First We Heal

“Charity” really does begin at home. "Home" is not our physical brick and mortar 'house'. It is our psyche, our 'insides' where a false ‘self’ we erroneously think is some us takes up its unholy residence.

When we practice separating from that ego-self, divorcing ourselves from that vile identity within, (meditation helps us do that) then ‘it’ looses its numbing hold on us.

Automatically then we are able to stop trying to ‘learn’ truth with an eye for remembering it so as to repeat to others and instead we just listen, understand and live, without regard whatsoever for whether or not anyone else will ‘get’ it as we “get it”.

Our charity becomes the entirely altruistic, genuinely inspirational gift that is the power to help others, in ways that require no planning, premeditation or act of ambitious will. That is true charity and it starts inside us. But we heal first.

When Bill W inaugurated his little telemarketing campaign to find and help another alcoholic, his 'healing' - his state of recoveredness was already in place. He was a recovered alcoholic prior to placing one finger in one hole of that rotary dial public phone.

His obsession to drink lifted came BEFORE the power to carry the message to Dr. Bob. Prior to that he was another white-knuckling drunk trying to figure out how to get ahead, make money, get laid and fuel the whole trip with three drinks ( and "no more") in an Akron hotel bar.

Being helpful is great. But it is a something that happens - it isn't anything we force to happen through our own ambition. Its is a noneffective ego that wants to take credit for installing goodness into others and be glorified for its good works. That can even be a misguided motivating factor for extreme sponsorship.

Meditation that permits true awareness changes us from non-spiritual, animalistic creatures living a somnambulistic existence to a human-spiritual existence, moving through life effortlessly in an awakened state of consciousness. This is another way of saying that we walk in the Sunlight of the Spirit.

This change effortlessly alters our motives without us even trying to be well intended”. That is true usefulness. There is no faking it till we make it. That is ambition and a promotion of self-will.

Just watching the ego’s inclination to try to learn and remember spiritual ideas and not resenting our own selfish need to 'feel spiritual' or holy, or to make show of our uselessness, is enough to shrink that alien identity and set it at bay. Then a new lifestyle and natural deportment begins to express in maximum usefulness. Now that's charity.

Peace & Love,

Danny S – RLRA

Real Live Recovered Alcoholic

http://recoveredalcoholic.blogspot.com