“Courage is the price that Life exacts for granting peace.” – Amelia Earhart.

 “We can laugh at those who think spirituality the way of weakness. Paradoxically, it is the way of strength. The verdict of the ages is that faith means courage. All men of faith have courage.” Alcoholics Anonymous. 

Society often honors those who demonstrate courage, sacrifice and selfless devotion with medals, commendations and public recognition, and this is as it should be. But every day, millions, if not billions, without recognition or fanfare quietly stand and courageously demonstrate over fear. How do I know? Without this courage, this world could not, would not survive.

Living on the Spiritual Basis requires us to stand in the light, exposed, often being targeted by those still in the grip of the darkness of the bondage of self. Courage is birthed and strength in Spirit realized when we have faith in something greater than ourselves, refusing to condemn those who condemn; selfless love quietly on display. This is the fabric which binds us together, holds the center and provides the foundation we all rely and stand on. So, just for today, be of good cheer, raise your head and be counted, for you have chosen to walk the path of a courageous warrior of peace.

Miracles Of Recovery 

© Vincent Lee Jones Living In Spirit All Rights Reserved

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I am a hiker. I live in Southern California which is a wonderful place to live if you love to hike. Mountains, hills, and panoramic views abound. My “playground” is the Laguna Wilderness area. It surrounds the town of Laguna Beach with some 77 miles of hiking trails. Now, Laguna Beach is an artist colony and a beautiful little town. It runs along the coast climbing from the Pacific Ocean to the top of the steep hills that border it and is a destination not only for tourists but locales as well. Now, there are only three ways into Laguna, either by Pacific Coast Highway from the north and south or Laguna Canyon Road from the east.

One of the starting points for my hikes is Coastal Peak Park. The road that leads to it parallels a toll road that intersects Laguna Canyon Road. Now, the road that leads to this park is wide and well maintained, but dead ends at the park, was never connected to Laguna, and is clearly marked as having no outlet. Yet invariably about every five minutes or so a vehicle will come zooming down this road, the driver thinking they have found a “secret” back door into Laguna avoiding the inevitable traffic and/or tolls. They arrive at the turnaround, pause for a moment and then speed back the way they came. Maps clearly show this road ends, has no outlet, yet this continues unabated, something I have observed for years.

We have all done it at times in our lives. We saw the signs that we were headed in the wrong direction, but we sold ourselves on the idea that it would be OK, or worse, we really weren’t seeing what we were seeing, a form of willful blindness. Now, a driving mistake is one thing, the price a little extra burned fuel, some lost time. But what of the signs ignored in the areas of relationships, our children, careers and the like? We must learn to pay attention to the signs, and if heading in the wrong direction or toward a dead end, stop and alter course, to trust our intuition, the voice that speaks the truth, even when we don’t want to hear it. And if we are unsure of what direction to follow, we seek guidance, perhaps secular, perhaps spiritual, hopefully both. Oh, and even if on the wrong road, there is always something to learn and see, the road to Coastal Peak Park provides some wonderful views, both ways.

Miracles Of Recovery

© Vincent Lee Jones Living In Spirit All Rights Reserved

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From Fear all forms of Spiritual disease and unease are birthed, and Fear is a bluffer. Look back on your life,think of all the things you were frightened of that turned out to be phantoms once walked through, and even if it was something difficult, it rarely was as bad as imagined. We are bombarded with fear daily. Most of the advertising we are subjected to is fear based. Hurry to this or that sale or you will be a loser and miss out on the buy of the year. If you have thinning hair, and want to be a real man, buy this product or have that procedure. Better buy gold or silver now, before it skyrockets in price and the economy collapses, the list is nearly endless. Add to this the daily drumbeat of negativity in news reports and it becomes abundantly clear that we live in a world where the one true Adversary, Fear, clearly holds sway.

And Fear is a liar. Do bad things happen? Of course. There will be: economic downturns, people we love and care about will die, wars and rumors of wars will abound, interpersonal conflicts (over, if we are honest, things usually quickly forgotten), floods, famines, droughts, and yes, balding all happen. Such is the world, but every day, billions of people do the right thing, help others,support the downtrodden, care for those sick and suffering and they are invisible, their stories rarely reported. People just like you.

