“Learning to Love the God Within”

“The Rocky Road to Inner Peace”

The path of love is not easy, it’s full of ups and downs… ins and outs. It takes a person and rips them into a million little pieces, and then puts them back together again like Humpty Dumpty. It takes our guts and wrenches them so hard sometimes that we don't think we will make it through the process. Yet we hold on knowing that in the end everything will workout, and we will find great peace, bliss, and contentment… and eventually we do.

It starts when we are kids, and we take on all the guilt and shame of our parents who have yet to heal themselves. Thus the guilt and shame is passed down through generations, from parent to a child over and over again. Then something new happens and someone decides to break the mold. They're tired of the same old pain. And they want something different, something that fills them up from the inside out. Instead of eating copious amounts of food, drinking alcohol, doing drugs, being hooked on TV, sex, or a million other things… they want to be free.

Thus they start taking classes in spirituality, they find a person who’s willing to listen, they starting doing counseling, and start changing their life completely. While in the middle of this process they may have a relapse and fall down, way down into the gutter. But something pulls them back up, for they’ve seen a small glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel, and at that point nothing will stop them from attaining their goal. Sometimes it starts by just looking in the mirror and telling the one they see “I Love You”. And they may start to laugh, or they may break down in tears, unable to look in their own eyes. But eventually they are able to say with great confidence from their heart “I Love You”.

Then they may start learning meditation, and it seems like a very difficult task. But with persistence, and someone guiding them, they over time begin to have long periods of peace. Peace that they’ve never known before, peace that seems overwhelming, and peace that seems undeserved at times and brings tears to their eyes. Some will falter at this point, but eventually find themselves in the stillness of their own heart… and start to understand love.

Now they’ve had a glimpse of love, but that's all they need, so without delay they start the process of changing their diet, changing their eating patterns, and all of their deep-seated habits. Then the true work begins, they start confronting their issues, their fears, and everything the keeps them from moving forward in life. Sometimes this hits them so hard it's like a 2 x 4 across the forehead… a wakeup call from the divine. And finally they can look back on their past, and see all the good that has come from all the pain and suffering.

Then they become a lifelong student of life, and they start to notice all the little things that most people don't notice. And they begin to question themselves about their actions and their thoughts. And thus finally they can stand outside of a situation, or a problem, or even a challenge and can look at themselves from a third party perspective. Thus all the drama and the chaos, and entrenched habits start to melt away. Because, for the first time they are starting to learn the most important lesson of all — how to love themselves. At that point all the people they had in their life disappear. Except those who were true friends to begin with, friends who loved them no matter what they do and where they go.

Thus over a period of time, they not only learn to love themselves, they also learn and to love everyone around them. They still have some slight ups and downs but the whole process is much easier. They no longer have giant bouts of depression, binge eating, or allowing drama to take over their life. They are getting better, they are healing, and they know from a deep place inside, that the most important person they can heal… is the one they see in the mirror.

And once they are really on their way, they start to help other people. Now they know that they can't help anyone, until they help themselves. But once on the road to salvation, absolutely nothing can stop them, because for the first time they know what they want and how to get there.

Many Blessings to Everyone!

Dr. Paul Haider