News and Illusions

Here is the news:

· A politician somewhere has lied and been caught out.

· Some people somewhere have voted and someone they don’t know has made promises that appealed to them and now they are in power.

· Somebody famous has done something stupid.

· Some country somewhere is fighting some other country somewhere else – thousands of innocent people killed.

· Some business has taken over some other business.

· Another business has gone out of business and people are upset.

· Some people were killed in tragic circumstances.

· Some new breakthrough in medicine has happened promising dramatic changes in health.

· Some old idea has been recycled and called a new idea.

When you get on a bit in life, you realize that the more things change - the more they stay the same. The stories are the same, only the names and places change.

I remember being more ‘into’ the news when I was at University and at the time, the cold war was in full swing so the threat of US/USSR initiated nuclear catastrophe hung heavily in the air. Consequently, I started thinking that the world was going to end very soon.

I would meet with fellow students and a much older university librarian some nights and get quietly drunk while discussing such points. It was quite depressing and disturbing and this illusion affected my thinking, behavior, beliefs, attitudes and general enjoyment of life.

Some years later, the librarian killed himself so maybe he’s happy now because he’s broken his illusion?

I broke my illusion when I traveled the world for two years and found out that people are the same all over the world – loving!

How do we handle the things that go on around us, whether they are fights on an international scale of family conflicts, so that we can’t control so we can stay focused and on track?

· Remember that everything is just a reflection of us, for we see things not as they are, but as we are.

· Remember that whatever we focus on, we get more of … and it’s all an illusion of our own making.

· Remember that nothing in the future is certain, and today is a present to be lived fully, for it will not be re-lived.

· Remember that whenever there is a perceived negative, there is an equal positive and vice versa. The more we come to expect that balance, and the sooner we see that balance, the more powerful we are.

· Remember that there is a Grand Organized Design (a.k.a GOD) that makes sure whatever happens is perfect for whatever we need to learn.

· Remember that death is just an inevitable part of our spiritual journey – it’s not a bad thing – just a transformation. The number of people alive on earth right now is higher than the number of all the people that have died. Ever.

· Remember that we have nothing to fear or be anxious about.

My university illusion that the world was quickly coming to end caused me some distress, influenced my decisions, my behaviors, my relationships and my happiness.

What illusions have you had in the past that caused you to live below your full potential?

I wonder what illusions I have today will also prove to be unfounded.

As my illusions are just reflections of my imagination, I imagine my illusions are all unfounded.

Hmmmm...

I asked for health that I might do greater things;
I was given infirmity that I might do better things.
I asked God for strength that I might achieve;
I was made weak that I might learn to obey.
I asked for riches that I might be happy;
I was given poverty that I might be wise.
I asked for power and the praise of men;
I was given weakness to sense my need of God.
I asked for all things that I might enjoy life;
I was given life that I might enjoy all things.
I got nothing I asked for but everything I hoped for;
In spite of myself, my prayers were answered--
I am among all men most richly blest.
Yes, God always gives us what's best for us.
We may ask amiss, but He answers aright.

- Author Unknown

Welcome to the Martix!

Finally - The Proof That God* is Real

Do you believe in God? – wow there’s a provocative question!

We may never be able to prove the existence or otherwise of God, but there is a way to see the *Grand Organized Design…and when you see it - it’s life changing.

It takes no faith to see it, it just takes a little focused observation.

So how do we see is the Grand Organized Design?

In my experience, the Grand Organized Design comprises the following:

1. The absolute balance of negatives and positives.

2. The incredible design in the little and big things

3. The consistent provision of every experience and circumstance we need to learn our next lesson.

4. The perfect balance of challenge and support to maximize our growth and development.

5. The driving desire of the human to learn, grow and develop though out our lifetime.

6. The powerful spirit that dwells within us all.

What exactly are these?

