Your Moment of Power (Feb 1st, 2009)
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"There's a huge difference in being alive and just being biologically valid. Essence of life is found right here, right now, in this present moment." – Tim Whiston
Hello again Friend,
The last week has been an interesting one! As you know from the last newsletter, the website was broken and I wasn't able to share any new stories with you. Well, I've got some good news and some bad news...
The good news first: I can now add stories, and I've added a bunch! (Just look below... there's more than a dozen of them) The bad news: Any new stories won't display quote marks correctly. I'm still working on fixing this, but for now you can at least read and enjoy the stories. :)
Also, as you know I tend to share about myself and write fairly personal emails. With hundreds of new spiritual story lovers joining us every month (130 in just the last week!), some people may feel lost or left out... having missed past parts of my spiritual adventure such as my "But that's NOT spiritual!" newsletter, or that time I shared with you why I thought I might die on an airplane.
Well, there's good news. I've decided to post an archive of the Spiritual Stories Newsletters from the last 6 months or so, and I'll be continuing to post all new newsletters online (including this one). If you find any favorites in particular, be sure to share the link with your friends, family, Facebook, friends, and whoever else may be interested. Anyway, here's the link:
==> Spiritual Stories Newsletter Archive
I'd also like to thank the many many people who emailed me after the most recent newsletter about letting go. It really touched me to know that I had connected with so many of you. As you can see, even my own adventure of letting go continues... a little bit at a time - with the website still not working properly.
The important thing though, is that I continue to be accepting of this experience, that I make the best of it, and ultimately that I am present with it. Sure things don't work perfectly, but right now they work good enough... you can read the stories, you can enjoy the stories, and you can be present with the stories and gain insights from them. I'm grateful for that.
Also on the topic of presence, it's rather timely that I recently came into contact with a really friendly guy, Tim Whiston, who focuses on helping people live more presently. He shared with me his new digital book "Your Moment of Power" which is a concise collection of wisdom on living more presently. Not only does Tim share information on what it means to live presently, he also walks through several very practical and simple step-by-step exercises to help live in the present moment.
My favorite is Tim's "being with your perceptions" exercise. It's one of those spiritual practices which is great for beginners, great for the experienced spiritual adventurer, and even better for those who experience what we might regard as "enlightenment" or "realization." Not only that, but it can even be shared with children so I'll probably do it with my son Quantum once he's old enough to sit still for longer than 30 seconds :)
One thing I really appreciate about Tim's writing is his openness and honesty. It seems a lot of people go from spiritual book to workshop to movie, and each time they secretly hope that what they're reading or doing will be "the one." There's this secret hope that we will instantly be transformed into the person we think that we want to be.
Here's a little secret... on most days I still feel that way! :) (at least in one way or another)
It's natural to feel that way... to want the change immediately. Especially after we hear of some people like the Buddha 'instantly' attaining enlightenment under the famous Bodhi tree. With that in mind, one thing I really appreciate that Tim writes in "Your Moment of Power" is that he knows that usually no single workshop or book will cause instant transformation.
Instead, he points out that the continued acceptance and opening up of ourselves creates a gradual transformation - just like in Guy Finley's story "Letting Go... A Little Bit At A Time" that I shared with you last last week. We transform little by little, until suddenly we have that "aha!" moment... and it's easy to forget all the smaller steps we took along the journey. This is how Tim says it in his own way:
Decades of conditioning will not immediately vanish once you've completed this e-book and/or other courses; and putting undue pressure on yourself to be instantly transformed defeats the purpose of this message.
We often pressure ourselves to live up to certain spiritual "ideals," and sometimes it's that striving to be a certain way which actually limits us! This seems counter-intuitive, but the simple and short answer is that when we have certain ideals about how we "should" be, then we are not allowing all the other possibilities to exist. Allow me to share a very brief example:
Suppose you believe that "all spiritual people meditate every day." Well, what happens if you don't meditate every day? For one, you will probably feel some sense of guilt for not living up to your "spiritual ideal." I think we both can agree that guilt never feels good... and generally speaking, I know I like to feel good. :) So that's one reasy it doesn't help to pressure ourselves.
