Distinctions

Distinctions Defined

The human brain is a function of millions of years of evolution. Its original function was to make us aware of major differences that could be life threatening and then to prepare the body to fight or to run away. In those days, subtle, slight differences could be ignore because they were not life threatening. Today our survival is usually not at stake but our well being certainly is, and our well being depends upon our seeing these subtle difference that our ancestors could simply ignore.

To overlook these distinctions is very common and extremely easy to do because we, as a culture, have done things in a certain ways for centuries. The unfortunate fact that missing these distinctions results in major problems in our lives has not gotten in the way of ignoring them.

We'll look at some of the commonly accepted behavior patterns in ways you’ve probably never thought of. These subtle distinctions may, on the surface, seem to be rather trivial but, depending on how you respond to them, your response can make a vast difference in your life. The following list contains some of the more common and more significant distinctions that we sometimes overlook:

Distinctions -- Subtle but Distinct Differences

Being Doing

Most of us attempt to create from doing -- by taking physical a action, but creation is first and foremost a function of being -- a function of our beliefs, emotions, thoughts, and attitudes -- a function of who we are. Most of us trade in our beingness for doing and get lost in the doing or become overwhelmed by tasks, jobs and activities.

Notice that prior to every action, there is a thought and a decision. The thought always precedes the action. We'll discuss this issue in considerable detail in Section 02 -- The Immutable Universal Laws.

Doing Trying ...

Doing Trying

Trying and doing are mutually exclusive. You either try to do something or you do it, but you can’t both try and do at the same time. Saying “I’ll try,” is both preprogramming yourself for failure and pre-justifying your failure.

Here's a simple way to experience this distinction. Notice something that is near you such as a pencil. Try to pick up the pencil. If you picked up the pencil, you didn't try, you picked it up. Put it back down and try again. Notice that trying does not get the pencil in your hand. Only doing gets the pencil picked up, so as an alternative to trying, choose to either do or not do.

The next time you notice yourself saying, "I'll try," stop and ask yourself, "How committed am I to actually doing this?" You'll probably notice a rather lackluster commitment or no commitment at all. You may also notice that saying "I'll try." was just a weak-willed way of saying no.

Prayer of Gratitude Prayer of Request

Most people pray as beggars from a space of lack, asking a seemingly whimsical God for favors. But for instance, Jesus never asked in prayer. He merely said thank you, while knowing his intention was already real.

As you probably already know, the universe gives us more of what we think about and a prayer of request is thinking about what we don't have while a prayer of gratitude is thinking about what we already have or about what we declare our selves to be, do, or have. We'll discuss this issue in considerable detail in Section 02 -- The Immutable Universal Laws.

Symptom Problem-Cause

A symptom is an easily perceivable manifestation, condition, event, circumstance, etc. that accompanies and is caused by something else. The underlying conditions, beliefs, actions, etc. that caused the manifestation may or may not be perceived, acknowledged, or understood.

A cause is the underlying conditions, beliefs, actions, etc. that results in a symptom coming into existence. A problem is manifestation, condition, event, circumstance, etc. that is not of one's conscious choosing; something that generates negative emotions; something that inspires a desire for change.

In our present society, symptoms and problems are commonly confused with each other. We spend vast amounts of resources treating symptom, but unfortunately, the causes, the sources of those problems are commonly ignored. Why? One reason is because symptoms are straight forward and easy to see while the underlying causes are commonly complex, multi-faceted, often difficult to see, and even more difficult to solve.

For example, crime (a symptom) is easy to see. But what are the underlying causes? Poverty is a major cause of crime. Ignorance, lack of opportunities, and lack of alternatives are three more causes. Keeping certain products and services illegal is still another major cause of crime.**¹ Over population is by far the greatest cause of poverty and thus, is indirectly the world's number one cause of crime.

