A Newly Rich Life With Yourself

 It is indeed true that we are born into helpless, undeveloped bodies. This undeveloped body, is animated by living Being. The body in which living being takes form, is equipped with an essence, having tastes, preferences and tendencies, as well as a full set of undeveloped functions, the normal ones, instinctive, moving, intellectual and emotional, as well as some others, which are not commonly stimulated to develop by ordinary life. Our essence is designed to collect data to itself, the kind of programming it receives, tempered by its native tendencies determines the type of personality it develops.
If the programming we have received is contrary to the native tendencies in our essence, then the personality is in conflict with essence. This leads to suffering for the living being animating the body. Our culture programs us to think that the external material world, of material things, money, status...according to material possessions, compliance with the latest fashions, ability to exercise power over others, etc. has more value, than the development of the essence belonging to the body housing the internal living being. In this case, the personality plays the roll of a guard, holding the inner living being a prisoner in its programs, dictating to the being what it "should" do, think, act, feel, eat, etcetera. It slowly begins to control all the impressions the being could use for its growth, replacing the real impressions with "concepts", which at best are good translations of the real would of direct impression.
Yet, there is a part residing in the body, that, if stimulated, begins to question the validity of the acquired personality.
Under favorable circumstances this part can help us separate the life of the inner world, from that of the outer world, and that same part can help the living being realize its spiritual nature, and assist the being, which is our very life, to gain control over the "guard" and insist that the "guard" become the "guardian" of the living being, which is its correct roll in relationship to us.
If this happens, we truly begin to "REALize our "Self"  (that's self with a big "S"), We then, begin to "become", to exist in higher states of waking consciousness. First, in short flashes, then for longer periods. If we focus our attention, and apply our will, to developing a new personality, one that is passive in relationship to the Living Being residing within our body, it becomes the servant of the "Self" and not the master, the good steward how does his masters bidding". This happens when we , the living Being, makes the effort to "BE" in the present. moment. To truly "see" with the eyes, color, texture, form, to hear with ears, not just having them hang around.

The beginning of a new relationship with the "SELF" begins with this process, where personality, conforms to the essence of the living being, and not the other way around. It is in this new order, that the Living Being begins to thrive, grow, and develop, the end product of that development of that development is an increased ability of the living being to sustain its consciousness on a higher level of being.

Life erroneously, programs us, to place value in external things, yet the death of the body, and release of the living Being from the form of our "Name sake", shows that the living being can take no "material thing" with it, only its real experiences, the wisdom it has gain in a life well lived, and an increased ability to maintain the "Self" on a higher level of being. 

When this more spiritually inclined part of our personality begins to activate, it produces new thoughts, "who am I? Why am I here? Are my opinions and attitudes valid, or even my own?" It asks.  When finding the answer to these type of begins to burn in our psyche, we search for them. If we imagine that the answers lie outside, we get lost in acquiring what we have been taught to believe will give us happiness, fulfillment.  Yet the answers we seek, whose finding will bring true fulfillment, are within our own "Self". If we go inward, and find our true "Self", and awaken it, even for a moment, and we do this over and over. Gradually a new, relationship develops between our outer material personality "self" (with a small "s") and the living being who is truly our own authentic "Self". 

When the outer becomes as the inner, we find what we have been looking for, we find our own Being, rich, Being filled with conscious life of a higher nature.

This is excellent Rebecca and I have question for you.  Moving our state of consciousness into the realm of Essence is an enormous accomplishment and yet it is a false perception I am the source accomplishing anything.  Essence is everything, and yet my mind defines objects and divides my experience into different categories   This Essence is more about observing my consciousness and perceiving a living unity of everything unfolding.  There is no doing or accomplishment, because everything is happening together.  Essence and consciousness is observing the unfolding and everything passes through.  There is no attaching identity to anything and is like the clarification of boundaries.  My value is not based on a particular achievement, so is this consciousness melts down barriers and boundaries.  This Center feels normal.  How do you become aware of the quality of this Center, a deep transcendence and my identity IS, and hold this or incorporate this into myself?

I feel lost in this higher state of consciousness and I do not want to give you the impression I am in a state of enlightment..  There are big traps here with this Inner Work and you help is appreciated.  

 Stay clear then of "big traps" . . . Hold tight to your center/normal.  Be who you are.  I will continue to listen.

 There is hidden depth in what you write and especially your words you will continue to listen.  To listen appears to speak of your hidden depths, an opening, and a meaning beyond what you intended to create.  To listen to your inner voice is talent and training.  This is to say your message is valuable because you are an individual and a sharp sense of your uniqueness.  

 YOU ARE most valuable!  Why?  Because God says so!  (And because I see it to so)
When God asks me to pay attention, I obey.  I will pay attention!  

 Thank you for the reminder, which I need!

