Supersedence
A wilderness way theory.
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My name is Emily Gaiser, and I study spirituality.
I spent the first 23 years of my life in the conservative Christian culture… then I stepped out of that in 2001. Since then, I have not been a part of a church congregation.
I didn’t walk away from God, and I did not loose my faith. I let him teach me about who he is, how he loves, and what he expects of me as his child.
I found that the further I got from the definitions of my upbringing, the bigger God got. And he is AMAZING.
Then I got to mid-life - which is pretty much where we look at who and where we are, think about all the things we did to get there, and decide if we’re happy with everything. If you’re like me, then you might find yourself in major reconstruction with a growing burn pile of elements you no longer find helpful.
Letting God be in charge of that process required a completely new depth in our relationship. I finally (FINALLY!!) grabbed the whole stillness/knowing thing. Which meant that I learned how to step into my spirit in a way that changed almost everything I thought about the connection we have with it.
That’s when I went from being a back-alley Christian, to a sort-of wild and feral mystic. Simply because I started experiencing a life that was mysteriously incredible, and undeniably FOR me. For my clarity and encouragement, for a higher level of functionality, for healing, and for broadening my perspective in countless and amazing ways. My life was altered in a way that was both absolute and continuing.
And that’s why I started studying spirituality. …Which means a lot of things that I will certainly say more about, but in short, I decided to find out what humans know and believe about our mind/body/soul, and how they use that understanding to interact with their spirit and the spiritual realm. Mostly, I study the topic of spirituality broadly and look for the through-lines - occasionally going deeper as I feel called. I explore what we know now and historically; individually and culturally; scientifically and of course philosophically - and generally, outside of “mainstream Christianity.”
The process also changed me - from the inside out. It’s an ongoing transformation. An unfolding and expanding. A way of operating that constantly supersedes the way I operated before… when I had experienced less of what God has to show me. All the time, I know and expect tomorrow’s Emily to supersede today’s.
This will be obvious to many, but the information I’m sharing below is me diving into a topic that has no bounds - quite literally. It’s complex by nature and will always be more than we can know or understand… and it’s taken me a very long time to find a somewhat succinct approach to this project. I can, however, easily summarize my goal as the desire to see each and every person - individually - step into the experience of walking in the spirit; with the mission of continually unfolding their understanding of who God is, and what he is calling them to experience - even moment-by-moment.
The most critical element of this is that we are individuals who are responsible for ourselves. If this isn’t a PERSONAL practice, then we can’t achieve the experience as we’re intended to. This is important to me in multiple ways, but the first is that I was raised in a culture that emphasized a personal relationship with God, yet I didn’t gain practical understanding of what that could mean until my 40’s. I thought I had!! Then … well, I realize now that I had only brushed against it a few times.
This has left me believing that there are countless Christians who don’t have critical skillsets to truly connect to their spirit. Without that, we can’t develop our faith in a God who longs to define us individually and lead us. Instead, we are following the footsteps of others who say they know the way… which ends in us living shallow versions of their journey… which does nothing to truly satisfy our own spirit’s purpose.
So know that that is the underlying message in all of this - even when I seem to speak outside the lines… which I do a lot, by the way. I believe that our internal connection to our spirit is our own responsibility, and that it is the guidance system that is intended to lead us reliably through incredible experiences that are ours alone to have.
My invitation to you is, explore this for as far as you feel curious. I encourage you to hold it loosely and gaze at it broadly while letting God talk to you about it. Remember that these are ways of thinking that I developed by doing exactly that - and it’s ongoing! What you get from it will be based on your journey - what you’ve already witnessed, and what your spirit knows you will need going forward. I expect that to be different for everyone - that’s one of the amazing parts of this. Our landscape is dynamic, our perspective is unique, and our experiences are intimately personal. I’m sharing the concepts that I have found helpful in furthering and strengthening my connection to my spirit, my own transformation, and everything God has for me to experience.
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I have developed ways of thinking that frame my relationship with God so that I remember he is bigger than I can possibly give him credit for. Then, I have additional ways of thinking that feel supported by that framework. All of it is worth sharing, and you’re allowed to look at it in whatever order or fashion you find helpful. If you want my suggestion, I’d say start by scrolling all the way through this page for a broad understanding. The “framework” section is first - and might make it easier to understand the one-offs outside of it.
Due to the breadth, depth, and density of the concepts, I’ve kept this page as a sort of “TLDR”* synopsis and you can split off where I provide links to more thoughts on the various sections. Adding those links will be an ongoing process, and I’m sending you to my Substack platform so that you can subscribe and know when I’ve added new content. The basics will be here as structure when you want it.
