Life as we knew it is going through enormous changes on all levels. This can be uncomfortable, even scary, especially when we focus our attention on external matters.

Fortunately, the outside world is the world of effects; all true change occurs from the non-physical energy field. As awakened beings, we have the ability to direct our focus to this unified and benevolent Forcefield and let our alignment serve as a conduit for the flow of the Life Force to create optimal results in the world around us.

This is our privilege and our mandate. Living as awakened beings asks us to recognize that we are the carriers of the culture of an emerging new world, no matter how insignificant we may seem in the larger scheme of things.

The currency of this emerging new world is not money, but consciousness. It is the level of consciousness that we embody that will allow us to create optimal outcomes for ourselves, our loved ones, and the future. The higher our level of embodied consciousness, the greater the results we can create.

At every moment of every day, we contribute to the field of consciousness, from which possibilities and probabilities can arise when critical mass is reached.

We can contribute to the creation of optimal realities only to the extent that we embody waking consciousness. None of us can create results at levels higher than our embodied consciousness.

That means we must discipline our thoughts, because our thoughts direct the flow of energy. All creative activity begins with this inner work because as inside, it is without. We cannot create outside of ourselves what we are not aligned with.

It reminds me of a talk the Dalai Lama gave on world peace, and someone wondered how we could achieve world peace with so much conflict around us. The Dalai Lama’s response was: “Today, you can have peace in the world if you commit to becoming the peace you seek in the world. If each of you approaches with forgiveness and compassion the person to whom you react the most; the person you judge, hate or despise the most, you will have put a stone in the way of world peace “.

Peace begins with each of us. And if we want to build a more peaceful world, we must learn to control our reactivity.

Everyone experiences different triggers: for some it is the news, for others politics, or fear of what may happen, or the demands of others, or frustration from setbacks or external events. You may simply realize that you have an anger or impatience trigger, which represents your individual reactivity to triggers.

Once you recognize the triggers that affect you, you can learn to use them as opportunities to more fully awaken and discipline your mind.

Your state of consciousness is your most valuable asset in awakening. By becoming aware of the specific triggers for your reactivity, you can use those triggers to awaken more fully instead of feeding the ego with reactivity. You can use each triggering situation as part of your spiritual practice to delve into the Truth.

Most of us don’t like conflict. We seek harmony and when there are too many conflicting triggers, we “lose” it. However, dissonance is an integral part of life; The key to inner peace lies not in trying to avoid triggers, but in learning to use them as a way to become more aware, more awake, and more aware.

All the triggers in your life – annoying people, political infighting, COVID restrictions, and even your kids’ complaints or traffic noises – offer you lessons in disguise. Instead of feeding the ego with reactivity, you can use each trigger as an opportunity for growth.

External situations teach us to focus on the only thing that matters: inner peace. In the midst of external clamor and drama, we can move our consciousness beyond the resistance and reactivity of the ego to focus on the deep inner peace at the center of it all. This is our main job as awakened beings; when we no longer nurture the reactivity of the ego, we become instruments for peace on earth.

We transform our own reactivity with conscious awareness, awakened choice, and disciplined repetition.

As soon as you recognize that a trigger is emerging, you are in the driver’s seat. Remember that you have a choice. You can choose to react or you can shift your focus to the inner observer, where eternal peace prevails.

When you recognize that anger or frustration is rising within you, choose not to focus on resisting or reacting to the present moment. Instead, consciously move your consciousness inward to find the presence of Eternal Peace beneath the surface there.

If you ‘lose’ it emotionally and lash out or react, it simply means that you momentarily lost consciousness and became unconscious.

When you first get to work on reactivity, you may lose it and only acknowledge that it has become reactive after it happens. Disciplined awareness will help you stay aware in the midst of triggers, and you will increasingly maintain the awareness that you can choose how to respond.

Don’t be discouraged when you lose it and become unconscious; Some of our unconscious behaviors have been ingrained throughout life. That is why it is so difficult for societies to recognize its shadow and work with it.

Noticing how we have strayed from the truth and become unconscious, we may experience guilt, shame, or fear, which simply adds another layer of reactivity to the mix. And when we project that emotion outward because it is too uncomfortable to face, we not only feed the ego instead of the soul; we feed the division and become part of the problem.

Staying mindful requires you to have compassion for yourself. Recognize that when you choose to become spiritually unconscious, you are feeding the ego with reactivity and harming yourself. Compassion allows you to simply recognize when you fall short and decide to remain fully aware the next time.

Continual self-discipline brings incremental empowerment. The next time a trigger comes up, you may notice that you stayed conscious for a longer time before losing it. By acknowledging that you lost it, you are increasing your awareness. Every time you get shot, your growing awareness allows you to stay alert to knock yourself unconscious and feed the ego with reactivity.

Cultivating awareness is the key to moving through the range of daily triggers without losing your peace or feeding the ego. Stabilize your consciousness in the consciousness of your inner observer; it will remind you that each trigger offers you a choice. By choosing to align with the higher consciousness within, you will gradually shed the tyranny of the ego and remain at peace.