March 24: Day 83

STEP TWELVE CONTINUED
 
Having recognized the difference between religion and spirituality, we strive to be true to the Spirit within all of Divine Creation and to be a Light to point the way.

Instruction: Release the darkness.

At night when we’re walking in the dark, we can allow our minds to imagine all sorts of sordid terrors that might happen to us. If we were walking the same path in the daylight, our minds probably wouldn’t drift to such terrifying scenarios, because the Light removes shadowy, un-seeable, unknowable, and illusory images and replaces them with what is real. Our dreams can also lead us into terrifying storylines that, for the most part, completely dissipate and are forgotten after we wake. It seems that in our real world we often allow moments of darkness to overshadow our better judgment. At times, we might be prone to interpret things that we see and hear as if the worst case scenario is about to unfold. We might think that a person’s body language is threatening when all it might be saying is that they are having a bad day and they don’t want to be bothered.

We come more fully into the Light when we choose to release the darkness. When we are walking in the dark through a strange area, we can choose what we will allow into our imagination. We can still our minds from any horrors that might have involuntarily come into our thinking and decide that there are no terrors around us but only inanimate objects. We can imagine a restful, slumbering world full of wonders around us that we might not have noticed before the daylight. We release the darkness of fear and allow the light of love to move us past the physically dark world and into a spiritually lighted world. In the waking world, we often let our negative imaginations lead us into dark conclusions that are often no more real than our night monsters. People aren’t necessarily talking about us, and even if they are, it doesn’t necessarily mean they are saying bad things behind our backs. There probably isn’t a conspiracy lurking in the shadows waiting to lure us into a trap of destruction. People are not always judging and condemning us for our beliefs, actions, and associations. Most people have enough to take care of in their own world, and they are not trying to devise ways to disrupt our worlds. When we determine that we will see the good in people and refuse to believe that everyone is out to get us, then we are releasing the darkness and allowing the Light to take its place.

There are exceptions. If someone is in a dysfunctional family where there is a lot of narcissism, mental illness, or addiction, they may have to worry about the things outlined in the first paragraph, especially if their healing or spiritual evolution is threatening the environment enough to make them scapegoats. If you are in this situation, seek professional help so you can learn to discern and create boundaries. That will allow you to live in the Light and look at the darkness from the outside in.

Today’s Assignment is to take a moment to consider your response to the darkness, both physically and spiritually. Are you afraid of the dark? Do you imagine monsters and other creepy, crawly things? You do not have to live in fear of physical or spiritual darkness. The light shines within your being, and you need merely to allow it to surface so that you may see the world in all its beauty and love.