Reading for December 27, 2015

Release

Affirmation: I make room in my world for new good to appear.

To experience greater peace and prosperity, I make a habit of releasing unwanted and unneeded belongings, as well as people and past situations and memories. By letting go of what no longer serves me, I make room for new good to appear.

At times I may feel constrained by my doubts and fears. Yet I move away from mistaken beliefs in lack and limitation.

Release makes my world more spacious. It opens the way for the free circulation of God’s infinite supply.

Letting go need not be painful. I am free to keep useful, artistic, or sentimental items and release whatever has fulfilled its purpose. Donating, recycling, or selling unneeded possessions can also create breathing space in my home.

And I am free to keep the positive thoughts and memories that bring me to experience joy again and again.

No matter where I begin, I ask for divine guidance. I then joyously set into motion the cleansing power of release, in the physical as well as my mental and emotional lives.

“For one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” Luke 12:15

 

Good Morning Beloved

Recently George had a little too much “fun” at the office Christmas party. Knowing the police were on special alert, he did what they say you should do – he took a cab home.

This proved to be a wise decision, because after only a few blocks there was a police roadblock. They were checking drivers with a breath-alyzer.

But the taxi, being a taxi, was waved right on through. So it was a good decision to take a cab.

Plus, it was easier than he thought, and quite fun driving a cab. It’s really just like any other car.

But now George has this taxi in his garage and he doesn’t know what to do with it.

 

 

BURNING BOWL:

I hope you all experienced the birth of the Christ awareness within you on Christmas. Know that that very awareness is there to be acknowledged every day, every moment, if you just allow it.

 

As our reading for today suggests, there is a time to release what no longer serves our higher good. Sometimes we hold onto something from our past that may hinder our Spiritual Growth. And, often, the process of cleaning out a closet or kitchen drawer, as the reading suggests, can be a catalyst to releasing emotional blocks.

Psalms 51:10 states “Create in me a clean heart, O God; And renew a right spirit within me.”

So, today we gather together to prayerfully support each other as we release negative and limiting thoughts and beliefs and establish a new awareness of Truth within ourselves.

 

Evelyn Underhill said, “God is always coming to you in the Sacrament of the Present Moment.”

We recognize that Sacrament as we are now and always, in the presence of pure Being, and immersed in the Holy Spirit of Life, Love, and Wisdom. We acknowledge THAT presence and power, O Blessed Spirit.

“The purpose of this quiet time is not as a memorial to the past; nor is it to be a time of wishful thinking for the future. Rather, let this be a time of definite work of denial and affirmation in consciousness, a cleansing of the old and an infilling of the new, through the Spirit of Truth.”

 

What is past is past. Live for right now. Release the old you.

 

“This is a time in which we release the past and lay hold of our good in the now and for the future. We shall achieve this release by denying any error thoughts and behavior patterns we wish to eliminate, and we shall lay hold of our good by affirming – by making firm – the patterns of True thoughts that will bring the good we desire into manifestation.”

 

Choose your thoughts carefully. Keep what brings you peace, release what brings you suffering. Happiness is just a thought away.

This is a time to trust your inner guidance. What do I need to release so I can know the God of my understanding, better?

“The process of releasing begins with forgiveness of all injury, both real and imagined. We recall the Truth that we are spirit, perfect, holy, and harmonious, and that nothing can hurt us or make us sick or afraid for spirit is God, and God can never be sick, or hurt, or afraid.”

Steve Maraboli put it well….“Letting go means to come to the realization that some people are a part of your history, but not a part of your destiny.”

We take a time of quiet now to call to mind all those persons or incidents in our lives, which we need to forgive.

We recognize the intensity of the emotions these memories generate in us, and we do not condemn ourselves for the way we feel. We choose, however, to change our injured feelings to feelings of harmony, love, and peace.

We know we have the power to change our emotions because our emotions are the result of our thoughts, because God gave us that power when the Divine gave us dominion over the earth and all things in it. We know that we must learn forgiveness, and we begin this learning process by becoming willing to forgive.

Matthew 5:22-24 “But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say ‘You fool’ you will be liable to the hell of fire. So when you are offering your gift at the alter, if you remember something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.”

Let’s say together – “I am willing to forgive.”

NOW, Write a word, or name, a situation you wish to leave behind so you are able to begin anew this New Year.

We will give you some time…then-

As the ushers guide each row, come forward and release your past by burning this representation.

“As the fire transforms the energy contained in the paper into heat energy, so your denial releases the seeming power this condition has had in your life, and transforms that power into the purging fire of Spirit.

You may wish to say: ‘This condition is no longer a part of my life” or ‘I am free from the past, the missing the mark of the past and the results of past errors. I know the Truth and the Truth makes me free.’”

When you return to your seat, please remain silent and receive a blessing from Spirit and mediate and bless those who will follow.”

Letter to God:

Lets pray…

We come before You, Divine Spirit, hearts open, minds receptive to the gifts of this New Year. We still our thoughts that we may hear Your thoughts speaking to us and through us now.

Open us to the vision of Your Divine Will at work in all we do. Let us perceive the potential of this day and every day to create for us the goodness of Your purposes.

Still the noise of our cluttered minds, as we rest into the depths of meditation and prayer, responsive to new understandings of Truth.

On the sheet of paper given to you, write your letter to the God within yourself, affirming the good we wish to see manifest in our lives between now and the end of the year.

Use this quiet time to write your intentions for this New Year. Begin to communicate your dreams in writing. Look at them in the stillness of your own being. Let them state your affirmative prayers for the New Year.

Ideas that are as yet dormant will awaken to the promise of this New Year.

Poems that are as yet unwritten will flow through us to touch the hearts of others.

Books that are still embryos in my mind will mature into the inspiring revelation of

Your Light in the months ahead.

Friendships will strengthen in this year of transforming power. The synergy of caring enfolds me in the willingness to reach out and touch my fellow travelers along life’s pathway.

We all, each and every one of us, have a choice as to how we will live each day. We can choose peace, love, joy, compassion, gratitude. We can choose to feel Blessed for we are Blessed.

In this New Year, Holy Spirit, I know that You are with me, empowering me to transform difficulties into steppingstones to mastery. Challenges are overcome in the light of Your Truth.

 

This is the year that the Lord hath made. I will be glad and rejoice in it.

 

So, write your letter to yourself as if you are the God of your understanding, because you are.

When you are finished, Re-read your letter. Reflect on Spirit’s Truth revealed to you, and be at peace with it. Place it in your envelope and address to yourself. We will collect them and they will be mailed back to you during the month of Easter. This is a short period of time. However, we know there is no time in Spirit. Great things can be accomplished when we continue the work as Jesus, our Wayshower directed, when we pray believing that our prayers are answered, and live our lives in alignment with the answer we desire.

Let us prepare now for a time of meditation, followed by a period of silence and quiet reflection before we begin our writing.

Let’s gather together in gratitude as we complete our Letter writing. Please place your envelopes in the basket being passed for that purpose as we sing our Conscious Giving song, “Joy to the World” page 280 in the hymnal. First timers are welcomed to give a love offering, but it is not expected of you. We are just happy you are here with us.

 

FOURTH SUNDAY IN ADVENT

“Advent! Our four Sunday journey into Christmas is complete today. This week we celebrate the birth of Jesus, our Way-Shower, who became the perfect manifestation of the Christ. This same Christ presence is born anew in us and becomes visible in our lives in this Christmas season and EVERY season. We began our Advent journey with faith. We then decorated our lives with peace. Love is in the Bethlehem of our homes and hearts. This fourth candle represents JOY. Let your joy show. Smile. Laugh. Be peaceful. Help others. Joy comes from inside you. Let your joy shine.”

 

“In Luke we read: ‘…behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will come to all the people; for unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.’ We let our joy shine.’

 

Joy is already ours. It is a gift from God instilled in us at our creation. Like love, it is always a part of us, always ready to be activated. We don’t have to wait for something to throw our joy switch. We can activate it in ourselves, not because of what’s going on in our lives, or even in spite of what’s going on, but simply because we are.

It is happiness that is triggered by winning the lottery or by having someone express love for us or by our favorite team winning a game or by getting a hole in one…outside forces.

But JOY is from God…and is always available for us to be open to it.

 

JOKE—–

A father took his son Billy to the Penney’s mall to see Santa. They stood in line awhile, and finally the boy was able to meet Santa and sit on his lap.

“What would you like for Christmas, Billy?” asked Santa.

“An X-Box and a Hobbit game,” Billy said.

“Okay, we’ll see what we can do about that,” said Santa with a big smile.

Later on that day they also went to see Santa at the Sears mall. When Santa asked Billy what he wanted for Christmas, Billy said, “An X-Box and a Hobbit game.”

“Will you be a good boy and do what your daddy tells you?” Santa asked.

Billy turned to his dad and said, “Let’s go back to the other Santa, Dad.”

“Why Billy?” asked his father.

“Because I didn’t have to make any deals with that one.”

 

Introduce the Dialogue:

Unity is a way of life that takes us on a spiritual adventure to the very source of our being. It calls us to understand our spiritual nature, our true relationship with God, and to live from that awareness.

When we look at things Metaphysically, we see them from a different perspective. That’s one of the major things about Unity…looking at the Bible, the lessons of life, our every moment from a different perception gives us a view of life that can be a guide to how to travel on this Spiritual path.

