Planet Urantia

Did Jesus really walk on water?

Peter thought so.

Urantia Book - Paper 152:4

The apostles, without their Master—sent off by themselves—entered the boat and in silence began to row toward Bethsaida on the western shore of the lake. None of the twelve was so crushed and downcast as Simon Peter. Hardly a word was spoken; they were all thinking of the Master alone in the hills. Had he forsaken them? He had never before sent them all away and refused to go with them. What could all this mean?

Darkness descended upon them, for there had arisen a strong and contrary wind which made progress almost impossible. As the hours of darkness and hard rowing passed, Peter grew weary and fell into a deep sleep of exhaustion. Andrew and James put him to rest on the cushioned seat in the stern of the boat. While the other apostles toiled against the wind and the waves, Peter dreamed a dream; he saw a vision of Jesus coming to them walking on the sea. When the Master seemed to walk on by the boat, Peter cried out, " Save us, Master, save us. " And those who were in the rear of the boat heard him say some of these words. As this apparition of the night season continued in Peter's mind, he dreamed that he heard Jesus say: " Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. " This was like the balm of Gilead to Peter's disturbed soul; it soothed his troubled spirit, so that (in his dream) he cried out to the Master: " Lord, if it really is you, bid me come and walk with you on the water. " And when Peter started to walk upon the water, the boisterous waves frightened him, and as he was about to sink, he cried out, " Lord, save me! " And many of the twelve heard him utter this cry. Then Peter dreamed that Jesus came to the rescue and, stretching forth his hand, took hold and lifted him up, saying: " O, you of little faith, wherefore did you doubt? "

In connection with the latter part of his dream Peter arose from the seat whereon he slept and actually stepped overboard and into the water. And he awakened from his dream as Andrew, James, and John reached down and pulled him out of the sea.

To Peter this experience was always real. He sincerely believed that Jesus came to them that night. He only partially convinced John Mark, which explains why Mark left a portion of the story out of his narrative. Luke, the physician, who made careful search into these matters, concluded that the episode was a vision of Peter's and therefore refused to give place to this story in the preparation of his narrative.

The airplane image above is from the Hudson River, forced aquatic landing of the US Airways Flight 460 from New York to North Carolina on January 15, 2009.  From the NY Post.

Fear, Faith and Transformation

Abner had arranged for the Master to teach in the synagogue on this Sabbath day, the first time Jesus had appeared in a synagogue since they had all been closed to his teachings by order of the Sanhedrin. At the conclusion of the service Jesus looked down before him upon an elderly woman who wore a downcast expression, and who was much bent in form. This woman had long been fear-ridden, and all joy had passed out of her life. As Jesus stepped down from the pulpit, he went over to her and, touching her bowed-over form on the shoulder, said: "Woman, if you would only believe, you could be wholly loosed from your spirit of infirmity." And this woman, who had been bowed down and bound up by the depressions of fear for more than eighteen years, believed the words of the Master and by faith straightened up immediately. When this woman saw that she had been made straight, she lifted up her voice and glorified God.

Urantia Paper 167:3.1

The Doctor says you're fine, but you're depressed and your head hurts.  Is your physical and emotional pain the result of a fear-ridden and joyless attitude?  Do you want to be transformed?  Then realize that you have the power to decide right now whether to be ruled by fear or reality.  You decide your own reality; every moment you are making decisions about what is and what isn't, and it is your faith that enables your transformation. 
Please see a previous post entitled:  Overcoming Fear - Phobias - Anxieties 

Relaxing Mediation Music Videos

Relaxing Music Videos to meditate by or work by - A series of sixteen diverse relaxation and meditation videos, ranging in length from a couple of minutes each to one as long as twenty-two minutes. 

More Meditation Music Selections - for purchase:

Thank you for stopping by!

