We are eager to share our thoughts and ready to listen to your opinions. When I was a child I was absolutely sure that God, Jesus Christ, angels and the rest were people like me, like we all are. They were the same children, that eat, sleep and play, cry and laugh, are anger and happy… With the time this faith was disappearing – they said that I was growing and entering the adult life. Once upon a day I woke up in the morning and realized that all those things I trusted in my childhood are just a myth, illusion… They do not exist.
Now I want to look back and open my child that still lives inside me, that lives inside every person. He is just hid in a safe corner. Parents, school and university “did their best” to kill this child, my entity, my essence. Now I want to look at things with my own eyes, now I want to drift to my own nature.
Then an idea occurred to my mind to open this Blog as I thought that other people might have the same questions and ideas about this as I do. Our credo- is seeking for enlightenment. As even a profound and an old wisdom runs as follows: “seek and ye shall find”.
Important: no templates, no standards.
Free you Heart, Mind and Spirit.
An economic perspective on spiritual development and growth
Filed under: spiritual life Author:
During the 1980’s evangelicals embarked on the church growth movement in an attempt to apply social sciences to achieve growing numbers of Christians and churches. The idea was controversial from the start, but the church growth movement had a huge impact that continues to reverberate. Although many have pushed back against the emphasis on numbers, countering with the need for qualitative growth as well, and the term “church growth” is no longer in vogue, the legacy of the church growth movement is a continuing urgency to foster and guide Christian movements of conversion and institutional expansion.
Today I was reading an economist writing about development theory, and I was struck by the parallels between people who want to promote and control growth — whether economic or spiritual — on a large scale. William Easterly writes on “The Anarchy of Success“:
Growth and development whether in spiritual or economic terms has been thoroughly studied and we have principles and formulas up the yin yang, but are we the wiser for all the research and theorizing? Does real change, whether in spiritual or economic terms, come from engagement with people in the grit, decisions, and paradoxes of real life? If so, what we need is not endless futile and misguided attempts to control the process but more freedom and opportunity for growth to emerge from below (whether economic or spiritual).
Easterly finishes,
Here is a different version of this quote in my words as a follower of Jesus,
Andrew Gray
Today I was reading an economist writing about development theory, and I was struck by the parallels between people who want to promote and control growth — whether economic or spiritual — on a large scale. William Easterly writes on “The Anarchy of Success“:
Humans are suckers for finding patterns where none really exist, like seeing the shapes of lions and giraffes in the clouds. It wasn’t that economists had no explanations of what causes growth. On the contrary, we had too many. One survey of the field counted no fewer than 145 separate factors that had been found to be associated with growth. But most of these patterns were spurious, because they failed to hold up when other researchers tried to replicate them. Economists can say something useful about economic success, but we have to clear away a lot of false overconfidence before we get to that point.
Growth and development whether in spiritual or economic terms has been thoroughly studied and we have principles and formulas up the yin yang, but are we the wiser for all the research and theorizing? Does real change, whether in spiritual or economic terms, come from engagement with people in the grit, decisions, and paradoxes of real life? If so, what we need is not endless futile and misguided attempts to control the process but more freedom and opportunity for growth to emerge from below (whether economic or spiritual).
Easterly finishes,
Perhaps prosperity is not after all designed from above; perhaps it emerges from below, from the independent actions of many individuals who figure out their own paths.
Here is a different version of this quote in my words as a follower of Jesus,
Perhaps the growth of God’s people in the world is not designed or controlled by people in supposed positions of influence; perhaps it emerges from below, from the actions of many individuals who figure out their own paths in concert with the Spirit of God working in them.
Andrew Gray
Drink a Spiritual and Healthy Tea
Filed under: spiritual life Author:
Only the boldest—and most reckless—among tea drinkers have tried it. To drink it, one must possess a certain amount of confidence and savoir faire. No, it’s not some new metropolitan or socialite brew. It’s certifiably wild, rustic, and homespun—it’s the stuff from which Grimm’s Fairy Tales are made! What is it? Tisanes made from some exotic stuff that you probably never realized you could drink!
