From Tears to Tools

Two correspondents are dealing with judgmental people, in particular ones that feel that it is their right and responsibility to tell others how to live. Sadly, there are some who believe that if people do not follow their particular religious beliefs and/or practices, they are "damned." I've heard the frustration and tears from those attacked, and offer some tools.

To the Judges, remember: "Judge not lest you be judged." If you tell anyone else to toe the line of a particular law, YOU will be the one accountable for every law, from shellfish and polyester, to burnt sacrifices at the Temple in Jerusalem at the appropriate time and date. Instead, I plead with you: Love and Forgive. For in doing so, you are also Forgiven.

This post, however, is addressed primarily to those who suffer from judges.

We cannot change or control how another thinks or acts. We can only change how we respond to that person. I will acknowledge that this can be hard, particularly when that person is a friend, spouse, or family member. They know how to push our buttons, and can hurt us more deeply.

In every situation we encounter, there is only one decision that needs to be made: Do we want to share God's Love, or do we want to be right? One speaks to the spirit; the other to the ego.

When angry, frustrated or upset, we speak and act through our ego. Only an ego can talk to another ego, and they do not communicate at all.

The ego insists that we fight, defend, issue "pre-emptive strikes" in the name of defense, and that we are right and all others are wrong. My ego even had the gall to tell me that Yeshua/Jesus Himself is wrong! That's a pretty highly-inflated mindset we can have.

But we are not in our right mindset when we think like that. The ego is also how the adversary /devil/negativity influences our minds and skews our perceptions. So we need to learn to be more spirit-minded.

While WE cannot change a person's perspective, God can. Thus we should pray in the silence of our heart, and be patient, allowing God to work things out in Divine ways and timing. There's a much bigger picture than we see.

The reason I add "in the silence of our heart" is that people toss into a heated argument, "I will pray for you." Or better yet, "God make this person UNDERSTAND that (s)he is wrong!" Even with good intentions, this only triggers more anger and defensiveness.

We should also pray for ourselves; God helps us think with the right mindset (spirit vs. ego) when we ask.

If we find that we cannot get into the right mindset, especially if the other person knows just how and when to hit those hot buttons, there is another simple tactic we can use.

We need to see the other person through God's eyes. Our ego tells us they are wrong, judgmental, rude, etc. Our spirit sees that at least one perception has been skewed; perhaps both, as it takes two to argue.

God looks upon the person and sees a beloved son or daughter.

While the image to the left comforts when we face life's challenges, it can also be a tool. When someone hurts, angers or frustrates us, we can picture that person in God's arms too.

It's amazing how this changes heart, mind and perspective.

The human mind is capable of a lot more than most understand. We can use it to harm one another, or help one another. We choose between spirit-mindset and ego-mindset.

When someone attacks me, saying how their way is the only way, I try to step back and see how God views this person. They are loved. They may be perceiving through the ego at the moment. But they are loved. So I offer my prayers to God and love to that person.

Let go; Let God
It's in better Hands
~ESA

God's Messenger

For those who may not know, Hermes (pictured to the left) is the messenger of the gods. Why do I speak about a pagan god when I am Christian? Because it's a good lead into this blog post.

Each and every one of us is also a messenger of the divine.

Some may understand this to mean we have a responsibility to share the gospel or teachings of our particular religion. Others may understand this as a responsibility to spread Light and Love to the world around us.

While it can mean both, there is another role that I and others ended up playing without our awareness. That was as a courier.

Yesterday was a very busy day, starting with inventory reports I sent off at 6:30 am, followed by an off-site breakfast meeting at 7:30 am. Yet at that meeting, a colleague of mine handed me three tickets to the local baseball game. I was the last to arrive at the meeting and she asked everyone else at the table. Could I use the tickets for that night's game?

I accepted the tickets, aware that I couldn't use them myself, as I had a packed schedule through 7:30 pm, but I mentioned I could find someone who could use them.

I swung back to my apartment complex on the return trip to the office, tickets in hand. I gave them to the chief maintenance person, mentioning that they were "Tickets to the Rock Cats tonight." With a smile, he said he knew someone who could use them.

The rest of the story, I heard in hind-sight last night.

That maintenance person would have loved to go to that game, but he had mistakenly heard "The Rockettes" and thought they were for a New York City show, instead of "The Rock Cats" who are a local minor league baseball team. So he gave the tickets to a retired resident in the complex, who would enjoy a drive down to New York for the show.

That person, upon looking more closely at the tickets, realized it wasn't for the New York show but indeed a baseball game, for which he had no interest. So the tickets passed to yet another person, who loved baseball but could not afford even a minor league game.

Someone's day was brightened remarkably when he was handed three tickets to a baseball game, and had no clue in how it came to him save the last leg of the journey.

In fact, I don't even know how my colleague came into possession of those tickets, or how many other couriers were in this relay. But we all played a part as messengers of God, bringing Joy into someone's life.

~ESA