What is impelling progress?

Life seems to be an endless string of challenges. Health issues, supply, relationships but even more so the larger topics such as social justice, a fair equilibrium between the west and the global south, the welfare of the planet with its vast plant and animal life, captivate our attention every day. Often the heart aches under these challenges and often some individual heart looses all hope of improvement all together. It is a frustrating and sad outlook on life, actually, to think that it is the challenges, diseases, relationship strains and waves of lack that are the moving forces in our life. That they generate progress - or not so much. Where is God in all this?

In the recent weeks I have been giving a lot of thought to these questions and I have been wondering how to look them. Is it really fair to say that we move forward because we meet challenges and overcome them - so that in a way the challenges drive our progress? Yes, we make progress according to the speed of our demonstration, of course. We learn and grow as we move forward. But that is not the complete answer.

The advent of Jesus and his practical introduction to the goodness of being - the essence of spirituality - is telling a different, more complete story. Divine Love is at the center of Life, and therefore it is truly Love which develops, moves, advances, unfolds, proceeds, undertakes, carries out, pursues, accomplishes everything that ever matters to us and to everyone everywhere. Mary Baker Eddy writes:
"Love inspires, illumines, designates, and leads the way. (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 454)

So then, if Love inspires - then hate cannot move your life forward. If Love illumines, darkness cannot push you anywhere. If Love designates, the lack of coherence or supply cannot threaten you. If Love leads, the human ego does not.

This insight is truly profound. It means that it is not actually human circumstances asserting themselves, but our spiritual identity that is calling for more breathing room. Mary Baker Eddy writes also in the same book, the textbook: "God expresses in man the infinite idea forever developing itself, broadening and rising higher and higher from a boundless basis." (p. 258)

Therefore welcome any life circumstances as it is and yield to the fact that behind the challenge that seems to be pushing you, is not a mean master plan or even entity or some disadvantage possibly even inherited. It is actually right here and now your own spiritual identity that is pushing for focus, development, and undivided attention. God is not passive but the source of all movement, always.

The glory of the human existence is certainly in overcoming all the obstacles that present themselves, but it is our spiritual existence that is not sitting quietly on the side: It is actively pushing for your attention. Can you spend more time with Love today? Can you listen better to what your soul is telling you? Can you be who you are? You can not only rely completely on God, but also on His/Her spiritual image and likeness, which you most certainly are. Its intentions and aims are exactly the same ones as God's. This is worthy of our whole and undivided attention and you can see how very o.k. it is to be who you are: An individual consciousness in the infinite weave of Spirit, which we call God. This consciousness is alive, active - and wants to progress, every day. And Love is the motor behind it.

This healing report illustrates the metaphysical point of this blog post - especially the last paragraph.