4/29/12 Rev. David McArthur

Snow White symbolizes a part of our spiritual growth. She loses her parents (the knowledge of who we really are). We lose this as we grow up and our feminine (feeling) side follows false outside values. “Mirror, mirror…” The Snow White part of ourselves is the beautiful, pure experience of touching the divine in our soul, and the harmony of recognizing the beautiful qualities of those around us. If we look without for the world to tell us we are right, then we have conflict when we find out we are not “the fairest”.

But you cannot kill the soul. So Snow White is sent into the forest (our subconsciousness); we cannot see what’s in there So we stay with what we see “out there”. When we feel we are “not good enough”, we send our Snow White part into the subconscious (the forest). We give over our authority to the wicked Queen. That which we value most highly in ourselves, the ability to touch the beauty—the divine—is suppressed.

When you choose that which is right for you, you come into conflict with your culture, your outside values, and “the wicked Queen” brings a poison apple. Not everyone’s poison apple is the same. Anita Moorjani, was born in India into a society which devalued women. To survive she became a people pleaser. She wrote, “I…feared this approval. Everything I did was for others’ approval, not my own. I lost myself. The fears were the poison.” When, literally, her poison (cancer) was killing her, she had a near death experience. Transformed, she was cancer free in days. What was found, she said, was that “I am magnificent!…Love, joy, ecstasy, and awe poured through me. I was swallowed up and enveloped in more love than I ever knew existed.” What frees the Snow White in us from the forest is the love. The Prince is our ability to focus, which, as the Prince, you command. And as the Prince, you give permission by acknowledging your need to be lovable and to be loved, and we discover we are loved!

Repeat, “I am lovable. I am loved. I am love.” Yes you are! And when you know that, you create that state of consciousness known as “happily ever after!”

Snow White symbolizes a part of our spiritual growth. She loses her parents (the knowledge of who we really are). We lose this as we grow up and our feminine (feeling) side follows false outside values. “Mirror, mirror…” The Snow White part of ourselves is the beautiful, pure experience of touching the divine in our soul, and the harmony of recognizing the beautiful qualities of those around us. If we look without for the world to tell us we are right, then we have conflict when we find out we are not “the fairest”.

But you cannot kill the soul. So Snow White is sent into the forest (our subconsciousness); we cannot see what’s in there So we stay with what we see “out there”. When we feel we are “not good enough”, we send our Snow White part into the subconscious (the forest). We give over our authority to the wicked Queen. That which we value most highly in ourselves, the ability to touch the beauty—the divine—is suppressed.

When you choose that which is right for you, you come into conflict with your culture, your outside values, and “the wicked Queen” brings a poison apple. Not everyone’s poison apple is the same. Anita Moorjani, was born in India into a society which devalued women. To survive she became a people pleaser. She wrote, “I…feared this approval. Everything I did was for others’ approval, not my own. I lost myself. The fears were the poison.” When, literally, her poison (cancer) was killing her, she had a near death experience. Transformed, she was cancer free in days. What was found, she said, was that “I am magnificent!…Love, joy, ecstasy, and awe poured through me. I was swallowed up and enveloped in more love than I ever knew existed.” What frees the Snow White in us from the forest is the love. The Prince is our ability to focus, which, as the Prince, you command. And as the Prince, you give permission by acknowledging your need to be lovable and to be loved, and we discover we are loved!

Repeat, “I am lovable. I am loved. I am love.” Yes you are! And when you know that, you create that state of consciousness known as “happily ever after!”

“Surely Your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life.” (23rd Psalm)  God loves us so much! It is something that is with us throughout our lives. Death is our final adventure. In it, God has planned for us the very best. But we live in DOD– denial of death. Death, however, is an experience in holiness.

Many years ago Joyce’s mother came to her and said, “When it’s my turn to die, I want you to be excited for me. I know you will find a way.” She said it would be the greatest gift her Creator would give her. Recently, it happened. Over the weeks, the Vissells learned death is nothing to be afraid of. It is a beautiful time of life. It is not the enemy, but to be embraced as an adventure. Louise, Joyce’s mother, told them, “I love my dying process so much!” Amidst all the pain, she focused on receiving God’s love. “I didn’t know I could love so much!” She was overjoyed to see and talk with Joyce’s father, who had passed years before.

It’s about love; living in love; giving and receiving love. Even a lifelong outspoken atheist is known to have declared with her dying breath, “Love is the answer!” Whoever has loved you in your lifetime– they still love you! –without the body, even more. They are there. People we’ve known are all helping us. Take time to talk to them. Ask them for help.

We live in denial of death. Rather than dread death, live knowing your loved one could pass suddenly. Live each day with this “knowing” and love and appreciate them when you are together. Expect the unexpected all the time. Don’t be surprised.

When the moment of Louise’s passing finally arrived, Barry said he felt it. He let go of his “office consciousness” and sank into the heart. He said entering her room was like “entering a cathedral, a most holy place.” He entered with reverence and thought she was already dead. Suddenly she shouted “Merry Christmas!” (it was the middle of summer), “Look at all the lights!” Louise had received her greatest gift. The Vissell family had found a way to be excited for her. Dying is as holy as birth.

4/22/12 Barry and Joyce Vissell

“Surely Your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life.” (23rd Psalm)  God loves us so much! It is something that is with us throughout our lives. Death is our final adventure. In it, God has planned for us the very best. But we live in DOD– denial of death. Death, however, is an experience in holiness.

Many years ago Joyce’s mother came to her and said, “When it’s my turn to die, I want you to be excited for me. I know you will find a way.” She said it would be the greatest gift her Creator would give her. Recently, it happened. Over the weeks, the Vissells learned death is nothing to be afraid of. It is a beautiful time of life. It is not the enemy, but to be embraced as an adventure. Louise, Joyce’s mother, told them, “I love my dying process so much!” Amidst all the pain, she focused on receiving God’s love. “I didn’t know I could love so much!” She was overjoyed to see and talk with Joyce’s father, who had passed years before.

It’s about love; living in love; giving and receiving love. Even a lifelong outspoken atheist is known to have declared with her dying breath, “Love is the answer!” Whoever has loved you in your lifetime– they still love you! –without the body, even more. They are there. People we’ve known are all helping us. Take time to talk to them. Ask them for help.

We live in denial of death. Rather than dread death, live knowing your loved one could pass suddenly. Live each day with this “knowing” and love and appreciate them when you are together. Expect the unexpected all the time. Don’t be surprised.

When the moment of Louise’s passing finally arrived, Barry said he felt it. He let go of his “office consciousness” and sank into the heart. He said entering her room was like “entering a cathedral, a most holy place.” He entered with reverence and thought she was already dead. Suddenly she shouted “Merry Christmas!” (it was the middle of summer), “Look at all the lights!” Louise had received her greatest gift. The Vissell family had found a way to be excited for her. Dying is as holy as birth.

There are cycles in our spiritual growth where we need to be filled up, to be healed. We open to Spirit and let that divine love flow to us, in us. The next part to know is it keeps on flowing when we give it away. Albert Schweitzer said, “The ones among you who will be truly happy are the ones among you who have sought and found how to serve.”

Grace was a vibrant young co-ed when she came down with polio. But she met and married a wonderful man, a delightful being, David. The polio kept them from having children but they felt the need to give. They opened themselves to adopting an “unadoptable” child. Eventually they had seven children of all colors and special needs and made a wonderful family. Unable to personally care for more, they created an adoption agency for other such children.

Grace is a paraplegic. David lovingly gets her up every morning and places her gently in her wheelchair. She is unable to do anything from the shoulders down, but she said, “Yes, I can care for a child.” Surely she had no plans to raise seven, each with special needs, but they brought them into a home where they’d be loved. She wrote, “I was overwhelmed by the wealth that was ours.”

Through service we experience the fulfillment of joy and happiness when we open to divine love. Mahatma Ghandi said, “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself through service to others.” We each reach a point where we are ready to expand. The way to expand that life and energy that flows through us is to give.

Jesus said, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

That tremendous gift you have to let the light which you are flow not just to you, but through you, means everyone of us can experience that deep fulfillment and joy simply by letting it flow through us in service to others.

