Improve Your Being—Improve Your Life

By James Patrick Lane

This book will lead you through a process of identifying and then improving who you really are. By applying the teachings, you can become more centered and grounded, affording you a greater effectiveness at meditation, prayer or any other spiritual work. Use it as a daily guide to keep you on the path to success in your physical and spiritual life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Balboa Press
• Release date: Apr 12, 2013
• ISBN: 9781452571218

James Patrick Lane

Rev. James Patrick Lane B.Msc. has spent his life in study of religion and spirituality. He is a metaphysical minister and is the founder of Sparks of Life Ministries. He served in the Presbyterian Church USA for twenty years as a teaching elder and served two terms on the Committee On Ministry (COM) for Mission Presbytery. James has searched all his life for a closer relationship to Spirit. He has studied various religions and read many authors on spirituality to try to bring himself to the realization of who we are and where we are in our journey to God. James lives in Texas with his soul mate and their canine companion, spending days in meditation, writing, and doing workshops on improving your being.

Book preview

Copyright © 2013 James Patrick Lane.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Balboa Press books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:

Balboa Press

A Division of Hay House

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.balboapress.com

1-[phone]

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

The author of this book does not dispense medical advice or prescribe the use of any technique as a form of treatment for physical, emotional, or medical problems without the advice of a physician, either directly or indirectly. The intent of the author is only to offer information of a general nature to help you in your quest for emotional and spiritual well-being. In the event you use any of the information in this book for yourself, which is your constitutional right, the author and the publisher assume no responsibility for your actions.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-4525-7120-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4525-7121-8 (e)

Balboa Press rev. date: 04/09/2013

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

1    Looking In The Mirror

2    Negative Actions

3    Forgiveness

4    Negative Thoughts

5    Negative Feelings

6    The Doing

7    Quiet Down The World

8    Identifying The Self

9    Nature And Thought

10  To Become As Children

11  Meditation And Prayer

12  Centering

13  Affirmations

14  Humility And Gratitude

15  Conclusion

DEDICATION

THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED TO ALL WHO SEEK TO FIND THE GREATEST MEANING TO THEIR LIFE PURPOSE AND JUST WANT A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO HELP THEM GET THERE.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I want to acknowledge everyone who has given me an experience, either good or bad, for it has served a purpose in my life. I would like to especially thank my wife for her patience in dealing with the often nocturnal ramblings of an author. I would like to thank all the writers who research deeply to try to bring understanding and clarity to the seekers of Truth.

1

LOOKING IN THE MIRROR

It is good to tame the mind, which is difficult to hold in and flighty, rushing about; a tamed mind brings happiness. Buddhism

W hen we look into a mirror what do we see? Is it a reflection of our self or is it just the vessel? The answer is it depends on whether you’re looking, or ‘seeing.’ We are both physical in nature and Spiritual in essence. We are mortal living bodies with immortal Souls. If you are here, you have been here before. The Buddhists have a saying; If you want to know what you were like in your past life, look at your life. If you want to know what you will be like in your next life, look at how you are living. This sums it up quite well.

When we leave the body it passes away. It has been in a state of deterioration for some time, mainly because of our abuse of its proper care and nourishment. Our Spirit/Soul will now egress back to the Spiritual Realm and a debriefing will take place. Our consciousness has recorded our every move and action which is reviewed by our True Self and beings of higher consciousness acquainted with our Divine Creator. Even though our Soul is immortal, it is still attracted to the physical senses. I keep telling people I come back for the enchiladas.

A Soul which has come to terms with the pleasures of the physical senses at this point may choose to remain in the Spiritual realm, or reincarnate as a risen Master to help bring awareness to lost Souls. Jesus was such a Soul, the most pure next to the Father. Mohammed and the Buddha were Souls who also came to teach the way to freedom from the birth/death cycle. Through the ages, even to this day, Masters have come among us.

Those Souls who have not awakened will endure trials and ultimately will be transmigrated back to the physical realm. They will be ‘born’ into vessels which are created to be the exact puzzles they must solve to awaken. They will only have the power of intuition to affect the shared consciousness they own with the physical mind. They are like a backseat passenger in a car where the car is driven by the ego and the self rides shotgun. It must awaken and put the ego in the back seat and take the wheel.

Have you ever given thought about people and their relationships, wondering what she ever saw in him, or why people always make the same choices? Well, here’s something to think about. Our vessels are designed by those matches. Our relationships are like orders placed to create the exact vessel types needed for a specific transmigrating Soul. I have heard many thoughts on the theory we pick our parents. I do not necessarily agree with this theory. I believe the state at which our Soul exists is matched with the vessel created by beings at a specific place in their Spiritual journey, a vessel which will afford the best possible opportunity for the growth and awakening of the evolving Soul.

The transmigrating Soul will also be paired to help the parents in their journey. Even though this pairing of souls is in equanimity with one another it is still subject to the physical and mental influences of the world, the heaviest realm. In the next chapters of this little book we will lay down some basic principles, which if taught early in life, could make such a difference in the world. The great Masters have come and still come to teach these ways, but people acknowledge and then ignore the wisdom.

The physical senses of pleasure are intoxicating. They have divided mankind from the Perfection. I can not tell you here and now that we can accomplish the overwhelming task of reaching enlightenment in this lifetime. What I can offer is that we can improve our being and improve our life here in this physical reality. We can pass from this life in a better state of consciousness and transmigrate into a vessel which is on a higher vibrational level, availing us an opportunity to climb out of this birth/death