The Consciousness of Peace

There are two different kinds of peace that one can experience:

Psychological sense – meaning relaxation, rest, quiet, a break from the busy and chaotic lives we lead.
Spiritual sense – meaning transcendence, oneness with God, and all-knowing experience that all is well.

There is a way of cultivating your life so that you experience both of these. Living in the state of peace represents a very high level of consciousness. Consciousness researcher Dr. David Hawkins from Sedona, AZ developed a consciousness scale based on his research. It is a scale that goes from 0 to 1000 and has 17 different levels ascribed numeric value to help us understand the growth of consciousness. His consciousness research has shown that the state of peace transcends even the states of love and joy, giving rise to a blissful knowing that all is one and all is perfect in whatever it's current condition or form. A rosebud is a perfect rosebud, not an imperfect rose. A book half conceived or written is not an imperfect book, it is a perfect conception and beginning. Everything in life is seen for it's present moment perfection.

What does this tell you about the spiritual state of peace? It gives rise to the blissful knowing that all is perfect in whatever its current condition or form.

This reminds me of a day I spent traveling many years ago. It was a winter trip to Florida from Boston, which can always be a bit unpredictable due to New England weather. The whole trip ended up taking 18 hours to finally land in Tampa. I don't remember many of the details. What I do remember, though, was the presence of an older nun who was also making the journey. As you can imagine, travelers were anxious, disgruntled, restless and stressed. I noticed this older nun sitting across the waiting area from me, her face placid, her eyes serene. We finally left Boston, only to arrive in NY with another set of delays. The old nun however, sat peacefully across the way, never looking the least bit concerned or uncomfortable, despite the long day we were all facing. Finally I couldn't stand it any longer, so I went and sat next to her and started to chat. I said you look so calm, so peaceful and honestly not even tired after this long day. What is it that has you display such equanimity in these circumstances? She smiled sweetly and said something I'll never forget. She said, “Why would I fret over this? I am exactly where I am, and where I am is always the right and perfect place for me to be. There's no where to go. I'm just happy to be right here now.”

How many things do we have in our lives that we don't relate to this way? Circumstances and people that we think should be some other way. What is causing our inner disharmony? Life, or our own level of consciousness, the way we think and view the world?

As a coach, one of my coaching mantras is “Love people the way they are, cuz they're going to be that way anyway!” This is a statement of acceptance, which ultimately leads to the state of peace.

Taming the ego, surrendering what is happening to God, are incredible statements of faith and actions that lead to peace. I believe that Philippians Chapter 4 is one of the best treaties on how to live in peace that I've ever read. It teaches that we can learn to live a peaceful, transcendent spiritual life through the development and implementation of four faculties:
Joy
Affirmative Prayer
Focusing our minds on higher things
Contentment

4:4-7 Rejoice in the Lord always. Let your gentleness be known to all. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

I love this. It teaches us affirmative prayer. Here's the steps:
Bring joy to your prayer
Do not worry about anything
Pray to God – which means to have a conversation with God, share your thoughts and concerns and then,make your requests known to God, that's what supplication is.
And do so with thanksgiving. That's what Charles Fillmore taught about affirmative prayer – give thanks in advance for the fulfillment of your needs.

What stands between the peace of God and our daily experience? Our minds... so in this next section, verses 8 and 9, Paul is teaching us how to cultivate a peaceful mind.

8-9: Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think on these things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me or seen in me, put it into practice, and the God of peace will be with you.

How many of us use our mental capacities thinking about what is pure, excellent, admirable or praiseworthy? Don't we most often find ourselves ruminating about what's NOT working in our lives. That, to me, seems like a manifesto on how to create inner turmoil!

And this last section by Paul, who wrote this while he was in prison, teaches us that we can develop the capacity for inner peace, or as Paul states here, contentment, which is closely aligned with peace. He writes, "I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether in plenty or in want. I can do all things through he who strengthens me."

I invite you today to cultivate a consciousness of peace. Following the example set by Paul, learning to be content in whatever circumstances, finding joy in what you have rather than misery in what you do not. These are the keys to transcendence, and to the consciousness of peace. God bless you.