Free Article: Cultivation of Universal Intelligence

Excerpt (intro) from Cultivation of Universal Intelligence: 

How many of us have done a little retrospective thinking and picked up a self-help book about some philosophy of living or a method to change some quirk in our attitude?  Being knowledgeable about a problem is important because it is a step towards better behavioral balance and it can inspire us to a greater good.  The Urantia Book is a book that inspires, answering many questions about our origin, history and destiny not provided anywhere else.  We may even expound about some newfound knowledge to anyone who might listen, but a major question arises: How many of us truly assimilate the knowledge we have gained and allow our newfound insights to influence the choices we make?

1. Improve the quality of thinking
2. Explore beliefs
3. Develop emotional maturity
4. Cultivate moral awareness and consistency
5. Attune to spirit guidance
6. Cultivate sound taste
7. Develop a consecrated attitude

The Cure for Selfishness and Loneliness

Strategies
Lack of interaction and communication with others is the primary cause of loneliness and is often the result of a materialistic selfish mindset.  (oooh - that hurt!)  This article attempts to show us how a selfish mindset creates loneliness while showing us how to avoid developing a selfish mindset so we don't become lonely - it may seem like this article goes off the track a bit, but it really doesn't.

We have too much to do, too much stuff, and too much information - to the point of excess and intrusion.  This has led us to a virtual state of confusion.  We seem to live in fear of everything, we focus too much on the negative and we're too pessimistic.  We're suspicious of anyone who doesn't think like we do, and of course they do not have as much knowledge as we do, therefore they're wrong and we're right!

I Am Just Passing Through, ....said Love Dynamic Love

Have you ever been the recipient of a smile or hug from a small child who was happy to see you, and didn't it just warm your heart?  Have you ever done something nice or special for someone else just because it makes you feel good inside?  Has your heart ever been broken over the loss of a loved one? 

Events like these tend to generate strong emotions, joyful or sorrowful; these deep feelings occur when love passes through us.  Love is an experience that passes between one personality and another.  Love is constantly moving, it cannot be captured, it works best when allowed to flow freely.  It expects us to be united in love receptivity, so when it meets resistance it tends to bounce off us and continues to move about freely until it finds a vessel it can flow through and use. Love uses you to express itself as a reality experience.  You can feel this love in yourself if you do not resist it, you can see this love in others as well. 

Is Love Logical?

What an interesting concept.  Personal development / self improvement book recommendation:

The Logic of Love: Finding Faith Through the Heart-Mind Connection, by Halbert Katzen

"The Logic of Love is written for those who embrace love - the desire and willingness to do well for others - as the most important value in life. The tools of logic are used to fabricate a paradigm of spiritual family from the material of commonly shared experiences. This structure is held together with love. "

"The Logic of Love demonstrates how faith in God can be a logical extension of love. If you do not have faith in God, this book offers an approach to faith that does not play upon your emotions or ask you to believe testimonials. In fact, it is written from an agnostic perspective. If you do have faith, but have trouble communicating to others that this is reasonable, the ideas presented here can help you express your faith to others as a logical and loving approach to life. This is a conversation about spirituality that is based on nothing more than love and freewill. It is not about trying to prove the existence of God. It is about exploring the possibilities and making a choice."

.....continued below...

Keeping up with a Progressive Civilization

Move with it, groove with it.  Civilization is in a constant and rapidly increasing state of progress toward an unrevealed destiny.  Does it seem like everyone else is flying at jet speed while you're riding the bus?  Well, to make a long story short - move with it, groove with it - learn how to deal with it.  The alternative is to let it pass you by while you stand in total bewilderment.  Standing still, or moving at slow pace, can cause unnecessary frustration and anger, when what is really needed is a sort of spiritual fusion - an understanding of our role in this fast paced world. 

Technological advancements and new streams of knowledge dissemination (like the Internet, for example) are changing our lives at jet speed pace.  Spiritual leaders and moral teachers must become more efficient, influential, and relevant to the needs of individuals who must deal with a variety of new situations experientially. 

Our spirit can keep up - it travels faster than any jet, ever moving forward toward its destiny.  It is the material mind that sort of lags behind - holding on to old ways of doing things, believing that since they worked just fine in the olden days, they should work just fine now. 

