Great Construction

Trust in God

     I have often spoken about the importance of trusting God implicitly. We must place our faith in divine providence and refrain from worrying unnecessarily about things. This sounds very simple and practical, yet it is not as easy as it sounds.
     I, too, used to worry sometimes when I found myself in a predicament, my great effort to place my trust in divine providence notwithstanding. It is very difficult to be completely without anxiety in this present material world. However, those who truly look to and have faith in God soon become aware that there is no real need for worry and free themselves from it.
     From the spiritual point of view, worry can be explained as a form of attachment. Few people are aware that it is a kind of attachment. We may call it a “worrying” attachment. Under attachments also fall covetousness, the inordinate desire for possessions and luxury, or for fame. Other type of attachments are grudges, hatreds, the desire for revenge, and similar negative emotions. In addition there are worries about and attachments to the past, the present, and the future.
     Worry is the opposite of trust and it exerts a very unfavorable influence on the development of things.
      We often hinder God’s protective hand with such attachments. The stronger the attachments are the weaker becomes our use of divine protection and thus we often fail to succeed in our endeavors. Surely you have had the experience that at the time you intensely desired something you were unable to attain it, then you despaired of it and released it, it is unexpectedly happened.
     The same can sometimes be said of Johrei. The more one desires to help a person, the slower the result may be; while when Johrei is channeled with sincerity but without such excessive concern, or even without conviction, or merely for trial purposes, often unexpected results may be obtained. In the case of the critically ill, when their family or relatives let anxiety overtake them, they may hinder their recovery whereas those who receive Johrei with trust, and whose relatives do not let worry negate progress, often recover smoothly and unexpectedly.
     At time we note that sick people with too intense an attachment for physical life and who profess they will never die of such disease, or boast they will heal themselves through mental effort or strong will, succumb nevertheless. Their excessive attachment has greatly contributed to this end. This will indicate the injurious influence of attachments of this nature.
     When administering Johrei to a hopelessly ill person, it is better to hint to the family and to the person too, if possible, that should his physical body not respond sufficiently his spiritual body will be purified through Johrei, enabling him to enter higher planes of development in the spiritual world.  Then after they resign his fate to God, we are often surprised to see him recover.
     In a relationship between a man and woman, if either of them forms an excessive attachment, the other often begins to pull away. Here, too, it is the overattachment which has brought the change.
     The world appears full of contradictions which make our lives complicated and sometimes interesting. It will be helpful to remember that in many cases the greatest cause of our lack of progress is our undue attachment or concern. Therefore, we must reverse this and try to reach a balanced outlook, serenity of mind, and the trust and faith that ensue from a God centered life.

The Glory, Number 034, page 1, July 10, 1961