There I was hovering over a busy ant-hill when thought I heard something. I leaned in a little closer to see what it was. You won’t believe it, but I’ll share it anyway.

“Do you suppose there is any rhyme or reason to any of this?” Dweedle-Ant posed.

“He He He! Of course, Mant! Of course! Just take a look at that cute little heiny and tell me that ain’t no reason. That’s a reason!” bellowed and guffawed Sext-Ant.

“Sure, if all that matters to you is thorax and antennae, Perv!” stated Iman-Ant. “Of course there is a point to it all, Dweedle-Ant.”

“Each and every one of us is a piece of a larger whole. The whole is the colony. While a colony can continue without us, it is no longer the same colony. The whole keeps changing, and yet, it depends upon us for its own existence. It is the nature of Life. Before the flower came the bud, before the bud came the stem, before the stem-the roots, before the roots-the seed, and after all is said and done, all that was the flower is returned to multiple seeds. These seeds varying in the sum totality of the experiences in the journey of the flower’s life.”

“So, you see, we don’t know and experience the future now. We pour ourselves into the now, knowing that a future self that is the sum of everything before (self-included), and aspires to even greater, will have more of the answers than we have now,” finished Iman-Ant.

Sext-Ant yawns and exhales, “Well you mucks can do whatever you want, or believe whatever you want. Me? I’m just going for more T & A, baby, T & A!” And sauntered off with a howl that dwindled to a chuckle.

Wow! They’re not much different than us, eh?

I don’t usually share other people’s written material, particularly if it is already on the web. However, this particular article came to me via email, as I also subscribe to Jon’s great Newsletter. This particular list happened to arrive at a time when I, too, needed the encouragement it offered. It’s never that we’re handling a situation badly, so much as every little piece of encouragement is good and useful, empowering and strengthening us on our individual journeys.

20 Ways to Get Mentally Tough

(Excerpt from Training Camp: What the Best Do Better Than Everyone Else)

1. When you face a setback, think of it as a defining moment that will lead to a future accomplishment.
2. When you encounter adversity, remember, the best don’t just face adversity; they embrace it, knowing it’s not a dead end but a detour to something greater and better.
3. When you face negative people, know that the key to life is to stay positive in the face of negativity, not in the absence of it. After all, everyone will have to overcome negativity to define themselves and create their success.
4. When you face the naysayer’s, remember the people who believed in you and spoke positive words to you.
5. When you face critics, remember to tune them out and focus only on being the best you can be.
6. When you wake up in the morning, take a morning walk of gratitude and prayer. It will create a fertile mind ready for success.
7. When you fear, trust. Let your faith be greater than your doubt.
8. When you fail, find the lesson in it, and then recall a time when you have succeeded.
9. When you head into battle, visualize success.
10. When you are thinking about the past or worrying about the future, instead focus your energy on the present moment. The now is where your power is the greatest.
11. When you want to complain, instead identify a solution.
12. When your own self-doubt crowds your mind, weed it and replace it with positive thoughts and positive self-talk.
13. When you feel distracted, focus on your breathing, observe your surroundings, clear your mind, and get into The Zone. The Zone is not a random event. It can be created.
14. When you feel all is impossible, know that with God all things are possible.
15. When you feel alone, think of all the people who have helped you along the way and who love and support you now.
16. When you feel lost, pray for guidance.
17. When you are tired and drained, remember to never, never, never give up. Finish Strong in everything you do.
18. When you feel like you can’t do it, know that you can do all things through Him who gives you strength.
19. When you feel like your situation is beyond your control, pray and surrender. Focus on what you can control and let go of what you can’t.
20. When you’re in a high-pressure situation and the game is on the line, and everyone is watching you, remember to smile, have fun, and enjoy it. Life is short; you only live once. You have nothing to lose. Seize the moment.

In what ways will you choose to be mentally tough? Share your comments here.

20 Ways to Get Mentally Tough Poster

Download, Print and Share as a Reminder to Be Strong Each Day!

Access additional Training Camp posters here.

Stay Positive, Jon

www.Twitter.com/JonGordon11

This word causes so much trouble in this life and world. How can there possibly exist so many truths that lead to so many contradictions?

The Truth is in one place only. It is in each and every precious moment.

• How will you act?
• How will you love?
• How will you forgive?
• How will you live?
• How will you risk?
• How will you give?
• How will you be?

The Truth is in this precious moment. Are you being grateful?

• You cannot expect anything from anyone, only of yourself.
• Forgiveness gives you freedom. Freedom gives you choice.
• Love takes care of Self first to prevent self-destruction.
• Make your right choices, not my right choices.

The Truth is in this precious moment. Its Life is in you.

into the heart
Originally uploaded by silver.and.gold

Came from a conversation:

I have so much to share with you. First, understand that I grew up in a family that didn’t observe religion, faith, or anything other than strict discipline and hard work.

