I've been going through life blindly. What makes a man blind? It is when he can't see the difference between a hall or a wall. Not being able to see does not mean that one cannot tell the difference between the two. In the movie, 'Red Dragon', there is a scene in which a blind woman is brought into an unfamiliar house. She counts the steps from the front door to a clock in the hallway and then from the clock to the living room. She now is familiar with a destination in the house, as well as steps of a path to reach it.
I have no well-defined goals in my life. Everything looks the same to me so I never know if I'm going to be walking into a wall. I would have to get to know myself well enough to come up with a destiny that would please me. Then I would have to know my surroundings well enough to come up with the steps of a path to walk to get there. It is up to me to distinguish halls from walls. We leave the spirit realm and come into physical bodies in order to experience the duality of life. Everything exists along a spectrum between, for instance, hot and cold, tall or short, dry or wet, etc. In finding out where everything lies within these spectra, we can choose our personal preferences.
I might choose that I enjoy foods that are only this spicy and no more because then I can't appreciate the flavor any longer. I might choose that I enjoy it when it's hot out and hate it when it's cold. I've been going through my life not defining my own tastes so I don't give myself things that make me happy. I don't even know very well what would make me happy so I can't work toward happiness. I might wish for happiness, but that is an exercise in futility since I don't know what that would look like. If happiness to me was purple stuffed orangutan toys, then I could actively seek the very things that would give me joy. That does not happen to be the case, but is just an illustration.
In order to be the author of my life, I need to know where I stand. In order to be a steward to foster joy in other people's lives, I would need to know where they stand. I would need to create a vision of what it means to me to be spiritually healthy so that I can know when I've veered off that path. I would need to know what it means to be happy so that I can know when I've wandered into joyless territory. All of that is up to me.
An author knows the setting, the characters and the ending. He knows them, not because he has been told what they are, but because he has created what they are. So far in my life, I only know what I've been told. I've not created paths or destinations for myself. I might have a passing familiarity with other people's halls and walls, but that will only lead me where they are going. That will not bring me to the places of joy in my heart. If I choose to bring joy to others, I would need to clearly see the map of their heart. Only then can I avoid the places of pain and only bring the joy. The most important first step is to do this for myself.
I have no well-defined goals in my life. Everything looks the same to me so I never know if I'm going to be walking into a wall. I would have to get to know myself well enough to come up with a destiny that would please me. Then I would have to know my surroundings well enough to come up with the steps of a path to walk to get there. It is up to me to distinguish halls from walls. We leave the spirit realm and come into physical bodies in order to experience the duality of life. Everything exists along a spectrum between, for instance, hot and cold, tall or short, dry or wet, etc. In finding out where everything lies within these spectra, we can choose our personal preferences.
I might choose that I enjoy foods that are only this spicy and no more because then I can't appreciate the flavor any longer. I might choose that I enjoy it when it's hot out and hate it when it's cold. I've been going through my life not defining my own tastes so I don't give myself things that make me happy. I don't even know very well what would make me happy so I can't work toward happiness. I might wish for happiness, but that is an exercise in futility since I don't know what that would look like. If happiness to me was purple stuffed orangutan toys, then I could actively seek the very things that would give me joy. That does not happen to be the case, but is just an illustration.
In order to be the author of my life, I need to know where I stand. In order to be a steward to foster joy in other people's lives, I would need to know where they stand. I would need to create a vision of what it means to me to be spiritually healthy so that I can know when I've veered off that path. I would need to know what it means to be happy so that I can know when I've wandered into joyless territory. All of that is up to me.
An author knows the setting, the characters and the ending. He knows them, not because he has been told what they are, but because he has created what they are. So far in my life, I only know what I've been told. I've not created paths or destinations for myself. I might have a passing familiarity with other people's halls and walls, but that will only lead me where they are going. That will not bring me to the places of joy in my heart. If I choose to bring joy to others, I would need to clearly see the map of their heart. Only then can I avoid the places of pain and only bring the joy. The most important first step is to do this for myself.
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