Island Lessons…

As I reflect here surrounded by beautiful palm trees, staring at the turquoise blue sea at Grace Bay in Turks and Caicos, I am instantly mindful of the simplicity of life absent the many distractions that accompany regular life. Often as human beings, especially those of us prone to overthinking, we tend to overcomplicate realities and draw conclusions that are not true. We give too much credence to our own thoughts not considering that those thoughts may have been manipulated by the appearance of things. But, a quick trip to an island getaway quickly reveals the greater simplicity that rules this life. At the end of the day, there are two realities from which to choose; good and evil, light and darkness, positivity and negativity. These are indeed island lessons.

In terms of time, each day is a brand new day that never existed before. It may seem very similar or in some instances the same, but it is not the same. It is a brand new moment in time. Our job thus becomes to live and enjoy the moment that is now. How many times do we sour the present dragging about the memories of the past? How often we mar the new moment by associating it to negatives that have happened before. It seems experiences are become unpleasant not so much from what is occurring now, but rather by a backlog of negative emotions and feelings we attach to the present moment. The past exists nowhere but in our minds. The new day offers an escape. In the new day all things are new and open to a different interpretation, that is if we are willing to change our minds. We revolutionize our lives by the simplicity of changing our minds. Many of the problems we perceive are not problems at all, but instead learned negativity that expects the bad instead of the good. Then our lives follow our expectations and perpetuate more and more of the same. When a moment is new (as it truly is) then a new world of possibility exists. We are not mired in the darkness with no hope for the future. Who are we to determine how things will turn out yet we greatly influence the outcome by what we believe is true. It never dawned on us the part we play. If we look for good we will find it. Similarly, if we look for bad we will find it also. The determination is not made by the things we see, but rather by our subject of focus; what we look for and expect. The natural positivity of young people is born from a lack of negative experiences yet. But time marches forward and negativity begins to take hold. Yet no amount of negative past impacts the present unless we by wrong thinking allow it to do so. The simplicity of the island life is to choose the positive instead of resorting to the familiar negative.

All of us have an ideal condition of life likely built into us by our Creator. We wish it could be this and lament that it is not that, yet we fail to take into consideration the part we must play. If we want to find the good, we must live and think where the good lives. God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. We find Him in the light. Indeed the solutions to all of our life problems are found in the light. When we are in the darkness, not by intention but rather by manipulation and deception, we cannot find the answer because it does not exist there. The darkness blinds our minds to the greater realities. The darkness obscures and clouds. It is a giant trap from which escape seems impossible. The solution isn’t so much to pray and pray wishing things would change. The solution is to get our minds back to the light where spiritual realities exist and hold sway. The darkness that may have assailed you assailed you in the past. However, in the new moment there is no darkness unless you give it a place; a space from which to operate. How good of God to provide us with such a simple solution! The lesson of the island is to keep choosing light regardless of what things look like.

It seems that no one would willingly choose the evil. The pain, labor and difficulty brought about by evil is obvious. Similarly, no logical person would enjoy walking in the darkness. Yet the deception comes when we fail to recognize that the negativity is the darkness and comes about from the evil. It is no wonder as the whole world is engulfed in negatives. The adversary rules the world in that negativity. The media, the news channels, the people who surround us are all stuck in that negative cycle, not willingly but by reason of him that rules the world. Yet our immediate escape and rescue comes about not by analyzing the darkness or endless consideration of evil, but rather by changing our focus back to the light. Get your mind back to the light. What does God say about your dilemma? What is God’s answer of truth for your situation? What is God offering you as a means of escape? You don’t have to reach a sate of spiritual nirvana nor do you need to make yourself clean enough or worthy enough. Instead you take hold of God’s spiritual solution by changing your thinking patterns. Get out of the darkness by changing your mind. It is your mind and it will always be your mind. The negatives of the world do not make you negative. Instead you cooperate with evil by remaining in the darkness when the light is available. While this not going to be easy, it is always simple. The things of God are always simple. Error complicates and confuses us. Error preys upon the things we do not know. Error takes advantage of our human minds, namely by the things we can see, hear, smell, taste and touch. Trying to defeat the evil by our human reasoning is a fool’s game. How could you defeat something you cannot perceive by your senses mind with your senses mind? The island lesson is to remove complication by getting back to the only two choices that exist. Then, choose the light in the only moment that is, the moment called now.

You certainly don’t need to venture to the Caribbean in order to grasp these realities. But, a little repose from the wheel of things is always good. On vacation or during times of leisure we are more free to consider what has been happening to us. We can consider our ways and see if those ways are bringing us what we want or more of what we don’t want. More of what we want is always found in the light where God is. Choose the light which is ever the greatest lesson there is. Indeed the lesson of the islands is simplicity with an ever present ability to choose. Choose light!

Just some good thoughts…