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Quotes by Dennis Merritt Jonesfrom his bookTHE ART OF UNCERTAINTY ~ HOW TO LIVE IN THE MYSTERY OF LIFE AND LOVE IT |
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"On the day we are born we enter the Earth School, as my friend Gary Zukav refers to it, not knowing a thing. The soul may come overflowing with wisdom accumulated along the eternal journey but the intellect is a blank slate. As we mature, chronologically and emotionally, advancing in our understanding of the "rules" of living in a human skin, the message we are given is that the more we grow, the more we need to know. It is only through this process that we can move forward in life." |
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"There is much comfort to be found in the confines of a box when we know where the edges are. But, there is certainly no growth, no evolution, and no deepening of our spiritual nature within that box. There can also be no doubt that this attachment to the known is what keeps many of us from creating the life we truly desire." |
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"If we use only our past as a reference point for our future, we just create more of what we have already created, another version of the same thing. And today, more than ever, we know that much of what has worked in the past won't work anymore." |
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"We were born to be free, to expand our horizons by going where we have never gone before, and not to hang out in the relative comfort and safety of the nest, the known. There is a place within us that is courageous beyond our human understanding; it yearns to explore beyond the boundaries of our daily life." |
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"Why do we resist the mystery that change brings? When we get too rigid and inflexible, rigor mortis of the soul sets in. For proof of this, we need look no further than to those who choose to stay in a relationship or job long after the soul, or life force, that originally brought it passion and joy has vacated the premises." |
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"As we begin our sojourn into the mystery of uncertainty we will be reminded rather quickly that nothing triggers fear of the unknown faster than that which we cannot see--our minds do a marvelous job of running ahead of us in the apparent darkness, creating all sorts of scary diversions and reasons for not moving forward." |
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"It can be very seductive to tell our story to others who will listen because, lets face it, who doesn't love to"commiserate" (in this context, meaning to share their misery) with other likeminded people. It justifies our attachment to the drama. The interesting thing about telling our story over and over is that it becomes even more deeply ingrained in our minds each time we tell it, and the universe delights in keeping whatever we claim as our story alive." |
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"Opening and closing, receiving and letting go, is the natural pulse beat of Life itself. It is the universal Intelligence behind the heartthrob that animates, sustains, prospers, heals, grows, and evolves all things alive. As we awaken to this truth, aligning ourselves with the rhythm of its beat, knowing what to let go of and when to let it go, comes naturally, with grace and ease." |
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"Living in greatness will always bring us to the edge of uncertainty. Our biggest challenge with our inherent potential for greatness might be that too often we unconsciously fear it because we have not "conditioned" ourselves for what greatness may bring." |
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"Regardless of how old we may be chronologically, it's never too late to redefine who we believe ourselves to be. It may require we walk through an emotional mine field of uncertainty to get there but the effort is well worth the undertaking. To discover who we are we must first discern who we are not. As we mature spiritually, we can choose to peel away the labels that don't honor who we discover our real selves to be." |
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"The problem with identifying too closely with what's wrong with our life and the world is that, when we buy into that belief, it is like baiting the trap of a self-fulfilling prophesy into which we then step." |
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"...a rut is like a grave with no ends. While there is a certain amount of comfort to be found by staying in the rut, where redundancy is the way of life, if we do we will never enter the mystery of the unknown where new creation, purpose, and meaning awaits us." |
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"Because a large majority of your consciousness is "warehoused" in the subconscious mind, there is plenty of space for habit energy to operate without your awareness that it is doing so. The habits operating in your life, conscious or unconscious, good or bad, are serving you in projecting your current self-image onto the screen of your life." |
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"A part of us dies when any negative habit becomes a mindless activity, especially when we continue to do it because it's easier (or less painful) than leaning into the discomfort of change. In the process, we unconsciously become a little more numb to life." |
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"The pathway to the top of the mountain is lined with campsites along the way, occupied by those who yielded to the resistance of walking the path of uncertainty and who weren't able to embody the deeper meaning of commitment to going the distance." |
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"The universe conspires to support us when our commitment takes us beyond the point of no return, and the point of no return always opens the door to the mystery of what lies ahead on the pathway of uncertainty...to that which is yet to be." |
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"Impatience is the unformed energy of fear looking for a place to manifest, and it is a revealing chain of cause and effect to witness. By means of our consciousness, we are energy directors. It begins with a belief, which triggers a thought, which stimulates an emotion, which erupts as words, which justifies behavior, which then, like a heat-seeking missile, finds a suitable target upon which to project itself." |
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"There is no shortcut to the fulfillment of a life worth living, and sometimes it requires great patience and perseverance, as well as humility, to take the small steps necessary when the temptation for instant gratification is compelling. This is why there is so much wisdom in the saying, 'slow and steady wins the race.'" |
