Friday, March 27, 2009

Illusion

My head is always full of questions. They tumble around like acrobats in a circus. Luckily every once in awhile one gets answered and leaves the arena or it would be so crowded in there I’d have to leave. Awhile back the question was, “What is the opposite of living in truth?” That question didn’t jump around long like some of my questions do. As I began to search for an answer, I realized that if we are not living in truth, we are living in illusion.

Scene change: forget about acrobats and now imagine the circus magician. I loved magic shows as a child. It was so amazing to watch impossible things happen right before my very eyes. Women who had been cut in half would suddenly jump out of a closet—perfectly whole! People floated in air. Handkerchiefs changed into birds and flew away. But it was all illusion.

Illusion lasts only for that moment. It is a trick. It isn’t what it seems to be. It is deception, and if you base your opinions of life on illusion you are basing life on a foundation with no footings—the proverbial house upon the sand.

Understanding this has made me all the more weary of “should be” and “shouldn’t be” thinking. Whenever I hear myself thinking, “He shouldn’t have. . .” or “They should have. . .” I see the magician in his black cloak hiding the truth and waving his wand to direct me to the deception of the illusion. It helps me drop the illusion and stay in the realm of truth—what is and what was. Back in the realm of truth, I am able to hear the spirit direct me as to how to deal with the verities of life. It may not be as flamboyant or exciting, but there is great peace in the realm of truth.

2 comments:

Wendi said...

I love your updated quote under Words of Encouragement on your sidebar. Thanks!

Sherrie Mills Johnson said...

Wendi, Thank you. I really liked it, too!