Regardless, keep in mind that your journey is for you. I’m not a guru, I’m not looking for a following, nor am I building a community. These are simply resources that you may lean into as you choose. If something in here resonates within you, sit with it. Learn to listen to how God is asking you to shift or open your perspective and understanding. If you do that, it will be used correctly.
My final bit of advice is this, your journey is not a linear thing, and there is not a destination in the way that you might think. It’s not a ladder or a long, slow climb up a single mountain… it’s an infinite terrain of experiences very similar to what you would encounter in an ongoing physical journey, adventure, or nomadic approach to life. Keep curiosity forever at hand, and do this for the transformation it will allow… not despite it. I’ll share more about this at some point, but in the meantime, set aside the checklist mindset, and “order of events” aproach. Do what you can to just take it as it comes.
Oh, and this whole thing is constantly changing, and I hope it’ll never be finished. Maybe shape your expectations accordingly 😉.
*“too long, didn’t read”
The very first thing I’d like to address is, we aren’t human beings having a spiritual experience; we’re spiritual beings having a human experience*.
We are not waiting to be a part of the spirit world, we are learning to be in connection with both our spirit, and our physical body, as it relates to all of creation. We are individuals with a conscious, and free-will; yet we belong to the kingdom of heaven - of God. Our spirit that is with us now, is part of all of that… now. You’re only separated from it to the extent you think you are. Move beyond the mind, and feel for that connection. It’s there.
* I really, really wish I knew who deserved credit for that statement, but at this moment I don’t - it wasn’t me, though.
METANOIA - to move beyond the mind.
On May 2, 2022 I read a 4-paragraph chapter in a book by Father Richard Rohr called The Naked Now. I then wrote at the top of the page, “This tiny little chapter just changed my life.” Fr Richard introduced me to the Hebraic understanding of God’s name - the Sacred Tetragrammation YHVH (yod, he, vav, and he). Not only is it litterally unspeakable, but it is believed by many to represent the sound of a breath being taken and exhaled. This flipped and shifted the narrative of a LOT of things in my faith - in amazing ways!! - but I realize that it eventually led to the next concept I have to share with you.
I started thinking of God as the actual energy that forms everything, and fills the space between.
YVHV = Energy
Energy - the property of matter and radiation which is manifest as a capacity to do work (such as causing motion or interaction of molecules).
According to what quantum physics tells us, the PURPOSE of energy is to both see & be seen. I recognize that as also knowing and being known … or experiencing & being experienced… so that God (YVHV) can continually expand.
“I AM WHO I AM”
Therefore, as dynamic expressions of God, we too are created with a dual function:
To know, and be known. We are made as creators so that everything we do, say, and think goes out into the universe to be witnessed. … that in us, others may witness God.
Equally, we are designed to witness others and what they do, say, and think, so that we may witness more of God. We bear witness of him, in them. By that, our perspective of God grows.
Our understanding is then transformed, which causes our own expression to change. We now reflect a deeper/wider/broader understanding of God and his ways.
And so it goes.
This is how God’s love expands and unfolds.
This is what we are doing every moment we are in these bodies.
Do not utter the name of God in vain. - Exodus 20:7
At some point or another we’re all trying to figure out if we’re doing our life right. What is our purpose? Who are we and what do we truly value? What are we supposed to be doing, and what does that look like? What do we identify with/as? … and am I thinking about this as an individual?? or on behalf of a family/group/community/culture?? What am I responsible for? What am I held accountable for, and how?
Here’s the thing I think we tend to overlook… a super important element of Jesus’s teachings are that they are meant to be applied to each of us in an individual capacity. He teaches us to be responsible for OURSELVES. He does not task us with fixing, regulating, or saving another person. Instead, we are told to love God with our entirety; and to love others as we love ourselves.
(I think that requires learning about how God wants me to love myself if I want to get this thing right.)
“Be still and know that I am God.”
I think of KNOWING as EXPERIENCING.
We’re not given things; we’re given experiences that transform us and our way of thinking, understanding, and “knowing.”
It’s not that God gives and takes away the things we love as a test. He’s giving experiences to the extent that they clear and strengthen the connection to him, shaping us towards a more helpful expression in the end…. and that’s ongoing. Continually, and in a very complex manor.
Everything is for us - if we learn to lean into it and become what it can allow us to become.
Our JOURNEY is to experience/witness God (YVHV) everywhere and in everything.
