"I Crap Bigger than You"

Remember Curly from City Slickers? That was one of his more colorful one-liners in the movie. Jack Palance's character was on the surface a rough tough mountain man with no more an aptitude for deep thought than the cattle he drove. But later in the movie Curly lets Billy Crystal's character in on the meaning of life...

"This," Curly says, holding up his forefinger.
"What's that," asks Crystal's Character.
"That's what you have to figure out."

What Curly meant was that the meaning of life is different for each one of us and it is up to us to find out what that one truth is. This is exactly where I feel like I have been for the last few weeks; trying to find my one truth.

Last night I had a conversation with a good friend of mine. He also grew up in a Christian environment so I wanted to get his perspective on Christianity and see what he believed. I wanted to see what his one truth was and why. He talked about his core values which I liken to Curly's one truth. In the end of the movie Billy Crystal's character discovers that his one truth or core value is his family. However, my friend took it a step further than Curly. He talked about his three basic core values. Like me, he had a good family environment growing up so his first core value was also family. His second was the knowledge that he can accomplish anything and the third was a belief in a higher power.

Not one core value but three which work hand in hand shaping who we are. I think that these are the core values that most people can relate with, and I would venture to say, that if they aren't in tune with these values, they are missing out on an important part of life.

Family is key. We are shaped by those who are close to us and we create our reality based our the system of morals and beliefs they bring us up in. This is not to say that we are always shaped exactly in their image but more as a causal effect of their image. Even those who had a poor family environment should not reject family as a core value. It is still and will be an integral part of their life. To push it out would be to shut off a part of themselves.

The second core value is my favorite because it makes me feel free! "I can do anything I want." When he said this, he didn't mean throw caution to the wind and act on every impulse, throwing morality out the window. He meant he is in control. He can accomplish whatever he chooses. This for me resonates deeply because the biggest frustration I have had with Christianity is that it teaches us to hold back our free will and follow the path that God has chosen. Even if that path will make us unhappy in this lifetime, we will gain ultimate happiness when we go to heaven. Well, what if Christianity is wrong?

The law of attraction states that I can shape the universe in my favor; that I can use the focus of my thoughts to bring me what I want in life. If you look at this broadly, it seems silly at first. But think about this... Have you ever woken up in the morning and stubbed your toe on the foot of the bed, cut yourself shaving or spilled hot coffee on yourself and said "Oh great, its going to be a long day."??? What did that day turn out like? Probably a day you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy. Try waking up in the morning every day this week and make you first thought be "This is going to be the best day!" You could even write it on your mirror with lipstick of dry erase maker. If you focus your energy everyday on being positive and thinking about how good every minute is going to be, you WILL have a good week. Try it and let me know how it goes.

The third core value is a belief in a higher power and I will segue with an interesting point my friend made last night when I was talking about the law of attraction. Christians say God made man in his own image... What if that image included the ability to shape the universe as he did when he created it? When he said that a light bulb went on. I firmly believe that something more powerful than we can imagine created the universe and I believe that it is God. Some may call it something different but for me that is the image that works (probably because of the influence of core value #1). My belief in this higher power is that of the Deists perspective. God created the universe and set it in motion and it is so perfect that it does not need his intervention in it. George Washington called God a "Grand Clock Maker" and other Deists have coined the phrase "Absentee Landlord." However, with the comment my friend made, the pieces are coming together for me. I think that God may have made a universe so intricate and unique that there are universal laws which will always be in effect. Some are the obvious ones like the law of gravity and the law of relativity, some may not be so evident like the law of attraction.

So here is how it all comes together... God created the universe and set it in motion billions of years ago starting with the "big bang." His plans began to take effect over time creating the earth, life and eventually that life evolved to the dawn of mankind (no by God's direct hand but as a result of the plans he set into motion "in the beginning"). He intended us to be in his image including our ability to utilize the laws of the universe to shape our own reality (this includes both the usual laws of science and the law of attraction). Our families give us a starting point for how we will view the universe and that starting point will always be a huge part of our being. Ultimately, however, it is our responsibility to find our truth and apply each our the three core values to help us find happiness and live a virtuous life. If we do those things we will have fulfilled God's intention for his grand design and we will someday join him in heaven.

Sorry for the extremely long blog but hopefully it makes some sense and bring out some things you hadn't thought about. I may very well be wrong and am still stewing around these new ideas myself, but I firmly believe I am living and thinking the way God intended me to. Your feedback is always welcome...