Author: Joel

The Move

June 20, 2013

To be human is to be broken and wanting. This keeps us in a perpetual state of needing and seeking. We get hungry, we seek food. We get lonely, we seek connection. We feel empty, we seek fulfillment. We are all addicted to something, and the deficits we experience daily cause us to be seeking our drug: attention, esteem, comfort.

This move from need to fulfillment is what defines us and how it happens is very important. Most of the time, it happens quite compulsively since we seek without knowing ...  Keep reading

Growing Down

June 3, 2013

We often think that as we grow spiritually, we will leave people behind. We tend to struggle with how to approach or talk to people we see as “beneath us” because we are just so “spiritually mature.” We act like we have entered some other realm they cannot even come near.

Then I look at Jesus, who embodied perfect consciousness, all wisdom, maturity and strength and I see how he treated people who might have been seen as “beneath him.” Beggars, cripples, the ...  Keep reading

Sustained Ecstasy

June 1, 2013

Someone gave me this bit of wisdom once: she said, “the pain tells me that I am alive.” She was battling cancer and all the pain and agony that go along with that, and she stopped taking her pain medication almost altogether. She is a brave soul. She said when the meds covered all of the pain, she would wake up and not know if she was alive or dead. Her illness had progressed to a point where she could go any time, and she didn’t want to be in a drug-induced stupor. She wanted ...  Keep reading

Finding Security

May 30, 2013

Some anxiety is natural in this realm. When we are away from the One who sustains us, of course there is going to be some anxiety. And when we feel anxious, we immediately begin to seek security in various ways. We seek to have enough money, be esteemed by others, have all of our tasks completed, make sure our loved ones are healthy and safe.

Think about what you are actually afraid of. Ultimately, you are probably afraid of being destroyed or being condemned. I know that sounds drastic, but at ...  Keep reading

Your Emotional World

May 24, 2013

We should pay attention to our emotions. It is our emotions that are the barometer for where our hearts are and where we are going. These subtle inner shifts in our feeling system are what the Spirit uses to shape us and teach us. It is problematic that we are always trying to dull important emotions and in that way, render the work of the Spirit ineffective. Our pathology springs from our attempts to always dumb down, lock up and forget about the myriad emotions that have been given to us to ...  Keep reading