Years ago I got the same message from the same passage from two different sources in the same day. First I heard it in from Joseph Campbell, perhaps the greatest mythologist ever, in an interview with Bill Moyers. Then I saw it in the Movie Stigmata. It came from the Thomas Gospel, dug up in 1945. It is an ancient text reported by many scholars to be the closest to the original words of Jesus. The words were absolutely fascinating and changed my life.
The people were asking Jesus “when will the kingdom come, this kingdom of heaven you are talking about?” Jesus replied “the kingdom of Heaven is spread upon the earth but men do not see it.” I said “wait, spread upon the earth.” Up until this point I thought Heaven was when I was in deep meditation, traveling deep within, seeing magnificent sights. But now I was being challenged to see my whole world as Heaven. Always loving a spiritual challenge. I decided to put it to the test.
I looked for the good everywhere I went. Even if a situation was bad to me initially, I began to ask” how is God and The Universe trying to hook me up in ways that I can’t see at the moment?” As I leaned into this idea more and more, my whole world changed. I looked for harmony everywhere I went. In time I could see how things were magically put together, just for me. As I went through my days I would talk to God in my mind asking questions and wait to see the answers show up in my world. Some days I would thank God and the Universe for anything I could think of. The tire not going flat on the way to get my kids from school, anything! My life became a daily adventure to see how many ways could I see my world as Heaven. Within a short period of time my whole world changed. I had more money, a great relationship, I loved my house, the kids loved the house, my kids were happy, I was happy, I was finally writing my first book, I was on a spiritual high. This was just after my second divorce. It could have been a depressing time, instead, it was a whole new wonderful beginning.
Craig
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Goosebumps! I love how God will keep sending us the messages we need to hear. I need to remember that the kindom is heaven is spread on the Earth. Wow! I’m always focusing on what’s good, but focusing on the kindgom of heaven, that is even more powerful. Love it!
Thank you I am glad you liked the post.
Yeshwa meant to literally see it with your naked eyes. Your soul is beautiful, but what if I told you it’s right here and you see it all the time if I tell you, you’d laugh and wonder. It’s pretty astonishing and humbling. It’s going to be revealed soon by Chaitanya Bodhiananda.
Stay blessed.
Most encouraging read, Craig, and thank you for sharing. You are really tuned into what many call Serendipity.
I am glad that you enjoyed the post. I always loved the idea of serendipity.
Very nice. The eye of beauty, thus is heaven, thus is paradise within.
Thank you. And of course I agree with your comments on beauty and heaven.
Beautiful! It is amazing when you reach that point and finally begin to see. Welcome to life 🙂
Thank you my friend. You are quite correct. It is an amazing thing and always good to be truly alive. Peace and Blessings
Very thought-provoking. Many people live in the constant anticipation of the future – wherein, lies their hope for resurrection to eternal life. We must come to accept the fact that the future is only an illusion, it is very much like the past; the only thing that exists is the present. This world was created for us to dwell in and marvel at its beauty and intricacies, most of us in this modern age have stopped to appreciate the moment. Your post inspires these people to think otherwise. Thanks.
Thank you I am glad you like the post. I agree the only time is the present and we do need to marvel at the beauty and intricacies found here. Peace and Blessings
Thank you for this wonderful post and the beautiful message.
Peace and blessings,
Vee
Thank you for reading and sharing. I am glad that you enjoyed and agree with the message. Peace and Blessings
excellent my friend…just excellent. keep going further in. you’re a genius.
Thank you so much for the wonderful complement. I am happy to hear that you enjoyed the post. Peace and Blessings
Thank you very much for this beautiful post. Yes gratefulness can be a (constant)biggie ,…is a biggie.a spiritual crackajack. I am grateful you followed my blog so that I found and followed yours 😀 Peace and Blessings
Thank you I am glad that you enjoyed the post.
