It helps to discard as quickly as possible the idea that something or someone is against you and you are a victim. Generally, to be convinced that we are not victims gives us a good start toward getting the upper hand and asserting our basic, God-given rights. At any moment we all are entitled to know peace of mind and a divine assurance, to feel our divine power to act purposefully and the freedom to enjoy the best of life.

The moment we agree that we are not victims, we free our mind to focus on creating the right solution for us, even though we may not have any idea how the solution will appear or what form it will take. Do you remember the statement in “Field of Dreams?”… If you build it, they will come. As we make our mind receptive to inspiration from on high and as our world becomes open to receive, we naturally begin to move in the direction of the right solution; it starts moving toward us as well; then, the process follows its course and delivers this solution into our experience. There is a powerful and practical law that requires us to picture and envision the new reality we desire before we can experience it. This law applies to all situations in our life, that we desire to see as our new reality.

It is not just a figure of speech to say that we are co-creators with God in bringing about the circumstances of our life. Whether we are aware of it or not, we do create our own reality.  And if we have our own good reason to change that reality, we are totally free to do so. The Book of Job speaks to this very clearly as it reminds us:

“ Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee:

and the light shalt shine upon thy ways.” Job 22:28

So, the more we make this understanding a part of our day-to-day living, the more proficient we become at practicing the principle behind it, and the more we realize our obligation to decree that which is good and positive, thereby creating a reality that affirms life while bringing good and blessings to us and to others.

Now that we have effective tools in our hands and are willing to use them appropriately, we can proceed with our life regardless of the kind of challenge that stands in our way. Our heart knows: “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me…”

“I sought the Lord, and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.” Ps.34: 4. “I said to the man who stood at the gate of the years: ‘Give me a light that I may tread safely unto the unknown.’ He said to me: ‘Go out into the darkness and put your hand in the hand of God, that shall be to you better than a light and safer than a known way.’” Remembering how the Israelites, in spite of their fears, crossed the Red Sea toward the unknown, yet into freedom, I pray with faith… Thank You God for Your constant Presence and protection, for Your love and Your light. Amen.

Who, having learned the circumstances around the crossing of the Red Sea by the Israelites, can ever forget that there is always a Higher Power that overshadows us and can obliterate our fears, if we are willing to release them in order to trust God fully?

I said to the man who stood at the gate of the years: ‘Give me a light that I may tread safely unto the unknown.’ He said to me: ‘Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the hand of God, that shall be to you better than a light and safer than a known way’

God, the Creator, is the source of all that exists, forever investing and perfecting Himself in His Creation and in all the created children of God that we are.  We seem to be totally unaware of who we are during the first portion of our existence on this human plane. Indeed at our physical birth we come to Earth to attend the School of life; we come to learn who we are and live life accordingly. Life or God makes sure we meet all the teachers we need for our growth and our continued opportunity to unfold through our spirit, our soul, our body and our affairs, as we give expression to the great silent Being behind our being.

And as we move along on life’s journey, we discover that we have a divine inheritance and that we are heirs to the kingdom of God. In our four-body system, the physical, the mental, the emotional and the spiritual, we keep on learning. Our teachers can be the circumstances surrounding us, the events in our lives and in the world, people we meet casually, family and friends. They are most certainly our spiritual teachers. But in the context of our Church preference, Church affiliation, Church family and Church involvement we have some very special teachers, and they are: First, our individual indwelling Christ Presence, and then all of us, students of Unity and students of the Christ, teaching each other through our interactions.

From John, we learn: …“The true light that enlightens every man was coming into the world…and his own people received him not. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God; who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God…And from his fullness have we all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” John 1:9,11,12,13,16,17

We are all children of God and we were born to receive the blessings of His love and grace through our conscious oneness with Him. It is the divine truth about all of us.

Our calling is to integrate it into our consciousness and into our day-to-day life. Thus, to receive the blessings of God’s love and grace we are to live in alignment with our divine truth, in full integrity with our true Self, our Christ self and its values and principles. As good, honest, sincere and serious students in the School of life, we are sure to see our sincere efforts and application meet with the most gratifying success, through Him who has loved us beyond measure. It pays handsomely to cultivate spiritual integrity.

