To give affirmation to the statement: Our insistence on specificity can interfer with healing. It can block the creativity that is the hallmark of miracles.
I find myself in that place of interfering frequently. The intentions are good BUT ...
I have learned to tell myself: Keep your mouth shut and your eyes open.
I am constantly amazed by the course events take when I choose to be still and allow things to unfold ... seemingly on their own. Outside of my comfort zone is a whole Universe of possibilities these moments of stillness open up to me.
Sean, This post resonated strongly. My husband has been sick for weeks. Until your message this morning I have been torturing myself (and no doubt my dear husband). Every day my thoughts are focused on how my husband should be getting stronger. I decide Dan should be better today. He should have more energy by now. Dan needs to drink more fluids. Dan really ought to try harder to sit upright so he doesn't end up with pneumonia. Dan can't heal if he doesn't ... (whatever dictatorial thought is running the show). Thank you, Sean. I surrender. Please let me basque in HIS unfolding grace. There is nothing Dan needs to do. There is nothing I must do differently to make my husband better. I can relax in each beautifully unfolding moment of perfection. I am not in charge.
A story for you to give further perspective and affirmation to the concept of forgetting in order to learn something new.
There was an older couple. She developed Alzheimer's and he very happily doted over her.
He took to making the meals. He LOVED spaghetti. She had ALWAYS HATED spaghetti. When she was young her brothers told her it was worms and that stuck with her into adulthood.
He made spaghetti for the two of them. He set the plate before her and she sat there with a look of confusion.
"Do I like spaghetti?" She asked.
"You love spaghetti!" He replied.
So she ate it. And you know what? She did like it! And they enjoyed countless spaghetti dinners from that day forth.
Later, the family in Italy asked him to visit. He would not go without her. Unfortunately, she had ALWAYS been terrified of airplanes and had ALWAYS REFUSED TO FLY.
So he got a female friend to help him and the three of them went to the airport.
When they went to board the plane she started to panic, "Do I like airplanes?"
He assured her, "You love airplanes."
They had a wonderful flight and visit with family in Italy brought great happiness to everyone.
That is Higher Purposed forgetting. Circumstances are repurposed to allow the hidden potential to emerge and bloom.
Perfect prayer: "I don't know what to do here even though I think know, can you help me forget what I think I know so that I can learn what you would have me learn?” Now to practise ☘️💚🤞🤞🤞
So much about this resonates on multiple levels. As someone who can routinely be found in a line at Starbucks, I loved the way this opened my eyes to the comfortable numbness I'm usually experiencing in those lines and the ways that routines become ruts in terms of my perspective and responses. What a radical notion to actually wonder as I'm standing there or sitting in my car at the drive-thru window, how I might allow the Holy Spirit to lead in such a seemingly mundane context.
Perhaps even more important is the way these words reminded me that much more grace and guidance is available to me than I ever pause to ask for or allow. It reminds me of a former teacher's analogy of how we have an ocean of abundance (using that term very broadly) available to us but we typically approach that ocean not even with a bucket but a thimble.
Your words: "There is a lot of peace in moving through our day gently, steered by grace and gentleness and just letting be" rings as an invitation to open to more of that grace. To 'be' that grace in that line as the HS directs me.
And yeah, Imma keep an eye out for those "angels hovering in prismatic radiance near the muffins" too.
Oh, I have to laugh! because yesterday, before reading your post, I was having the kind of day in which it looks as if every specific thing is going wrong. (The urge to list all those specific things here is strong, ha!) While it all happened, hour after hour, I wondered, why did I create this? What is the lesson (are the lessons) God would have me learn? Well, one of those lessons turned out to be that the "problems" were all solved by the nicest people you can imagine, problems that actually made me feel how "lucky" I was to get to spend time with these sweet people. The day was full of warm smiles and help, so that I kept feeling more and more blessed rather than cursed. The waiter's warm smiles. The parking attendant's help that went above and beyond. And more. Every problem got solved, leaving me awed by the kindness of strangers. I'm tempted to list all of those helpers specifically, too, but they and I are ONE, not many, a thought they occurs to me only now and only because of your essay about generalization rather than specificity. And to cap it off, at one point it did occur to me to wonder, "Those problems and their sweet solutions led me to give bigger tips than I might have otherwise, and maybe those people really needed that money. today. If that's the case, thank you, Holy Spirit, for trusting me with so many chances to help!" And, as always, thank you, Sean, for how you let yourself be guided to help.
Thanks again for another timely article Sean ! I cannot do anything of myself, give it up to the Holy Spirit. I will ask for help with some things, but not others, because I don't want to let go of "my way". Wonderful, simple, super important, reminder.
