14 Truths about Spiritual Awakening

I’m going to give you some things to consider and some questions to be with. I’m not going to give you much explanation. It’s been my experience in receiving counsel—and not just the Revelation, but counsel for my own development—that it rarely comes with explanation, which means I have to figure out and try to understand, make the effort to understand, what it is being revealed to me.

Here you’re not simply being led. You have to be the person on the ground who carries out the mission—both inspired and worldly wise, with one foot on each shore, realistically in the world and deeply connected beyond. Then your life becomes like a bridge over which great things can pass. You become a conduit from Heaven even as you appear to be an ordinary person who would be lost in a crowd: no glory, no exceptional attributes that most people would see, no fame, but something unique and potent.

Knowledge is the deeper spiritual Mind within you, the bigger part of you. Your worldly mind is the little part of you. So who is the master and who is the student? Which will you choose to follow? In this you only have two choices, really. Take a moment to be with that. Who’s the master? Who is the student? Which will you choose to follow? It’s not a question you can answer for all time because every situation presents itself, presents that question to you. Regarding this decision or this engagement or this activity, what do I choose to follow? Because Knowledge arises with need.

If you sort of need it but you’re not really sure, well, Knowledge will wait for you. When you really need it, when you see the need, when you feel that without it you’re only guessing—you’re making big decisions but you’re only guessing—you can see the need. Which will you follow?

Next: inner voices, deep feelings, signs, messages. Which one is true? How can you tell? There are many forces that can speak into your mind in ways you cannot see. Which is true? How can you tell? When you begin to open up your life, you open up to many things that you may not have experienced. Which is true? How can you tell?

I used to be very curious about these things and felt that I really wanted to know, particularly about things that…whatever was out there, I wanted to know what it was. And a few night journeys in the high mountains changed that for me. There are dark forces too.

The mind wants answers and claims many answers. Are you willing to go deeper, patiently? Great truths never reveal themselves fully to you, only in increments. And if you’re willing to follow those increments and do your part, more is given to you. But people want answers right now. They want Heaven to give them what they want right now. But Heaven knows better. So can you look deeper?

And what is reality? Well, I won’t give you an ultimate definition because none exists. But I will give you a practical one, which will be very useful to you. What is reality? Reality is everything that’s happening beyond your thoughts and beliefs. Reality is everything that’s happening beyond your thoughts and beliefs. Can you experience reality? Are you free enough to do that? Can you escape your thoughts and beliefs, even momentarily, so you can witness reality?

Hmm…these are tough questions. And you’ll want to answer them. But you won’t be able to because the answer is a journey. You’re not high enough up this mountain to see these things clearly.

Time is your great asset in life. How will you spend it? How will you use it? If you knew how important your life really is—without any grandiosity or any self-assertion—how important your life really is, you would not want to waste anything. Oh, moments of frivolity? Of course. Lighthearted moments? Of course. But you would not want to waste anything. How will you spend it? How will you use it? You’re 20 now? Before you know it, you’re 30-something. You’re 30 now. Before you know it, you’re 40-something, and then 50-something, and then 60-something. Where did it all go? What was it all for? So time is an issue. It should be an issue.

Be objective about your life and others. It’s hard. Can you look at a person or a situation without coming to immediate conclusions, suspend judgment and evaluation, maybe forever? Can you suspend judgment and evaluation? People put an answer on top of every new thing that comes along. Therefore, they don’t experience it. Therefore, they don’t see reality. They only see themselves or what they think. For them life is about confirming what they think. So they don’t see anything when in fact, we’ve been given the eyes to see and the ears to hear. But we don’t see anything. We don’t hear anything. This is like, the mind is like a prison, when in fact, it’s supposed to be a vehicle of communication. It’s like a prison house, a prison house of belief, religious belief. Nothing can enter. You can’t see out of it. All you can see is it.

Everything you do is practice. Every repetitive thing you do is a form of practice and reinforcement. Practice does not make perfect; it makes permanent. That’s a big thing to consider. You can only practice, so what are you going to practice, at any moment—not just formal practice, but anytime? What am I practicing right now? Confusion? Ambivalence? Distraction? Judgment? Admonition? Grievance? Frustration? Fantasy? What am I practicing right now? Whatever you practice, you make permanent. This mind we have will enable you to see and communicate, or it will prevent you from seeing and communicating. How will you practice? What will you practice?

There’s more.

Who you are with will determine what you can know and your ability to follow what you know. So who are you with now, and what is their influence upon you? There are no neutral influences. Who you’re with will determine what you can know and the ability to follow what you know—two different things related to each other. Who are you with and what is their influence upon you?