The second thing that happens is we close ourselves off to other possibilities. By assuming we have to meditate daily, we ignore the fact that other opportunities in our life may provide similar benefits as meditation. Perhaps instead we might benefit from a walk in the park, playing with our children, or taking an exceptionally long time to chew and eat our food.
In a way, all of life can be meditative. And as a result, if we say "spiritual people must meditate every day" then we're really doing ourselves a disservice for the reasons above. This topic could easily take a series of books to explain, but in a nutshell, that's what Tim is trying to say. As I mentioned, in "Your Moment of Power," Tim also provides step-by-step exercises to help let go... a little bit at a time:
"What all these exercises lead to is the ability to let go and trust the flow of life. This is central to the concept of mindfulness. These exercises are not about adding new knowledge or building new skills; they are about learning to recognize the wonderful ability you already have to allow the present moment."
Think about that for a moment. Tim is saying that we already have everything we need, and all we have to do is be open to our experience. Other spiritual teachers in the past have said this same thing, but in a different way... they've often said, "All paths lead back to you." or "Everything you need you already have within you."
Wouldn't it be nice if that were true?
Maybe it is. Maybe it isn't. It's not for me to tell you what truth is, but rather, to share with you my own experiences of what's been helpful... and to encourage you to explore and discover what works best for you. In my experience, I haven't found a "right" or "wrong" way to be spiritual. What I've found is similar to what Dan Millman told me at a recent workshop of his that I attended with my father:
"There is no right or wrong way. There is only the right way for you at a specific time in your life."
Today you might resonate with what I have to say, and tomorrow you might unsubscribe and never want to hear another word I say. Whatever you choose, that's part of your path, and it's important to honor that. My path continues to unfold, and change, and I've found that the more I simply accept and allow the present moment to be as it is, the more joy and peace I experience in my life.
Some things happen that I may not like... such as the website breaking. But it's still my choice whether or not I get frustrated and upset about that, or whether I am allowing and accepting of it and make the best of things. As Tim says, it is this allowing which opens me up to live in my Moment of Power... something I continue to experience more and more with each passing day.
Whew! I just looked back on all that I've written, and I realize that this is a really long newsletter. I didn't intend to write this much, but it sort of poured out of me as I was being allowing and accepting of the present moment.
By now you're probably wondering, "Where's the new stories?" Actually, maybe you're not wondering that... but since I've been writing for quite a while and had no idea beforehand what would come out... perhaps I'm the one wondering "Where's the new stories?" :) So without further ado, here's all the newest stories...- Letting Go... A Little Bit At A Time by Guy Finley
- Wondrous Powers
- Carrying A Cross by Paulo Coelho
- Damned Devotee
- The Procession
- Lulu's Insanity
- Upstairs, Downstairs
- The Dervish and the Money by Sheikh Muzaffer
- The Word of Jesus by Rumi
- Where the Truth Is by Paulo Coelho
- How Nasrudin Created Truth
- Three Blocks of Stone
See, that's a lot of stories! As if this newsletter hasn't already given you enough to read today :) Fortunately, you can always come back and finish reading this later... or re-read it occasionally to see if you gain any new insights. I also wrote a couple of movie and book reviews, which are here:
Spiritual Movie Review: Ambition to Meaning with Wayne Dyer
Spiritual Book Review: The Traveler's Gift by Andy Andrews
Okay... I think I'm done writing now (and have finally caught my breath again!). I had no idea that much was going to pour out of me when I sat down to write this email to you... it just sort of happened as I got into the "flow" and was being present.
I guess in a way this is an example of why Tim titled his ebook "Your Moment of Power" - because I really do feel empowered right now after having been totally present and allowing. Even though I wrote a lot, it feels right to share it with you.
Your partner in spiritual growth,
Spiritual-Short-Stories.com
SpiritualGrowthWriting.com
SpiritualStoriesBlog.com
FreeSpiritualGifts.com
P.S. If you're not on any of my other spiritual growth related lists, then you probably haven't had a chance to see the free videos I've been sharing. The most recent one with Joe Vitale talks about the Four Stages of Awakening, and it's over 20 minutes long. I enjoyed it thoroughly, so if you'd like to check it out then here's the link:
==> The 4 Stages of Awakening with Joe Vitale
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February 2nd, 2009 at 2:45 amPowered By GetResponse Email Marketing
