Thinking Becomes Experience

A few bullet points to jog the memory of those who attended service Sunday, April 28, 2013   -   To read the full text, click here.

·        Many people approach their lives as though the events of the day are going to dictate whether or not they’re going to feel good or bad about the day at any given moment.

·        Unity teaches that our way of thinking creates the experience of our life.

·        No circumstance, condition or person can “make” us feel this way or that.

·        How we feel in response to anything is up to us.

·        When we identify someone or thing as the cause of what we’re feeling, we give our power away to that someone or thing.

·        Do you want to live a powerless life?

·        Do you believe in the possibility that your way of thinking creates the experience of your life may be true?

·        Have you ever experimented with changing your thinking and observing how your experience changes?

·        All too frequently when conditions don’t seem to be falling into place – according to our expectations – we suddenly drop our whole spiritual outlook, cycle back into negative emotions and then carry those negative emotions forward into a negative experience.

·        “Attitude is a little thing that makes a BIG difference.” Winston Churchill.

·        Myrtle Fillmore, co-founder of Unity healed herself from an illness and her lifelong belief that she would always have that illness. She did this using prayer and meditation after she changed her way of thinking about her condition.

·        There is biology to our belief.  What we believe not only effects us mentally and emotionally, but the work of Dr. Bruce Lipton demonstrates it also affects us physically.

·        Really understanding, that our way of thinking creates the experience of our life is a light that will illumine, enliven, and bring clarity to:

o       Affirmative prayer

o       Forgiveness

o       Self-awareness

o       Our relationship with others, the world, our health, and

o       Our awareness of the Presence of God

·        This week, if you’re willing, trying up-leveling your thinking when you find yourself in negativity and see how your experience changes.

Love Follows Forgiveness II

A few bullet points to jog the memory of those who attended service Sunday, April 21, 2013
To read the full text, click here.

·        Last Sunday we talked about forgiveness. In lieu of events that followed during the week, considering forgiveness was prescient.

·        Did you get upset this past week? Did you get scared, angry, or frightened? Did you practice any forgiveness?

·        Last week I said, “Forgiveness is the key to Happiness.” Perhaps that could be restated, “Forgiveness is the key to inner peace.”

·        The question going forward is not "How guilty is that man," but "How do I stand in the sight of the Father as to my ideas about his guilt?

·        Romans 13:8, “Owe no one anything except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.”

·        Where might Paul have gotten this crazy, wild, radical idea that we should love one another?

·        Perhaps from the words of Jesus found in John 13:34-35, “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. As I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

·        “Your thoughts should at all times be worthy of your highest self, your fellow man, and God. The thoughts that most frequently work ill to you and your associates are thoughts of criticism and condemnation. Fill your mind with thoughts of divine love, justice, peace, and forgiveness. This will pay your debts of love, which are the only debts you really owe.” (Prosperity (Charles Fillmore)/page123)

·        How forgiveness works, and “Why should I forgive?” is a mystery to many.

·        (How) Forgiveness removes the “painful emotional charge” from the event and allows us to experience the memory of the event without the pain.

·        (Why) Holding onto negative emotions is ultimately damaging physically.

·        We all share a common purpose beyond our goals and aspirations in the world: to reclaim our rightful inheritance as Children of God, and return “Home;” return to the awareness of Heaven. We would do well to keep our eyes on that prize while we go about our business in the world. Our thoughts should at all times be worthy of our highest self, our fellow man, and God. But what about when it hurts? What about when we are so consumed with fear, anger, guilt, etc.?

o       When our thoughts bring us hurt; forgive.

o       When our thoughts bring us fear; forgive.

o       When our thoughts bring us guilt, anger, shame, etc.; forgive.

·        When you are looking for inner peace for any reason; forgive.

Love Follows Forgiveness

For those who were at service on Sunday, April 14, 2013, a few bullet points to jog your memory.

To read the complete text of "Love Follows Forgiveness" click here.

• Beyond all the goals and aspirations any one of us might have in the world, do you think our deepest interests are really separate, unique and individual?  I don’t.

•  We all share one common interest: internal peace.

•  Internal peace is found through knowing and expressing the Love of God.

•  Once we recognize we all share one common interest, how could we hate, judge, or justify our anger?

•  Distress is the inseparable partner of hate, anger, fear, guilt, etc.  When we are in distress we are maintaining barriers to the awareness (and expression) of Love’s Presence.

•  Forgiveness dissolves all these barriers allowing us to remember the experience of Love. Love follows forgiveness.

•  Charles Fillmore, co-founder of Unity, defines forgiveness as, “A process of giving up the false for the real.”  Perhaps this definition could restated as, “Giving up the idea of finding peace in the temporary for the eternal.”

