When I was a pulpit minister at a conservative Christian Church we had a practice known as "Children's Corner" where we would have the children come up in front of the entire congregation to give their views on things, and mostly just to tell everybody what they had learned in Sunday School. One of the questions I would ask the kids is, "Where do we find God?" The answers were usually pretty much the same. We find God in the Church. We find God in the Bible. Once in a while somebody would say that we can find God in our Minister or Sunday School Teacher. And I would always praise the kids for having given the "right" answers. But never did any of the children give the most correct answer of all; we find God within ourselves.
Those of us who were raised in a religious household were probably taught at an early age to seek God outside of themselves. My own search for God began at the early age of 16 when I had my first vision. It was an unexpected and moving event in which I saw Jesus on the cross with an absolute sense of peace and love radiating out from him. I did not know what to make of the experience, so I went to my local priest for guidance. His advice was to go to the seminary and explore my possible calling to the ordained ministry. Not knowing any better, I took his advice. And so I went from having had a deeply moving inner experience to searching and looking for God outside of myself; in institutions and offices sanctioned by the official church, but far removed from that initial encounter within. It would take me another 30 years to see the errors of my ways.
It was not until my mid 40's that I began to realize that my constant searching for God outside of me was getting me nowhere. I had been searching in Churches and Scriptures, but found more questions than answers. Then I began to realize: Churches and Scriptures, at best, may point the way to God, but they are not gods in and of themselves. I had seen the finger pointing at the Moon, and confused it for being the Moon. In order to get back on track, I had to go deep within.
I began to look online for resources teaching Meditation, and found a simple method promoted by Vietnamese poet Thich Nhat Hahn called Mindfulness Meditation or Breathe Meditation. As I incorporated the practice into my life, things began to change. I felt a growing sense of peace and serenity. And I began to also realize that the very Power I had sought outside of me was in fact hiding inside of me. Inside of me and every other living being on the planet. After 30 years, I had found my way back home.
Christian and Buddhist mystics have taught about this inner presence of The Divine for centuries. But usually it is just dismissed as pretty poetry by the masses of church or temple going believers. It is not until one has the experience of this Inner Force that one begins to realize there is something to it after all. We find it referenced in the Christian Scriptures, "What-so-ever you do to the least of these, that you do unto Me." In Buddhist thought it can be explained by way of the Doctrine of InterBeing; that All is connected at the most basic and fundamental level. God (or The Divine in whatever way one understands this) is a part of every thing, uniting everything and everyone in a deep and mystical way. Though we perceive separation in the material world, on the Spiritual Realm we are one. This is not a teaching which makes immediate sense to many. I had to grow with it for several more years even after I was able to grasp the truth intellectually. But once one begins to connect with this Force, it all becomes clear.
How does one find this Force within? Well, in my own experience, I needed earthly guides. Teachers who know their place, who will dedicate themselves to leading the Seeker to The Divine Source of their understanding without standing in the way, can be worth their weight in gold (or Bitcoin). But they are only pointers; they are not the end of the journey. Then, Meditation (in whatever form is best for the individual) can lead the Seeker the rest of the way home. I believe that all of us are born with a deep connection to our Divine Source. But, over time, life beats it out of us. It amuses me now to think that had I taken up a meditation practice at the age of 16 instead of 45, I could have saved myself many headaches along this trip of life. But then, I would have missed out on some formative adventures which have shaped the person I am today. Life is an adventure, a trip. And, as another mystical poet has written, "What a long strange trip it's been."