FAQ's: Daily Meditation

Frequently Asked Questions about the Spiritwalk Daily Meditation ~
    answered by Roger Ebsen, editor

  Support Spiritwalk with a Voluntary Paid Subscription 

How long has this Daily Meditation service been going on?

We have just celebrated our first anniversary. 

The first "Spiritwalk Thought for Today" was posted on March 19, 1998.

I'm sorry that I just found out about this.  Can I catch up with what I've missed?

Never Fear!  We have an archive of every quotation published which is maintained daily. 

In order to speed loading these archive files are organized by months.

Where do you find the quotations for the Spiritwalk Daily Meditation?

 

The quotations are usually found somewhere in my library.
They may be found in the reading I have done during that day,
or more typically, found in my extensive collection of quotations.
Some of the quotations have been suggested to me by our subscribers,
and others have been found in the original writings of Spiritwalk friends.
Those who have made suggestions often report a sense of excitement
at having shared one of their favorite quotes with the others on the list.

It certainly moves me to do this...


How are the Thoughts chosen?

 

The quotations are always chosen fresh for that day. I begin around
11 P.M. by a brief period of meditation. Once I feel like I am centered
and satisfactorily tuned in, I check in with that familiar, inner voice,

to work through intuition to choose a particular book on my desk
or book shelf. Then I begin to search for something that grabs me.

This is an unpredictable process. Sometimes I consider things that I have
saved from recent reading. Occasionally this actually produces the quote.
Usually it goes beyond that as I puruse through the book or books
I have chosen. After having done this now for about a year I have learned

to recognize when the quote feels like it is correct.  I generally choose

two or three candidates unless one feel particularly powerful. The only
criteria are that the quote has to speak to me deeply and that the author

has not been used during the current month.  Then I begin to meditate

on the thoughts, the feeling that arises and the meaning that the author

intended and the one I get as I consider the idea.   I keep in mind what

has been going on for me that day and what has been happening for my

clients and Spiritwalk friends.  Sometimes as I contemplate the thought,

faces or names come to me of individuals who I know would appreciate

this thought.  I have even heard a voice that said to me, "this is the one,

Rog..."   I genuinely attempt to keep this process Spirit driven.  When I

have confirmation, I load  it on to the computer and then I consider one

more time, read it again and sit with it for a minute, adjust my clock to

midnight, and if it is all systems go ~ the mail is sent.  Then the thought is

uploaded to the Spiritwalk website.  This process can take as little as 20

minutes and has taken in excess of two hours.  Many, many people on the

list who I know personally report that the thought for the day seems to be

directed to them individually and seems to be the thing that they needed

to hear that particular day.  There seems to be a kind of synchronicity

going on with this.  It is through these reports that I have come to believe

in this process.  I regard it as important for not only for myself, but for my

readers as well.  People report that they feel a loss when the thought has

not been there (if I am out of town or crashed.)

How can the thoughts be used as a vehicle for awakening?

Certainly, organizing the Daily Meditation is one of the most important things

that I do in my own spiritual work.  It provides me an opportunity to focus a

part of my day on spiritual matters and creates a structure for this disciplined

practice.  It allows me the opportunity to study the wisdom of the masters. 

Originally, the writers of these quotes intended to help others to increase

their personal consciousness, to awaken them to their inner spirit and to

bring them closer to God.  This is the purpose of this project.   In some way,

it is my personal dharma to do this.   

 

What some readers do is access the thought first thing each day

and often print it out.  Then they spend some time contemplating

the meaning of the thought for them personally.   This helps one to

kick off thir day with a spiritual perspective  Several times during the day

they revisit the thought, or they try to keep the idea in present awareness. 

The thoughts are chosen to help people to awaken.  I know that this work

has made a difference in many lives and, of course, this pleases me.

I know of people who have their walls plastered now with the thoughts

that they found resonant, and have made this an important part of their lives.  

 

How can I participate in this?

I think the best thing that people can do is to somehow integrate the thought

into their daily routine and to meditate on the thoughts.  A great idea is to

invite your friends to join the list and then some time during the day

contact them and share your impression on the quote with them.  This will

help you to keep aware of what is really important as you are pushed and

pulled through your day.  Also, the  more prople involved in this, the stronger

it will become as we all share the energy around this through our consciousness. 

The overall goal is to elevate consciousness, personally and globally.  Every

little thing that we do matters in the big picture as we are all part of the all. 

Although the Spiritwalk Daily Meditation (Thought for Today) will always be

archived, it might be a good idea to collect the thoughts for your own reference. 

We have made the collected Daily Meditations available on disk in quotation

book format [go to Spiritwalk. Meditations on disk].    Again, you can also send

along your favorite thought to Spiritwalk to  share with the other members on the list.

 

How many subscribers are on the Spiritwalk List?

As of January '98 there are approximately 200 persons involved directly with the list.

I imagine the thoughts are forwarded to at least another fifty.   Our goal is to be at a

thousand readers/meditators by the end of 1999.  Given our growth, this is quite

achievable.  Why not tell  a friend or three about the Spiritwalk Daily Meditation

and the Spiritwalk website.  [Go to "Site Announcer", to e-mail an announcement to

tell your friends about Spiritwalk.]

 

 

If the subscription to the Spiritwalk Daily Meditation is free, who pays for this service?

The Spiritwalk Foundation, directed by Roger Ebsen, supports the Spiritwalk Daily

Meditation.  We want the Daily Meditation to be available, for FREE,  to everyone

who has access to a computer.  If we can get enough financial support, we would

also like to have an 800 number so that it could be accessed by telephone ~ toll free. 

Currently, the support is not there for that project, but we can always hope. Spiritwalk

operates like a small non-profit organization and there are no salaries paid.   However,

in order to keep things simple, we have not incorporated, and therefore donations are

not tax-deductible.  There is a core group of Spiritwalk members who attend meetings

and support the organization.  We also receive voluntary donations from subscribers

and visitors to the website.  100% of these donations go towards the support of the

website and the foundation activities.

 

If you would like to send a donation to help fund our work, you can send a check to

Spiritwalk, P.O. Box 1022, Thousand Oaks, CA, 91358.  If you would like to be a "paying

subscriber" to the Thought for Today, we are suggesting a voluntary donation of $1

per month/$12 per year. Of course, any and all contributions are greatly appreciated. 

To all who have contributed to our cause, we humbly and gratefully appreciate your

support.  We love the response to the Spiritwalk project and your interest in our work

and extend to all our blessings.

 

 

Roger Ebsen

Thousand Oaks, CA 

Spring, 1999

 

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