Journal of Sacred Work

Days 328-330 – Opening Your Heart to the World

"Without opening your door, you can open your heart to the world." – Tao Te Ching

   A puzzle: How could anything come to you if you opened your heart to the world but had not even left your room? To enter you, Beauty comes not through the door in your room but the one in your heart.

   How can you open it? Even harder, how can you keep the portal to your spirit ajar if you are feeling unappreciated, unheard and panicked?

  Miles '13  Fear is the moat around the castle of your heart. It is the only thing that can stop God's Love from entering you.

   When my nine-year old grandson was four he awoke in the middle of the night to use the bathroom. Halfway down the darkened hallway he called out for his dad.

   "Miles," my son told his, "you know how to do this by yourself."

   "Well," little Miles said. "Sometimes I'm a little bit brave of the dark. But, sometimes, I'm a little bit scared of the dark."

   Isn't this true of you? You move toward the light. Suddenly, fear kidnaps you into its shadows.

   We want to help a wounded person but fear the sight of his blood. We want to appreciate great art but become afraid when the woman in the painting is nude instead of "safely" clothed. 

   Tao wisdom says "There is no greater illusion than fear…Whoever can see through all fear will always be safe."

   In this Thanksgiving week let gratitude help free you from fear and you will not need the courage to be "brave of the dark." Love will provide. 

-Reverend Erie Chapman

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4 responses to “Days 328-330 – Opening Your Heart to the World”

  1. julie laverdiere Avatar
    julie laverdiere

    How true, love shines with gratitude and erases fear. Thank you and a Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.

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  2. Maria Doglio Avatar
    Maria Doglio

    Great essay to reflect upon Erie. I find that no matter how much we are gripped with fear, there is always that eternal spark of love within us. No matter how much it is buried, we can always find it and kindle it’s flame by just changing our focus and holding it. It’s a daily practice to maintain, no matter the method.
    Everyday we are bombarded by fear of some sort–being told to be afraid is everywhere–just look at the advertisements! Reminds me of the insightful song from South Pacific, You’ve Got to be Carefully Taught:
    “You’ve got to be taught to hate and fear
    You’ve got to be taught from year to year
    It’s got to be drummed in your dear little ear
    You’ve got to be carefully taught”
    There is a great lesson in that 1958 movie and LOVE is what overcame all……I think we are slow to catch on but that is speeding up and beginning to spread like wild fire.
    I see that as we progress in our present day spiritual evolution, humanity recognizes more and more that Love is the center of all things–and as we do so our world changes. We are now taught to think through your heart….and your Journal is filled with this profound message. Send love to your fear or negativity and watch it transform and reform you or your situation, just like Dr. Emoto’s experiments of changing the crystalline structures of water when love is infused into the glass of water.
    I’ve been tested of late, with a large dose of fear and negativity in a bad situation. I am now getting into the practice of infusing my day with a much larger dose of love and centering myself in my heart and am slowly overcoming the effects of the situation I was in. A “knowing” has come back to me that I will always be taken care of. This experience has been a blessing in disguise because it is bringing me back around to the focus that I misplaced – Love, Creativity, Peace and Oneness with all. Lessons from Earth School.
    Happy Thanksgiving to all – I have a lot to be grateful for, family and dear friends as well as my connection with the Journal, a big part of that gratitude.

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  3. sbeng Avatar
    sbeng

    Erie: Fear grips people at different stages in their life especially the elderly. I used to encounter many of them in my home visits as a Visiting Nurse. They have fear of heights, fear of falling, fear of their resources being used up and fear of the limited raise in their social security with the cost of living climbing. It is encouraging to know that “whoever can see through all fear will always be safe” I am grateful that Love dwells within me and He reminds me time and again that I have no cause of worry or for fear. I arose early this morning with this following hymn resonating within my being: “Day by day, and with each passing moment, Strength I find tO meet my trials here; Trusting in my Fathers wise bestow-ment, I’ve no cause for worry or for fear. He, whose heart is kind beyond all measure, Gives unto each day what He deems best, Lovingly its part of pain and pleasure, Mingling toil with peace and rest” I am grateful to the Lord “who frees me from fear and I will not need courage to be brave of the dark” Happy Thanksgiving Erie, Liz and to all the nurses and those who read and contribute to this helpful and insightful journal.

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  4. ~liz Wessel Avatar
    ~liz Wessel

    “It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” E.E. Cummings
    For me, I guess my underlying fear is the ever changing nature of life and our impermanence. As things fall away, I want to hold on too tightly. Paying attention to the cues of my body helps me to be aware of the fear and anxiety that I am carrying. Then taking a moment to acknowledge and affirm the Holiness that is in all; the light and the darkness. I want to greet whatever arises with gentleness and compassion, yet my initial reaction is a tendency to pull away. I remind myself to listen and accept guidance, to let go of thinking through a myopic lens that frames my experience in “it is all about me.”
    It is a blessing just to see the light in your grandson’s eyes, Erie. Thank you for setting an intention of gratitude for us to embrace. Our grandchildren are truly gifts from heaven.

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