The Evolving Soul

PREFACE

This book is not for everyone. It is written with a very specific type of person in mind. It is intended for those have a singular inner drive to find something more. It is meant to speak specifically to those who seek. In other words, it’s for those who are trying to walk a path of spiritual awakening. These thoughts are for those who don’t just want inner peace, it’s for those who crave it. It is for those who have an innate spiritual hunger that cries to be fed. If that doesn’t sound like your focus or your path, then this book may not be for you.
For those who do seek, while the thoughts in this book are not necessarily designed to feed your spiritual hunger, they are designed as a guide toward finding your own path of discovery. There are no fish here, just thoughts on how to fish. These writings are suggestions that are meant to point you toward your own unique path of learning on this marvelous journey called earth school.
We are all having the life experiences that are designed specifically for our own growth. With over seven billion varying paths on this planet, all with a different focus, it is imperative to note that no single path is any more important or more pleasing to God than another. Every person’s life journey, whether driven by spiritual devotion or not, is equally valued and cherished by Source. We are all here doing precisely what we came here to do, and that is to learn and grow in our own unique way.
Since we all have a distinct and special journey that we came here specifically to walk, those who are not drawn toward religious devotion or spirituality don’t necessarily need to be converted. Most people are doing exactly what they came here to do (having the experiences they need) since the Universe is perfect in its execution of each person’s development. If and when the time comes for some sort of spiritual awakening, Life will guide them toward that in the way best suited for their particular path. If not, that’s fine too. Life is about the experience itself. It’s about what we are learning, and we all came here to learn something unique to our own soul’s growth, spiritual or not.
So, for my very narrow target audience, you and I are not so special. But we are unique. We are here to find something that beckons to us. We are here to discover how to fulfill a relentless hunger. If there is anything in these pages that serves you to that end, then that is the Universe giving you your next morsel. If not, then your guidance will lie elsewhere.
Life is about our growth. All that any of us can do is to learn the concept that is placed in our path. If we continue on that divinely laid out course, we are going to grow in the most effective way possible. We are going to truly evolve. My greatest desire is to share some thoughts with you that may help in this ever-expanding pursuit.
Happy evolving!

INTRODUCTION

Each Sunday morning Oprah Winfrey interviews a prominent spiritual author on her TV program Super Soul Sunday. At the end of each interview she proceeds through a short list of questions for her guest. They are good questions, all of them thought-provoking and requiring more than casual reflection. One of the last questions she asks is “What do you know for sure?” This question gets me every time. I have thought about this subject a lot; in fact, I have pondered it for many years. It has been a troubling topic for me since I have always wanted to know the truth—the real truth. For me, having to live by faith has been endlessly unsettling and disconcerting. I have been forever on a quest to know the absolute truth, and I have wanted to know it for sure. It has been an elusive journey.
After a half century of searching, studying, yearning and persistent experience, I can finally say that I have an answer to Oprah’s question. Actually, I have two answers—one that’s quite concise and one requiring a little more explanation. The short answer is: I don’t actually know anything for sure. The old adage that the more you learn the more you realize you don’t know, though cliché, is profoundly true. I have learned a lot, and I’m just about to the point now where I am realizing that I don’t know much of anything anymore. When you add the addendum “for sure”, well, that pretty much reduces it to zero.
In my previous life of religious devotion I knew a lot of things, and I was decidedly sure about them. I was confident in my beliefs, probably even arrogant. I knew many things regarding spirituality and God, since this is where my life-long passion had been focused. It is ironic that the things that I was the most sure about are those that are probably the most elusive and un-knowable. I see myself as much smaller now.
Now, instead of causing discontent, the realization that I don’t actually know anything for sure has become a place of acceptance. It has taken me a few decades to get here, but I’m okay with not knowing a darned thing. In fact, it’s a state of awareness that I much prefer. It has brought me great peace. Looking back, I’m not sure what it is that I was chasing. Now, I find that the not-knowing is a nice place to live. It is, at least for me, a state where the striving is no longer needed. It is a place of being.
So what do we know for sure? When it comes to awareness and enlightenment, mankind has come a long way. A few centuries ago everyone knew that the sun, moon and stars revolved around our all-important planet. It seemed obvious from the evidence around us that the center of the Universe was planet earth. Most people back then would have told you they knew this for sure. It was a truth that appeared to be self-evident. In fact, the church (of all things) did not tolerate any other way of thinking.