We are masters at treating symptoms and amateurs at eliminating causes. For example, We spend enormous amounts of time and energy fighting crime (the symptom) and ignoring its causes (poverty, ignorance, overpopulation, etc). Unfortunately, most politicians see a symptom such as crime, label it as the problem and then propose a massive, multi-million-dollar war against the symptom, while completely ignoring the underlying causes.

This type of behavior is simply futile gesturing. It also wastes vast amounts of time, money, and energy, and it produces the exact opposite**² of its stated intention. Treating a symptom is a short-term, temporary solution to a long term problem. It is very rare that treating a symptoms does anything at all to eliminate its underlying cause.

For many people, this same type of confusion and misdirection occurs in their personal lives. For example, if there is a problem in your personal life and you are looking out into the external world for its cause, you are looking in the wrong place for your answer. See the next section below: Responsibility / Blame.

**¹ Keeping certain drugs illegal vastly increases their price. This forces many addicts to become criminal to support their habit and and literally invites many impoverished people to become criminals by participating in the highly profitable business of peddling drugs.

**² Focusing on and fighting what you don't want defies the laws of creation. Focusing on what you don't want empowers it and invites the universe to bring you more of the

Responsibility Blame

Blame looks backwards into the past. In a space of powerlessness, it sits in despair and helplessness and focus on what is wrong, on what it does not want. It perceives power to be "out there" somewhere. It functions out of victim consciousness. Blame also looks outward into its environment. It sees the mirror out there, but does not recognize that it is looking into a mirror. It gets angry at the mirror. This changes nothing.

As anybody in touch with reality will tell you, finding a scapegoat, piling blame onto him/her, and then getting rid of the scapegoat does not solve the problem. Because the source, the creator of the event, remains unchanged, the experience soon repeats itself. It has a new face and wears different clothing, but the basic event is essentially the same as that which occurred in the past.

Responsibility looks at the present. It also looks forward into the future. It stands in a power position. Responsibility acknowledges that others do, indeed, co-create with us, but it also understands that there are no victims, only unconscious creators.

Responsibility also looks both outward and inward. It sees the outside world and recognizes that it is actually looking at a reflection of itself. It sees a manifestation of internal beliefs, attitudes thoughts, words, and actions. Responsibility observes the outside event with a minimum of emotion.

It then turns its focus toward the cause of these external experiences and contemplates how to use the "here and now" re-create it's future self in a form that experiences even more freedom, joy, and personal fulfillment. This changes everything.

"Because I have the power to create what I’m presently experiencing, I also have the power to create something different. Let’s see… What would I like to be, do, have, or experience?"

Someone Else Must Change: If your response to the suggestion of letting it go of your past is:

"But I'm really angry. I'm not ready to let go. I want him/her to change. And if he/she won't change, I want revenge."

then there are ten factors you would do well to become aware of. First, even if he/she did all those bad things -- won't do what you want done -- and refuses to change or cooperate, your life can still be filled with love and joy. Second, you can't change anybody but yourself. Third, the past is what it is. You can't change it. Fourth, revenge is about as profitable as shooting yourself in the foot. It simply keeps the negative cycle going.

Fifth, there are no victims, there are no enemies, only unconscious creators. Nobody did anything to you. They did it with you. Sixth, your emotional response is self-created. Your anger is in you and not out there in the world. Seventh, staying angry is completely your choice. Eighth, dwelling on what brings you pain tells the universe to bring you more of the same. As long as you continue to bitch, moan and complain you are telling "The Universe" to bring you more to bitch moan and complain about.

Ninth, in the long-run, none of this really matters. Ten years from now you'll have completely forgotten about this incident, so why not just forget it now and spare yourself from a lot of pain and misery. And tenth, after you've spent whatever time you feel is required for to feel and be with your feelings, you can simply drop the anger and move on. Here are some alternative things you might choose to focus on:

How is what I am presently experiencing a blessing in disguise? What have I learned from this experience? How will I be different in the future?

Now that I clearly know what I don't want, what is it that I do want? How will I think, believe, and act from now on so that I am continually in the process of creating what I do want?

