My experience of spirituality goes beyond what the church suggests. You might want to check out the author Caroline Myss, Invisible Acts of Power as a good read. Years ago, around 1995, I really opened up spiritually with the reading of The Celestine Prophecies. After that, I began exploring other spiritual and new age stuff like the Medicine Wheel and Spirit Animals/Guides until one day after a huge personal crisis I really began to worry about choosing the "right" religion. I had picked up the bible for the first time in 1997 and began reading the new testament.

I loved Jesus as a teacher. I don't think He and I are all that different on the heart level and in many respects, the belief level. His advantage being that His level of "connection" is far deeper than my own. With all the crap the world throws at us and the lack of real teaching of our spiritual nature in our society today, we're at a HUGE disadvantage. But I do believe that will all change and you may be struggling with a lot of the same issues I have been dealing with for years. This past year or so has been a huge shift for me personally and I've really begun to tap into the source (for lack of a better term).

About four years ago I wandered away from the christian church to regain my balance and perspective. I had become so disillusioned with the church and their double-standards, one-upmanship, and lack of compassion and forgiveness. As I continue on my own road now, I truly believe that I have really begun to see a dynamic that still fits with what Jesus taught but goes beyond how the church portrays His teachings. Again, we have to take into context the time he lived and the fact that the bible and christian religion really took shape a couple of hundred years after he died. And again, the religion became a means of controlling a population in collaboration with politicians.

There are a number of things in the bible that contradict the stance that many religious leaders try to hold us hostage with... for example: Jesus talked to the Samarian woman at the well when she came to fetch water. He knew she wasn't married but was living with a man. He didn't condemn her, didn't tell her that it was wrong, didn't tell her to sin no more, instead, he told her to spread the news. The news she was to spread had to do with the son of god and their ability to worship God wherever they were; they didn't have to be in a place of worship to worship God. If you're a parent, you know more about God's relationship to us is as similar to the relationship you have with your children. Full of love, forgiveness, opportunity, chances, and so on.

In truth, you are spirit already. Our soul is not the spirit, it is another dimension that embodies the "feelings" of our memories, body, mind, and emotions. The spirit is that part of us that is much stronger, full of goodness, love, and inspiration for our own future and what we came here to manifest. Our goal is to get in touch with that and manifest what we came here to create. If you are a parent, you may have already fulfilled some of those goals through having children. You are not your body and emotions; they are tools through which you can experience and facilitate your time here on this physical plane. Does it make sense to you when I say we are multi-dimensional beings? Body, Mind, Soul, and Spirit.

Body - the body is the feeling machine and action machine. Emotions are felt and expressed through the body. It also has a memory of emotion. It functions in cooperation with the power of the mind or spirit - whichever we give more control.

The Mind - is a tool by which we can learn, interpret, analyze, and retain data. It also connects us to spirit as we exercise that muscle. If we don't, the soul memory takes place, combining the mind's memories and the body's memories (emotions) to dictate our life experience.

Soul - as above... mind, body, experiences combined and this retains the melancholy of life and other physical world memories. It has a function and purpose as well and I daresay, it likely is the storage of information that the spirit world can access after leaving the physical world.

Spirit - this is the universal part of ourselves that chose to be born, where to be born, to whom to be born, and with a mission to live out. We forget it and are programmed throughout life by the systems of this world and are challenged to break out of the molds put around us to fully explore who we are spiritually.

I have studied myself and others for a long time around this subject and the deciding force is the fact that so many people suffering depression, anxiety, etc. are people who are stressed beyond belief trying to live lives that are not their own. They need to access those Spirit values that are unique to them and to live them out fully in order to be optimally healthy. It is even shown that when this doesn't happen that the emotional pain will in turn become physical pain.

As you can see, these are theories concepts that I have developed as I've gone through my struggles. This seems to be a part of my life path anyway and I've always been an investigator of Truth. Are they absolute? No, I wouldn't say so but I would say that I am on the right track and that there is a great deal of opportunity to be explored for individuals should they choose to consider the possibilities. Learning about the spirit within, we begin to gain access to an inner knowing self that can help us to navigate through this troubled life with a little more faith and detachment to outcomes.

I'm still learning and working on these theories and I do expect to write about it at some point. I hope that you find it helpful. "Learned patterns of behavior" are also very difficult to overcome.

Please do let me know what you think of these outrageous thoughts. I hope you have an open mind to what I've suggested.

Your life is to be a life of joy! It's in your power to create that.

Being with you. Love & Light... Lee xo

Lee Down
One Man Can (make a difference)
http://www.onemancan.ca