dailydatewithgod

Ideas and experiences come to us in the form of messages.  What we actually experience depends upon the message we attach to it.  Two people can have the same experience or be exposed to the same idea but have two different interpretations to it.  We attach a message of good or bad, then we add in details and explanations.  We use it to either enhance or detract from what we already know.  We feel things in our body and we have messages attached to those so we can make sense of them.  Our minds are quite busy with all the messages that have to run from our various systems back and forth to the heart and the mind.  This is what we call our experiences.  We are drawn to messages that confirm what we already know.  It is easier for the brain to work with the already known entities because it requires more energy to work with the unknown.  To bring mindfulness to our daily lives we are going to have to start using some energy.  If the messages we are seeking to confirm work for us then we can rest, but if they do not, we have an opportunity to make adjustments.  We can interpret the experiences differently.  We can attach a different message to the same experience.  It takes repeated action because we are working against the already well-worn loop of messages, but it is possible.  It is how I have rewritten a lot of my experiences.  Because of my experience as in incest survivor the messages I attach about any kind of sexual feeling or experience is defaulted to fear, pain, confusion, pleasure and that is not mine to feel.  To actively counteract the automatic default when I notice I am having a sexual feeling or thought I talk myself through it.  I remind myself of where I am and the body I am currently inhabiting.  I affirm what is good and remind myself there is nothing to be afraid of or in pain about. This new message creates a new groove with time.  Eventually, I find myself in those experiences with the new messages in place.  We all have our experiences which default into negative spaces. If it no longer works for us God invites us to change the messages. Not sure what a new message could be, start is asking what God thinks about the experience.