I make it a practice to live in alignment with the truth of my oneness with God, my Creator and source. Forgiveness and love, that I give and receive, assure me of a pure heart through which I shall see God. Living in integrity with the Christ, the essence of my being, I am blessed and I become a blessing to others and to God’s world. I am grateful. Amen

In Psalm 8:4,5 we read:

“ …what is man (human being) that thou art mindful of him, and

the son of man that thou dost care for him? Yet thou hast made

him little less than God, and dost crown him with glory and honor.”

Every soul enters into this earthly experience with its innate divinity and it is its individual mission to discover this divinity, to accept it, live it out and literally embody

it after the example of Jesus who became the Cosmic Christ. Every soul receives deep within itself the call to conscious oneness with the Resurrected Christ in order to reach a spiritual dimension infinitely more refined than the earthly consciousness that prevails here on this plane of existence.

The challenge becomes apparent when we realize that this is easier said than done. The very nature of our human environment includes a thickness of consciousness.  To rise from earthly, human consciousness and awareness to the spiritual dimension of the Christ, one faces a steep climb that often the human soul is reluctant to undertake. We carry such a heavy baggage of human imperfection, selfishness, fear, guilt, greed etc.: all those things, the human soul loves and tends to attach itself so strongly to them. Yet we must let go of them, leave them behind us for good in order to heed the call of the Christ.

Charles Fillmore teaches us to affirm as often as possible, and mean it: “I separate myself in consciousness from the mind of the flesh, that I may enter into the mind that was (and is) in Christ Jesus”. We must climb ever higher if we are serious about spiritual overcoming and spiritual freedom.  It is where the ascending path is leading us.

Fortunately, after trying everything human, without any lasting satisfaction, we can begin to wake up spiritually.  The human soul in us may come to itself, as is the case for the Prodigal Son. Then, we engage seriously on the upward journey, on the ascending path.  There will be ups and downs, but each “up” will be higher than the previous one, and so will each “down” be higher than the previous one. And the process of transformation will continue until our soul is greeted with the happy, rewarding sound: “Well done, good and faithful servant;…I will set you over much; enter into the joy of your master.”

Heavenly Presence in me, I know too well that in the world there are tribulations.

Thank You for reminding me that You have overcome the world. I reach upward in consciousness and I enter into Your light and Your love to know and experience my innate divinity. I am willing to do the inner work that opens the door to my spiritual freedom, joy and happiness Amen.

We can begin by observing the patterns that nature provides. If we were fortunate enough to start the very early part of our life journey with an exposure to spirituality and the Bible, we remember well the story of the genesis of Creation, telling us about God resting “on the seventh day from all his work which he had done.” Later on, we got to understand the biblical passage to mean that every healthy activity in our life, in order to be complete, must be followed by a period of rest, a renewing pause, to allow for the assimilation of some information or, as the case may be, the integration of our effort and the accompanying energy into our life system in order to bring about some progress.  We can find here a most valuable lesson on the blessings of rest. Our resting time, by day or by night, or from a year long of continuous work, connects us to an underlying stream of life and renewing energy that recharges our batteries and prepares us for greater good.

It is marvelous to see how nature makes it so that at the end of a day in the light, we enter into the dark of night and our body generally knows that it is time to lie down, to rest, in order to be ready for the following day after some refreshing sleep. Thus, when the experience unfolds as nature has planned it, our rest becomes truly a rest that blesses.

On the other hand, we must acknowledge that very often our lives are busy lives, involving at times very stressful situations. And the human tendency in such cases is to keep carrying on our mind the weight of our workload even long after the activities of the day, or even though we have signed off for vacation. To live like this, day after day, or year after year, is certainly not being kind to our mind nor to our body. These tools of ours do have their human limits. If we were to stretch a piece of elastic beyond its limits, the result would be that it would break. Likewise, it can be catastrophic to keep our mind or our body continually busy and tense, both by days and by nights, or over periods of many months without the benefit of some rest or some refreshing sleep, or without disconnecting from work responsibilities for communion with our spiritual source.

