Religions we are familiar with, organized religions, encourage those of faith to subscribe to a circumscribed set of beliefs; their faith then becomes bounded by the tenets of the religion they choose to follow. Such an institutionalized faith is lacking in immediacy and intimacy. Faith needs to be more meaningful; it must include a personal relationship with God.
God within
There is a spark of God within each one of us; therefore we can have a personal relationship with Him. Our Father is not some far off being overseeing countless trillions of beings at the same time; our Father is within each one of us individually and our relationship with Him can be personal, intimate, and dynamic.
Our indwelling spark of God, our Thought Adjuster or adjuster, leads us by gradual steps into as much spiritual progress as we are able to assimilate. Our adjuster knows our capabilities and guides us accordingly; too rapid progress could have severe consequences.
Our potentially eternal soul is brought into existence when our adjuster arrives; it grows as a result of the interactions between our adjuster and our mind thus guiding us toward greater spiritual progress. The soul is our spirit counterpart and it is augmented or weakened by the nature of our reactions to the adjuster’s spirit leadings. As we cooperate with the spirit guidance we receive, our soul is strengthened; as we accept this spirit leadership we become more aligned with universal reality, we become more spiritually real.
Manifesting fruits of the spirit
As we progress in the spirit we manifest the fruits of the spirit in our daily lives; we feel the peace within, joy and love for our sisters and brothers. These are natural outpourings, not something artificially introduced; our faith will motivate our daily lives and become obvious to others in the way we conduct ourselves.
Part of this personal experience with our Father is the awareness of spiritual energy within. We feel an indefinable power that gives us the ability to keep going when things become difficult; this energy sustains us and allows us to keep up the struggle for righteousness.
When we are asked to do something difficult we need to take the leap of faith knowing Father is with us, helping us in every way possible. At the beginning of the process we will have no idea where this leap of faith will take us, we do not know where we will land, but we can be confident loving beings are assisting us at every step along the way. That was certainly the case when I started writing this book, “Light of Truth;” I thought I was writing a small booklet! We take this leap of faith knowing we are being lovingly guided.
But exactly what is this personal religious experience?
Personal experiences
All our vital religious experiences take place within ourself. These experiences are intensely personal and their inner meaning cannot be effectively shared with others who may have had no such experiences; they are our own experience. Our true nature, our inner reality, is spiritual and since we are observing the universe from within, all creation becomes spiritual in nature.[1]
Man is naturally a dreamer, but science is sobering him so that religion can presently activate him with far less danger of precipitating fanatical reactions. Economic necessities tie man up with reality, and personal religious experience brings this same man face to face with the eternal realities of an ever-expanding and progressing cosmic citizenship. (Urantia Book1093.3) Modern people who have been “sobered” by science will be able to have religious experiences without the danger of fanaticism. We are tied to the demands of everyday life with its myriad responsibilities and commitments firmly tying us to our present reality and are therefore less in danger of falling victim to extravagant religious fantasies. Personal religious experiences are real and will be an increasing part of our society in the immediate future. These experiences will lead us to become aware of eternal realities, become aware of our cosmic citizenship.[2] We are indeed citizens of the cosmos, we must act that way.
These experiences may be difficult to describe since they involve spiritual reality. There is an increase in vital energy, an expanded indefinable awareness, and it seems as if there are nonvisible friends assisting us. Difficulties can more easily be dealt with and there is an internal peace.
Belief becomes faith
Belief becomes faith only after it motivates our lives and changes our way of life. This faith is a living and personal religious experience.[3] When we have this personal experience, when we dedicate ourselves to following God’s will in our thoughts, actions and lives, we know God and His love for each of us. In his life among us, Jesus attained the highest realization of this as a human being living on our planet. Jesus was born a mortal struggling to understand his surroundings just as everyone born on this orb or on any other in this local universe. He was on his own and by the strength of his will and his faith, he found God; and so can we if we make his faith our faith.
Jesus personified personal religious experience and this shone forth in his life. The religion of Jesus is all about each believer having an individual relationship with God. It is truly that simple, and that difficult.
There are two parts to a personal religious experience; the first is what the human mind discovers. This experience enables our mind to become aware of truths about God. The other is what the indwelling spirit reveals to us during the experience.[4] These experiences are a real and vital part of our existence. They are the stepping stones from our world of time and space to the portals of eternity; our path from this evolutionary world to the vast creation surrounding us, from our finite mortal experience to the vast creation.
These personal religious experiences may not be flashy; there will probably be no bursts of illumination signifying a closer relationship with God. Rather we attain a quiet assurance God is with us always guiding us, gradually leading us toward spiritual growth. Our personal religious experience is in our daily lives as we go about our activities with the quiet assurance God is with us every step along the way.
It is sometimes possible to have the mind illuminated, to hear the divine voice that continually speaks within you, so that you may become partially conscious of the wisdom, truth, goodness, and beauty of the potential personality constantly indwelling you. (Urantia Book 1199.3)
The more sincerely, intensely, and fully we seek to do the will of God, the more likely this “possibility” becomes.
Further Reading
“Light of Truth: Anticipating the Triumph of Righteousness”