 

A METAPHYSICAL CHRISTMAS

 

NARRATOR: “The angel, Gabriel, was sent from God unto a city of Galilee named Nazareth to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph. The maiden’s name was Mary.”

 

MARY:   “I represent Mary, the mother of Jesus. I am the perfect love that fills your soul. I am that in you which desires to see only the good come to you and to every other creature in the universe. I am that in you which never wants to hurt in anyway for I am open and receptive only to that which is good and true.”

 

“I am the gentlest aspect of the love in your heart; yet, I am strong and perfect because all the power of good in the universe is with me and approves of me. I am the kindness and sweetness of your nature out of which will be born the understanding of your true self – a child of God.”

 

JOSEPH: “I represent Joseph, the husband of Mary. I am the strength and wisdom within you, which protects and guides the love in your soul. Sometimes others suggest that I should separate myself from this love, that His love is making a fool of me, but I cannot do this for I am only satisfied and complete when joined with love. I will never desert the love in your heart. I will nourish and support the new and wonderful good which will come out of our union.”

 

NARRATOR: “A maiden was betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph and the maiden’s name was Mary. And the angel said unto her, ‘Fear not, Mary, thou has found favor with God. And behold! Thou shall conceive in thy womb and bring forth a son and shall call his name Jesus. He shall be great and shall be called the Son of the Most High and of His kingdom there shall be no end.’”

 

BETHLEHEM: “I represent the town of Bethlehem. I show you that though your days and life – even though space may be crowded and jammed full – there will always be room in your heart for the Christ love to be born in ever greater ways. You come to me to take care of ordinary, worldly responsibilities. You are richly blessed and prosperous as you are willing to take care of your daily duties.”

 

“Here in the midst of the crowds and pressures, you know that the most glorious moments in your life are not the so-called days of success, but rather those weary days when out of rejection, being shoved back, having been put down – you still know that nothing can keep God’s good from manifesting in your life and your world. You choose to bring forth positive changes in your life so that you can be a happier, healthier, a more peaceful and prosperous person.”

 

NARRATOR: “Now it came to pass in those days that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be enrolled and all went to enroll themselves. Everyone to its own city and Joseph also went up from Galilee out of the city of Nazareth into Judea to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem to enroll himself with Mary who was betrothed to him, being great with child.”

 

“It came to pass while they were there the days were fulfilled that she should be delivered and she brought forth her first born son and she wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger because there was no room for him in the inn.”

 

MANGER: “I represent the manger where Jesus was laid. I am evidence of the fact that wherever you put forth the best that is in you, you make of it a holy place. No matter how humble the surroundings or how unimportant the occasion, God is there. God will protect you and bless you. You can always trust God. You need not look for God in the grand and impressive places. Think of me whenever you are called upon to do your best in a situation that you don’t feel is quite worthy of you.”

 

NARRATOR: “And there were shepherds in the same country abiding in the fields and keeping watch by night over their flock.”

 

SHEPHERD: “I represent the shepherd of your thoughts. I am the simple, and natural tendency in you that dwell in the fields of your mind. I gently, but firmly, bring you back into the right harmonious thinking when you are in danger of going astray. I am not the highest in you, but I am quick to acknowledge and joyfully surrender to your highest and best self. I am among the first to know when you have come into the joyful realization of who and what you really are.”

 

NARRATOR: “And there were shepherds in the same country abiding in the field keeping watch over their flock and an angel of the Lord stood by them.   The glory of the Lord shone round about them and they were so afraid.   The angel said unto them, ‘Be not afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all the people.’”

 

ANGEL: I represent the angels that bring good tidings and great joy. I am the radiant thoughts that come to you directly from the mind of God. Through me God tells you there is nothing to fear. Through me God tells you there is much cause for joy. My news is always joyful. My news is joyful because it concerns the wonderful truths of your being.”

 

“I tell you of your divine self. I tell you of all the peace and happiness that you are going to encounter. I tell you that you are one with all persons and I tell all persons that they are now and forever one in God.”

 

NARRATOR: “And an angel of the Lord stood by them and the glory of the Lord shone round about them and they were so afraid. The angels said unto them, ‘Be not afraid for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be for all the people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you – Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.’

 

“Now when Jesus was born – Behold! Wise men came from the East to Jerusalem saying, ‘Where is he born King of the Jews? For we saw his star in the East and have come to worship him.’ And lo! The star which they saw in the East went before them till it came and stood over where the young Child was.”

 

STAR: “I represent the Star which guided the Wise Men. I am your intuition. Sometimes I may seem a mere flicker in the sky of your mind, but as you recognize me and learn to trust me and to follow me, I become brighter and more familiar.”

 

“God has given me to you as a special gift to lead you into your highest good.   Trust me. Follow me. For I will not fail you, nor lead you astray. I am attracted only to the best and the true.”

 

NARRATOR: “For we saw His Star in the East and are come to worship Him. And lo! The star, which they saw in the East, went before them until it came and stood over them where the Child was. When the Wise Men saw the star they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.”

 

WISE MEN: “I represent the Wise Men from the East.   I am all the hidden and buried powers deep within each of you, which you are so often unaware. As soon as you came to a new realization of your wonderful true self, I came to you as further evidence of the great spiritual resources that have always been with you.”

 

“I brought you the gifts of newly discovered truths about yourself. My gold shows the richness of your spiritual nature. My frankincense shows the beauty of your true character. My myrrh shows the eternal perfection of your life in God.”

 

NARRATOR: “For we saw His star in the East and have come to worship Him. And lo! The star, which they saw in the East, went before them until it came and stood over where the young child was. And when the Wise Men saw the star they rejoiced with exceeding great joy and they came into the house and saw the young child with Mary, His Mother. And they fell down and worshipped him, and opening their treasures they offered unto him gifts – gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”

 

CHRIST CHILD: “I represent the Christ Child. I am the sum total of all the good which is the real you. I am the love in your heart, the wisdom in your mind, and the peace in your soul. You have given me birth out of your very own nature, just as God created you out of its Spirit.

 

“I am that in you which blesses you and makes you a living blessing. Sometimes you feel separated from me. Now because of Christmas, you have finally realized you and I are really one. We are eternally one in God.”

 

NARRATOR: “Suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host – praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the Highest, and on Earth, Good Will Toward Men.’”

 

 

Our purpose in life is to create heaven on earth, that is, to actualize our own divine potential, and live in peace and harmony with all creation. This is the Joy we bring forth from within, from our Christ Presence.

 

Let’s take this lesson into meditation….

 

We wish you ALL a Very Merry Christmas.

Good Morning Beloved!

 

When a father asked his little boy what he wanted for Christmas, the boy replied, “A baby sister.”

As it turned out, the wife was pregnant, and delivered on Christmas Eve. SO on Christmas day she brought home a brand new baby sister for their son.

The next year, when the father asked his little boy what he wanted for Christmas, the boy said, “If it wouldn’t make mommy too uncomfortable, I’d like a pony.”

 

 

This is the third week of our journey into Christmas, a journey to renew us through the birth of our own inner Christ. Today we light three candles, Faith and Peace, and our third candle represents LOVE. Love is God, in us and through us. Let us light our lives with love. When love is directed by that Divine Spirit, it manifests in wisdom and brings a greater awareness of our inner Christ.”

 

This months Affirmations!

 

See only Love

Our reading for today tells us of the most powerful force in the Universe – Love. Some may argue this, but I stand by the statement. There is only God, Universe, Spirit….And God is Love.

Maybe our spiritual goal in life should be to love more. I’m open to that!

Charles Fillmore said, “Love is the power that joins and binds in divine harmony the universe and everything in it.”

Here’s an example of Love that binds:

Once upon a time two brothers who lived on adjoining farms fell into conflict.

It was the first serious rift in 40 years of farming side by side, sharing

machinery, and trading labor and goods as needed without a hitch.

 

When the long collaboration fell apart, it began with a small misunderstanding as things often do, and it grew into a major difference. Finally, it exploded into an exchange of bitter words followed by weeks of silence.

One morning there was a knock on the older brother’s door. He opened it to find a man with a carpenter’s toolbox. “I’m looking for a few day’s work” he said. “Perhaps you would have a few small jobs here and there I could help with? Could I help you?”

 

“Yes,” said the older brother. “I do have a job for you. Look across the creek

at that farm. That’s my neighbor; in fact, it’s my younger brother. Last week

there was a meadow between us and he took his bulldozer to the river levee

and now there is a creek between us. Well, he may have done this to spite me,

but I’ll go him one better. See that pile of lumber by the barn? I want you

to build me a fence – an 8-foot fence – so I won’t need to see his place

or his face anymore.”

 

The carpenter said, “I think I understand the situation. Show me the nails

and the post-hole digger and I’ll be able to do a job that pleases you.”

 

The older brother had to go to town, so he helped the carpenter get

the materials ready and then he was off for the day. The carpenter

worked hard all that day measuring, sawing, nailing.

 

About sunset when the farmer returned, the carpenter had just finished

his job. The farmer’s eyes opened wide, his jaw dropped. There was no

fence there at all. It was a bridge – a bridge stretching from one side

of the creek to the other! A fine piece of work handrails and all – and the neighbor, his younger brother, was coming across, his hand outstretched.

