Lucid Dreaming

I had a couple of lucid dreams (an awareness that you are dreaming while still in the dream) many years ago. I've always been kind of fascinated by it. In my lucid dreams, I knew that whatever I "thought" would manifest. I didn't really get a chance to play with that enough, so I am attempting to go there again.

Someone told me about an exercise they do to produce lucid dreaming. About once an hour, during the day, stop and ask yourself if you are awake or dreaming. Take note of everything around you, including your own body. Keep doing this every hour or so, for at least two weeks, and eventually you will find yourself asking that question in a dream, and you will become aware that you are dreaming.

Working on that.

Bringing it all Together

Bringing it all together.

I've had so many spiritual experiences in my life, always with the idea that there was something just right out there, something I needed to find, so that I could spiritually progress and find "IT"..find God. There must be a certain path, a certain practice, a particular religion, something that would allow me to experience God to the fullest...obtain real Christ Consciousness. I looked everywhere, read lots of books, practiced yoga and meditation, took lessons from various spiritual teachers. I didn't find "it". But, I did have some very nice spiritual experiences along the way, especially with meditation.

For the last couple of years, I have settled into the religion of my childhood, conservative Protestantism. Settled is the word for it, because, even though I've learned a lot about Christianity, through the Protestant Churches I have attended, I was still in "seeker mode" and felt that I was only settling on this for a time. That's been my usual pattern. But, also, I have felt a bit out of place in the Christian world, even though I have developed a love and appreciation for Jesus Christ and his teachings.

I spent almost seven years as a Temple going Latter-day Saint. Except for some of the more conservative teachings in this church, it was possibly the best religious experience I have had, in many years. I left it, because I came to believe that Joseph Smith was not a prophet and, therefore, believed I had to throw it all out (kind of like throwing out the baby with the bath water).

What I am realizing, of late, is that I do not have to deny the very real spiritual experiences I had with certain aspects of that church, just because I couldn't swallow the whole enchilada. This is true for all of the spiritual experiences I have had throughout my life. I have realized that they were all valid and many of them very special, even if I couldn't accept the teachings in their entirety.

I have been inspired by the Bible, the Bagavhad Gita, the Tao de Ching, The Rubaiyat, A Course in Miracles, the Book of Mormon, Gordon B. Hinckley, the Dalai Lama, Pope John Paul, Father Thomas Keating, John Shelby Spong, Marcus Borg, Parmahansa Yogananda...that's the short list.

I had some beautiful experiences with meditation, when I was attending Self Realization Fellowship. I most definitely experienced God's Presence on more than one occasion. I also had a very profound experience with the Book of Mormon, which is what led me into the LDS Church. I have felt God moving in me more times than I can count, even though I have not stayed with any religious practice for more than a few years. But, what I'm discovering is that I'm not starting from scratch, each time I move on. I am building on what God has already given me...and I continue to have a desire for His Presence in my life, in whatever form will allow for that.

Recently Discovered Fr Thomas Keating

What a joy!

He is a Trappist Monk, but I would call him a Mystic Monk. :)

He developed what he calls "Centering Prayer". From what I have gathered, so far, this is a contemplative type of prayer, where you place your focus on one sacred word. Kind of reminds me of the Hari Krishna chants, only no chanting, just focusing with your mind.

I used to do a lot of meditation, when I was younger. Haven't tried it in some time. I think I might try this, when I get some time to myself.

Also, want to find out more about this marvelous man!

John Shelby Spong - continued

"If God is a God of love, then the only way you can worship him is by loving...not by being right, but by loving. Loving wastefully..."

Love that. :)

John Shelby Spong

Reading his book, "A New Christianity for a New World", and it's absolutely fascinating.  I've never read anything like it.

I became interested in learning about his man when I read his open letter, his "Manifesto", regarding the issue of homosexuality, which you can read here:

Manifesto

Spong's book (mentioned above) is a whole new way of looking at Christianity and Christ.  He explains that, as we evolve and become more self-aware and more scientifically sophisticated, looking at religion from a supernatural perspective is becoming less and less believable.  He believes that "theistic" religions of old are slowly dying for lack of believability.

He gives some very interesting arguments as to why Christ was, originally, never intended to be worshiped as some supernatural Son of Diety, but rather as a man who reflected God's light and wisdom.  He believes it is in the direction of this more "natural" perspective that we should start moving...away from the current supernatural/theistic perspective that has been (he believes) developed over the centuries by theologians.  Spong believes (citing some good evidence) that the Christ story has been changed and added to over the years, to become what it is today.

