Happy Sunday, everyone. I hope this finds you all well. I cannot believe we have arrived at our final beatitude:
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” [Bible, Matthew 5:10]
I have not been looking forward to the last Beatitude because I feel it is so difficult. Who thinks being persecuted is a blessing? Certainly not me. Over the last couple of weeks, I have come into a better understanding of this ‘be happy’ attitude.
When you are being persecuted, you are definitely suffering. For example, when someone takes your actions or words personally and then condemns you, it is painful, especially when you thought the person a friend. It is now your choice how to respond. Are you going to share the story with all hoping they will respond favorably to you and not the other? Or will you take the higher road and be still, listening to the direction Spirit leads you?
Mimi thinks, “It’s painful taking the higher road. I want everyone to know I didn’t do anything wrong.” But our higher self sees it as a time of growth. In order to rise above, one must dig deep to look at the beauty and blessings going on. By listening to the still, small voice within, you have the opportunity to learn to “love your enemy as yourself.” Through love, you have power over any situation.
A good example is the story of Job in the Old Testament. He lost everything: his fortune, his livestock, his family, EVERYTHING! I did not see any blessings in that. I would like to quote Gina Lake in Love Without End on this subject.
To summarize the story briefly, Job was a very wealthy man who was blessed with health, family, land, and position in the community. He respected the Sabbath and worshiped God. Then for reasons known only to the Creator, Job’s loyalty to God was tested. Job had been grateful for the material abundance with which he had been blessed, but the question was, “Would he be faithful to his Creator under conditions of extreme hardship? What I did not understand is that God was removing Job’s limited attachments and dependencies on creature comforts in order to prepare him for having EVERYTHING. Job was content with his bubble and was not looking for an expanded relationship with all of creation. Therefore, he was not expecting this twist of destiny, nor was he prepared to accept it gracefully. In the beginning, he tried prayers for redemption and confessions of sin in hopes that God would forgive whatever trespasses he might have committed. The problems became worse. He counseled his friends, yet nothing changed. Finally, in utter dejection, Job surrendered to the omnipotence, beauty, and vastness of the universe. He began to behold in awe and wonder the majesty of everything that is. Through those sublime realizations, he came to accept the love of God in all things. As he stopped his judgments, the dreadful conditions ended. Then, miraculously, the moment he accepted everything, EVERYTHING was given to him.
Through the process, Job slowly put his ego aside and found a deeper truth. As he did, he truly learned (through experience) about the kingdom of heaven.
I have enjoyed sharing, and I hope you have gotten something out of these last eight Sunday Morning Thoughts. Keep smiling and, as always, thank you for your time.
Theresa Contaxis 