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ALL GLORIOUS WITHIN

MY HAPPINESS: AN INSIDE JOB

PREFACE

I believe that Happiness is a natural condition of

our life! I like to assume that the natural condition

of human beings is to be happy. Something within

me assures me that all of us were created to be

happy. It is my humble belief that God created

each one of us to be happy in this world created

by him and to be happy forever with Him in the

next.

Therefore, if a person is perpetually unhappy,

something has gone wrong, something is missing.

It may not be the person’s fault or choice. Be

patient with me as I try to explain WHY I think so

and BELIEVE SO.

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If each of us looks deep within ourselves, is there

not this gut feeling in us, a stubborn, inborn

desire in us to be HAPPY? It is unfortunate that all

of us have at some time or the other experienced

some frustration of this inner most desire for

happiness.

Often enough you and I have had dreams of

places and people whom we felt sure to make us

happy but only to find our dreams fall apart. One

dream after another have risen and collapsed and

our HOPES FORLASTING HAPPINESS have

vanished into thin air. So much so that we think

our HAPPINESS will come from outside things or

other persons but if so, our dreams are destined

to die a natural death.

What then is the Formula for HAPPINESS?

HAPPINESS is an INSIDE JOB: H= I + J

Frustration and despair will be ours if you and I

dream and continue to place our HAPPINESS in

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things or in the hands of other humans.

Disillusionment will always follow when we expect

someone or something else to make us happy.

Our mistake begins when we expect things and

other people to assume responsibility for our

happiness. No one can make us truly happy or

unhappy.

Consequently, there arises in us much cynicism

about happiness and since our search has

beenlargely unsuccessful, many have given up.

They are convinced that, “Life today is a struggle

and then you die.” For many, if not for most,

happiness is only a cruel HOAX.

But for all the disillusion we have experienced, we

never seem to look INSIDE for that which we seek.

We have pinned our hopes on other people and

on objects that simply can’t deliver happiness.

Therefore, to remind yourself, put in a prominent

place this SIGN POST: “YOU ARE LOOKING AT THE

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FACE OF THE PERSON WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR

YOUR HAPPINESS.” Every day believe more and

more in what that SIGN POST says.

One of the questions the human heart is always

asking is this:What will make me Happy?

Unfortunately the answer you and I try to find is in

Comparison and Competition. We tend to get

trapped and the usual points of comparison are:

1. Looks

2.Brains

3.Behavior

4.Accomplishments.

Most of us have been taught to compare

ourselves with others and comparison is the death

of true SELF-CONTENTMENT. Contests and

Comparisons have left life-long scars in many a life

and in competition everyone loses. When we sort

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out all our memories we feel convinced that

HAPPINESS is within the reach of EVERYONE. The

only problem is that if we reach out for

happiness to persons and things, we are going in

the wrong direction. HAPPINESS is and has

always been an INSIDE JOB.

One other important thing to keep in mind is that

HAPPINESS is also a “BY PRODUCT.” Like the

elusive butterfly happiness cannot be directly

pursued. All attempts to seek happiness directly

are doomed to failure. Happiness is attained by

doing “SOMETHING ELSE!” This “SOMETHING

ELSE” can be condensed into 10 LIFE TASKS or

PRACTICES.

Life is a process, a gradual growth process. We can

accomplish our LIFE TASK only gradually.The more

we accomplish the 10 listed TASKS, the more we

shall be able to attain a sense of Peace and

Satisfaction. The more we look within ourselves

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and not to the other persons or things, we will

find a meaning and direction to our lives.

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CONTENTS

1. Practice 1: We must accept ourselves as we

are - In His Time!

2. Practice 2: We must accept responsibility for

our lives - Listen!

3. Practice 3: We must try to fulfill our needs for

relaxation, exercise and nourishment - This Little

Light of mine must shine!

4. Practice 4: We must make our lives an Act of

Love - Love it was that made us!

5. Practice 5:We must stretch ourselves out of

our comfort zones - Bless be the Lord!

6 Practice 6: We must learn to be Optimistic

about life - Walk with Me, O Lord!

7 Practice 7: We must seek Growth and not

Perfection - Lead, Kindly Light!

