March 03, 2014
Hope vs Intention
Looking at the difference between Hope and Intention...
The difference, as I see them, is one is a static creation of the mind, based on the self and trust and the other is a dynamic journey of the soul, based on knowing and co-creating with the Creative Force.
To hope is to want an outcome that is outside of where you are now, it is to create an expectation. It creates a chasm that must be leapt across with faith and trust...I hope I pass this test, I hope I get that job... it is to give away the power of creating what we want in exchange for trusting and waiting for the intervention from an outside force.
It is part of our Judeo-Christian ethos to hope and pray for, to believe god is outside us and will hear our prayers and answer them... But as much as we talk about having hope, this concept of having hope puts us dangerously close to the victim hot seat. If what we are hoping for does not occur we become victims of circumstance and our own judgements... and then the spiral into hopelessness... God is not hearing my prayers... I must be cursed, unworthy, abandoned, etc. As Lao Tzu says, "Expectation is the root of all suffering."
Hope is something our culture prescribes for unknown situations but the subtitles of hope are dangerous. Hopelessness is at the root of depression. You cannot get out of depression by hoping again. You have to crawl out, with the self resolve of intention, one tiny step at a time. It is not about trusting, it is about aligning and creating.
With intention we accept where we are right now and from there we move forward on a soul inspired journey. We have to find that kernel of inspiration within us, that seed of a dream, and from that tiny ember fan a fire and move outward. We move toward a destination, like passing an exam, one tiny step at a time, from a place of knowing, action and co-creation... We move forward with our best effort at the time and know if we are in alignment with our intentions they will manifest, if not, they won't. It is not personal, it has nothing to do with God's judgement, it is a journey of aligning with our high destinies. If we are off track there will be a correction.
Our work is to clear the obstacles in our path that keep us from connecting and being able to sit in stillness until we have a knowing. To pray is not to ask for, it is to align with. Like a kayaker follows the contours of the river, we are open to changes in course that journey may take. We trust in our connection to the creative force because we have worked hard to make that connection clear. We align with it toward an outcome that may or may not manifest. If it does not occur it means there is a different course to take. The river is still moving downstream but how it winds there is the journey we are on.