We do this by “walking in the spirit.”
As humans we are spiritual entities that have been given a physical body with a brain and a nervous system. We have a conscious mind, senses, emotions, and imagination. All of this (and more) works together in a way that allows your mind to:
take in information on both a conscious and subconscious level
automatically assess what is applicable to your intentions
then help you identify what you need to do to move toward the intended result
This is an incredibly complex system that I’m not qualified to explain in any real fashion, but I’ll tell you how I apply what I’ve learned.
The entire system (spirit, body, mind) works together as a whole… and is part of a greater whole of individual entities. But it’s common for us to allow it to function outside of our awareness. When we work to increase our self-awareness, then we are able to grab more of the information it has to offer.
That information appears to come from our physical surroundings, but it actually comes from the spiritual realm in the form of electrical frequencies. Our spirit senses this along with the nerves within our body. Information is translated through our consciousness, which we recognize as our intuition. As we work to increase our awareness of that incoming information, we exercise our brain’s ability to communicate that message to us in ways that we can apply.
I think of FREQUENCY as the language of energy. Our spirit knows this language and will “tune into” the frequencies that match our intentions. That allows our brain to receive the information that is relevant to what we want. Our intuition utilizes our imagination and emotions to communicate that message to us. We are born with the ability to understand it and can “relearn” how at any point. (Our human nature struggles to stay in this awareness - easily relying on physical form instead of the frequency behind it… as if it forgets that the spiritual world is real, and intricately involved in all that happens.)
When our thoughts and actions align with our intention we gain INTEGRITY of frequency. That means that examining our beliefs and bringing our actions into alignment with them will bring us into a state of greater integrity, and clarity.
AUTHENTICITY happens when we base our beliefs in our own understanding of our lived experiences, and align our intentions (“whys”) with those beliefs.
Our frequency is destabilized by FEAR, which is a sign of having conflicted or confused intentions, or beliefs… generally based in a sense of lack, or insecurity in identity.
Integrating experiences into our understanding allows personal TRANSFORMATION.
UNDERSTANDING is based on perspective.
PERSPECTIVE is what you gain as you live the experiences of your life’s journey.
Blind spots are part of the human condition.
Narrow perspectives limit what we can know.
Broadening our perspective involves finding what we can’t see.
Denial runs counter to this effort.
GREATER PERSPECTIVE = greater potential for GREATER UNDERSTANDING and GREATER TRANSFORMATION of the beliefs that drive your intention, your frequency, and your experiences… on repeat.
Every single one of us - throughout all of history - has lived a unique journey, and have a perspective shaped by everything we have experienced.
Each human has an overall perspective that is different than everyone else’s.
Each human has valuable understanding that can offer greater perspective to everyone else.
You, my friend, are unlike any other individual. The way you see things is shaped by the life you have lived - the journey you have travelled. You are a completely whole, and perfectly unfinished individual who is precisely useful in every moment; because the entire point is for you to express what you know, while continuing to know more.
The BODY OF CHRIST is THE HOLY SPIRIT within all of us and it’s the landscape of our JOURNEY when we walk in the spirit. We are called to see/experience/WITNESS Christ/God in everyone everywhere, AS THEY ARE. As we witness them in the spirit, our perspective broadens.
SALVATION comes with freeing yourself to receive everything God has for you by denying division/separation between him, others, yourself, and the entire spirit realm/Kingdom of Heaven. It’s about giving him authority to define you and your path within that relationship, and within the greater whole.
No one is a threat to your salvation. Only you can choose to partake of it, or not.
Instead of worrying about the influence of another on you, first consider what is threatening to lessen your awareness of your spirit. Look at what you’re holding on to - not what’s holding on to you. Shift your focus from what offensive thing happened, to why you’re concerned about it. God will help you understand the things within your control so that your focus remains on the authority you have given him in your identity and purpose - instead of giving power to another to define who and what you are. When you put your faith in God’s ability to always broaden your understanding, he will be the one to drive your transformation.
If our intention is to give him authority in that way, then we have to find the ways of thinking and beliefs that stand between us and that. What definitions need to be surrendered?
Purpose: to step into our individual spiritual journey of experiencing God everywhere, in everything, so that our expression of him is continually transformed.
When we move beyond the mind’s what and how way of working, we are able to feel the whys behind them. We begin to find where fear is in our way. We look to find the belief that needs examination. Then we sit in the quiet stillness and let God whisper the truths over it. We continue on as a new expression, and with a greater ability to see.