“You are quite a fellow to build this bridge after all I’ve said and done,” The younger brother said.

The two brothers stood at each end of the bridge, and then they met in the middle, taking each other’s hand.

 

They turned to see the carpenter hoist his toolbox on his shoulder. “No, wait!

Stay a few days. I’ve a lot of other projects for you,” said the older brother.

 

“I’d love to stay on,” the carpenter said, “but, I have many more bridges to build.”

 

Christopher Chenoweth suggests we all have a Love Quotient, a LQ instead of IQ. Of course, The Divine’s LQ would be perfect and since there is only God, only Love, in reality, ours is perfect too. We just need to express it as gifts to all.

Our gift from God is Life.

Life is the 12^th Spiritual Power of humankind. Life can neither be created nor destroyed. It can change form or vibration so its appearance to us can be different but it never ceases. It’s the vibration we talk about when we talk about raising our vibration to manifestation.

Life is a many faceted gift, coming to us as health and prosperity in all its forms, all of which are necessary to growth in consciousness. But like any other gift, it is up to us what we do with it.

Living with a lack or limited thought pattern diminishes the gift of life. With life being the greatest gift of all, we should “Live the life you love and love the life you live.”

See, love is the key here. Jesus was born in love, taught love and exuded love. He taught “Love God with all your heart and mind and strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself.”

Love is a universal power and when we come from love, choose through love, we can never go wrong. A beautiful example of Love not going wrong, but in fact working out for the good of all is the story of Naomi & Ruth in the Book of Ruth, one of my favorites.

This is seeing only love.

 

Seeing only love means we have control over our actions. That we think before we speak….is it true what we are contemplating to say or is it a reaction to hurt feelings or anger?

Will what we wish to say or do be harmful to anyone or anything? Once the words are spoken, they cannot be taken back.

Is it necessary to do or say what we were contemplating to do or say? Is it REALLY worth it?

We could say that we have had many opportunities to react negatively to circumstances that are happening lately. Our country seems to be in an epidemic of violence. But we can see this as opportunities to be a lighthouse….to shine the love that we are. Peace begins with each one of us.

You see, we seem to have an innate drive to find love and God. We should make the commitment to follow that drive. Going against that drive could be ego driven…

I do not know where this quote comes from, but I use it often….“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always in effectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no one could have dreamt would have come their way.”

We are seeing ‘commitment’ from you in many forms right here at Unity of Rehoboth Beach.

When we put ‘feet to our prayers’ we do so following the Principles that are to be our guide through this life. The Principles lead us to follow what Jesus and many of the Master taught.

The common question to help us stay on course is, “Where did I meet God today? And where did I miss God?”

 

Part of being a follower of the teachings of Jesus is to constantly re-examine ourselves to find out how we can be at our best. If people have a problem with putting themselves under the microscope, perhaps they’re afraid of what they’ll find.

What would you find?

Brendon Burchard asks, “What if our job was to leave evidence that we loved and inspired others?”

 

I’ve seen this list a few times on Face Book: Ways to show love:

Listen without interrupting

Speak without accusing

Give without sparing

Pray without ceasing

Answer without arguing

Share without pretending

Enjoy without complaint

Trust without wavering

Forgive without punishing

Promise without forgetting

 

Plenty of evidence there….

 

Here’s a story about love and life from Unity’s Christmas Vaults:

Love Came Down at Christmas

 

God comes into our lives at Christmas in many different ways. Sometimes in a Santa Claus suit, as in this true story which appeared about (probably more than) ten years ago in a Kansas City newspaper bears witness. . . .   Charles Howard was a department store Santa who used to visit children in the hospital after closing hours at the store. One year, during the week before Christmas, he went to see Nancy, an emaciated polio victim who was being kept alive by motors, pumps, and an assortment of medical gadgets. Before he entered her room the nurses told him it would be Nancy’s last Christmas.

 

When Nancy saw him, dressed in his Santa Claus suit, her eyes seemed to speak and her pain wracked body quivered with excitement. “She wants to kiss you, Santa” her mother said as she read her daughter’s lips. Howard leaned down and felt Nancy’s one good arm around his neck and a gentle kiss on his cheek.

“I wasn’t worth a darn after that,” he said. Before he left, Nancy gave him three sticks of candy for his reindeer. That night Howard couldn’t sleep. The next morning he wrote Nancy a letter. He told her how wonderful it had been to see her and how his excited reindeer made him divide those three pieces of candy so that each of them could have a piece of their own. “When I tucked Dancer in bed,” Howard wrote, “He had his piece under his pillow.”

