dailydatewithgod

What is it about the things we see that touch us so much?  How is it possible to have a feeling based on a visual expression of love or art or nature?  I wonder if it is the association to the actual thing or experience or if our eyes in fact communicate to those other parts of our brain.  Perhaps the very act of gazing at something in wonder, astonishment or appreciation activates our heart center in such a way as to awaken to love and beauty.  One of the ways that I am able to still my soul and quiet my mind is to engage in gazing. It matters little at which I am gazing.  When the focus of attention goes to the element in front of my eyes after a time it begins to show its intricacies.  I gaze to know it deeper and cultivate a fascination where none existed before.  I shut out all things except the focus of my gaze and it is as though its energy comes alive.  I know that God gazes at us in wonder all the time.  God longs to share with us the beauty of our intricate natures and to share with us that when we are broken down into the most minute element we are love.  Our energy alive and well in the world is love. God would create nothing less.  I do not pretend to think that I could see so easily as God sees but by gazing in appreciation of something I slowly begin to remember the love energy in and through all things that is God.

I learned a long time ago that in order to feel closer to God I had to invite God closer.  It started out as a simple conversation where I questioned whether God even cared what I was doing or going through.  I almost stated it as a challenge that if God really cared he would come in closer.  I am not shy about letting God know that I need him to be bigger and more obvious in my life.  The feeling of being alone in my soul is wretched.  It is in those moments of distance that I find myself willing to see the nearness of God as present in a way I had not considered. The courage to open my mouth and ask for what I need sparks the process of opening my eyes to another facet of God’s presence in my life.  I could not or would not see it unless all my usual ways were not working.  I try to focus on the desire to be near my Creator instead of the aching sense of separation.  Time and time again I am shown that the separation I feel is not real. I am only imagining it.  But instead of making myself wrong, when I remember to extend self-compassion, I see that I need only let my heart move through my eyes.  Then the nearness reappears and a whole new part of my spirit is given breath.  In our daily dates I show my commitment to our time together and have learned to be there even when it seems as though God is far away.  My sense of God’s nearness is still my sense of it and when pushed to max, I am opened to let go of my sense and take in some God sense.

There is the defining moment in history when beings discovered fire. It was a powerful experience to bring light in a time of darkness and it still is.  Lighting up our lives from within is also a profound experience.  In our inner most core is the light of love from which we were created.  We can live our whole lives not aware of it but often as it begins to dim or dampen our spirit will call to us.  It wants to be ignited but this time it is a joint effort between the one who designed the flame and us the keepers of the flame.  Each day becomes a decision to draw closer to the light and fan the flame or let it go dim.  The ignition required is much simpler than we imagine.  It is a simple choice of attention and willingness.  Being attentive and believing in the power of the light to ignite our spirit will bring us to a place of peace and unity with ourselves and each other.  As we let our light grow and flame, we give others permission to do the same with theirs.

The Creator of All who designed all that is clearly has a wider bandwidth of possibility than we do.  We do like our own fixed ideas about things.  At least, I do.  It is humbling at times that my constant prayer is “God, help me to see this differently.”  I know when I am able to open my eyes to additional possibilities my heart opens up more.  And sometimes I need to go from the heart which is a God job.  “God, show me how my heart sees this experience, person, feeling, idea.”  Once my heart opens, my thinking perspective changes.  It is a continual dance to reconnect those two systems. When I look at physically where they are located it seems as though it should not be that big of a jump, yet it is.  So I surrender that as well.  “God help me to reach my heart from which I currently feel disconnected.”  “God, open the eyes in my head to the messages my heart is conveying to me at this moment.”  God knows we forget the fluidity of connection between our hearts and minds because we think it is one or the other.  God knows all is possible and does not separate the thought from the heart space.  God wants this connection to thrive as much as we do and is more than happy to help reestablish the connection.

A beautiful quality of being alive is in our ability to be molded.  We show up to life and are transformed by its energy and presence.  Life is also transformed by us.  When we walk in relationship with God we allow ourselves to be fashioned more and more beautifully by the inner design from which we were created.  Our fashion is love.  Our fashion is heart.  Our fashion is presence.  Being the truest version of ourselves means we have the ability and responsibility to decorate life.  Decorate the experiences we find ourselves in.  Decorate the interchange with others.  Decorate the intention of our lives.  I am the last person to describe myself as fashionable.  The only fashion I was ever much good at was being fashionably late!  I have learned in my daily prayer and mediation dates with God that the fashion of my heart which has been with me since the beginning sets the course and intention for my life.  My work is disrobing from the layers of stories and ideas that I thought were who I was supposed to be.  Giving away the cloaks I have taken on because I desire to live life undressed to experience the moments of joy and heartache to their fullest.  My outer layers only tell you what I think I am supposed to be.  The fashion echoing and vibrating from my heart tells you who God is and recognizes that beneath all that clothing lies the untouched innocence of love divine.  It is in and through all of us.