My wife and I lived together before we were married.
I thought being married was just a nice thing to do but really wouldn’t make much difference in our relationship and in each of us.
Little did I realize what making a life commitment to someone meant.
Being married actually gave me more freedom. Why? Because I was no longer thinking about whether or not I should be married. I’d made the commitment. I was committed to being committed. I had chosen to no longer be worried about being committed…I had chosen to no longer have a choice…and that’s actually freeing.
Before marriage, I used a lot of energy deciding whether or not I should commit — energy that couldn’t be used in other creative avenues…such as my work.
Now some 36 years later my marriage continues deepening, continues giving me pleasure…and I know that’s also true for my wife because she tells me.
That’s not to say there are no disagreements. There are. But all disagreements, fights, anger, and resentments live inside our commitment.
About a week ago I was driving home and thinking about Heaven on Earth. I suddenly thought, “What if I made a commitment to Heaven on Earth?” What if I said, “Today is a Heaven on Earth day”?
And what if I said I’d do that every single day…for the rest of my life?
My immediate reaction was no – actually a very loud NO!
I could hear my mind screaming, “NO, NO, NO!”
“Well,” I thought, “Isn’t this interesting. I’ll just keep noticing my reaction.” I decided to just sit with and honor the resistance, the no, for as long as it took.
Just honoring the existence of the resistance over the next couple of days was enough for it to subside.
And then I did it. I chose to be committed to Heaven on Earth each day…for the rest of my life.
And that single commitment caused an entirely new perspective to open up in my life.
I now look for Heaven on Earth many times during the day and I actually see it and feel it. I see it when it’s obvious, like being with loved ones, looking at the ocean or watching a beautiful sunset.
And I actively look for it when I’m in a situation that doesn’t appear to be Heaven on Earth …being with someone I think I don’t enjoy, being in a situation which isn’t going my way. At those times I say to myself “This is Heaven on Earth” and things change to match that — sometimes slowly, sometimes very quickly.
My commitment has softened me. It’s made me see that “Life is not working” is a perception, as is, “This is overwhelming” or “I’m powerless to change this situation” or “I’m not doing enough.”
I’ve noticed that a situation I was calling, in some way, a hell on earth, left me a victim to it. But…by merely asking myself “Where’s Heaven on Earth here?” I can flip my relationship to it.
The daily Heaven on Earth commitment is liberating, it gives me more possibilities for action, more possibilities to relax with the way life is in the moment.
I’ve also noticed that while I originally thought “Today is a Heaven on Earth day” only applied to me that isn’t completely accurate. It also applies to my view of my loved ones, my friends, my geographical region, my country…all of Humanity.
There are 7.7 Billion people on earth. If the vast majority believe this is not Heaven on Earth and can never be, then we have a collective story that is not Heaven on Earth and can never be…but if you and I and a growing number of others have a daily commitment to “This is Heaven on Earth” then that gives you and me and us the ability to actually change the story of what it means to be a human and what it means to be Humanity — all of us living in, experiencing and co-creating more Heaven on Earth.
I invite you to consider making the Heaven on Earth daily commitment for life.
If Heaven on Earth is a new concept to you, or you’d like to go deeper – I recommend signing up for my Free 7-Day Email Course on How to Simply Begin Creating Heaven on Earth. Once you join, you’ll be invited into our We Heaven Makers community, another free resource for Heaven Makers around the world.
Martin Rutte
