Instinct comes from the body’s reaction to life, and intuition comes from our souls’ experience. Bring them together, and how can you go wrong.
CFR
It’s interesting to note that there is a difference between instinct and intuition; they tend to be interchangeable. I see it, especially when looking at quotes.
“Instinct comes from the word instincts, or “impulse,” meaning it’s a biological tendency. It’s the transient reaction that happens in our bodies, apropos of right now *1.
“Intuition comes from the word intuitio, or, “consideration,” meaning it’s an accumulated belief. It’s the ongoing collection of experiences, apropos of everything up until now. *2”
I thought it was interesting too to find that Darwin’s observations nearly 130 years ago were that “sympathy is our strongest instinct.” We are instinctually programmed to be kind, loving, caring human beings. If this is indeed true, then we are instinctively born with the values we aspire to live by; And that means listening to our instincts is in keeping with the things we value most intuitively.
Reflection: It is inspiring to know that I can trust my instincts from my body’s point of view and my intuition from my soul beliefs. As I work at bringing my body and soul together as one, that’s when I feel the presence of God’s grace.
Every cycle must return to stillness, silence, the dark;
Every out-breath requires an in-breath;
Every outer endeavor turns back inward of its origins, its center, and begins again.
From death comes new life, and from the darkest night, the new dawn is born.
from pathofshe.com
New life, new birth, new beginnings seem to be the subject in December. We have to get through the winters of our life repeatedly, just like nature teaches us. It’s our chance to sit in the stillness, the silence, even the darkness, and contemplate what we had learned from the days when the light shined upon us. What will we take with us into the new dawn of a new beginning? What will we leave behind for now? What will help us bloom, unfold and become the person we want to be?
Reflection: I pray that the dawn of the Winter Solstice chases your darkness away. May all your sorrow vanish and all your dreams come true. And may the promise of God’s light come shinny through for you.
“There are two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.
~Albert Einstein
What’s not to value about miracles? If you’ve ever experienced a miracle, you know that it is a gift beyond the understanding of this world. Miracles happen all the time. Sometimes they’re big, and sometimes they are small. The big ones you can’t miss, but it’s the small ones that often go unnoticed, or we find ourselves questioning, (Did that really happen?)
“*A miracle is an act not fully explained by natural forces but attributed to supernatural forces, mainly God. There are many definitions of miracles. But, Biblically speaking, miracles involve God doing something uncommon and usually awe-inspiring in order to reveal himself to mankind.” I love this thought…God revealing himself to me. Jesus taught us that we, too, could do amazing things the way he did through the power of God.
“Christmas is a time to celebrate one of the most remarkable miracles found in the Bible: the virgin birth of Jesus. God sent the angel Gabriel to Mary, a virgin who was engaged to Joseph. The angel explained to her that she would become pregnant through the Holy Spirit without requiring a human father. Mary was initially upset by this news, but the angel explained to her that God was pleased with her and that she would give birth to a son who would save his people from their sins.*” It’s hard to imagine that this could be possible happen. But, hey, if God could create the world we live in, the sun, and the stairs, the universe itself. Then anything is possible in my mind.
“Reports of miraculous childbirth are not, however, limited to Christianity. For example, Karna, a central character in the Sanskrit epic, Mahābhārata, from ancient India, is said to have been born from his virgin mother Kunti through the sun god Surya. The Buddha is believed to have been born from the right side of Maya’s body while standing. Indeed, it is said that when the Buddha was born he immediately walked seven steps and at each step, a lotus flower appeared. Muhammad is also believed to have been accompanied by a bright light when he was born, while the ancient Chinese philosopher Laozi is said to have been born as a fully grey-bearded mam.* ”
These are all pretty bazaar miracles. But who is to say that one is more authentic than the other. Isn’t that the problem today. We argue that we are right and everyone else is wrong without looking deeper into the meanings behind each other’s beliefs. The most miraculous thing about all of these miracles is their underlying connection to one another. One vital thing they all came to teach was the same as Jesus taught us when he gave us the new comments, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” The Gospel of Luke
Reflection: We are still trying to find the miracle behind these shared words. If we put God first in our lives and let Him reveal himself through us the way he did through Jesus, it just might be the next greatest miracle we see in our lifetime.
