Who's There?

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." ~ Matthew 7:7

(Although I don't necessarily believe in literal interpretations of the Bible, there is a great wealth of wisdom therein. The above concept could well have come from any number of sources, both ancient and modern.)
Although we come to this world perfect and whole, we immediately develop needs and wants. Any person could easily name dozens of their own needs and wants. Often, the needs and wants become tangled up and twisted into knots. How do we separate what we want from what we need? Beyond the basic survival needs, what else is truly required?
The measure of a person comes from how they define this for themselves. It also comes from how they pursue their needs and wants.
Do you ask? Do you seek? Do you knock on the door? Or do you cringe, hold back your love, or complain, because what you need or want is not in front of you?

For the Love of God

There are almost seven billion people on Earth. Each one is a child of God, no matter who or what they are, what they believe, what they do or don't do. We all come from that which created us. No matter how far we travel from that source, we all came from the same place.
Taking a moment to reflect on that, I think of the only thing that God asks of us: love. The only thing we have to do is love God. How do we do that? Simply by loving that which God created: our essential selves. To love one another is simple. It is not easy, especially when we are called to love some very problematic people. It is not easy, especially when we are called to love ourselves no matter what. But that is all we have to do.
Simple, but not easy.
If we persevere through the difficulty of this simple task, we have made the world better. If we all do this, the world will be a lot better.
Have no fear, for you are not alone. God shows us how to love unconditionally every day.

The Past is Over

I've read somewhere that the act of remembering something alters the memory itself. So, over time, what we recall of our past, inevitably, changes.
We tend to believe that we cannot change the past. That is essentially true in a physical sense, since we live in a linear world. What we can change, however, is our view of the past. Let's say, for example, we did something in the past which we regret. Today we live with the consequences of our past action. If we choose to atone for the past action, we alter our view of it. We amend the past by making amends!
The way we view the past from our present standpoint, then, makes all the difference. If we only focus on regret or guilt, we do not alter the memory for the better; we only validate it as a negative experience. If we amend our view of the past, we take a step towards mending our present self. This doesn't mean glossing over past wrongs. It means acceptance and love of all life experiences, for they are all rich with learning opportunities. Who couldn't say they have learned more from their failures than from their successes?

Let there be Light

We are beings of Light. I know this because when I look into another person's eyes, I see Light there. This is true even if the person is unhappy, ill or otherwise not in a "good" mood. The Light must shine, no matter what. Of course, there are plenty of times when the Light is so dim or clouded or in some way covered, that it seems nearly impossible to see. No worries, the Light is still there.
When this happens, I can help by sending some Light in the direction of that person. It does not need to be obvious, or even accompanied by any physical sign that this is taking place. This is purely a mental exercise. Sending Light to one who needs it is perhaps one of the easiest ways to give to another.
Now, here is the most important part: as soon as I send this person some Light, I immediately send this same Light to myself. This is key. I must acknowledge and receive that which I give freely to another. Light is infinite, after all. This giving and receiving can happen in an instant, and change the entire dynamic of your encounter.

Thought for Today

Most of the things we worry about don't even happen.