I'll make a list of all the things I can be grateful for, and then I'll focus on being grateful for all the wonderful things that I am, I have, I do, and that I am experiencing.

How would a divine master such as Jesus or Buddha respond if he were in my situation?

What’s the wisest, most-intelligent, healthiest, most-profitable, most-freedom-creating, and most-joy-producing decision I can make right now?

To whom can I reach out right now and say, "I love you! Thank you for being in my life."?

Stated Intention True Intention

Stated intentions are what you say you want (choose) to be, do, or have. True intention is what actually manifests in your life. There is an internal root cause for every one of your external experiences. When you examine the causes, it becomes obvious why most conscious statements of intention don't manifest. Here's a brief summary:

There are no victims, only unconscious creators. Within the context of human life on Earth, you create one-hundred percent of your personal experiences. You create your personal experiences by your thoughts, your attitudes, your beliefs, the words you speak and/or listen to, the sounds you hear and/or imagine, the pictures you see and/or imagine, the actions you take, the results you expect. Your attitudes, beliefs and expectations are thoroughly programmed into your subconscious mind which is infinitely more powerful than the conscious mind.

Your feelings (your emotions) are also a major factor. Thoughts accompanied with strong emotion have much more power and manifest much faster than thoughts that have little emotion attached to them. Whether the emotions are positive or negative is irrelevant. Whether your thought are intentional or simply come as a response to your environment is irrelevant. For example, the things you watch and hear on television have a significant effect upon your experiences.

Your experiences are a blend of all the factors mentioned above. If all of these aspects are not aligned with your stated intention, the power of you stated intention is about as effective as whistling into the wind and expecting to direct a hurricane.

Probably the most important factors in successful manifesting are your feelings and the alignment between you conscious mind and your subconscious mind. (See the section below)

Reality Beliefs About Reality ...

Reality Beliefs about Reality

Beliefs about reality are personal beliefs accepted as factual truths even though there is no proof of their truthfulness. Many unsubstantiated beliefs have been accepted as true because the listeners have not bothered to check their sources or look for evidence to support them. The general attitude is: "Our leaders are the professionals, the experts, the authority figures, so they must be right." Here are three examples:

   Christian one-life-ism:   We were created by God at
       conception or birth, live only once on Earth, then go to
       heaven or hell forever.

Reincarnation: We are eternal beings who always were,
and always will be. We live numerous lives on Earth.

   Atheism:   We are earth-matter that has magically
      acquired consciousness. We live only once, and
      we cease to exist when the body dies.

Because these three assumptions are mutually exclusive, at least two of them must be false. At least two of them must be only beliefs about reality.

Reality consists of those truths that are backed up by physical and/or experiential evidence. They are true at all times and in all places. Two examples of evidential truth are: 1) "Human beings have an instinctive sexual nature;" and 2) "Every effect has a cause. Every cause has an effect."

If you are willing to take one additional step toward the truth,
here's what the evidence tells us about reality:

"We don't know the truth
and we have no way to find out the truth."

Questions about the nature of life, the nature of "God," the nature of the universe, the nature of what a human being actually is push us deep into the age-old, unanswerable, religious questions, questions such as:

Are we a soul with a body, a body with a soul,
or only a physical body?

What is this non-physical stuff we call
"the mind" or "spirit?"

What happens to "us" after the physical body dies?

Is heaven a place or a state of being?

What is the purpose of human life?

Are there other intelligent life forms
in the physical universe?

What is in that non-physical part of reality
that we know is there, but can't access physically?

Because we have such a limited understanding of "All There Is to Know," the most reasonable way to approach the mysteries of life is to examine the experiential evidence and create a hypothesis about what is the most probably reality, and then live life based on that theory until a new or an improved version of the theory comes along.

Please see the section below titled:
How We feel About Something / The Reality of That Same Thing

God Versus Beliefs About God ...

Reality of God

Beliefs about God

See the above distinction, Reality Versus Beliefs About Reality. and the distinction below, Faith in the Existence of God Versus Faith in the Nature of God

Faith Existence Versus Faith Nature Of God ...

