Grace
“Every
day we have glimpses of our Higher Self when we enter into what I
call a ‘state of grace.’ We suddenly feel peaceful and contented
and see beauty around us. These states of grace may last for hours or
for just a few seconds. By developing an awareness of them, we can
extend the time that we stay in the Higher Self before we fall asleep
again and get carried away by the insecure self-cherishing of the
ego.”
Joan
Borysenko, Ph.D.
“The
Kingdom is within you and all around you. When you know yourselves
fully you will be truly known. And you will know that you are
children of the everlasting one.”
Jesus
(Gospel of Thomas)
The
definition of grace takes up almost a whole column in Webster’s
Dictionary. It means so many things: mercy, clemency, pardon,
forgiveness, the favor and love of God. I experience grace when I am
watching a glorious sunrise from my morning porch, or when the young
folks in Spirituality Group are deeply engaged in discussion. I have
a visceral experience of grace when I cross paths with a wild
creature—like the coyote that saunters about my neighborhood.
Recently, I watched three golden eagles land in the trees across the
street. It was so unexpected and amazing, that I stood in the middle
of the street mesmerized by their size and beauty until they lifted
off and flew out of sight. You will recognize this kind of grace when
the boundaries of what is you dissolve, time ceases, and you are
wholly in the experience. All that is inside of you, and all that is
outside of you become one. These are moments of pure bliss and they
are a gift. We can’t make them happen and we can’t hang on to
them for longer than they choose to stay.
We
also know what grace isn’t. It isn’t worrying and fretting over
what is lacking in our lives, what we're not able to do or afford,
what’s not happening when we want it to happen. Sometimes we get
caught up in “ain’t it awful” and “that's not fair,” and
then grace is a long way from home. Grace does not wear a frown. In
the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas, Jesus tells us if we are not a source
of light, we are a source of darkness. There’s no getting around
the fact that some days, I radiate darkness! No grace there.
We
would experience grace more often if we could love what we already
have; if we could look around us and see that this is
the
Kingdom of Heaven; if we could know ourselves fully and understand
that we are
children of the everlasting one. Just saying those words to ourselves
once a day might bring feelings of inner peace and contentment. And, that’s grace!
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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