God

Experiencing God

/ Tim Custis / Leave a comment

You will never find God by looking out into the world or through the path of knowledge. It is not a matter for the mind. You will never find God thinking that you will only meet him, her, or it after you die. Know too that God does not have human characteristics in its natural state. It cannot be described by words it can only be experienced. Furthermore, you do not have to wait until you die to have this experience.

As long as you attach to personhood and your senses, you will be tricked by the mind and your thoughts, making this experience an elusive one. The mind is a master of distraction. Do you already know this fact?

The world is held captive, not by bad people, but by misguided thinking. However, you do not have to stay hostage to this habitual thinking. You can break free when you want and do not let your thoughts tell you otherwise.

Remember, that many of the beliefs and thoughts that arise in the mind have been instilled in you from a very young age. Therefore, know that it may take some practice to be free. Nevertheless, you cannot fail, because how can you fail to become who you already are, you only need to remember this by experiencing your real nature once again.

In your heart, you know the truth. Take some time to be quiet, drop down from the mind and into the heart of God. I assure you that as long as you do not pick up your thoughts and walk away again, you will remember your real nature.

Keep this as a reminder, you will never find God through your thoughts.

Become the observer of the mind, and retire as its playmate. Use it when you need to, but do not let it continue to use you as it has for so many years. Once you do, the experience of God will find you, because God is not separate from you, and has not forsaken you.

The only thing that separates you from God is a thought and your belief in that thought.

The Greater Intelligence That Created Us

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A greater intelligence exists in the universe than our human intelligence. Some call it God; others call it the Creative Energy of the Universe or Divine Source. There are many other names used to describe this force. We humans forget that we are not the most intelligent and productive force at work in the cosmos.

We are failing to take care of the gift this greater intelligence gives us, which is our human experience and all the life on Mother Earth. It will still be here creating and expanding long after we are gone. We must wake up to our ignorance if we want to continue to survive and thrive. If we work with it, instead of against it, we will be blessed more than we can imagine.

Unfortunately, as history has shown us, we prefer to go our own way. We believe that we are smarter than what created us and because of this, we are sowing the seeds of our destruction.

However, hope should never be lost, but we must wake up to this truth. We must begin to see the damage we cause in the name of power, money, and our righteousness. We must not wait to think about the future. We must take action now so that the generations that follow us not only have a place to live, but they can continue to co-create and expand with this Divine and intelligent energy.

In The Mind That Makes It One

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Race is only an issue in the mind that makes it one. Sexual orientation is only an issue in the mind that makes it one. Pick a topic where people cannot agree or there are large gaps and you will see that this is always true. If it were not true then no one would ever change sides on an issue; they would never change their mind and we would all agree on everything or would we all disagree.

Look at what you thought was wrong and now you think is OK. Look at what was right at one time in your life and now you see it as wrong. The simple answer here is that nothing has changed except how you think about it.

Yes, the disagreers will point to something outside of themselves to prove their rightness, like scripture, spiritual text or some other thing. Yet they fail to see that we are one. That we are more alike than different and that the people who translated those texts and the time in which they were written may have influenced the words on the page. It is man not God who made these changes. You do not write against something, unless it already exists.

The God I know does not want from us and certainly does not judge us for our differences. We were all created from the same source. We were created from love and when we live from love, the differences fall away and we only see what has always been there, our oneness.

Is your God different from the one I know? Does your God judge, get angry and punish you because you do not do what it wants? God is not your enemy, but the mind certainly can be if you do pay attention to what you think and why. Therefore, listen intently to what it says to you, because maybe you do not believe what it is telling you anymore. That realization, that moment is the opportunity to experience a new way of living by letting go of your conditioning and old way of thinking.

I wonder…

/ Tim Custis / 1 Comment

I wonder, can you experience the depth of your own being in more than just a superficial way?

I wonder, can you see past your own aches and pain to something deeper, more meaningful and true?

I wonder, do you realize that once you do, everything is just energy?

I wonder, do you know that this energy, which we call consciousness drives our evolution?

I wonder, when you look in the mirror or at the person next to you, that no matter what you see, that we are all one; that we are all part of this energy?

I wonder, if you realized this as more than a concept and embodied it, would the world remain as it is?

I wonder, would love be more common than our differences?

