Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Self-reflection

Self reflection is the mark of a true adult and one who is growing in spirit.  To reflect is to observe how you are affecting others. For example, you may be unhappy with how someone treats you. In reflection you look at the effect you are having on the other person -- your words, your tone of voice, your body language. How do you feel about this person?  If there is anything negative you can be sure it is showing up somewhere, obvious or not, in words, tone, and body.

In spiritual intelligence you look at your opinion and your effect. Ask Spirit/God/Universal Mind to be able to see this person as Spirit, et. al.  would. In other words, stop looking at this person through the eyes of your ego, and see them as Spirit would. This means that you let go of all judgment.  It means that you recognize that Spirit/God is in everyone, and so you see God in each person.

How would that vision change how you would think of someone?  How would that vision change how you feel about someone?  How would it change how you behave toward them?  Can you see yourself then with the same eyes? What you see in others is a reflection of what you see in yourself.

William Frank Diedrich  Author of The Road Home,
at  http://intelligentspirit.com

Monday, July 30, 2012

Shaking a bad mood

Yesterday I spent over an hour in prayer/meditation/contemplation connecting with Spirit/God/Universal Mind. Less than an hour later I completely lost my spiritual connection as I involved myself in human interactions. I experienced anger, frustration, disappointment (in myself), and sadness.  It took a long time to shake it.

How did I shake it? I remembered something I wrote on this blog. I said "Thank you."  In saying thank you I expressed gratitude to my mind for showing me where I am, to my body for letting me know through emotion, and to Spirit for being there as I went through it. Thank you immediately change my thinking and also the way I felt.

Spiritual intelligence isn't about always being in a "God-state", blissed out, or constantly doing spiritual/religious kinds of things. It is about making the choice, when you find yourself deeply immersed in ego, for the peace, strength, love, and wisdom of the Inner Voice instead.

Whenever we fail, we can choose again. Whenever thoughts fall into negativity and despair, we can choose again.  Intelligence is the ability to choose. Spiritual Intelligence is the ability, whatever is going on, to choose Spirit over ego.

In my case, sometimes it takes a while to remember.

William Frank Diedrich, authpr of The Road Home.  Found at --
http://intelligentspirit.com/catalog.html

Friday, July 27, 2012

Ego Games

Blaming, complaining, worrying, excessive self-criticism, feeling "small", being better than -- these are all ego games. They keep us busy -- so busy that we have no time to find out who we are.

There is no rule that says you have to play the game. At any moment you can give your game to Spirit and ask for guidance. Breathe deeply and stand tall; get quiet; and take steps toward your real goals. Ego games are distractions. Clarify what you really want and assume it will work out well. Then live your life. Let it unfold. Don't judge what happens as good or bad. You don't really know. Just say thank you and find your joy.

William Frank Diedrich. author of The Road Home: The Journey Beyond The Spiritual Quick Fix.
http://intelligentspirit.com

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Who runs the show?

Who runs the show?  Spirit speaking within you, or your ego?  Ego is about fear, need for approval, need for control, need for perfection, and need to be right.

Ego pulls on you to think and act fearfully. The world around you must conform a certain way to make you happy and it never quite happens. Seek and do not find is the motto of ego.

From Spirit, you live from the inside out. You recognize that things don't just happen. You influence them and you decide how to respond. Your experience of what happens is created by you. Who creates your experience for you -- ego or the Voice of Spirit within?

Ask for guidance on how to perceive what happens and listen. You will know what to do.

William Frank Diedrich, author of The Road Home
http://intelligentspirit.com

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Surrender guilt

Spiritual Intelligence is choosing the Voice of Spirit over the many voices of ego.  The ego is about guilt. Spirit is about wholeness. The ego is fear; Spirit is love.

Collect your guilty thoughts and surrender them to Spirit. Release the burdens you have carried. Inhale deeply and release your breath. Release and breathe. Restore your connection to your Source. Let Spirit perceive through you. Ask for this perception that you may see clearly. There is no guilt.


