The Spiritual Quality of Power is active in the use or abuse of our human will. It comes in a number of very different and distinct forms. Let us take a close look at some of these forms of power so that we can understand how we disconnect from the genuine spiritual quality of power and how we can find our way back into connection.

WILLFULNESS

One way we human beings use power is as a form of "power over." We utilize this force when:

- We attempt to get others to do what we want them to do.

- We want to control or alter external circumstances and we think we must use force to make things happen.

- We believe that someone must lose if we are going to win.

WILL POWER

Another form of power most of us have activated at one point or another is "will power." It is not very effective in the long run and it wears us out but most of us use it because we know of nothing else. We have a tendency to rely on will power when we think there is something wrong, bad or unacceptable about our selves.

- We attempt to "pull ourselves up by the bootstraps."

- We require ourselves to act or behave in a certain way.

- We try to change our habits and behaviors with force.

There used to be a popular expression in the fitness world that said there would be "No Pain without Gain." A lot of energy was spent and lost when people pushed themselves to the point of pain in order to get results. The thing is - we can often get results with force and pain but they are not usually the fulfilling or sustaining outcomes we most want.

WILLINGNESS

There is an entirely different kind of power - a connecting power - that is part of our very essence. The spiritual quality of power is most often experienced as willingness instead of willfulness or will power. It seems paradoxical to think that our deepest and most expansive form of power involves a form of surrender but it does. We connect with the spiritual quality of power when:

- We become willing

- We choose to negotiate for win/win solutions.

- We open ourselves up to universal influences.

- We move in concert with the energy of life

The martial art of Aikido (pronounced "eye-key-dough") demonstrates the form of power that is derived from harmony not distress. It was developed in Japan by Morihei Ueshiba. Ueshiba believed that the true essence of a warrior lay not in winning battles but in the encouragement of cooperation and harmony among people. He developed aikido, which means "The Way of Harmony with Spirit," out of this basic insight.

Something transformational happens when we relax willingly into the natural flow of our own lives. We feel ourselves connected to a very powerful force that guides us, carries us and delivers us forward to where we most want to go.

* When we are connected to the spiritual quality of power we know a generative and creative energy moving through us and we trust it.

* We feel power as our own innate potency to do, be or have whatever we truly want.

* It pulses through us and we rely on it when we are faced with choices.

Choices made from a state of disconnection deplete and worry us. Choices made from a place of connection with our own natural essence energy empower us.

The Connection Option: Power

Source energy is all powerful and ever present. The energy of power is a force of intention, expression and inspiration that is alive and active within the core of every living thing. There is no separation between this energy of power and your consciousness unless you forget that it is there.

* As a Victim

We feel dis-empowered and we believe we are lacking in the power to manage our experiences.

* As a Creator

We know that a stream of power naturally flows through us and we choose to relax into that flow. We deliberately connect to the stream of universal power within.

* Action for Power

Today I connect with the energy of power that is alive at my core. The energy of power is an internal vitality which inspires my self expression. The unlimited power of the universe individuates in my consciousness and I accept my place as a powerful person capable of all kinds of choices as I go about my day.