Happiness requires ‘zero tolerance’ to ‘Satan’!

Sometimes, in our desire for happiness, it may be necessary to adopt an attitude of ‘zero tolerance‘ but I must add a cautionary note to this advice. Let me do it by using a personal experience.

For a very long time, I was easily disturbed by a situation in my family. To tell the truth, it ripped by heart. The hurt and loss that I experienced were overwhelming, hovering above me like a dark cloud that just would not go away.

On the face of it, I appeared to be fine, managing my daily commitments, enjoying the company of family and friends and helping my clients along their journey. But that heavy cloud was always waiting for me and would find me in between my activities and preoccupations. As I said, it never really left.

It got to a point where it would be the last thing in my conscious mind before I went to bed and the first thing that greeted me when I woke up! It was not pleasant. It was persistent, pervasive and it hurt my spirit.

Although I had spent time reflecting on it and putting it through meditative analysis which reduced its impact considerably, I still did not reach the point where it no longer disturbed me.

One day, as I was intending a shift from a state of sadness and loss to a state of happiness and freedom, it occurred to me that I might try something different. I decided I would intend to be in a state where I would no longer tolerate being overwhelmed by sadness and loss.

Now, here is the thing. I did not decide to be intolerant of the feelings of sadness and loss but to be intolerant of being overwhelmed by them! It’s a subtle but critical distinction.

Feelings are vital to us as humans. They are the indicators of whether we are in tune with our true nature or not and to what degree. To be intolerant of our feelings would be to shut down what Abraham calls our ‘internal/emotional guidance system’, something that would diminish our self-awareness and our ability to choose appropriate responses.

On the other hand, to be intolerant of being overwhelmed by our feelings means not allowing fear to overpower us. It means noticing the fear that arises within us and reminding ourselves right then of who we truly are – powerful, free, limitless and joyous expressions of the One! It means choosing the truth of who we are over the falsehood of who we are not!

We are not fearful beings by nature. We are not isolated entities by nature. We are not here to suffer. Rather, we are free, powerful, joyous creations/outcomes of love and as such, it helps to have zero tolerance for anything that attempts to persuade us otherwise!

I believe that this was the attitude and meaning that Jesus had when he rebuked ‘Satan’ (falsehood) thus: