survival mind we think the world is out to get us so we live in fear and worry. Fear and worry causes us to contract, to close down. The problem with closing down is that too often that means closing our minds and even more costly closing our hearts.

In some segments of society, the world seems to be having an epidemic of closed mindedness and closed hearts. Sadly people believe all their own thoughts. Many don’t question their ideas even when that aren’t working but fit some kind of dogmatic way of looking at the world.  People actually hold onto false ideas that get in the way of positive possibilities in their lives.

There is no evidence of higher mind at work when narrow-mindedness prevails. The seeking of truth has become secondary to holding on tightly to opinion. Higher mind seeks the truth and is guided by the hearts wisdom, intuition and the part of us that is able to be curious beyond old ideas and limiting thoughts.

Maybe this epidemic is a reflection of our times where uncertainty is the only thing certain? Maybe the survival mind also known as the reptilian brain is in full protection or aggression mode for the purpose of keeping us safe? Or maybe this closed down thinking is because change is so present that people want to do everything they can to hold it back?

Change seems inevitable and part of the process of all living things. The evolutionary story of all species is one of adaptation. In humanity the old stories of might makes right, survival of the fittest and other limiting ideas are slowly being replaced by the realization of the global community and they need to work together for solutions. The survival of the planet and all of us has to be a joint effort with our minds coming together. Yes there are those fighting like mad to hold onto the old ways but they are going to loose the battle. Today is another day. The great values of the past, the ones that matter most, can be brought forward. The past ideas that represent limiting thinking will perish as do the other organism that don’t adapt. There is hope for us who seek positive changes in the world.  

***One of my favorite journalist is returning to TV this weekend - Bill Moyers’ has a new show called Moyers And Company. Bill is a great example of a person who asks real question in search of the truth.