Thank you for following my blog also. I am grateful to you for your wonderful blog. Peace and Blessings
Hi Craig, I grew up going to the local Church of Christ. They did not understand the passage where Jesus said that “some of you standing here shall not taste of death until you see the the Kingdom of Heaven come with power.” As you probably know the Kingdom of Heaven Jesus was referring to was on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was given to men. We humans are a tabernacle, a home, a dwelling place of the Holy Spirit, the ‘Kingdom of God’ resides within the believers, the followers of God. This is why Jesus said that my own shall know my voice, because the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are one.
I agree. This is so difficult sometimes to see that the Father. the Son, and the Holy Spirit are one. And that all is within us.
Reblogged this on Truth Troubles.
Certainly, by accepting all the conditional phenomena as the way it is, we would be able to enjoy the life.
Thank you my friend. I agree, and as we accept and enjoy more enjoyable realities are then created as a result.
I had read that passage before, but did not understand it. I thought that for heaven to become visible, we needed to develop some kind of esoteric knowledge…and I did not know how to get it. You made it so clear: just look. Use the same eyes and mind you’ve always had, just look for heaven in what’s right in front of you. And of course…it’s right there! I am so grateful to you for this. Thank you!
Thank you for reading and for sharing Brad. I am glad to hear that the post was helpful. It always makes me happy to know that what I am sharing on the blog is reaching peole. This particular concept of Heaven being right here, right now, has changed my life. I find I have to revisit it often and remember to practice it as situations occur in life. Peace and Blessings
Just read your post. I am going to look for Haven everywhere I go as you did. I still struggle with judging others at times, being impatient, and letting little things upset me. I will practice looking for Haven daily. I believe it will help me overcome these challenges. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you for reading and your wonderful comment. What you shared is something that we all go through and I agree looking for Heaven here and now will make us less impatient and less annoyed. We can often see the good contained within what has been annoying us. Thank you again for sharing. Peace and Blessings
I would like to posit the idea that the ” least of these “,mentioned by the master Jesus, are members in good standing of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. Furthermore, they are always inviting each of us to experience the Kingdom, which I think has a place for all of us. And who are the least of these. Maybe it’s all the living creatures, human and otherwise , that keep calling our attention to the now, and caring for them, in whatever way is appropriate. Even if it’s just noticing them. I am finding this out , as I look after my very young grandchild, and pet dogs in our extended family. I am also a Nature watcher: I’ll stop to notice what the world is presenting , in it’s ever-changing panorama.It seems like the humbler your’e willing to be , the more you notice the wonders of our world. And you begin to experience yourself as a sort of human connection to the “divine”.
Hello Robert and thank you for reading. I agree the humble are the ones who can see the kingdom easiest. The ego and identification with false self is what keeps our attention away from the kingdom. The humbleness allows us to truly see others and even situations as really being a part of who we are and our lesson, and this leads us to the oneness. Taking time for reflection and meditation also helps. Thank you for the wonderful addition to the post.
the kingdom of God was hidden since the foundation of the world until the Messiah arrived to give this message to the world. Basically, the kingdom of God is the revelation that our true Self/nature is Spirit/Existence/Consciousness/Awareness. In plain english- Heaven is not a place or location but a metaphor of our true self which is Spirit. The body and the soul are simply temporary physical (dualistic)_manifestations of the one eternal reality – There is only One existence/consciousness/spirit that simply appears as a duality in the physical world. Man only became a “living soul” when God ‘breathed/placed’ his ‘spirit’ into that lifeless body of Adam. Consciousness/Existence/Awareness is what transcends all life forms from the microcosm to the macrocosm (the cosmos)_. Nothing exists without Spirit/Consciousness- not even God. There is no ‘experiencer/enjoyer/witness’ without spirit/existence/consciou(sness/awareness. The downfall of man was triggered by ignorance of his true self identity from limitless awareness, whole and complete to mis-identification of a limited self, incomplete and separated from God. Man only became separated from God in his own mind but never in actuality….Man cannot live, exist, experience without spirit/existence/consciousness/awareness present. This is the great mystery of the Ages..now that I have given you the keys to the kingdom- what will you do with them????