"Be Still and Know I AM God" ~ Katie Davis, Author, "Awake Joy"

Devotion is attending the sacred flame in the Heart, rather than mindfully wishing to change what already is. Upon awakening, one could say that we are in prayer all day long, during all that is appearing or being done. The still center point of the spirit is the permanent factor underneath all of the impermanent experiences. In this manner, life seems pristine and sanctified, regardless of how the mind and its time might judge it. Ultimately, we are being the sacred flame and we are effortlessly faithful to being the glowing light.

We finally realize that every life encounter is flowing from the fullness within and we profoundly appreciate the sacred essence, within which all is appearing. We are very much present to life, but attention is resting as the Heart, instead of projecting into the mind's life and its problematic situations and conflicts. We have directly realized that we are not separate from the divine and therefore do not objectify this dimension as a separate power, such as in duality. What greater prayer is there than to humbly rest as sacred unity and simply allow wisdom to do its work?

This inner vigilance has a feeling of objectless worship and reverence. We sense overflowing gratitude and divine appreciation. Vigilance prevents the confusion of our outer, conditioned existence from invading our inner space. Attention "protects" the Heart's flame, much like we would protect a candle from the wind. Witnessing keeps the inner space open, free and clear. Through silent and still watching alone, we are then able to recognize the slightest nuance of emotional contraction, so that we are free of reaction, when things go wrong or other than expected.

We are able to be gentle, patient and compassionate with the ego and that of so called others. When we are silently witnessing grief and suffering, this conscious allowing transmutes the negativity into the precious fuel for unconditional love, while the light seems to glow brighter and thrives. By being consciously present, the sacred loving burns everything into itself and only the loving prevails. Conscious suffering may not be comfortable, but it does have an end. We are no longer afraid of suffering or trying to escape it. When we allow the heart to crack open, we transcend into the perfect peace that we truly are.

Forbearance is one of the last gatekeepers to enlightenment and perhaps best described through my father's words. When I was very tiny and crying, he would often repeat the well known saying that every cloud has a silver lining. Yes, we may presently be sorrowful, but the primary focus is on the shining that surrounds it. This attentive light dissolves the misery, just like the morning sunlight gently parts the clouds.

Forbearance is the patient acceptance of how we presently feel, with the deeper knowing that we are safe and out of harm's way. We are able to maintain a sense of equanimity and innocence. This field of innocence is within you right now and it is a pathway to Self-realization; the only true answer to enduring fulfillment. Self-realization is love's conscious completion and is the end of psychological suffering.

The invitation of these teachings is to devote to being love's light, instead of tending to the phenomenal display called life experience. If we deny this light, we will suddenly find ourselves in the world again and get lost in the struggle. When this occurs, we merely shift attention back to being the open flame and we regain quietude and tranquility. In this manner, we might even be able to welcome the opposition of others as a rising teacher for the freedom of our inner space.

When we are able to consciously rest as the pure beingness within, we are an open window for the unconditional love to flow into the life situation and into the world. We unconditionally accept life as it is, without getting lost in the mind's resistance. In the refuge of timelessness, the past fades away and we respect life for the miracle that it genuinely is. This sacred dimension allows a sense of continuity and security in our lives. We are able to accept, welcome and honor the ever changing conditions and seasons of the life situation. Free of resistance, life is graceful and we experience an ease in living.

Resistance seems unique to the human being. Nature provides many examples of yielding to life, rather than resisting. In a tropical storm, a palm tree yields to the wind and then regains its graceful sway. A river yields to its gravitational force as it descends a mountain to enter the ocean. Winter yields to spring, just as the ocean yields to the tides. A bear surrenders to hibernation, rather than weathering the snows. An eagle soars in the sky and simply glides with the changing winds. Daytime gracefully surrenders to the intimacy of the night. Thought free, nature meets life as it is and never slips into time.

Surrender is a powerful transformer of negative energy, so that we become more present for genuine living. We surrender our anger, fears and desires to the grace that knows the way. When we let go of these contracted burdens in this manner, we regain a gentle lightness of being and an outpouring of peace that is simply beyond the mind and its ideas. The mind-made self and its delusion of control and manipulation are finally finished.

Since we have stopped feeding our thoughts, we are also free of the emotional body and its suffering. Instead of trying to make life conform to the ego's wants and need-based insecurities, we rest in "not knowing" and every life experience becomes a mysterious adventure. Uncaused joy surfaces and comes to the forefront as we discover that life, with all of its idiosyncrasies and what the mind might call its imperfections ... it is perfection.

I invite you to be as still as your meditation or church’s alter, while life's complexities, struggles and failures are passing by. They are only begging for forgiveness and in the light of consciousness, darkness cannot prevail. Be present when they arrive, compassionately allow them while they are here, and notice that after their passing, only the love that you are remains. In this willingness, life's greatest nourishment is adoration.

Visit the Katie Davis Website at www.KatieDavis.org