I wonder, will we ever wake up to the God within or remain hostage to the devil that lurks in the minds of those who do not question, but only follow their conditioning?

I wonder…

Short and Sweet #160 – YOU are the LIGHT of CREATION

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Within you is the light of creation and you should know that you are beautiful and perfect just the way you are. I understand that you may not feel this way now, but that does not mean it is not true. It certainly would not be the first that you have been mistaken in this life. This may be difficult to accept because you are identified with the False-Self and not the True-Self. Do not worry, this is a common experience at first for all of us. In fact, when things no longer make sense or you feel uncomfortable in your life you have reached a turning point. If you have not reached this point, do not worry because you would not be reading this now if you were not on the path. The intellectual mind cannot think you to this place, it is something that you have to experience and feel in your life. However, until you reach this point, it is helpful to believe in the possibility. Because you are the light of creation there is really nothing for you to figure out, you only need to let go of who you have become to remember who you are.

If I were a quarter, the head of the coin would be the False-Self. It identifies with mind, ego, thoughts and the material world. The tail of the coin represents the True-Self, it identifies with its direct connection to spirit and its foundation in love. A coin is neither the head nor the tail; in fact, most of the coin is the space between the two. We are like the coin, we have the ability in human form to live from the False-Self or the True-Self, many times we are bouncing back and forth, as we learn and grow. However, we are much more than the False-Self and the True-Self; we are part of the light of creation. We are not just part of creation; we are part of the creator as well. Everything is connected and works in synchronicity, but as long as we see the world through the eyes of the False-Self we will only see separation, this is the illusion. We fail to see the oneness is all things, the connection and the synchronicity.

Remember when things get tough, we always hold the perfection and light of the creative energy of the universe in us. We are held in the arms of creation like a mother holding her child. Creation only wants the best for us, so feel this truth within and not just your struggle. Do not ignore what is happening to you, but at the same time, do not put all of your attention there. This serves no purpose and only leads to suffering. Remember to put your attention on who you really are and know that the universe is conspiring in your favor. No matter what the False-Self sees, you are the light of creation.

 

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What’s on your mind? I am always open to questions and comments or for a healthy and supportive discussion about these topics.

 

Short and Sweet #117 – Who or What is God

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I just got back from vacation and I feel like going into the deep end. How about you? Please leave your logical mind and beliefs at the door and come in with an open mind. You do not have to understand or agree with what I am going to say, only be open to the possibility that maybe you do not understand everything. Now I am not saying I am right, I am only offering you a different perspective that changed my life and could change yours too.

First, you need to adopt the belief that we are all one. This will be easier if you think of everything we see, feel and touch as only energy, including your body and all its part. By the way, that last sentence is true; everything is made of pure energy including the chair you sit on. If this is something that you can accept at least temporarily then please keep reading.

The energy that forms all things is part of the creative energy of the universe and what we call God. God is not a separate person or higher being. Did that last sentence bother you? Are your beliefs so strong that you cannot keep an open mind?

Let’s say that God is the sun, the beams of light that come from the sun are still part of the sun. They may seem separate from each other but when traced back to the sun they are part of the whole. Do you see where I am going with this? We are all part of the creative energy of the universe and all part of God. There I said it you are part of God. I told you we were going into the deep end.

Once you can embrace this and move away from fearful thoughts of a vengeful God, a punishing God or a God who does not hear your prayers then you can begin to take one-hundred percent responsibility for your life and what is happening in the world. You can begin to create what you want in this life with this new perspective. Why, because you have all the creative energy of the universe at your disposal to manifest what you want. You only have to let go of the conditioned False-Self; who you think you are and uncover the True-Self.

 

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What’s on your mind? I am always open to questions and comments or for a healthy and supportive discussion about these topics.

Short and Sweet #104 – Take God with You

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We do not always get to do what we want in this life or have things just the way we want them. Sometimes we do not like the people we work with or perhaps the job itself. There is always someone gossiping about this or that at the church, maybe even about you. You do not like your neighbor’s behavior so living in your beautiful neighborhood or home has lost its charm. That’s a good start to an endless list of reason for us to be unhappy.

Now we can quit our job or move from the neighborhood but does that really solve our problems, maybe temporally until things change again. The only thing that guarantees your happiness is you. Why, because you are the only thing that you have control over.