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8. Practice 8: We must learn to communicate

effectively -I thank my God!

9. Practice 9: We must learn to enjoy the good

things of life -I pray with Joy!

10. Practice 10: We must make Prayer a part of

our daily lives - This is my Prayer!

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PRACTICE 1: We must accept ourselves as we are.

What are the Signs of Self-Acceptance? First and

foremost self-acceptance implies a joyful

satisfaction in being who I am. But it is not easy to

confront ourselves. Do I really accept myself? Do I

enjoy being who I am? Here are the Signs of Self-

acceptance:

1.Self-accepting people are happy people.

Strangely, the first sign of self-acceptance is

happiness. On good days and bad days that

familiar delightful person is always there. Not

much can make them unhappy.

2.Self-accepting people go out to others easily.

The more we accept ourselves as we are, the

more we presume others will like us. So

anticipating their acceptance, we will like to be

with others.We will think of ourselves as Gifts to

be given through self-disclosure and of others as

Gifts to be received gently and gratefully. Another

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aspect is that we enjoy and savour moments of

solitude, otherwise being alone is a painful

loneliness.

3.Self-accepting

people are always

open to being loved

and complimented.

I will be able to

accept love from

others graciously

and gratefully. I will

not be suspicious of

the motives of the

giver of compliments.

4.Self-accepting persons are empowered to be

their “real selves”. I will be free to be ME, it

demands being honest, open and sincere. In short

I don’t have to put on a“Mask” and pretend. We

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have a gut instinct when we are genuine and

honestly portray our true self.

5.Self-accepting persons accept themselves as

theyare right NOW. What matters is who I am

right NOW. Yesterdays “Me” is history and

“Tomorrows me” is unknown.

6.Self-accepting persons are able to laugh at

themselves easily and often. Being able to laugh

at one’s frailty and folly requires inner SECURITY

that is born of only self-acceptance.

7.Self-accepting people have the ability to

recognize and attend to their ownneeds. Self-

acceptance seeks to live the kind of balanced life

in which their needs are met. Enough rest,

relaxation, exercise are nourishment and refrain

from all self-destructive habits like over eating,

smoking, drunkenness, drugs.

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8.Self-accepting people are self-determining

people: I will do what I want, I will do what I think

is right and appropriate, not what others think or

say. No mob psychology or mob spirit.

9.Self-accepting people are in good contact with

reality.No day dreaming or regrets or to think of

“what might have been.”

10.Self-accepting people are assertive, joyful and

challenges us to be assertive and to express

ourselves openly and honestly.

Pride and true humility begin the same way by

realizing and enjoying one’s own goodness and

gifts but then Virtue and VicePart Company. Pride

claims this goodness and giftedness as personal

accomplishments. Pride listens for applause, Pride

is lonely without recognition and reward which I

was not given. Humility is grateful, not grasping.

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What now are the OBSTACLES to Self-

Acceptance?

1.Physical Appearance is the first and most

frequent point of comparison and for many a

serious obstacle. We have to be fearless in asking

how our physical appearance and physical

disabilities and afflictions affect ourself-

acceptance. Here again the only constructive

starting point is utter honesty. Only the truth can

make you free.

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2.Do I accept My Mind? Do I feel comfortable

with the amount and quality of my intelligence I

have? Am I tempted to compare myself with

others on this basis? My self-esteem and

therefore my happiness may be seriously involved

in my answers to them.

3.Do I accept my mistakes? We human beings

unlike animals and birds who have infallible

instincts have to learn most things by trial and

error. Learning growth requires change and

change means “letting go.” How difficult or easy is

this for you? Ruthless honesty is required to come

to the truth and without the truth there is no

growth or joy.

4.Do I accept my feelings and emotions? Can I

feel fear, hurt, anger, jealousy, resentment to self-

satisfaction or self-pity without getting involved in

self-criticism and self-condemnation? Are these

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feelings I would like to conceal in the hope that

they will pass away?

5.Do I accept my

Personality? Each

of us is unique,

different from all

others. Am I happy

to be me? Does my

basic personality

seem attractive or

regrettable to me?