Living On The Spiritual Basis we learn to look beyond the headlines, the ads and people who feed our fears.There are many unassailable truths, and this is one: no one gets out alive. Tobe free, we must hold in our heart the truth about death and not let our fear of it dominate us. This temporary fleshy conveyance will one day return from whence it came, we however will continue, for we are in truth Spiritual beings experiencing the human condition, not human beings searching for the Miraculous; for our True Self, the I Am, is part and parcel of the Great Eternal Creative Life Force at the heart of all creation, currently traveling in this flesh, but is not constrained or defined by it any more than we derive any real significance from the type of car we drive.

So take reasonable precautions in life for this is only rational, plan for rainy days for the rain comes for all but we must never lose sight of our true eternal nature for in so doing, we triumph over the fear driven life.

Miracles Of Recovery 

© Vincent Lee Jones Living In Spirit All Rights Reserved

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Living on the Spiritual Basis is often about stepping out in faith and taking risks. Leaving the job or career where we are “comfortable” but uninspired or just plain bored. Asking someone out on a date, risking rejection. Agreeing to go on a date, risking rejection. Leaving a relationship that is “comfortable” when we know it is time to go in our heart of hearts. Giving the keys to the car for the first time to that newly minted teenage driver. There are many more, some, like trying a new restaurant or hair color, having decidedly less lasting impact than some of the above, but taking risks is part of life. Without taking risks,nothing changes, growth is stifled. Einstein went against the orthodoxy of the time and changed the world of physics forever. Edison and Bell failed more times than they succeeded, yet they are hailed as two of the greatest genius inventors of all time. They all shared one thing in common: they stepped out in faith,risked, believing there existed a new way or approach, a different way of looking at things, leading to material and intellectual progress, in fact,changing the world forever.

We must stay open to the winds of change in our lives. There is a voice in all of us, the voice of the Miraculous, that sings to us, encourages us, fuels our dreams and aspirations. Most unfortunately will opt for the safe, the comfortable, and fail to heed its call, choosing to watch the play rather than participate in it. So, just for today, take a risk, order something different from the menu or try a new restaurant, take the longer scenic route home, sing out loud in the car or dance around the house, unmindful of who may be watching. When we do these small things daily, we begin to demonstrate over fear, and once released from the bondage of fear our lives improve in ways undreamed of, our thinking expands with new insights and who knows, you just may change the world.

Miracles Of Recovery 

© Vincent Lee Jones Living In Spirit All Rights Reserved

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Failure is inevitable. Everyone fails. Often. Consider the observations of a few highly successful people about the importance of failure in our growth: “Failure isn’t fatal, but failure to change might be” – John Wooden, “We are all failures – at least the best of us are.” – J.M. Barrie, “The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing.” – Henry Ford, “Failures are finger posts on the road to achievement.” – C.S. Lewis, “Every adversity, every failure, every heartache carries with it the seed of an equal or greater benefit.” – Napoleon Hill, and “Failure is so important. We speak about success all the time. It is the ability to resist failure or use failure that often leads to greater success. I’ve met people who don’t want to try for fear of failing.” – J.K. Rowling

A spiritual advisor said to me long ago “Everyone takes a turn in the barrel.” When I look back on my life through the new pair of glasses living on the Spiritual Basis has provided, the times when I struggled the most were those when I took failure personally and lost sight of the truth, that in my life, my failures have invariably led me to my greatest awakenings, and my self-inflicted pain was the result of losing focus on this truth: behind every dark cloud the sun still shines and without the rain there would be no flowers.

Miracles Of Recovery

© Vincent Lee Jones Living In Spirit All Rights Reserved

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We ride the Red Horse when our emotions and feelings dominate us, overriding everything else. When we act out without thinking it through, without considering the possible consequences or ramifications of what our words or actions in enflamed haste may bring. The Law of Unintended Consequences on full display. The heated snap decision to leave a job or abandon a relationship we soon come to regret. How many lives have been lost or ruined when an individual or nation acted on overheated emotions, rhetoric or inflamed feelings? How many fights, confrontations and wars could have been avoided if cooler heads had prevailed? How many friendships and relationships have been irretrievably harmed by something said or done in the heat of the moment?