As a young boy of about 8, as my earliest recollection, a sense of wonder caused me to question, “where does it all come from? and is there a God? and what is God?” Of course, these were not answered in my home and a conversation with a school mate had me attend his church the following weekend where the “guy in fancy robes that preached” basically told me to buzz off. That was the end of that questioning period. Although throughout my life this had been a recurring theme.

In my early thirties, some serious searching and devastating life events saw me commit to the christian faith – more out of fear than faith or certainty.

What you describe with the church is very similar to my own. After four years, I was completely drained, and when I left the church I wanted nothing more to do with God, nor to do with any form of spirituality. I simply wanted to “get on with my life!” before it was too late, and I was too old.

But that recurring theme followed me, and as events would have it, God revealed presence through science. Suddenly, a thread of commonality, a key to a cryptic code, tied all religious and spiritual thought forms into a more cohesive whole. This is not to say that there are not some glaringly outdated, outmoded, or simply obsolete statements of belief in all systems. Every system evolves into a more refined system. Does organized religion?

Evolution is fact, as is a force of nature that is beyond comprehension. If we ever gain comprehension of this energy that sustains and creates all life, it will still beg the question if there is some other force acting upon or creating this force. The questions can continue. But suddenly, with this realization, my understanding of God, of Life, of Energy, of Creation, and our relationship to it – AND – in it, finally made sense.

This is the the summary version of what has become of my relationship with God.

From the archives January 21, 2005

There is so much emphasis on emotional intelligence these days that it appears that people are suppressing their emotions and problems in an effort to “fit in,” to keep their jobs, and using “positive self-talk” to muscle through the rough spots in their lives.

Recently, I had a friend over who has suffered enormous job stress during a time when his wife’s father was dying of cancer. Of course, quitting his job didn’t seem like an option during this difficult period, particularly since his wife returned to her parental home for many months to say good-bye to her dying father. That left him at home to take care of their children, pay the bills, and so on. Who can forge positively into a new job-search with all that going on?

After his father-in-law passed away his wife returned home and he lost his job – as did many of his colleagues – and his wife decided she no longer wanted to remain married. What else could go wrong? OH! Of course! His father could be diagnosed with cancer: He was.

Now he is living a complete hell, with all of this turmoil, and two sweet children looking to him for stability. Is it any wonder that people are cracking under the strain?

He is all alone and he tries to be “emotionally together” but that only causes more harm than good. We (society), in our need for order and stability, don’t want people with all these problems in our lives. We don’t want them working in our office. They’re broken!

Well, the truth is, our (society) expectations around emotional intelligence, and together, full-functioning adults, is what is breaking them.

I spent three hours with him the other night, acknowledging his horrific circumstances, his emotional turmoil, and gave him permission to embrace it all. He’s not broken, he’s experiencing emotional pain and it needs to be expressed, embraced, and worked through (processed.) It’s not enough that he embrace it either. Community is required to surround, love, heal, and regenerate.

So, when we see hurting people, don’t look at them as broken people who haven’t got their act together. Look at them as someone who needs a bit of kindness, generosity, and loving support. Watch the power those simple things can have in their life.

So, when we see hurting people, don’t look at them as broken people who haven’t got their act together. Look at them as someone who needs a bit of kindness, generosity, and loving support. Watch the power those simple things can have in their life.

Caveat: This does not condone people remaining disempowered victims for the rest of their lives. Our role is to embrace and still to empower, leaving the “wounded one” to take responsibility for their recovery. Embrace, love, and challenge!

Read the rest of this entry »

From the archives May 31, 2006

After a number of years with the Christian church, a decision to leave resulted in a deeper journey to self-discovery and spirit. Initially, this journey wanted nothing further to do with Christianity due to perceived shortcomings within the institution of religion. It is a belief that going deeper into the meaning and context of ‘What is the nature of love’ would expand consciousness to embrace more deeply the intent, nature, and teachings that Jesus offered.

After leaving the church, spiritual issues continued to tease consciousness as I fumbled through our modern culture wondering why – secular and religious communities alike – there appeared to be such a spiritual void in our society today. Further study into other religions provided a better understanding of other beliefs, cultures, and people, along with their origins. Studying quantum theory to a degree offered a better understanding of the science of creation. It is important to remember that science has done much to further substantiate religious teachings in many ways over the centuries. Coming back to review the New Testament, this new information offered a correlation between Jesus’ teachings and how it fits with many values and beliefs.

