Episode 12: The Contemplative Path to Happiness

In this episode of Spirituality on the Go, we explore the Contemplative Path to Happiness and how it leads to a life of true fulfillment. Learn about the contemplative path and how integrating the four lifestyle practices of Divine Flow can transform everyday moments into sacred, joyful experiences. 

Tune in to discover how these practices can help you live with intention and cultivate lasting happiness in your life.

Click the link to get your copy of Finding Flow on Amazon: 

https://amzn.to/4jDXfla

Get into the Divine Flow by purchasing your copy of Finding Flow: Spiritual Practices to Reclaim Inner Peace, Balance, and Wholeness.

Click the link to purchase on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4jDXfla

Transcript

Brian Plachta: 0:02

Welcome to Spirituality on the Go, the podcast where you can discover simple practical tools to put in your spiritual toolbox so you can experience more inner peace, connect with divine flow, and live with a deeper sense of clarity, purpose, and joy. Today we're diving into a topic I call"The Contemplative Path to Happiness." So, here's a question. If happiness is something that we all seek, that we all want, why do we struggle to be happy? The answer is happiness isn't something we can chase. It's something we awaken to. Yet so often we try to grasp happiness. We try to chase it, to make it come alive for us. Unfortunately, we often tell ourselves, I'll be happy when I get that promotion. I'll be happy when I lose 10 pounds, when I retire, when maybe life finally slows down. Or we look for happiness in all the wrong places, in distractions like social media scrolling, shopping, overworking, or we seek approval from outside of ourselves, from others, by what we do or what we achieve. We think happiness will find itself within us. But deep down. It seems like we often hesitate to give ourselves permission just to be happy. Maybe we've been taught that happiness is selfish. Or maybe we feel guilty when we enjoy life when others are struggling. Maybe we believe we have to earn happiness rather than just receive it as a gift. And yet happiness, true happiness, is something God wants for us. God is love, and God's deepest desire for us is to be happy. It's part of who we are. If we are the divine image of love, and God is love and happiness, then that happiness lies within us. It's part of our human and divine nature. And when we live in harmony with our true selves and with God, we experience a deeper sense of happiness. We awaken to the wholeness that's already within us. It's not like life gets perfect, because there's always ups and downs. But the ups aren't as high. And the downs aren't as low, and we know how to navigate through those ups and downs by living the contemplative path. And that to me is the secret to happiness: the contemplative path. It's a pathway that has been taught and lived throughout all the ages. It's something we're just reawakening to in this modern age. The contemplative path is an ancient spiritual tradition that invites us to slow down, turn inward, and awaken to the presence of the divine within. It's rooted in monastic wisdom and mystical traditions, but the path is not just about silent prayer or meditation. It's more than that. The contemplative path is a way of life, a lifestyle, that allows us to experience deeper inner peace. Over the ages, the contemplative path has been practiced by spiritual seekers across different faith traditions, from Jesus, the Desert Fathers and Mothers of early Christianity. It's been practiced by Buddhist monks, Sufi mystics. The contemplative path is a universal invitation to develop a lifestyle that fosters awareness, simplicity, love, and divine guidance. But it's not just an ancient practice. It's profoundly relevant for today. In a world that often feels chaotic and overwhelming at times, the contemplative path offers each one of us a grounded, sustainable way to cultivate happiness, not just as a fleeting emotion, but as a deep and abiding presence within us as we discover the path to connect our human and divine natures. It's interesting that in this modern age, many are reawakening to the contemplative pathway through men and women like Thomas Merton, Henri Nouwen, Mother Teresa, John Main, and I believe the Spirit is inviting each one of us to integrate the contemplative path into our own lives in our own unique ways. I'd like to share a poem with you I wrote just to reflect on what I think captures the essence of this truth about happiness and the contemplative path. Happiness is not a place to reach. It's not a prize to earn or win. Happiness is the soft unfolding of your heart in the presence of what is. A quiet morning wrapped in light, a deep breath that fills your soul, the laughter of a friend who knows you well, the sacred joy of knowing you are whole, human, and divine. Happiness is not beyond your grasp. It's not waiting on some distant shore. It lives within each moment's grace, and