 

Two days after he wrote the letter, a nurse called on Howard at the department store. From the instant Nancy read his letter, she said, a change had come over her. “I think she is going to get well,” said the nurse. A year later, from his Santa’s throne in the department store, Howard saw a little girl in braces running toward him. It was Nancy.

 

Kahlil Gibran wrote, “The appearance of things changes according to the emotions, and thus we see magic and beauty in them, while the magic and beauty are really in ourselves.”

 

Howard had become part of a miracle because he had opened himself to be a channel for the Christ potential within himself, and let the healing energy that resulted flow freely to that sweet little girl.

 

That Christ potential is within us all. The Christmas Season is a time when we remind ourselves of that potential.

The Christ is still being born in unexpected places, at unexpected times in our world today. This Christmas I pray that the Christ will be born in you and I, too, in surprising and wonderful ways.

 

 

Peace be to you, and peace be to your house, and peace be to all that you have. 1 Samuel 25:6

 

“Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just,

whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable… think

about these things.” Philippians 4:8

 

 

MIRACLE THINKING

When Sandy asks me what I would like to talk about, often the words come from me before I even plan them. I okayed this date with Sandy & she emailed me to ask, “What will you talk about?” I immediately typed “Miracle Thinking.” Then I looked at my computer, and said to myself, “miracle thinking?”

I had just heard a radio interview of Randy Peyser talking about her new book “the Power of Miracle Thinking.” I was taken with the phrase & I was impressed with the interview. When I thought it over, I realized that I’ve been doing Miracle Thinking for awhile now.

Of course I wasn’t always like this. Somewhere the switch flipped from negative to positive & it ain’t never going back. I know that now. Some years ago, you wouldn’t have convinced me of any reality about the results of positive thinking even with a hypnotist in the room waving a watch, saying “you are getting sleepy.”

What’s a miracle? The Spanish word for sight is “mira”, so could a miracle simply be a different way of seeing things? I think it must be. I know once I move out from the surprise, kind of back up with the camera, a really wide angle emerges. When I can get the panoramic view, I have it made. The water changes to wine with a snap! And with all my experience, I’m still surprised to drink from the glass.

Sometimes miracles happen even when I’m clearly not in a state to anticipate them. When I graduated massage school in Albuquerque in 1996, I was living with a woman named Nancy. I came later to call Nancy “my roommate from hell” & she kindly reciprocated by proving that out to me in no uncertain terms. And I’m sure I reciprocated the title right back at her. Of course, Nancy was one of my best teachers.

Nancy knew a woman named Ruth. Ruth lived in Montana & wished to open a community for women healers. I had spent five months living in an intentional community in upstate New York & I loved the idea! And I felt I was a healer, hey, I just graduated massage school, yea?

Nancy & I shared a lot of fear & upset on that trip from Albuquerque to Montana. I had a vehicle; she didn’t. She sprained her ankle two days before we were to leave, I could climb on top of the car to pack stuff. She was getting unemployment while I had no visible means of support, having just graduated from being a starving student, to being a starving graduate. So after living together for six weeks in a room in Missoula, Montana, I finally got a job. In my LIFE, it’d never taken me six weeks to get a job. I knew Nancy was running really low on any desire to have me around and our disagreements were escalating. That second day I came home from work, which was third shift waitress at a diner, she said she wanted me packed, out, and gone by noon that day.

My Divine Planners make a habit of staying ahead of me by a few steps. Even then, I knew she didn’t want me around anymore. My greatest fear in life was to be homeless so I had big backpack of denial I was carrying around. Did I bring on an eviction with thinking those thoughts? Maybe. But my antennae were out & I had investigated renting a room. I just needed more money than I had in hand at that moment. Later, getting thrown out of our little apartment would become the best thing in the world for me, but in the thin moment of her telling me to be gone by 12 & slamming the door to go visit Ruth while I packed, I considered my options through the adrenaline rush. I had made $35 in tips over the two nights I’d worked. I’d given Nancy $5 toward what I owed her – totally a token payment, but I was six weeks without any cash & feeling pretty needy.

When I looked into renting that room, I found out I needed $130 to move in. So, I had $30. Now, one week earlier, before I’d scored my waitress gig, I’d written to a friend in Jersey to ask if he could spare $50 to help me buy gas so I could look for a job.

I was muttering to myself while I packed; I figured I at least had enough on hand to find a campground to stay in. After about ten minutes of mushing my stuff into big gray tubs, there was a loud knocking on the door. I was already aggravated, & got even angrier as I yanked it open, figuring Nancy’d forgotten her key, wanted me out on this abbreviated timeline & now was making me stop packing to let her in. I was astonished to find the FedEx guy outside who handed me a cardboard envelope & that signature device they use. I scribbled my name & ripped open the tab of the envelope. There was a $100 bill inside from my friend; no note, no words, just a Ben Franklin from someone I had not been the kindest to when I last saw him. So how much money did I have? How much money did I need? And I love telling this story because each time I do, I am beautifully assured that the universe loves me enough to rescue me from myself. In that teaching moment, I learned my biggest fear was nothing that couldn’t be handled with love.