William Frank Diedrich author of The Road Home: The Journey Beyond The Spiritual Quick Fix.
http://intelligentspirit.com

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Miracles

A miracle is a form of alignment. It isn't special. It's natural. It is you aligning your thinking with your Source. Seek first the kingdom and all else will be added.

There are miracles every day. Whenever you set aside your opinions, your judgments, and your fears, you set the stage for miracles. Your personal thinking cannot create a miracle. When the thinking of Spirit flows through your mind, miracles happen.  Get yourself out of the way and let it flow.


William Frank Diedrich, author of The Road home: The Journey Beyond The Spiritual Quick Fix.
http://intelligentspirit.com

Monday, July 23, 2012

Begin each day

Begin each day with a pause. Pause to pray or meditate. Be thankful that you are here. Envision a successful day. Feel it. Ask for guidance that you will see clearly, that you will know what to say and what to do.

When you are in alignment with Spirit you are a blessing to the world. You are truly helpful. Your thoughts and actions have a healing effect on both the world and on you.


William Frank Diedrich
Books at  http://intelligentspirit.com

Friday, July 20, 2012

Pray Unceasing

Pray unceasing. To pray unceasing is not to speak or think an endless series of memorized words and phrases meant to appease, impress,  or otherwise influence an anthropomorphic God.

It is to stay conscious and open. Stay conscious that God, or Spirit, or Universal Mind, is omnipresent --  around you and within you. Stay open that you are guided, not by a fearful ego, but by the One Presence and Power. You always have access. Tune in and stay tuned. When you forget, and the ego takes charge, choose to tune in again.

This is the discipline of spiritual growth; to lean toward the Inner Voice at all times.  Practice is discipline. Practice develops your spiritual intelligence.


William Frank Diedrich, author and speaker,
http://intelligentspirit.com

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Perfection in You

"Let me see myself as you see me." This prayer helps to grow your spiritual intelligence. If you believe in a Creator that sees you only as a sinner, than your "god" is small. If you believe in a Creator that is unconditional love, that is the One power and presence of all creation, your "god" is big. The bigger you see your "god", the bigger you see you.

If you are an expression of the only power and presence, and that power and presence is everywhere present, including within you, then what are your possibilities? Ask. See the perfection that is stamped on your soul. The scripture says that you are made in God's image. What would that look like if you lived as if it were true? Ask that you may see. Get quiet and listen. Feel it.


William Frank Diedrich, author of The Road Home at
http://intelligentspirit.com

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Take time and ask

Pause before you speak.  Take time to get quiet before you write. This allows the Inner Voice of Spirit to come through.  You have access to this wisdom. It is ever present.

When we speak quickly or fling words onto a document, it is often the ego doing the work. Fear steps in. The need for approval emerges. Being right takes charge.

The result is that others are put off. They sense your fear and it is often seen as a threat. The clashing of egos prevents us from clear communication.

Take time and be quiet. Ask for guidance. Set your opinions and judgments aside. Allow the presence and power of Spirit to speak/write through you.

William Frank Diedrich, author of The Road Home,
http://intelligentspirit.com

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Take Time

Take time today and be quiet. Listen. Consciously connect with the Spirit within you. This is your oasis. This is the source of your wisdom and creativity. This is your Source.

Whenever we expect someone or something to deliver, to be our source, it will, at some point, fail us. Don't make other people and things your god, your source.

Let your Inner Voice guide you toward what is right for you. Then take action. Abandon your concerns about what others think. Release your worries.  Step forward with confidence. Walk into a room as if you own it.  Be conscious of what is going on around you.

This does not make you better than someone else. When you act with this kind of confidence it is simply you living authentically.

William Frank Diedrich, author of The Road Home  at
http://intelligentspirit.com


Monday, July 16, 2012

Who am I?