What does a little acorn have to do with the things we value most in life? Our values begin with the little seeds of our thoughts. With careful cultivation from our hearts, our most valued seedlings are replanted into the acorn of our soul, where our values grow into wisdom, strength, and endurance.
The proverb of the mighty oak teaches us that great things can come from small beginnings, and yet it reminds us to give ourselves time to grow. It takes years of weathered trials and error along with the changing seasons of life, each year digging our roots deeper into this life on earth, yet always reaching higher toward the heavens. It teaches us never to give up because when we are as grounded on earth as we are in heaven, it is just that…heaven on earth.
Reflection: As we contemplate what to give each other this Christmas, why not keep in mind that it is the little things that we do that count the most. It is the gifts of the heart and soul that put the sparkle of heaven on earth in our eyes.
The breath of life fuels every cell of my body, just as love fuels my soul.
Of course, we all know that we need oxygen to survive. We breathe in and out without even thinking about it. But did you know by making a conscious effort to breathe in and out deeply, you can re-energize every cell in your body with the vital oxygen needed to have a productive day? I use it as a form of meditative pray (breathing in for the count of 1,) I say, “I breathe the breath of life into every cell of my body” (holding for a count of 4), then say, “I breath out all that no longer serves my better good.” (Gentle pushing the breath out for a count of 2.) I do this several times for about 5 minutes. I’ve also done it at night when lying in bed to release any anxiety or stress. Deep long breaths and slow, deep exhales. You can hold one hand on your chest to feel the rise of your breath filling your lungs, and the other hand on your belly feel as it deflates outward. There are apps you can download to remind you to practice. I am working on making it a part of my morning and nightly rituals.
The value of oxygenating my body gives me the boost of energy I need to keep going in the positive direction I want to go. It helps me focus on the more essential things in my life and makes me feel alive.
Reflection: Every day, in every way, I am reminded and grateful for the simplest things I can do to bring a positive effect into my life.
“Sometimes you don’t realize the weight of something you’ve been carrying around until you feel the weight of its release.”
Uknown
I’ve been talking with many people lately who need to release their pent-up feelings. I can totally relate to how they feel. Picture a teapot boiling with nowhere for the steam to go. If we don’t find a way to lift the lid and release the steam, it will blow the lid right off the teapot.
Meditation is there to help keep us from getting to this point with its calming effect. But sometimes, we just need to cry, scream, turn the music up loud and sing our way through the stress, or even dance. Today I did some jingle bell kickboxing, which felt good. And that’s the whole point of the release. It leaves us with some open space to think, plan and absorb things with better focus and clarity.
Reflection: There are many ways to release the things bottled up inside us, but it’s essential to find what works for you. Let it out, let it go, release it, and feel the flow of hope it brings back into your life.
Autobiography in five chapters I I walk down the street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I fall in. I am lost...I am hopeless. It isn't my fault. It takes forever to find my way out.
II I walk down the street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I pretend I don't see it. I fall in. I can't believe I'm in the same place. But it isn't my fault. It still takes a long time to get out
III I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I see it is there. I still fall in ... it’s a habit. My eyes are open. I know where I am. It is my fault I get out immediately.
IV I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I walk around it.
V I walk down another street.
By Portia Nelson
How can we learn such a profound lesson, such as the poem above? Yet find ourselves walking down that same street again…later in life? You know, the one with the hole in the sidewalk? I already learned this lesson, but it keeps coming back wearing different disguise or in a new scenario. It’s never about me. It’s usually not my problem, and when I fall in that hole, it feels like it’s someone else’s fault. And I wonder, what am I doing in someone else’s hole? I’m no good to anyone if I don’t take care of myself first. As I work my way out of the hole, I recognize how much better it feels to be grounded where I can open myself up to the guidance and direction I need to go.
Reflection: As I reflect on this lesson and open my heart to God’s guidance, I realize it’s not happening again because of what I didn’t learn. It’s happening to remind me how to put those lessons into practice. I am stronger than I give myself credit. I have choices. I have friends, family, and most of all, and I have God.
“The is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”
~Maya Angelos
Maya was very clever in using the word bearing in her quote. I had to read it a few times to get the gist of it. She uses it to point out that there is just as much agony in bearing our stories (telling them) as in bearing them (carrying around inside us.)
