Not Immortal

 

                Despite our best intentions, no one will live forever on this earth. At some point in one’s life, our mortal bodies begin to slow down, wear out, and drift toward an unavoidable end. Our metabolism slows down, we begin to gain weight, we lose muscle mass and we cannot do the things we did when we were in our twenties and thirties.

               Time has a frightening way of catching up with us. At best, each person may live to reach one hundred years or possibly one hundred and twenty. Staying active, staying attentive, and always adding to our pool of learning, we can continue to be good, holy, and righteous people, making sacrifices for those we love, and for those we do not know.

               Learning to be humble, learning to put others first, and thinking better of others than we think of ourselves will lead us down the right path. Focusing on and feeding our lust for power, our lust for pleasure, and our desire to be comfortable will not bring us to where we need to be to be prepared for eternity.

               We need to remember to live in the present, to live in the moment, and to always speak with kindness, with love, with compassion, and with the goal of making the lives of others better than it is at the current moment. If we focus on being good right now, being holy right now, and seeking after beauty and truth, we are pushing ourselves toward that which is for our benefit and the benefit of others.

               The manner that we shape our hearts, our thinking, and our passions will determine our final outcome and the state we will experience in eternity. If we focus on pleasure, on comfort, and on distraction while we live on this earth, we will find that our eternity will be miserable, as we have neglected to pursue the love of holiness and beauty.

               Learning from those who lived lives of holiness before us, will make our lives better, will make our eternity better, and will make us a valuable contributor to those around us. Do not let yourself be distracted by the silliness and inanity of your current culture, focus on truth, on beauty, on holiness, and on righteousness. Love God, love your neighbor, and pursue holiness.

Changing Trajectory

 

                Being brutally honest about your state of mind, the state of your heart, and the path you are currently traveling is rare to find in someone. A really good approach to documenting yourself, what you think about, what you fabricate in your heart and mind, is to write these things down when they come to you. This is a frightening practice to undertake, to see in writing what goes on in your mind, what you enjoy thinking about, and how you spend your time.

               Another good approach to understanding reality is to visit places that are stricken with poverty, immersed in corruption, and socially/culturally failing. We can look at others, see the choices they make, and know that these choices will often lead to failure. Does the image we create for others to see align with what actually goes on in our hearts and minds?

               One can or should visit those in prison to see what life choices will lead to, result in, and end with. Are our thoughts good, right and beautiful, or are they corrupt, perverse, and ugly. Anyone who is reasonable will not act on whatever thoughts come into their minds, if these thoughts are criminal. Find those in the past and those around you who are wise, and imitate them, so that you do not end up destroying everything you have built this far into your life.

               If you are honest with yourself, and you can see the likely end result of continuing on the path you currently tread, then change your thoughts, change your words, and change your actions so that you reach a good and positive end. It is not difficult to study the lives of others who have succeeded as they travel through life, doing so should create a new mindset in us, that will draw us away from failure and corruption.

               If you are struggling to find a good end or path for yourself, seek help from those older and wiser than you. Another good step to take is to identify and articulate how you want to enjoy the final years of your life. When this is in place, make changes to your current path so that you can achieve this end. All of our thoughts, our words, and our actions are under our control, but sometimes circumstances take place of which we cannot change. Do what you can to make yourself good, right, and true, don’t simply be a victim of your circumstances.

The Result of Your Efforts

 

As was stated many years ago, for every action there is a reaction, this is true in the physical world and is also true in the mental and emotional worlds. When you release something from your grip, it will fall to the ground and if it is designed in a certain way, it will possibly bounce back up toward you. The thoughts that pass through your mind and how you respond to those thoughts will have a direct impact upon the quality of your heart, soul and life.

A famous and holy monk once said that thoughts are like airplanes flying overhead, you can choose to pay attention to them, dwell on them and allow them to distract you from whatever it is that you were currently doing. Or even better yet, you can ignore those thoughts that draw you toward that which is dark and evil, which will be to your benefit.

The words you speak to others will have a direct impact upon those who hear you speak, if your words are good, beautiful and encouraging then speak them but withhold your opinions about the behavior of others, especially if they have not asked for your opinion or input in that regard.

The actions that you take will be influenced and directed by the thoughts that you choose to fill your head, the words that emerge from your mouth whether spoken to others or spoken only to yourself. Be focused and thoughtful about what you think, what you speak, and what you do, be considerate of the consequences of your thoughts, words, and actions.

Whatever you think, say, or do will lead you down a certain path. Gain wisdom and direction from those who are wiser than you, who have more experience than you, and who can help you move toward success and joy. When you plant a tree, that tree will bear fruit based on its genetic makeup, if you plant flowers, fruits, or vegetables, these will produce according to their kind.

Your thoughts, your words, and your actions will produce something as well, depending on what they are. Do not be surprised if your thoughts, words, and actions are centered around selfishness, anger, lust, or depravity, then produce consequences that lead you toward darkness, disappointment, and failure. If you want to see success in your life, then form your thoughts, your words, and your actions to produce that which is good, right, and beautiful.

The Shape of Your Soul

It is common all over the world for those who put great value in physical strength and overall health to try to imitate those who excel in these areas. This is not an unreasonable approach and mindset, both of these reveal what someone believes to be important. In a similar way, those who put great value in being wealthy, being comfortable, and enjoying the pleasures of life, will seek to imitate those who also succeed in these areas. Again, this is not unreasonable, if we want to succeed in either of these areas, it would make sense to find someone who can provide us with wisdom and guidance.

The tragic part of this story is that most people put a big emphasis on physical health and finances, while neglecting to give consideration to the shape and health of their heart and soul. If you step away from your approach to life, consider what you are doing and who you are imitating, what will you see? Are you just another faceless, nameless Westerner who is distracted by Hollywood, social media and vacuous entertainment?