An Exercise that may help. List 5 qualities that

describe you best: plain, diplomatic, funny, verbal,

emotional, involved, lonely, joyful, troubled and

so forth.

Choose a very closeand honest friend to describe

you. Putting the 2 lists together gives you a

starting point. Am I satisfied with who I am and

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would I choose someone like myself for a close

friend?

The human mind is like a garden. If we want

flowers to grow there, it has to be weeded. We

should each begin this process.

Make a separate list of supportive and

healthyideas as opposed to demoralizing and

unhealthy programs that may have been

implanted in us from early childhood.

List all our gifts and blessings and soon the

flowers will start appearing. We will begin to be

more aware of our personal goodness and

giftedness and will gradually replace the ugliness

that has held us captive.

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IN HIS TIME:

In His time, In His time, He makes all things

beautiful in His time,

God, please show me every day, as you’re

teaching me your way,

That youdo what you say in your time.

In Your time, in your time, you make all things

beautiful in your time,

God, my life to you I bring with its winter and its

spring,

May I fathom everything in yourtime?

There’s a time, there’s a time,

Both for sowing and for reaping there’s a time,

Time for losing, time for gain, Time for joy and

time for pain,

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Every purpose under heaven has a time.

There are Times, there are days,

Weeks and months we cannot understand God’s

ways,

If for years we fail to scan, what is His Eternal

Plan?

We’ll remember that HE CAN, all the time.

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PRACTICE 2: We must accept responsibility for

our lives

Accepting full responsibility for all our actions,

our emotional and behavioral responses to all

life situations is a great step forward, towards

human maturity. However the tendency to blame

our responses on other people or things is as old

as the human race.

We learn to explain away our failures on the

groundwe did not have the right materials to work

with or our stars were not proper and sadly we

are not in contact with reality. As a result we do

not get to know ourselves and do not mature or

grow.

Growth begins where blaming ends.The opposite

of this blaming tendency is to accept full

responsibility for our lives, to become owners, not

blamers. Responsibility ensures that we will grow

up. In spite of our childhood upbringing, in spite of

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habits deeply ingrained, full responsibility

implies,“I don’t want him or anyone else to decide

how I am going to act. I am an action person and

not a reaction person.”

When my Adult is in charge and not my parent’s

upbringing or childlike emotions and I think

independently and make rational decisions, then I

take my cues

from within my

own self-

fullresponsibility

of my life.As

responsible

adults, we can

fully experience

them and then

decide how we can express them constructively

and maturely.

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If I own my responses, take responsibility for my

emotions and behavior, I will get to know myself. I

will grow up. If I try to explain away my actions

and feelings by shifting responsibility to other

persons or situations, I will stunt my own growth.

A question? Does assuming full responsibility

really make us happy? Not automatically nor

immediately. If we assume full responsibility we

are free to recognize and revise our responses and

this is a pathway to peace and personal

happiness. I can’t change the world to suit mebut I

can change my responses to the world I

cannotchange.

Happiness is an inside job. All of life is a process.

Weare all on a journey to the fullness of life. And

we are meant to enjoy the trip. I am sure that the

two legs, which weuse to walk through life are the

first two practices outlined here.

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1.Joyful self-acceptance an appreciation of our

human uniqueness.

2.A willingness to assume full responsibility for

every step and mistakes along the way.

LISTEN, LET YOUR HEART KEEP SEEKING:

Listen, let your heart keep seeking, Listen to His

constant speaking,

Listen to His Spirit calling you, Listen to His

inspiration,

Listen to His Spirit calling YOU.

He’s in the sound of the thunder, in the whisper of

the breeze,

He’s is in the might of the whirlwind, in the

roaring of the sea,

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He’s in the laughter of children, in the patter of

the rain,

Hear Him in cries of suffering, in their moaning

and their pain.

He’s in the noise of the city, in the singing of the

bird,

And in the night-time, the stillness helps you listen

to his WORD.

He speaks through all your companions, through

the friendly and the foe,

Therefore give ear to His Spirit wherever He may

blow.

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PRACTICE 3: We must try to fulfill our needs for

relaxation, exercise and nourishment.

