Post #2-Wake Up!

 
“The unexamined life is not worth living” 

~Socrates

 This is by far one of my favorite quotes. Socrates, known in Western philosophy as the archetypical figure of wisdom, pulls no punches. He doesn’t say an unexamined life is simply less meaningful but that it flat-out ain’t worth spending time on!

Even as a child I possessed two qualities that remain with me today. One being a high sense of self-awareness and secondly, a tendency to take on the troubles of the world (I can thank my grandmother for this attribute), even to the point I would toss and turn at night worrying about a family member or fretting about some tragedy I had seen on television. The essence of this quote and my thoughts around it encompasses both, meaning, I have grown to believe that self-awareness and the examination of our lives remains the most important fundamental exercise any of us can encounter and, secondly, it deeply troubles me that so many of us are simply walking around the world… “asleep” or unaware.

While I have been gifted (or cursed, depending on the context) with an innate ability to be self-aware, to be compelled to peel back the layers of my experiences and my thoughts and feelings surrounding those experiences, I also have the distinct ability to compartmentalize certain areas of my life. Simply stated, if I don’t want to think about something or deal with an issue because the process of doing so is too uncomfortable, I have the ability to neatly tuck it away in my psyche and continue on with life as if it didn’t exist. Being more “aware” of this today than I’ve ever been, I can clearly indicate that every major mistake in my life, that is, any time I have royally screwed up was an occasion in which I did not fully, courageously, come face-to-face with the honest reality of a situation, but instead chose to deny, reject and ignore the gift of my own wisdom.

Not to risk making this post too lengthy, let me be more intentional about what I want to communicate (let me not beat around the bush). You are infinitely wise! In the next couple of posts I’ll explain to you why that is, but simply hear and feel these words for now. You are infinitely wise and all-knowing, or at least you possess the ability to know all things pertaining to what is best for you and your life. We, particularly those from classical theism or traditional Christianity, have been taught that we are bad, corrupt, “sinful from conception” and that our truest and most genuine selves aren’t to be trusted. RUBBISH!

You are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). In addition, you are also a part of all that is, the Great I Am, made in the very image and likeness of the Creator, and are infinitely loved and cherished by GOD. God is not mad at you, doesn’t seek to harm you, and in fact God expresses God’s self in you, through you, with you, for you, and AS you. Meaning, if God is the ocean, you are indeed a cup of that thirst-quenching rain, and let no one tell you otherwise!

In conclusion (for now), within you lies a sweet, quiet stillness, an energy of unfathomable power, a divine intellect with incomparable wisdom that is always speaking and leading and nudging and correcting and instructing. Whether you call it the voice of God, the leading of the Holy Spirit, your own intuition or the expression of your soul….. LISTEN TO IT! It will never lead you wrong.

And as always, please remember…..this is not the end of your story....your best days are not behind you, they're ahead of you….because as God moves in you, through you, with you, for you, and AS you, there are guaranteed to be #bigthingscoming.

Namaste!

 ~Ray

NOTE: If you’re new to the site it might be helpful to read my first introductory post. Also, feel free to post your questions or comments here and you can always reach out to me on Twitter @raycjordan using the hash tag #bigthingscoming.

(Copyright, 2013, Ray Jordan)