As you go through your day, it’s wonderful to start off by being still. The day will begin, and there’s a kind of quiet in the morning where you can be present to the rising sun. And if you can step outside simply to be in the presence of nature, it will center you.
But sooner or later, habits will kick in, and your routine will kick in. You will have thoughts about how to make the most of this day, what to do, what to watch out for, and what to be attracted to.
And almost everything you think will be something you have thought before.
There will be plenty of opportunity for distraction—to look over here, look over there, think about this, worry about that, or wonder about this.
I’m asking you to stay centered in your heart and ask yourself, “What does the heart really want?”
What the heart wants does not necessarily need to be in opposition to what you go after. But, if you’re most interested in what lifts you, what lifts your spirit, what makes you feel connected to other people, to nature, to yourself, you’ll have a very different day than if you let the stimuli come towards you and distract you and pull you this way and that.
Yes, there are things to be done, and yes, you do have obligations. Of course, “Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s.” But if your main interest is in what lifts your heart and inspires you, your day will unfold in a very different way.
Your interaction with people will transform, and things will feel much less transactional and much more contextual. In other words, phone calls, even from a friend complaining about something, will be an opportunity to connect lovingly rather than solving a problem, commiserating, or making a suggestion.
Each little thing you do and say presents an opportunity to check in with your heart. When you do that, one thing you’ll bring with you to the day is gratitude. You’ll be grateful for every opportunity to experience union with whatever you’re encountering, and that will lift your heart even further.
You will see the judgments. You’ll see the problems being generated. You’ll see the conflict. But you won’t be in it. You will be in a state of union with whatever it is that you’re dealing with, such that gratitude for the opportunity comes to you.
There might even be admiration for people who you consider your adversaries if you just look. You may not agree with them, but look how motivated they are. Look how deeply they feel things. Isn’t that interesting?
Anything you can do that takes people out of the realm of judgment puts them into connection to you. These are aspects of yourself you’re looking at, all of which need to be accepted and felt and forgiven.
Each time you do that, your heart will rise even more. When generated from a place of love, loving acts are quite different from just doing good.
You don’t have to do good. You are good– in a place that has no bad. Just your union with what you see, what you hear, and what you feel brings love into your life.
This is what you really want– to be yourself, to know yourself, and thus to know God.
Let your heart be your guide, and watch how your day unfolds.
