Episode 18 – Finding Your Inner Energy – “Simplicity” by Richard Rohr

In today’s podcast, we are following on the theme of finding your inner energy. The theme of energy leads to what motivates us and gives us purpose in our daily lives. Last week we looked at a book titled the “Big Leap” by Gay Hendricks. This week, Linda will share more about “Simplicity” by Richard Rohr

Key Messages in Simplicity

• The freedom of letting go
• All of the world’s religious traditions teach us letting go
• Letting go is freeing and eye-opening.  When we let go of our attachments, we make it possible for ourselves to live more fully.
• It is useful to regularly reflect on attachments, to identify them, to bring awareness of them
• Attachments can bring a heaviness to our lives and weigh us down.  These can be attachment to our image, our grievances, our stuff.  We all have attachments.  It is helpful to become aware of how much value and time and energy we give to attachments and how much time and energy our attachments continually demand.  By becoming conscious of our attachments, we can see what we can let go.  With a daily practice of reflection, we find we acquire insights that help us to recalibrate and, so, bring greater balance to our lives.

Letting Go

Rohr says most of us have never really met the person we are.  He offers this exercise to help us to see how we identify with our thoughts, feelings and emotions.

Exercise: Try this exercise for six minutes:

• Imagine a stream and see it flowing.  Boats and ships are sailing by.
• You are seated on the bank watching.
• As each boat goes by, name it with a word descriptive of you.  It may be “anxiety,” “fear,” “hope,” etc.
• Then, without judging the words you used, let the boat continue down the stream.

At the end of six minutes, try to find a word or phrase to describe what happened

Discernment

A question that is likely to surface is how to discern the life path that leads to growth and wholeness.  As we become adults, we become better and better at deceiving ourselves and rationalizing our behaviors.  Ultimately discernment that leads to growth-enhancing life choices comes from the time you take daily for yourself, allowing yourself to sit in stillness and non-judgment and observe your thoughts and feelings.  In time you will begin to see where you get bogged down and how you can let go and move forward.

Many world leaders and groups and individuals have done horrific things in the name of God and religion.  Rohr says this is due to a lack of honest discernment.  He urges each of us to take the time for honest discernment to avoid the risk of acting harmfully.

Exercise: what decision what paths and how pick energy and growth?

Be Present

It is helpful to take time daily to bring our awareness to the present

Too often, we run through our days on automatic pilot with schedules of appointments and tasks to be completed.  We lament that we have no time despite more and more time-saving conveniences.

It is likely that you will resist taking even 15 minutes a day for quiet and reflection.  But, if you do so, you will live your time more conscious and aware and enrich every hour of every day for the benefit of yourself and others.  By doing this exercise regularly, I have been able to discern between activities that are high value and those which bring limited or no value to myself or others.

Exercise: talk about when you can be present to change the moment and add more energy

Action Items

• Rohr acknowledges that what he shares in his many books and videos is not new.  It is   wisdom acquired from the world’s great religious leaders.  It is the common thread that runs through all faiths.
• Because Rohr is well versed in world cultures and religious traditions, he is able to make the common thread visible and raising awareness that the disharmony that some claim as religious-based is actually ego and power based misrepresentations of religious teachings.
• Take 15 minutes daily to be present and sit in quiet, non-judgmental reflection
• Identify your attachments
• Learn to let go

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