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"Metaphorically speaking, the pathway of uncertainty meets with a fork in road; one path leads to the gates of heaven, the other to the gates of hell. Heaven and hell are not physical locations, but rather they are states of mind. Which would you prefer to live in? Your attitude will determine which path you will follow." |
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"Though they are two very separate concepts, many people confuse abundance with prosperity. Abundance is a supply of more than enough of whatever you can possibly conceive of, while prosperity is a demonstration of that supply in the material world." |
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"My sense is that most of us are more worried about the well running dry than about the size of the bucket we're taking to the well. Here is the good news: From a perspective of universal abundance, the well can never run dry because it is Infinite in supply." |
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"Right now, take a deep breath in and hold it for as long as you can. Conversely, now exhale all the air from your lungs and do not take another breath and see how long you stay conscious. To think that is better to give than to receive is the same as thinking it's better to breathe out, than in.The bottom line is that you have to be willing to both give and receive to stay healthy." |
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"Have you ever stopped to consider the number of choices you make daily? This is an important question because the more conscious you are about your choices, the more likely it is you will end up where you want to be at the end of your stay on this planet." |
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"Paradoxically speaking, every time you have a choice to make and you don't make it, by default, you are making a choice not to make a choice, which is, of course, a choice. You have no choice in the matter ." |
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"Is the Universe "waiting for you" to listen and follow Its lead? No. Rather, it's similar to having a radio: Is a radio station waiting until you turn on your radio before it broadcasts its signal? If you want to listen to a certain station, you must first intentionally turn on the radio and tune in to that station. Conversely, if you don't want to listen to the radio at all, you can choose not to. In either case, the broadcasting station continues to disseminate its signal." |
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"Paying attention to where we have come from and don't want to go back to is sort of like staring into the rear view mirror as we speed down the highway, rather than paying attention to where we are going. It can be very detrimental to our future plans." |
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"We must be certain not to confuse our desire to live in the mystery of life with an unbridled desire to wander off on the path of instant gratification and diversion. When our minds are not focused and disciplined, it's hard to resist the lure of whatever diversion is most available and first hooks our attention." |
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"Having a vision for our life is using the "Inner I" to see the possibilities for something wonderful before it is ever manifest. A vision is something that every person, family, business, and organization can and should have. It can act as a compass that moves us forward and determines where we are going and, perhaps more importantly, what we stand for." |
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"As we venture into the mystery of it all with mindfulness, our journey takes us inward where we plumb the depths of Self, in addition to our outward exploration of our world. As we experience the journey in both directions, we will increasingly discover more of who we really are...and who we are not." |
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"Mindful living is a lifestyle. It's a way of consciously walking a sacred earth experience, incorporating purpose and an awareness of Divine Presence in all that we say, think, and do on our journey in this lifetime." |
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"As we master the art of uncertainty, we learn the value and meaning of being present because in every "Now" moment there lies a silent blessing we might have otherwise overlooked. Isn't it amazing how often we don't take time to truly appreciate something until it is gone?" |
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"When you draw your final breath on this planet, may you know it is a better place than it was when you arrived because you were here. Most of all, may you always come to the edge of your uncertainties and lean over, knowing you were born to soar." |
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from his bookTHE ART OF BEING ~ 101 WAYS TO PRACTICE PURPOSE IN YOUR LIFE |
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"Life really is a stream into which we pour our beliefs, and all of those who come after us will be the direct beneficiaries of what we believe. The great thing is that with this awareness comes choice! As we awaken to the fact that we don’t necessarily have to pass on beliefs that have not served us or others well, we can choose to eliminate them from the legacy we pass on."
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"The need for approval can be an interesting trap; if we are not careful, it can woo us into compromising our integrity. When that happens, it usually spills over into many different areas of our life. Then what do we really have left except a life that is lived in the darkened shadows of our own self-doubt and diminished self-respect?"
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"What I have discovered is that what I expect from others is what I get. People generally live up to or down to the level that I expect. Why? Because the energy that I radiate (broadcast) can only draw to me more of the same, that’s why."
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"Imagine a heartbeat monitor in the hospital that goes “beep . . . beep . . . beep” with that little blip on the screen that bounces up and down between two extremes. That’s a good sign! When it stops beeping and blipping, it’s not a good sign—a flatline indicates death. So it is with each of us on our journey through life. The ups and the downs in our life require forward movement on our part and can help us maintain our sense of being fully alive. We need the valleys as well as the peaks and plateaus in-between."
