THE FAST TRACK TO HEAVEN

People want to know what’s in it for them.

Jim Carville famously said, “It’s the economy, stupid.” When it comes to spiritual work, we might put it slightly differently:

It’s the payoff, stupid.

Christianity has always had a pretty spectacular offer. Under various conditions, your sins can be forgiven, your account can be cleared, and when the whole earthly business is finished, you go to Heaven, and if you commit a sin but then confess to it, it’s automatically forgiven, minus some penance and a Papal Pardon.

That’s a hard offer to beat.

So what’s our offer?

We have a fast track to Heaven, too.

The first thing to understand is that the lifeline is not necessarily the prize. The lifeline is a teaching tool.

A lifetime gives the essential being an opportunity to work through a biological human machine—to encounter situations, make choices, wake up occasionally, learn something, develop something and perhaps become capable of operating with greater awareness.

Mostly awake beings don’t need to keep doing this forever. Eventually they can be lifted out of the cycle—off the wheel.

But suppose you’re not finished?

That’s where the home-improvement loan comes in.

Imagine you’ve been given a house. You’ve lived in it for eighty years. The plumbing leaks,  the electrical system was installed by somebody’s uncle, the roof needs urgent attention, and there’s a mysterious door in the basement you’ve never managed to open.

An inspector arrives. You assume you’re finished. But the inspector looks around and says:

“There’s potential here.”

HOME IMPROVEMENT LOAN APPROVED.

That’s another lifeline. Not necessarily a reward and certainly not a punishment. More like additional financing because the project appears worth continuing.

You don’t have to become perfect during this lifetime. You don’t have to understand the universe. You don’t have to erase everything you’ve ever done wrong. You don’t even have to pretend to be holy.

You have to make use of the opportunity.

Wake up. Learn how to recognize when you’re asleep. Learn how to come back. Learn how to remain present a little longer. Make enough genuine improvement that further investment in the project makes sense.

And perhaps eventually the work is complete. No refinancing. No additional construction loan. No need for another biological machine.

Mortgage paid. Property clear. Off the wheel.

So what’s the fast track to Heaven? Maybe it’s simpler than we thought:

Wake up before you get there.

And when you hit the Bardo — and hit it you will  — you’re prepared for it. When you choose a lifeline, you’re prepared for it. Liberation from the cycle is possible, and you’re working consciously toward it.

And you’ll have spent the rest of your life actually being there for it.

THE LIFELINE AS TRAINING GROUND

Think of this lifeline as a training assignment. Like rank in the Army, greater responsibility isn’t handed to you because you want it. You demonstrate that you can handle your present assignment, and then you’re trusted with the next one.

Every situation in this lifetime is part of the training: pressure, disappointment, success, boredom, conflict, loss—and especially those moments when you remember to wake up.

You’re not being entrained merely to have a better lifetime. What is the meaning of life? Why are you here? What are you supposed to do now that you’re here?

You’re being trained to become capable of greater responsibility at the next level.

Handle this post well, and you may be ready for promotion.

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Here’s the Bardo bus now!

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See You At The Top!!!

gorby