Spiritual Wellness
Articles
We live in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not breaths; in feelings, not in figures on a dial. We should count time by heart-throbs. He most lives who thinks most, feel the noblest, acts the best…..
Philip James Bailey, English Poet and Author
Spiritual Wellness 標竿人生
Have you ever heard the remark ‘I don’t eat to live but I live to eat’? That is the life motto for a gourmet or someone in a famine stricken country. When China reverts from a closed communist economy to capitalism in the mid 80s, a young person exclaimed ‘life is money, and money is life’. Do any of these maxims sound true? Art Linkletter wrote a book in his nineties and he states ‘when we are younger, we tend to chase financial, material, and career rewards, thinking they will satisfy. But the material is, by its nature, evanescent; it fades. So we’re always moving, dodging and weaving toward the next possible source of enlightenment, peace and harmony’. Also we know by instinct that food and money cannot be the ultimate purpose in life. Art Linkletter continues, ‘That’s because the things that last never come from what’s outside of us, only from what is inside: hope, honour and most of all, love. These ‘inside things’ are in fact the things that defines who and what we are.
Purpose of life
If you haven’t spend time to ponder ‘What is the purpose in life?’ we hope you will after visiting this website. Most people might have confronted this question as a fleeting thought on occasions of life events e.g. birth of a new baby; death of friends/relatives or job loss etc. When we witness the start of life or end of life, we are faced with the big ‘Why’. But confrontational it may be, did you sit back and actually spent thinking time to explore the answer? Whatever you believe is your purpose, understanding it should enhance your living by guiding you into more integral helpful habits and behavior.
Living out your purpose
Many of us who don’t live to eat or don’t subscribe to the idea that life is money are not that wiser or more noble than these two categories of people. Most of us, perhaps unconsciously make our work the most important thing in our life. It may not be just to earn a living for our family or simply make money because money buys us things. It may be to nourish our ego and pride. Or it may be to conform like everyone else around us so we don’t be the odd-ball. Whatever the original motivation, work becomes our life for many of us. Then one eventual or unexpected day, we lose our job. Does our life ends together with our job?
When this rude awakening occurs, there can be two diverse receptions. It may be a wake-up call for some unprepared souls but for others who see the big picture, the day of freedom. It is a good juncture in life to review and examine how we have been living our lives. It is a good opportunity to transit from being a ‘human doing’ to ‘human being’.
If you believe there is a higher purpose for life and there are 7 dimensions of life, then a good strategy to live out this or these purposes would be to put the purpose as a big picture and write out your mission statements for each of these 7 dimensions. After you have worked out the mission statements, then you can decide on the plans to meet your goals in each of the 7 wellness areas. But remember the overall purpose is to achieve overall balance and results.
Finishing Well
Life is often liken to a journey. For the more active and competitive, life may be described as a marathon. Or maybe another analogy may be that of a voyage, where treacherous storms and hazardous seas must be confronted. No matter how we see it, there is a final destination for the journey or voyage. This is especially if you subscribe to the belief the finishing of the race is not the end. That there is a prize or reward at the end of the effort. There is a best-seller titled ‘Purpose driven Life’ written by Rick Warren that goes into depth of how to live a purposeful life. If you like more information than our few short paragraph, this is a 40 days reading program.
Taking Action
Many at the end of life ponder what life could have been. It would be too late. You should right now, whatever age you may be, crystallise in your mind and soul, what you are to become. You had the chance to relive at this very juncture your 2nd Life. Make sure you don’t squander this 2nd chance of living by living it right and finishing well.
One of the most important aspects of Spiritual Wellness is that of giving back to life what we received in life. If you are the fortunate one that have lived your 1st half well and is living now a balanced and victorious 2nd life, we would love for you to join us at REVERSE Co-operative and share and help others either by example or imparting your wisdom.
For Christians, we believe we are given birth by a Fatherly God. Once physically through our physical parents and then spiritually through the Holy Spirit, God Himself. This Fatherly God created the universe, a creation of great wonder which we hardly understand with all our advancements in science and technology. But we are told He had a purpose in creating us, the human beings. That He created us as His children to love us, to see us grow up and see us doing well in our lives. We are told our spiritual life is eternal. And that we have to live it for His pleasure and glory. We have to live together as one family because that pleases the Father. When we die physically, we are promised a new and more glorious body. So we do not fear death. We look forward instead to going home to our Father. It is a wonderful transition like starting to live a new 2nd Life. But like starting our new 2nd physical life , we must make a resolution and take action to live correctly the new eternal life. To belong to the family, however, requires us to own Him as the Head of our family. If you like to join the family, you need to also take Him as your Father too. Contact us to say you are interested in know more about the eternity view of Spiritual Wellness. And we will put you together with an older, more matured brother or sister to show you the way.