Atheist to Zen: 5 Steps to Joyful, Peaceful Living

By Greg Kesler

Imagine experiencing continuous, peaceful living. Everyone has the inherent capacity to remain in a state of joy and serenity, regardless of circumstances. Peace resides at the core of all creation, it can never be uprooted, only covered up. This is an inspirational story of transformation from suffering to healing, followed by five methods you can use to bring joy into your daily life.

Greg Kesler lived most of his life as an atheist, dwelling in the paralyzing fear of uncertainty. Afraid of living and afraid of dying, the only thing he believed in was struggling and forcing his way through life.

In August 2011, Greg and two of his children nearly drowned in a river during a float tubing mishap. Being a non-believer in any higher power, the visitation from a loving, intelligent Presence under the water with them, came as quite a shock. This life-changing event, combined with another Spiritual encounter a year prior, radically shifted Gregs views of himself, other people, and the world around him.

Hes studying to be a Spiritual guidance counselor to assist people in learning about their Divine nature, perfect in every way. His new purpose in life is to help others free themselves, as he has been freed, by the grace of Spirit.

Unlimited joy is always available, for its the natural state of all of creation. This book guides you in how to bring instant and sustainable peace into your life, starting today.

Life is beautiful! Enjoy it.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Balboa Press
• Release date: Jan 27, 2015
• ISBN: 9781452599069

Greg Kesler

Greg Kesler currently resides in Denver, Colorado. He is a father of three beautiful children, a small business owner, and studying to become a spiritual counselor through his church organization. After being an industrial pump rebuilder for twenty-four years, he is currently taking steps to move towards serving the people, on a full-time basis, ministering the truth of the spiritual perfection in themselves, and the world around them. During this transition phase of changing careers and taking steps to move into ministry, he keeps a mantra in his heart that keeps him motivated…“Machines to Ministry”

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Copyright © 2014 Greg Kesler.

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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.

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ISBN: 978-1-4525-9907-6 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4525-9908-3 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4525-9906-9 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2014920462

Balboa Press rev. date: 01/27/2015

Contents

Dedication

Epigraph

Foreword

Preface

Introduction

PART I - Living As An Atheist

Chapter 1    Formation Of Beliefs

Chapter 2    Conclusion? There Is No God!

Chapter 3    The Breaking Point

PART II - Transformation, Spiritual Intervention

Chapter 4    The Rescue, Spirit Comes To Save Me

Chapter 5    The Investigation

Chapter 6    In The River, God’s 2Nd Visit

PART III - Zen! 5 Steps To Joyful, Peaceful Living

Chapter 7    Gratitude, The Portal (A Fresh Start)

Chapter 8    Acceptance, In The Divine Flow

Chapter 9    Forgiveness – The Relief Of Releasing

Chapter 10    Freedom! When Fear Is Released, All That Remains Is Joy & Peace.

Chapter 11    Meditation & Prayer, The Rendezvous Point

Afterword

About The Author

DEDICATION

T HIS BOOK IS DEDICATED TO humanity. Beneath the façade of superficial separateness, we all want the same thing, to love and to be loved. By the powerful grace of spirit, may we incrementally arrive at a place of collective wisdom, allowing us to cast aside our differences, and embrace one another. Let us live out our lives in this incredible dimension, in harmony.

EPIGRAPH

T his physical world is hypnotic with its persuasive distractions. Sights, sounds, people, and places capture our full attention – we become consumed by our circumstances. We are drawn in by the myriad of stimuli that our senses perceive. We are understandably convinced that this dimension is all there is, meanwhile a vast realm of loving, intelligent power goes undetected. - GK

FOREWORD

Written by:

Dr. Patty Luckenbach, M.A., D.D.

Associate Minister & Prayer & Care Center Director

Mile Hi Church

Author of: The Land of Tears is a Secret Place &

Kingdom of Heart

Atheist

To

Zen

S OME PEOPLE JUST STAND ON the banks of a river and place their toe into the swift moving water. The author of Atheist to Zen has truly experienced the depth and breadth of life – of the rapids of change. He has allowed the very rush of life itself to deliver him into the width of spiritual understanding. He now stands and realizes, with great humility, the he is the river of life itself.

Through breakdown and breakthrough, the author takes the reader behind the scenes of the drama as he sets down the character of fear, madness, gloom, lack, and limitation. He lifts the heaviness of the fog of compos of collective belief.

Through spiritual intervention, the author shares the encounters and practices of organic principles of forgiveness and gratitude that continue to transform fear of living to the acceptance and the activation of the divine flow of life.

PREFACE

T HIS BOOK ADDRESSES THE FACT that there is indeed a loving, nurturing Spirit or God that embraces us at all times, whether we are aware of it or not.

Living most of my forty-six years as a non-believer in any God or supernatural force, I found my outlook on life steadily declining over the decades of succumbing to the wearing effects of the rat race. Daily life contains many demands and stresses that tend to tarnish the optimistic fervor that once existed in years gone by.

This is a true story of two very powerful, spiritual experiences that happened to me recently in desperate times of need. The first visitation was during a meditation, in a period of time where my life was falling apart in 2010. The second, and more pronounced encounter was in the midst of a near drowning situation in a river near Denver, Colorado in 2011.

Much to surprise, I never would have imagined that there is so much peace, grace, and transformative power in the seemingly invisible. Life has always been incredible and perfect, just waiting for me to recognize it, but I was blind to it. Spirit never wavered in its majestic stance, patiently supported me, until the time was right for me to embrace it. I now see this life in all its splendor, even with its myriad of appearances, it is simply perfect just the way it is.

Since those transformative events, God has been steadily taking root into my heart and delivering the healing agents of peace and serenity during what would come to be a massive re-shaping of my life. Many insights and lessons were realized during this three year cocoon phase of development.

The past couple years have brought total restructuring to my life situation, my surroundings, marital status, business, personal, and spiritual growth. Mixed with victories and defeats as seen up-close, life appears to be chaotic, but as seen from a broader perspective, it is the masterfully orchestrated doings of divine perfection in action.

The constantly available joy and peace of God are attainable by anyone at anytime. As impossible as it may seem, a truly enjoyable, relaxing, peaceful, happy life is yours to have, yours to experience. It is your birthright.

I will share with you in chapters 7 through 11, how you can incorporate the power and grace of the Divine into your daily life, for a significantly more enjoyable experience.

Peace & Blessings, Greg Kesler

INTRODUCTION

T HIS BOOK’S MESSAGE IS DIVIDED roughly in half. The first half is what I hope to be an inspirational story of transformation from a life of struggle and worry, into a blessed life of joy, following two incredible spiritual experiences. The second half of this book is lovingly designed as a tutorial how to on suggested exercises that you can incorporate into your life, in hopes to bring the same freedom into your life, that has been given to me.

We are perfect creations of the Divine, incredibly designed to be self-sustaining and renewing. The complexity of living organisms, when examined in depth, leaves one with a sense of awe and bewilderment. When looking to nature as the template of flawless creation, we find that all is in perfect balance. Everything exists in a well-orchestrated, rhythmic display. We as humans are an integral part of this harmonious dance. All of our needs are constantly met and the supply of everything is abundantly available. Countless elements and factors have to be in just the right proportions, in order for us to exist in this dimension, and live our lives on this beautiful planet.

How is it that we tend to lose our way as we progress down the path of living? While moving through the sequential chapters of our lives, we tend to become dulled and jaded. Many of us fall away from believing that there is any good in the world, that there is a supernatural force looking out for our best interest. How ironic is it that we come from a place of divinity, only to forget where we originate from, and where we return to? It is a curious phenomenon that prompts the masses of humanity to search for the meaning of Life.

For as far back as I can remember, because of my conditioning, I have always been a skeptic of all things good. If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. I used to laugh at people both out loud and silently to myself, when various folks would profess their beliefs of a higher power. I would often proclaim that this whole life is one big, complex accident that mysteriously appeared as a result of the Big Bang. Then, the rest was explained through Darwinism, the evolution of fish to humans. It was the only tangible story that my thinking mind could accept, because mankind has collected fossils that I can see and touch. Furthermore, the notion of an invisible puppet master in a lofty place somewhere in the cosmos, who decides the eternal fate of our souls, did not compute in the slightest.

In the first three chapters, I will elaborate on the similarities of myself to many people, in that life is tough, it’s a struggle, and you do your best to try and survive. Or, as I used to bluntly state You just do your time and then get in the dirt. As an atheist, I went from childhood, through my teens, and into adulthood, with an ever increasing sense of fear. The undercurrent of feeling scared of living became gradually more intense as I got into my thirties and forties. Because I had not even an inkling of belief in any God to help me, I felt like a small row boat out on the open ocean, drifting aimlessly, and taking on water.

As if the fear of living were not unsettling enough, the fear of dying became a stronger proponent of my daily existence as I grew older. For reasons unknown, I found myself being consumed by my fear of death as I progressed in age. This would become a disruptive thought pattern as I approached my fortieth birthday, resulting in loss of sleep by night and mental focus by day.

It got to the point where occasional thoughts of the end evolved into more frequent and intense episodes of resistance to my impending doom. As the phobia grew in intensity, I would often have nightmares of dying in a variety of ways, resulting in me jerking myself awake, startled and out of breath. Then I would lie in bed thinking to myself There’s no getting around it. Even if I take great care of myself, I still must die!

In my early twenties, I got married and started a family. We went from two incomes and no kids, ending up with a family of five on only one income. This is the natural course for most growing families and is not some evil affliction, but the financial reality is, that whoever takes on the role of the main provider, can feel the stress, sometimes to frightening, unbearable levels. Many sole providers of growing families feel the financial strain and desperately seek the balance of bringing home the bacon versus spending time with their families. I got caught up in the game.

I completely lost myself in trying to make a great life for myself, my wife, and our three kids through the security that money seemed to offer. This too, is an illusion that many of us buy into. I was brought up to believe that money equaled security, and ultimately freedom. It did seem like a simple equation until disturbances caused me to feel like I was losing ground. The ever increasing cost of living rose faster than my ability to earn. The relentless pressure to make it happen financially, each and every month was a steadily growing weight that became unmanageable over time. I soon perceived myself slipping farther and farther behind, so I pressed on with grim determination, in attempts to shift the ominous tide, by working longer hours.

Living at work became the new normal as it was not unusual to be pushing eighty to ninety hours a week. As time went by, I began to calculate that the struggle for survival was an unwinnable war. Heavily entrenched in anxiety, my fear based life caused me to grow tired and weary.

In 2008, on my fortieth birthday, I opened up a small business, in hopes to break the cycle of financial restriction. Unwittingly, this would be the smoldering powder keg that eventually would turn an already difficult life into a disastrous situation. The business got off to terrible start in the first two years of operation. We soon found ourselves in a world of financial hurt like never before. Living on credit cards, begging family members for money, I had no means of paying any of my bills. Our house was on the brinks of foreclosure and the phone rang all day long from the futile attempts of bill collectors to seek payment on our Mount Everest-sized debts. Mental and physical fatigue had set in, and the only numbing agent would be at the bottom of the bottle. As I became increasingly scared and desperate, occasional thoughts of suicide would enter my thought stream. This terrified me, because I still had a family to look out for. When this type of escape mentality comes in, it is a powerful force that distorts the lens in which to view the life experience. Trying to conjure up a solution to my