Dana Owens

Jesus not only engages in conversation with the Samaritan woman, but also leads her to the teaching of spiritual truth about eternal life. But why her?

Being “born again,” which sounds impossible when taken literally, focuses on the transformation of human mentality (or spirituality), while being “born from above” focuses on the necessity of acknowledging the truth that life is from God, and we are just vessels that receive and contain the life from God.

Having faith in Jesus or in any religion is not about saying certain things because they are considered true and correct by others, but about actually knowing what one believes with experience and understanding. The reality of faith does not dwell in knowing the right things, but arises from living what is true to one’s heart.

I believe that miracles always happen within our lives when and where we are in true need of them. Yet, we may not notice them, even if we are fully living with them.

The joy of Jesus is not of any materialistic origin but from heaven and of the Creator. Our hearts are hungry for this essential joy. However, this joy comes to our hearts neither as an automatic flow nor by a transactional action.

According to Swedenborg, there are two temptations: worldly and spiritual. Worldly temptations are the ones that we often consider as temptations, but spiritual temptations are the ones that really matter.