A man was under a street light on a corner searching for his key, when another man approached him and asked what he was doing. "Looking for my key." He replied. "Can I help you?" "Sure!" So after searching and looking, the second man said, "I can't find it, are you sure you lost it here?"

The first man answered, "No, I lost it in the house." "So why are you looking for it out here?" The first man responded, "Because it's more light out here!"

This is not a joke; it speaks to the quest of finding our "Key" to life. Perhaps it's easier to look outside than inside.

Anthony Robbins, personal life coach says, "Ask yourself a better question." The better question to be asked is…. Where can I find God?

As a human race, are we looking outside our inner-self to find God?

In these times of recession, wars, invasions, AIDS, suicide, earthquakes, is there anyone asking, where can I find God or are people looking for a savior outside of themselves to deliver us from the hardships of this modern time.

For years, theologians have said that we are living in the last days, the apocalypse times, that Jesus is coming back, that God is coming. Perhaps She is already here, is not the Kingdom of Heaven within you, and perhaps, She cannot be found because we are looking outside ourselves.

Is Christendom the land of hypocrisy? Are we a land of rituals and traditions instead of a land where people are Christ like, which is the true definition of a Christian?

How close can I get to God? Close as the doors of the church, synagogue, and mosque or as close as in the inner, inward self. Or should the question be, do we "really" want to find God or just pay our tithes, offerings, attend our services, practice our religions, while never asking ourselves a better question of why so many houses of worship and so few things are changing, as a matter of fact, getting worse.

The Christmas season has just passed, can we get close to God by buying presents, trees, lights, giving gifts or actually going out doing what Christ did? Are we so caught up in the addiction of shopping, frantic buying, family gatherings, Christmas songs and music, that the true meaning of that season is solely overlooked?

How can we find God? By fasting, praying, mediating, doing yoga, which root meaning is to unite with the true self, by reading spiritual books, not just religious books which all to often divide rather than unite. (Watch out, Lee, don't go there.)

In this time where the economy is slow, jobs are being lost, transported overseas, (out sourced) families are being torn apart, houses foreclosed, are we seeking God, truly seeking Her. She is as close as your next breath, your next heart beat, that something inside you that is not your mind, for your mind was created to be your servant by God, not your master.

Have you found Her in your institutions or have you given up hope, simply didn't have time because you're chasing the dollar out of fear of lost. Could the question be, does God want to be found, is She playing hide and seek (seek and you will find), or is it just that we haven't "really" been shown where to look, look inside yourself, for it is there, there you will find God.

Are we up for the challenge of mysticism, a mystic being a person who believes that truth or God can be known through spiritual insight, independent from the mind (Thorndike-Barnhart), or are we down with the "usual".

I challenge you, ask yourself a better question. Why can I find God?

E. Lee Sullivan is a freelance writer and spiritual life coach living in Atlanta, GA, contact Lee at leesullivan2004@yahoo.com

© 2005 By Afromerica

Ms. E. Lee Sullivan will be keeping the Black community updated on the most current social issues effecting our lives. Visit regularly for new information that could help you pursue a more positive lifestyle.

To subscribe to Lee's column join the Afromerica email list to receive new information as it is updated. Or E-mail E. Lee at: leesullivan2004@yahoo.com

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Afromerica: Where its all Black & white and some gray areas.

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