Life Is A Process, Not An Event
I don’t know a single person who doesn’t have any fears, do you? Knowing this, it begs asking: What are your predominant fears? Are you aware of them? In order to live without fear, we must trust whatever outcome arises in life is perfectly orchestrated for our highest good.
Most people’s fears relate to: financial matters, safety and security, relationships or career. It is natural to entertain these fears, though when they impose on our way of life, we are at the mercy of succumbing to them. This is when we stop living because we are being dictated by our fears. Allow me to explain what I mean, since it may be misunderstood. Everything that happens to us has a larger purpose in our life. I am not invoking God, nor religion but suggesting a greater plan is in order which may not be apparent at the time of the event. If we look back on our life, we would notice that every event comes together to create the rich tapestry of our life’s narrative. Because life is being experienced by us, it may feel as though our challenges are permanent. However, we’re not seeing the entire picture unfold because we’re absorbed in the drama and miss the opportunity to see how it can lead to something greater.
Are you comfortable with this so far? I hope so, because it’s worth acknowledging that life is a process, not an event. Now, sometimes horrific accidents occur where people lose loved ones and we might ask how this is a perfect outcome. That is, how is the loss of someone to illness, especially a young child considered a perfect outcome? These are reasonable questions that have plagued mankind for centuries. I don’t know why these events occur and why some people survive and others don’t. This dilemma has perplexed philosophers for ages and it’s widely debated whether there’s an all-powerful and all seeing source presiding over our lives. For now, let’s consider outcomes not as catastrophic, such as being passed over for a job promotion or your beloved no longer wanting to marry you. In these instances, there may be more that develops to unravel the story. Namely, something good can arise out of a seemingly undesirable situation if we are attentive and not consider the worst scenario.
God can help with taking our fears away if we ask him. We acknowledge whatever unfolds, we will be okay because we have survived every experience up till now. Perhaps life isn’t so much about abandoning our fears but learning to embrace them in order to live boldly. It is like living with anxiety: one never completely overcomes it but learns to turn down the volume. So, if we consider what our fears are protecting us from, as Anthony de Mello’s tale suggests, we realise our thoughts are the cause of our problems, not the events themselves. And this is within our power to revoke.
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