Chill

The ideas given here are spiritual. We believe in a spiritual existence, while religion, on the other hand, is more so the manipulating of spiritual ideas by humans. Neither is condemned nor endorsed here. Please realize that the use of the word 'God' is to represent the all powerful force of love which moves us and not meant in a religious way, necessarily. We feel as though all religions have their merit and are all, in fact, teaching the exact same set of beliefs.
Also, the masculine pronoun will be used to describe God as it is traditionally. We give no such frivolous opinions and furthermore, to take offense to such a thing means you are in the wrong thought.

What is the meaning of life? It's no wonder that we have a hard time finding the answer to this when you consider that the universe is so giant and always expanding, that you could never reach the end of it in your lifetime, even if you traveled faster than the speed of light, which would, in essence, stop time for yourself. (Think we see things as a reflection of light. What if that light never caught us?) ANYWAY, to answer the question of life is like a worker ant explaining our country's economy, multiplied by trillions. Something like that!

The bottom line is that we don't NEED to know exactly why. We have no problem boarding an airline jet to take us to new places or to visit relatives, without knowing the first thing about aeronautics. However, we may encounter turbulence and be frightened.

A man who is a pilot and has done all of the hard work necessary to study flight will not be disturbed. He will peacefully rest through the event knowing that all will be well, because he understands what is happening. Even he, though, doesn't REALLY know what makes a plane fly. He knows the scientific principles which make it possible, and he knows the tendencies of the plane in certain situations; but, he doesn't know how science works. It always goes back to God.

So, we are not looking for knowledge as much as understanding. At any rate, they are achieved through intense devotion and plain old "hard work," kind of. Prayer and Mediation are our ways to connect to God and learn His ways. The former is emphasized more in western religions, such as Christianity, and the latter is found in the eastern religions, like Buddhism or Hinduism. Both allow us to find answers.

Prayer is simply a re pore with God, who is basically seen as very human-like in the west, even sending a human "Son" to save us and often holding conversations with us. That is what prayer is: a conversation with God.

The problem is that prayer usually turns into something we do when we are in trouble. So, we usually either beg for God's help or plead with him as to why something so horrible has happened to us, implying that it was His fault somehow for causing it or allowing it. This is hardly a healthy conversation. What would you say to a friend who only called when they needed something?

That is not to say that communicating with God in the best way we know how is a bad thing, but perhaps we should treat him the way we would treat a good friend. Actually, since our purpose is to answer our lifelong question, treating God like a friend who has the answers you want would be the way to go.

Treating God like a friend would be to stay in constant contact with Him. Thank Him, compliment Him, and do favors for Him the way he does for you. Do His work by helping others...etc.

Meditation is an excellent way to acquire the understanding necessary to live a worry free life without hesitations or regrets. Unlike a conversation, meditation is where you simply open up to Him. Similar to a radio station, you clear your mind's bandwidth in order to connect with God and receive His radio station. God is always transmitting live.

Many in the west are discouraged with meditation because the eastern followers stress the importance of certain posture and ritual that may be uncomfortable to them. Although, to repeat the ancient traditions in this way is a sign of discipline and reverence which should be important, they are not mandatory to receive "WGOD" radio. Sitting as westerners do in a chair or laying down will be fine.

All that is needed is an initial thought on which to concentrate and perhaps repeat (called a "mantra"). Forget everything else and just think on that topic and allow God's presence. This, again, takes discipline and a desire to do it, but with enough work, it can be a wonderful experience each morning or whenever an idea arises.

Another discouraging fact about meditation is that those truly enlightened souls often have marvelous and detailed experiences. Revelations in the Bible, for instance, is said to be a meditation of John The Baptist. When this does not happen for a person they feel they have failed. But ,to simply ponder on an idea or to be completely silent and let God into your mind is NEVER a failure and will always have a positive effect. You will be surprised, as well, what may happen after a long time of this.

God will let you in on his plan if you ask!