We are all full of stories to tell, and the longer you live, the more chapters you add. But you don’t have to be a writer to tell your stories. We tell stories about ourselves often without even knowing we are doing it. But it is through the bearing of those untold stores that the storyteller and the listeners lives become woven together. When a story is listened to with conscious intention, we gain as much from the storyteller as they do from our listening. It’s like validating the existence of each other at that moment. Our stories can make others cry, laugh or learn something important about themselves. They also help us realize we are not as alone as we think we are in our experiences.
One of my most favorite times of listening to stories is when my husband’s family are all together sitting around the table, and they share the stories of their childhood. Even as a united family, the same story has a different slant because, as individuals, our perspective of things creates another way of telling it.
That makes me think of the disciples of Jesus and how they observed, experienced and listened to the teachings of Jesus. They were each witnesses, yet in each of the Gospels, they have a different way of telling the same story. And even as we read their interpretations of the stories, we come away with our own insights of the Gospels. Isn’t it amazing how a story can keep growing and adding life-giving sense to a different place and time in our life?
Reflection: While we all have a story to tell, we may not like them all, and that’s ok too. We are each like the variety of chocolates inside a gift box. No one knows what they will get until they take a bit. Some stories we will savory, and some may not resonate with us, but we can still appreciate the agony it takes to bear the untold story.
There are all kinds of surprises in life. We can be surprised by the sudden strike of thunder that shakes us to the core. Or pleasantly surprised by an unexpected phone call from a friend we haven’t talked to in a long time. There’s the uncomfortable surprise party when you are taken back by the unexpected attention zeroed in on you. My husband likes to surprise me with flowers or Wilburs chocolates. I love to give gifts and watch the surprise on the receiver’s face.
Have you ever worked hard on something that took a long time to finish and found yourself pleasantly surprised by your own accomplishment? It has its hay day but eventually settles into the dust of the past. Then one day, out of nowhere, you are surprised to hear how your accomplishment was still touching other people’s lives. You stand there frozen at the moment as it registers with your brain, and you wonder if you heard what you think you heard. The element of surprise stires your emotions to the point where your heart flutters, goosebumps pop out on your arms, and tears puddle around your eyes. There is no better feeling than the surprise of knowing you have unexpectedly made a difference in someone’s life for the better.
In the new book Surprise: Embrace the Unpredictable and Engineer the Unexpected, Tania Luna and Leeann Renninger argue that surprise, whether good or bad, is important for bringing vitality to our lives. Their book explores the science and practice of engineering surprise—whether at work, at home, or in our relationships—and provides a pathway to living life with more engagement and wonder. “By embracing and engineering surprise you can make our whole world richer,” they write. “You can inspire wonder, connection, vulnerability, growth, and creativity.”
Reflection: Aside from experiencing what the element of surprise has given me. I am pleasantly surprised to learn how much value it adds to our life.
Till the dirt, plant the seeds, tend the garden, and watch your dreams grow.
Do you remember the movie Field of Dreams? Ray, played by Kevin Costner, hears a mysterious voice as he walks through his cornfields, whispering in his ears, “if you build it, they will come.”
Was it the power of suggestion, working with blind faith, or the power of belief in something that is beyond our understanding? It doesn’t matter what I think because what we believe will come from the proof of our personal experiences.
I think the Field of Dreams was an excellent metaphor for what we can create in our life through the power of belief. When we awaken from our dreams of hope and aspirations, we hold the powerful seeds within our minds to plant. Dreams don’t come true all by themselves like Ray (Kevin Costner); he had to do the work, and so do we. After the seeds settle into our thoughts, it is up to our mind, body, and soul to nurture its growth.
It wasn’t easy at times to hold onto the power of belief for me, but what did I have to lose by holding onto my dreams? I had already lost everything I had in the world. God was the one constant in my life, creating a power of belief inside that helped me nurture the seeds of my dreams for a better life.
Reflection: I have learned a fundamental lesson that goes along with the power of belief and what we dream of having; it isn’t an instant fix but a work in progress. Once my dreams came into formation, I had to learn how to live a new way; then how to maintain what it was capable of becoming.
Connie's Wisdom 