Journeys in Enlightened Loving : Sacred Communication
By Brad Lundy and Jan Deremo Forrest
Originally published in Healing Garden Journal, September 2002

“Divinity is my true nature. I am a soul among souls. I intersect those people whom I am meant to meet. Our paths cross by divine providence, not by chance misdirection. We are blessed in our connection. Knowing this, I encounter all I meet with curiosity and gracious hospitality.”

Julia Cameron
Blessings: Prayers and Declarations for a Heartful Life

Jan: This past week, each of us had an encounter which allowed us to experience what we are calling in this column, “Sacred Communication.” It was a meeting with someone who was operating from a sacred place—a place of peacefulness and God energy. Each of these individuals was not trying to “be” spiritual—their essence emanated it and like warm honey, oozed out over us and anyone they might encounter. It was like having a little glimpse of heaven.

Brad: My encounter was with one of our illuminated writers here at HGJ, Jim Norgaard. I had never met Jim, only having spoken with him on the phone. But Jim has an energy that is recognizable, and when I saw him on the street in Petoskey, I knew it just had to be him. Being in his presence for just 10 minutes was like being in divine presence.

Jan: I had the same experience a few days later through my phone interview with Fr. Thomas Keating, the founder of Centering Prayer (see interview page 8). The peaceful, centered energy this man exuded (even over the phone) was quite unlike anything I had experienced before. He held such a sacred presence that I was able to flow into that space as well.

This is what we mean by sacred communication. Each of these individuals communicated with such love and compassion, and in doing so, issued a blessed invitation, holding a space of love for another to dive into. What struck us the most is that this was not an “act,” or a way of operating when certain individuals are around, or when talking about “spiritual matters.” This is a way of being. They are simply being themselves, their Godselves.

Brad: I believe this is how we experience God through another person. Their love and compassion can take us through a doorway that takes us to a higher land, a new reality. A new experience of God can come come out of a compassionate encounter with another.

Jan: I imagine that is what it must have been like for people who physically experienced Jesus. The peace and compassion he emanated drew people in. They wanted to touch and be close to him. His beingness of love, compassion and God energy could not help but flow out from himself to others, because he was truly that. It was not an act he put on to seem “spiritual” to others. People in his proximity got to sample a genuine little piece of heaven.

Brad: Yes, and when we become aware that everyone has this potential, we can begin to interact with others as the God/person we all are. This is a wonderful reminder of what we are to one another. When we can see relationships in this sacred way, it shows us that our experience of God can come out of our experience with others. Or, to put it another way, we can experience God in a “being” way through other people. You could even say that we are “using” one another to elevate us to our Godselves. But in reality, we are not “using” one another at all. If we are being our true Spirit selves, we would naturally have this kind of relationship with everyone we encounter. It is our relationship with ego that keeps us separated from our Godself and others.

Jan: I have been reading a wonderful book entitled A Woman’s Journey to God, by Joan Borysenko, Ph.D, and in it she describes a time when a spiritual teacher instructed her to make love to her husband as if he were Jesus. She says, “I thought he was a nut. I was not yet mature enough to understand what he meant. God is the Divine Beloved in every person. Making love to that Holy Being within a spouse or lover, relating to the Divine in flesh, is a sacred act.” In the same vein, it seems as if we are being called to see the Jesus or Buddha in every person, and communicate in that sacred manner.

Brad: In a phone conversation with one of our readers the other day, this exact thought was challenged. She asked, “How do I really do that? How do we all get there?” My answer to her was that it comes in tiny visits. We so desire to live in sacred partnership with others, we become impatient. We think that we should have some heart blasting open experience that we now see everyone with great love and compassion. In reality, we just have to begin to tell the truth about who we are, who we are becoming and what we are moving towards. We acknowledge our true identity- spiritual beings having a human experience. This experience of others as Divine and Beloved doesn’t come in a weekend, but in moments, in glimpses. And when we experience them, we notice them. Notice how they feel. Notice how good they feel and set the intention to choose more of the same. Allow that desire to linger in you and move towards it, flowing naturally with how you feel.

Jan: Which brings us back to this incredible mechanism that is divine in origin- human relationship. I often wonder if we can do this journey alone, or if we are supposed to. It seems that it is truly through relationship with others that we do the ultimate work of Spirit - we learn how our ego operates and slows us from flowing back to God/self/others. Relationship is the ultimate vehicle for understanding our divinity while striving to return to our natural state of love and compassion. It can all be done in a sidewalk encounter, or a phone conversation or during lovemaking. These are holy moments.

The Divine is ever-present, in you and in me, in all of us. During your next encounter, look deeply into the eyes of the soul who is looking back at you. Who do you see? Is it the Divine One gazing back at you? We invite you to sink into their holy invitation and experience God through them.

With great love and blessings,

Brad and Jan