We human beings are not grounded angels or

pure spirits trapped in a prison of flesh. It is not

that simple!

The fact isthat we are a magnificent oneness that

has three interconnected parts: Body, Mind and

Spirit! Now this can get very confusing at

times.We want to uncomplicate this one sided

human mystery. We don’t like this

interrelationship of parts. We are reluctant to

admit that the material body could influence how

we think and what we chose.We are also reluctant

to admit that mind and spirit can work out their

hidden agenda on the poor body. We want to

deny this kind of oneness and interconnectedness.

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Still it is true. The twisted mind and deprived spirit

can make us physically sick. Like it or not, we are a

mysterious oneness with three sensitively

interconnected parts.The body has an effect on

the mind and spirit. And so caring for our body is

indirectly caring for our mind and spirit. Such

caring will always be necessary for a full and

happy life.

Our happiness requires that all three of these

interconnected parts be cared for. No one can be

truly happy unless the needs of all these three are

provided.We are mainly talking about the body

and it’s need for relaxation, exercise and nutrition.

STRESS: whether the

source be pleasure or

pain, stress can easily

make us unhappy. The

Four basic sources

through which stress

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enters our livesare:Environment, Our bodies, Our

minds, and Our spirit.

As far as Environment is concerned there is

always some challenge of adaptation. We are

called upon to endure cold, heat, noise, crowding,

living with one another, time deadlines, threats to

personal security and self-esteem.

The Body also offers many challenges: rapid

development of adolescence, the slow toll of

aging, illness, accidents, sleep or diet.Laziness to

keep our bodies trim and strong and beautiful by

daily exercise either in a gym or at home. Brisk

and long walks, regular meals at regular times,

strict control of our diet and care not to eat out of

time or indulge in chocolates and sweets. Once

over weight, it is difficult to move and even to

work. A good handsome or beautiful body is

definitely an asset and help to happiness.

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The Mind - We see ourselves as inadequate or

unloved or unworthy and our failures are

catastrophic. In each case the result is Stress.

Today the regular habit of reading is limited to the

Newspapers or Magazines but there is a need to

develop in our youngsters a love for reading good

healthy books on self-development and self-

growth. There is also the need to read good

Novels in our spare and leisure time.

Unfortunately the Mobile and the Internet, very

useful if well

used, is now

thoroughly

abused.

Television if

not strictly

controlled at

home can

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have disastrous effect on our Youth and

pornography when it grips our minds, can easily

destroy our happiness.

Spirit -Deprived of Spirit can cause us great

discomfort. We think we can get along without

the security and comfort of Faith but soon

experiencepainful loneliness and anxiety causing

depression. The Spirit registers Stress when we

can’t find meaning in life. There is imminent need

of Solitude and Quiet spent in personal prayer for

at least half an hour daily and an Examination of

Conscience at the end of each day and a regular

Diary of daily events.

Some Stress seem to help us, others tend to

diminish us. Stress in our lives has been compared

to the friction of a violin bow. If there is no

friction, there is also no music,if there is too much

friction, there is only painful screeching. Helpful

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Stress gets us going, exercises us, and energizes

us.

Music - the listening of soft and soothing music,

not with the ear phones, can be a great help. But

even more if we can learn an instrument like the

Guitar or the Key Board or the Flute, the Tabla and

the harmonium, our Stress will be deeply reduced

and controlled.

THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE

This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine,

Let it shine, let it shine.

The light that shines is the Light of Love, Lights the

darkness from above.

It shines on me and it shines on you and shows

what the power of love can do.

I’m going to shine my light both far and near, I’m

going to shine my light both bright and clear.

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Where there is a dark corner in this land I’m going

to let my light shine.

On Monday, God gave me the gift of love, Tuesday

Peace came from above, and On Wednesday He

told me to have more faith, On Thursday He gave

me a little more grace. Friday he told me just to

watch and pray, Saturday he told me just what to

say, On Sunday he gave me the power divine to let

my little light shine.

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PRACTICE4: We must make our lives an Act of

Love.

For those who have not loved, old age is a winter

of loneliness. The greatest human talent was

buried in the ground so that it would not be lost.

