There is a great deal of wisdom in the Search for God books, as many of you know who have studied these books for many years. But no matter how many times you have gone through the lessons sometimes something will jump out at you and have great significance for where you are in your life right now.
This happened in our Study Group in Chapel Hill, NC at the home of Amy Wong. We are in the final chapter of book two entitled “Spirit.” In the section called “Time, Space and Patience” we have this:
“Every day is the beginning and the ending of a new opportunity. Every opportunity has its beginning and end, thus making way for greater physical manifestation of spiritual ideals. Every new experience is another Garden of Eden into which we have moved. Every day is the awareness of the evening and the morning being the first day. To remain in Eden or to be driven out depends upon ourselves as to how we use our power of choice. Every moment we are just beginning to live. We are never too old to begin, if we remember that in our weakness we may be strong in Christ.”
Prior to this the book speaks of the Garden of Eden and the first Adam. This particular section holds out great promise for those of us who feel that we have not begun to fulfill our potential and are sometimes frustrated by the feeling that we are carrying too much baggage around with us from the past (including past lives).
It offers a different perspective on our daily lives and our daily attempts to grow spiritually. It reminds me of the saying from the ‘60s, “Today is the first day of the rest of your life.” There is wisdom here.
A number of people have spoken of sleep as a “little death,” even in fiction. Here is this from Arthur Schopenhauer: “Each day is a little life: every waking and rising a little birth, every fresh morning a little youth, every going to rest and sleep a little death.”
What if, when we awake every morning we consider it a kind of resurrection, the beginning of a new life? What if we awoke with no baggage from the day before or all of the years before? What if we started each day with no regrets, no judgments, no self-denigration, no sense of an unfulfilled life?
What if we considered the self that arises in the morning a new self, one just born to another day in a new world filled to the brim with opportunities to be the self we dream of being, the self we strive to be through our spiritual practices? What if we can simply choose to be that new person and practice, in every moment, making choices and being from that perspective?
In the Search for God quote above it is suggested that this possibility is a choice we make every moment. “Every moment we are just beginning to live.” No matter what is going on in our lives on any given day or any given moment, we have the opportunity to look at it with new eyes, to break old patterns of thought and feeling.
It is suggested that we have not been thrown out of the Garden of Eden. Every day is another opportunity to recognize that we are still in the Garden if we choose to view our life from that perspective. We have not been ejected from the garden. We eject ourselves with our thoughts, feelings, attitudes, and assumptions.
We can remind ourselves, upon rising and throughout the day, that we are a new being filled with promise and potential. We waken every morning with the potential to have a positive impact on our world, to be that “best person possible” that resides in each of us.
This does not mean doing any splashy or newsworthy (although that is an option). It means trying to have a positive impact on everyone you encounter. It means recognizing that you are always meeting self and in meeting self you are also always meeting the Divine.
Finally, we do not have to do this alone. The Christ is our ever-present help and can be called upon in every moment of need, of doubt, of self-judgment. As stated above, Christ is our strength when we feel weak.
AFFIRMATION: Today I am a new being arising at the dawn of my life. I am free from the past, free to be whomever I choose. Christ is my constant companion and reminds me that I am renewed in every moment as I build a new life with my new mind.
About the Author:
Bob Trowbridge, M.Div. is a spiritual counselor, speaker, teacher, and workshop leader. He is an editor for Southern Lights and has been active in the A.R.E. since 1975. In the Northern California /Northern Nevada Region of the A.R.E., Bob was a frequent and popular speaker and workshop leader. He has written a number of articles for Venture Inward and many other publications. He has spoken at A.R.E. Headquarters a number of times as well as in numerous A.R.E. regions. His interests include dreams, reincarnation, and spritiual growth.