Reflecting upon scripture, seeking deeper insight, a walk through a natural setting provided a nurturing atmosphere. Asking for further insight to the meaning of the red-letter phrase recorded in a gospel verse, great learning and perspective demonstrated more fully and simply what Jesus attempted to share with a society 2,000 years ago. This is important to realize as well. There would be no way that Jesus could elaborate his knowing to the people of that time in the context that we can achieve today. He was limited by the societal knowledge and context of that era. Farm people, common people, enslaved people, governed people, people with various religious beliefs and gods, Jews steeped in their religious history and socialization, and so on. He had no other choice than to speak their language.

Today, we have access to much more knowledge and language. This allows us to take what Jesus said and ask for further clarification and insight. What more is available? How does this fit within the context of quantum physics research? How does this fit within the context of all religions? Remember an important point here: Jesus did not start the religion Christianity. The religion came hundreds of years later and was entangled with political agendas for that time. Jesus taught Jews, Romans, Samarians, Canaanites, and to anyone with an open heart and ear to listen and eyes to witness. His brand of faith was not in religion, although He used it to help those listening be better able to understand concepts that he spoke. Jesus’ faith was not in religion, it was in God. His faith was not restricted to the Synagogues; it was in the fields, on the roads, by the well, in the courtyard, around a supper table, and so on.

Knowing this to be true has led me to my destination of today – tomorrow’s is yet to be realized. With what I’ve acquired, I’d continue to share new reflections on select verses as the New Testament is revisited. I’m not looking to debate faith – I’m looking to share ideas and create freedom of spirit for many.

In the very beginning, Jesus began preaching a very simple message: “Turn away from your sins, because the Kingdom of Heaven is near!” This statement early in the four gospels sums up His entire ministry and the entirety of his teachings. Researching a variety of other disciplines, texts, and sciences included words, their meanings, original languages and the nuances of meaning in the social context of the time, and so on.

In relation to the statement, “Turn away from your sins, because the Kingdom of Heaven is near!” I happened upon another writer’s exposition related to the word sin. A sin is simply the act of going against your self. In its simplest terms, the choice is positive or it is negative and it is personal to you. By and large, we can agree that there are just some things that are not to be done by anyone: Murder, Assault, and Rape. There are equally, or even more so, a large number of things that we cannot agree upon. This is also why judgment has become such a disease within all organized religions, between religions, and between religious and non-religious people worldwide. Judgment is also why Jesus reminds everyone to take the log out of their own eye! More than anything, this calls us to accept differences and recognize value in diversity; also stated in the analogy of the importance a thumb has to the human body, so too do each of us in society!

Let me elucidate the positive and negative issue that is to interpret the word sin. Not to sin is to not go against your self. Follow your gut, your values, your passion, and be true to yourself. This is all positive and even though some of your values go against someone else’s, it doesn’t make you wrong and it does not make your actions sinful. This offers freedom of choice to everyone. Of course, Jesus went further, as did the writer explaining sin, that our emotional intent, towards others and ourselves, is equally important. Saying or doing nasty things that hurt someone else will also hurt you; this is sin. Saying or doing loving things that will uplift yourself and others is not sin. These actions, attitudes, emotions also directly affect your relationship to the mysterious entity known as God.

There is a lot of background that I’m leaving out and I invite you to dig deeper yourself. “Turn away from your sins, because the Kingdom of Heaven is near.” This statement has so much to do with what is in our hearts, minds, and subsequent actions. How we perceive the world, how we project onto the world, and how we engage with the world, are all relevant to this phrase. Being Joyful, seeing Beauty in everything, learning to Accept the present moment, Loving your own self, Loving others, and Trusting God; all of these things create the Kingdom of Heaven right here, right now. Going the opposite direction leads to death and misery — to hell. Let me take you a step further to explain what I saw.

“Go in through the narrow gate, because the gate to hell is wide and the road that leads to it is easy, and there are many who travel it. But the gate to life is narrow and the way that leads to it is hard, and there are few people who find it.”

Take a look around you and notice how the majority are living their lives. Notice how many are miserable with their lives, their marriages, their careers, their financial burdens, and their lost dreams. The narrow gate is not outside of you, the narrow gate is you. The wide gate is the world and following the crowd, the flavor of the day, and the want of the hour. The hard road, the narrow road, is the road to discovering more of who you are and what you came into this world to accomplish. Are you an artist? Share your art, be that artist. Are you a businessman? Then be the best businessman you can be. Are you a teacher? Then teach and teach well. In every case, do not neglect your own heart and the heart of God. As hard as it is, in due time it will all come together.

In the context of our modern society, I have an observed correlation to the wide-road. For a number of years I worked as an employment counselor / coach. Continually frustrated by the majority trying to follow the dollar, thinking happiness and satisfaction were there, I witnessed many unfulfilled careers, education, and lives stumble around looking for themselves. The demand for today and tomorrow, the hottest trend, the highest paid occupations, these are not necessarily your path. If I try to pursue that which is not me, then I am uncomfortable, less successful, less fulfilled, often stressed, and even broke, as studies and my own experience repeatedly demonstrate.