This could be phrased as “what is the shape of your soul”? Over the last two thousand years, the historic Christian Church has encouraged its members to imitate the thoughts, the words, and the actions of Jesus Christ and the apostles. There is also the idea that we have thousands and thousands of holy men and women who were not distracted by the cultures in which they lived.

This is where we see great value in reading the lives of these holy people, so we have a good understanding of how we can approach life and form ourselves into something excellent, rather than being empty, hollow, and distracted. Look at how you use your time, your money, and where your thoughts focus in times when you are not in conversation with others. Do we dwell on and think about what we can do to be good, holy, and kind people, or do we allow ourselves to be distracted by silliness, inanity, and pointless entertainment that draws us toward that which is contrary to holiness?

An honest assessment of your thoughts, your words, and your actions will reveal what is actually important to you. Be honest with yourself, document how you think, how you speak, and how you treat others. Is your life one that exudes kindness, generosity, and love for others, or are you simply focused on your own comfort and pleasure?

The Chosen Path

 

                Everyone transitions or should transition from childhood to adulthood. This needs to be an intentional process, don’t simply “let life happen”. Most children have dreams and plans about what they want to be when they grow up. Sometimes these dreams become reality and sometimes they do not because of inability or lack of financial foundation.

               At some point after reaching adulthood, we make decisions that impact our direction in life, what we are able to achieve, and reveals opportunities of which we may take advantage. A foundational part of all of this is being willing to work hard, take on the next challenge, and not simply being content with the influence and impact of others upon us.

               Be the main influence in your own life, work hard, focus your energy, attention, and finances to making your life the best shape it can be. Every decision you make will direct and influence your life as well as the life of those under your authority. Someday you may have a spouse and children, and these decisions will impact them as well.

               When making decisions as you move through life, seek input from those wiser than you, with more experience than you, and a proven life of success, however you wish to define success. One does not seek out financial advice from someone who is living in a cardboard box in an alley, instead you make the effort to find someone who has financially succeeded in life.

               The other consideration to make is seeking advice from someone who is morally sound, ethically solid, and knows how to love others. The person who is selfish, self-centered, and concerned only with pleasure and comfort is not the best choice for seeking guidance. Find that person that is a good role model, who is loving, kind, ethical, and generous towards others.

               The goal in life ought to be how one can positively influence those in his social circles, positively influence his culture and community, and make life better for everyone with whom he interacts. Don’t merely think of your own comforts, your own pleasure, or your own distractions, be the one who makes all things good. Be the one to whom others come for advice and direction.

Passionate or Not

 

                The idea of passion is often overlooked and ignored. Without realizing it, most people don’t give much thought to what things about which they are passionate. Everyone is passionate about something, and this is easily identified by how they spend their time, how they spend their money, and towards what they direct their thoughts.

               Do you love money, do you love entertainment, do you love your family, do you love food, or do you love empty distraction so you don’t have to think about anything of value? This is an important subject that everyone should consider, as our use of time, our use of money and the use of our energies will speak the truth about what is actually important to us.

               The person who identifies with any particular religion should live a life that is in line with the beliefs of that religion. For the follower of Jesus Christ, attending church, prayer, fasting, and personal sacrifice should be the framework upon which his life is built. The life of the follower of Jesus Christ should look radically different than the average American citizen. The majority of people in the United States are focused on and distracted by sports, movies, music, or entertainment in general.

               A common phrase in the world around us is, “You cannot take it with you.” Putting great effort into being wealthy, being comfortable, and buying material things instead of focusing on being holy and preparing one’s soul for eternity is a grave mistake. To use a simple metaphor, if you have fifteen minutes to spend on making your future as good as possible, will you spend that time by doom scrolling, by watching YouTube videos, or will you put that time toward adding value to your life and the lives of your loved ones.

               To spin this metaphor around, knowing that you will one day pass away, will you spend the unknown amount of time on buying material things, being distracted by silly entertainment, or will you prepare yourself for eternity?

Garbage In, Garbage Out

There are a great number of metaphors that can be used to communicate the concept of what you put in is what you will get out. A good place to start would be with the image of food and the resultant health that follows. If you eat fast food, highly processed foods, sugar, deep fried anything, and cheap beer, you will receive a flaccid, weak body in return.

If you spend your free time filling your head, heart, and soul with social media, pornography, and Hollywood gossip, you will find that your mind will automatically go to those subjects, filling you with nothing of value but empty, foolish, childish content. If you spend your free time watching television and movies, your heart will soon learn to only find value in these things and will be bored with and not drawn to holiness.

 The perfect remedy to not being distracted by these things is to find someone who is holy, who is drawn to that which is good, right, and true, and spending your time with this person so you have a good mentor to imitate. Instead of doom scrolling and randomly flitting about the internet, read the lives of the saints, read the Gospels, read the Epistles, and seek out someone with whom to have godly conversation that fills you with light and truth.

Imagine three glass jars in front of you. One is filled with lemonade, one is filled with urine, and the third is filled with gasoline. All three of these liquids look a great deal alike. If you put one of them in the tank of your car, the car will operate properly. If consume two of these, one of them will kill you, the other will likely make you ill but the third will provide you with dietary value.

Always think of your heart, your soul, and your mind as vessels that are meant to hold that which is good, true, and beautiful, rather than the silly, the foolish, the inane, and empty distraction. Many people put a great effort into remaining physically healthy but they sadly forget to keep their heart and mind healthy. Always question what it is that you are putting into your five senses. Think of your eyes, your ears, your taste, your touch, and your smell as gates that feed your heart, soul, and mind.

Be balanced in your approach to life. Remember to keep your heart, soul, and mind clean and healthy rather than settling for easy distraction. Work hard to keep your mind focused on goodness and truth.