4/15/12 Rev. David McArthur

There are cycles in our spiritual growth where we need to be filled up, to be healed. We open to Spirit and let that divine love flow to us, in us. The next part to know is it keeps on flowing when we give it away. Albert Schweitzer said, “The ones among you who will be truly happy are the ones among you who have sought and found how to serve.”

Grace was a vibrant young co-ed when she came down with polio. But she met and married a wonderful man, a delightful being, David. The polio kept them from having children but they felt the need to give. They opened themselves to adopting an “unadoptable” child. Eventually they had seven children of all colors and special needs and made a wonderful family. Unable to personally care for more, they created an adoption agency for other such children.

Grace is a paraplegic. David lovingly gets her up every morning and places her gently in her wheelchair. She is unable to do anything from the shoulders down, but she said, “Yes, I can care for a child.” Surely she had no plans to raise seven, each with special needs, but they brought them into a home where they’d be loved. She wrote, “I was overwhelmed by the wealth that was ours.”

Through service we experience the fulfillment of joy and happiness when we open to divine love. Mahatma Ghandi said, “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself through service to others.” We each reach a point where we are ready to expand. The way to expand that life and energy that flows through us is to give.

Jesus said, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

That tremendous gift you have to let the light which you are flow not just to you, but through you, means everyone of us can experience that deep fulfillment and joy simply by letting it flow through us in service to others.

4/8/12 Rev. David McArthur

“Awakening”

Spring! New life! —then there’s the resurrection thing. Some of us are skeptical; some need to know how it happened. Well, He did it as the Son of God—and so are you Sons and Daughters of God, as He is “The Elder Brother”. In Unity we recognize He went before. That means there is something in there that you can do.

Anita Moorjani, born to a Hindu family in India, was raised in Hong Kong. She went to Catholic school and was exposed to many cultures in Hong Kong, and grew up to become a professional. Then she developed cancer. Not wanting chemo, she looked elsewhere for healing. But the deterioration continued to advance until she went into a coma. Her doctor was shocked how close to death she was. She had only a few hours to live. Anita “awakened”, feeling no pain, but could not communicate. Bt she felt finally awakened, her soul finally realizing its true magnificence, expanding/awakening to a greater awareness of total love greater than anything imagined. She knew she could go further into this experience of radiant love and freedom, or she could return to her body, sick and full of pain. Then she knew there was a purpose to her return. “I learned who I really was and recognized the true magnificence of who I really was.”

She is not an exception—you too are that magnificence. You are holy, like Jesus. That’s who you really are! Affirm, “I am magnificent!” Take a hold of that amazing power! Anita went back to heal in not months or weeks, but days to be cancer free. “I understood my body was only a reflection of my internal state.”

Is that what went on for Jesus? He might have realized how magnificent He was and how that power was His and He could step back into that body knowing that magnificence! Anita was cancer free in four days! That’s resurrection! It comes from knowing who you are. When you know that—your body, your relationships, your finances, your creativity reflect that magnificence. “I am magnificent!” You truly are! Happy Easter!

“Awakening”

Spring! New life! —then there’s the resurrection thing. Some of us are skeptical; some need to know how it happened. Well, He did it as the Son of God—and so are you Sons and Daughters of God, as He is “The Elder Brother”. In Unity we recognize He went before. That means there is something in there that you can do.

Anita Moorjani, born to a Hindu family in India, was raised in Hong Kong. She went to Catholic school and was exposed to many cultures in Hong Kong, and grew up to become a professional. Then she developed cancer. Not wanting chemo, she looked elsewhere for healing. But the deterioration continued to advance until she went into a coma. Her doctor was shocked how close to death she was. She had only a few hours to live. Anita “awakened”, feeling no pain, but could not communicate. Bt she felt finally awakened, her soul finally realizing its true magnificence, expanding/awakening to a greater awareness of total love greater than anything imagined. She knew she could go further into this experience of radiant love and freedom, or she could return to her body, sick and full of pain. Then she knew there was a purpose to her return. “I learned who I really was and recognized the true magnificence of who I really was.”

She is not an exception—you too are that magnificence. You are holy, like Jesus. That’s who you really are! Affirm, “I am magnificent!” Take a hold of that amazing power! Anita went back to heal in not months or weeks, but days to be cancer free. “I understood my body was only a reflection of my internal state.”

Is that what went on for Jesus? He might have realized how magnificent He was and how that power was His and He could step back into that body knowing that magnificence! Anita was cancer free in four days! That’s resurrection! It comes from knowing who you are. When you know that—your body, your relationships, your finances, your creativity reflect that magnificence. “I am magnificent!” You truly are! Happy Easter!

Follow Your Callings

A calling can catch you by surprise, but it is a powerful vehicle. The ride can be nerve-racking and thrilling. Your soul doesn’t care. The work is just hanging on, having the willingness to go for the ride. The rub is that it creates turmoil and we resist it until the pain of resisting exceeds the pain of change. Heroes aren’t born, they are cornered.

There are many, many callings—work, relationships, and others that change with age, as we do. You can wait half your life for “the great calling” and miss the ones at your feet. The scrawny ones. They come as passions or a tune in your head hummed over and over again, or maybe in an overheard conversation. In resistance, we self-sabotage. We will blurt out our new-found path to the most cynical person in the family, knowing that’ll put a stop to it. We don’t want to rock the boat.

When something isn’t working it creates friction. But when the horse dies—get off! So where there is friction in your life, look for a calling. You might also find callings in the patterns that you have worn into your life. What section do you always go to first when you enter a book store? Maybe you have hidden them in your body, in your symptoms. Symptoms might be evidence of a flight from a calling.

These scrawny callings are quite helpful except they can’t get through all the busy signals. We are so addicted to our busy-ness, that it is even ok to put “workaholic” on your resume. But the end result is a loss of soul, a depletion of spirit. These scrawny cries need to be harnessed. That’s where the work is. It’s small steps, constantly stepping on the brake or the accelerator.

A sculptor tests a stone before starting to carve by tapping it. If it is good for sculpting, it is “consistent” and free of inner fissures which would cause cracking. It will ring. It will hold up under repeated blows. We must “tap in”. We must be conscious of our callings so that we “hold up under repeated blows”. Consciousness happens by keeping things in conversation. Match your walk with your talk. Take small steps. Honor Spirit’s calling!

4/1/12 Rev. David McArthur

It is our connection with God which takes care of us—that love that is God, that love that you are. However, you do have to deal with things and people who don’t seem to know you are spiritual. But since God is good all the time, even those things are good. Still, the mind wants to sort through things, so we do blame and guilt; we feel shame and failure, no matter how spiritual we are. So when you don’t feel good about something, it’s the “me” that needs the help. Deal with yourself instead of the situation.

Focus on divine love. You can go from anguish to overwhelming peace when you connect with that spiritual presence and power. Emma Curtis Hopkins said, “Everything is really full of love for you. The good that is for you loves you as much as you love it. The good that is for you seeks you and will come flying to you if you see that what you love is love itself. All people will change when you know that they are love. We shall change toward all people when we know that we ourselves are formed out of love. All is love. There is nothing in this universe but love.”

When we are in the place where we are not experiencing our connection with God, when we are really attracted to who’s responsible, who’s guilty, who’s to blame, who’s right, it takes a few steps to get that connection. First remember “I am lovable!” Even when you’ve done your best to mess it all up! Second, acknowledge “I am loved!” You cannot do anything to not be loved. That’s the only power you don’t get! You are a beautiful, radiant child of God!

Third, there’s just the love. You are the love. All that you are is love. It’s what you are. And you are the creator of love. That’s what we’re here to learn. That’s our journey—to find out there’s just love. That’s all that’s real.

Say, “I am lovable. I am loved. I am love.”

Yes you are!

It is our connection with God which takes care of us—that love that is God, that love that you are. However, you do have to deal with things and people who don’t seem to know you are spiritual. But since God is good all the time, even those things are good. Still, the mind wants to sort through things, so we do blame and guilt; we feel shame and failure, no matter how spiritual we are. So when you don’t feel good about something, it’s the “me” that needs the help. Deal with yourself instead of the situation.