And in the end everything was lost. No one else

came or cared. There was only a loveless and a

lonely person waiting for death

On the other hand and for those who have loved,

old age is a harvest time. The seeds of love

planted so carefully and so long ago have matured

with time. The loving person is surrounded in the

twilight of his or her life with the presence and

caring of others. What was given so freely and

joyfully, has been returned with interest.

What is love? It is the most frequently misused

word in the English language!

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1. Love is identified as - feeling. When a feeling

turns us on, we speak of “falling in love.” When

the feeling ebbs, love is suddenly a matter of

history. It’s

over. All

infatuation or

temporary

emotional

attraction can

so easily be

confused with

love.

2. Love - “Need for love.” When a person comes

along and fills one of our needs, we say, “OH, I

love you!”Real love:“I need you because I love

you” is quite different from,“I love you because I

need you.”

Love is always a freely given gift to you.

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3. Real Love is a decision and a commitment.

Before I can really love someone I must make an

immediate decision which commits me to

whatever is best for the one I love. Love moves

me to say, to do, to be whatever the one loved,

needs. “What is the loving thing to do?”

It is an ideal but it is the only life principle that

can bring us happiness and not money or fun or

pleasure or applause. The best drive is simply to

be a loving human being.

But the only question: “What is the loving thing

to do?”This is the decision of love. This is

commitment. There is an order of priority

corresponding to the level of commitment,

family before friends, friends before strangers

and so forth...

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LOVE IT WAS THAT MADE US

Love it was that made us and it was Love that

saved us.

Love was God’s Plan when He made man, God’s

Divine Nature is Love.

Born of God’s Love we must love Him, That’s why

He made us to love Him.

But only when we love all men, Can we partake of

God’s love.

Love is a wonderful

thing, Joy in our heart

it will bring.

Where there’s true

love there is God and

where there is God

there is Love.

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PRACTICE 5:We must stretch ourselves out of our

comfort zones.

We are all pilgrim beings in process of becoming.

Each one of us must march bravely toa personal

drummer, climb our personal mountains,

struggle for a destiny that is ours alone.

I am “I” and you are “You”. Sometimes it seems

much safer just to follow the good old beaten

path. It seems safer to be a member of a flood.

“The Road less travelled” always seems so risky.

But we are all pilgrims, each on the way to a

personal private destiny. There is no “one road

for all.” We are each gifted with an enormous

but unique potential.

However in our rendezvous with destiny, we have

to take chances, run risks, get rejected and hurt,

be knocked down but yet get back on our feet.

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We must learn to survive defeats. It is all so wild,

so terrifying, and so adventuresome.

Pilgrims on the way to a promised land, it would

seem above all to be courageous and very tough.

Sometimes it

will feel that

determination

alone,

compels us to

go on. It is so

tempting to

find a place in

the sun and

stay there.

Our fertileimagination can and will make up a

thousand rationalizations.

“That is not forme” and “This is just as good” and

therefore Why try something else?

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We can send out a thousand small distress signals.

Bleeding hearts will surely see them and rush to

our rescue. Our rescuers will also make excuses

for us,theywillassure us that they will like us justas

we are and there is no need to find something

MORE!

So we are doomed to stay in the same place. We

do the very same things we have always done.

Our actions and reactions become very

predictable.Some will call us dependable. Others

will be able to see that we are paralyzed by our

fears. We are stagnant and stifled. Each day

becomes a carbon copy of the previous. Each year

begins to look very muchalike the last one. Our

bones ache a little more, new wrinkles mark our

forehead and faces.There is less energy. But

otherwise we are just the same person we have

always been, living in a world without challenges

or change!

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BLESS BE THE LORD!

Bless be the Lord, bless be the Lord,

The God of mercy, the God who saves.

I shall not fear the dark of night,

Nor the arrow that flies by day.

He will release me from the nets of sinful men,He

will protect me from their wicked hands, beneath

the shadow of His wings, and I will rejoice to find a

dwelling place secure.

I need not shrink before the terror of the night

norstand alone before the light of day, no harm

shall come to me, no arrows strike me down, no

evil settle on my soul.

