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A living thing cannot live beyond its level of consciousness. Given the diversity of life in plants and animals we seem to easily accommodate the inability of lower life forms to do only what they can do and we expect nothing more.  When it comes to people we try not to use terms like lower life forms because we know that the consciousness of people varies from person to person and there are countless variables that influence it. But deep inside, we are always measuring ourselves.

Another way of saying that we cannot live beyond our consciousness is to say that no person can live better than they think. Here we are talking about how we think more than what we think.

For example:

When I first began to drive I thought that operating the vehicle and knowing the laws was all there was to driving. How could I possibly know about the countless other things to keep in mind when I first got my license? My driving consciousness was low, but it was certainly higher than it was three years earlier. Once on the road I learned how my driving related to everyone else’s driving. I am inter-connected. I became aware of weather, traffic, shortcuts, merging, towing, and deeper engagement with everything related to the car.

After years of driving, a few accidents, a few speeding tickets, and countless close calls, my consciousness is far higher. Yet it still no where near the consciousness of a professional race driver, or an OTR truck driver, or a stunt driver. I have confidence but not certainty.

This example helps us see consciousness from a different angle. The rule of driving is to make allowances for the young or elderly or those who have difficulties getting along. Unfortunately, something else usually happens. We begin to drive as if our driving agenda surpasses all other driving agendas. We use our consciousness to promote and differentiate ourselves and we leave everyone else in our wake. We think our cars isolate us to bigger realities.

Consider the other aspects of life. If we have low consciousness in finances, we will poorly manage our resources and be in want. If we have low consciousness in business or social engagement, we will be marginalized and less successful. If we have low consciousness in a particular sport, music or activity, we will not perform very well. Skill is the byproduct of consciousness, not knowledge.

Consciousness determines the life we will live. In fact, the moment it’s gone, we are gone. If we have low consciousness about non-physical reality (spirituality) we will not be able to find meaning, presence, or our true identity in this life.

There is no way around this, for this is the design of the universe. Matter comes from consciousness and it goes back to it. Word becomes flesh (John 1:14) Consciousness is dynamism. It is constant movement, growth and expansion. It is never stagnant and thus is always in flux, thus science struggles to define it.

Given that the shape of reality is flow or movement, then it stands to reason that remaining in a particular frame of mind is to be counter to the expansive flow. Learning then is the path of expansion and we enter the flow best as a student even though in our heads we think we are a teacher.

This is what Jesus meant when he said if we don’t receive the kingdom as a child we couldn’t enter it (Mark 10:15). Disciple means “student”.  Only the humble student who has everything to learn can enter the new realm. Entrance to the Kingdom is not defined by religion, but humility. Those who pridefully know everything will ironically never know the bigger picture (1 Peter 5:5).

Consciousness has everything to do with God. As we learn and grow and discover, we gain the bigger picture and that raises our consciousness to a place where we no longer see others as lower life forms, but younger brothers and sisters. Our grasp of God corresponds to our grasp of ourselves. As we give our lives away to others, we are not diminished, but instead we rise along with them. This “kingdom” is a perfect win/win by design and it’s everywhere, coexisting with it’s opposite.

Certainty then is the great adversary to all humanity. Certainty is the loss of dynamism and choking off of flow. Certainty is the result of otherness disease and differentiation. Certainty stops genuine service and knows very little of love.

No matter where we are on the spectrum, we will never lose if we keep striving to learn and remain humble and teachable. This is what it means to be poor in spirit (Matthew 5:3) This is what it means to inherit the Kingdom of God. Spiritually speaking, there is very little else beyond this.