Focus on divine love. You can go from anguish to overwhelming peace when you connect with that spiritual presence and power. Emma Curtis Hopkins said, “Everything is really full of love for you. The good that is for you loves you as much as you love it. The good that is for you seeks you and will come flying to you if you see that what you love is love itself. All people will change when you know that they are love. We shall change toward all people when we know that we ourselves are formed out of love. All is love. There is nothing in this universe but love.”

When we are in the place where we are not experiencing our connection with God, when we are really attracted to who’s responsible, who’s guilty, who’s to blame, who’s right, it takes a few steps to get that connection. First remember “I am lovable!” Even when you’ve done your best to mess it all up! Second, acknowledge “I am loved!” You cannot do anything to not be loved. That’s the only power you don’t get! You are a beautiful, radiant child of God!

Third, there’s just the love. You are the love. All that you are is love. It’s what you are. And you are the creator of love. That’s what we’re here to learn. That’s our journey—to find out there’s just love. That’s all that’s real.

Say, “I am lovable. I am loved. I am love.”

Yes you are!

3/25/12 Rev. Sheila Gautreaux

Everyday breathing is not consciously thought of. However, there is so much power in the breath when we do think about it.

In the book of Genesis, when the Creator made the most complex creation—human kind—He breathed into it the “breath of life”. And after His resurrection, Jesus stood among His disciples and “Then He breathed on them and said, ‘receive ye the Holy Spirit.’” (John 20-22) It inspired them and gave them the ability to go forth and create. Charles Fillmore said that the inflow of the breath corresponds to the in-spiration of the spiritual life.
In Messages from the Body, Michael J. Lincoln says when people have trouble breathing, it is a longing for mother love. The Holy Spirit is the Divine Feminine. Breath in and be comforted by the Divine Mother. Connect with your Momma—breath in consciously that comfort you desire—the Mother Love which is right there. It is breathing you. Rest in the breath of God and be sure all is well.

When feeling lack, limitation, or financial trouble, stop and breathe. Take in Divine Inspiration. For health challenges it can restore the cells and make you well. Whatever the condition of your life. Why sit there and be freaked out? Breathe. Why let your power be taken away? Breathe and call upon the Holy Spirit. “Come Holy Spirit.” Let the Divine Mother comfort you. Feel something happening in your body. “Breathe in me, breath of God!” Breathe away all unforgiveness, resentment, anxiety. “Breathe in me, breath of God!” The breath of God is breathing you; know all is well.

Conscious  awareness of the breath is key—to peace, freedom, wellness, prosperity. Every goodness is available to you through conscious breathing. Whatever the challenge, all healing is available to you. Breathe!

Everyday breathing is not consciously thought of. However, there is so much power in the breath when we do think about it.

In the book of Genesis, when the Creator made the most complex creation—human kind—He breathed into it the “breath of life”. And after His resurrection, Jesus stood among His disciples and “Then He breathed on them and said, ‘receive ye the Holy Spirit.’” (John 20-22) It inspired them and gave them the ability to go forth and create. Charles Fillmore said that the inflow of the breath corresponds to the in-spiration of the spiritual life.
In Messages from the Body, Michael J. Lincoln says when people have trouble breathing, it is a longing for mother love. The Holy Spirit is the Divine Feminine. Breath in and be comforted by the Divine Mother. Connect with your Momma—breath in consciously that comfort you desire—the Mother Love which is right there. It is breathing you. Rest in the breath of God and be sure all is well.

When feeling lack, limitation, or financial trouble, stop and breathe. Take in Divine Inspiration. For health challenges it can restore the cells and make you well. Whatever the condition of your life. Why sit there and be freaked out? Breathe. Why let your power be taken away? Breathe and call upon the Holy Spirit. “Come Holy Spirit.” Let the Divine Mother comfort you. Feel something happening in your body. “Breathe in me, breath of God!” Breathe away all unforgiveness, resentment, anxiety. “Breathe in me, breath of God!” The breath of God is breathing you; know all is well.

Conscious  awareness of the breath is key—to peace, freedom, wellness, prosperity. Every goodness is available to you through conscious breathing. Whatever the challenge, all healing is available to you. Breathe!

Part 2

Oneness — It’s at the root of our spiritual journey. Emilie Cady wrote that man is at first living in the selfish, animal part of himself and will grow up into Divine or Spiritual Understanding to know his oneness with the Father, like Jesus when he said, “The Father and I are one.”

But there’s another thing, how do we do it?  Where is the oneness? When the Spiritual Self awakens, we experience a deep desire for connection with what has been expressed as the Divine.  Man’s limited understanding has tried to explain it in the terms of our various cultures.  Throughout the Ages, great teachers or guides have come to the people to explain this longing for connection with the Divine in the terms of each of our various cultures. They all taught on a level that was not fully apparent to ordinary people and so people have spent millennia trying to figure out what they said, which of course led to differences of opinion about what they meant and that led to most of the wars humanity has fought.

In the “Bhagavad Gita” from the Hindu tradition, we see Prince Arjuna just before his army goes to battle. He has family and friends on both sides, and expresses anguish over the coming slaughter.  God, in the form of Lord Krishna, his Charioteer, loses no time to use this “teaching moment”.  He tells Arjuna to not worry, that he must do his duty in the battle, and that all those who will die that day have chosen death and will return again (reincarnate), as they must.

WHAT??  Did he just tell Arjuna to just go ahead and slaughter his family and friends? Gandhi’s great teachings state that the “Bhagavad Gita” was the world’s greatest teaching of non-violence.  In his metaphysical interpretation, the conflict between the “armies” is actually within ourselves.  How can we harm another when it is really ourselves?

All religions teach the same things: prayer, meditation, spiritual service, love. There is only division if we choose to see division.  If we are aware of oneness, we see oneness. There is no separation, no difference.  There is only One.  As we always recite at the beginning of our services; “There is only One Presence and One Power in the Universe and in my life.  The All-Loving Goodness of God.”

3/18/12 Rev. David McArthur

Oneness — It’s at the root of our spiritual journey. Emilie Cady wrote that man is at first living in the selfish, animal part of himself and will grow up into Divine or Spiritual Understanding to know his oneness with the Father, like Jesus when he said, “The Father and I are one.”

But there’s another thing, how do we do it?  Where is the oneness? When the Spiritual Self awakens, we experience a deep desire for connection with what has been expressed as the Divine.  Man’s limited understanding has tried to explain it in the terms of our various cultures.  Throughout the Ages, great teachers or guides have come to the people to explain this longing for connection with the Divine in the terms of each of our various cultures. They all taught on a level that was not fully apparent to ordinary people and so people have spent millennia trying to figure out what they said, which of course led to differences of opinion about what they meant and that led to most of the wars humanity has fought.

In the “Bhagavad Gita” from the Hindu tradition, we see Prince Arjuna just before his army goes to battle. He has family and friends on both sides, and expresses anguish over the coming slaughter.  God, in the form of Lord Krishna, his Charioteer, loses no time to use this “teaching moment”.  He tells Arjuna to not worry, that he must do his duty in the battle, and that all those who will die that day have chosen death and will return again (reincarnate), as they must.

WHAT??  Did he just tell Arjuna to just go ahead and slaughter his family and friends? Gandhi’s great teachings state that the “Bhagavad Gita” was the world’s greatest teaching of non-violence.  In his metaphysical interpretation, the conflict between the “armies” is actually within ourselves.  How can we harm another when it is really ourselves?

All religions teach the same things: prayer, meditation, spiritual service, love. There is only division if we choose to see division.  If we are aware of oneness, we see oneness. There is no separation, no difference.  There is only One.  As we always recite at the beginning of our services; “There is only One Presence and One Power in the Universe and in my life.  The All-Loving Goodness of God.”

Part 2

Follow Your Callings

A calling can catch you by surprise, but it is a powerful vehicle. The ride can be nerve-racking and thrilling. Your soul doesn’t care. The work is just hanging on, having the willingness to go for the ride. The rub is that it creates turmoil and we resist it until the pain of resisting exceeds the pain of change. Heroes aren’t born, they are cornered.