When we take the Divine with us every day, we learn that what other people think and do does not have to disturb our happiness. With every action and thought we can pause and ask, is this how God would act or think. With this safeguard in place, we do not have to react to what others say or do, and if needed we can respond appropriately from a higher perspective. When we do respond instead of reacting, our energy has a positive effect on everyone around us.

Know that with awareness it only takes a second to think before saying or doing something that you might regret. Just as important is what is going through your mind because we can ruminate on anger and resentment, creating worry and stress for days, even years. As Dr Phil says, “How is that working for you?” Maybe it is time to try a different way. Remember the next time you feel wronged in some way, pause before you react, just for a second and ask yourself is this how God would respond. If need be leave your words and looks in check and make sure that you did not drop God off somewhere along the way.

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What’s on your mind? I am always open to questions and comments or for a healthy and supportive discussion about these topics.

Say NEVER MORE to NEVERLAND

/ Tim Custis / 2 Comments

We have all been to NEVERLAND at one time or another. This is not the Neverland in the fairytale. It is a place of broken dreams and forgotten possibilities. We have different size properties, some lease others buy. Some stay for a short while and others spend a lifetime. How do I know this is true? Because I have been there, just as birth and death are part of the human experience so is visiting Neverland, at least for now. This is why no one escapes experiencing it; in fact, part of you may be there right now.

What is Neverland you ask? When someone says something to you that is not for your highest good, something that you come to believe is true, your life trajectory changes and your experience of the world becomes clouded. Each time you are told something that diminishes your soul’s fullest expression you acquire more space in Neverland.

For example, have you ever been told that you were not good enough, pretty enough, smart enough or perhaps you were told, like me, that you would live in pain the rest of your life. When a person of authority like a doctor, parent, teacher or even a friend tells you something that is not for your highest good and which you believe to be true, then part of your energy ends up in Neverland. Just keep in mind that no human being knows with one-hundred percent certainty the direction or outcome of your life, not even you. Only focusing on the highest outcome and keeping a positive attitude throughout will guarantee you the best possible results with the least amount of suffering.

Once the hurtful words are said and we believe them to be true, we begin to create a story based on these words. The story reinforces the “truth” of what we were told and then we begin to tell ourselves this story repeatedly until it becomes our new reality. This re-shapes our experience of the world and we begin to make different choices. This leads our life in a different direction, we feel less empowered, less capable, and we feel stuck. We may even feel like the world is conspiring against us.

We can cause this same shift in trajectory by having our own destructive thoughts, for instance, I am not worthy, I am fat, lazy or any other limiting belief. Do not be fooled, this is just as destructive as hearing it from someone else and will keep some part of you captive in Neverland. You will have difficulty manifesting anything else because you believe the story you have created and nothing exists outside of this story.

In order to avoid this outcome you must not take the damaging information as absolute truth and remain open to manifesting something different. If you follow your own inner guidance, intuition, and stay awake and aware, you will be presented other options on your journey.

You may be wondering how do I become more aware, reconnect with my intuition and become more awake. These questions can be answered in many ways. There are no great secrets here; it requires an unbending intention and commitment to change. Once you step on this path and never give up, the universe will support you all the way, I guarantee it and you will never regret it for one second.

OK you have created the intention and are on the path, now what? Let’s talk about a few things you can do to develop these qualities. Just remember to pay attention as much as you can because whatever is for your highest good will show up to help you because the universe is always communicating to you in some form or another. Do not take these suggestions as the only way because there are many ways. However, if you resonate with something then go for it. Find what works for you and let the rest go, keep moving.

First begin to ask your higher self, God, your angels to help you. Pray, talk to them aloud or to yourself, whatever feels right and comfortable.

I believe meditation to be one of the most important and effective ways to develop your awareness, intuition and to begin awakening. There are many misconceptions about meditation these days and most people get frustrated when they first try it. If you have experienced that you cannot meditate because you cannot quiet your thoughts, know this is a normal part of the process and that thoughts flow continuously. The idea is to not attach to them. This takes practice; it could take weeks, months or even years. A consistent and regular practice will eventually bring you the peace you seek.  Just notice your thoughts, note that you cannot quiet them, without any judgment.

