"Love Conquers All: An Adjustment."©

Recently I saw the movie "The Adjustment Bureau."
In it, there is a scene where the main character, tormented by his feeling for this woman who destiny says he can't be with even though chance, and their hearts, seem to write it no other way.
At one point he confronts his one of his "destiny fulfillers" with the question of why he cannot be with the woman he has loved for what seems like an eternity.
The answer he receives?
"Because she's enough. If you have her you won't need to fill that void inside of you with applause and votes and dreams of one day making it..."

Because she's enough...
Because she's enough...
Because... She's... Enough...
Hmmm...

Those three words sat with me. First alone. Then in thought & meditation. Then they began to sit & finally mingle with other thoughts. Then they began to chat with other memories & experiences & Loves that I have encountered, other moments & words & phrases that I have stored within my mind, my spirit, my essence. Then it happened.
It was as if I was allowed to, even for a few moments, surf the cosmo's & see the brightest stars, then float down slowly back into my own life, my own body & bring that light with me, allowing it to shine upon a dark corner of my being that I never could quite understand which allowed me to finally understand a piece of myself that had eluded understanding for so long.

To do great things - to "really matter" one needs a hunger that can only be satisfied by achieving. And continuing to achieve. "Because she's enough. If you have her you won't need to fill that void inside of you with applause and votes and dreams of one day making it..." implies that a person must have an emptiness which can only be filled by something much greater than one achievement, an emptiness that creates a vacuum of ambition which drives a person to continue to achieve, to continue to strive to "really matter". A fire that can only be quenched by bigger crowds, further reaching influence, greater success.
Or true love.

When we love, we are filled to the brim of our cup. There is room for other things but no need to fill the space with other things for love seeps into every space, it quenches the need to strive to be & in its place leaves the ability to just be.

This isn't to say that love makes one lethargic or complacent. In fact I believe true love is quite the opposite. It makes us the best version of ourselves so we are safe to, again, just be. When we are the best version of ourselves we in turn produce thee best output we can produce & gain the best results we can obtain from our best efforts. Love (or passion) will drive us to persevere even in the face of outstanding odds. It drives us to get up after being knocked down again. It spurns us to keep going when logic would say quit. It let's us comeback stronger than ever, wiser than ever after our weakest, most foolish moments.

I finally understand, & believe the term "Love conquers all" for love, true love isn't a feeling you simply get, but it's a feeling you continually get, that continually grows, that continually drives, that continues to inspire us to evolve, to be fully involved, to be completely invested, to be completely interested, to be. No longer strive.

Love shifts our paradigm from Do, Have, Be,
(DO what "that person" I want to one day be would do in order to HAVE what the person I want to one day be will have so I can eventually BE the person I one day want to be)
to a much more effective, much more powerful, Be, Do, Have paradigm,
(BE the person I want to be, can be, am destined to be, am which spurns me to DO the things that being the person I desire to be, the person who I am does which will in turn allow me to HAVE all the things physically, mental, emotionally & spiritually that the person I desire to be, deserve to be, am has.)

Love truly conquers all. It heals the deepest hurt, fills the emptiest crevice, and transforms the hardest of hearts.

You see neither time, nor knowledge nor a well constructed argument can change a man's life. Or heart. The only thing capable of such a feat is love. It can melt a heart, soften any blow, shield from all weapons, heal all hurts. It reaches deeper, lasts longer and holds tighter than any other force. It drives out hate, creates courage to continue when things are scary, intensifies joy & elevates our very being to the purest version of who we are destined to be.
Love does not allow room for failure for it drives you to continue until you succeed.
Love can do nothing but win.
Love, true love, is more than enough.
Love, true love, conquers all.
M.

www.MarkSparks.com

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"Faith: A Lesson From A Farmer."©

I was at a farm recently & was in awe of the sheer magnitude of growth this farmer was readying to harvest. 'This is incredible', I said, 'how'd you do this?'
"Pretty simple really", he replied, "plant good seed, find good soil, work a good plow & wait for the good Lord". Now that's Faith I thought...

