Find Your Life
by Rev. Greg W. Neteler
(June, 2002)
Live always aware of the Infinite! Have faith in God, God within mankind and God
within you. Live, think and act according to principle alone and there is nothing you
cannot accomplish.
Greatness in life is the
result of living in perfect faith and consciousness of the spiritual reality within where
Higher Power has its center. This is only possible when we think more about the divine
than the human. Give Spirit your first thought and you shall be filled with spiritual
power both in mind and body which is renewed daily from the Source.
"Resist not evil."
Instead, be so conscious of the Good that you have no awareness of evil. And evil will die
of starvation. A mind centered in God has no room for anything less.
"Have you seen it? Can
you tell me where to find it? I’ve lost my life and I don’t know where to
look." How often have you felt that you have lost your life, that life is passing you
by? Jesus said, "I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly." (John
10:10) Are you living life abundantly? If not, why not?
We were not created to die.
We were created to live fully, abundantly. Life has only one source. No human parent ever
created life. It is God-life and we have no life separate from God—no life of our
own. You cannot hoard it and you certainly cannot save it even when you avoid what
frightens you. You can only live life each moment because life is now. Jesus’
words about abundant life were not his own. They came through him from the Christ within
him. These same words are spoken to you by the divine Christ that speaks in you reminding
you that you are here to live life and to live it abundantly now.
How does an abundant life
look? It is a life filled with all things necessary for our experience here and now. It
includes health, love, peace, joy, prosperity, wisdom, fulfillment—all things
necessary. Many are familiar with the Latin phrase, Carpe diem (Seize the day) but
let me change it slightly. Carpe vita! Seize life! The only way to do that is through your
mind. To live fully, be aware that God-life is your life. Remind yourself that you have no
life separate from God-life and that your are in touch with, in tune with and connected
to, all the life there ever is. It is God’s own image-likeness living through you as
abundant life.
It sounds wonderful, but so
often we live the life limited instead of the life abundant. I think this comes about for
two main reasons. First, we do not understand spiritual law. We don’t fully
understand the law of mind action and that what we think and believe forms and shapes our
experiences. We forget that the universe—as well as our own bodies—is plastic
and molds to the form of our prevailing thought. Second, I believe limited life is the
result of false desire. I am not saying that desire is bad but that desire may be
misinterpreted. Some authorities suggest the origin of the word is a combination of
"de" and "sidus"—of the star or constellation.
Desire is heavenly, from God, but our interpretation of the fulfillment of our desire may
be very earthly. Sometimes we seek what is temporary and fleeting to satisfy a desire for
what is enduring and eternal, an appearance instead of reality. "I just want to feel
better." Jesus never spoke about feeling better. He never said, "Be thou made
better." He said that faith in life makes you WHOLE. When he fed the crowd, there was
not only enough but twelve basketfuls left over. That is abundance, not merely enough to
get by. When he raised Lazarus from the appearance of death he demonstrated that birth and
death may be opposites, but there is no opposite to life. It is the nature of life to
live.
One of Jesus’ sayings
that many have difficulty understanding is, "He who finds his life will lose it, and
he who loses his life for my sake will find it." (Matthew 10:39) Through the ages
people have interpreted this passage to mean that martyrdom for Christianity resulted in
great reward in heaven. Churches have taught that poverty was good for you and some were
happy to help you find it. Religious people have believed that Jesus’ words made it
clear we should not have too much, be too happy or too content with life here and now.
Even some who consider themselves "enlightened" believe that a spiritual life
requires that we give up something valued or enjoyed. Look closely at these words, not of
the man called Jesus, but at the wisdom of the Cosmic Christ speaking through them.
He who finds his life
will lose it. Those who continue to live according to personality, who continue to
believe in appearances and hold on to human limitations, illusions, challenges, pains and
sufferings will see life passing them by. As we accept the lesser that our human beliefs
and limited thinking draws to us, the more abundant life seems to pass us by. We
can’t serve two masters and we cannot believe in abundance and lack at the same time.
Do we really want to continue to hold on to beliefs that we are only human, only live so
long, there is only so much to go around or certain weather makes us sick? If this is the
kind of life we would save then we lose the real life without these limits. But if you are
willing to lose...what?
He who loses his life for
my sake will find it. The first key is the word "his" which represents the
human or personal concept of life. The only place life is lost is in thought. What are we
to give up? Only our own limited thinking and error beliefs. We do not have to give up
anything of value for abundant life. We only have to give up the poverty, sickness and
discontent in our minds. For my sake. Sake means "cause at law." When we
give up our limited ideas about life for the Truth about life, then we find the abundant
life for which we have both looked and desired. As human based thinking gives way to a
Christ centered consciousness, your joy is made full and your life experience becomes
unlimited.
If we were as good at wheat
farming as we are at living, many of us would be poor indeed. For often we throw away the
grain and keep the chaff. The chaff is only the husk or shell which is what the Prodigal
Son ate in is his state of destitution before he re-thought his life. A spiritual life
does not require us to give up anything valuable or useful, only that we give up the husks
that we have built around ourselves which keep us from what we really want and desire. We
are the wheat, and like it, have a germ at the center which is the essence of
life—the Christ. The same spirit in Jesus is in you. The same miracle-working,
mountain-moving power is there to do even greater things, when you aren’t afraid to
look.
By the way, I found my life.
Yes, I looked all over and asked a lot of people along the way but in my
grandmother’s words, "If it were a snake it would have bitten me." It was
right here where I am all along. It just took a while to feel sick and tired enough to
quit looking where it could never be found. I am amazed at times to see what I see when I
sit still and look within.
Copyright 2002, Greg W.
Neteler
Used with Permission.
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