There are many, many callings—work, relationships, and others that change with age, as we do. You can wait half your life for “the great calling” and miss the ones at your feet. The scrawny ones. They come as passions or a tune in your head hummed over and over again, or maybe in an overheard conversation. In resistance, we self-sabotage. We will blurt out our new-found path to the most cynical person in the family, knowing that’ll put a stop to it. We don’t want to rock the boat.

When something isn’t working it creates friction. But when the horse dies—get off! So where there is friction in your life, look for a calling. You might also find callings in the patterns that you have worn into your life. What section do you always go to first when you enter a book store? Maybe you have hidden them in your body, in your symptoms. Symptoms might be evidence of a flight from a calling.

These scrawny callings are quite helpful except they can’t get through all the busy signals. We are so addicted to our busy-ness, that it is even ok to put “workaholic” on your resume. But the end result is a loss of soul, a depletion of spirit. These scrawny cries need to be harnessed. That’s where the work is. It’s small steps, constantly stepping on the brake or the accelerator.

A sculptor tests a stone before starting to carve by tapping it. If it is good for sculpting, it is “consistent” and free of inner fissures which would cause cracking. It will ring. It will hold up under repeated blows. We must “tap in”. We must be conscious of our callings so that we “hold up under repeated blows”. Consciousness happens by keeping things in conversation. Match your walk with your talk. Take small steps. Honor Spirit’s calling!

3/11/12 Gregg Levoy

Follow Your Callings

A calling can catch you by surprise, but it is a powerful vehicle. The ride can be nerve-racking and thrilling. Your soul doesn’t care. The work is just hanging on, having the willingness to go for the ride. The rub is that it creates turmoil and we resist it until the pain of resisting exceeds the pain of change. Heroes aren’t born, they are cornered.

There are many, many callings—work, relationships, and others that change with age, as we do. You can wait half your life for “the great calling” and miss the ones at your feet. The scrawny ones. They come as passions or a tune in your head hummed over and over again, or maybe in an overheard conversation. In resistance, we self-sabotage. We will blurt out our new-found path to the most cynical person in the family, knowing that’ll put a stop to it. We don’t want to rock the boat.

When something isn’t working it creates friction. But when the horse dies—get off! So where there is friction in your life, look for a calling. You might also find callings in the patterns that you have worn into your life. What section do you always go to first when you enter a book store? Maybe you have hidden them in your body, in your symptoms. Symptoms might be evidence of a flight from a calling.

These scrawny callings are quite helpful except they can’t get through all the busy signals. We are so addicted to our busy-ness, that it is even ok to put “workaholic” on your resume. But the end result is a loss of soul, a depletion of spirit. These scrawny cries need to be harnessed. That’s where the work is. It’s small steps, constantly stepping on the brake or the accelerator.

A sculptor tests a stone before starting to carve by tapping it. If it is good for sculpting, it is “consistent” and free of inner fissures which would cause cracking. It will ring. It will hold up under repeated blows. We must “tap in”. We must be conscious of our callings so that we “hold up under repeated blows”. Consciousness happens by keeping things in conversation. Match your walk with your talk. Take small steps. Honor Spirit’s calling!

3/4/12 Rev. David McArthur

The second tool in this journey into oneness with the divine is one we all use. It’s a connector. It’s the tool of prayer. If there were no connection, prayer would be really stupid—we’d be talking to ourselves. There was a two month old baby being kept alive by extreme measures, who had known only pain in its short life. Surgery was necessary, but did not go well. In fact, the surgeon announced the baby would not live beyond the operation. So a nurse closed herself in a closet and prayed that the child would know a pain free life with its parents. After removing the life-sustaining devices, the surgeon said the baby would die. There was no way it could live. But its vital signs became strong and it did live. The doctor called it a miracle.

Healing is the experience of greater wholeness. So who is healed? A man asking for prayer?  His friends who prayed? The doctor and nurse who witnessed a miracle? We experience a connection we cannot explain any other way. If it touches one, it touches all. It changes the very fabric of consciousness itself. In prayer we’re able to take a hold of something that completely defies what we know of the world. But With God all things are possible.

When you pray you take a hold of that, otherwise you wouldn’t pray. It is a level where we know and understand each other. We understand we’re one. Whenever we reach for that presence and power and reach for the knowledge that with God, all things are possible, we invite hope. Whenever we reach for it, it is easier for anyone else in the world to touch it—a possibility of connection that wasn’t there before. When one of us heals, we all heal. You can’t explain it, but you know it’s true. Every prayer you say lifts everyone here. For that we thank you!

The second tool in this journey into oneness with the divine is one we all use. It’s a connector. It’s the tool of prayer. If there were no connection, prayer would be really stupid—we’d be talking to ourselves. There was a two month old baby being kept alive by extreme measures, who had known only pain in its short life. Surgery was necessary, but did not go well. In fact, the surgeon announced the baby would not live beyond the operation. So a nurse closed herself in a closet and prayed that the child would know a pain free life with its parents. After removing the life-sustaining devices, the surgeon said the baby would die. There was no way it could live. But its vital signs became strong and it did live. The doctor called it a miracle.

Healing is the experience of greater wholeness. So who is healed? A man asking for prayer?  His friends who prayed? The doctor and nurse who witnessed a miracle? We experience a connection we cannot explain any other way. If it touches one, it touches all. It changes the very fabric of consciousness itself. In prayer we’re able to take a hold of something that completely defies what we know of the world. But With God all things are possible.

When you pray you take a hold of that, otherwise you wouldn’t pray. It is a level where we know and understand each other. We understand we’re one. Whenever we reach for that presence and power and reach for the knowledge that with God, all things are possible, we invite hope. Whenever we reach for it, it is easier for anyone else in the world to touch it—a possibility of connection that wasn’t there before. When one of us heals, we all heal. You can’t explain it, but you know it’s true. Every prayer you say lifts everyone here. For that we thank you!

2/26/12 Rev. David McArthur

You’re late and there’s only one check-out line at the store. The customer at the checker holds up the line. Full of judgment, you feel far from free, and wonder, “What am I doing here?”

Emilie Cady likened the Israelites’ slavery in Egypt to a state of selfish animal consciousness, where we see no value in others (or ourselves). Through the intervention of an outside God, we are freed to wander through the desert of separation. We feel we have some value because the outside God values us. “My God (Grandpa with a sword) gives me value.” Then Jesus showed us the state of consciousness in which the “Father and I are one”—but so is everyone else!

We have gone through that the past 200 years. In a war with ourselves we rejected the slavery consciousness. But because our sense of value was still so low we remained in a state of consciousness of separation, or Segregation. Feeling, “I have to be better than others to have value”, we still did not see the value in ourselves.

The African American church took us out of that state. The 100 years from Emancipation to the end of Segregation was where we journeyed through the consciousness of separation toward the Oneness. But still we held onto Discrimination, still standing in the judgmental line, finding differences which we might need to protect against. But the heart is a higher intelligence which tells us we are all children of God, we are one. So we are done with Discrimination. Now we are working it out, from Segregation to Discrimination to acceptance of homosexuals to accepting those of the Muslim faith.

How do we get there? Through love—the choice of compassion that the Master taught. Caring for others is caring for “me”. Patience for another is patience for “me”. So we give up that God “out there”. It is within. Emilie Cady said that all goodness that springs up is the God in us, and nothing anyone can do can take away that freedom!

It’s so simple—just standing in line feeling compassion. We already have everything—all that we need. So the only thing that we can get from standing in line is the love we need, the love that we are!

You’re late and there’s only one check-out line at the store. The customer at the checker holds up the line. Full of judgment, you feel far from free, and wonder, “What am I doing here?”

Emilie Cady likened the Israelites’ slavery in Egypt to a state of selfish animal consciousness, where we see no value in others (or ourselves). Through the intervention of an outside God, we are freed to wander through the desert of separation. We feel we have some value because the outside God values us. “My God (Grandpa with a sword) gives me value.” Then Jesus showed us the state of consciousness in which the “Father and I are one”—but so is everyone else!

We have gone through that the past 200 years. In a war with ourselves we rejected the slavery consciousness. But because our sense of value was still so low we remained in a state of consciousness of separation, or Segregation. Feeling, “I have to be better than others to have value”, we still did not see the value in ourselves.

