We are not Self-Created

We shape identities, construct self-images, and build narratives about who we are. We refine them through self-improvement, therapy, education, and affirmation. We believe we are strong, independent, and self-sufficient. Yet, when the foundation shifts, when the source of our being is questioned, the illusion falters. We exist only in relation to the One from whom we come. We are not self-created. We do not sustain ourselves. The deeper we realize this, the less we cling to false autonomy. There is nothing that has the authority to say what it is except that of which it is the image. We are not isolated entities; we are reflections of Infinite Love. Our existence is not something we generate—it is something we receive. When we surrender to this reality, we find true freedom. Let us rest in that truth.

May we surrender to the One who alone gives us our being,
resting in the truth that we are nothing apart from Infinite Love.

(inspired by James Finley, Following the Mystics Through the Narrow Gate)