There are several ways to go about collecting your tea’s ingredients. You can find them in many places (although probably not at your grocery store, or any store, for that matter). To create the wildest of teas, you may want to take a walk in the park, in the forest, or around a campground. Sometimes you can even find your material peeking up between sidewalk cracks in the city. Summer is the season of exploration and discovering new teas. What kinds of flora should you gather for your cauldron? Consult this list of suggestions (and get a guide book with photographs for distinguishing physical traits):
Verveine, or Lemon Verbena: It is in full bloom in summer. The flowers are a yellow, milky color and are sometimes pink. It can get very large and puts forth a lot of flowers and leaves. I have used it in tea to harness a relaxing effect. It can be very calming on the stomach, but don’t drink too much of it! Use only a few petals or leaves.
Little Wild Rose: You may not think to eat flowers unless you’ve seen Monsoon Wedding. Even if you’re not a fan of Bollywood or Indian movies, flowers (especially wild roses) are delicious in salads and teas. It’s hard not to find them when you get a whiff of their intoxicating, though mild fragrance. If you don’t want your tea to be too acidic, boil for less than ten minutes. Drink it with Verveine, if you are interested in seeing how the two mesh.
Yarrow: Yarrow is easiest to find if you live in the Southwestern United States. It is a diaphoretic that helps with circulation (it has several other medicinal benefits too). To enjoy it, add two leaves to boiling water. Sweeten it with honey, if you like. Like Verveine, you should be careful to not use too much or drink it too frequently unless you live next door to a homeopathic doctor.
Calendula, or Marigolds: To make it, steep a few dried flowers in very hot water for less than six minutes. You can mix it with other flowers and herbs, or just drink it alone. It will help detoxify your body and improve your immune system.
There are several ways to go about collecting your tea’s ingredients. You can find them in many places (although probably not at your grocery store, or any store, for that matter). To create the wildest of teas, you may want to take a walk in the park, in the forest, or around a campground. Sometimes you can even find your material peeking up between sidewalk cracks in the city. Summer is the season of exploration and discovering new teas. What kinds of flora should you gather for your cauldron? Consult this list of suggestions (and get a guide book with photographs for distinguishing physical traits):
Verveine, or Lemon Verbena: It is in full bloom in summer. The flowers are a yellow, milky color and are sometimes pink. It can get very large and puts forth a lot of flowers and leaves. I have used it in tea to harness a relaxing effect. It can be very calming on the stomach, but don’t drink too much of it! Use only a few petals or leaves.
Little Wild Rose: You may not think to eat flowers unless you’ve seen Monsoon Wedding. Even if you’re not a fan of Bollywood or Indian movies, flowers (especially wild roses) are delicious in salads and teas. It’s hard not to find them when you get a whiff of their intoxicating, though mild fragrance. If you don’t want your tea to be too acidic, boil for less than ten minutes. Drink it with Verveine, if you are interested in seeing how the two mesh.
Yarrow: Yarrow is easiest to find if you live in the Southwestern United States. It is a diaphoretic that helps with circulation (it has several other medicinal benefits too). To enjoy it, add two leaves to boiling water. Sweeten it with honey, if you like. Like Verveine, you should be careful to not use too much or drink it too frequently unless you live next door to a homeopathic doctor.
Calendula, or Marigolds: To make it, steep a few dried flowers in very hot water for less than six minutes. You can mix it with other flowers and herbs, or just drink it alone. It will help detoxify your body and improve your immune system.
In Buddhism, meditation serves to calm and control the mind and is essential to break the cycle of suffering and attain Enlightenment. Follow these steps…more »In Buddhism, meditation serves to calm and control the mind and is essential to break the cycle of suffering and attain Enlightenment. Follow these steps for mindfulness of breathing meditation, one of the two simplest meditations.