This book and Spong's whole outlook on Christianity, has come to me as a sort of a gift, as I have always had my own difficulties with Christianity (starting way back when, as a teenager).  I have prayed a lot about "belief", always asking that it be strengthened, but never seeming to get much of an answer.  I am feeling I may finally be getting some real answers, and I am most grateful for that.

I want to say in closing this post, it's okay to question anything and everything, even things we believe to be sacred.  It is not ever wrong to ask questions and explore new ideas.

Seek and you will find.

Highly recommend Bishop Spong's book.  Even if you end up not agreeing with him, he will not disappoint in giving you some things to think about!

http://www.amazon.com/New-Christianity-World-Traditional-Faith/dp/0060670843

This water was meant to go to Mombasa......

I Am Simply Not Good at Being a Conservative Christian.....

Or a "conservative" anything, for that matter.  I am like a round peg trying to fit in a square hole.  I must say it's disconcerting and I'm starting to feel that I should probably quit beating myself up over it.

Reminds me of a scene in "Out of Africa", where the female character has built a dam to try and make a little watering pool for her animals and crops.  But, when a monsoon style rain comes, and floods the whole area, the dam starts cracking and allowing little trickles of water out here and there.  The farm workers try furiously to plug the holes, at first, but after awhile it's obvious that the dam is simply going to be overtaken.  Karen, the main character, finally says, "let it go -- this water was meant to go to Mombasa".

I am feeling like that dam about to break.  I think, maybe, God has a different plan for me, than the one I had envisioned.

I really do believe we all have a calling of some kind.  But, we have to listen very carefully to our hearts (which is where I believe God speaks to us).   We need to listen to the heart to know whether or not it is his will or simply a course we think we "should" be taking.

Like God sending the water to Mombasa, despite best human efforts, he will eventually put cracks in the dam of our psyche, if we are not true to ourselves, and his purpose for us.

Courage Campaign: Joel Burns

This video is absolutely amazing...and heart-wrenching.  I hope you will watch.

http://www.couragecampaign.org/page/s/ThankYouJoelBurns

You might have already seen this powerful “It Gets Better” story told by Joel Burns, a member of the Ft. Worth City Council in Texas. Since a video of Joel’s poignant city council testimony was posted on Wednesday, more than 1.6 million Americans have watched it and shared it with their friends.

Please take a moment to watch Joel’s story now -- and join us in thanking him for his courage in expressing his personal story to the world. Along with thousands of others, your signature will be presented to Joel Burns on behalf of the Courage community.

What's Behind the Recent Gay Suicides?

I was watching Larry King tonight and the show was about gay teens being bullied to the point of committing suicide.  This was just so sad and the bullying, in all cases, should have never gotten to the point it did.  It was reported that gay teens are four times as likely to commit suicide as other teens.  (And teenagers already have a high rate of suicide)

Does society's lack of support for gays, in general, contribute to these heartbreaking suicides?  Does religion contribute?  What can we do to make this better?

When I was in my agnostic phase, this issue was very straight forward for me.  I outright blamed religious bigotry and societal non-acceptance for making gays/lesbians second class citizens.

Ten years ago I returned to my Christian roots, so the issue is not quite as straight forward as it used to be.  I still believe there is a problem with a society that rejects and is hostile towards gays.  I support gay rights all the way...and take a lot of flak for that from some of my Christian brothers and sisters.  It's difficult, because I want to understand both sides.  I think I DO understand both sides.  But, frankly, I think Christians are wrong in a lot of their attitudes towards the gay community.  I do believe they are a part of the problem, and I say this as a member of the Christian community, and as someone who loves them.

So, what can be done?  I just see this big wall with little understanding between the two groups.

I was happy to hear about support groups for gay teens springing up on the internet.  Groups like The Trevor Project:  http://www.thetrevorproject.org/home1.aspx  These types of groups are very worth supporting, in my opinion.

This next video shows some heartbreaking stories and the reason for the need for groups like the above.

http://www.inthelifetv.org/html/episodes/99.html

So how can we help solve this problem?  What is society's responsibility towards these kids?  How can we help?  And even more specifically what can Christians do to help?

First Blog

This is a test blog.

I live in Southern California.  I am a 65 year old mother and grandmother.  Married for 38 years.

I've been on a bit of a spiritual quest all of my life, but recently returned to my Christian roots.  I may blog a bit about that...and other things.

Libby