How really wise it is to take a tip from nature and follow its practice of punctuating functions of our physical systems with regular rhythmic pauses to avoid exhaustion!

Can we appreciate the fact that there is a time of rest between our heartbeats? Do we see the wisdom of observing a moment of rest between the inhaling and the exhaling phases of our breathing?  These are welcome rests that do bless us.  Without them our very life would be in peril. May we be fortunate enough to heed the call of our inner still small voice or that of a loved one, urging us to stop, look and listen as life claims our attention in a loving attempt to remind us of the necessity for the rest that blesses!

I practice each day taking one-minute vacations with God. I faithfully seek my refreshing sleep each night. I regularly disconnect for a time from work-related responsibilities. I know that I am following God’s loving promptings, I am being guided by His infinite wisdom and I am richly blessed. Amen

A close look at the relationship between a mother and her baby reveals how she is practically the whole world of the baby. Even before birth this emerging human being has begun to live through the life of the mother. A cozy environment is prepared, and life is so good inside that sometimes in such a condition, babies seem to prefer to remain there as long as it is humanly possible, instead of embarking on the outer adventure right away.  Then, we see a newly-born human being arrive on the scene, who seems to be totally helpless. It depends on the mother for physical human warmth, for human attention, for the love without which there is no healthy mental and emotional development, for indispensable food and drink. We can watch this baby in the process of bonding with the mother. The first voice it hears and hears regularly is that of mother; the first human smell it recognizes is mother’s smell. It feels safe as she offers care, and as soon as it becomes possible a happy smile appears in response to this tender loving care.

And so, this little creature that may well be genius but does not seem to know that, is beginning to explore the world that is all around. The main witness, teacher and guide is again mother who, from now on, will be responsible for the delicate task of letting the child take some initiatives in order to learn, grow and expand its horizon while at the same time providing protections and setting boundaries so as to prevent catastrophes that could be fatal.  And this learning process will continue, calling on mother to wear all sorts of hats namely that of a coach for good manners, a policewoman to help maintain order and peace, a traffic director to prevent clashes and collisions, a referee, a doctor, a healer, a magician, a spiritual teacher if prayer is part of the family life etc

Psychologists tell us that during the first seven years patterns for the adult personality are set. They will show little change unless some radical effort is deployed. Practically the mother has finished her job of co-creator with God. The poet was really inspired, who wrote “The hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world.”

Divine Presence of love, a mother’s love is the closest to Your love. We call Your  blessings upon all mothers. Strengthen and comfort them when they encounter grave challenges in their sacred mission, especially when a child happens to fall prey to some dependency that is difficult to eradicate. Be to them a rock, an anchor and a light at the end of the tunnel, if they know the pain of losing a child by death. We ask all these blessings in the name of the living, loving Christ who is life itself. Amen.

Speaking of our limitations and weaknesses, we have basically two kinds: First, those that are so deeply buried in our subconscious mind from so long ago __ and they may even be inscribed in our DNA__ that currently we have no idea of their existence, except that we remain defenseless in having to experience the troubles they are causing in our lives. To get out from under their negative influence, we need expert help; we need a qualified specialist to help us break the shell, heal from this forced incapacity and gain our freedom from bondage. The other kind of weaknesses has been established in us from a more recent past.  They are not that deeply rooted in us and our personal effort backed by our practice of spiritual principles and prayer can help us handle them successfully.

