Silence

I spent a good part of today in silent, peaceful meditation and contemplation for it is within the silence that I connect with the loving force I call God. Within the silence I can quiet my brain in order to feel the Presence and its healing powers for the physical problems I have been having. Today I experienced the silence while sitting in my recliner, I can also do this on a peaceful day, outside and the experience is generally stronger in a group setting like a meeting of the Friends. "To understand better the value of silence in daily life, and its relation to this spiritual transformation for which we yearn, it is useful first to consider the limitation of language, of words. It is next useful to contemplate the limitations of logical reasoning." (Daniel A. Seeger)

Pain

Today my pain has captured my attention. I choose not to think or talk about it much — it just is and the fact is that "I have some level of pain most of the time", usually just minor sores in my mouth from biting myself. I do not use medication very often, I use a combination of meditation, relaxation, service work and distraction. I find that when I meditate deeply on love or live within love, like when I write this Blog, I experience a great deal less pain. That is certainly true today — right now. Right now for the first time today, I do not feel like a "creaky old man".

Love

Today I have been reflecting on love as a force right along with the accepted forces of gravitation and magnetism. Most obviously, I have used the force of love for physical healing and health but I believe love has other applications as well. I use the force of love daily, walking through life with it surrounding me. I do not understand it, but keep using it. As Sean Carroll comments in his book The Big Picture: On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself.  "Even to ask such a question [How well do we know what we think we know?] is to admit that our knowledge, at least in part, is not perfectly reliable. This admission is the first step on the road to wisdom. He goes on to say "And when it comes to understanding the fundamental architecture of reality, none of us has complete information."

Points Of View

Today, while speaking on the phone, in response to a comment about feeling fear, I commented that "there is absolutely nothing to be afraid of", which is true if a person is viewing reality through the lense of love, eternity and Presence. However, if a person looks at life through the lense of temporal, worldly ideas then fear seems totally reasonable. I choose to be aware of the potential of worldly, temporary pain or discomfort, while keeping my focus on love and eternity. "And though ideas such as these may seem unimportant in our bustling world, the testimony of seekers after life in all ages is that nothing is so important as the completion of our half-lives, the God-filling of our void." (Gilbert Kilpack)

Love

Today Maria, my wife, and I went to visit our nephew, his wife and two week old baby, our new grand-niece. When offered, I turned down the chance to hold the new-born but was able to touch her and bless her with Love the way I do. As a result the feeling of love within me increased, a win-win. I was reminded that the nature of Love is to spread and grow. I did my part and will continue. "Love is the force that increases the integrity of the universe. Whatever is required to do this is loving." (Shepherd Hoodwin)

Choice

If I keep my focus on the God or Love seed within me by doing things like morning prayer and meditation then my day is harmonious and peaceful and my actions are impact full. If, however, I skip that part my day is likely to be a bit chaotic and stressful, a simple choice which I need to remember. The choice being difficult to keep in mind makes no logical sense since the consequences are so simple and black and white. But it was a difficult choice initially. My dawn ceremony and early prayer and meditation have now become a habit and part of my day. "‘That of God in every man’ is as a finger pointing to that of God which is infinitely more than the good in every man." (Gilbert Kilpack)