The magical prayer that was proven to make marriages stronger.
August 17, 2017 By Tom Rapsas 0 Comments
Taylor Spurgeon via unsplash.com A 20-year study was recently completed at Florida State University on the positive effects of prayer—and the results were startling. It was proven that praying for your partner’s well-being, and wishing them divine guidance and blessings, makes marriages grow happier and stronger. The form of prayer used in the study was petitionary prayer, a prayer with a specific request, in this case for your partner. To be sure the study would be... Read more
The Lazy Person’s Guide to Mindfulness.
August 10, 2017 By Tom Rapsas 0 Comments
Jacob Nasyr via unsplash.com Are you busy? In today’s modern world, it seems we all are. We cram our lives with so much busyness that we, in effect, become spiritually lazy. We don’t allot the time, or have the will power, to engage in a regular spiritual practice—including the recommended two daily meditation sessions that can lead to greater mindfulness (the ability to focus our attention on the present moment). There may be an easier way... Read more
The Connection Between Ghosts, UFOs and God
August 3, 2017 By Tom Rapsas 0 Comments
Steinar Engeland via unsplash.com Here’s an interesting fact: People who are not religious are twice as likely to believe in ghosts and UFOs as those who are religious. It seems that the less religious people are, the more likely they are to endorse ideas about hauntings, UFOs, intelligent aliens monitoring our lives and assorted government conspiracies. These facts come from a new research study by Pew Research and Clay Routledge, a professor of psychology at North Dakota State University.... Read more
Sage Advice From the 14th Dalai Lama: Don’t Be a Jerk
July 27, 2017 By Tom Rapsas 0 Comments
The Dalai Lama, 2014, by Senterpartiet via Wikimedia Commons I recently wrote about the 5 Basic Rules to Living a Righteous Life. But I’m now feeling the need to write a prequel to those five rules. Let’s call it Rule 0, the rule before the rules, the one baseline behavior that all of us should follow to be a part of the human community. The intent of this rule is expressed in the words of the14th... Read more
A “Friend” Dies at 49 and Leaves Me Asking 3 Questions
July 19, 2017 By Tom Rapsas 0 Comments
Sasha Freemind via unsplash.com I’m not on Facebook much, but a few days ago I stumbled upon a startling post on my feed. It was from a “friend”, a woman named Jolie, who was announcing her own death and memorial service. Upon closer inspection, I realized Jolie had given the keys to her account to someone else—and actually had passed away at the age of 49. Like a lot of Facebook friends, I didn’t really know... Read more
Tony Robbins on Living Your Life in a Beautiful State (of Mind).
July 12, 2017 By Tom Rapsas 0 Comments
Amy Treasure via unsplash.com In his recent book Unshakeable, the life philosophy guru Tony Robbins lays down the basics on smart financial investing. In a nutshell: stick with index funds, diversify, and invest with your head, not your heart. Yet most interesting for the spiritually inclined are the chapters toward the end of the book where Robbins steers away from financial advice to make an important point: Financial well-being means nothing without mental and spiritual well-being.... Read more
Back to Basics: 5 Essential Rules for Living a Righteous Life
July 5, 2017 By Tom Rapsas 0 Comments
Joshua Earle via unsplash.com As we grow spiritually, we can sometimes get ahead of ourselves. We may think we’re leading a pristine spiritual life, regularly attending religious services, reading the latest spirituality best-sellers, engaging in a yoga or meditation practice. But we can sometimes forget the basics—the simple daily acts that can enrich our lives and the lives of those around us. I was reminded of this when I picked up a book by someone I... Read more
Finding God in Silence: Centering Prayer in 5 Easy Steps
June 28, 2017 By Tom Rapsas 0 Comments
Flash Bros via unsplash.com In silence, we come to know God. The evocative quote above comes from Benjamin Riggs and his book Finding God in the Body where Riggs looks at the elusive nature of God and how and where we might connect with the divine. One way is through a practice that is known as centering prayer, an act that might be thought of as a Christian version of meditation. Centering prayer was originally referred... Read more
The Day Mahatma Gandhi Threw His Sandal Off a Train
June 20, 2017 By Tom Rapsas 0 Comments
Matthew Bedford via unsplash.com Last year, I featured excerpts from several college commencement speeches. This year, I’m focusing on one. It’s a speech by a U.S. senator from my home state, Cory Booker of New Jersey, given to the graduating class at the University of Pennsylvania last month. Booker is an excellent storyteller and he kicked off his speech with a fascinating anecdote about Mahatma Gandhi that I’ll paraphrase below. Mahatma Gandhi had a busy schedule... Read more
Take off the mask. Tell your story.
June 14, 2017 By Tom Rapsas 0 Comments
William Randles via unsplash.com There are two sides to all of us. There is the public-facing side, the person we are at work, at social functions or out and about in our community. And then there’s the side behind the mask, our private side, the place where we keep our innermost beliefs, our hopes and dreams, our fears and struggles, our relationship with God. It’s this private or inner side that is most fascinating. It reveals... Read more
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