November 7, 2024

The recent election has inflamed the emotions of people everywhere, causing deepening division, confusion and uncertainty. The impact will be felt for some time as the current reality unfolds. Personally and collectively the world is facing major crises and we all play a role that contributes to the outcome. If we are to play a meaningful and healing role we must work to free ourselves from the fear, anger and violence that is being perpetuated. We can fortify ourselves with courage and kindness, finding comfort and strength in embracing the truth of who we really are. The road to freedom lies within.

Perilous times compel us to dig deeper – to embrace the goodness that is our own higher nature and mirror that good into the world. To get beyond the distractions outside of us or in our sometimes rambling minds, we can take precious moments to bring our focus inside. As we let go of the outside world we are able to move deeper into the quiet stillness within. It is here that we touch that spark of the divine that is always with us, our own higher nature.

There are many ways to come to that state of inner connection. We might walk mindfully in the beauty of nature, noticing perhaps how we begin breathing into our hearts – expanding our chest – feeling our connection to the earth, the trees, the ocean, the beauty around us.

We can learn to focus our awareness on the capacity within us to disseminate love to an object of our focus – a child, an animal, a stranger carrying the weight of loneliness – and experience a genuine connection as the object of our focus responds – with a spontaneous smile, a wiggle, or a flash of gratitude at being seen and acknowledged. We can send loving energy anywhere, to anyone, with our mind – where it is received whether consciously or not.

When we feel challenged by our own circumstances or emotions we can reach out to those around us with a kind act or greet those we pass with a cheery hello. We can feel the transformation within ourselves as our heart expands and we realize our capacity to raise ourselves up through connecting with loving kindness.

This practice can be taken further in a quiet time before bed or when waking up in the morning, heartfully sending love and light to people or world situations that need it. Closing your eyes down, center yourself in the stillness. Let everything go and imagine a golden light shining down. As you settle into that inner sanctuary, you can send love and light to wherever it’s needed. Be inspired to be inspired – become aware of your special calling whatever that is – and how to use your calling to be an instrument of love, kindness and peace in the world. When enough of us have found peace within the world will be transformed.

We face many challenges in life and are blessed with the gifts that come when we face our challenges and learn from them. The following is a note from Sister Paul Marie, my prayer partner in France for many years and one of the gifts in my life. We never met in person but our hearts are forever connected. In 2005, at the age of 77, health issues led her to leave her beloved hermitage of 34 years to enter a home for aging nuns. The following was perhaps her last message to me:

My place in God’s plan is to be a Pilgrim of Love because our world is dying for lack of love. God is Love, of course. I have known this for a long time or I wouldn’t be where I am. But it has taken on a new life, new light and for the years to come (it doesn’t matter how many) I must reach out in love, instant by instant, to all who come my way, as well as to all my brothers and sisters wherever they may be. A smile of Love, a touch of Love, a gift of Love. My prayer that is love. Pray that I will live it.

Love continues to connect me to cherished ones who have passed on and reminds me to cherish the gift of those still with us – our families, chosen family, and “all our brothers and sisters wherever they may be.”

Life’s many challenges bring us the opportunity to learn and grow. When we open ourselves to inspiration and act on the inspiration that comes, the gifts that follow are often more than we can imagine. After an inspiring and deep inner experience in a forest one day, I was compelled to leave my life of worldly goals and possessions to find a path of service. Within a few months I was led to my spiritual mentor and beloved friend, Peace Pilgrim. She gifted my life and the world with her inspiration and grace. She left us with a simple message that exemplified her life and calling:

Overcome evil with good, falsehood with truth and hatred with love.

May Love and Peace prevail in our hearts and in our world. For this let us hope and work and pray.

Cheryl Canfield

Love is expressed throughout the beauty and peace of nature.

Receptive silence can be experienced as a form of prayer – a spiritual connection in which it is possible to receive direct communication from that highest source, God within. When the spiritual nature is awakened a deepening awareness arises that we are not the physical body but spirit, that which activates the body and never dies. Those who have near death experiences often come back reporting that same life-changing awareness.

When we keep ourselves so busy on the external side of life, never allowing ourselves to go into that quiet center, we may attempt to fill the growing void with all kinds of distractions. The void is the silence, calling to us. It is the still, small voice within that is being drowned out. It nags us to be still and listen. In a materialistically oriented society the inner life, a prayer calling us, is not always given the value or significance it compels.

Yet there is one place where we can go to get calm, clear and centered. It is in the silence – alone, undistracted and undisturbed. Quiet time alone is not a luxury, but an opening for clarity and peace of mind. For the spiritual seeker it is a deep inner need.

Receptive silence allows us to enter into a state of mystical perception. The mystic is one who, through the practice of receptive silence, experiences a direct connection with God. The mystic pursuit is that of transforming the lower self into an integration of body, mind and spirit, guided by the higher self. The rewards of this journey allow us to develop a growing sense of serenity and freedom from anxiety and frustration. As we become more attuned with ourselves, we become more attuned with others.

Delving into this inner realm expands our understanding of the deep meaning and spiritual dimension of life. A catastrophic situation or condition has the potential to propel one toward this inner quest, as can a profound mystical or religious experience. Over time the mind becomes clearer, confidence grows and even health may be improved. This growing connection brings opportunities to further one’s strength, conviction and faith.

As Maitreya put it, “Everyone needs inner space where there is no one directing you, telling you where to go and what to do. You have been given that space so that the confusion and chaos around you will dissolve. You must never surrender that space to anyone, except your true self. Meditation is really a journey back to that space to find peace and happiness.”

In order to deeply connect in receptive silence or meditation, a daily practice is recommended, in which time for quiet is set aside. Not only do we get the benefit of becoming calm and more mentally alert and clear, but time devoted to inner practice recharges our energy and boosts our immune system. Some responses are immediate and apparent, while others develop gradually. Immediate improvements might be a reduction in stress and tension. This can be enhanced by a process of slow, deep breathing and conscious relaxation as we let go and enter the quiet. Overall feelings of peacefulness, energy and mental clarity are common. Betty Bethards says, “With daily meditations we can pack in twenty years’ worth of lessons in one year’s time.”

Meditation, synonymous in this context with prayer, is often thought of as a time of sitting quietly, even in specific postures. There are many ways to meditate and many ways to enter receptive silence. When you enter a true state of meditation, body awareness fades into the background until you lose awareness of it. Emotions become serenely still. The mind enters a peaceful state of stillness – waiting, but not pushing. This is the receptive silence that connects you with deep inner receiving. For those who aren’t comfortable with sitting meditations, the same state can be reached in walking meditations, preferably alone in the beauty of nature. Peace Pilgrim used to say, “From the beauty of nature you get your inspiration, from the silent receptiveness you get your meditation, from the walking you get not only exercise but breathing – all in one lovely experience. Wonderful insights come and it’s important to put those insights into practice.”

The purpose of receptive silence is to become open to higher receiving so that we can clarify and follow our unique path and purpose in life. It is to help us pay attention, even in the most extraordinary times. It is to bring us into a vibrant state of aliveness and connection with the divine within. It is the path that leads to inner peace.

Settle yourself in solitude, and you will come upon God in yourself. – Teresa of Avila

Cheryl Canfield, CCHT, 2024