Peace

What Makes Our Lives Unmanageable

/ Tim Custis / Leave a comment

We search for experiences to make ourselves happy. But experiences come and go, don’t they? They never offer lasting happiness. We also look to push away anything that makes us unhappy, thinking this will make our lives peaceful again, never dealing with the root cause but looking to blame things outside of ourselves as the reason. We think that if we only do these things, everything in our lives will be perfect. These thoughts are illusions of the mind. But still, we think we have all the power to control what happens to us and around us. Is this the truth?

Remember that this world and life were here long before your birth and will be here long after you are gone continuing to create and flourish. On the other hand, we only have a short time to experience this life. If we always skip by the here and now, trying to avoid the unpleasant while only seeking out the pleasant, we will never be satisfied. We must look inward to feel and let go of uncomfortable things. To understand ourselves at a deeper level than we do now. Otherwise, we are not living fully; we are only surviving and will never rest in our true nature.

Underneath All Meaningless and Unhelpful Thoughts

/ Tim Custis / Leave a comment

Ordinary thinking has its place in daily affairs. However, if you let your thoughts guide you unconsciously, they will mislead you often. Verify this fact for yourself by paying attention to your thoughts throughout the day and noticing when they are misleading or causing you to suffer. Once you have observed them for any length of time, I know you will agree; if you ignore them, they will always convince you that they are truthful and correct, even the rambling that occurs quietly in the background, which is what you want to notice.

The key is not to try and stop the thoughts; this is impossible and will only lead to more anxiety, frustration, and suffering. You only need to notice them and then let them go. It sounds simple to do but requires commitment and persistence. Notice when they have distracted you once again and let them go. Do this for the rest of your life as best you can, whenever you can. You will notice the peace you have been seeking was there all along because that is your natural state of being underneath all the meaningless and unhelpful thoughts.

Resistance or Peace You Decide

/ Tim Custis / Leave a comment

There is a belief by many that the perfect life is a pain-free life. This is a false assumption brought about by our own conditioning and misguided thinking. With this belief, a perfect life is unattainable. Why, because there will always be pain in this world, it is an unavoidable part of our life because we have physical and emotional feelings as human beings. Without them, we would not be having a human experience; it would be something altogether different.

You cannot resist pain and embody peace at the same time this is not possible. Real peace comes from the understanding that pain is necessary, and it is not a punishment. It is only by changing your perception about pain that you can begin the journey to finding lasting peace.

You must no longer see your pain as a punishment or a problem, but an opportunity to heal. It is an indicator that something in your life is out of balance and once it is put back into balance, the pain will disappear or no longer matter to you. If you continue to resist this guidance, then you will suffer.

To avoid suffering, you must embrace what is happening, move into acceptance when you are faced with the truth and let go of any resistance to that truth. Once you do, you open the door to connecting with your innate nature, which is always in a peaceful state. From this place, you can remain peaceful no matter what is happening outside of you. It allows you to see things more clearly and make better choices in life. This shift does not just affect yourself but also the collective energy that connects us all.

World Peace

/ Tim Custis / Leave a comment

When the mind is at peace, the world is at peace. Are you willing to put some effort toward making your mind peaceful? Failure is impossible when any honest and consistent effort is taken toward this intention.

I know that more than any other action toward world peace this action will bring it to fruition, but only if you are willing. To dream of something better is just a dream without an unbending intention and effort.

Instead of asking for world peace, ask how you can bring stillness to your mind. Take action as needed toward this goal and then watch the world change.

Lasting Peace

/ Tim Custis / Leave a comment

We all face difficulties in life, and no one on this planet avoids them. Whether they are emotional or physical, our environment or circumstances, at some point, we will be faced with challenges. This is not something that we should need convincing of because we have already had trouble in our lives, no matter our age.

Yet somehow, we imagine life should not have obstacles or pain. Therefore, we become upset, embittered or frustrated when something happens that we perceive not to be perfect (the way we wanted). Can you see how this reaction is insane?

So why do we go on believing it is possible and not face the truth, be present with what is, and live in the moment? This is because we think that life should not have any difficulties and that is because of societies idea (conditioning) of perfection, not our own. However, this is not reality, is it?

If you can see this in your own life, then over time you can begin to see the other ways that you are conditioned, and yes, you are conditioned in many ways. Unfortunately, we become lost in our own thoughts created by this conditioning, and this makes it impossible to see without bringing awareness into our life.

To begin the journey of self-discovery and bringing awareness into your life is the way to finding and experiencing lasting peace. One that is perfect, not because difficulties never occur in your life, but one where whatever arises never takes your peace away. You finally understand that you are peaceful in your purest form and no person, experience or event can take it away.

Equilibrium

/ Tim Custis / Leave a comment

Maintaining Peace in Difficult times

/ Tim Custis / 2 Comments
Eventually, on the path of awakening, you will recognize that obstacles are part of the journey. Living a peaceful or even perfect life is not about avoiding or never experiencing them.

The perfect life you seek, the one without problems and challenges does not exist. Your thoughts of perfection have misled you. Your social conditioning taught you to believe that a perfect life should not include issues or difficulties. This unattainable thought will only lead you to experience discomfort in your life each time something shows up that you perceive is not perfect.