1. The absolute balance of positive and negatives – you know how sometimes the worst thing that happens to you can turn out to be the best thing? It’s only our perception and judgment that can turn any event into a positive or a negative. This can be a hard concept to grasp, so the best way to illustrate this point is a little story:

A very poor old farmer was apparently having a run of very bad luck. He had lost everything except for his most prized possession – his horse. Then one day, the farmer’s horse escaped and ran away. The farmer was left with nothing but his family – but he remained calm and content.

“How unlucky” exclaimed the farmer’s neighbors and friends.

“Maybe, maybe not”, said the old farmer.

The next day, the horse came back - bringing with it two wild horses of the finest quality.

“How lucky” exclaimed the farmer’s neighbors and friends.

“Maybe, maybe not”, said the old farmer.

The next day, the farmer’s two sons both fell off the wild horses whilst trying to tame them. One broke his leg, the other his arm.

“How unlucky” exclaimed the farmer’s neighbors and friends.

“Maybe, maybe not”, said the old farmer.

The next day, the army came to take young men away to war. They did not take the sons, because of their broken limbs.

“How lucky” exclaimed the farmer’s neighbors and friends – for the army had taken their sons.

“Maybe, maybe not”, said the old farmer.

A short time later, the farmer’s neighbor’s and friend’s sons were all killed in a war.

Soon after that, the old farmer sold the wild horses for enough money to buy his friend’s and neighbor’s lands – for his sons. The friends and neighbors were grateful, for they had no sons to help them work the land, and they needed the money.

When you see this perfect balance, there is nothing to fear, nothing to regret, and nothing to be guilty about – because nothing had a negative without and equal and opposite positive, and nothing had a positive without and equal and opposite negative. Look for the balance, and you will see this part of the Grand Organized Design.

2. The incredible design of little and big things: We have between 50 and 75 trillion cells in our body, 8 million of which die every second. The average life span of the cells is: red blood cells, 120 days; white blood cells, over a year; platelets, 10 days; bone cells, 25-30 years; brain cells, lifetime; colon cells, 3-4 days; skin cells, 19-34 days; stomach cells, 2 days; and sperm cells, 2-3 days. Obviously, these cells regenerate under normal conditions – but who or what system or design ensures they are replaced correctly? On another dimension, have you ever thought how a baby is small - so they are easy to carry; or fruit tree’s limbs bend - so it is easier to pick the fruit; or the fruits of the world can always be mixed together in perfect harmony - to make a tasty and nutritional fruit salad; or we need sleep - so we get a dark night time to accommodate this need; or a tree gets more leaves in summer - to shade us from the sun; or a tree loses leaves in winter - to let the sun shine through. On a bigger scale, did you know that it takes 8 minutes and 20 seconds for the sun’s light to travel from the sun to earth, and then for that light to travel on to Pluto - it takes another 5 hours, 51 minutes and 40 seconds. Then it takes 3 years for the light to travel to the nearest star. As the light travels on, it will reach about 100 more stars within the next 100 years. For the light to travel across the Milky Way, (which consists of about 10,000,000,000 stars) it takes 100,000 years. For the light to travel to another galaxy we can see with our naked eye (the Andromeda Galaxy) it will take 2.2 millions years. (BTW, This is one of an estimated 200 billion galaxies in the known universe). For the light to travel to the edge of the known universe, it will take 15 billion years. Furthermore, the largest structures in the universe are super clusters - the largest known one extends roughly 250 million light-years from end to end*. SO… Who designed and build these incredible structures and systems?

3. The provision of those things and circumstances we need to learn our next lesson. At any time you will have things happening around you that are perfect for whatever you need to learn. Most people are too busy getting stressed, cursing, retaliating or being depressed to recognize how everything can serve them. Look at what is pushing your buttons today, right now, seek the lesson you need to learn, and you will see exactly what I mean.