The African American church took us out of that state. The 100 years from Emancipation to the end of Segregation was where we journeyed through the consciousness of separation toward the Oneness. But still we held onto Discrimination, still standing in the judgmental line, finding differences which we might need to protect against. But the heart is a higher intelligence which tells us we are all children of God, we are one. So we are done with Discrimination. Now we are working it out, from Segregation to Discrimination to acceptance of homosexuals to accepting those of the Muslim faith.

How do we get there? Through love—the choice of compassion that the Master taught. Caring for others is caring for “me”. Patience for another is patience for “me”. So we give up that God “out there”. It is within. Emilie Cady said that all goodness that springs up is the God in us, and nothing anyone can do can take away that freedom!

It’s so simple—just standing in line feeling compassion. We already have everything—all that we need. So the only thing that we can get from standing in line is the love we need, the love that we are!

2/19/12 Rev. David McArthur

God is good all the time! And yet we worry.

Lucy appreciated her good life, but she always became anxious and worried for her husband’s safety every day before he got home from work. A friend suggested she spend that time in self-compassion, which she did. Gradually, the worry and anxiety was released. Later she found out that her grandfather once had an accident on his way home and after that her grandmother always worried about his returning home. Her mother learned that habit and passed it to her daughter. 3 generations of worry!

What does the worry do for us? Well, when we’re worrying, we’re not loving. It takes us out of the experience of knowing that God is there loving us all the time. Worry affirms “the goodness of God is not here”. It stops us from seeing the goodness of God in all and everyone.

Love is experiencing the presence of God with which we are one. That form of compassion heals us from believing there is something else. Hold yourself in that compassion. Let it move through you. You’d feel that for a friend. Let it happen for you– that self-compassion. Let yourself be aware of the presence of God and let God be responsible for that other being! The peace will come.

Stress and worry do come from love. But first feel self-compassion. Second let God be responsible for them just as God has been for you. Healing and learning has been brought forth in you, and God will bring that forth in the other being. For those you love that you worry for, say, “I place you in God’s care, knowing the very highest is coming forth.” It has to be because God is good all the time! God is good all the time! And all the time God is good! God is caring for them just as She is doing for you!

God is good all the time! And yet we worry.

Lucy appreciated her good life, but she always became anxious and worried for her husband’s safety every day before he got home from work. A friend suggested she spend that time in self-compassion, which she did. Gradually, the worry and anxiety was released. Later she found out that her grandfather once had an accident on his way home and after that her grandmother always worried about his returning home. Her mother learned that habit and passed it to her daughter. 3 generations of worry!

What does the worry do for us? Well, when we’re worrying, we’re not loving. It takes us out of the experience of knowing that God is there loving us all the time. Worry affirms “the goodness of God is not here”. It stops us from seeing the goodness of God in all and everyone.

Love is experiencing the presence of God with which we are one. That form of compassion heals us from believing there is something else. Hold yourself in that compassion. Let it move through you. You’d feel that for a friend. Let it happen for you– that self-compassion. Let yourself be aware of the presence of God and let God be responsible for that other being! The peace will come.

Stress and worry do come from love. But first feel self-compassion. Second let God be responsible for them just as God has been for you. Healing and learning has been brought forth in you, and God will bring that forth in the other being. For those you love that you worry for, say, “I place you in God’s care, knowing the very highest is coming forth.” It has to be because God is good all the time! God is good all the time! And all the time God is good! God is caring for them just as She is doing for you!

Cars are a shared experience we all have. If we look at them metaphysically, we can deepen our understand of ourselves. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a book of spiritual “rules of the road”? But do we use an old map, the old way of doing things, for life as it is now, like using an old map of Missouri to find our way around California?

Are we allowing ourselves to evolve and respond to what we need now? What fed us ten years ago is not what we need now. As Dale Earnhardt put it, it’s a constant battle to make the cars better and to be a better driver, too. Are we using a map of lack to find the place of good and plenty? If we have been “wandering in the desert for 40 years”, which is metaphysically the time for full unfoldment, then it is time for our thoughts to change, to go from intellectual wisdom to spiritual wisdom and to begin taking divine direction.

Do you trust God as much as your GPS? Do you ignore that spiritual tap on your shoulder until it becomes a nudge, or until it is a 2 x 4? If you were to answer that tap sooner, you’d have a lot less problems. Joseph must have felt really angry and frustrated, like his needs were left unmet, when his firstborn was being born in a cow manger amidst animals. But surely those thoughts dissolved with the arrival of the gifts of the magi. We must dissolve the corrosive thoughts in our minds like Coca Cola dissolves the corrosion on a car battery. If we keep our minds on the gifts that are coming, we will move into the promised land. Mario Andretti said, “If you believe in it, it is honorable…If you have a real passion for it, just do it.” It’s a constant reminder that God is in control, whether you lead the pack or are behind it.

Are you stuck in a spiritual traffic jam? We think we’re each alone in our own car but we are not really alone. If seen from above, we are connected to all the other cars in the traffic pattern, and we affect all the other drivers. We are connected to all others by the thoughts we hold. Do not underestimate the power of your thoughts to affect the whole of us. Enjoying life is not about how fast we go down the road, but about enjoying the road we’re on!

2/12/12 Rev. Bill Englehart

Cars are a shared experience we all have. If we look at them metaphysically, we can deepen our understand of ourselves. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a book of spiritual “rules of the road”? But do we use an old map, the old way of doing things, for life as it is now, like using an old map of Missouri to find our way around California?

Are we allowing ourselves to evolve and respond to what we need now? What fed us ten years ago is not what we need now. As Dale Earnhardt put it, it’s a constant battle to make the cars better and to be a better driver, too. Are we using a map of lack to find the place of good and plenty? If we have been “wandering in the desert for 40 years”, which is metaphysically the time for full unfoldment, then it is time for our thoughts to change, to go from intellectual wisdom to spiritual wisdom and to begin taking divine direction.

Do you trust God as much as your GPS? Do you ignore that spiritual tap on your shoulder until it becomes a nudge, or until it is a 2 x 4? If you were to answer that tap sooner, you’d have a lot less problems. Joseph must have felt really angry and frustrated, like his needs were left unmet, when his firstborn was being born in a cow manger amidst animals. But surely those thoughts dissolved with the arrival of the gifts of the magi. We must dissolve the corrosive thoughts in our minds like Coca Cola dissolves the corrosion on a car battery. If we keep our minds on the gifts that are coming, we will move into the promised land. Mario Andretti said, “If you believe in it, it is honorable…If you have a real passion for it, just do it.” It’s a constant reminder that God is in control, whether you lead the pack or are behind it.

Are you stuck in a spiritual traffic jam? We think we’re each alone in our own car but we are not really alone. If seen from above, we are connected to all the other cars in the traffic pattern, and we affect all the other drivers. We are connected to all others by the thoughts we hold. Do not underestimate the power of your thoughts to affect the whole of us. Enjoying life is not about how fast we go down the road, but about enjoying the road we’re on!

“When I feel You rushing by…” The flow of Spirit smoothes our sharp edges as the rushing waters of a river smooth the pebbles.

Experiencing a change within, you might ask, “What am I, really?” Unity’s answer is “I am a beloved child of God.” We’re from a mystical tradition in Unity, we are as often formed by experience as anything else. You might ask, “When am I, truly?” A psychic’s prediction comes true much later and it is now realized that the idea wasn’t even in your mind back then, but it was seen then, and now it is here. Where are you? Are you really “here” in your physical presence?

When you honor the experiences you have, you begin to experience things differently. A Unity minister, moved by his first experience of the city of New York, ran up to a hot dog vendor and cried, “Make me one with everything!” (Lighten up. Humor lets us see things differently.)

We can drop our perceptions and experience who we really are. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “A man is the facade of the temple wherein all wisdom and all good abide… When it breathes through his intellect, it is genius; when it breathes through his will, it is virtue; when it flows through his affection, it is love…”

And you are loved– you are a beloved child of God. Affirm, “I am one with the power, the goodness, the intelligence of God.” That Being which we move to discover– we awaken to feel the flow as the pebble. But the truth is you are the river!

2/5/12 Rev. David McArthur

“When I feel You rushing by…” The flow of Spirit smoothes our sharp edges as the rushing waters of a river smooth the pebbles.

