- Awareness of the Problem
- Desire to Change
- Discovery that you are not Alone
- Becoming the Change
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed;” Luke 4:18 & Isaiah 61:1. Isaiah said it, Jesus said it, and I am saying it, and I believe that you are meant to say it, too.
Why?
No matter what religion or spiritual path you find yourself on, the journey begins with awareness of the effect that poverty, oppression, loneliness, disease, and lack of understanding are having on you and those around you, just as it did for the great teachers of every religion. When we are touched by these things, we are drawn to search for answers, and then the Creator awakens the power within us to change our circumstances, and that change can inspire an awakening in others.
For me, loneliness was the thing that set me on my path. I recognized it in myself and others. I could have spent countless hours trying to discover the source of my individual relationship with loneliness, but I have never really cared; the larger concern for me has always been how loneliness would affect my life and the lives of those around me. I wanted answers and help to change things. That led me to the King of Loneliness, AKA the King of the Blues. His songs of loneliness and heartache showed me that I was not alone, and I felt that he might have the answers that I was seeking. What I learned over our 35-year friendship was that the only thing that carried the King of the Blues through all those years of loneliness was prayer and kindness towards others. However, long before I realized it, I had already been inspired to develop a personal relationship with God, had an active prayer life, and had the Holy Spirit as my inner voice and personal guide, which inspires me to make better use of the time I spend with others. And in that way, at least for the moment, we are not lonely.