It appears to me the key difference between those who truly succeed in life and the also-rans is the personal ability to transcend oneself, and all that might come against the self--and this can only be done in, with, and through, God. True success is hence contingent on our relationship with God.
Let me illustrate.
Most people have no problem living i.e. eating, sleeping and breathing. They do so, generally, in quite typical fashion as all have done in centuries past. The difference between the normal life and the transcendent life, however, is marked.
The normal person in our rather extravagant society lives in a way that physically and mentally (and probably also emotionally and spiritually) degrades their lives gradually, though inevitably, over the lifespan. They put on weight, their muscles atrophy, they lose their mental sharpness, and generally their overall capacities diminish. Death is already in progress.
But, there is another way. There is a fountain of wisdom and youth in transcending ourselves.
“There is a fountain of youth: It is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age”
–Sophia Loren.
Everyone it seems--at various levels--wants to stay young and prolong life. Funny isn’t it that at the same time we also often want to escape life and know intuitively that life is hard and annoying a lot of the time. Escaping life, however, is not what I believe Sophia Loren is talking about. It’s the opposite; it’s embracing life. It’s meeting life head-on.
It’s not until we learn that we must actively kick against the pricks of the prevailing worldly domain that we truly understand our default human dilemma. We’re trapped in an invisible vision that most people can never see. It takes faith to see it--yet, most people are bone lazy to things of faith. And they miss so genuinely much. And to see is but one thing; we must then have the courage to go on to transcending ourselves.
We are destined for hell unless we reach for heaven, true heaven, which is heaven right now. And ‘heaven right now’ is deep and indwelt within our own minds, hearts, souls and spirits. It is the ability to allow God to penetrate and guide us in transcending our normal, pitiable selves.
“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you” –Isaiah 60:1 (NIV). This Glory is as fresh this minute as ever before... it’s yours... explore.
“Wake up from your sleep, Climb out of your coffins [of living death]; Christ will show you the light!” –Ephesians 5:14 (Msg). [Portion added.]
Arise, sleeper, from your slumber. Seek God, tap into him, and transcend your normal, pitiable self. It can be done now, even now!
Copyright © 2009, S. J. Wickham. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.
Post Script: Abraham Maslow revealed,
“Human history is a record of the ways in which human nature has been sold short. The highest possibilities of human nature have practically always been underrated. Even when ‘good specimens,’ the saints and sages and great leaders of history have been available for study, the temptation too often has been to consider them not human but supernaturally endowed…. If we want to know the possibilities for spiritual growth, value growth, or moral development in human beings, then I maintain that we can learn most by studying our most moral, ethical, or saintly people.”[1]
tran·scend (defined from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary)
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin transcendere to climb across, transcend, from trans- + scandere to climb — more at scan
Date: 14th century
transitive verb 1 a: to rise above or go beyond the limits of b: to triumph over the negative or restrictive aspects of : overcome c: to be prior to, beyond, and above (the universe or material existence)2: to outstrip or outdo in some attribute, quality, or powerintransitive verb: to rise above or extend notably beyond ordinary limits
synonyms see exceed
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