If you want to bring some extra pain into your life, insist that some particular project or process in which you are engaged must be finished by such and such a time.
On the other hand, if you would like to experience more peace in your life, take a look at this tendency bred deep in every one of us to want to bend the universe to our will at all costs.
Of course, there are times when setting a deadline for some task or accomplishment is necessary, and helpful. And sometimes a deadline is handed down to us from a higher source – from life itself, perhaps, or from our boss, let’s say.
But I become more and more conscious, as I age, that everything works much better in my life when I follow the same law which the Universe itself honors: “In God’s good time.” There is a rhythm to the rise and fall of oceans. A flower, getting ready to unfurl its petals and impress the world with its beauty, does so in an orderly way. Birds sing when they feel the urge to sing, and you don’t have the impression they want to finish their song as quickly as possible so they can get on to their next task.
Speaking of myself, I have this new book that I am working on with the fury and passion of a 20-year-old working for a degree or training for the Olympics. I want to get it finished and published yesterday.
But the book has made it very clear to me on a number of occasions that it will be finished when it’s ready to be finished, and not before. It has reminded me in compelling ways how important it is to trust life and be flexible – a bit flexible anyway – in my goals. And it has reminded me that when we do trust, and persevere, being true to our highest vision, things usually work out beautifully even though we may find ourselves biting our nails at times.
For instance, a few weeks back I sent invitations to a number of well-known “influencers” – important people — telling them about myself and my book and asking if they would please consider giving me an endorsement for the book. I wanted to give my new baby the best possible chance to succeed and thrive in a fast-paced world.
I’m happy to say that I received some wonderful responses that make me very, very proud. They are going to look terrific on my front and back cover. But it was a cliff-hanger, as days passed and no testimonials showed up. I had set a “deadline,” you see – yes, I admit it. But in this case I think a deadline was actually helpful.
It gave me an excuse to send out a few reminders to people high on my list as my “deadline” drew close and then – what else could I do? — sit back and trust. I was so touched with the kind and generous “blurbs” that arrived just in the nick of time and brought a glow to my heart.
Introducing The Secret Promise of Aging
The name of my new book is The Secret Promise of Aging: Finding Meaning, Joy and Inner Peace as Years Fly By. It’s an evolution from my previous book, Aging into Bliss, which I published last year, but which will shortly no longer be available.
I realized with hindsight that the earlier book was quite limited in its scope and depth. I gave it my best and I was proud of it at the time. But then I began to see that there was so much more I wanted to share about the meaning, joy and peace that is our true destiny regardless of our age. I earnestly believe my new book will be a big improvement on its predecessor and I look forward to introducing it to you and others as soon as possible – in God’s good time, mind you!
As always, I would love to hear your thoughts or experiences regarding the above topic.
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In God’s good time is a post from: The Happy Seeker - Aging with Wisdom and Joy