4. The perfect balance of challenge and support. At any time when you are being challenged, you are equally being supported and vice versa. If you really look, you will find the support – when you appreciate this balance, you will see love – for love is both challenge and support. Remember a time when your marriage was under stain, and your friends supported you. Remember a time when your friends were frustrating or annoying, and your partner supported you? When you appreciate this balance, there is no seeking to change things, but a recognition that both exist equally and that is exactly the way it should be to optimize your growth and development.

5. The desire of the human to learn, grow and develop though out our lifetime. There is a saying that all living things are either growing or dying. I’m not sure I agree with that as dogs stop growing after about 2 years and seem content to stagnate from there on out. Anyway, as humans we have a strong desire to learn as illustrated by the following story about Bob Procter’s recently deceased Mum: On her deathbed she continued to inspire us. There were a few places she never had a chance to visit - Australia was one of them. So in the weeks prior to her death, one of her grandchildren sat by her bed and read to her about Australia. Marguerite continued to marvel about how interesting a place Australia surely must be. Even facing death, she remained interested in life and learning. The perfection in this part of the Grand Organized Design is this: life is continually interesting and challenging and we remain curious enough to want to grow, learn and develop in order to enjoy all that life has to offer us.

6. Our spirit is the most powerful part of us. We may not know what it is exactly, however the human spirit is undeniable in it’s existence.

So if there is a Design, then is there a Designer?

It Is Only What we Think That Makes It Hard

My daughter is a constant source of inspiration and amusement to me. She is such a free spirit and has so much energy. I wonder how long this state of being will last for.

My intention is to keep it going for as long as possible. What happens to people when they "grow up"? What causes this incredible energy, happiness, and zest for life to disappear? My guess is that we all have our illusions about what happens to us as children, and at some time or another we suddenly take on a belief that life is out to get us - then we find evidence to believe this to be true.

At that point perhaps we start to become defensive instead of expansive and we start to perceive ourselves as less than we truly are. Our spirit becomes trapped by what we think, and our energy is tied up by trying to process everything that goes through our heads and keep our spirit suppressed. At the same time, we start to fight ourselves and the opinions and thoughts of others take us down some dark paths.

As I coach adults, one of my goals is to bring them back to a place where they once were as a child - free, fun and fantastically full of the joys of life. This is not the easiest thing in the world to accomplish and yet as my learning and experiences increase, I develop more and more ways to help people Free their Spirit and go back to a place where anything is possible, where they can fall over and "skin their knees" and get up again without losing momentum, and where they are not afraid to fail, and will give new things a go without tying their sense of self worth to the outcome.


A breakthrough comes when my clients start to just see every thing they do as an experience to learn from - no more and no less than this.

When people can take the actions they know they need to take in spite of their fears and thoughts, they start to exercise some of their potential, and this is a big step in their personal growth. Can I suggest you watch the people that we see as stars, celebrities, and role models to see if this is the behavior they exhibit - I'll bet it is! And that is one of the very few differences between them and us. The human spirit exists in each of us, and each of us has no excuse for not fully expressing it. It is only what we think that stops us.

It is only what we think that makes it hard - examples.

• It is only what we think that makes it hard = writer's block.
• It is only what we think that makes it hard = fear of public speaking.
• It is only what we think that makes it hard = fear of making a mistake.
• It is only what we think that makes it hard = letting others annoy us and "wrecking our day" .
• It is only what we think that makes it hard = no cold calls.
  

It is only what we think that makes it hard = giving our power to others When you are feeling worried, fearful or overwhelmed, say this to yourself and take positive action to move you towards where you want to go.

"It is only what we think that makes it hard."

Some thoughts on thinking:

"If you think you can, you can. And if you think you can't, you're right." Mary Kay Ash (b. 1915)

"Forward, as occasion offers. Never look round to see whether any shall note it.... Be satisfied with success in even the smallest matter, and think that even such a result is no trifle." Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180)


"To begin to think with purpose, is to enter the ranks of those strong ones who only recognize failure as one of the pathways to attainment." James Lane Allen (1849-1923)

"Sooner or later, those who win are those who think they can." Richard David Bach (b. 1936)