Experiencing a change within, you might ask, “What am I, really?” Unity’s answer is “I am a beloved child of God.” We’re from a mystical tradition in Unity, we are as often formed by experience as anything else. You might ask, “When am I, truly?” A psychic’s prediction comes true much later and it is now realized that the idea wasn’t even in your mind back then, but it was seen then, and now it is here. Where are you? Are you really “here” in your physical presence?

When you honor the experiences you have, you begin to experience things differently. A Unity minister, moved by his first experience of the city of New York, ran up to a hot dog vendor and cried, “Make me one with everything!” (Lighten up. Humor lets us see things differently.)

We can drop our perceptions and experience who we really are. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “A man is the facade of the temple wherein all wisdom and all good abide… When it breathes through his intellect, it is genius; when it breathes through his will, it is virtue; when it flows through his affection, it is love…”

And you are loved– you are a beloved child of God. Affirm, “I am one with the power, the goodness, the intelligence of God.” That Being which we move to discover– we awaken to feel the flow as the pebble. But the truth is you are the river!

01/29/12 Rev. Max Lafser

“Be still and know that I am God.” Be still to know that I am God. Note the difference. We can quiet the mind and open to the presence, the wonderful consciousness that is, in whom we live and move and have our being. Things come up to be healed. We don’t have to deal with each thing as it comes up. As we vibrate with the One consciousness in the stillness, we can watch it pass by into healing.

In a work from the 14th century Persian poet, Hafiz, “All In All”, when the elephant felt unable to help the ant, he prayed. It seemed to work, and the elephant’s faith was increased and the ant was less of an agnostic. “All in all, seems things are moving ahead, working out for the best. Yep.”

When we feel like we’re just stomping all over ourselves and nothing we do is working, get still, and go into the silence. Recognize the truth of our oneness with that divine power and with each other in That single consciousness. Commit to the following agreements:

TRUTH. I agree to:
Live my mission.
Speak my truth, with compassion.
Look within when I react.
Keep doing what works and change what doesn’t.

ACCEPTANCE. I agree to:
Listen with my heart.
Respect our differences.
Resolve conflicts directly.
Honor our choices.

GRATITUDE. I agree to:
Give and receive thanks.
See the best in myself and others.
Look for blessings in disguise.
Lighten up!

“Be still and know that I am God.” Be still to know that I am God. Note the difference. We can quiet the mind and open to the presence, the wonderful consciousness that is, in whom we live and move and have our being. Things come up to be healed. We don’t have to deal with each thing as it comes up. As we vibrate with the One consciousness in the stillness, we can watch it pass by into healing.

In a work from the 14th century Persian poet, Hafiz, “All In All”, when the elephant felt unable to help the ant, he prayed. It seemed to work, and the elephant’s faith was increased and the ant was less of an agnostic. “All in all, seems things are moving ahead, working out for the best. Yep.”

When we feel like we’re just stomping all over ourselves and nothing we do is working, get still, and go into the silence. Recognize the truth of our oneness with that divine power and with each other in That single consciousness. Commit to the following agreements:

TRUTH. I agree to:
Live my mission.
Speak my truth, with compassion.
Look within when I react.
Keep doing what works and change what doesn’t.

ACCEPTANCE. I agree to:
Listen with my heart.
Respect our differences.
Resolve conflicts directly.
Honor our choices.

GRATITUDE. I agree to:
Give and receive thanks.
See the best in myself and others.
Look for blessings in disguise.
Lighten up!

Beauty and the Beast is a picture of major spiritual transformation. Every character shows us a part of our self. The father represents the adult male part in all of us that seeks after truth through the mind. Beauty is that feeling part of us which is appreciation, love.

In a snow storm one night, the father arrives at a great castle where his every need is provided. The storm is the veil which keeps us from seeing ourselves, our true riches. The castle pictures the divine presence which provides and sustains us. Leaving the castle, the father picks a rose from the castle garden for Beauty. The Beast appears and declares the man’s life is now forfeit. (The rose stands for understanding, and once you have that, your life up to then is over, because you can’t go back to the way you were.) Beast lets the father go if Beauty (the ability to touch goodness) will come in his place.

Beauty appreciates everything about the castle except that she must dine with the ugly Beast every evening. The Beast is also something within us, that part where we see ourselves as ugly and frightening. It might be addiction, low self esteem, hurt expressing as anger and violence, or fear that keeps us from living our life. It is legitimate to see it as ugly and to be afraid. Going into the castle is growing into a greater knowledge of ourselves and we have power then to see that ugly painful part of our self. We have to get to know it, to see it and to become consciously aware of our self.

Beauty is allowed to go home for two months, but then doesn’t want to return to the castle. (We fall back asleep, finding comfort where we had been.) Beauty dreams (dreaming is awareness coming into our “sleep”) that the Beast is dying. With great compassion for him, she goes back. Compassion awakens us to truth. Her tears (tears of forgiveness) revive him. (Tears of forgiveness wash away the ugly, painful part which was a constant cry to be touched by the love that heals. The forgiveness comes from feeling that love.) The Beast’s ugliness falls away and the young man comes forth filled with power, wisdom– a receptivity which lets divine presence and power flow.

In this tale abundance and ugliness represent God and the Devil. But you know there is no truth in that! You know There is only One presence and One power in the universe and in your life, the all loving goodness of God. One presence! One power! And you do know “they lived happily ever after”!

01/22/12 Rev. David McArthur

Beauty and the Beast is a picture of major spiritual transformation. Every character shows us a part of our self. The father represents the adult male part in all of us that seeks after truth through the mind. Beauty is that feeling part of us which is appreciation, love.

In a snow storm one night, the father arrives at a great castle where his every need is provided. The storm is the veil which keeps us from seeing ourselves, our true riches. The castle pictures the divine presence which provides and sustains us. Leaving the castle, the father picks a rose from the castle garden for Beauty. The Beast appears and declares the man’s life is now forfeit. (The rose stands for understanding, and once you have that, your life up to then is over, because you can’t go back to the way you were.) Beast lets the father go if Beauty (the ability to touch goodness) will come in his place.

Beauty appreciates everything about the castle except that she must dine with the ugly Beast every evening. The Beast is also something within us, that part where we see ourselves as ugly and frightening. It might be addiction, low self esteem, hurt expressing as anger and violence, or fear that keeps us from living our life. It is legitimate to see it as ugly and to be afraid. Going into the castle is growing into a greater knowledge of ourselves and we have power then to see that ugly painful part of our self. We have to get to know it, to see it and to become consciously aware of our self.

Beauty is allowed to go home for two months, but then doesn’t want to return to the castle. (We fall back asleep, finding comfort where we had been.) Beauty dreams (dreaming is awareness coming into our “sleep”) that the Beast is dying. With great compassion for him, she goes back. Compassion awakens us to truth. Her tears (tears of forgiveness) revive him. (Tears of forgiveness wash away the ugly, painful part which was a constant cry to be touched by the love that heals. The forgiveness comes from feeling that love.) The Beast’s ugliness falls away and the young man comes forth filled with power, wisdom– a receptivity which lets divine presence and power flow.

In this tale abundance and ugliness represent God and the Devil. But you know there is no truth in that! You know There is only One presence and One power in the universe and in your life, the all loving goodness of God. One presence! One power! And you do know “they lived happily ever after”!

You are one with a presence and power that has always been and always will be. The walls, your body, are just space! Hundreds of years ago a master pointed to a boulder, saying, “That boulder out there– is it really there or is it just in your mind?” One bold monk answered that it was only in his mind. The master replied “You must have a very heavy head!” Whatever the illusion, it is what we have here to deal with. It may not be real, but the assignment to deal with it is.

We do touch what is real, what doesn’t change, and when we touch the greater reality, our journey changes. We touch it in meditation and in “the silence”,– a totally private place, deeper than our mind, deeper than our emotion. We rest in that beingness which is here, now, present here in this moment. We align and “be”, one with that state of being.

Another way is doing rather than being. It is the experience of love, of loving. That greater reality is expressed in us, through us, as us. Go into the active way with your life radiating your love. (So often it is not a first response in our busy day, but it is always an option.)