Miracle thinking gets easier each time a miracle happens. I stopped calling it “universe” & started calling it “youniverse” right then.

Randy Peyser’s book is mostly stories, anecdotes & ideas about how to get over yourself by reaching out for the best that is out there every time. I’m happy to say that just about everything in here is something I’ve practiced at some point. I have had miracles greet me at every turn & I make so many wrong turns my GPS stutters its directions.

Randy’s first notation is choose to be #1. The Japanese call it “Ichiban.” Number one. Are you number one in your own mind? And if you’re not, I hope you feel really guilty whenever someone says, “Well, you have to put the oxygen mask on yourself first.” Because that is so TRUE! If you are not coming from a position of personal power that is rooted in personal worth, YOUR GPS probably isn’t going to work well at all.

From this internal strength & worth, from this place of belonging in the youniverse, you can ask for anything. If it’s right for you & if the timing is right for you, and if you have asked for it from a deeply felt understanding that it IS God’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom, it’s yours. Where is that worth & worthiness in you? If you had to understand it in the form of a standardized measurement, are you living at 100%? Yes? No? What percentage are you living at? If you’re at 50%, how do you feel when you get half a miracle? Not me, baby. Recently I was at volunteer thank you dinner & when the hosts said they were having a raffle based on our ticket numbers, my first reaction was a mild, “wonder what I won.” My number was the first called & I won two tickets to ClearSpace Theatre.

Which leads to another of Randy’s premises: youniverse never says “yes…but” We say yes but all the time. We say, “Oh, sure I’d like to win the lottery, but that’ll never happen to me.” Or “I’d love to meet a terrific person in my life, but I don’t want my heart to get broken again.” 50% anyone?

You can’t find a miracle sitting in your easy chair, eating Doritos, watching TV & wishing for something different. Sorry, but you need to get off your duff & get out there & happen to life like you’ve wanted life to happen to you. You’ve gotta find the miracle you want by offering yourself up to it. And you have to allow the miracle. How many times has someone offered you something terrific & you’ve said, “oh, no, I couldn’t accept that!” I can’t tell you the number of times someone’s told me they’re hurting & could really use a massage so I say, “sure, come see me.” And I never hear from them. Of course the first reaction is usually about money; but even when I say, just come see me, no charge! No call. In my opinion, it’s no insult to be offered a gift. Often the giver has a real need to even offer. I have had to retrain myself to simply say, “Why Thank You So Much!” when I am offered an unexpected gift.

I am still learning to be a good receiver & that being in receivership doesn’t mean I’m bankrupt at all. Need some practice? Here’s an exercise offered in the Abraham writings by Esther Hicks where Abraham recommends writing fake checks. He says to get your abundance muscles going, work them out by using an old checkbook to write yourself a check for some wonderful amount, say, a million dollars. Then focus your attention on what you would do with a million dollars. Of course, Sandy & I know Unity of Rehoboth Beach would be your first choice to give some to, am I right?

Next day, write a check for two million. What’ll you do with that? Make a list! I got up to about 16 million before I simply got tired of giving away money. By then, I had the idea well-fixed that I wouldn’t be keeping much of it, so I figured I was copacetic with the idea of sharing it. Do this! It will awaken your abundance in a real way that’s also a feel-good, fun exercise! There’s a story told that one night in 1990 when Jim Carrey was a struggling young comic trying to make his way in Los Angeles, he drove his old, beat-up Toyota to the top of a hill. While sitting there, broke, looking down over the city, and dreaming of his future, he wrote himself a check for $10 million, put in the notation line ‘for acting services rendered,’ and dated it for Thanksgiving 1995. He stuck that check in his wallet – and the rest, as they say, is history.

By 1995, Jim had seen the tremendous success of Ace Ventura, Pet Detective, The Mask and my personal favorite, Liar, Liar. His per film fee at that point had escalated to $20 million.

Visualize what you want. Sit still & feel how it feels to have what you want. World Peace? High-heeled sneakers? New golf clubs? How does it feel to be pulling those puppies around the golf course right now? Empower the feeling to bring it alive. Love the idea into being!