Your words "There is a lot of peace in moving through our day gently, steered by grace and gentleness and just letting be." really hit home. I feel that peace when I can let my day unfold instead of frenetically doing things directed by my ego. I still get tasks done and meet up with friends, but I notice so much more than meets the eye when I let that quietness and calm change my mind set. Thanks for the reminder Sean.
Affirming our commitment to non-interference as a spiritual practice and becoming channels for the grace of God moved me. I want to say it jolted me to a holy YES, but what I experienced when reading those words was much more gentle...sort of like the scripture, “this is the way, walk in it.”
Yes Sean, you are right, it has to be a way of living. It has to be the first thing we do each morning and continue to return to throughout the day. Of course this is so difficult for most of us with all the illusions of the world continually bombarding us the their insistence of their reality. And that is why we need the teachers like you, walking with us.
It is by your reminding us as often as you can of the Truth, of walking with us, by lovingly being there with these posts, and through your dedication to this path with the Holy Spirit, Jesus and ultimately God that we will achieve this.
You are a gift Sean, keep shining your light, we love and appreciate you, xxx
Wow Sean this post was just so good! Well, then again they are all good, but this is exactly where I find myself most of the time now. It has taken me a long, long time to really get it though.
Over and over I had tallied down the little lanes of the ego's chaos, distracted from staying firmly on the path with the Holy Spirit. Over and over I would forget that I cannot solve anything, and that all I ever need to remember is that I know nothing but there is one who does know.
Now every morning before I get out of bed I put my day in His hands, and continually throughout the day I ask that He make my decisions for me. That they always be His will and not mine, as I know He knows, I know that I don't know and that He knows exactly what to do in every situation to bring me, and therefore all those involved, back to a place of peace. Such a gift when we can trust in this, and know it to be true at the deepest of level. We are truly blessed to have Him and you walk the path with us. Love as Always, Suzy xxx
When I state to myself something like 'Let things be, let things unfold' in an attempt to allow Holy Spirit to lead the way, there's often a hint of a wink from my ego saying 'Yeah, you'll get what you want if you do that'. A subtle back hander which I have to be aware of.
It has been written that a Jewish girl, meeting an angel with a preposterous directive, responded: "let it be done unto me according to Your Will." I work this into morning prayer but Sean, you help me see its glorious micro magnitude! 🌅
It's me again.
To give affirmation to the statement: Our insistence on specificity can interfer with healing. It can block the creativity that is the hallmark of miracles.
I find myself in that place of interfering frequently. The intentions are good BUT ...
I have learned to tell myself: Keep your mouth shut and your eyes open.
I am constantly amazed by the course events take when I choose to be still and allow things to unfold ... seemingly on their own. Outside of my comfort zone is a whole Universe of possibilities these moments of stillness open up to me.
Sean, This post resonated strongly. My husband has been sick for weeks. Until your message this morning I have been torturing myself (and no doubt my dear husband). Every day my thoughts are focused on how my husband should be getting stronger. I decide Dan should be better today. He should have more energy by now. Dan needs to drink more fluids. Dan really ought to try harder to sit upright so he doesn't end up with pneumonia. Dan can't heal if he doesn't ... (whatever dictatorial thought is running the show). Thank you, Sean. I surrender. Please let me basque in HIS unfolding grace. There is nothing Dan needs to do. There is nothing I must do differently to make my husband better. I can relax in each beautifully unfolding moment of perfection. I am not in charge.
A story for you to give further perspective and affirmation to the concept of forgetting in order to learn something new.
There was an older couple. She developed Alzheimer's and he very happily doted over her.
He took to making the meals. He LOVED spaghetti. She had ALWAYS HATED spaghetti. When she was young her brothers told her it was worms and that stuck with her into adulthood.
He made spaghetti for the two of them. He set the plate before her and she sat there with a look of confusion.
"Do I like spaghetti?" She asked.
"You love spaghetti!" He replied.
So she ate it. And you know what? She did like it! And they enjoyed countless spaghetti dinners from that day forth.
Later, the family in Italy asked him to visit. He would not go without her. Unfortunately, she had ALWAYS been terrified of airplanes and had ALWAYS REFUSED TO FLY.
So he got a female friend to help him and the three of them went to the airport.
When they went to board the plane she started to panic, "Do I like airplanes?"
He assured her, "You love airplanes."
They had a wonderful flight and visit with family in Italy brought great happiness to everyone.
That is Higher Purposed forgetting. Circumstances are repurposed to allow the hidden potential to emerge and bloom.
Perfect prayer: "I don't know what to do here even though I think know, can you help me forget what I think I know so that I can learn what you would have me learn?” Now to practise ☘️💚🤞🤞🤞
Hey Sean,
So much about this resonates on multiple levels. As someone who can routinely be found in a line at Starbucks, I loved the way this opened my eyes to the comfortable numbness I'm usually experiencing in those lines and the ways that routines become ruts in terms of my perspective and responses. What a radical notion to actually wonder as I'm standing there or sitting in my car at the drive-thru window, how I might allow the Holy Spirit to lead in such a seemingly mundane context.
