© 2012 Meredith J. Sprunger
© 2012 Association Francophone des Lecteurs du Livre d'Urantia
¶ THE SEVEN DETERMINING KEYS (The conditions of becoming)
1. Spiritual Resources: The Ministry of the Spirit and the Gravity of the Spirit
We human beings, as we live our lives in the shell of flesh, are very aware of our earthly condition and vulnerability. We must constantly remember who we are: mortal sons and daughters of God. But even more, we should be aware of the wonderful spiritual ministry with which we have been provided. We are guided and sustained by the ministry of a triune spirit that we spoke of in the first section of this introduction. Let us briefly review this divine protection that sustains all creation and is the foundation of spiritual psychology.
A spark or fragment of the spirit of the Universal Father indwells the human mind. The Indwelling Spirit is our faithful companion who directs us to eternal reality, transcendent beauty, and transforming love. The Spirit of Truth surrounds us, making God the Son real in our experience and sensitizing us to the liberating perceptions of truth. The ministry of God the Spirit energizes us through the presence of the Holy Spirit who nourishes our minds with the cosmic illumination of the ennobling will of the Father and the soothing ways of the Son. This triune ministry is perfectly unified and we experience it psychologically as one ministry.
Furthermore, we are attracted and pulled toward Ultimate Reality by a triune system of spiritual gravity. Just as our material bodies are attracted to physical gravity, the soul and the superconscious aspect of the mind are attracted to spiritual gravity. The Father’s personality gravity circuit attracts all personalities to his will and presence. The Son’s spiritual gravity circuit stimulates spiritual growth. The more we evolve spiritually, the more the pull of this spirit gravity has an effect on us and it becomes easier and easier for us to produce the fruits of the spirit. God the Spirit is the source of the mind gravity circuit. The cosmic mind attracts all the qualities of the mind related to the spirit to the Infinite Spirit and generates God consciousness. This triune spirit gravity is perfectly coordinated, drawing us toward the truth, beauty and goodness, the will and way of God, whose psychological experience is perceived as a unified influence.
Above this gracious and saturated ministry, provided by the persons of the Paradise Trinity, exists the supercontrol of providence which provides for the progressive spiritual development of all personalities devoted to doing the will of the Father. Much of what we consider providential, the avoidance of suffering or the blessings of unmerited fortune or pleasure, is not the result of divine action, but is the product of our imagination and the fortuitous juxtapositions of fortunate circumstances. Such unmerited good fortune may in fact be a hindrance to growth, while the cruelty of tribulation and suffering may in reality be the fire of temper which anneals the tender and immature personality into a real tempered steel character. Genuine providence determines that all things, good and bad, ultimately work together for the spiritual growth and salvation of faithful God-knowing people.
In this situation of the rich divine endowment given to man, it is not surprising that there is a reality in religious experience that is invulnerable and irrefutable. This response of reality to the spiritual experience of this cosmic gift transcends reason, philosophy, science, and all other human achievements. While it may be justified and comforting to indulge in the rigors of logic and philosophical consistency that demonstrate the reasonableness of faith in the existence of God, or to observe the scientific evidence of the symbiotic, synergistic, and theological nature of the material world, they represent psychological experiences of a second order. To the mind that has not firsthand experience of God, there is no convincing intellectual evidence of his existence. The mind that has already intuitively integrated this reality-presence or reason for being needs no further evidence to exercise its faith. Faith grows from the humble beginnings of a mustard seed.
If we are to grow as individuals or as a culture we must be open to divine guidance. Each individual goes through different phases of growth and development that require the corrective discipline of wise spiritual attunement. Each new generation should have a new statement of the eternal truths of the kingdom of God to facilitate creative adjustment to the ever-changing material, social, and spiritual problems of life. Our Inner Guide can often contribute new spiritual insights through the channels of controlled imagination as we seek truth and strive to free ourselves from old preconceptions and prejudices.
The static concepts of theology are intellectual formulations which, without the aid of spiritual power, cannot reach the deep motivation to change lives and transform behavior. It is the Spirit that stimulates; it is only a vital spiritual relationship with the source of all creativity that can bring these dead intellectual doctrines to life. Unless and until the divine Spirit enables these formulations of truth, those who preach or teach them are little more than intellectual parrots and yes-men of authority and tradition.
We must learn to leave aside our institutional and professional routines of daily busy life, to invigorate the soul, inspire the mind, and renew the spirit through prayer and worship. Prayer and worship are complementary. Prayer has an element of self-interest or social-personal concern, but it can lead to worship. Worship is the contemplation of God, self-forgetfulness, and an end in itself. It is the part that identifies itself with the whole. Worship is the greatest privilege and the most creative activity of mankind. It motivates service and is the foundation of the highest joys that human beings experience. This psychological worship and identification with the Source of all things and beings stimulates the growth of the soul, stabilizes the mind, and integrates the personality. Prayer is the fraternal bond with God and develops clairvoyance. It is both a healthy psychological practice that increases self-awareness and an effective spiritual technique for developing the soul. Seeking divine guidance is not a substitute for human ingenuity and action, nor a way to escape the difficulties of life, but a means of mental-spiritual empowerment to courageously and usefully face conflicts and suffering. Prayer does not change God, but it can transform the person who prays and it infallibly increases the receptive capacity of the soul. It is a mental-spiritual methodology for changing what is, into what should be.