Always think in terms of this or something better. When I found the apartment I’m living in, the landlord said he had a few more people to interview before offering it, but he’d be in touch. Well, I felt pretty strongly in my gut it was mine – it’s the ideal size, it had absolutely everything on my list but one thing – remember the list, people? And when I make a list, I include everything on it. I even use a steno pad so I can have two columns. Still, when he said he had to talk to others, all my doubts rose up – did I make enough money? Was I ever going to get my own place? Apartments aren’t easy to come by near the shore, they’re either outrageously priced for a single person or simply not available. As I drove away from this gorgeous place what came into my head was the phrase: “this, or something better.” And I felt great again. I didn’t know what could be better than having an apartment over Derrickson Creek with everything I wanted, but I knew that it would have to be really spectacular. And I was comforted by that thought: Wow! What could be better? All right!

Another story: when I realized I wanted to travel cross-country, I wished for a van. I made a list of everything the van would have. The last requirement was that it be blue b/c I’ve always wanted a blue car. I had a small inheritance from my Mom to use. I focused on the van, I prayed, I visualized myself driving it, sitting up there over the road… no van. Weeks passed & the summer was ending & I had to get on the road soon and…no van. So I reviewed the list. I erased the “blue van” from it. Within a week I had a maroon van & the prior owner was a short man, so I didn’t even have to adjust the driver’s seat.

If you are stuck with a picture of something you don’t want, or if you are experiencing a health challenge, don’t hesitate to ask the Big Eraser to come in. My sister experienced this. When a loved one she knew sustained terrible, disfiguring burns, she went to see him in hospital. He passed away from his injuries, but Teri was left with an awful image of someone she dearly loved. One day when she just couldn’t seem to get this picture out of her head & was again choking up about it, a huge pencil came into her mind, turned itself over & rubbed out the image top to bottom. She never experienced seeing her dear one that way again & now remembers this person only as the beautiful spirit he was. Youniverse will take care of you!

Bring Joy into your alignment with life. Youniverse likes a good target; make it easy to find you. “Hey, over here, good things! Yeah, me! I’m the one living rightly, I’m the happy person who found the pony in the room full of manure…c’mon down, I’m SO ready to be gifted by your presence.”

The best part is youniverse always has a bigger plan for you than you have for yourself. It isn’t about having the right answer so much as it’s about asking the Right Question. Randy tells the story of the people who bought their dream cottage & within two weeks uncovered a plumbing problem. The difficulty was located in a place impossible to reach which would require them to remove the entire back wall of the house. The wife decided to not even bring this situation up to her husband as a problem. Instead she said to him, “We are expecting a miracle.” On the second day of asking around if anyone knew a good plumber, they found a man who not only had heard of this kind of blockage, but had designed a snake which would fit into the problem area. No wall takedown required. They refocused problem thinking & simply expected a miracle. Youniverse provided one.

Lighten up & just do it: live your joy in life, don’t dip your happiness into the misery of another – that’s like getting the candle burning & dropping it into the sea.

If all this sounds like the impossible dream, stay awake.

So, take a deep breath & listen with both ears as I finish the story I started at the beginning of this talk. Here’s how one miracle fuels another. In the room of the house I stayed in after I left Nancy, there were many things Youniverse gave to me. A calendar of Ansel Adams photos – breathtaking. Books & cassettes which had been abandoned. Most intriguing to me was a pair of really good sneakers, but I’m a size 8 & these were 9’s. I kept them anyway, thinking maybe I could just wear two pairs of socks. These were expensive sneakers, well made, very sturdy. But time passed by & after I’d been at the house for a few weeks, one day the phone rang & it was my dear friends, Ed Douglass & Jerry Small. Ed asked me how much longer I was going to stay in Montana. I told him I had no plans to return to New Mexico – but what I didn’t mention was that it was only ‘cause I was mortally embarrassed to have made such a mess when I’d told Ed & Jerry both how well I was going to do up there. Here I was waitressing the midnight shift, barely getting to do any massage. I couldn’t face going back to ABQ to tell my friends how much I had disappointed myself by leaving there. But when Jerry insisted “Ed, tell her WHY you called” and Ed said, “Carol, I have cancer. I want you to come back to work on me.” I simply said, “Ed, I’ll be there in two weeks.” And I started packing once again. I had lots to think about on those 1,100 miles. And I got to travel back through some of the most beautiful country these eyes will ever see, down through Utah’s Moab Valley, visiting Canyonlands & Arches National Park.

The night after I’d returned, I drove over to La Montanita for some health foods for the larder. A woman was sitting barefoot in the parking lot, begging everyone to give her shoes. “They took my shoes,” she said to me as I walked by. “What size?” I asked. “Size 9,” she replied. “Just a sec,” I said. And walked back to the van to get those sneakers.

I like to think Youniverse offered me the opportunity to be her miracle.

Think love, think empowerment & most of all, think MIRACLES!

Thank you.