Who are you?  You are not your body. You are not your job, or your home, or your car.
You are not the roles you play: father, mother, son, daughter, boss, employee, etc.
If not these things, then who are you?
Are you your thoughts? Your personality?

"Who am I?" is the world's most difficult question. Yet, if you ask it, and listen for a response, you will learn.

Are you a spark of the divine? An expression of God? If these are your answers, then what do these statements mean? Contemplate them. Meditate on them.

If you speculate that you are not the identities listed above, then you can become a non-judgmental observer of your thoughts and behaviors. This perspective will offer you wisdom and compassion toward self and others. It will make it easier to implement changes since you have withdrawn your ego investment in these identities. Asking who you are will mostly tell you who you are not.

Keep asking.

William Frank Diedrich
Books at http://intelligentspirit.com

Friday, July 13, 2012

This Moment

What of the future?  It isn't here. We worry about it. Will the money come?  Will sickness stay away? Will my loved one be okay? Place the future in the hands of Spirit (God, Creative Intelligence, Source).
How do you feel right now? Make this moment the best it can be.

Love the people you are with. Can you see the best in them? Are you able to love your life exactly as it is? Notice how you feel and face it. If you are joyous, celebrate it. If you are grateful, smile.   If you are angry, be angry and let it go.  If you are worried, straighten up and breathe. Breathe deeply and see yourself enjoying life. Then step forward with confidence. You can do this!

Clear your mind and allow the Inner Voice to guide you. Check in with yourself often and ask what do I want? Move through whatever you are feeling toward the joy that you seek. Can you be joyful that you are alive and that Spirit is guiding you now?

William Frank Diedrich speaker and author of  The Road Home: The Journey Beyond The Spiritual Quick Fix.
http://intelligentspirit.com

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Seeing

It is easy to see problems other people have and mistakes they make. We then begin to "need" others to continue to make their mistakes in order to justify our own thoughts and behaviors. If I say you are controlling, and resist your control, then I need you to be controlling. We are two players in the same play.  What if you behaved as you do, and I decided not to play? You could act "controlling" all day and I could smile and say "Thank you."

What if there was nothing to fix in others? What if others have been playing the roles we have assigned to them? We would not be the victims of others, then, would we?

In your prayer or meditation, ask to see others as they truly are, without your judgements and opinions to cloud your vision. This is "seeing" another. I only "see" you when I stop judging you. I "see" you when I call upon the Spirit in me to help me see the Spirit in you.


William Frank Diedrich
Books at http://intelligentspirit.com

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Intelligence Within

There is an intelligence within you beyond your every day functioning. It is not threatened by anything. It does not have opinions. It does not judge. You have access to this intelligence through prayer, meditation, contemplation, and through questioning your closely held beliefs.

Call it forth. It is wisdom. It is Love. It is the Presence of God that is within you. Let this Inner Voice guide you.  You are a blessing to the world.

William Frank Diedrich is the author of The Road Home: The Journey Beyond the Spiritual Quick Fix.
http://intelligentspirit.com

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Spiritual intelligence in relationship

There are persons in life who present a way of inducing greater understanding of all that you may be. You know that you can change only what is within you. Attempting to change another will not bring you peace. It will bring more conflict.  Allow others to be as they will, for that is theirs until they choose another path. Accept who you are and adjust yourself to see the perfection that exists in all others. This will bring you peace.

Ask for help in seeing the perfection in others. Switch from your ego view of people to a Spirit-led view.

From The Road Home, by William Frank Diedrich at
http://intelligentspirit.com

Monday, July 9, 2012

Releasing negative thoughts and emotions

Emotions are the body's response to thought. We often carry emotions that weigh us down---shame, guilt, resentment, bitterness, envy, and more. These emotions come from patterns of thoughts learned, in many cases, when we were children.   Examples:
• A feeling of shame, smallness, when attention is called to your body or part of it; or when you are criticized; or when someone dominates you.
•  A feeling of hurt when it seems someone is rejecting you, or you anticipate being rejected.
These are just two examples.

