Archive for Food
Carnal Cravings
We as human beings crave freedom and, in one way or another, are obsessed with liberating ourselves. We believe that this freedom comes in many forms: all forms of creativity, politics, sex, drugs, alcohol, relationships … the list goes on and on. But what is it that we are REALLY seeking freedom from?? It is my belief that all of these things are in the name … of finding freedom from ourselves.
This past weekend I was meditating on the concept of being in the Present … not allowing the Past or the Future to distract us from receiving God’s Love for us in the Present (as detailed in my meditative post, “Communing With God“). Today I continued that theme with my prior post, “Through the heart“.
I focused on keeping my mind focused completely on the present … and of course found difficulty with the task. It truly is amazing how quickly our minds jump around … to the Past, and then instantly to the Future to project similar possibilities and ways that we can avoid these potentials. Truly, one could spend hours meditating and have it ALL be spent either in the Past, or the Future. This is what our own mind does to us … that Inner Voice.
Still, I went to work at making my mind obey … every time I caught myself going to the Past or the Future, I would focus on something here in the Present; my breathing, the sounds around me, I’d open my eyes and take in every detail of the room, etc.
When I reached a point of clarity it suddenly dawned on me … ALL of these carnal cravings we have really are TOOLS to help us stay in the present. The problem is that we have gotten to a place where we use them as a way to escape from the merciless and ever-present Inner Voice that makes us feel afraid, or ashamed, or guilty, or heartbroken, or alone.
Think about it … when you take a big bite of whatever your favorite food is? There’s that blissful moment of being in the present and just moaning, “MMMmmm!” When you are listening to your favorite song, and dancing around the house while nobody’s looking, you have a euphoric sense of peace where that Inner Voice is silenced. The same is true with movies, sports and many other things. Why is sex one of the most powerful of these “crutches” … well, sex not only puts us in the Present and silences that Inner Voice … sex is also spiritual. We may be shut off to God in every other way, but there is something spiritual in being with the person you are in love with.
The truth is … God GAVE us all of these things! God WANTS us to enjoy these things … these are the toys of a loving parent who wants to see their child laugh and play. Any good parent wants to be a part of that experience with their children though … and God is no different! God wants us here in the Present, and God has given us all of these tools to be able to do so … it is up to us though whether we use them as a way of escape (which leads to what many call “sin”), or as a way to connect with our Creator in a beautiful and loving relationship.
Throughout history there have been spiritual rituals and celebrations utilizing ALL of these activities … that is because when we are in the Present, we have the ability to be truly connected to God. That is where our POWER is … in God. When we allow our hearts to be closed and just spend an entire lifetime running away from ourselves? We cripple ourselves. We saddle ourselves with senseless addictions as we desperately strive to escape from our relentless Inner Voice. We are destined to be alone, and unhappy … because we are ultimately running away from the one Being who LOVES us just as we are … right now … and the next moment … and the next … every second, of every day … God Loves you just as you are.
——-
Painting of Echo and Narcissus by John William Waterhouse.
——-
Religion4All is an idea: that every human being (no matter their race, religion, sexuality, social status, lifestyle, or any other possible factor) is LOVED by God; just … as … they are.
We all are loved by God, and NO religion or person has a monopoly on it. Every single person on this planet is loved equally by God … SO many are cut off from God because they are told they don’t belong. God loves everyone … we ALL are beautiful creations … we don’t need to cringe when we hear the words “God”, or “religion”, or their judgments … God LOVES us all!
There is no requirement to change in order to be LOVED by God, or to LOVE God. God is LOVE, and LOVE is God … period. There is no one who God loves more than anyone else … there are only those who choose to LOVE more … to love God more, and consequently then to love each other more. In doing so, we grow closer to God … and know God.
By opening our hearts, and minds to God (free of boundaries like religion, or social trends); by LOVING God … we are exactly where we are meant to be. If we maintain that openness, never allowing any person or event to make us close our hearts, we will be guided by God to be who we are meant to be.
In that space of openness we can then live a life of LOVE, and be guided to where we are meant to be … forever in LOVE.
Southern California, Northern California, Mission Viejo, Irvine, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Marin, San Jose, San Juan Capistrano, Santa Ana, Palm Springs, Long Beach
Religion4All 