Spiritual Bureaucrats

Regularly unfortunate stories appear where someone has suffered because a simple clerical mistake occurred resulting in untold grief. If you have ever dealt with a bureaucrat, someone who quotes the “code” but seems bereft of common sense, you know how hard it can be to rectify what appears to be a simple mistake or for them to even consider a commonsense approach that fails to meet the “letter” of the law.

Living on the Spiritual Basis we have learned that Spirit (our relationship with Our Father) is what is important, the law (formal forms of worship) merely a tool to be utilized to assist us in Spirit. The law may and does change as our perceptions mature, but Spirit is eternal, inviolate. Unfortunately many individuals follow the letter of the law, spiritual bureaucrats if you will, at the expense of the Spirit, assuming the negative self actualizing moral high ground of self-righteousness and spiritual pride.

To avoid the bureaucrat’s trap we keep our focus on Spirit, our demonstration of His love and guidance and utilize formal forms and rituals simply as aids to this end, never as a substitute. A simple prayer delivered from the heart has the power to move Heaven itself, where as rituals performed by rote, sans any true emotional content, is merely the exercise of religious bureaucracy. To be vital our faith must be lively, fluid, unbounded by secular thinking and limits. Additionally we must pray for the stultified spiritual bureaucrats of the world, for even though they trouble us, being children of the same Father, they are in dire need of our compassion in Spirit.

© Vincent Lee Jones Living In Spirit All Rights Reserved

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The Spiritually Superior Trap

The pitfall of self-righteousness has trapped and pulled down uncounted individuals. In most endeavors in life when we reach the top (think any politician, sports star, billionaire, The President etc) there is a natural sense of awe surrounding the individual and their accomplishments. Accomplishments however do not elevate one spiritually “above” anyone else, regardless of how much money, power, fame or titles they may garner. Additionally the destruction wrought by self-righteous entitlement thinking on those who were born into wealth and position would be cliché if its effects on them and those they touch was not so heartbreaking.

The greatest and most heartbreaking falls occur however when an individual garners a sense of superiority from the spiritual work they have done. Though they began with good motives, they succumbed to the trap. When we grow spiritually, unless we stay ever vigilant, we can lose ourselves in self and begin to “look down” on those seeking guidance from a self constructed tower of superiority to the point of even becoming unwilling to continue to experience new spiritual winds, losing sight of our role as messenger, our demonstration of spiritual principles the message, no one of greater import before God than any other. Entitlement thinking may be the dubious luxury of the rich and famous, with or without personal accomplishment, but spiritual entitlement thinking is deadly.

Living on the Spiritual Basis we demonstrate the spiritual precepts we have learned in our daily life, for we cannot transmit that which we do not live ourselves. If we are attempting to teach a lesson we do not practice we will ultimately fail and fall victim to the dictum: “do as I say, not as I do” which is the golden gate of self-righteousness. We avoid this by staying vigilant and when spiritual entitlement thinking begins to make its self known, for it will, we turn to God and thank Him for knowing Him better, for keeping us “right” sized, our lives the demonstration of the new basis of living.

© Vincent Lee Jones Living In Spirit All Rights Reserved

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The Trap Of Self-Righteousness

“Never try to force other people to accept spiritual truth.”  No one, absolutely no one will permanently accept anything forced upon them. Sure, they may go along for a time but as soon as they can escape, they will. It is amazing how many times this has been attempted through history, whether it be political, restricting living conditions, restrictions on personal freedom and initiative or individual expression, these attempts always fail eventually. The attempts, though always ultimately failing, continue because self-righteousness is a powerful aphrodisiac.

Remember, self-righteous is not the same as being righteous before God. The righteous individual embodies humility, the self-righteous is holier-than-thou. The righteous, caring and thoughtful. The self-righteous, preachy and self satisfied. As children of the most high we strive to be righteous but stand guard watching for the trap of self-righteousness. 

Today when someone tries to impress upon us their point of view as the only one, the “my way or the highway” approach, we avoid face to face combat or debate. Living on the Spiritual Basis the truth has become evident, that: the realm of Heaven is roomy, all inclusive, never exclusive or forbidding to those who earnestly seek. So our path is to pray for those still trapped in the bondage of self-righteousness and release them with love, not confrontation, to turn the other cheek. 

The sands of time are littered with those who forgot or ignored this, though often they began with right motives, they became victims of self-righteousness, believing their own press, lost in appreciation of their personal rightness. They forgot that all are equal in God’s eyes, beholden to no one save Our Father, their path and spiritual growth the ultimate demonstration in truth. So we do testify in truth, we "Do not preach a sermon, but demonstrate one with our actions."

© Vincent Lee Jones Living In Spirit All Rights Reserved

#The Secret, #Wayne Dyer, #Serenity, Enlightenment, #Zen, #Emmet Fox, #How To Be Happy, #Golden Key, #Pope Francis, #Chopra, #Jesus, #Einstein, #AA, McRaven,