We have General and Specific Desires. A General Desire is a Desire we all have in common. Our most General Desire is to obtain Joy. We all want to be happy. Our more Specific Desires are individual, unique, and different from one another's.
In our diagram, we can describe Joy as a more General location behind point B, while point B represents our Specific Desire. The yellow spot that represents Joy spans wider than our Specific Desire because it encompasses other Specific Desires.
Our most General Conflict is Sorrow. None of us wants to live in Sorrow. We have more Specific Conflicts when we are too General or too Specific in the identification of our Desire. When we're too General we say things like, "I just want to be happy." That's a given. Our next step is to identify the Specific Desires we need to obtain in order to obtain that happiness. When we're too Specific in our Desire identification we say, "This is the only thing that will bring me happiness." That may be true. But if it's not and we can't obtain that Specific Desire, we will end in Chronic Conflict.
Note: The following videos were made three years ago and I was blending Level 2 and Level 3 together.
General vs. Specific Causes
We also have General and Specific Causes. A General Cause is someone who has obtained the highest and most sustainable degree of Joy. His greatest concern is to help us obtain Joy. Our most General Cause is God.
Specific Causes are those who have obtained a Specific Desire similar to the one we're seeking. They have the ability to help us obtain it.
We need both General and Specific Causes. Conflicts arise when we try to establish a relationship with one and not with the other.
General vs. Specific Desire Obtainment Processes
There are General and Specific Desire Obtainment Processes. Our most General Desire Obtainment Process (DOP) to obtain Joy is Love. We love our Cause and our Children. When we love our Cause, we have Faith in him. Faith is the Desire to receive help, guidance, and support throughout our DOP. When we love our Children we Sacrifice for them. Sacrifice starts with the Desire to give help, guidance, and support throughout our Children's DOPs.
Our more Specific DOPs are as varied as our Specific Desires. We may Desire to earn more money, lose weight, improve our health, develop more patience, or build a house. We also may Desire to help others obtain their Specific Desires. Our Specific DOP includes the steps that we take or the rules that we follow to obtain them.
When we get too General with our DOP, we say things like, "I believe in God or I love my Children." That's a good start. But in order to put those value statements into action, we need to get more Specific. What does it mean to believe in God? How can we best love our Children? How do these General values affect our more Specific DOP?
When we get too Specific with our DOP, we think the only thing that matters is obtaining our Specific Desire. We focus on the steps we need to take and disregard our more fundamental values. Being action-oriented is good. But if we forget the actions that need to be implemented to obtain our most General Desire, we will end in Chronic Conflict.
General vs. Specific Effects
We experience General and Specific Effects. Our General Effects are from our General Cause. We sense these Effects in our heart. We experience Joy when we engage in the General DOP and Sorrow when we we get off track.
Our Specific Causes also validate or warn us with their Effects. They give us positive feedback, gifts, promotions, acceptance, or other forms of approval when we engage in their DOP. They give us negative feedback, punishment, non-acceptance, or other forms of disapproval when we deviate from their ways of doing things.
General vs. Specific Results
We obtain both General and Specific Results. Our most General Result is Sustainable Joy. This is incrementally obtaining Joy at the level we are most satisfied. This Result is not temporary. We don’t lose it over time. It increases and stays with us through change and adversity.
Our most General Conflict is Chronic Sorrow. It is when Sorrow increases incrementally over time. It is not the temporary Sorrow we experience when we are required to sacrifice. It is virulent and contagious. We obtain this Result when we continue in the same Desire Obtainment Process that has ended in failure without learning from our mistakes.
Our more Specific Results are the specific relationships, abilities, knowledge, and things we obtain via our Specific Desire Obtainment Process. These have varying degrees of Sustainability. If the intent for creating them was to resolve a temporary problem or to use them as a stepping stone to get to a more Sustainable Result, then the temporary obtainment of them can be regarded as a success. Even if we end in failure, if we have learned from this Result and can begin anew with increased Knowledge, then we have achieved a form of success.