To be clear: We are emotional beings. Without emotion, this world would be a very drab place indeed, bereft of music or art, possibly even love. It is when we are controlled, dominated by our emotional nature that we ride the Red Horse, and as anyone who has taken this ride can attest: havoc, turmoil and pain are the result.

Miracles Of Recovery

© Vincent Lee Jones Living In Spirit All Rights Reserved

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The four biblical horsemen in The Book Of Revelation are tied to the end times but I will leave that discussion for another day. That said there is still much we can learn spiritually from these examples. Consider the first three horsemen from an individual spiritual perspective: The Pale Horse represents the physical body and its destruction through all forms of addiction, the negative as well as the seemingly positive. The Red Horse brings destruction by our emotions and feelings and The Black Horse destruction through intellect.

To ride the Pale Horse means we are controlled, driven by physical wants and desires, addictions if you will. Drugs, alcohol, gambling are obvious, but what of the individual who is addicted to exercise, work or sex? The gym, running, biking or the office can become an escape from the world just as powerful as any intoxicant and equally spiritually destructive when taken to extreme. The difference being someone using intoxicants has a difficult time “fitting” into polite society while the workaholic is often praised for their accomplishments, even as other areas of their life are sacrificed in the name of success or “providing” for the family. The same family they are never present for, the estranged children seeking acknowledgment, often by acting out negatively, the neglected spouse who ultimately files for divorce, resulting in the workaholics’ lament: don’t they see I am doing it all for them?

Physical activity and exercise in moderation is always a good idea, but when it crosses over into narcissism, it becomes as sure a block to spiritual growth as any drink or drug. Sex is part of our nature, so it cannot be bad, yet the stories of lives, careers and families ruined from unchecked sexual desire are legion. The problem begins when sex becomes the singular focus, living only for sensual escape, having lost sight of the true purpose: that of two people sharing the most intimate of experiences, the touching of two souls in embrace, a shared act of love. To be clear: hard work, exercise, the occasional cocktail or glass of wine or enjoying sex with a partner are not the problem, we ride the Pale Horse when these pursuits become dominate in our lives, when we lose all sense of proportion and become lost in the bondage of self, closed off from our true Spiritual Nature.

Miracles Of Recovery 

© Vincent Lee Jones Living In Spirit All Rights Reserved

Miracles Of Recovery, Overdose Death, Alcoholism, Wayne Dyer, Drug Addiction, Zen, Emmet Fox, Opioids, Heroin,Einstein, AA, Healing Path Recovery, Drug Rehab, #Drug Addiction, #Drug Rehab,#Healing Path Recovery, #Heroin, #Opioids

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Death from drug overdose claims over 70,000 lives a year in America

Most of these deaths are people under 30, who had had multiple stays in treatment. We have the tools yet we are failing.

The conversation with a parent concerning the overdose death of their child is one of the hardest things I have ever done or will ever do, and would hope to never do again, but if nothing changes, there will be far too many more.

Nothing changes, if nothing changes.  

If you have lost someone to addiction and are tired of feeling powerless or are in recovery yourself and see the need for change, please donate and add your voice to help me remove the stigma of addiction, build bridges to the future and turn the current increasing tide of tragedy, suffering and death to one of joy, freedom and life. Your help and support will save lives.

With the steady increase in young people seeking help who are being poorly served by the current recovery communities, treatment modalities which abruptly stop due to Health Care Providers often arbitrary coverage guidelines, the current appalling lack of any real aftercare which has led to today’s unacceptably high relapse/overdose rates, and the increasing incidences of permanent mental illness from Synthetic Marijuana, Spice, Bath Salts and Crystal Meth, it is past time to act, to modernize the current recovery paradigm, to help all who suffer as well as those who love and care about them, to make sustainable long term healthy recovery real, affordable and available for the millions longing to be free of addiction.