Every day we do our best to be more of the loving and grateful person we want to be. It seems to be a constant struggle between our desire for good, and what I think of as the “easy” or “lazy” way out, which some consider to be the “evil” side of us. This seems to be the perennial battle both inside and out… the battle between the energy of good and the energy of evil… and the consequences of our choice as to which route we choose to put our energy and focus toward.
When you listen within to the voice of your True Self, your Highest Self which has a direct connection to the Divine universe, and follow its guidance, you will act in accordance with divine love and triumph in your own inner conflict and follow the action towards the highest good for all concerned.
When you listen to that loud, demanding and egocentric voice within and succumb to its selfish and defensive demand, you will act in accordance with your lowest self, the self that focuses on how your actions look from an outsider’s viewpoint. The actions you take to defend yourself from perceived loss or attack. In some cases, you can even fool yourself into thinking that you are being a martyr for others and be self-sacrificing while patting yourself on the back when you listen to this voice if you are not vigilant. You can even fool yourself into rationalizing you are doing the right thing.
So, how do you know when you are listening to your True Self, the Self that is eternal, always loving and connected with the Divine? That’s easy… practice! Every time you practice self-control of your thoughts, acknowledge your emotions, and take responsibility for your actions you get closer to your True Self when all are done through Divine Love.
When you practice focusing your mind while in meditation, you are practicing self-control of your thoughts. Taking this deeper, you can then create the “no mind” that we often hear of by once acknowledging your thoughts, letting them go, creating space for no thoughts. And, the universe abhors a vacuum, so when you allow it, the thoughts of your True Self can rise to the surface, filling this void. And then, if you are open to listening, you can hear and be guided by these thoughts and suggestions. Because our Creator gave us free will, we can choose to hear and be guided or not. It’s always your choice to focus on love or focus on fear. Which will you choose?
When you are able to acknowledge your emotions such as love, fear, anxiety, sadness, grief, hope, anger… or anything besides “okay, good, bad, fine…” you are allowing yourself to experience your own inner guidance through your emotions. How do you know it’s an emotion? Can you draw the facial expression of it? If you feel “ok” after stealing, hitting, lying, etc., and do not admit you are guilty or have other “negative” feelings, how can you be truthful with yourself? How can you grow and allow your True Self to guide you towards the light of our Creator so you can act accordingly?
And then when you take responsibility for your actions, you start to accept the consequences; whether you think they are good or bad, they are just your feedback to your actions! You have the Divine ability to learn from every action you take. How great is that! The whole universe is your school. I just find that amazing and feel so much gratitude for how our Creator has thought everything through! So, everyone receives the lessons their soul can learn and grow from. Once you realize that, you start making the inner choice and commitment of practicing feeling your emotions, listening to your True Self and thinking before you act, then learning and growing from the results.
Life becomes less stressful and more joyful as you take these steps to grow, and life becomes less of an inner and outer battle. Just practice 1) feel your emotion, 2) listen to your True Self, 3) think before you act. It really is as easy as that to get started on having a wonderful, loving and peaceful life!
