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Dr. Paul O. (There’s More to Quitting Drinking than Quitting Drinking, 1995, p. 51) contrasted what he called the noisy chatter of constant thoughts in his consciousness with what he called a Center of Calm: “In contrast to the surrounding noise in the deepest part of me, in the last place I would have thought to look, I’ve discovered a Center of Calm, an area of peace, joy and serenity. My Higher Power resides there. He always has, but I didn’t know it.”
Thomas Keating quoted something similar in his book, The Daily Reader for Contemplative Living (2005, p,5)—-from a book he wrote in 1986 (Open Mind, Open Heart): “The spiritual journey does not require going anywhere because God is already with us and in us. It is a question of allowing our ordinary thoughts to recede into the background and to float along the river of consciousness without our noticing them…. .”
I find it interesting that two writers (one a doctor and one a priest) both came to essentially the same conclusion—-that God is within us and we need to quiet our thoughts and heighten our inner awareness to connect with him. When I read their published works, what they had to say resonated with what my own soul has found to be true.
I believe that God is within me and within all of creation. I am learning that it is within the context of silence, in what I like to think of as my interior “sacred space,” where I can most effectively encounter this “God presence.” If I try to quiet my thoughts and/or ignore their clamor and just “be here now” I can discover God is “here now” with me, where he has been all along. It sounds deceptively simple, but it is not, at least for me. It is almost impossible for me to quiet my thoughts, but I am getting a bit better at ignoring them. I am glad there are no “rules” about the “correct” way to do it. I am glad that that willingness and openness lay the foundation for making spiritual progress in this area, because my recovery program has already introduced those concepts to me.
This discovery of the God presence within my sacred space has another important implication for my spiritual journey. It means that God is present in every human being—–and that part of each human being unites us all as part of God. It makes it easier to “do unto others as you would do unto yourself.”
Enough of my spiritual meanderings. I hope some of them made sense. I look forward to your comments. May God bless and keep you.
Please be patient in this next week or so as I will be unable to respond to comments right away. Also, Facebook’s reminder’s and link to the blog will not be posted. However, this blog will still be posted daily at 8 AM, so please remember to visit and comment at your convenience. Thanks!
Living One Day at a Time 