Perhaps even more important is the way these words reminded me that much more grace and guidance is available to me than I ever pause to ask for or allow. It reminds me of a former teacher's analogy of how we have an ocean of abundance (using that term very broadly) available to us but we typically approach that ocean not even with a bucket but a thimble.
Your words: "There is a lot of peace in moving through our day gently, steered by grace and gentleness and just letting be" rings as an invitation to open to more of that grace. To 'be' that grace in that line as the HS directs me.
And yeah, Imma keep an eye out for those "angels hovering in prismatic radiance near the muffins" too.
Thanks as always for the gift of your messages.
Blessings,
Dan
Oh, I have to laugh! because yesterday, before reading your post, I was having the kind of day in which it looks as if every specific thing is going wrong. (The urge to list all those specific things here is strong, ha!) While it all happened, hour after hour, I wondered, why did I create this? What is the lesson (are the lessons) God would have me learn? Well, one of those lessons turned out to be that the "problems" were all solved by the nicest people you can imagine, problems that actually made me feel how "lucky" I was to get to spend time with these sweet people. The day was full of warm smiles and help, so that I kept feeling more and more blessed rather than cursed. The waiter's warm smiles. The parking attendant's help that went above and beyond. And more. Every problem got solved, leaving me awed by the kindness of strangers. I'm tempted to list all of those helpers specifically, too, but they and I are ONE, not many, a thought they occurs to me only now and only because of your essay about generalization rather than specificity. And to cap it off, at one point it did occur to me to wonder, "Those problems and their sweet solutions led me to give bigger tips than I might have otherwise, and maybe those people really needed that money. today. If that's the case, thank you, Holy Spirit, for trusting me with so many chances to help!" And, as always, thank you, Sean, for how you let yourself be guided to help.
Thanks again for another timely article Sean ! I cannot do anything of myself, give it up to the Holy Spirit. I will ask for help with some things, but not others, because I don't want to let go of "my way". Wonderful, simple, super important, reminder.
Shaun, don’t stop doing this the Holy Spirit speaks through you to me and it brings me great joy thank you
Jack T❤️❤️
Your words "There is a lot of peace in moving through our day gently, steered by grace and gentleness and just letting be." really hit home. I feel that peace when I can let my day unfold instead of frenetically doing things directed by my ego. I still get tasks done and meet up with friends, but I notice so much more than meets the eye when I let that quietness and calm change my mind set. Thanks for the reminder Sean.
Affirming our commitment to non-interference as a spiritual practice and becoming channels for the grace of God moved me. I want to say it jolted me to a holy YES, but what I experienced when reading those words was much more gentle...sort of like the scripture, “this is the way, walk in it.”
Thank you.🌸
Yes Sean, you are right, it has to be a way of living. It has to be the first thing we do each morning and continue to return to throughout the day. Of course this is so difficult for most of us with all the illusions of the world continually bombarding us the their insistence of their reality. And that is why we need the teachers like you, walking with us.
It is by your reminding us as often as you can of the Truth, of walking with us, by lovingly being there with these posts, and through your dedication to this path with the Holy Spirit, Jesus and ultimately God that we will achieve this.
You are a gift Sean, keep shining your light, we love and appreciate you, xxx
Wow Sean this post was just so good! Well, then again they are all good, but this is exactly where I find myself most of the time now. It has taken me a long, long time to really get it though.
Over and over I had tallied down the little lanes of the ego's chaos, distracted from staying firmly on the path with the Holy Spirit. Over and over I would forget that I cannot solve anything, and that all I ever need to remember is that I know nothing but there is one who does know.
Now every morning before I get out of bed I put my day in His hands, and continually throughout the day I ask that He make my decisions for me. That they always be His will and not mine, as I know He knows, I know that I don't know and that He knows exactly what to do in every situation to bring me, and therefore all those involved, back to a place of peace. Such a gift when we can trust in this, and know it to be true at the deepest of level. We are truly blessed to have Him and you walk the path with us. Love as Always, Suzy xxx
Thank you for this, Sean 🙏
When I state to myself something like 'Let things be, let things unfold' in an attempt to allow Holy Spirit to lead the way, there's often a hint of a wink from my ego saying 'Yeah, you'll get what you want if you do that'. A subtle back hander which I have to be aware of.
It has been written that a Jewish girl, meeting an angel with a preposterous directive, responded: "let it be done unto me according to Your Will." I work this into morning prayer but Sean, you help me see its glorious micro magnitude! 🌅
Life is not a crises awaiting for our intervention.
It is more like an ongoing extention of grace.
Thats a good one! Thank you❣️
I really like your writings Sean. Glad I found your page!