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"You and I have each had a story or trauma drama that at some point helped define who we believed ourselves to be. What is the content and theme of your story? Has the victim been liberated from the bondage of the tale yet? Are you continuing to tell it long after the story ended? If we are not fully conscious, it’s easy to become mesmerized by our own story. If we tell it often enough, it really does take on a life of its own, and we end up believing it is the truth of who we are."
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"We can revoke the permission we have given ourselves to think down rather than up at any time we choose, but it requires conscious intention. It’s about waking up and becoming aware of what thoughts are moving through our minds in every holy instant."
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"When I say we can disidentify with the ego, I don’t mean we should deny it or try to exile it, because we need the ego-self in order to survive in the earth world—it’s part of who we are. We simply need to be clear enough to know that there is a larger part of who we are who can and should be in the driver’s seat, steering our thinking and actions in a manner that correlates more fully with what we really believe."
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"If you can, imagine God as a mountain, and at the top lies the full experience of union with the infinite. Now imagine many villages surrounding the mountain at its base, each with its own unique pathway to the top of the mountain. Think of each village as a different religion. Is one pathway better than another path if they all take the devoted follower to the top? In a world with billions of people and thousands of religions, it is spiritual arrogance to say there is only one correct path."
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"In Zen, there is an old saying: The obstacle is the path. Know that a whole and happy life is not free of obstacles. Quite the contrary, a whole and happy life is riddled with obstacles—they simply become the very stepping–stones that help lift us to a new perspective. It is not what happens to us in this life that shapes us, it is how we choose to respond to what happens to us."
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"Herein lies the paradox: If you want more of whatever it is you desire, you have to first prove to the universe that you are capable of having it by developing a consciousness that affirms there is no shortage of it. The only way to do this is by creating a vacuum or space for it to be received, and the only way you can create a space for it to be received is by letting go of what you do have, trusting that the universe knows what it is doing. That’s the law of circulation in action."
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"The mind is an amazingly powerful tool that can work for us or against us, depending on the altitude of our attitude. Combined with an awareness that the infinite intelligence of God always works through us at the level of our beliefs, it makes good sense to embrace a positive attitude and never ever give up. Believe in life, believe in the possibilities that lie ahead."
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"In my work with people, I never cease to be amazed at how often they tend to focus on what they don’t have in life rather than the incredible good they do have. It is not just folk wisdom that tells us we should be focusing on the good in our lives now, it is understanding the spiritual dynamics of a universe that only knows how to increase the energy of that upon which we focus our attention. The universe doesn’t know or care if our glass is half empty or half full, that is a determination we make."
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"All that is has a beginning and an ending, where there is a period of rest (or restoration). Look around you. The planets have cycles, our bodies have cycles, day ends with night, night ends with day, summer ends with fall, fall ends with winter, winter ends with spring, and so on it goes around and around! I believe we tend to see the up as good and the down as bad. We need to look at this because without the down, there could be no up."
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"From a spiritual perspective, we are always seeking ways to connect and share our sense of unity with God and other human beings at a deeper level. When you consider it, laughter can really dissolve the distance between people because our hearts all speak the same language. Irrespective of the language or the culture, a sincere laugh is unmistakably understood. When people laugh together, it’s because in that moment, they are sharing something in common; a moment of feeling the same thing, which is when boundaries disappear. This is how authentic peace begins."
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"What we continually focus our energy and attention on becomes that with which we ultimately identify as the basis of our reality! Begin to explore where your mind is taking you. With what are you identifying as the core of your reality? To what are you giving your attention? Either you are rooted in Being (Infinite Presence, here and now) or you are rooted in the external world where the mind runs rampant, feeding on the latest fear presented by the media and unconscious others. You can’t have it both ways. A house divided always falls."
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"Wouldn’t it be great if all of our growth opportunities came in times of light, love, blue skies, and green lights, where it felt good and we could see where we are going? Unfortunately, that’s not the way it works. The reality is, we are destined to grow, one way or another. Our only choice is, Will it be consciously or unconsciously? There can be great personal growth for us as we learn to consciously push out into the darkness as well as the light. The truth is that some of our most meaningful personal growth experiences can be stimulated when life appears the darkest and most uncertain."
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"The fact is that there are some wonderful movies and TV programs available to us today, and there are some not-so-wonderful movies and TV programs available to us today. I wonder, if people understood more fully the impact that their thoughts had on their bodies and the body of their affairs, would they be more mindful of the “food” they consume with their minds? Simply put, thoughts energized by fear, violence, and negative images move energy through us in a manner that causes great dis-ease, emotionally and physically..."