Happiness. Happiness is the result of things you do. It is not a goal. The goal of life is not happiness. Why? If the goal of your life is happiness, then that makes you subject to all forms of persuasion and seduction in the world. Is that what you want to be? Happiness is a result of things you do. It is not a goal. I mean, you’re trying to make separation work? People are working very hard at that, but it doesn’t really work. And the sooner you find out that it doesn’t work, the sooner you can begin to free yourself from it—a hopeless task, a meaningless pursuit. Lots of living, lots of experience, nothing realized, nothing known, very little done of any meaning or permanent consequence. A normal life.

The world is overtaking you. You don’t have many original thoughts. You don’t really think for yourself very much. You’ve been conditioned to think in certain ways. And the world has impacted you, and you’ve responded to it in certain ways, and people’s influences over you, and that’s much of what you experience. So the world is overtaking you. So how will you find yourself and bring yourself back—reclaim your life, your mind, your emotions? Whether you are a conformist or a rebel, the world will dominate you—your feelings, your thoughts, your emotions, your behavior, your attitudes. How will you find yourself and bring yourself back?

There’s more.

You’re here for a purpose. Knowledge holds your purpose for you. Can you set aside your own plans and goals to begin to learn about this, step by step? You are here for a purpose. Knowledge within you, this deeper Mind, holds your purpose for you. Your intellect does not have it. Your intellect is way too unreliable, way too influenced, way too weak to hold something like this. It has to be something in you that’s much stronger, much more consistent, and cannot be corrupted by the world. Can you set aside your goals and plans to learn of this, step by step?

Knowledge within you is the answer for your life, yet the calling is out in the world. Can you feel this calling so that the answer can come out of you? The mind does not control Spirit. The mind is temporary; Spirit is permanent. So where’s the power? The answer lives within you, but the calling’s out in the world. You have to come back to the world even if you reached enlightenment like the Buddha. The Voice appeared: “You have to go out in the world and teach.” I’m sure he didn’t really want to do that…for 40 years?

Your life is a precious opportunity to discover and express Knowledge. So how do you regard yourself in light of this? How do you regard yourself in light of this? Are you worthy of this? Do you value this within yourself? Knowledge values you. God values you. Heaven values you. Do you value yourself sufficiently that you can accept this great opportunity? So much was done to bring you into the world. You’re not a biological accident. You were sent here with a mission. But the mission is held by Knowledge, not by you, personally.

Well, you can sure tell people who are on a mission, if their mission is real, pure. They just stand out from other people. They look the same. They dress the same. They talk the same. They drink the same coffee. They walk the same street. They have the same laughter. But there’s a big difference. How do you regard yourself in light of this? How can you condemn yourself when you don’t even know who you are?

The New Message asks this question in Steps to Knowledge. How can you judge or condemn yourself when you don’t even know who you are? And if you’re making lots of mistakes in life, well, of course! If you don’t have Knowledge to guide you, you’re gonna make a lot of mistakes in life. Your life’s gonna be haphazard. You’re gonna try this. You’re gonna bump into this. You’re gonna bump into that. You can say it’s all “higher purpose.” You can say it’s all “perfect.” But the truth is, you’re like a pinball in a pinball machine, bouncing off of everything that activates you. So of course your life is full of mistakes and bad decisions and fruitless efforts and suffering and confusion and dismay and fantasy and glory and whatever…but how can you judge yourself when you don’t even know who you are? Without Knowledge, you can’t know who you are. You’re just a personality. You’re a product of culture. I mean, you’re still very important because your personal mind is very important in right relationship with Knowledge and with the world. But without Knowledge, you’re wandering. You are wandering.

And what is religion without Knowledge? It tends to become delusional—hero worship and fantastic appraisals of the past and the future, and salvation, belief and admonition and repression. It loses its holiness and sanctity pretty quickly without the presence of Grace, Knowledge.

Do these questions that I ask stir deeper feelings within you? They’re not mere speculation. They’re not intellectual questions. They’re the questions that Heaven asks in considering you—your life, your readiness, your intention. These are the kind of questions that you can bring to your own life. And that would be really productive if you can do that, understanding that it’s not answers you’re looking for. It’s experience. Answers are for dummies. Sorry. (laughter) That’s what Lao Tzu said 2500 years ago. Answers are for dummies. The translated word was “dummies.”

So what we present here tonight is life’s most remarkable gift. And you have the answer inside of you. But that answer just isn’t for you to pluck. You’re going to have to build a connection from your thinking mind to the deeper Mind within you. And you don’t know how to do it. Therefore, Heaven has given it to you in the Steps to Knowledge.

You know, when people meditate, I mean, more often than not, they’re just groping for answers. “Give me answers. Give me realization. Give me high experience.” That’s not spiritual practice. Spiritual practice is building connections, learning how to still your mind, learning how to listen, learning how to look, learning how to see, so you can witness reality within yourself and in others—taking action with what you know, instead of thinking about it and getting into it later, someday, maybe, getting active. This is not a retreat from life. This is an engagement with life. This is not ascension. You’ll ascend, but you really don’t want to because your work here is undone. So this is not about rising above life and looking at everything with compassion. People who made the journey don’t think like this. It sounds good, but it’s the stuff of stories.