The obstacles you encounter should not rob you of your peace, but offer you the opportunity to become grounded in your oneness with the Divine. If they rob you of your contentment, then you are not experiencing them with awareness. Because the moment you bring the light of awareness and acceptance to any obstacle, the darkness can no longer hurt you and the peace that is always available to you will once again be felt.

Therefore, the next time you experience a problem, pay attention to your thoughts and you will see that they fill you with resistance and bring suffering. You can now use this newfound recognition to choose not to follow their direction. Let these misguided and unhelpful thoughts go and know that whatever you are facing you will be okay. Trust in your Divine nature, ask for the help if you need it and continue to pay attention to your thoughts, especially when you feel discomfort.

The Path to Peace

/ Tim Custis / Leave a comment

You are mistaken to think that peace will come to the world through outer pursuits or at some future time because of these pursuits. You would also be misguided to believe that we do not have world peace now because of some other country.

The only way to have peace in the world is to be peaceful ourselves. Being peaceful ourselves has nothing to do with politics, religion, nationality, color or any other label that separates us. The only way to remove these walls of delusion is through self-inquiry. We must let go of who we have become, reconnect with our True-Self revealing the innate peace that resides in all of us. From this place, we can find harmony together through our diversity, instead of thinking everyone must think and be like us. The beauty of this world comes from our difference, not our sameness.

We can continue down the same path that has led us here, or we can be bold and try something different. There is nothing to lose because if we look at the past, we can see that what we have done is not working and we are repeating the same behaviors decade after decade. What would you have the future be for your kids and grandkids? It is not out of reach if we look in first through the journey of self-inquiry.

Free Yourself from Pain and Suffering

/ Tim Custis / Leave a comment

Pain and suffering do not come from letting go; they arise out of fear and our inability to be present in the moment. We are resisting what is, and trying to avoid feeling our pain. By doing this, we mistakenly think we will suffer less or not at all when in truth the opposite becomes our reality. This resistance is automatic and originates out of our conditioning. When we acknowledge and embrace our pain and suffering, and we bring our attention back to the present moment, we have the opportunity to release whatever is causing our discomfort.

We can recognize what this moment looks like because we become sick and tired of being sick and tired. At that very moment, we step back into the present moment with the truth of what we are feeling, and this is when the door to infinite possibilities opens up, and healing becomes possible. We now have a choice to step through the door or close it by falling back into resistance. Do not worry if you close the door, even more than once because the opportunity will always come up again.

Remember that as long as you stay in resistance, you will continue to experience pain and suffering. Your willingness to be present with your painful feelings needs to be greater than your fear of stepping through the door. Through the experience of this process, you can build a strong foundation of trust and faith something greater than yourself or in the realization of how the universe works energetically.

When we are willing to feel our feelings and be present in the moment with them and the truth of what is happening, life presents us the opportunity to let our pain and suffering go and experience joy again. This may occur instantly or over a period as it becomes clear that you must let the energy go. The next time you feel lost in your pain and suffering, know that the door to healing is open and waiting for you to walk through it and to the other side, where joy and peace are waiting for you.

I Think… Living in a More Peaceful World

/ Tim Custis / Leave a comment

Our greatest enemy is not who we think it is; it is our lack of understanding and awareness about ourselves and who we really are, it is always easier to look out there and blame someone else.

I think we would be able to live in this world more peaceably if we were more concerned about others than our own selfish desires.

I think we would be able to live in this world more peaceably if we honored the chosen path of those we do not understand.

I think we would be able to live in this world more peaceably if our greed did not exceed our love for nature.

I think we would be able to live in this world more peaceably if we loved diversity more than sameness.

I think we would be able to live in this world more peaceably if our energy was used to uplift those around us and not to control or tear them down.

I think we would be able to live in this world more peaceably if we did not believe we were better than those who are different from us or suffering.

I think we would be able to live in this world more peaceably if we lived in love more than fear.

I think we would be able to live in this world more peaceably if we recognized that the oneness of our world and our connection to those around us is more important than creating separation, building walls or looking for reasons to distance ourselves from others no matter who they are.

I think we would be able to live in this world more peaceably if we spent as much time understanding ourselves as we did complaining about what others do that we do not like or understand.

I think we would be able to live in this world more peaceably if we led with our hearts instead of our heads and wallets.

I think we would be able to live in this world more peaceably if those in power always put everyone else’s highest good before their own.

We will never inhabit a peaceful world, mind or body if we do not bring awareness to our thoughts and actions. We must learn to let go of the past and stop continually trying to hold onto beliefs and ideas that were created by our conditioning. Understand that you cannot see this conditioning without bringing awareness to your thoughts and actions, and this will only happen through paying attention.

What can you do today to make this a more peaceful world to live in? Remember, the world will never be more peaceful than it is now if we all do not take responsibility for our own inner peace. Because when we become more peaceful, the people around us and the world become more peaceful.

What action can you take today to let go of the past, become more peaceful, and bring more joy, compassion, empathy, and love instead of anger, worry, fear and hate into the world?