I no longer try to shine
my light. I try, rather, to allow my light to shine. It’s a small difference
grammatically, but a HUGE difference
spiritually.
I love the image of light as an
analogy for spiritual truth, love, transformation and compassion. Virtually
every religious tradition – from Pagan Nature Worship to Buddhism, to Hinduism,
to Zoroastrianism, to Judaism, to Christianity – use the concept of light in
this way.
I am to let my light shine and
not cover it with a basket. Jesus was called the Light of the world. Chanukah
is the Festival of Light. Buddhists refer to one’s Inner Light as the source of
spiritual Truth.
People often will say I am so small
and insignificant that my light cannot make a difference. Yet, if you and
others were to be inside a darkened building and could not find the exit door,
just the smallest match would provide enough light to allow all of you to
escape. This example reminds me of the children’s ditty “This little light of
mine, I’m gonna let it shine….”
One of my favorite visual
examples is that of a lighthouse. It shines its rotating spotlight out into the
inky darkness of night. It does not care if ships at sea look for it or heed
its recurring beam. It simply shines. That is its purpose. It’s not the fault
of the lighthouse if a ship ignores its beam and founders in the shallows. The
lighthouse does not get into a snit (like I seem to do), pick up its skirts and
relocate itself to another cove where it believes it will be appropriately
appreciated. It just – night after night – shines its light.
That is what I am to do. As
small, as flickering, as apparently inconsequential as my little beam of light
may be, I am simply to shine my light and let Spirit do the rest. As I learned
in AA: “Live as best you can today; don’t drink today; go to a meeting and
share today; work the Steps today; pray today; and the rest of your life is
none of your business.”
If someone doesn’t appreciate my
honesty, as I share of myself, that is not my concern. If someone refuses to
subscribe to my messages, that is not my concern. If someone decides to
unsubscribe, that is not my concern. If no one seems to be interested, that is
not my concern. Just shine, baby, shine – and the rest of my life is none of my
business.
In fact, that is, literally,
what I used to say. “All I want to do is to shine my light.”
Then, one evening in Tennessee,
a respected friend gently admonished me. “Don, quit saying that you’re trying
to shine your light. Continue saying that and soon it will become a ‘task’ your
Ego grabs a hold of. The Course [in Miracles] tells us our light is already
there. Inside. Our job is to strip away the personal gunk that is covering it up
– fear, judgment, anger, analyzing, mind-wandering, frustration, attachments.
As we remove this dark ego-gunk, we simply will be uncovering the light that is
already there – and has always been there.”
A Course in Miracles (ACIM)
says, “The ego is nothing more than a part of your belief in yourself. Your
other life [spirit] has continued without interruption, and has been and always
will be totally unaffected by your attempts to dissociate it.” (Text:
4,VI,1,6-7)
So I no longer try to shine my
light. I ALLOW my light to shine.
To “try to shine my light,”
requires the verb “try” and the adjective “my.” This has always been my
downfall. Since I am the one TRYing – it becomes an activity of MY will and
resolve. It quickly becomes a job, an objective, a goal. Since light-shining
now is MY mission, MY progress can be tracked, improved on, clarified, and made
better. These are all the symptoms of MY ego-based efforts to be good, relevant
and spiritual. And, brother, you had better notice and applaud! or I’ll take my
marbles and go home.
Whenever I find myself using the
tools I’ve developed (the same tools you’ve developed) to protect me from my
perceived world, then I know I’m in a state of fear. “What tools?” you ask.
Tools like rationalizing, being on the defensive, minimalizing, justifying,
projecting, general dis-believing – to name only a few. When I use these tools
I will always feel like a victim or a potential victim or a victor. In any of
these cases it means I am reacting to my perceived world as if it’s some sort
of bad, evil, dangerous place I need to conquer or overcome.
That’s a bad place for me to be.
It separates me from you. It covers my light. It is the most serious symptom I
detect that reminds me I have slipped, once again, into the frame of mind that
allows me to believe I am my body and must do “godly” things to save my soul
(which resides somewhere inside me).
When I remember I am an
already-loved spirit currently having a human experience, then I can begin to
deal with much of my ego-centric attitude. Essentially, it keeps my focus on
the spiritual truth that everything is always an “inside” job.
Now, I try not to shine my light. I try to allow my light to shine. I
realize it’s a small grammatical difference. But, I believe it’s a whopping BIG spiritual difference.
Thanks for listening. Please
share this by forwarding it to friends and family.
Don
#4 February, 2012
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