John Van Auken
A.R.E. Instructor

Let’s review karma and grace, two influences that affect our lives, both within us and around us. As we know, karma is a natural law that causes actions to have reactions. As we say, “What goes around, comes around.” That is a perfect description of karma. Of course, it has been described in many ways: what we sow, we reap, and as we measure out, so is it measured back to us. We also say there is good karma and bad, meaning the good we do also returns to us. The law is an impersonal causal dynamic of life. It does not discriminate but treats everyone equally. Now, we may rightly say that this is not true because we see inequity everywhere. We see bad people living easy lives. This is why karma is often associated with our souls rather than our temporary personalities. Our souls were alive before we incarnated, and they bring with them good and bad karma. When an apparently bad person dies, their soul inherits their karma (again, good and bad). If much of it is bad, the soul seeks a way to cleanse this because soul life is immortal. No soul wants to live forever with dark energy lingering, so it seeks a way to resolve the condition. This is where the ancient concept of reincarnation of souls comes from. Souls heal and grow through lifetimes of interaction with other souls and with themselves and their own thinking patterns and behavior. Each incarnation provides opportunities to resolve negative patterns and strengthen positive ones.

When we develop feelings of anger, resentment, contention, despair, confusion, and fear, we are building karmic reactions that are not what our souls want. Since we know the law is, “What goes around, comes around,” we attract more negative energies. But when we subdue anger, resentment, contention, despair, confusion, and fear—replacing them with patience, faith, gentleness, kindness, forgiveness, and harmony—we live in graceful aspects of the law.

For example, if we begin to understand mistakes in others, the law is still effective; understanding our mistakes returns to us. If we forgive others for what they said or did, forgiveness returns to us. And, if we forget they said it or did it, then it is forgotten what we said and did. The law is perfect.

When we express the original, pure life force deep within us, in thought and action, in a creative, uplifting manner, we live in the spirit of grace. This means that all we have to do is observe whether our thoughts, words, and actions are creative, uplifting, and positive or destructive, belittling, and harmful. It’s as easy as that.

Of course, we must be honest with ourselves as we come to know ourselves. We must see clearly, especially our motivations. If these are for selfish reasons, then we have not risen above our lower self’s habit patterns and egocentric ways.

When experiencing life with others, we tend to focus on the weaknesses and vices of those we share life with. We see them clearly while not aware of our own. This results in the quiet karma of righteous judgment. On the other hand, if we try to focus on the strengths and virtues of those we share life with, then we live in the spirit of grace. We also project grace on those with whom we share life rather than projecting destructive and harmful vibrations upon them.

Selfishness and self-centeredness bring karma. Love, kindness, forgiveness, and gentleness bring grace.

We are not just talking about words and actions; thoughts and thinking patterns are real influences. Thoughts are as real as a poke in the eye of another soul. We think our thoughts are our own, but they are not because we are interconnected in a collective consciousness. We are portions of a greater whole, and our conditions contribute to the collective. With this in mind, we must improve our thinking patterns, subduing judgmental and negative thinking while enhancing loving, understanding, and positive thinking—not only with others but also with ourselves!

For our own sake, we should always choose grace. It is the healthier, happier way to live and think.

How can we find the strength to be positive when life is painful and disappointing? We find strength through prayer, meditation, and quiet moments of reflection within our hearts and minds. We find strength from the renewal that comes from withdrawing from life for regular periods. That could be a few moments, hours, or even a good night’s sleep. Few of us can maintain a positive attitude all the time! We need to get out of the daily demands and retreat for a while. It’s like a scale. On one side of the scale, we have outer life with others and our daily demands and personal feelings. Conversely, we have private, inner time for reflection and renewal. Inside us, we find the serenity and energy of our original nature. Here, we may also find our soul and its nourishment. The outer self grows weary, but the soul is always ready to help and share its strength with us, as is the infinite, eternal source of life.