BEST of PONDER on THIS for Friday, June 22nd, 2012 by Jeff Maziarek in SPIRITUALITY SIMPLIFIED

“Of the multitude of questions that arise in a person’s life, there is little doubt the most challenging one to find an answer for is, “Who am I?” It is likely that throughout all of recorded history, this single question has at one point or another at least crossed the mind of virtually every human being that has ever lived. While some people do seek an answer to this important question, the reality is most choose to push it out of their minds, for the simple reason that the act of contemplating upon who they really are actually serves to make life even more complicated than it already is! This tendency on the part of mankind to live “unexamined” lives is what the late Fr. Anthony DeMello was referring to when he said these words:

Most people, even though they don’t know it, are asleep. They’re born asleep, they live asleep, they marry in their sleep, they breed children in their sleep, and they die in their sleep without ever waking up. They never understand the loveliness and the beauty of this thing that we call human existence.

The desire to remain asleep is quite strong; the fact is it’s much easier to stay focused on the every day world than it is to pay attention to the whisperings of one’s soul. The process of waking up is very unpleasant for most people, because it requires that an individual be willing to seriously question the foundation of his or her entire belief system, including every one of his or her core beliefs about the very nature of existence.

While it may appear easier to just remain asleep, the truth is that avoiding introspection is never beneficial in the long run, for the calling of the soul is very powerful. The more you try to suppress it, the more challenging it becomes to experience true happiness in life. Therefore, the best course of action is to make the effort to wake up, to step outside of your so-called comfort zone, and be willing to explore previously uncharted territory, so that you may ultimately come to an understanding of who you really are.

Jeff Maziarek, in “Spirituality Simplified”

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Jeff MJeff Maziarek, author of Spirituality Simplified and Codi’s Journey, launched Pondercentral.com in April 2007 as a Web-based forum for “PONDER on THIS,” a series of weekday inspirational email messages he began sending to subscribers in March 1999. A FREE service since its inception, “PONDER on THIS” provides subscribers with meaningful content to assist them on their individual paths of spiritual growth. In addition, it benefits subscribers, authors, and publishers by including links to Amazon.com where subscribers can learn more about the book being quoted, and also purchase it.

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