What did I do for Valentine's day? You're talking to a King here. Take notes. I know what I like:
That's a short list of mine. Now, take 10 seconds to think of a list of your own. Go ahead. I dare you. Here's the reason: to share that list of your personal likes with your lover. Why? Why do I do that? So that my lover can use my list to her advantage. I'll say that again - so that my lover can use that list to her advantage. Can this list be used to bribe me? To con me? Sure. But my wife doesn't use it for that purpose. She doesn't play that game: "If I give Benjamin what he likes, he'll give me what I want." Nope. She doesn't do that. Purpose
Here's the purpose of sharing your list with your lover: So that 2 become 1. That's actually a verse from my favorite source of life lessons (Ephesians). Ephesians teaches a man to join his lover so that the two will become one flesh. To most couples, it's a mystery how two can become one. Not to me. Ephesians 5 is written for us men. You better read it. Ephesians 5:21-33. When I have a need, my wife is right there. She knows me well. She sees my feelings from 20 feet away. She anticipates my moves to support me. She doesn't allow me to be in a place that I don't want to be in. She knows how to make me smile. She knows what I like, what I love, what I need. Her and I can look at each other from across a crowded room, and know what each other is thinking. We're connected. Are you connected with your lover? Are you? Huh? My wife and I are joined; we're connected; we're one. She gave me her list, and I gave her mine. Do the same, gents.
Wild Horse Ride
Everything begins with a thought, and anything can arise from thinking. This can be good, because all things are therefore possible. And it can be bad, because without understanding how the mind works, our lives can be like riding a wild horse at night. The mind:
When investigating certain spiritual truths, without accepting metaphysical abstractions, one important factor for a man to consider is that all around us, many people are not happy - they're suffering. They are dissatisfied, unhappy, and not content with their current situation.
And the root all suffering comes from an uncontrolled mind. People Around You Are Suffering We've all heard stories of wealthy and famous people being very troubled. We may know folks who have every reason to be happy, but are not. Some talented, attractive people I know just seem downright miserable. Our own lives can be filled with interruptions, emergencies, painful experiences, pressures, and confusion. There are some folks who never sit in one spot. They're always on the move, onto the next big thing, a new place to go, and a greater thing to do. Their calendars are filled. They speak and do with insistent energy to enhance and consume even the most simplest life experiences. Never really satisfied with what they've got. And many people are in real pain, physically and mentally. It's amazing how resilient we are. We can suffer on and on, and we still keep on going. What Can We Do? What can a man do to help not only others but ourselves from the dissatisfaction, discontentment, and suffering that may be experienced in life? Unfortunately, many turn to religion or other man-made dogma with teachings based upon fear, which are not worth our time to study. Let's think for a moment. The Buddha said,
Proverbs 23:7 reads,
Since joy, peace, and love all depend upon the mind, might it make sense to learn how the mind works? Yes.
Meditation
The true goal of meditation is to learn how to work with the mind to connect you with everything else in the universe. Once you can realize that your "self" is not separate, but connected, to everything in the cosmos, then you can live a life that is satisfied, content, undisturbed, no matter the situation, no matter the location or time. The ultimate goal to meditating, or focused believing, is to be satisfied (living a life filled with joy, peace, and love), no matter what's going on. Once you understand how to control or transform your mind, body, and feelings, you find power and strength. It's written in heavenly texts, "
To get there, a man must continually work on building a healthy mind. That takes some training. Not all of us are enlightened, living and walking in the Light. And, I know that it's far better for me to be more enlightened that I usually am. So, it makes sense for me to learn more about what's really going on. To Understand How Things Really Are People suffer with their lives needlessly. Most people tend to worry, doubt, and fear themselves to death. To suppress these feelings, they seek one temporary pleasure after another, hoping to satisfy their dissatisfaction. This can be very stressful. To make the world a better place, we need to understand the nature of consciousness, our thoughts, our minds, and how things really are. Sam Harris writes in his book Waking Up:
You Are the Reason for Suffering Making your world better and living a life that is fulfilled and enlightened does not come from without, but from within. People suffer because that's what they think. The Buddha said,
Suffering comes from the mind, not from the world. The world does not cause you to suffer, you do. Your own mind does. Your mind determines if you're suffering or not suffering. Your mind determines how you experience something that is good or bad in your life, regardless of whether it's actually good or bad. Even Shakespeare knew this to be true when Hamlet said:
It Makes Sense to Train the Mind
It makes sense, therefore, to train the mind. To train our minds to see things as they really are, we can stop suffering, transcend ourselves, and achieve a state of well-being and connectedness to each other and with the cosmos (the universe, the Spirit, God). It's written in heavenly texts that the two most important acts of developing well-being and sustaining enlightenment is through the love of Spirit and serving others, even total strangers. Matthew 22:37-39 reads:
Joy, peace, and unconditional love can only be experienced by continuously training a healthy mind (consciousness) and being in alignment and harmony with the Spirit. As you serve others by helping them break free from this world, renew their minds, free their bodies, and become mindful of what is actually happening in their lives, you will find power, love and a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7 reads:
Conclusion To have joy, peace, and love in life, one must train the mind. Let's learn more about that in "To Bring Suffering to an End, One Must Think" from The King's Guide. |
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