In Truth + Love

Think back for a moment, and try to remember a day where you had something to do—something you were dreading in a small sort of way—so that you were mentally bracing yourself going into it. But once you did, you found the day to be far easier and more pleasant than you had imagined. There’s nothing quite like that feeling of relief and freedom, is there? You realize that you actually like what is required of you, and suddenly there’s no barrier between you and contentment, with only blue sky above.

As I’ve often said, our expectations of the future often tend to make our lives much harder than they need to be, and this would be a prime example. Because often, whether or not we actually find this sense of relief and freedom is entirely up to our perspective. When we expect something to drag, we have a natural tendency to become withdrawn… which then ensures that our perspective has very little opportunity to change.

I suppose what I’m trying to say is that pleasant surprises rarely come along if you’re not open to them. We often talk about giving up expectations, but while crucial, this is still only a passive act. What about a more active mindset moving forward?

So it starts with giving up expectations, but what happens after that? More and more lately, I’ve been meditating on the idea that it all comes down to love and truth. Expectations tend to get us down because they are full of errors, hence, not based in truth—which in turn brings us out of love. On the other hand, rejecting love goes against how we as human beings are meant to live, and thereby creates errors. So you can see how these concepts depend on each other—in fact, they are so tightly wound together that they can scarcely be considered as separate entities.

However, the addition of truth as a pursuit in the present and as one of our “good goals” for the future is useful in giving us direction. Tell someone to live in love in the present moment, and what image will they see in their mind? Being nice to others? Letting others have their way? Practicing charity? All fine things, but is it enough to fill a person’s life?

The idea of seeking truth provides a much more active and all-pervading role, I find. It could mean seeking true understanding in a relationship, seeking better ways of doing things in a business, seeking spiritual truth, or seeking to better understand yourself. Practically any activity could be boiled down to either a truth-focus, seeking the best and most loving way forward for everybody, or a self-focus, seeking to get pleasure or avoid pain for yourself. Sometimes all you need to change your perspective and move forward is the right wording.

Hopefully, this one is of benefit to at least a few of you..

Have a blessed, wonderful day!

Dr. Alex Loyd