Sunday, August 26, 2012

My Sunday Talk...@ the Center for Spiritual Living, Diablo Valley


The body of my talk Sunday Aug. 26th, 2012.

“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” One of my favorite quotes by the brilliant Albert Einstein.

How often do we find ourselves believing we are less than or stupid? Whether it is in our physical being or our consciousness? How often have we allowed others to judge us by what we do, or how we look? And on the flip side, how many times have we judged others?

Let’s look at the first four words of the quote. “Everybody is a genius.” It doesn’t say only scientists are geniuses or bankers are geniuses or this race or that religion is genius. Einstein said everyone. EVERYONE is a genius.
In Roman times, the Latin origin of the word genius meant, the guiding spirit. The noun, genius is related to the Latin verb gigno, which translates, “to bring into being.”

Wow, of course we are all geniuses. Just by being born into this world, we get to own the definition, genius. When we are brought into being, Infinite Intelligence, or God, places within each of us the guiding spirit; that intuitiveness deep within us that keeps nudging us onto our spiritual path. Some people call it their still small voice, or an inspiration that floods their consciousness with ideas. Some of us might define it as that cosmic rack a pop on the back of the head. However you can relate to it in your own mind.

Isn’t that wonderful, to know that each and every one of us are geniuses! So as we relate to that, as we swim in the greatness and glory of being a genius, there is something else we have to understand and then embody.

The second sentence of Einstein’s quote… “But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing it is stupid.” Now I wanted to relate this to others judging us for who we are and what we do, but I couldn’t. I felt the need to relate this to our own consciousness. Because the only way we are going to change the world around us or the way it treats us is by changing our own consciousness about how we fit in it.

So often we judge ourselves and never think twice about it. Any time we say “I am” and put something negative or limiting behind it, we are judging the fish for not climbing the tree.

We all have a purpose. Proverbs 16:9. A man’s heart devises his ways; but the Lord directs his steps. And thank goodness we each get to live our purpose in a unique way. Just as a fish demonstrates perfectly its genius as it breathes and swims in the water; just as it’s body has “brought into being,” the ability to live life entirely in water...so are we designed to embody and live our lives in our own life experiences.

We are all familiar with the saying, It is done unto you, as you believe. It doesn’t say, it is done unto you as someone else believes. Or that your life is the result of someone’s thoughts or beliefs. We have all been given the freedom of thought, the power to choose how we live our lives. 

How empowering is that?

When Jesus said, “Go, let it be done to you according to your belief,” in Matthew 8:13, he was basically announcing that your life is the result of your thinking. So it only makes since that if you want a better life, get a better consciousness. 

I will tell you I like to challenge and ask questions, dissecting words and meanings about passages or books that strummed a chord in my spirituality. I always felt that if I am going to invest my time and spiritual(ness) into anything; I am going to question things I don’t understand and embody the things I do. That’s why I found Religious Science so perfect for me. I was encouraged to ask, study, and take from the belief system what worked for me as a youth in this teaching.

Einstein stated, “You can’t fix a problem, using the same level of consciousness that created it.” Pretty powerful huh? We can’t fix anything in our lives if we are coming from the same belief or thought patterns that created it.

If we want to have Peace in our lives; we can’t go around cursing people out for cutting us off on the freeway. We want success in our business, how are we talking about our occupations to others? Are we giving the best part of ourselves to everything we do, or are we holding our hands out expecting someone to fill it with what we think we lack.

When I came to the realization that I am responsible for what happens in my life; that what I focus on grows in my life, I decided to change my mind about everything around me. Because there is nothing more powerful than a made up mind. 

As easy as I make it sound, it’s anything but…trust me on that. 

Just as habits and conditions that we have embodied didn’t appear over night, so is it with changing our beliefs. It takes daily practice. It takes conscious living. And it takes the faith to do it. But we must be willing to recognize when we fall back into old patterns and forgive ourselves when we do. If we can learn and move from a situation a better person, we’ve accomplished something grand.

We don’t have to worry about how it is going to happen or try and map out how spirit is going to work in our lives. All we have to do is have total faith that IT knows what to do and how to do it. 

We stop judging our short comings and start basking in our accomplishments, no matter how small. Rejoice when our lives open up to something greater. You got up today and came to hear me speak. Celebrate the fact that you’re here. Give thanks for everything in your life, no matter how small. Because as you do that, as you transform your thoughts and ideas from judgment and condition, to Love and Peace, you begin to see what your true purpose is. 

When you praise the sun for shining another day, or the refreshingly deep breaths that keep filling your lungs, your consciousness opens up to the Universe and your life unfolds to your unlimited possibilities. Suddenly you will find yourself grateful for the new job you have, the abundance in your bank account, the health you are celebrating, and all the other wonderful things that have opened up to you. What will happen is you’ll see the genius in your life and you will realize it was who you were all along!


No comments:

Post a Comment