Even more active is the experience of “God is love”. That greater reality is always present and in it is total wholeness and harmony. It can’t be anything else. Your experience becomes love. Radiate your love to one for whom you have resistance. Fill your heart with love “to the millionth power” and radiate it to this person until you feel delight in that beautiful child of God. You are experiencing the greater reality. That is the presence of God and it is who you are here, now!

You are one with a presence and power that has always been and always will be. The walls, your body, are just space! Hundreds of years ago a master pointed to a boulder, saying, “That boulder out there– is it really there or is it just in your mind?” One bold monk answered that it was only in his mind. The master replied “You must have a very heavy head!” Whatever the illusion, it is what we have here to deal with. It may not be real, but the assignment to deal with it is.

We do touch what is real, what doesn’t change, and when we touch the greater reality, our journey changes. We touch it in meditation and in “the silence”,– a totally private place, deeper than our mind, deeper than our emotion. We rest in that beingness which is here, now, present here in this moment. We align and “be”, one with that state of being.

Another way is doing rather than being. It is the experience of love, of loving. That greater reality is expressed in us, through us, as us. Go into the active way with your life radiating your love. (So often it is not a first response in our busy day, but it is always an option.)

Even more active is the experience of “God is love”. That greater reality is always present and in it is total wholeness and harmony. It can’t be anything else. Your experience becomes love. Radiate your love to one for whom you have resistance. Fill your heart with love “to the millionth power” and radiate it to this person until you feel delight in that beautiful child of God. You are experiencing the greater reality. That is the presence of God and it is who you are here, now!

01/08/12 Rev. David McArthur

The situations in our world needing change can only be overcome through care. But we get overwhelmed and our caring shuts down. What shuts us down is the perception that we are separate, that “It’s just me” –that we can’t fix it on our own. But we are a part of the One and we have the capacity for transformation. It starts with the consciousness that it is a spiritual problem which needs a spiritual solution. (And we are one with that unlimited spiritual power.)

There is a physical energy that goes out to those to whom we direct our love. Some people can see it like ribbons. The love, God, is the intelligence and cannot be less. And you, too, begin to change when you send out the love and intelligence, when you step into that consciousness. The transformation comes in us when we meet and perceive our oneness. Know you are one also with the victim and the perpetrator of the situation needing change. A natural way to send them this love and intelligence is prayer, especially the Prayer of Protection. Pray

The light of God surrounds you;
The love of God enfolds you;
The power of God protects you;
The presence of God watches over you;
Wherever you are, God is!
And all is well.

What follows for you is the understanding of what it is yours to do. The mind might tell you what it takes to fix it all. But the understanding of what it is for you to do comes to you as part of the transformation. Work at the level of the cause rather than the effect. For example, living sustainably and caring for our Earth and all life on it. Choose harmony. Commit to a state of consciousness that can bring about the change “for the greatest good of all creation.” Remember, God is good all the time!

For each of the next 7 days, give yourself the experience of caring for someone you wouldn’t ordinarily. Send out the experience of care and follow it with what it is for you to do which comes to you. Watch what happens to you. The time of problems in the world is over. The good of the presence of God is right now!

The situations in our world needing change can only be overcome through care. But we get overwhelmed and our caring shuts down. What shuts us down is the perception that we are separate, that “It’s just me” –that we can’t fix it on our own. But we are a part of the One and we have the capacity for transformation. It starts with the consciousness that it is a spiritual problem which needs a spiritual solution. (And we are one with that unlimited spiritual power.)

There is a physical energy that goes out to those to whom we direct our love. Some people can see it like ribbons. The love, God, is the intelligence and cannot be less. And you, too, begin to change when you send out the love and intelligence, when you step into that consciousness. The transformation comes in us when we meet and perceive our oneness. Know you are one also with the victim and the perpetrator of the situation needing change. A natural way to send them this love and intelligence is prayer, especially the Prayer of Protection. Pray

The light of God surrounds you;
The love of God enfolds you;
The power of God protects you;
The presence of God watches over you;
Wherever you are, God is!
And all is well.

What follows for you is the understanding of what it is yours to do. The mind might tell you what it takes to fix it all. But the understanding of what it is for you to do comes to you as part of the transformation. Work at the level of the cause rather than the effect. For example, living sustainably and caring for our Earth and all life on it. Choose harmony. Commit to a state of consciousness that can bring about the change “for the greatest good of all creation.” Remember, God is good all the time!

For each of the next 7 days, give yourself the experience of caring for someone you wouldn’t ordinarily. Send out the experience of care and follow it with what it is for you to do which comes to you. Watch what happens to you. The time of problems in the world is over. The good of the presence of God is right now!

01/01/12 Rev. David McArthur

This year, 2012, is long anticipated. The Hopi say it ushers in a long time of peace. It is the year in which we pass through the midpoint of the galaxy. After a period of denseness, or darkness, we will pass into the light. This is a powerful energy and your new year’s resolutions have a great power behind them. Those deep-heart desires– we have the power to bring them into manifestation and you have the power now! This is a part of the purpose you came for. Now is the time.

In Matthew, verse 9, a woman’s faith heals her when she touches Jesus’ cloak. She had been living in her ailment, believing, “I am now ill. If I touch the hem of His garment I will be healed.” We are one in/with the divine power. Within that pattern is the wholeness of our being and it is within us. The ability to see the wholeness in the pattern is what brought the healing. Create from the wholeness or from the disease.

Your heart’s desire is already there. You don’t have to earn it. You can’t get bad enough to get rid of it. It’s yours. It’s already there. And everything needed to manifest it is also given. There is part of your being where it is already there, already manifesting. If nothing else limits it, it has to manifest. Go for it. Don’t wait. Things are moving so much more quickly now.

The mind says, “I have this problem. I will do this and this and this, and then I will be well, (but I am not well now).” If you want to change this you have to change your consciousness. Feeling (as touching the garment) puts the power in! Imagine to yourself, “It’s a miracle! I am totally well!”  Now. Not next Sunday; not after your next doctor’s appointment. Make the switch. Take a hold now. This is the year to express what’s dear on your heart. That’s the game you came to play. Play it! –and have LOTS of fun!

This year, 2012, is long anticipated. The Hopi say it ushers in a long time of peace. It is the year in which we pass through the midpoint of the galaxy. After a period of denseness, or darkness, we will pass into the light. This is a powerful energy and your new year’s resolutions have a great power behind them. Those deep-heart desires– we have the power to bring them into manifestation and you have the power now! This is a part of the purpose you came for. Now is the time.

In Matthew, verse 9, a woman’s faith heals her when she touches Jesus’ cloak. She had been living in her ailment, believing, “I am now ill. If I touch the hem of His garment I will be healed.” We are one in/with the divine power. Within that pattern is the wholeness of our being and it is within us. The ability to see the wholeness in the pattern is what brought the healing. Create from the wholeness or from the disease.

Your heart’s desire is already there. You don’t have to earn it. You can’t get bad enough to get rid of it. It’s yours. It’s already there. And everything needed to manifest it is also given. There is part of your being where it is already there, already manifesting. If nothing else limits it, it has to manifest. Go for it. Don’t wait. Things are moving so much more quickly now.

The mind says, “I have this problem. I will do this and this and this, and then I will be well, (but I am not well now).” If you want to change this you have to change your consciousness. Feeling (as touching the garment) puts the power in! Imagine to yourself, “It’s a miracle! I am totally well!”  Now. Not next Sunday; not after your next doctor’s appointment. Make the switch. Take a hold now. This is the year to express what’s dear on your heart. That’s the game you came to play. Play it! –and have LOTS of fun!

This time of year is a time of light. The 25th of December is when the days begin to get longer. We celebrate the coming of light.  “The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.” John 1:9.

The Christmas experience lifts you each year. It is the experience of enlightenment, the experience of light. There are 2 ways to experience the spiritual energy of enlightenment. First is either one of those “aha!” moments in life or one of those moments of despair.

The other way to experience the spiritual energy of enlightenment is through love. It is the experience of transformation into a new state. From illness to health, from conflict to harmony, from turmoil to peace. How does light relate to love? “Light is the hem of the garment of love.” Light flows when we give an expression of love. There is actual spiritual energy flowing. Some actually see it. We experience this illumination at Christmas. We begin to see things differently.