I just purchased a new Samsung Instinct (iPhone killer) telephone, you know what I can do with my telephone?  Check this out:

Email, text message, receive voicemails, navigate (GPS), calculate, take notes, check my calendar, check the time, set the phone display and ringer type for each person in my contacts, download fancy ringers, I can even get a fancy ringer for you to hear as it rings me, I can listen to my MP3 music, watch TV and videos, listen to radio stations around the world, take pictures, store pictures, shop, play games, go on the internet, check the weather and the radar, read the news, check movie times,.......oh, and I can call people.... and probably other stuff I don't even know about yet.

All in a unit that weighs 4.4 ounces and measures 4.5 x 2.25 inches and is a half inch thick.

Today, many of us are anxious, restless, fearful, uncertain, unsettled and/or stagnant - in spite of this we are in fact progressing toward the spiritual realities of one belief system, the humanist and ideological belief of one great philosophy, and a more cosmic approach to the sciences; which will ultimately result in the harmony of religion, philosophy, and science, the oneness of the triune existence of spirit, mind, and energy, and the unification with God. 

Just as we progress by making new and exciting technological advances - so must we also progress in our spiritual lives.  The secret to producing fruits of the spirit is to allow your religious or spiritual experiences to affect your daily lives.  What you know in your heart to be true must be made manifest in a real and tangible way.  Use goals, or small steps, and your individual faith-based relationship with God to move yourself forward - to make progress. 

Live courageously and joyfully on the face of the earth.  Join patience with passion, insight to zeal, sympathy with power, and ideals with energy.  Inspire others to do the same. 

Urantia Papers - References:

Paper 99 - Section 1-7

Peace through Passionate Creation

 

Why do humans hurt each other?  Is peace possible?  Will victory from hate make people happy? 

Humans are a passionate species, we love to create and discover and then we love to share our creations and discoveries with other humans.  This is good, but then we take a wrong turn somewhere; instead of allowing the ego to serve a more useful function, we allow it to stroke our desires, and this leads to wrong desires.  We covet respect from our peers, and when we get it from these same like minded individuals we are emboldened, then we covet respect from the world.  This is where we crash into a brick wall, the opposition does not think or act like you and you don't like this, so you seek to change things through violence and hate.    This is the root cause of war, in my humble opinion.  But peace is possible through passionate creation.

How to create peace through the process of passionate creation:

·         Know that God loves you, He cares about you and what happens to you

·         Know that God has a majestic purpose for your life and for all human life

·         Think of yourselves as a seed that will one day blossom into a majestic individual

·         Invite God, the true Light of the world, into your thoughts

·         Love God and receive the Truth that sets you free

·         You loving God creates peace and freedom because of what it produces in you

·         Harness your passion, use the energy to bring Truth, Beauty and Goodness in the world

·         Truth, Beauty and Goodness have the power to produce fountains of happiness

·         Fountains of happiness spring up first in you, then in your neighbors, then your city, then your country, and then the world

·         Know that a fuller discernment and realization of God is possible through Truth, Beauty, and Goodness immersion

·         Operate from the perspective that Truth does not harm, it upholds all that is good and right

·         Enjoy the variety of Beauty that surrounds you – from God’s creation to human creations

·         Beauty is the unification of harmonious contrasts, each of which is highly complementary to the other

·         Immerse yourself in Goodness, develop an unselfish, altruistic mindset

·         Enjoy how you feel when you participate in peaceful, passionate creation

·         Practice a religion that serves God and humans, as opposed to one that serves the building managers

·         Take no offense, realize that others are operating from their own experience in the same world

·         Goodness in a human mind implies the ability to discern between truth, error and evil

·         The recognition of Goodness builds moral character, a desirable and worthy trait

·         A meaningful life is a life of passionate creation with the right motives

·         Passionate creation is the result of your efforts to produce Truth, Beauty and Goodness

·         The human body bubbles with boundless energy and willpower, harness your passion and make it matter

Is there ever any justification for war?  Yes there is, war is justified when it seeks to eliminate violence, hate and other contrary attitudes that do not contribute to the individual's right of freedom and all the points listed above.  But like many crude methods of progress, this method must give way to improved methods of peace creation.  People themselves must realize what Truth, Beauty and Goodness can do for themselves, their communities and indeed, civilization itself.   

