Living in the Present Moment  

Posted by Joe Rawls

The longer I stick with this whole contemplative spirituality thing, the more I realize that it boils down to living fully in the present moment. Which is, of course, easier said than done. A good perspective on this issue is provided by Archimandrite Meletios Webber in Bread & Water, Wine & Oil (Conciliar Press). A double tip of the eastern monastic veil to In Communion and to JN1034.

We can only meet God in the present moment. This is an area where God chooses to place limits on His own power. We choose whether or not to live in the present moment. Because we can encounter God only in the present moment, whenever we live in the past or in the future, we place ourselves beyond His reach.

We can only make decisions in the present moment. We can only enjoy sights and sounds in the present moment. We can only love and hate in the present moment. The present moment is the interface between ourselves and the rest of the universe, and, more importantly, it is the only point of contact between the individual and God. Of all the possible points of time, only the present moment is available for repentance. The past cannot be taken back and remade. The future remains forever out of our reach.

The present moment may appear to be tiny in duration--so much so that the human mind thinks it hardly exists at all--but in depth it is infinite. Actually, it has no shape or form. There is nothing to measure here, and that really infuriates the mind, since measurement is what the mind is good at. It is remarkable that this quality, so essential to our existence, has no shape. It just is. And it just is in a way which the past and future cannot be. The past is a done deal, the future is all guesswork. The formless present moment may be experienced as large or small. In some senses it is almost of no duration. In other ways, it is eternal life. Whichever we choose, it is, nevertheless, the only space within which we can operate. Indeed, this is the unique means through which we can confront the reality God gives us second by second.

It is odd that we do not consciously spend more time in the present moment than we do. Unfortunately, the mind blocks the availability of the present moment whenever it has the chance to do so. The mind cannot trust the present moment, since it cannot control it, and is thus almost always at enmity with it. I think this may be part of what Jesus means when He contrasts "this world" with the Kingdom.

The mind cannot control the present moment, the time during which things can arise, so it pretends that it does not exist. This causes a person to behave in a completely unconscious way, forcing the individual to wait for the mind to absorb an event (which by then has become an event in the past) before she or he is allowed to experience it.

This entry was posted on Monday, July 6, 2009 at Monday, July 06, 2009 . You can follow any responses to this entry through the comments feed .

5 comments

Right on the money, Joe. Been practicing this for a few years after reading Eckhart Tolle, and it works. So happy and at peace. Praise God.
-Danny

April 9, 2011 at 9:15 AM
Anonymous  

You made a few nice points there. I did a search on the
topic and found a good number of folks will agree with your blog.


Stop by my blog post - personals dating online

March 22, 2013 at 5:54 PM
Anonymous  

I have seen that car insurance companies know the vehicles which are liable to accidents and also other risks.

In addition they know what form of cars are given to higher risk and the higher
risk they have got the higher your premium charge.
Understanding the very simple basics of car insurance will assist you
to choose the right kind of insurance policy that can take care of
your requirements in case you happen to be involved in an accident.
Appreciate your sharing your ideas with your blog.

my web blog - free and online dating

March 29, 2013 at 9:25 PM
Anonymous  

I have observed that over the course of developing a
relationship with real estate managers, you'll be able to come to understand that, in most real estate deal, a percentage is paid. All things considered, FSBO sellers really don't "save"
the fee. Rather, they fight to win the commission by doing a
agent's task. In doing this, they spend their money along with time to execute, as best they might, the assignments of an adviser. Those tasks include disclosing the home by marketing, showing the home to willing buyers, constructing a sense of buyer emergency in order to prompt an offer, preparing home inspections, dealing with qualification investigations with the mortgage lender, supervising maintenance, and assisting the closing.

Feel free to visit my web-site: totally free date sites

April 1, 2013 at 6:27 AM
Anonymous  

Thanks for your beneficial post. In recent times, I have
come to understand that the actual symptoms of mesothelioma
cancer are caused by this build up connected fluid between your lining in the lung and
the chest muscles cavity. The condition may start inside the chest vicinity and multiply to other areas
of the body. Other symptoms of pleural mesothelioma include weight reduction, severe inhaling trouble,
temperature, difficulty swallowing, and infection of the neck and face areas.
It must be noted some people existing with the disease usually do not experience virtually
any serious signs at all.

Here is my web blog :: online dating personals

April 1, 2013 at 11:09 AM

Post a Comment