as you awaken to the divine embrace that's holding you, you hear the voice of love whisper,"You are enough. You need nothing more." So if happiness isn't something we can chase, but something we live into, how do we cultivate it? Happiness on the contemplative path starts with creating a lifestyle that nourishes inner peace and joy, and that's where what I call the contemplative path or more modern terms, divine flow comes in the rhythm of the contemplative path. The divine flow is built on four simple but powerful lifestyle practices that you can integrate into your life in your own unique way. That when practiced on a consistent, regular basis, happiness takes root in your daily life. And those four practices I call Q S C S. The first one, daily quiet time. Happiness flourishes when we make space for stillness. In silence, daily stillness or solitude, quiet time, we come home to ourselves and to God. Whether it's five minutes of deep breathing, a short prayer, or sitting in the morning light, quiet time lets us receive happiness. It nurtures our soul so we can hear the divine voice whispering truth, love, guidance within our hearts. The second is spiritual reading. Wisdom seeks to guide our hearts. When we nourish our minds with sacred books that we read, uplifting books or the words or podcasts of wise teachers, men and women, they're just a little further on the path than us, we align our thoughts with deeper truths. We give our minds something good and holy to chew on. Truths that remind us happiness is not out there, it's within us. We learn from other spiritual authors, whether it be through scripture or. Podcasts or books, how they integrated the contemplative path into their lives. And then we find the ways we want to integrate that spiritual reading and texts, those words into our hearts and lives. The third is community. We aren't meant to walk alone. True joy is found in deep, meaningful connections with other people. Whether we connect with a trusted friend, enjoy a spiritual group or a community that lifts us up, sharing life with others nurtures a happiness that is real and lasting. When we surround ourselves with people who inspire us to grow, affirm who we are in truth, we remember who we are. We learn and grow. And we allow and invite them to grow, too. The final part of Divine Flow is spiritual gifts, or you contemplative action. Happiness grows when we have a purpose in our lives. When we discover and use our spiritual gifts, those talents that we're naturally wired with qualities, such as the gift of encouragement, craftsmanship, teaching, or hospitality. When we discover our spiritual gifts and use them, through contemplative action, by serving others, it is life giving for us. It's life giving for others. When we share our unique talents with the world, we experience joy. And we make the world a better place. So by integrating these four Divine Flow Contemplative Practices into your life, you'll find, perhaps, what many have found. Happiness becomes more than a fleeting emotion. It becomes a way of being. The pathway to happiness becomes the way in which you integrate the contemplative path into your lifestyle through daily quiet time, spiritual reading, surrounding yourselves with people, a community that inspires you to grow, and discovering your spiritual gifts and using them in contemplative action, a way that makes the world a better place. If you're feeling a God-nudge to create a life filled with inner peace and true happiness, I invite you to explore these four practices more deeply in my book, Finding Flow, Spiritual Practices to Reclaim Inner Peace, Balance, and Wholeness. In Finding Flow, you'll discover the four keys to a lifestyle that nourishes happiness and that deep, abiding sense of Divine Flow. You'll discover stories about how I and other people have integrated the contemplative path of Divine Flow into their lives and are discovering deeper wisdom, guidance, joy, and happiness. You can find Finding Flow online, wherever books are sold. I've included a link at the end of this podcast so you can buy the book on Amazon. I invite you to pick up a copy, read it, and find your own unique ways that you can take these four lifestyle practices and integrate them into your life as your contemplative path to happiness. Remember that happiness isn't waiting in the future. It's here in this moment, whispering to you through stillness, wisdom, connection, and purpose. So today I invite you to give yourself permission to be happy, not because you've earned it or something you can grasp, not because everything is perfect, but simply because you are alive and happiness is already within you. You just need to awaken to it to develop a lifestyle of authentic living in your truest self, connected with the God of love. Until our next podcast, may you walk in Divine Flow, and may happiness find you in the sacred ordinary moments of your day. May you experience lots of God sightings, as you discover and follow the contemplative path to happiness.