You are created in God’s image. You are creative and a creator. So is God. We certainly don’t fit any other image of God that I have witnessed with my own eyes. The closer you are to engaging your creative talents in service to the world, society, spirit, or whatever, the more closely aligned you are and in relationship with God. This, again, means going within – where God speaks quietly to you – and discovering your own truth and finding your narrow gate and path. It’s yours and yours alone. The man-made path is what has created a lot of the problems we experience en masse in society today. Problems in today’s society? Yes!

Godly people know that love is more powerful than force. Godly people know that they have gifts that are to be used. Godly people know that they are to be forgiving, to be less judgmental, to love their neighbor, and to love their enemy. Society also knows these things and knows we are better served to educate, feed, and assist those who are less fortunate, those who are broken, destitute, etc. We — secular, religious, spiritual, everyone — loved Mother Theresa for it! We loved Gandhi for his role in history. We loved Princess Diana too! There are so many who did their best in their small way and made big differences as a result. Why don’t the rest of us?

There are better choices than what family suggests. There are better choices than society suggests. There are better choices than politicians impose. There are better choices than consumerism. There are better choices than fame and fortune. Who knows what your road is to be in life? Who knows where that final destination may lead? The fulfillment in your heart and the impact you have in this world — in positive ways — will be all the riches you need to acquire. You’ll have passion, you’ll experience fulfillment, you’ll develop loving relationships, and you’ll be bringing your truest, brightest light to shine in the world.

Can you see what I mean? Can you see what Jesus meant?

Some people I know are very hung up on the importance of the human race. As I listen, thoughts of time since the beginning of existence, the multiple lives and deaths of the planet earth, all life upon her, and her rebirth with newly evolved life that one day will likely all be completely obliterated from our point-of-view as the Sun that gives us life destroys itself at some time in the long-distant future.

Emotional Intelligence triggered these thoughts. The link to Spiritual Intelligence. No one knows what that really means and everyone has made it mean their own thing. I will stand today and challenge everyone on that. Spirituality is not a belief in something, it is the pursuit of Truth and Understanding. In that same vein that life is not a destination, it is a journey, so is the Spiritual path.

Upon our world we literally bastardize every opportunity for enlightenment. I won’t get into why. I want to share a beautiful abstract thought of existence that popped into my head as these spontaneous points collided in that sheer moment. Quite remarkable.

We are children, all of us, no matter our age. Young, old, and everything in between are mere babes in Mother Cosmic’s arms. Our brielf blink of an eye will end, and something new and more beautiful will evelve. This is the nature of God, the Universe, Life Itself, Loging to Expand in Consciousness, Awareness, and who knows what. And the coolest part is we’re all a part of it.

If you’ve ever seen a time-travel movie, this stop in the human plane is a beginning on an even bigger journey. As the legends of bible suggest being seated at the right hand of god, at the suggestion of life-after-death by various traditions and belief systems, and by the abstract understanding of the cosmos itself, it is all true.

Life is a source of energy, of power. You are one such source. Also, the earth, me, other beings, entities, and so on. Each represents a life force that continues. Maybe they evolve, maybe there are joining of forces, maybe, maybe, maybe. But in essence, the reap what you sow pertains to the energy of the physical body while here on this earth.

Reap and sow love, you may become the Sun giving life to a Solar System. Reap and sow commerce, you may become a planet sustaining an ecosystem rich with biodiversity teeming with life. Reap and sow destruction, you may become … any suggestions ?? … violent sporadic moments of storms? Earthworms?

Just some fun and entertaining thoughts that can also challenge some of your most cherished beliefs. Sleep well.

Lee says, “Our mind is the biggest obstacle to living our life to the fullest.”

Life is just one crazy adventure. Control what fires up inside, respond positively, remain always “at choice” and you are truly free. You are not bound to anyone. Pick and choose, have fun, no apologies. Human being Human. Love.

When one door closes, another one opens. This irritating metaphor is more true than I ever realized. Often I’d panic when I knew what I wanted or felt I needed wouldn’t be in place anymore. I’d struggle with the feelings. With practice, I was able to shift my thinking, focusing on also shifting the associated feelings, and show some optimism and excitement for the unknown next step. It must be good – how else could all this have already happened in my life if it were otherwise? I’m here.

Is Life ravenous?

Is Life possessive?

Consider the idea, the thought, and the implications from a variety of perspectives. See what happens, or shows up.

Open up to Life  my heart, fear not

your feelings of hurt and pain,

they burnish the gild inside

a false shell hiding the meat,

your life! To be surrendered.

“You belong to me ,” she said.

Copyright ©  2007 Lee Down, all rights reserved