So how do these questions stir you? This is another question for you. I can’t answer it. And I invite you to be with it because what I’m giving you here tonight can begin to open some doors within you that probably haven’t really been opened, or not very far. They’re part of a deeper evaluation of your life and your mind, coming from a place of service and compassion. Because Heaven’s first work with you is to get you put back together enough—not perfectly, not completely—but enough that you can begin to function in a greater way in life. Because you’re strewn out all over the place. Part of you is over here. Part of you is over there. Part of you is somewhere back there. You’re in pieces. So bringing that back together functionally enough so you can begin to know which direction you need to go, what signs to look for, what signs you have already.

People say, “I know I need to do this. I should really do this.” But they don’t. So if you know you need to do this and you don’t do this, you’re not going to know any more. Heaven says, Oh well, they can’t do that, so Knowledge remains dormant within them. They can’t do that. They want life, purpose and meaning, but they can’t do that. What? What are we looking at here? This person can’t do this (hands close together) but they want this. (hands wide apart) Now. As if you had a credit card and you could just get it.

So this is a journey. And you have to go into this journey with a deeper need, a real need—an honest evaluation of where you are, where you’ve been, what you’ve done, without condemnation. Condemnation is not wisdom. Condemnation is easy. Looking, seeing and understanding is not so easy. You need to know where you’ve been to know where you are even today. But people don’t want to know where they’ve been. They want to just keep forging ahead. “I’m just gonna keep going forward. I don’t want to go back. I don’t want to look back. I want to go forward.” You’ve got to go back. That’s part of the deep evaluation. And it can be kind of painful. But you need to know where you’ve been because that’s part of your wisdom training. If you want to know what to do in life, you have to know what not to do. The first part of wisdom training is what not to do. First part of knowing who you are is knowing what you’re not. See what I’m saying?

This is a big evaluation. And this is why we’re holding this Vigil for you, so you can see yourself in a greater light and acknowledge those experiences you’ve had of yourself in this way. And to begin to honor the fact that your life is attempting to emerge—your real life.

So each statement that I might make is followed by a question because the question is the exploration you have to do, the action you have to do, the practice you have to do. You know nobody ever got wise by accident. Okay? Getting wise means you don’t make the same mistakes you made before and avoid making future ones that could wreck your life. That’s good wisdom.

Before you can create in this world, you’ve got to survive here. So a lot of wisdom is about surviving here so your life doesn’t get damaged and destroyed.

So all these things that I’m presenting to you tonight—the statements, the questions—everything we’re presenting requires a deeper honesty within you. It’s not about what you want. It’s not  about what you don’t want. It’s about what’s real and what’s true. What you wanted has not made you happy, really, not for very long, maybe momentarily. But it doesn’t last. It doesn’t reach deeply enough in you. So you don’t want to invest greatly in things that yield so little, right? (Right? Room: “Right!” Right!) and [instead] invest in things that hold greater promise for you, and that can begin to prepare you for a new life experience and reality.

These things are earned; they’re not just realized. You know, realization can be important, but it’s only the beginning. It’s a seed. It may seem remarkable or confusing, but it’s only the beginning. If you don’t stay with it and refrain from trying to understand or define it or share it with your friends—which you should never do, by the way, at least not at the beginning, well, should never do—then the realization begins to unfurl like a seed begins to sprout. Something comes from it that wasn’t there at the beginning. But this takes patience. And you have to stay with it.

Because there are three stages of the process of truly knowing something. One is the initial experience, which can be a realization or something that really strikes you, as we’ve been talking about tonight. And then you have to stay with it—not for five minutes. You have to stay with it. The bigger the realization, the longer you have to stay with it. It will lead to action at some point, or many actions if it’s big. Now Knowledge in the moment is to step out of the way of the bus. So you need to get it, be with it and move, okay?  And there’s many life situations where that’s very instantaneous. But we’re talking about something of a greater magnitude now.

Heaven needs to know that you’re reliable and consistent, which are things that none of us really have at the beginning. We have to develop these things, right? We have to be more self-aware. We have to develop that. All these things have to be developed. This is spiritual practice: developing skills, building a connection to Knowledge, building the things that we will need to be able to be a vehicle for Knowledge in this world—skills, abilities, awareness, understanding mistakes. Your past is great for that. Other people are great for that. Don’t condemn them. Learn from them. They’ll save you time. They’ll show you every possible error that you could make and you’ll see it. You don’t have to go through it. They’re doing it for you. You can benefit from them even though they’re suffering, and you can feel compassion for them—a very different way of looking at people and events, human error, human tragedy.

Why is the world messed up? Because people aren’t being guided by Knowledge. Fundamentally. So without Knowledge, that’s the world. We don’t even know what life is like without that.

So I give you these ideas and these questions to be with, and encourage you to be with them.

May the Presence be with you.

Nasi Novare Coram.