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"The ability to control our experience in life takes on a new depth and meaning when we come to the realization that the only thing we really have even a modicum of control over is our own mind. What happens in our mind determines if we shall react or respond to that which is set before us at any given moment."
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"Never doubt for even one minute that there is genius within you, awaiting your recognition of it. No matter what the gift of your genius may be, the magic ingredient in manifesting it is always the same: discipline. The “D” word sends chills down many a spine, and there are times when I resist it with all my might. When I do catch myself resisting the D word, I often use this visualization: Think of discipline as a drilling tool, boring through all the layers of resistance, cutting straight through to the core of your creative genius. See the energy of that genius flowing out into expression through you. Discipline gives focus and direction to our energy of intention, which in turn unleashes the genius."
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"The fact is that the very body in which your soul self resides at this moment, perhaps with all of its aches and pains, is creating exactly the experience you need to be fully alive as a human being and as a spiritual being. The aliveness and real healing comes in knowing that it’s through fully embracing your humanness that you find your divinity."
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"You can try and wait until everything is perfect in your life before you seek that moment of enlightenment, but you will be waiting an eternity—literally. You can chew each mouthful of brown grain rice one thousand times before you swallow it, but still one day, your body will become an unfit garment in which the soul self can reside. Take care of the temple, yes, maintain it well, but don’t believe it has to be perfect in the eyes of the world before you can have the spiritual experience you came here to have."
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"Have you ever taken yourself a bit too seriously, thinking that who you are is actually defined by what you look like, how much talent you have (or don’t have), how well known you are (or aren’t), or how much money you have (or don’t have)? Those are all “garments and labels” you wear during the course of your stay here on this planet, but it’s not who you are. At the end of the day, when it’s all said and done, you will turn all of that back in just like a car you had on lease."
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"Perfectionism stems from a need to control. What do we perfectionists need to control? Other people’s opinions of ourselves! The mind–set is “If I can just cover up my flaws, I will be able to persuade other people that I am really all right, that I am enough. So I will put up this façade, which looks really good, to the world.” So we go about, adding whatever we believe we need to the image in order to convince the world (and ourselves) that we are enough, while never reaching the conclusion that indeed we really are enough just the way we are."
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"Do you ever get to feeling badly that things seem to be going poorly in some area of your life? Do you ever get so caught up in the drama of what’s unfolding that you lose sight of the gifts that life is laying at your feet in every holy instant? The beautiful gifts that life brings us every day are beyond measure, but we have to be willing to be present enough in the moment to see them. What gift has been laid at your feet today?"
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"Too often, we put off living fully today because we are living ‘fear-fully’ for tomorrow. Until we are free of our fear of the unknown, we shall never be free to fully live in the present, which is really all we have."
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"Life truly is the ultimate mystery: We are born from the pure essence of divine creation, given a body in which we rattle around for a given period of time, and then we leave again, going back into the divine essence from which we came. That, in and of itself, is AMAZING! What a miracle . . . what a mystery! The space between those two points is what we refer to as “life,” and we spend most of it trying to figure out why things are the way they are and how we can manipulate, control, and squeeze more out of it rather than living in awe of the sweetness of the mystery itself."
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"Where do we find happiness? Unfortunately, the common belief with most people is that happiness is something that happens to them when conditions are just right rather than something that happens through them when they choose to make space for it. While outer conditions may stimulate the feeling of happiness, it can never come from anywhere other than within us. Authentic happiness isn’t something we can go out and get, buy, borrow, or steal. Nor can any form of artificial sensory stimulus generate true happiness; it’s only something we can be, and it’s a choice we make with every breath we take."
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"The universe doesn’t hear words, it senses our feelings and the intention behind the words . . . and says yes to our intentions. Therefore, if our intentions are dishonorable or simply cloudy and confused, it has to show up in the body of our relationships. To be impeccable in our word is to bring our spoken word and our unspoken intention into alignment so that the inner thought and the outer action are the same."
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"What I have discovered is that for any one of us to have an authentic deepening of our sense of the sacred, we must be willing to step into the unknown. We must let go of truths that we currently hold on to (cling to), make space in consciousness for the revelation of something more, something deeper, wider, higher, and perhaps even less tangible. This requires great faith. Indeed, to be asked to give up that which we have securely sequestered away in our mind as the only truth, as the only way it can be, is scary. Welcome to the spiritual path."
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"From a spiritual perspective, we have come here to have relationships. Relationships are the vessels in which we travel toward a common destination, which is a greater realization of unconditional love. From the cradle to the grave and all along the way in between, it is the relationships we have that really make life worth living."
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Copyright 2008 ~ New Reality Press - All rights reserved
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