Faith. Many of us are stuck in the belief that we are to pray & wait for something to happen when that's just the tip of the iceberg (think Titanic size tip). It's a big part, sure but it is an equation that is missing a key variable & that key variable is why many of us lack the fruit we desire, the joy we deserve & the life we so desperately wish for. Whether it's changing your weight, increasing your physical strength, having a better grasp of your finances, enjoying more fulfilling relationships - whatever the result you desire, without the right variables, ALL the right variables in the equation you will not get the result you deserve & desire. So what is the missing variable? The farmer called it good seed, good soil & good plow. That is find something that you can grow (no sense in planting a quarter in the dirt cause I ain't never seen a quarter tree) then find a good place to grow it. You ever talk to someone who was quitting smoking? You know what one of the first things they do is? It's to not associate with their smoker friends in places where they smoke. Why? Cause it won't help them grow as a non-smoker. Cause planting their efforts there would be a waste of a seed. Find good soil for that good seed. Next the farmer said plow a good plow. Results take work. Lots of work which is not to be confused with complicated work. Look - you want to run a marathon in 2 years and you've never run before? Well it's not that complicated. Buy a pair of good running shoe's. Put those running shoes on today (not next week or next month or 'someday') and go for a run. Run to the end of your street, around your block, for 5mins, heck I don't care just run. Then tomorrow do the same except go a little bit further - maybe down your street then back up again, or a block and a quarter, or 6mins - again whatever just do a little more! Then, as the simple plan goes repeat.
I'll say it again because we hear the opposite so often results are simple to attain when you know what you want. It's not complicated - really! But remember: Simple... Not Easy.

Faith is not sitting idle while we hope that something good happens. For every person that wins the lottery their are millions who 'faithfully' pray to do the same.
Ever watch a basketball game? Sometimes they show the coaches timeout or half time speech. It's always interesting to get to listen in to the team that's down and their coach getting them ready for battle. They usually talk about believing in one another, believing in the work they have done as a team and their system, believing in their conditioning, and believing in their ability to win. After the speech the team comes out and are very visibly filled with faith. What do you think happens next?
You don't see a picture playing in your mind of them standing around on the court hoping for the score to miraculously change in their favor do you? No, of course not. What you see is what happened. You see them digging in on defense, working harder in that last two minutes than they have all game. You see them attacking the basket with purpose, making clean crisp passes. You see them hitting shots, getting steals, taking charges & blocking shots. Simply put you see them, faithfully, working a good plow.

Faith is seen in your works, that's it.
What you believe shines through in what you do. You believe you're gonna win? Then you play like a winner. Chances are you'll put up more points on the board. You believe you & your partner have a dynamic, loving, nurturing relationship where you can both grow? Then you'll treat the other person as such & most likely get thee same back. You believe you can loose 60lbs? Then you'll work & eat and overall discipline yourself to do just that.
When you are sure of a certain and specific result, you will work towards it as if there isn't any other option. And that is what brings success, that makes us winners (whether the 'scoreboard' says so or not).
That is how we show our faith, by living faithfully.
Bless,
M.

www.MarkSparks.com

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"What Scares Us Most"©

What scares us most isn't that we can't but that we can.
What scares us most isn't that our dreams are impossible but probable and in fact very attainable.
What scares us most is that we don't believe we do not have the talent or ability available to us to fulfill our purpose, but in fact we know we are blessed with exactly what we need and the circumstances necessary in order to accomplish exactly what we truly desire.
What scares us most isn't that we aren't capable but we are highly able.
What scares us most isn't failure, it's success & the things that success brings.
What scares us most isn't getting lost on our journey but losing who we are for who we will become.
What scares us most is reaching for our dreams, working towards our truest desires and trading in the comfort of simply thinking about them or hoping for them.
What scares us most is that deep down we know who we are, we know what we desire & we know that we know we can attain it.
We know that if we don't journey towards it we'll never attain it & we'll have no one to point the finger of discontent at but ourselves.
What scares us most is that we truly are in control of much more of our destiny that the world would sometimes have us believe.
What scares us most is that faith isn't sitting around 'believing' something will happen but instead working towards 'it' with the knowledge that anything but our goal is possible.
What scares us most is the commitment we must make to ourselves, our dreams and our creator to wake up everyday & put our whole selves into who we truly are.
What scares us most is that we are born victors & anything less is only by choice.
What scares us most is that we are meant to shine, we are meant to excel, we are meant to be filled with joy.
What scares us most is our ability to choose.
-Mark Sparks

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