Although a thousand ones have fallen by my side,

I’ll not be shaken with the Lord at hand, His

faithful Love is all the armour that I need, to wage

my battle with the foe.

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PRACTICE 6: We must learn to be Optimistic

about life

In one sense most of us are good Finders and our

human searches are often a success. We all seem

to find whatever it is we are looking for. The

object of our expectation seems to be there all

the time, waiting to be discovered by us.

From childhood on, somehow some of us seem to

have braced ourselves for disappointment. Of

course we then find disappointments in

abundance. Life often becomes a scenario of

broken dreams and disillusions. Our heroes always

seem to collapse and reveal feet of clay. What can

go wrong, does go wrong and after wandering

through all the trials of life, we find we come to a

road that is a dead end.

Others, however, have been guided by a different

compass we seem to be moving along ahigh road

of life.The scenery is beautiful and the people

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along the way are very helpful. We feel ourselves

surrounded by goodness and good fortune. There

may be a few dark days here and there, but in the

end everything seems to work out well. We know

by personal experience what the Lord meant

when He looked upon creation and upon man and

beamed with joy: “It is all very GOOD!”

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Here is a prayer worth reciting with Faith and

Hope:

Walk with me, O my Lord

Walk with me, O my God through the darkest

night and day.

Be at my side O God, hold my hand and guide me

on my way.

Sometimes the road seems long, my energy is

spent, and then God I think of you and I am given

strength.

Stones often bar my path and there are times I

fall, but you are always there to help me when I

fall.

Just as you calmed the winds and the fury of the

seas, conquer the storms, O God, that threaten

me.

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Help me to pierce the mists that cloud my heart

and mind, so that I shall not fear the steepest

mountain side.

As often you healed the sick and gave sight to the

blind, help me when I’m down to hold my head up

high.

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PRACTICE 7: We must seek personal GROWTH

and not personal Perfection.

It all seemed so noble, so generous, and if I may

say so myself, it seemed too saintly: “Reach for

the Top. Give it your Best. Don’t settle for

SECOND BEST”

The very rhetoric of zeal to do one’s best seems to

send fire into one’s veins. But all that is indeed

rhetoric and far from reality and is very un-

realistic. These ideas and thoughts often come to

the best of us.

The results of our zeal for perfection often leaves

a thick and bitter taste in our mouths. Deep inside

us will often be this feeling:“I tried so hard. I gave

it all I had. It was my best shot.” Often, we will

pound our fists in frustration or wave them at the

sky deeply discouraged that we are imperfect and

think we have made a mistake thinking that trial

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and error is my fate and condition. It is painful

that all that we have tried has failed.

But under all this sham and pretext that we can be

perfect, there has always been that gut feeling

that we could never make all our dreams, with all

our efforts come to perfect fulfillment. This

obsessive compulsion about Perfection is

actually the cause of many, very many falling

into deep depression and discouragement. A

quest for PERFECTION will always leave room

only for failure and discouragement.

Let us feel sad

and sorry for all

those people out

there trying to

wage war with

the same demon

of perfection.

They die inch by inch, day by day. And even when

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they never really die, they lose all zest for life and

living. They crawl into a corner of hopelessness

and there they wait for death to say:“It’s over.”

Perfectionism is indeed a suicide course.

THEREFORE SEEK GROWTH TO ENJOY rather than

ACHIEVE!

If Perfection is a torturous ideal, growth is not.

Growth sees life as a process during which skills

are gradually developed. Learning to play the

piano starts with laboriously fingering the scales

over and over again. Then we proceed to

melodies and these melodies become more and

more “classical”.

Growth knows that even the journey of a

thousand miles begins with one step. Time and

practice are the essence. Actually, once we get

the knack, gradual growth is much more fun than

instant arrival.

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Here is a surprise bonus. If you set out to enjoy,

you will actually do a better job than if you are

determined to

make it perfect.

May be you don’t

believe that yet but

I think some day

you will. If you are

in school, set the

dials of your mind

to enjoy the courses you are taking as much as

you can. I‘ll bet the results will surprise you. If you

hold a job, try to do your work with as much

enjoyment as possible, you will most likely notice

an improvement in your performance.