These feelings are based on thoughts you hold, many of which are unconscious. Know that the thoughts are not real. This is not your identity. It's not who you are. Face these thoughts and look at them. Sit with them for a time in the safety of your aloneness. Let them wear out. Give them to Spirit. Recognize that these thoughts are illusions. You are an expression of Spirit, of the Divine. Nothing can change that. With practice, soon these thoughts will seem as silly mental imaginings, with no relation to the truth. You will laugh at them. You will let them go.

It will be as if someone called you a rutabaga. You would think the thought very silly and meaningless. Such are your negative thoughts about yourself.  Call forth the Voice of Spirit within you and let It define you. Ask for direction. Ask to see more truly. Give thanks for who you really are.

Friday, July 6, 2012

The Finger is not the Moon

The answer is within you.  The old Zen saying is: "Do not mistake the finger for the moon." The answer is not in books or in teachers. Your answer is not here. All that books and teachers can do is point you in the right direction and encourage you to look within. Don't worship them.

There is a place in your mind, a point of contact with your Source (God, Spirit, Higher Self). Get quiet and ask these three questions.
1. Who am I?
2. What is it that I most need to know in this moment?
3. What is important and what is not?
Read books and listen to teachers that you feel drawn to. They will help you point the way. They can't make the journey for you. Get quiet. Listen. Sort out what is important to your life and what is not. Act upon your inner promptings.



William Frank Diedrich is the author of three books including The Road Home.
http://intelligentspirit.com


Thursday, July 5, 2012

Magical thinking

Magical thinking:  if I say  this or do that, things will change on the outside. If I offer the right affirmation, the right prayer, use the correct talisman--things will change and I will feel better.


Miracle thinking:  If I change my thinking I will feel better and probably things outside of me will change as a result. When I shift my perspective from ego based perception to seeing as Spirit sees--allowing inspiration to move through me, allowing myself to be guided by Spirit--things on the outside change.

William Frank Diedrich, author of The Road Home.
http://intelligentspirit.com

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Calm and Confident

Life unfolds in ways that are often miraculous. Fear interrupts this. One day I was wondering how I would bring in money. The calendar was empty for the next week. My wondering turned to anxiety and then to fear.

Breathe. I clarified what I wanted. I had already taken action and set things in motion. I gave my worry over to Spirit and became calm and confident. No need for drama.

Later that day I received an invitation to lead a project. That was on a Friday. On Monday I was working. There is a timing often unknown to us in the flow of life.  The idea is move toward what you want with confidence, trusting in the Inner Voice to guide you. Fear is a call to prayer. Prayer is a call to Spirit to take charge. With Spirit leading you there is no need for fear. Such is Spiritual Intelligence -- choosing Spirit over ego for your guidance.

William Frank Diedrich, Speaker, Author, Executive Coach
Books at http://intelligentspirit.com

Monday, July 2, 2012

Releasing Guilt

Guilt is cumulative. It collects and builds over a lifetime. It seems useful. It's like carrying a backpack of rocks around all day in the hope that it will make you stronger. Inevitably, it weighs you down and makes you unable to stand tall and confident.

Refuse to identify with guilt. You have it, but it isn't who you are. You may think there is  a "God" somewhere who wants you to feel guilty. If so, your "god" is very small and created in your ego's image.

Stand tall today and breathe deeply. Offer your guilty thoughts as a gift to the Presence of God within and around you. Give those thoughts away and they are no longer yours. Ask to see yourself as you truly are. You cannot feel guilty enough to make anyone else feel better. You can help others to feel better/stronger by your strength, your love, and your joy. Whatever choices you have made in the past, today, you get to choose again.

Be thankful for who you are and that guilt is unnecessary in your life.  Give thanks for the Presence within you who sees you as you truly are. You truly are a blessing to the world.

William Frank Diedrich is the author of 3 books, all available at http://intelligentspirit.com .