Faith in the
Existence of God

Faith in the
Nature of God

Faith in the existence of "God" deals with whether a person believes that:

1)   There is "An Infinite Source and Intelligent that Cause of All That Is"
         (commonly referred to as God)     or
2)   Belief in God is only a fairytale.   There is no such thing as God.

Those over the age of reason (approximately seven years of age) who believe in the existence of God, are then at choice about what they will and won't believe about God. Those beliefs are referred to as "Faith in the Nature of God."

Faith in the nature of god deals with ones beliefs about what God is or isn't. This area is filled with question but empty of answers. Here are just a few of the unanswerable questions: What are the characteristics and attributes of God? What does He/She want from us? What is the nature of life? Why are we here on Earth? What happens when you die?

One must first have faith in the existence God exists before one can have faith in the nature of what god is or isn't.

The overwhelming evidence tells us that the ultimate source of reality transcends human understanding. This leads us to conclude that all descriptions about what God is or isn't are purely speculation.

The best we can do is speculate about God based upon what evidence we presently have.

Please see the section below titled:
How We feel About Something / The Reality of That Same Thing

Our Country

The People Who Control
the Government

Our Country consists of the principles and the ideals upon which the country was founded plus the people, the land, the human and natural resources, plus the dreams, the hopes, the aspirations, and the creative capacity of its citizens.

The People Who Control the Government are the politicians plus the super-wealthy families, the corporations, the drug peddlers and the other special interest groups have bought, paid for, and own the politicians. As Will Rogers once said, "We have the best politicians that money can buy." Here are a few more truths about governments.

Self survival and self interest are the first interests
of those running a government.**³

   You and I and everyone else are expendable servants
     of those who control the government of the wealthy,
     by the wealthy and for the wealthy.

Those in control have their own golden rule:
"He who controls the gold rules."

We survive in spite of our governments
not because of them.

What politicians must do to get elected
makes them unfit to to hold public office.

   Even though campaign reform is the most critical
      requirement for creating a government
      that serves its citizens, most people
      have been successfully brainwashed into being
       unconcerned about this issue.

What the bureaucrats give, they must first take away.

   With notable exceptions like Sadam Hussein,
      those who actually control most governments
      are never seen or heard of by the public.

   The oil interests, the money interests and/or
      the illegal-drug interests are actually in control
      of most governments.

You might note the difference between population control in the present United Sates government and populations control in the former Russian Communist government. The main distinction is that the Russian Communist government maintained control by violence and backed up their violence by illusion. The present United Sates government maintains control by illusion backs up the illusion by violence.

**³ This is true of everyone, not just politicians

Religion

Spirituality

Religion teaches you what to think.

Spirituality teaches you how to think.

Religion asks you to trust someone else.

Spirituality invites you to trust yourself.

Religion teaches you to follow what others have done.

Spirituality invites you to follow your own heart.

Religion teaches NOT to question authority.

Spirituality invites you to question everything.

Religion conforms to the letter of established law.

Spirituality is guided by the spirit of the human heart.

Religions teach that you can connect to God only by joining "the church" and by following the church rules — rules defined and laid down by the church elders.

Spirituality acknowledges that every being has his or her own direct connection to whatever it is that we call "God" by way of the God-Self within.

Religion teaches that personal behavior is dictated by church rules.

Spirituality teaches that personal behavior is a function of knowing in your own heart what’s right and wrong and then following that inner guidance.

Religion (Christianity) teaches that heaven is a place somewhere above the clouds.

Spirituality teaches that heaven is a state of being.

Religion (Christianity) teaches that you are a human body.

Spirituality teaches that you are a divine being experiencing an earth-life in a human body.

Religion follows the words of long-dead ancestors.

Spirituality is reborn moment-by-moment right here right now out of your own knowing that you are a divine being having a human experience.

Religion teaches that "our way" is the only true religion — that "our religion" is the one and only pathway to God —that all other religions are myths.

Spirituality teaches that