Great Morning Beloved!

How are we measuring up to our Values?

Last week we began doing a ‘check’ on our Mission and Vision. It was time to look at ourselves as Unity of Rehoboth Beach and really see if we are holding up to our Mission and Vision. I hope you all are taking this in and voicing your thoughts about your Unity. Now is the time, as it is every day.

Today, we look one step further to what we have listed as our Values.
If something is a value, from a personal point of view, it is important to us.
Your values are the things that you believe are important in the way you live and work.
They (should) determine your priorities, and, deep down, they’re probably the measures you use to tell if your life is turning out the way you want it to.
When the things that you do and the way you behave match your values, life is usually good – you’re satisfied and content.
But when life doesn’t align with your personal values, that’s when things feel… wrong. This can be a real source of unhappiness.
This is why, making a conscious effort to identify your values is so important.

If you look at your integrity, what was important to you to be a part of it?
Honesty? Respect? Compassion?

What are the qualities that make up your integrity?

Well, that is what we are asking, in a sense, when we ask, what are the Values that Unity of Rehoboth Beach IS?

Our Values are the HOW of it all. We did the What, and the Why last week. Now we look at HOW. How are we doing what we say we want to be in this Community and in the greater Community?

And they follow your Mission and Vision, our Values put feet to those prayers…the WHAT & WHY of Unity of Rehoboth Beach.
As a reminder, this is our Mission: Unity of Rehoboth Beach is a shining light…strengthened through support and fellowship, celebrating diversity by honoring individual Divine connection.

And this is our Vision: Unity of Rehoboth Beach is a vibrant and inclusive spiritual community, dedicated to growth and transformation through the exploration of universal Truth.
Our Values:
Unity of Rehoboth Beach exists to be a Shining Light, providing opportunities for spiritual growth and transformation.
Our Community is strengthened through support and fellowship.
We recognize the One Source that is Love, it is who we are and what we express.
We encourage Spirit guided exploration of our individual Divine connection.
We are Inclusive, celebrating diversity unconditionally as an expression of Spirit.

SO, let’s look at each one:

Unity of Rehoboth Beach exists to be a Shining Light, providing opportunities for spiritual growth and transformation.
When you think of a shining light, on a spiritual perspective, what does it mean to you?

Interesting synonms for Shining Light….choice spirit, leader, luminary, master spirit, sage,…
Think about the things, the activities we do here….do they provide spiritual growth and transformation opportunities?
Does that statement express our Mission and Vision?

Our 2nd Value statement: Our Community is strengthened through support and fellowship.
It’s hard to imagine that anyone who entered our Spiritual Center would not feel the love we have here…the peace that fills us when we walk through that door.
It’s so ‘bad’ that we can hardly get you in your seats and quiet before Service, our Fellowship is before AND after Service.
We show our love by praying for and helping others in our Unity family.
And we Support our greater Community when we do our outreach programs – our food drives and personal products for women and the Armed Service; like helping stuff back packs and collecting pet food.
We support the Greater Community when we tithe part of our Love Offering to community efforts like aiding school lunch and the War Dogs and local rescue organizations and the Foster Parents Association of Sussex County.
SO maybe we have this one covered fairly well, what do you think?

Next…..We recognize the One Source that is Love, it is who we are and what we express.
Well, we KNOW who we are and we are all working on expressing the Love that we are, in our own way.
Sometimes that’s hard to do, right? We all have questioned ourselves when we hear or repeat to ourselves that we are made in the image and likeness and therefore we are LOVE.
It’s hard to acknowledge that we are energy filled love and our purpose in this life, or one of them at least, is to express that love.
And the neat thing is that we get to express that love in many different ways – you choose if you will sing or sew, design or drive, ponder or pray…or all of the above.
Share your gifts…..share your love.
When you walk out that door, filled with the energy of this community, spread that joy and love and compassion wherever you travel through the week.

Next Value…..We encourage Spirit guided exploration of our individual Divine connection.
Spirit, Spirituality, I remember the discussion surrounding the writing of this Value. It was determined that the term Spirit could encompass Spirituality.
Spirituality is important – it’s being concerned with our spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things. Its what we are doing.
And obviously it is spirit guided, if we are attuned to the Universal Energy, we are allowing ourselves to be Spirit Guided. And we desire to be guided to a connection to our Divinity. Its one of the things that got us here, in a Unity Center, that exploration of ourselves to answer that urge to connect with our inner Christ, our Buddha Heart.

And finally:
We are Inclusive, celebrating diversity unconditionally as an expression of Spirit.
AS I was working on this, I looked at the definition of inclusive and found “all embracing” and it sounded so right. Giving hugs is a big thing here, and I guess I see a lot in our Hugs & Handshakes time. And I can tell by the difficulty getting you back in your seats that you really like it too.

And it doesn’t matter who it is, we try to reach out and embrace everyone as best we are able.

AS many of you may know, My mantra for many, many years has been, Loving is the answer.
I believe it is truly the answer to all issues. As we know, if we love our enemies, we no longer have an enemy.
And loving is an action word, a verb. Love is a noun. It is what we are. And the verb loving is what we DO.
I think we are doing well with our Values. But I and the Board wish to hear from you. So, take the time to let us know what your thoughts are.
We are here to stay. Unity is wishing to be an important part of Sussex County and your lives.
Help us make that so.