AED

We live in a world plagued by righteousness, infested with pride and saturated in doubt. Surviving alone for dependence is for suckers, we learn to stonewall our every action, every thought protected so as not to be touched, seen or heard for criticism hides around the corner.  Life quickly swallowed, the abyss widens, gapping even the minute knowledge and understanding of self. Monotonous undertakings monopolize the mind and the heart is lost. An island unto ourselves we reiterate the proverbial phrase, "I am strong, I do not need anyone".  Life's mantra pains, it cuts for tears are shed in the silence of the night, words of the heart are spoken, even hopelessly screamed for the mind holds us prisoner. Shackled by logic, the heart caged like a wild animal longing to be free, longing to explore, longing to live as God intended; free and loved.  Scratched and scared from the tugging, the pulling, the frantic flailing to be freed from the treacherous torments ensued by the the mind and the body weakens, our fight plunders, our voice deemed lost. Traveling down the same paths, the familiarity is anything but a comfort, it torments, jeers and mocks with each passing.  The heart encased in stone for protection, that it may not become bruised and tattered like the body. The layers they grow thicker, almost impenetrable...ah protection the succulent decoy mischievously baited by the mind. Fabricated realities lurk in the shadows which, when brought into the light, are nothing more than farcical breaches of truth romantically delineated by a manganous deviant; the mind.  Sucked in, the mind quarterbacks life and life becomes hollow, a shell of a being, even a light breeze becomes a fearful adversary.  Constantly looking over one's shoulder becomes tiresome, the neck stiffens and the knees begin to buckle for the self inflicted weight of the world has become too heavy.  Suddenly we find ourselves on the ground, dazed and confused for we know not how or why we have fallen; worse yet, we know not where we have fallen.  The surroundings unfamiliar, objects shadowed by our very silhouette create an atmosphere of terror.  The heart races; the mind, too, race..."Which way to go?", "How do I get out of here?", and most importantly, "Where is here?"  Trapped, the world begins to spin and nausea sets in.  Life quickly becomes a incessant ride on the merry-go-round only the trill of grabbing the brass rings is replaced by the torment of finding the proper footing that we may walk among the horses and mythical characters and find our way to the edge where we can jump to safety.  But the noise too loud to concentrate and the circular movement faster until we find ourselves clinging to a mythical creature for dear life.  The world a blur and mind monopolizes, causing fear, even terror and the body retreats, again attempting protection yet only causing destruction.  Lost in the mind, the body assumes the fetal position as the ride still in motion.  Throughout the ordeal the heart still speaks, faith its megaphone.  The words of the heart slowly chip away at the protective barrier thought to keep the heart from pain.  The mortar begins to crumble and thoughts from the mind are met with strength from the heart.  Fearful, the mind works even harder to keep the body paralyzed that it may continue its stronghold for power is what the mind craves.  The ride still in motion, the images blurred with the speed making the thoughts of the mind tantalizing; but the heart persistent.  "Let go...", the words of the heart echo in the soul.  Combatant to those words are, "Are you crazy, the ride is in motion, there is no way off this ride, I have tried, I am staying right here, where it is safe!"  The heart and mind battle with you still clinging on for dear life.  Eventually, the warmth of the heart victorious and you let go.  Centrifugal forced orcas the body to the outer edge of the carousel, within seconds you find yourself on the edge of the ride, again holding on for dear life; fear grips the pole and the knuckles become white.  The mind still fighting, still ensuing fear..."You will fall, you will be hurt..."  This very location where you were initially trying to reach before nausea set in and you hear the heart say, "Jump."  Faith, knowing what we know, setting the heart free that we may become what we know, this is faith for knowledge from the heart is intertwined with the Divine and thus we should not fear this knowledge.  God speaks, He whispers into our very soul, a song of love, a song of freedom.  And so we jump from the carousel unharmed only enlightened.  Faith, the megaphone of the heart; faith the cushion should we fall.  To become our faith we must trust, trust the words of the heart for they are the very words of God.  Seeking to protect us, to bring us home, God has infused in us His wisdom to differentiate the words of the mind from the words of the heart.  The trick is, we need to pay attention for the mind preys upon distraction attempting to mimic the voice of the heart as if it were Robin Williams in a stand up routine.  Listen closely, it is not difficult to decipher the words of the heart, they are words which seek to empower, words that buildup the psyche not demean.  Our equilibrium restored, we put one step in front of the other and begin, anew, a journey of faith, propelled by faith, invested in faith, secured in faith.  The gift of faith is nothing short of the gift of life, itself, for faith our innate holiness, our internal electrical pulse; the current always live.  Faith, our life source, is our individual automated external defibrillator (AED) which can revive even the weakest pulse.  Though faith is not tangible it works in the tangible world expelling that which causes cardiac arrest to the soul.  Internally ground in Christ, AED takes on a new acronym Automated Enrichment from the Divine.  Innately Christ speaks, innately we listen only we are easily distracted by the pretenses, by the chaos, by the fabrications of this world.  The pulse weakens, anxiety heightened yet let worry not consume the body for faith awaits with AED in hand to revive the spirit.  And so we walk, equipped with the necessary tools to excavate life.  When our breathing becomes shallow all we need do is trust, faith our guided friend will take us where we need to go that we make take a deep breath and cleanse our lungs, expelling the tormenting thoughts of the mind.  Faith, a gift; faith who we are if we just let go and exit the carousel.  Upon our exit, if we look in our hands we will find the coveted brass ring; gained upon exit, our prize for no being nor end does this ring have, a vivid symbol of our life with Christ.  Intimately connected, preciously loved, Christ our heart's desire for Christ is our heart calling us home, calling us to trust, to become the words of our heart.  Faith, the words of our heart, faith the voice of our life.