I'm still standing!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/85608594@N00/15053056352

As the picture in today's blog says, "A person's true nature is revealed at times of the greatest adversity."  This is such truth, and this is what separates those who have, and those who have not.

I'm sure almost everyone has had their share of adversity in life.  Some have handled it with grace, while others have shed tear after tear while going through struggles that would boggle other's minds.  The key to any successful endeavor is how you handle adversity, and if in the end of it all you can state with absolute certainly, "I'm still standing", then you will be in a very select group of people.

Adversity is something everyone is going to have to come face to face with a some point in their life. While I hope that your adversity is slight, there is always that chance that what you are facing is daunting and simply remaining upright is a feat in itself.  No matter what you might be going through there is a source of strength that you can draw from.  This strength was placed in you the moment you were created, and this strength is what has helped others before you change the face of nations.

I was out on the town the other night and as is pretty normal for me the conversations I was having with a few new acquaintances went directly to the themes of much of my writing.  It's amazing when people find out you are an author, the questions come to you at mach speed.  Don't get me wrong, I love talking about my writing and Destiny, but I've got to tell you, some of the questions I get are pretty deep, and even I have to pause to think about a response.  Anyway, I was talking about knowing the "Real" you, and I had some pretty stunned looks from those around me listening to the conversation.  It was as if they had never heard about being the real you, the authentic you, the you that was created for this particular time.  The feeling I got from this crowd, and the feeling I get from some of the groups I talk in front of, is that you are just going to have to take what is given to you in life and make the best of it.  Now I guess when you are talking about adversity in one's life it would be easy to accept this premise.  After all, look at some of the things we have done in the past when confronted with challenges.

I've had my share of adversity in life.  Now I'm not brazen enough to think that what I have gone through in life is any tougher or any worse then others around me.  When I look at my life compared to others that I know, I would say that my life has been a cake walk.  That being said, what I have gone through is completely different then what others have gone through, and how I handle adversity is going to be different then the way others handle their own problems.  The key to it all is being able to state without worry of contradiction that "I'm still standing."  I'm still kicking and breathing no matter what the world has thrown my way.  How am I able to do this?  I recognize the source of my strength.  I recognize the perfection of my design, and the perfection of me being here right now.  I recognize that I am first and foremost a creation of the Creator of the Universe, and I have within me the ability to walk in complete enlightenment.  It is only when we fall prey to the conditioning of man that our world turns upside down.  It is only when we listen to the conditioning of man that we feel as though we have to suffer in this life.  It is only when we accept the conditioning of man that we lay down and want to give up, because our struggles have become to great.

My friends, you were never intended to have to suffer the way you have been conditioned to believe. Lack, scarcity, depression, sickness, are all things that man has perpetrated on others, it was never God's plan for you.  Spirit's plan for you was for you to display the nature of who you really are, not what others have said you are.  I can sit here and tell you all day long who and what you are, but until such time as you believe it, there isn't much I can do to change the situations you might find yourself in.  Do you think that God's nature is one of lack, or scarcity?  Do you think that when the Universe was created that there was doubt when it came into existence?  If you can display the nature of God, you can overcome any adversity.  I stand on my knowing who and what I am.  I stand on the knowledge that I am created in the image of my creator.  Man did not create me, Spirit did.

So you really have two choices:  you can either follow the nature of man, or you can follow and step out into the nature of God.  One will lead you down the same old path, reliving the same old adversities, or you can go down the right path and boldly stand up and proclaim "I'm still standing."   If you're sick and tired of being sick and tired; if you're sitting around and wondering if this is as good as it gets, then maybe it's time to realize the beauty of your design and begin to accept certain truths.  When you look at past historical figures, Jesus the Christ, Buddha, they walked around in enlightenment.  You were created by the same being as they were.  It is not blasphemous to see yourself as Christ saw himself.  Christ said that greater things you will do.  How many people do you know who have done greater things?

It is time to display the nature of your creator and in doing so show the world that you are still standing.  It may take you some time to accept all this and incorporate it into you daily life, but I will promise you this:  when you do, life will take on a whole new meaning and all those things that wanted to shot you down, pull you apart, and break you down, will no longer have any power over you.  I'm still standing, and will continue to stand because I know who and what I am.  Now it is time for you to do the same.