Remembering Where We Are Going

Those of us who are attempting to walk the spiritual path in this lifetime often have a difficult time. Over and over again, I hear my friends say that they are tired of always being *broke, sick, depressed*… whatever the challenge may be. I am sometimes guilty of this myself. We are human here, after all. It would be so nice to have extra money every month after the bills are paid, or to wake up in the morning feeling wonderful and well. However, the spiritual path is seldom this easy.
We all need to try and remember, every day, why we are here, where we are going and what the goals are. If one believes truly in the laws of Karma, then one must them accept that we are here to transmute past Karma and to step up to a higher level, in this life or in the next. We are here for one reason only: to advance. Where we are going is home, back to spirit where we belong. What are the goals? It is to live every day to the fullest, in the most honorable way possible and to do whatever good we can do in the process. Accepting the negative energy that comes to us, and then sending it back out in as positive a way as we can.
None of this is easy! In fact, it is as difficult a task as anyone can accept. Many times the negative that comes to us feels unfair. We are always attempting to be the best that we can be, so why do these problems keep coming up? Why does it seem as if we can never get ahead? I believe that exactly because we are spiritual beings, aware of Karma, reincarnation, the universal laws that govern us all, there is a subtle little pool of quicksand, waiting to suck us in… and this quicksand pool is named, "I deserve better."

Simply because we are aware of Karma doesn't exempt us from it. The very awareness that we have can make us feel somehow superior, as if we don't have to deal with the energy of our past lives simply because we are aware that we had them. The knowing that we are transmuting the negative somehow makes us feel as if we have done enough of it and should not have to do it anymore.
Ah, my friends, this is so not the case! The awareness is a gift, and the gift is that we now know what we are doing. We are living our lives fully awake, and fully a part of the miraculous. This doesn't exempt us from the trouble; it makes us more aware!
We should be grateful and thankful for that gift. Every adverse situation that we go through takes us one step closer to our ultimate goal: never needing to come back here again! Every day of illness that we live through, every adversity that we go through and emerge on the other side of is a gift. We have accomplished what we are here to do. Every day that we make it through to the best of our abilities is a triumph that we should be proud of.

I believe that when we can reach the point in our lives where we honestly thank the Creator for another problem is the day that we take that one giant step towards never having to do this again.