2 TImothy 1: 1-14, A Spirit of Power

2 Timothy 1: 1-14, A Spirit of Power

v. 7, “For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.”

Today’s scripture gives us criteria by which to discern the Inner Divine Spirit. It is a “spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline”. It is not the fearful, demeaning, aimless or lifeless energies we may experience in our body/minds. The Inner Divine Spirit may be expressing in the latter forms as the essence has been misshaped into life deadening ways; but God Within is power, love, and self-discipline.

The words power, love, and self-discipline may have negative associations for us. It is important to look at these and see if they have to do with the power, love, and self-discipline of the Self/God Within or the power, love, and discipline we have learned from outside sources and experiences. Here are some thoughts on the life giving aspects of the Inner Divine Spirit’s power. (Thoughts on the love and self-discipline of the Divine Within will follow over the next few days.)

Power is defined by Webster’s Dictionary first as “possession of control, authority or influence over others”. It is the Self or God Within that has possession of control, authority, and influence over our psyche/soul. Who we are, how we express ourselves, and what we do are the result of the interplay between our Spirit and what we have internalized vis a vis our earthly experiences. The latter often set in motion ways of being with ourselves and others that deaden our Spirit.

When our sense of self (and the world) is limited to what we think, feel and know about ourselves from past experiences, we tend to dismiss or ignore other expressions of our Inner Divine Spirit. When something goes awry, we may blame an external source (God or other person), instead of looking to see how and where our Spirit may be caught and inaccessible to us in the moment. By consciously re-connecting to the Inner Divine in these places, we move towards wholeness. Walt Whitman coined the phrase, “the power of presence”. As previously split off or repressed aspects of the Self are claimed by the ego/self, we begin to feel the power of the fullness of our psyche/soul.

Esoteric astrology offers one system of naming and considering the full resourcefulness and power of our psyche/soul. Some people get overly identified with the sign of the zodiac under which they were born. Esoteric astrology and spirituality teaches that we all contain all the signs. The sign under which we are born is the first activated template due to the inhalation of air at the moment the sun is in that sign. The truth is, we all have all the traits, tendencies, qualities, etc. When we realize this, we can choose to begin accessing and cultivating the connection to the needed resource that is within us, even if it lies dormant. In doing so, we move with the full power of our psyche/soul.

Take a few minutes to reflect on your “power of presence”. Where do you feel full of your soul? Where do you feel shut down, deadened? How do you relate to unanticipated (unbidden) feelings and emotions that carry your Inner Divine Spirit? Ask the Self for discernment and courage to know the power of your fullness and wholeness.