Setting out to achieve perfection, by contrast, will

become stressful and demoralizing. The end result

will probably be discouragement. And

discouragement always wants to quit, give it all

up.

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LEAD KINDLY LIGHT

Lead kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom, Lead

thou me on;

The night is dark and I am far away from

home,lead Thou me on.

Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to see the distant

scene, one step enough for me.

So long the power hath blest me, sure it still will

lead me on;

O’er moor and fen, o’er crag and torrent till the

night is gone.

And with the morn those Angel faces smile which I

have loved long since, and lost awhile.

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PRACTICE 8: We must learn to communicate

effectively

The human

condition has

been

compared to

a person

trapped at

the bottom

of a deep dry

well. All calls for help go unanswered. They seem

to be blown away by the winds that blow at the

top of the well. Hope begins to wear thin then,

when hope seems certainly to be on the death

bed, an answering call comes from the top of the

well, “We know you are down there,we are

coming with help. We will rescue you.”

Now there is an explosion of joy. “We will rescue

you.” And in the heart of the trapped

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person,“Thank God, someone finally knows that I

am here.”

It is likereal communication. The person who

opened up to another and has been heard, no

doubt feels some sense of relief and exhilaration.

“Thank God, Thank God, someone finally knows

what it is like to be me!”

Communication therefore is a MUST and an ACT

of LOVE.

The secrets that we keep hidden inside us

becomes the poison that makes us

sick.Sometimes it is so- I cannot tell you what I am

not telling myself.This is an extreme.

Communication is a nice word.Everybody seems

to be for it as they are for love and peace.

Communication has been called the lifeline of

love. In its root meaning it refers to an act of

sharing. It implies that two persons or more have

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something in common because it had been

shared. In its most profound sense

communication is the sharing of the persons

themselves. It implies openness and trust!

Communication as an Act of Love

Two convictions

needed in us as

essential perquisites.

The first is that we

must think of

ourselves as gifts to

be given. The second

is that we must

regard others as gifts offered to us. The exchange

of these gifts is communication. It is an act of

gracious hospitality to welcome another into our

confidence and it is gracious of others to take us

into their confidence.

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An important element too is listening. How

important it is to listen with the head and with the

heart to build genuine communication.

There is also the danger and temptation to QUIT.

How important it is to keep in mind the motto:

“Winners never quit and Quitters never win.”

I thank my God each time I think of you and

when I pray, I pray with Joy!

Now there is one thing I am sure of, He who

began his work in you,Will see that it is truly

finished, when the day of reckoning comes.

I thank my God each time I think of you, and

when I pray, I pray with Joy!

I pray your knowledge will be deepened, your love

be mutual and strong

That when you will reach perfect goodness,

Then to God you will belong.

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PRACTICE 9: We must learn to enjoy the good

things of life

The Talmud is a collection of rabbinical wisdom

that dates back to the time of Jesus. One of the

lines in the Talmud that caught my attention to is

this, “Everyone will be called to account for all

the legitimate pleasures which he or she has

failedto enjoy.” Most of us, I suspect have even

thought about this. God’s will is that we enjoy all

the good things he has provided.

We are all Pilgrims.

We are on our way

to a holy and

happy place - Our

Father’s House.

Just call to mind

the Pilgrims who

landed on the

shores of the New

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World. They set out with determination. Imagine

if they had kept their eyes down and their noses

to the grindstone, suppose they kept grumbling

and mumbling, think of all the marvelous

experiences that they would have missed. The

skies, the lakes, the sunrises and sunsets. The

changing of seasons, the springtime through the

summer and the fall with the witness of winter.

How foolish these Pilgrims would have been with

downcast eyes and dreary determination.

So many of us are like the foolish pilgrims.

Whatever we are determined to do and wherever

we are determined to go, we become so

preoccupied that we miss much of the beauty

along the way. We lost the art of enjoying.

Sometimes I am sure that the Talmud is right.

Enjoyment is an Art God wants all of us to

cultivate.

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“A cheerful heart is a good medicine but a

downcast spirit dries up the bones.”