 Rebecca, this is beautiful.  Well thought and so true!
i have a brother in law, Jim, who by nature, is very "pliable".  He married a woman he was "visually" attracted to and bought into "her story" with all he had in him. Throughout the course of his 10 year marriage with her, she "undid" him piece by piece . . . In essence, she had him brainwashed . . . He was "sleepwalking" to self . . . He was on "hyper-alert" to his (so called) wife.  
As God's sons and daughters we have to have to be sharply aware of Him alone.  I do not care to be used by another to fulfill their agenda.  I'd rather be used by God to fulfill His plan and purpose for me in serving those around me.
i have learned a lot from my brother in law, Jim.  Seeing what "power, manipulation and inflexibility" has done to him, makes me wary of anyone/institution who/that remotely "look like" her.  
Not being true to YOURSELF and your Heavenly Family will lead to our personal destruction.
Always Love
Thank you Rebecca!

 Interesting what you said, AJ, that as God's sons and daughters we have to have to...  That's double no choice, no freedom.  I believe we are to be free.

 That was a typo, David.  You are so right in your words "we are to be free".  
I am free to "choose Christ" (Father and Holy Spirit) . . . Thanks Be!

 We are all Christ, aj, if we choose that or not.  We are waking up to realizing that all of us and all that is is sacred.

 Amen David!  True . . . True . . . True . . . True . . . True!
When Jesus knocks at my door and asks to come in, most often, I invite Him in.  Because, I am a sinner (however) there are times He knocks and I do not acknowledge.  In habitually choosing Him, He becomes more alive in me.  (Kind of like I do with my husband, family, friends, special people, special causes . . . I need, regularly, commit myself   to them as an outward reminder of their place in my life.)
David, in Christ, I can commit the sacred in me to the sacred in you.  Always (trying anyway)!

 Syd,

I have given you question deep thought, drawing on my own experience.

Holding on to a higher state does not come automatically, it is a process which requires practice. First we must find our selves, what begins the search for the Self is mind, the Self is so used to letting the mind direct attention, that it forgets that it is the rightful owner of attention, and not the mind. When the mind touches the true Self with attention, attention "sticks" to the self, its rightful owner, and the Self "wakes up" momentarily, in a higher state of consciousness. This feeling of "lost"  when entering such a state, comes from the mind, which being deprived of the ability to control attention,  goes into mental confusion.

We have been so thoroughly programmed by our social/cultural upbringing to find our identity through the data collected over time by the mind/body, that this separation of attention's control from the mind, back to the true self, however brief, is an uncomfortable experience, being so unfamiliar to us, and also thrilling in conscious clarity, at the same time. A true paradox.

The state is so unusual, and certainly scary from the instinctive point of view, for the body and its functions produce the sense that they, and not the living being, are the producers of our life, when the attention is no longer under the control of the mind/body, and Self surfaces, then one is faced with the fact that the body is not immortal, that the death of the body is a reality, which it only fooled us into believing is not.

One must learn to endure this uncomfortable feeling, which lessens over time. The "big trap', is believing the mind/body's fears of death and impermanence are fears the Self "should" identify with and claim as its own. As soon as the living being, who is us, succumbs to this fear, attention attaches to it, the mind grabs back control, and we loose hold of the higher state. Practice is the key, which takes a keen desire to awaken and the exercise of will. Do not loose hope, look up, you are not alone, you have help, persevere and you will pierce the veil of eternity.

There is only one source of Being, and in so far as we partake of Being, we are that Being. Being IS, and will always BE. Fear of death is an illusion, as silly as a that of a drop of water, tossed high in the air by a wave, fearing falling into the great ocean, and becoming ocean.

 Rebecca,
 
Wow, your answer to my question is penetrating my superficial mind.  From your words I recognize my trap of clinging to my mind as my world.  And you are right I do feel lost moving into this higher consciousness.  It seems this higher consciousness, this “Self”, does not need to cling to the endless activity of the mind.  It feels like my mind has formed a shell around my innermost Self.  It is like my mind is an identity I have used to stay in flight. 
 
It seems Rebecca, from reading your post, my big trap is building my self up for the next catastrophe only by identifying with my mind.  Yet because I seem to have some grasp of what you are writing I notice a part of me no longer wanting to cling to my endless activity of my mind as a source of identity and my orientation to the world.  And just like you are expressing this feels uncomfortable, like a pioneer opening up on new land.  Being a pioneer with my inner landscape faith appears to be clarification. It is recognizing arbitrary inventions of my mind, such as death, as you speak about. 
 
The ocean, you write about, is a key for understanding the whole.  This symbol truly requires a high state of consciousness and this ocean feels like this place of faith.  For some reason there is turbulence of my emotions on this ocean water, yet something is finding a way to ride the current.  I believe this is the higher consciousness you are writing about and it gradually moves into Being, and becomes one with the ocean.  This ocean feels paradoxical, even an opening to hidden depths, and there is this unshakable confidence what is true here cannot be harmed.    
 
Thank you deeply and the life-enhancing individual you are!