Immature prayer attempts to plead or bargain with God for health, wealth, power, or privilege. However, prayer cannot be used to circumvent the laws of the universe. We should pray for divine guidance to solve our human problems, not for some cosmic or miraculous solution. Our spiritual level is revealed by the nature of our concerns and supplications. In prayer, words are not important; God responds to the true and sincere attitudes of the mind and soul.
To pray effectively, we must honestly and intelligently face reality, we must attempt to solve problems creatively through spiritual guidance and with the resources at our disposal, by devoting ourselves to doing the will of God, and by having a living faith. Our fellowship with God should be unselfish, identifying with and loving all His children. We must be honest and sincere and ensure that our aspirations and petitions are in harmony with our highest insight and widest knowledge. And they should be offered in complete submission to the most wise will of the Father. This personal relationship with God is indispensable to spiritual growth and the chief means of effective personality development and inner peace. Such God-knowing persons are never alone even when isolated from human associations.
Answers to prayer are made in accordance with the spiritual degree of their content, intent, and wisdom. Selfish and materialistic requests do not penetrate the circuits of spirit, they are like “sounding brass and clanging cymbals.” They can, however, bring comfort and hope to the person praying and increase the potential for soul growth. Most of the changes effected by prayer and worship take place on an unconscious level and become operational in our lives through action and service. The commands of the Indwelling Spirit are so benevolent, subtle, and subdued, so incorporated with the ordinary things of life, that subjectively we cannot be certain whether our inclinations originate in our subconscious motivational needs or in superconscious spiritual guidance.
Strong emotional sensations are not a sure sign of the guidance of our Inner Spirit. Intense emotional desire is a characteristic expression of thwarted subconscious needs. Nor should we confuse consciousness with divine guidance. Consciousness is the psychological product of our training and social conditioning. Probably the greatest danger in evaluating internal experience is to confuse mystical and psychic states in which we hear voices and have visions with communications or revelations. Such experiences are very impressive, but may emanate from psychic or even psychotic episodes. Subjective experience that is not evaluated and critically examined often results in radical movements and religious fanaticism.
Those who are aware of the blinding capabilities of the human mind are not likely to declare, “God told me to…” Any inner guidance should be carefully evaluated before assuming it is spiritual direction. It is less dangerous to ignore or deviate from divine guidance, assuming that such inner direction is merely our own personal inclination, than to misinterpret our human ideas and desires as the will of God.
Our inner orientation should be tested by objective standards as well as by subjective evaluation. Is it in harmony with the highest thinking and values of human culture? Does this way of life conflict with scientifically verified facts? What do the people whose judgment I most respect think? How do time and experience affect this directive or sense of mission? After we have satisfied ourselves that the idea or action we are considering is good and consistent with the highest and best we know, it is time to seek experiential approval—we must act.
What kind of feedback does the experience bring us? Does this way of living enhance health and improve the functioning of our minds? Does it promote love and unity or does it instigate fear, anger and disagreement? If our service or ministry provokes fear and conflict, are they associated with the frustration and pain of growth or the inherent suffering of that which is destructive and evil? Is our appreciation of the truth of beauty and goodness enhanced? Does this kind of life and faith increase awareness of God and bring people closer to God?
Experience gives us information and wisdom that reflection and theory alone cannot reveal. With this evaluation of our “inner guidance” through thought and action, we make decisions and determine our lives. We should then live in the deep conviction that we perceive the will of God to the best of our ability as we strive to follow the best and highest that we know. This is the balance that characterizes spiritual wisdom. As our personalities realize the symmetry of the balanced unification of physical, mental, and spiritual powers, a great abundance of light and truth can be dispensed to us.
Our spiritual resources have unlimited potential to provide guidance and strengthen our lives. The divine intention for human life is to evolve our souls so that we have survival potential and can be resurrected on a higher universal level where our more advanced spiritual education will begin. Those whose lives are directed by a sense of calling, even now enjoy a transcendental quality in their mortal careers. As we strive to fulfill the plan of the Indwelling Spirit for our lives, our efforts are enhanced and ennobled by this divine-human partnership. The limits of human potential are expanded when integrated with divine intention. When we dedicate all that we have to the service of God, then our humanity merges with divine possibilities.
¶ Summary of the presentation
The power of spiritual psychology is the triune ministry of the Trinity. It is saturated and invincible. The Spirit stimulates, renews and transforms. There is no substitute for first-hand experience of God; it is invulnerable, irrefutable and transcends reason, philosophy and science. Prayer is a healthy psychological practice that sustains life and develops the soul. However, inner guidance should be fully evaluated to confirm its spiritual quality. Worship is identification with God—the Ultimate Truth, the Ultimate Beauty and the Ultimate Goodness; it is the most important creative activity of human beings.
Meredith J. Sprunger