Enjoyment is also

an Inside Job. Just

as happiness

comes from a

source inside each

of us, so does

enjoyment... As

the old Roman

philosopher tried

to tell his contemporaries,“It’s all in the way you

look at it.” Remember the two men who looked

out of prison bars, one saw mud, the other stars.

Enjoyment is more a mindset than a set of

circumstances. Enjoyment is more a choice than a

chance.We all know that some people enjoy life

much more than others do. And I think we all

know that those who enjoy lifeare not necessarily

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more gifted or fortunate than the joyless. It is just

that some have their interior dials set to enjoy life,

while others seem to insist on struggling through

life.

“I thank my God each time I think of you and

when I pray for you, I pray with JOY!”

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PRACTICE 10: We must make Prayer a part of our

daily lives!

The famous scientist Albert Einstein prayed and

listened to God saying to him: “Be stilland know

that I am God”and when he approached he

said:“When I approach this God I must take off

my shoes and tread lightly for I am on sacred

ground.”

An important condition for success in prayer is

Surrender! The very word terrifies us but the fact

of the matter is that Surrender is a nonnegotiable

condition of prayer. The story I shall now relate

will prove this point.

A woman from humble origin, who lived ina cold-

water flat, would struggle to save money for a

treat, one fine day met her husband-to-be. She

could not believe her ears when he asked her to

marry him. Among other things he had some

wealth, so they moved to the suburbs where

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there was warm water, large windows, and green

lawns. There were flowers in the summertime and

soon there was the marvel of children. It was all

that this woman Jean wanted.

Then one day she began feeling physically sick.

Eventually she went to a doctor and he put her in

a hospital for tests. She was not at all prepared for

it when the doctor looked at her sadly and said:

“Your liver has stopped working.” She almost

screamed at him: “Are you telling me that I am

dying?” With downcast eyes he said solemnly:

“We have done all we can.” Then he turned and

silently left her hospital room.

She felt a fire of anger ignite inside her. In her fury

she wanted to tell God off. So, in her hospital

gown she struggled through the corridors on her

way to the Chapel. She felt terribly weak and

hadto support herself against the wall as she

moved along. When she entered the chapel, it

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wasdark. No one else was there. So she

proceeded up the center isle on her way to the

altar. From her room to the chapel she had been

preparing her speech:“Oh God, you are a fraud, a

real phony. You have been passing yourself off as

love for two thousand years. But every time

anyone finds a little happiness you pull out the

rug from under their feet. Well, I just wanted you

to know that I have had it. I see through you.”

But as she neared

the altar, on the

carpeted steps were

woven: “LORD, BE

MERCIFUL TOME A

SINNER.” Suddenly

all the angry words,

all the desire to tell

God off, was gone.

All that was left

was:“Lord have mercy on me a sinner!” Then she

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put her head down over her crossed arms and

listened. Deep within herself she heard: “All of

this is a simple invitation to ask you to turn your

life over to me. You have never done that you

know. The doctors here do their best to treat you

but I alone can CURE YOU.”

In the silence and darkness of that night she

turned her life over to God. She signed her blank

check and turned it over to him to fill in all the

amounts. It was the hour of God. It was the

moment of her surrender.Finding her way back to

her hospital room she slipped into a deep sleep.

The next day after the blood andurineanalysis

tests, the doctor gave her the good news: “Your

liver seems to be functioning again.”

Like Job, God had led her to the brink but only to

invite her to surrender. It is an important

prerequisite for the communication of prayer.

“Thy will be done” is an enormous and

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frightening concession. It leaves us standing

naked and defenseless. No masks, no protective

barriers. Just: “Be still and know that I am God.”

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Behind Cover:

SIGN POST: YOU ARE LOOKING IN THE MIRROR

AT THE FACE OF THE PERSON WHO IS

RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR HAPPINESS: Every day

believe more and more in what that SIGN POST

says!

Life is a process, a gradual growth process. We

can accomplish our Life Task only gradually. The

more we accomplish the 10 listed TASKS the

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more we shall be able to attain a sense of Peace

and Satisfaction. The more we look within

ourselves and not to other persons or things, we

will find a meaning and direction to our lives.