Before Jesus’ coming, humankind was asleep to its nature. But with Jesus a beautiful understanding came. He said, “The Father and I are one. The Kingdom of God is within.” That’s enlightenment! There had to be great love for that to come forth. The experience we get is to love and let the light flow. Say, “When I love, light flows.”

It is love from which light flows. The wonderful thing about Christmas time is we all bring that love – to family, to friends, all around. When you let that light show through, it blesses us all. It is time to do that!

12/18/11 Rev. David McArthur

This time of year is a time of light. The 25th of December is when the days begin to get longer. We celebrate the coming of light.  “The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.” John 1:9.

The Christmas experience lifts you each year. It is the experience of enlightenment, the experience of light. There are 2 ways to experience the spiritual energy of enlightenment. First is either one of those “aha!” moments in life or one of those moments of despair.

The other way to experience the spiritual energy of enlightenment is through love. It is the experience of transformation into a new state. From illness to health, from conflict to harmony, from turmoil to peace. How does light relate to love? “Light is the hem of the garment of love.” Light flows when we give an expression of love. There is actual spiritual energy flowing. Some actually see it. We experience this illumination at Christmas. We begin to see things differently.

Before Jesus’ coming, humankind was asleep to its nature. But with Jesus a beautiful understanding came. He said, “The Father and I are one. The Kingdom of God is within.” That’s enlightenment! There had to be great love for that to come forth. The experience we get is to love and let the light flow. Say, “When I love, light flows.”

It is love from which light flows. The wonderful thing about Christmas time is we all bring that love – to family, to friends, all around. When you let that light show through, it blesses us all. It is time to do that!

The Nativity – why does it touch our consciousness again and again, year after year? Because it has an exquisite power to connect us to that spiritual power which flows through our hearts.

The animals are always peaceful and quiet, showing a warm supportive presence. It’s a symbol that the animal nature in us is brought into harmony through the heart. It is not excluded, but is a part of it. Mary is our female nature, the feelings of love we touch in our heart that are so awakened in the Christmas season. Joseph: wisdom. When we are in touch with our selves; the wisdom which flows through the world. The baby Jesus is the symbol of love and wisdom that is brought forth into being, the expression of the fullness of the heart.

In another Christmas story, a young immigrant girl, Ursula, takes a position with a wealthy American family in New York City. She feels she can’t measure up to the level of the expensive gifts she sees her new family receiving. But when she examined the love she felt for her own family and the family for whom she now worked, she felt peace. She followed her heart as she sought to express her love in a Christmas gift for her new family. She bought beautiful baby clothes and found a poor family, with a newborn, that otherwise had nothing for Christmas. Her gift to them was an expression of the higher understanding. She gave kindness to others as her gift to her new family. One special member of that family, Norman Vincent Peale, carried that gift throughout his life.

When we give from the heart it creates a difference. In the heart it becomes quiet and we have the ability to touch the love, the feeling (Mary), and give birth to that wisdom (Joseph), and we begin to perceive differently. The power, the love moves into a whole new level of expression (the baby Jesus) which touches and uplifts as it gives expression of that love and wisdom. How wonderful we get to touch it again and again! And it transforms those old things that always come up when we get together for the holidays. But we get to touch people differently. We have the invitation to go into the heart and bring into quiet those feelings and touch them to bring forth the higher wisdom and bring forth the Christ, the higher consciousness. For those that want to transform something, go to the Nativity and touch that love this season!

12/11/11 Rev. David McArthur

The Nativity – why does it touch our consciousness again and again, year after year? Because it has an exquisite power to connect us to that spiritual power which flows through our hearts.

The animals are always peaceful and quiet, showing a warm supportive presence. It’s a symbol that the animal nature in us is brought into harmony through the heart. It is not excluded, but is a part of it. Mary is our female nature, the feelings of love we touch in our heart that are so awakened in the Christmas season. Joseph: wisdom. When we are in touch with our selves; the wisdom which flows through the world. The baby Jesus is the symbol of love and wisdom that is brought forth into being, the expression of the fullness of the heart.

In another Christmas story, a young immigrant girl, Ursula, takes a position with a wealthy American family in New York City. She feels she can’t measure up to the level of the expensive gifts she sees her new family receiving. But when she examined the love she felt for her own family and the family for whom she now worked, she felt peace. She followed her heart as she sought to express her love in a Christmas gift for her new family. She bought beautiful baby clothes and found a poor family, with a newborn, that otherwise had nothing for Christmas. Her gift to them was an expression of the higher understanding. She gave kindness to others as her gift to her new family. One special member of that family, Norman Vincent Peale, carried that gift throughout his life.

When we give from the heart it creates a difference. In the heart it becomes quiet and we have the ability to touch the love, the feeling (Mary), and give birth to that wisdom (Joseph), and we begin to perceive differently. The power, the love moves into a whole new level of expression (the baby Jesus) which touches and uplifts as it gives expression of that love and wisdom. How wonderful we get to touch it again and again! And it transforms those old things that always come up when we get together for the holidays. But we get to touch people differently. We have the invitation to go into the heart and bring into quiet those feelings and touch them to bring forth the higher wisdom and bring forth the Christ, the higher consciousness. For those that want to transform something, go to the Nativity and touch that love this season!

11/20/11 Rev. David McArthur

What’s going to happen in 2012? The only thing all the seers agree upon is that 2012 is a time of significant change. Erik Gonzales, Mayan spiritual guide, says to “Stay close to the sacred fire and do not let it go out.” The sacred fire is in our hearts–it is love.

Our projections give us a picture of what we believe, not necessarily what will happen. As co-creators, the beliefs we choose to hold greatly affect what we do create in our lives. The Hopi say one possibility is that mankind enters into the 5th world of eternal peace. And, it is said, in the past few years we have done so! The Edgar Cayce readings say that a new world is being born. Spiritual consciousness will reach such a height of development that each individual will be able to communicate directly with the divine.

Yet to move to the next level of consciousness, to bring forth the consciousness where we can look at a time of peace, a consciousness of love and compassion, we have to address the things we haven’t yet resolved, those things that come up which express our fear.

But you know something that most people don’t yet know, that God is good all the time! That there is only one power– there is no struggle between two. We have the power to make a huge difference! Like our teddy bears today, on Teddy Bear Sunday, which we pass back and forth to get hugs as we put our love in them. Because of our compassion we can send our love this way to young folks going through their big changes in the hospitals.

So as you see people struggle, give your love and compassion. You have the power to invite the change to the greater goodness. Love and compassion for them and for us transforms that which is not yet in love and harmony and brings it in. We will see the awakening of hearts all over the world supporting each other in love. 2012 is the year of awakening hearts. It will be a bear-y good year!

What’s going to happen in 2012? The only thing all the seers agree upon is that 2012 is a time of significant change. Erik Gonzales, Mayan spiritual guide, says to “Stay close to the sacred fire and do not let it go out.” The sacred fire is in our hearts–it is love.

Our projections give us a picture of what we believe, not necessarily what will happen. As co-creators, the beliefs we choose to hold greatly affect what we do create in our lives. The Hopi say one possibility is that mankind enters into the 5th world of eternal peace. And, it is said, in the past few years we have done so! The Edgar Cayce readings say that a new world is being born. Spiritual consciousness will reach such a height of development that each individual will be able to communicate directly with the divine.

Yet to move to the next level of consciousness, to bring forth the consciousness where we can look at a time of peace, a consciousness of love and compassion, we have to address the things we haven’t yet resolved, those things that come up which express our fear.

But you know something that most people don’t yet know, that God is good all the time! That there is only one power– there is no struggle between two. We have the power to make a huge difference! Like our teddy bears today, on Teddy Bear Sunday, which we pass back and forth to get hugs as we put our love in them. Because of our compassion we can send our love this way to young folks going through their big changes in the hospitals.

So as you see people struggle, give your love and compassion. You have the power to invite the change to the greater goodness. Love and compassion for them and for us transforms that which is not yet in love and harmony and brings it in. We will see the awakening of hearts all over the world supporting each other in love. 2012 is the year of awakening hearts. It will be a bear-y good year!