There are different ways to meditate.  Finding a form that works for you is very important. You do not have to sit is a seated pose, like lotus position with your legs crossed to meditate. Find a qualified teacher or read a book about it. Explore the various types and ways to meditate thoroughly before discarding it just because you think you cannot do it or you do not like to do it. Your perception of what it is and how to do it may be wrong. If you have investigated thoroughly and still do not find it helpful then do not worry, as I said there are many ways on the path and something will show up.

In addition, I believe the body plays a major role in our spiritual growth and it is rarely talked about. I will go into more depth about this another time. For now just know that deep transformational bodywork can help. I am not talking about a regular gentle massage, this type of message offers its own benefits. What I speak of requires a practitioner who is very intuitive and can do deeper work physically and energetically.

I would like to share what I call body scanning. This is a simple exercise which, when used regularly, will begin to bring awareness back into your body. Remember no matter how relaxed you think you are you can always go to a deeper, more relaxed state.

Find a quiet place to sit or lie down. If you lie down do not fall asleep. This exercise requires you to aware and awake. Turn the phone off and make sure you will not be disturbed. Close your eyes and begin to scan your body. Find the one place that speaks the loudest to you, maybe it is your low back. It may feel painful, tight or uncomfortable. Most people will not be able to relax this place. In fact, the more attention you place on this spot the more it will tighten up or hurt in most cases. Begin to scan away from this point looking for other places in your body that are tight that you can relax. For example, maybe you can relax your arms, feet or jaw. Continue to look for new places that you can relax moving through the body continuing to look for the next place. Circling back through the body, you re-check the places you found before to see if they have tightened back up. If you find they have and you probably will, relax them again and then resume looking for new places.

After several minutes of this, check in with your original spot to see if it feels more relaxed. Often it will because everything in your body is connected so whenever you release tension in one area it will affect the entire body not just where you feel it. You will receive benefit even if you are not able to discern the change by doing this exercise.

If you continue to practice on a regular basis, you will become proficient enough to do it at any time and in any situation. You can even diffuse an uncomfortable situation like an argument by relaxing your body in the moment. Of course, you will need to practice for some time to be able to have this kind of awareness in an argument, most people are completely out of their bodies and unaware of how their energy is effecting it until after the argument is over.

This exercise, which is also a form of meditation, will bring more peace and ease into your body and life. Over time, it will retrain your muscles and body to be more relaxed and you will find other benefits as well with continued practice. Connecting deeper like this with your body and developing your awareness will once again open the door to infinite possibilities.

Finally, if you have already created a story that does not feel like it is for your highest good then it is within your power to create a new story, one that is for your highest good. At all times we are aware of our soul’s truth, but we must be willing to face our fears and begin reconnecting with our soul’s guidance. You are ALWAYS being supported and guided, you just have to quiet the mind, fall into the heart and listen. Always know that you will never be given more than you can handle. You have already experienced the truth of this statement in your life. Therefore, the choice is yours at any given moment to take up space in Neverland or to say NEVER MORE to Neverland.

Surrender vs. Giving Up

/ Tim Custis / 4 Comments

Many people do not see a difference between surrender and giving up. Do you see a difference between these two concepts? Please think about it before continuing. What is your honest answer?

For me there is a huge difference.  I always choose surrender first when I have the strength. The difference between surrender and giving up is the difference between suffering (giving up) and being at peace (surrender). It is the difference between being lost and finding your way.

Let’s look at a few of those differences. First, remove your mental glasses. This means we are not using a dictionary to define these words but taking a deeper look through our spiritual glasses.

If you have difficulty liking or accepting change, then removing your mental glasses may not be easy at first. I guarantee the more you do it the easier it will get. If you are serious about your spiritual development (and I know you are or you would not be reading this), then adopting a positive attitude toward change is a requirement because without it you will struggle. All life is in a constant state of change so adopting a positive attitude toward change goes a long way towards alleviating suffering.

Giving Up

Implies a lack of action

Is resistance to what is

Says no to life (you curl up into a ball on the bed)

Fuels your suffering

Moves you away from God

Surrender

Requires action

Is acceptance of what is

Says yes to life (you hold your arms wide open ready to receive)

Fuels your happiness

Move you closer to God

See if you can come up with some of your own ideas of how surrender is different from giving up. Moreover, the next time you feel stuck and feel like giving up try surrendering to what is and allow the grace of God to fill your life with the blessings of your birthright. Would you be there for your son or daughter no matter what? Then why would God not show up for you?