The Least Common Denominator of Relationships: They All Start Here!

As often as possible, I reduce things to the least common denominator. As a teacher, it helped me know where student understanding breaks down, because when I know the base, the root, the source, I can extrapolate along the way to the big picture.
Many people will say I simplify, and simplifying is idealistic. While the statement of my philosophy undoubtedly comes across as simplified, idealistic, I have arrived at what I state by analyzing the complexities.
The Spirit-and-Me connection provides the least common denominator, and that takes the form of Heart. Spiritual awakening does not establish a relationship between Spirit and Us: it re-establishes it.
I am eternal Spirit in this body of personal identity as Mike DePung in time and space. The Spirit part of me, Heart, chose to come here in this exact form. Amazing! However, Ego that comes along as part of this deal makes a remembrance of that Heart-Spirit connection a necessity. We awaken and re-establish what we temporarily forgot.
The process of awakening and then becoming self-aware re-establishes a model of what our relationships could be — ideally. I have written rather extensively of circumstances and consequences of what happens when we misunderstand and misappropriate self and use that in relation to others — Ego models that present problems.
What’s the model relationship? Well, it’s one of respect, one in which Spirit does NOT make unconditional promises. Spirit has already given, so it asks of us, as we enter into awareness, to acknowledge and bless Heart. How? By acting in the power that surges throughout our being, the power of creator. When we awaken, we create Purpose and Vision, and Spirit has an enhanced experience in its own creation in a physical way through us. We use the same power Spirit does. The relationship is one of blessing, drawing out the best of one another.
That creates a fullness of reciprocity. Spirit gets what it intended, and we have the opportunity to feel and know all that Spirit feels and knows eternally. We engage in that relationship and create and live Purpose as Spirit does, live it in wonder and awe, love and peace, growth and joy, light and enthusiasm.
I know that’s the least common denominator because every human desires those qualities and emotions at some point in life. Spirit encourages and supplies us with all we need to be happy, and we become blessing as Spirit experiences its own creation through our lives.
In The Fellowship of the Heart, Eric and Anne Lafarnge are in that process of awakening and coming into Self-Awareness. They share their individual experiences together in the following passage, just beginning to understand how relationship with their own Heart leads to a shared relationship in their life journeys.
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Anne’s eyes opened. Eric sat calmly, gazing out the window with his journal on his lap. He hadn’t written anything yet.
Anne smiled at him. “What did I tell you? I can see it in you. You spoke with your heart, didn’t you? You heard wonderful things, didn’t you?”
Eric smiled back. “Absolutely. Some of the wonder, though, was not sweetness. I got a little reamed by my own heart for not following through weeks ago, but it wasn’t harsh. I guess I reamed myself, really. My heart just asked me questions. I think my ego did the reaming.”
Anne uncrossed her legs, dropped her feet to the floor, and shuffled them back and forth a few times on the rug. “I don’t know for sure, but I think when I feel those tinges of guilt, it is ego and it is instructive. You are right. Earlier when I spoke with my heart as you were making breakfast, I told you I had to face my ego past. I’m just working through this, but I think the guilt lets me know when I’ve done things from ego motivation instead of heart.”
“Like what?”
“Like feeling guilty about the senior associate position and wanting to crush people like Stan Boyle and rub my accomplishments in the face of those men. I think the guilt let me see that, and I think I don’t have to worry about it. I just have to live my truth now. I realized as I spoke with my heart just now that I want to be involved in mentoring, encouraging, helping people like Kathy and Edward to develop their potential.”
“I see that. It’s a subtle difference in thinking but it’s a revolutionary difference for me. You used your ego to defend yourself against situations that you felt were related to your experience in high school; you attacked. My ego worked to make me feel defenseless and voiceless; I became a victim.”
“This is powerful stuff, right here in our home and our own thoughts. In my soul and mind, I know I want to create being an engineer of the soul, to help others discover and develop themselves. My heart also pointed out it is a journey, and I won’t know what lies ahead.”
“I experienced a similar thing. When I didn’t move forward, I lacked confidence in myself and faith in my own truth and in my own heart. I can create what I want to feel, but I won’t know what that is immediately.”
Anne lifted her eyes from her feet on the rug. “What will all this mean for us?”
“Good things, Anne. I just don’t know the specifics. We can think about that.”
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Seeing how the self-aware and awakened life unfolds is blessing. Every Heart-relationship encourages the other in some aspect of experiencing and fulfilling Self in significance and happiness. Anything less indicates Ego is at play — when our focus strays!