Kindle Notes & Highlights
by
Keith Giles
Read between
September 13 - September 22, 2022
The great Martin Luther King, Jr. used to explain our connectivity with one another like this: “It really boils down to this: that all life is interrelated. We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied into a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one destiny affects all indirectly.”
Separation is an illusion. None of us is, or ever could be, separated from God—the Original Observer who holds us and all reality together. We are quantum beings observing and creating reality all around us. We are children of light who vibrate at the frequency of love and radiate the image of God outward into the universe without end.
In fact, if consciousness creates and upholds reality, then truth can only be known through a deeper awareness of—and connection to—consciousness. This is why silence and meditation are so crucial for our spiritual growth and development process.
Important
When we are still, and when we slow down enough to “know” (ginosko) God, who is pure being and consciousness, we are finally ready to experience the Divine Love of God which “transcends knowledge” (information) and is “wider, and longer, and higher, and deeper” than we know, so that we “may be filled to the measure of the fullness of God.” )Eph. 3:18-19)
Important
Theologians know they are right and defend their certainty. Scientists celebrate being wrong and delight in their ignorance. As scientist and author Carlo Rovelli phrases it, “This permanent doubt, [is] the deep source of science.”
Important
do I have an unconditional love for my beliefs rather than an unconditional love for a God that defies my Theology?
Nice!
“Who you are should be a question of what you value, not what you believe.”
Yes!
Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “The mind, once stretched by a new idea, never returns to its original dimensions.”
What I’ve learned about this process is this: I have been wrong before, and I am probably wrong about something now, and I will, no doubt, be wrong again in the future.
Being wrong isn’t anything to be ashamed of. It’s simply the way we make progress on this journey into the deeper mystery of God. My personal identity is not defined by what I believe. It’s defined by who I am;
Important
“The secret of change is to focus all your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.” SOCRATES
Nice
the unconscious seems to be conscious of all things all of the time. It never sleeps. That is to say, it is our conscious self that is unconscious of our unconsciousness, and the unconscious that is conscious—we have the two terms backwards … So, when we speak of unconscious perception, we are speaking of events that we perceive but that we are not aware of perceiving.”
This fear and doubt that we’ve been conditioned to accept is intended to prevent us from seeking God directly. Those who perpetuate this myth have a vested interest in making sure you keep coming back to them for answers and wisdom. Once you realize you can hear God’s voice yourself, those people are out of a job, or at least their role, position and authority is diminished.
Important!
Here’s a quick test: If you’re sensing an impulse to bless someone else, or to show kindness to a stranger, or to share something, or give something, or speak encouragement to someone, or anything that isn’t directly harmful or painful, go with that.
Important
Who cares if it’s officially from God or not? What matters is loving others as Christ has loved us. If it’s our idea, great! That means we’re starting to learn to follow Christ without requiring constant instructions to do so.
Yes!
the fact is that there have been several hundred of Christian mystics over the last 2,000 years who have encountered God by entering into silent meditation to receive profound spiritual insights that many of us love to quote, without taking the time to seek God in meditation ourselves.
Important
To hear that call and respond to it, we need silence … Silence is essential. We need silence, just as much as we need air, and just as much as plants need light. If our minds are crowded with words or thoughts, there is no space for us.”
Physiologically speaking, meditations calms our mind, relaxes our body, reduces our stress levels and activates the pituitary gland which releases oxytocin, dopamine, relaxin, serotonin and endorphins into your bloodstream which brings your entire body and mind into a place of profound peace and well-being.
Important
Religion is the ultimate expression of dualism. It’s what teaches us to look at everything through a binary lens where we can only see good or bad, right or wrong, darkness and light, etc.
Meditation can help us rewire our brains in a way that allows us to take off those binary lenses. It can help us to see ourselves and others, as we really are.
Just observe your thoughts as they flow into your mind and then allow them to pass out of your mind at their own pace.
You are not your thoughts. You are not your feelings. Who you are, deep down, is the one who is observing those thoughts and feelings like someone in a movie theater watching actors on the screen.
Christ said the Truth would set us free, not bind us in the chains of ignorance. Thinking for ourselves, and trusting our own ability to discern truth, is essential for spiritual growth and development.
Important
Faith is not about knowing information. It’s about admitting that we are in direct connection with a Being of such exceptional splendor that no one could ever possibly know—in an intellectual sense— almost anything at all. God is a mystery to be explored, not a doctrine to be memorized.
Yes!
Is it a coincidence that the bronchial tubes in our lungs resemble the shape of branches in trees? Or that trees create oxygen that we breathe through our lungs which, in turn, creates carbon dioxide that trees and other plants need to survive? Is it merely a coincidence that the neurons in our brain resemble the structure of galaxies in our universe? Or that the blood vessels in our eyes are nearly identical to the veins in leaves? Or that the death of a star in outer space mimics the motion of a cell’s birth?
The fact is, while the human body contains nearly 100 Trillion cells, only one in 10 of those cells is actually human. The other 90 percent of the cells in your body are bacteria, viruses and other microscopic organisms.
Important
This symbiotic communication system allows these microbial ecosystems to work in harmony together with our own cells to ensure everything runs smoothly. But why? Perhaps because our bodies are what keep those fragile ecosystems alive. Without us, those trillions of living organisms would cease to exist. Our survival is their survival.
The fabric of the universe and all reality is woven together with threads of infinite mystery. The only way to even begin our wondrous journey into the unknown depths of Divine mystery is to let go of what we think we know.
“Judge a man by his questions, rather than his answers.” VOLTAIRE
I made a lot of mistakes, of course, but the one thing I learned from all of it was simply this: Never place any pastor, teacher, minister or guru on a pedestal again.
if we’re honest, the Christian Church, led by Christian leaders through the ages has gotten it wrong on almost everything: Slavery, Patriarchy, Genocide, Sexuality, Nationalism, Tribalism, Xenophobia, Torture, etc.
Our old ways of thinking and knowing led us into more darkness, away from the Light of Truth that was always shining brightly within us. We cannot afford to allow other people to think for us, or to tell us what to believe.
“Be still and know” is perhaps the deepest wisdom we have yet to practice.
Important
See, I’m used to dispensing the truth. I’ve spent a long time creating the illusion that I have all the answers. But, I’m tired of pretending. The truth is, what I know about God is very little. That’s why I honestly urge you not to make me your guru. Or anyone else.
Important
Learn to be still. Learn to listen. Learn to trust your own ability to hear that voice for yourself. Don’t keep asking others for advice. Stop following me, or anyone else. You all have an inner guru living inside.
Important
developing our sense of mystery: “It makes us curious rather than judgmental. It makes us collaborative. It makes us humble, sharing and altruistic. It quiets the ego so that you’re not thinking about yourself as much.”
Knowing God is about so much more than gathering information. For most of us, if we stopped learning now, we wouldn’t live long enough to put into practice all that we already know. And that’s the point, isn’t it?
Who knows where this curiosity will take you? Only you—and God—can say what’s next. This is your next big adventure. This is the great unknown that awaits you. This is the Sola Mysterium.
