Well, 2023 is here. We are living in some crazy times (says everybody that lived throughout history)! The A.I. take over is just around the corner (Matrix, anyone?). Nah, humans will have the last word, I think. As my buddy Luke Bricker puts it,
“…is this going to be some crazy robot takeover and humanity will be regulated to pods, like the Matrix.
Personally, I don’t think that’s how it will go.
(That is, if we choose to use A.I. and not be used by A.I.)
I believe there is hope.
And, more than hope: need.
And, even more than need: purpose.
Purpose is at the heart of every human.
Purpose is what it means to be human.
And humans have an incredible ability to be… human.
Funny how we tend to forget that.
A.I. can have all the knowledge and information in the world (it does)
but it lacks something fundamental to purposeful human existence that is twofold:
Heart and Wisdom
Which is the heads and tails of the same coin.
We cannot confuse knowledge as wisdom.
We cannot misunderstand smart as heart.
If you want to really feel significance in this world,
don’t worry about information,
press into your humanity;
Press into your heart.
(no batteries or charging ports included)” for more content like this check out: https://thisiscurrent.org/
Yes! It’s time to step into the heart and wisdom of our human existence. How? Well, It’s a new year new you, right?! We can start using this heart and wisdom without needing any other type of counterpoint to reference…wrong! I don’t think it works that way. We cannot be new in the sense of being something that doesn’t partially resemble our past selves. We only can become renewed by becoming a more visible version of our true selves.
Think about it. The shit that we go through in this life sometimes leaves scars. Those scars sometimes will never fully heal. It will be a constant battle of working through them and learning how to give grace to our previous selves in the process.
The old is always in the new. This doesn’t mean that we must be chained down by our past mistakes – it just means that we do not have to be ruled by them. Whatever comes our way, we can always lean into the mercy of all our self-versions and be ready to absorb whatever lessons they have for us.
What helps me show grace to my shadow self (I know you need my two-cents, right?) is sense of humor. Not taking your past imperfect self is to know that your current present self still isn’t perfect and never will be. We must embrace this with lightness. A sense of humor helps me merge within this process verses a stern soberness.
It reminds of the Seinfeld episode where Kramer uses a very unhealthy tactic to deal with stress. He used the mantra “Serenity now” any time things got stressful or out of hand.
Well, as the episode rolls on, instead of dealing with his issues with heart and wisdom, he held them in. This method didn’t pan out. Kramer’s ends up going on a tangent by exploding and destroying everything is in path. It was “Serenity now, insanity later”. Yes, Seinfeld can be a spiritual guide to a renewed state of mind (who knew?). Just shows you what a little comedy can do for your mental health.
Like Joseph Campbell said, “The psychotic drown in the same waters in which the mystic swims with delight”. If we don’t let the pain be our teacher, our minds won’t be able to engulf healing and liberation.
Letting heart and wisdom guide our renewed self must come with a demeanor of kindness and humor for us to become image bearers of God (I.e., our true selves). We cannot let uncertainty, pain, and work hinder us from our journey to wholeness. It’s all part of the journey! No matter how chaotic the “matrix” gets, having a loving awareness of self will assist us in bringing a good and healthy reality. May the Spirit of this renewed year bring whatever you need to experience the messy (but necessary) way of being, my peeps!
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