We must change from a materialistic and greedy society to one of equality.  Call it freedom, or call it Peace through Passionate Creation, every human being must have an equal opportunity to harness his or her passion and creativity to contribute to the world in a fruitful manner.

It is each of us who will bring peace to this planet.

Urantia will not enjoy lasting peace until the so-called sovereign nations intelligently and fully surrender their sovereign powers into the hands of the brotherhood of men -- mankind government. Internationalism -- Leagues of Nations -- can never bring permanent peace to mankind.                           

Urantia Paper 134:5.10

  Truth is the basis of science and philosophy, presenting the intellectual foundation of religion. Beauty sponsors art, music, and the meaningful rhythms of all human experience. Goodness embraces the sense of ethics, morality, and religion -- experiential perfection-hunger.

Urantia Paper 56:10.10

There really is a true and genuine inner voice, that “true light which lights every man who comes into the world.”

Urantia Paper 101:0.3

Thus it may be seen that religious longings and spiritual urges are not of such a nature as would merely lead men to want to believe in God, but rather are they of such nature and power that men are profoundly impressed with the conviction that they ought to believe in God.

Urantia Paper 101:1.7

Planet Urantia

People of Faith - People of No Faith - Science, Religion & Philosophy

We can point to what exists, but do we know where what exists came from?  Short Answer:  Not yet. 

When people of faith are criticized for believing that God created the heavens and the earth, is it not equally wise to criticize those who refuse to believe in a God because they don't know where God came from?

Any rationally thinking person must realize that the question of where God came from cannot possibly be answered by one who lives on the earth a mere 100 years - give or take.

Humans are powerful beings - we have the power to decide whether there is a God or not. The evidence points to a God by the mere fact that we exist, while there is no evidence to support the theory that there is no God. The question of where this all began, if not by God, has not yet been satisfactorily answered by any human who has ever lived. That's what's wrong with atheism.

I've been reading a book since last year called the Urantia Book - it combines science, religion, and philosophy in a way never done before. It's over 50 years old, and I think it enhances all religions, including Christianity, but the publishers have never been inclined to market the book because they believe word of mouth is the best way to reach people. I would like to get this book in the hands of every Preacher in America, and every Scientist and Philosopher as well.

Scientists are beginning to realize that there is more to life than material organisms - this is very exciting because now, science will be delving into the spiritual side of life, where I know it will become beautifully obvious that there is a truly majestic purpose behind this thing we call life.

The Urantia Book is a literary masterpiece that combines religion, science, and philosophy and gives us tools for living the best life possible.  The Bible, the Secret, the Course in Miracles, Dawkins, and Darwin have nothing compared to the wealth of secret knowledge, wisdom, and evolutionary history contained in the Urantia Book.   Use your powerful brain for digesting this huge resource - at about 2000 pages it took me three months to read it in my spare time - but it has changed my life, my worldview, and has increased my love and respect for the Creator of the Universe, God, and Jesus the Son. 

Jesus revealed God to man, he revealed the love of God to man, and he revealed what God has in store for those who seek to do his will: a vast universe to explore and enjoy as we make our way to our Maker.  And what of those who seek the will of the flesh and materialism, those who reject God?  According to the Urantia Book, those who reject God simply cease to exist, the soul is simply extinguished.  So, do you want to live forever and meet God, or is this world enough?  There is a fragment of God that dwells within, listen to that still small voice and see for yourself if God's will is more beneficial to you than your own will.  It's not weakness that drives us toward God, it's strength; for it requires tremendous willpower and strength to do the will of God.  The will of God in its simplest explanation means to acknowledge him, and to make progress toward being more like him by developing a majestic and well-balanced personality - and we know that God is a giver, so this gives us an idea of what God's will is right there.  Everything in this world grows, and so should we - it's all part of the wonderful gift of life and personality given to us by our Maker.