•  Mr. Fillmore also said, “It is through forgiveness that true spiritual healing is accomplished.”

•   “Forgiveness is not for other people. It is for our ourselves so we can heal and move on.”

•  Forgiveness is the key that opens that Gates of Heaven for us.

Leader of the Pack

For those who were at service on Sunday, April 7, 2013, a few bullet points to jog your memory.

To read the complete text of "The Leader of the Pack" click here

 

•  My wife, Jane, and I recently adopted a young dog whose "manners" left a little to be desired, particularly when it came to understanding her bathroom is outside.
• I quickly turned to advice from Cesar Millan, "The Dog Whisperer" vis his book Be The Pack Leader.
• Many of the things Cesar Millan said areas applicable to the spiritual journey as they are to modifying dog behavior.
• One of the things he mentioned is that he noticed after moving to America from Mexico that many Americans live primarily from their intellect.
• Spiritually speaking the intellect is not wise. It is not the home of wisdom. It's job is to carry out the orders it is given.
• A healthy intellect carries out "to the letter of the law" the instructions it has been given.
• An unhealthy intellect argues back and forth, endeavoring to prove it is the highest authority… something more than the “carry-outer” of instructions. Misguided intellect wants to ascend to the seat of authority, usurp God, and be the pack leader… which it is not.   
• We must demand of our intellect – during the inner argument for authority – to surrender to wisdom. 
• I contend there are only two voices from which our counsel comes: The voice for Love and the voice for not Love.
• The voice for Love we might also call God, or Jesus, or the Holy Spirit “speaking” to us. 
• The voice for not Love is the voice that advocates everything but Love. We could call this voice ego, or devil, or Satan. 
• There is a moment when we can call ourselves “Pack Leader,” but that is temporary. 
• The voice for Love will always only tell us one thing, that we are love.
• The voice for not love will always tell us we are limited, that we are not good enough or smart enough, of strong enough, or capable.  It’ll also council us to accept fear, guilt, shame, hate, anger, jealousy, hopelessness, etc. 
• The Pack Leader sets the tone for the pack. The Pack Leader determines what is acceptable and what isn’t. This is where you get to be the pack leader; you establish that the pack of lies the ego is always foisting on us are not true.
• When those thoughts and feelings arise, be the pack leader and deny their truth. Do not let them take control of your thoughts. The Pack Leader requires the pack to stay behind him and follow him.  Tell those lies, “Get thee behind me…” (MT 16:23) 
• Once you’ve established your dominion over negativity you surrender to the voice for Love, God, your Pack Leader.
• Like Jesus, we are all followers. (Not my will but yours...)
• Cesar Millan says in the book, Marley and Me, that the Grogan family related to Marley as a name and a personality. 
• He also says that is the last way to relate to your dog. 1st: animal - 2nd:dog - 3rd: breed - 4th: name and personality. Relating to your dog as a name and personality will not result in effective communication.
• I suggest we have to relate to other people at the highest level: Spirit. 1st: Spirit - 2nd: Human - 3rd: Societal differences - 4th: Gender - 5th: Name and personality.
• It's no wonder that communication is so difficult when we relate to others with what we have least in common, name and personality.
• Here's an exercise you can try to redirect your awareness of others to that which we have entirely in common, Spirit., I invite you to speak this phrase silently to yourself as you encounter other people: “I am another one of you. Together, in Love, we are One.”

The Kidnapping and Adventures of Maewyn Succot

For those who were at service on Sunday, March 17th, 2013, a few bullet points to jog your memory. To read the complete text of "The Kidnapping and Adventures of Maewyn Succat" click here.

·        “Fear not, I am with you and will bless you.” (Genesis 26:24)

·        Maewyn Succat lived in Britain in the waning days of being ruled by Rome.

·        Both his father and grandfather held positions of local power: Grandad was a Priest and Dad was a Deacon in the church

·        Maewyn, a wild and disorderly child had no interest whatsoever in the church.

·        At about age 16, in the early 400’s, Maewyn was captured by an Irish raiding party, taken to Ireland, and sold into slavery.

·        Maewyn tended sheep on a mountainside, living outside with the animals every day and night in every kind of weather.

·        Alone (his captors were present but he was away from everyone and everything he knew) and lonely, bible verses, long forgotten prayers and homilies began to surface in his mind.

·        It was during this time that Maewyn turned to prayer. Later on he would write that he prayed 100 times a day, and almost as much at night, to escape and return home.

·        One night in a dream he was told he should escape now, make his way to the coast and find a ship back to Britain. Though the journey was perilous, he felt protected.

