Description
Finding GOD –Spiritual Strategies to Help YOU Find Happiness, Fulfillment and Inner Peace
AUTHOR’S NOTE
More than 2,500 years ago, the ancient Chinese philosopher and founder of Taoism, Lao Tse wrote:
The Way that can be described
is not the absolute Way;
The name that can be given
is not the absolute name.
Nameless it is the source
of heaven and earth;
Named it is the mother of all things .
In spending years devoted to research, thirsting for knowledge and truth, I became astounded by the revelation that what I once thought to be truth was not necessarily so. My studies and life experiences opened my mind and revealed to me that my knowledge was just a small slice of the greater knowledge of life and its mysteries. I also learned that I was not alone in my quest -man has forever been searching for God as a way to understand himself, his purpose and the key to peace and happiness. Almost from the beginning of time, man has posed the questions, “Who is God? Where is God? Can I speak with God? How do I find God? Why do I need God? Is God the answer to easing man’s pain and chronic anxiety?”
This book is based on my search for God, my research, study, travels and deeply powerful life-changing experiences. It doesn’t pretend to be the truth. Put simply, it is my truth.
Here unfolds a journey that resulted in wide-ranging experiences from the painful and frustrating, to the joyous and adventurous. My conscious and unconscious search for God spans early childhood through adulthood. This book relates how I found God and inner peace in today’s high-tech, fast-paced materialistic world. And in sharing my story with you, I hope that you too may enjoy peace and a blessed life.
Everyone’s life path is different and if your desire is to find God and peace, then you will. Be aware, it may not happen the way you expected. I encourage you to use your own discernment as you move on your spiritual path, and I humbly support you to follow your heart and intuition. Ultimately, my hope is that you will come to your own place of knowing what is true and beneficial for you, that which will give and fill your life with meaning, purpose, joy and beauty.
Spiritual Strategies to Help YOU Find Happiness, Fulfillment and Inner Peace.”
-By Patrick Wanis
WOW Media, 2005
Table of contents
Author’s Note……………………………………………..5
God and Peace ………………………………….………..9
What Is God?………………………………………….…13
The Changing Concept of God ………………..………..20
Journey toward Peace ……………………….……..….30
Religion and Spirituality ……………………………….…37
God is Love …………………………………………………41
The Power of Forgiveness ……………………….……..47
Tolerance and Compassion……………………………….55
Strategies for Inner Peace …………………….….……58
Questions and Answers………………………………..71
Afterword …………………………………………..…..78
GOD AND PEACE
The connection between finding God and finding peace.
Why search for God?
Now more than ever
-Why we need God and peace now
-What is missing in our lives?
WHAT IS GOD
The author’s story and childhood concept of God
When we say “God”
-What do we mean when we use the word, “God” in everyday language, phrases and to express various emotions
Defining Peace
What is peace?
African Gods in Gambia
The author’s experiences in West Africa with blends of Christianity, Islam and JuJu
THE CHANGING CONCEPT OF GOD
Do you know there are 34,000 separate Christian Faiths?
Animism –The First Religion
Goddess Worship
-The first gender given by man to God
The Male God
-A brief history of how man decided God is a man
The Old Testament God
A vengeful God or a God of love?
-Did God change from the Old Testament to the New testament?
Is God a man or a woman?
Searching for God at Mt Moses
-Is God only to be found in Holy places?
JOURNEY TOWARD PEACE
Man has always believed in a God or supernatural being
Did God create us or did we create him in our mind and brain?
Where does God exist?
-In a specific country, church, temple or synagogue?
A new and changing faith
-man’s evolving concepts of the role of God over the earth
RELIGION AND SPIRITUALITY
The distinction between God and religion
What is spirituality?
A Course in Miracles
-A new spiritual thought system
GOD IS LOVE
The writings of the Sufi mystic, Rumi and his concept of how to experience God
Definitions of love
Loving the self
-Why we need to love ourselves
-How negative emotions block us from experiencing God
THE POWER OF LOVE AND FORGIVENESS
The link between true peace & love and forgiveness
What is forgiveness?
Benefits of forgiveness
How to forgive
Releasing Anger
Forgiving Ourselves
-Using the example of Jesus and God’s mercy to help us to forgive ourselves
TOLERANCE AND COMPASSION
The Dalai Lama and his thoughts on peace and compassion
Kindness
The chemistry of Kindness
-How every act of kindness benefits the person being kind and the person receiving the kindness
An end to prejudice
How love and compassion changed the author
STRATEGIES FOR INNER PEACE
Exploring strategies in all areas (physical, mental, emotional and spiritual) that lead to inner peace
How to Enhance your physical well-being
How to Reduce stress
How to deal with your emotions
How to mend broken relationships
-a seven-step process to asking and receiving someone’s forgiveness
Prayer
-what is prayer
-The benefits of prayer
Meditation
-The distinction between prayer and meditation
-Benefits of meditation
Seek overall wellness
-Making the best use of your energy reserves
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q: Where was God on September 11th?
Q: From where does evil come?
Q: Why does God allow sickness or natural disasters?
Q: Does God punish us when we sin?
Q: What does it mean that God is love?
Q: Is it evil or wrong to be rich & have material possessions?
Q: What is God’s name?
AFTERWORD
I do not believe there is any one person who can offer you all the answers to life’s mysteries. The search for God has left many people confused because they searched with their head and not their heart. It is not possible to answer every question that arises. My childhood questions about eternity and who created God could not be answered then or now. Our human mind is limited and so, there are certain concepts such as eternity that are beyond our understanding. Nonetheless I have concluded it to be true that inner peace comes from finding and knowing God, and that we experience God when we express love. The opposite of God is fear in all its disguises: guilt, blame, shame, punishment, judgment, anger, bitterness and revenge. The expression of love is forgiveness, compassion and kindness for others and ourselves. I hope that you might allow love to fill your world, heal you and your relationships thus bringing peace and happiness to you, your family and the people around you.