How about this for an affirmation? I am one with the Infinite Wisdom of God. As such, I allow the grand thoughts of an Unlimited Thinker to Inspire me with their grandeur, to Enliven me with their possibility and to Support me with their resources.
Said more simply: You are ONE with Divine Mind.
Chopra said it this way, “Underlying the infinite diversity of life is the unity of one all-pervasive spirit. There is no separation between you and this field of energy.”
Ralph Waldo Trine said, “Anyone who has come into a knowledge of his or her true identity, of his or her oneness with the all-pervading wisdom and power - this makes it possible for laws higher than the ordinary mind knows of to be revealed to him or her.”
Emerson: “There is a soul at the [center] of nature and over the will of every man.”
Eckhart Tolle: “Jesus realized his oneness with God and what he attempted to do was show all of us how to realize our own oneness with God also.”
Unity, that God is the source and creator of all, and that we are spiritual beings, created in God’s image.
Others might say that you and one with The Universal Mind, the Allness, First Cause, the Infinite All Knowing, the Mind of God or God itself.
You are ONE with Divine Mind.
There is one life (by whatever name we use to identify it) – omniscient and omnipresent – which sources all life in the universe. The fullness of this one life saturates its creation, yet this one life remains greater in the same way that the fullness of the ocean saturates the droplet, yet the ocean remains greater; in the same way that the fullness of the sun saturates the ray, yet the sun remains greater.
There is one life – eternal and unlimited – which, by its very definition, exists without opposition. As I’ve said so many times before, there is no force for evil, there is no universal antagonist, there is no dark force battling against this one life for possession of your soul. Yes, as inconvenient as it is to admit, the devil didn’t really make you do anything.
This one life is eternally creative, forward-oriented and causal to the limitless ideas and grand possibilities which swirl and circle about you in every moment, forever presenting themselves for your consideration. This one life is causal to the limitless ideas and grand possibilities which have swirled and circled about all of humanity since the beginning of all time.
In other words, the same genius thinker which has sourced the greatest revealers throughout history, is the same genius thinker which sources you today.
Or as Emerson reminds, any “over-estimate of the possibilities of Paul and Pericles, [and] under-estimate of our own, comes from a neglect of the fact of an identical nature.”
This one life is eternally creative, forward oriented and causal to the limitless ideas and grand possibilities which swirl and circle about you in every moment, forever presenting themselves for your consideration.
These limitless ideas and grand possibilities challenge the boundaries of your small self-estimations, they squeeze the air from your puffed-up humilities, they dare the comforts of your imagined securities.
These limitless ideas and grand possibilities are inherently far-too-bold and far-too-large – fundamentally unbelievable and essentially unachievable - and they have to be, because limitless ideas and grand possibilities require you to grow in consciousness, they require you to uncover your potential.
These limitless ideas and grand possibilities exist outside the narrow boundaries of society’s status quo. So, as we might be tempted to turn to society for some modicum of affirmation – for some nod of approval - of the limitless idea or grand possibility which we’ve chosen to entertain, may we come to understand that true faith is to turn from the wisdom of society and toward the wisdom which resides within our own hearts and minds; for it is only the wisdom which resides within our own hearts and minds which is adequate for the fulfillment of the idea or possibility.
May we come to understand that true faith is to turn from the wisdom of society - rooted in predictability and circular idleness – which would tease and taunt that business idea which presses your mind to launch, that song which inspires your tongue to sing, that poem which enlivens your fingers to write, that desire which presses your heart to express. May we come to understand that true faith is to turn from that very wisdom – rooted in mimicry and false security - which would disparage and demean your existence itself in countless unceasing ways.
Rather may we come to understand that true faith is to turn toward the wisdom which would lift us from such monotonous mundanity, toward the wisdom which would place us squarely on the path of independence and courage, the path common among all individuals of unprecedented genius and all proponents of meaningful change. Or as the adage goes, it’s only as we step outside the crowd that we position ourselves to go beyond the crowd.
And while an individual’s unique brand of revelation may stand him or her against family, or church, or school, or history, or precedent – the fleeting punishments will pale against the enduring rewards.
It was on a day in 1960, that a young girl walked into her new school ready for 1st grade. For her, it was just another morning in New Orleans. And I think there’s some grace in that innocence. But where would we be if not for the courage of Ruby Bridge’s mother? And where would we be if not for the courage of Ruby Bridge’s teacher?
May we come to understand that true faith stands fast in the truths which society’s wisdom cannot perceive. True faith stands fast in the company of those who would tease and taunt, in the company of those who would disparage and demean, with Emerson’s encouragement echoing through their spiritual ears and I quote, “The fact that I am here certainly shows me that the soul had need of an organ here. Shall I not assume the post? [Or] shall I skulk and dodge … with my unseasonable apologies and vain modesty and imagine my being here impertinent?”
Emerson goes on to remind us that as nature works by falling – meaning, the ripe fruit falls, the planets fall, even human walking and the miracle of birth are acts of falling – as nature works by falling, it is only as we align with nature’s ease that we can discover real strength. It is only as we align with nature’s simplicity that we can discover real power.
In the end, successful people are so because they have abandoned something of the struggle and despair – something of the “wringing of hands and gnashing of teeth” which is of no assistance whatsoever to the higher laws which are ever ushering life forward in their calm and experienced assuredness.
Successful people are not so because there is something more in them. Successful people are so because there is something less in them. Successful people are so because this divine mind found an unobstructed channel.
So, to conclude with more words from Emerson, “Let us take our bloated nothingness out of the path of the divine circuits. Let us unlearn our wisdom of the world,” and let us “place ourselves in the middle of the stream of power and wisdom.”
May every woman give to her world the full, unapologetic, unedited, unabashed, unabridged, uncut version of herself. May “Every man let out the [full] length of the reins.” May all people allow the light to shine through a transparency of character, that all who might look upon us will see nothing but truth.
If you drove yourself somewhere today, if you ordered coffee today, if you checked your email today, it’s because someone made welcome an idea or a possibility — far-too-bold and far-too-large. And it’s because that someone turned from the wisdom of society and toward the wisdom within her own heart and mind for its fulfillment.
If you are a woman, if you are of a certain age, if you LGBTQ-identified, if you are a person of color, if you are a WASP, if you are a Buddhist, a Hindu, a Jew, a Pagan, an Agnostic, an Atheist, a Democrat or a Republican; if you are a Seahawks fan or if you are a Rams fan, quite simply if you are here, it’s because someone made welcome an idea or a possibility – fundamentally unbelievable and essentially unachievable. And it’s because that someone turned from the wisdom of society and toward the wisdom within his own heart and mind for its fulfillment.
You are ONE with Divine Mind.
So, instead of acquiescing to the wisdom of the world, let’s embrace a higher wisdom. Instead of waiting for the infinite to contract, let’s arise from any finite sense of self. Instead of basking in personal smallness, let’s commit to something of God’s grandness in us, through us, as us.
Let’s return to our affirmation: I am one with the Infinite Wisdom of God. As such, I allow the grand thoughts of an Unlimited Thinker to Inspire me with their grandeur, to Enliven me with their possibility and to Support me with their resources.