·        After six years in captivity and back in Britain, God’s grace had solidified his faith. He began to study in the monastery.

·        Some years later he had a dream in which he was given a handful of letters. He opened one and it read, “The Voice of the Irish.” The letter spoke to him and said, “Holy boy, please return to us, we need you.”

·        Many more years passed before the church allowed him to return to Ireland as a missionary. Maewyn was made a Bishop and given the Christian name, Patrius (Patrick).

·        Patrick spread the word of Christianity all across Ireland. Despite the fact that he was arrested and imprisoned 12 times (and escaped 12 times) he established monasteries, schools, planted 300 churches, and baptized over 120,000 Irish men and women.

·        Saint Patrick was an “over-comer.”

·        “Over-comers” are people just like you. They have challenges in their own lives but do not stop at the meeting of the challenge. They always see from a higher awareness.

·        What are you facing? Does it seem to be too big for you? Can you go beyond your humanness and ask God’s help?

·        Turn to that accessible power that is available to each of us from God and continue forward over, under, around or through your challenge, large or small.

·        “Fear not, I am with you and will bless you.” (Genesis 26:24)

 

Possibility Junction

For those who were at service on Sunday, March 10th, 2013, a few bullet points to jog your memory. To read the complete text of "Possibility Junction"  click here. 

 Every moment is an opportunity to choose. Richard and Mary-Alice Jafolla, in their book THE QUEST, describe this as "Possibility Junction," the moment in which we decide what we want to express (invest) in our life. Do we want to invest and experience more good by aligning ourselves with the creative power of God's Love, or continue to do the same old things that bind our happiness?

In John 3:3 Jesus tells us that, "...no one can see the Kingdom of God without being born from above."  In the context of the idea in the previous paragraph we might say that no one can see the Kingdom of God without aligning themselves with the creative power of God's Love.

Philosophically that is a great idea, but as one one of the foundational principles principles upon which Unity is built tells us, "Knowing principles isn't enough, we must live them." OK, so what can you do to help yourself be in alignment with the creative power of God's Love when you find yourself at "Possibility Junction?"  Here is a suggestion:

1. Remind yourself that you are worthwhile because God created you and that you are a part of God, not apart from God no matter how you feel in that moment.
2. Choose to feel oneness with God.  If you cannot remember that feeling, ask God to help you to remember how that feels.
3. Ask God, "What would you have me do in this situation?"  Be careful not to develop a couple of decisions and then ask God what would you have me do... this or that?  That's not deciding with God, that's asking God to decide with you.
4. Stay alert. Stop, look, listen, and feel.  Your answer can come from anywhere, at any time, in any way.  You may see, hear, or feel something that gives you one of those, "Light-bulb Moments," at which you say, "Thank you, God. That's it!"

JOY

Thak you, Sheryl Myers, for filling in for me last Sunday.

Here is a recap of Sheryl's message:

Galatians 5:22-23  NIV

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love,JOY, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control.

Sometimes Joy can seem elusive or fleeting, and yet we are all equipped by our Creator to experience the JOY of living abundantly, at any time, in any place.  In fact, JOY can be as close as our very next thought.

As co-creators with God, we can set the stage for the experience of JOY.  We can create situations that are conducive for JOY to be a constant presence in our lives, as the Holy Spirit is a constant presence in our lives.  Let's look at JOY as if it were the headline story in tomorrow's paper.

* WHO can experience joy?  In all likelihood, joy is not an emotion reserved exclusively for humans.  All vertebrates share a brain very similar in structure and function.  Research on the behavior of chimpanzees, hippos, dogs, dolphins, and even rodents show that they can respond to each other with affection and empathy.  The actual experience of joy has to do with our body's production of chemicals called endorphins.

* WHAT is joy?  Oprah Winfrey's definition of JOY is as good as any.  She says, "I define joy as a sustained sense of well-being and internal peace - a connection to what matters."  The key word here is connection.  It is the feeling, the knowing, that we are part of the oneness.

*WHEN do we experience joy?  Because God is everywhere present, joy is also.  Marianne Williams says, "Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves to recognize how good things really are."  Our cups runneth over.

*WHERE is joy experienced?  Joy is an inside job; it originates in the core of our being.  It happens because we are alive, aware, and connected to the things that give our life meaning. 

*HOW can we experience more joy?  A short list includes:
   -subscribe to a daily meditation on one of many excellent websites
     - stay in the present moment
     - practice meditation, prayer, or contemplation daily
     - CHOOSE happiness.
     - be outside with nature
     - do something for someone else
     - practice thankfulness'
     - practice forgiveness
     - sing, dance, and laugh
     - take care of you.

Bless everything.