We must realize that “if it is to be, it is up to me.” We must initiate the action; we need to know that we, and nobody else, are at the center of it. Three steps can lead us to freedom and victory. The first step is to acknowledge the limitation and weakness for what it really is, without self-pity and without dwelling on it; in truth, it is not a problem but an opportunity. The second step is to take the best form of action we are capable of taking at the moment, always beginning with prayer, living in a consciousness of prayer and concluding with prayer. The third step is to upgrade our altitude. We do need to cultivate an open mind and develop a positive attitude. We need to practice seeing the facts of life from the highest point of view, which is a definition of prayer itself. We need to elevate our thinking and our consciousness from the human to the divine as we let go and let Spirit take charge. It has been said that it is not our aptitude but our attitude that determines our altitude.

Living in the human consciousness is like walking in the fog; we perceive shadows. We need the divine sunshine to show us the way, to bring out the true reality and the beauty of things, the very things we thought were utterly undesirable before. We absolutely need to know and understand the story of God’s cake, and, most of all, accept to put in practice the lesson it carries by baking our own cake as our ongoing homework.

Having done our homework, we can be certain that God has already done His part to help us gain our victory, and we will realize that the victory begins by achieving victory over ourselves, as we finally put ourselves wholeheartedly in God’s wise and loving hands.

“…They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” Isaiah 40:31. Like the disciples at Pentecost, I welcome the fire of Spirit and Its love into my heart, into my being and my world. Daily I lift my eyes unto the hills from whence comes my salvation. Daily I know with Saint Paul, ‘…In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.’ Amen.”

Yet, most people are on a perpetual quest for love.  They look for it as if it were the great stranger in their life. Because of inaccurate information fed to us by society or well-meaning guides and educators, many of us have come to believe that love is a reward, a blessing and a privilege reserved for a select few.

As a consequence of such erroneous beliefs, many people find themselves having a self-talk going on within them continuously, telling them that it is wishful thinking to think about finally connecting with this elusive rare bird called “love”. An interesting thought reminds us that love is like a butterfly. Chase it actively: it will keep eluding you. Leave it free to fly away as it wishes, it will then come and alight on your shoulder. Love is God, absolute good, in expression everywhere in our manifest environment and world. And the great paradox remains that all those who are looking for the rare bird are already carrying love with them and within them, but they are not aware of that. When they let go of their frantic search and simply get in tune with the universe, the rare bird comes, on its own, and reveals itself, bringing them to an acceptance that transforms them and revolutionizes their lives.  They know all of a sudden that they are already the very love for which they have been spending so much energy searching.

A story in the life of Saint Augustine points to the fact that God made things to be much simpler for us than we tend to think. Apparently, Saint Augustine was struggling to understand the mystery of the Trinity when, on a beach, he saw a boy carrying water back and forth from the ocean to a hole he had dug in the sand. The boy explained that he was working to transfer the ocean into the hole.  The wise bishop suddenly realized that just as the boy was engaged in an impossible, unnecessary project, he too would be better off simply accepting the Trinity and making the best it in his life and teachings and not struggling with something that needed no explanation and no demonstration.

The above story invites us to remember that love plays an extraordinary role in our personal lives and our personal experiences, but looking through the fog of our personal understanding, we tend to complicate our lives in our search for it.  It plays a vital role in the world and in the universe. It is at work though we may not know that or do not understand it. At times it may seem that human beings, by their strange, mean and devilish behavior have expelled love from our world or they prevent us from experiencing love. Then our human tendency is to retaliate and respond in negative ways.

Let us rather come to ourselves! Let us know that love is the divine magnetic power that holds the whole universe and God’s Creation together and allows it to function as a display of divine order, beauty, and harmony for the good of all. It is the glue that holds nations, societies, businesses, families and our very bodies, cells, atoms together in harmony and good health when it is acknowledged and put to good use. Charles Fillmore tells us that in Divine Mind it is the idea of universal unity. Without love, we perish and die. So, in the midst of strife and hatred, we have no alternative except to love anyway.

Divine Presence, teach us to give thanks for love always and to know that the greatest blessing in our lives is to know our oneness with You who are Love itself.
Amen.

The above observation shows us that our power of decision remains a key factor in choosing and determining our own mood.  Abraham Lincoln’s word comes easily to

mind and reminds us: “a man is just about as happy as he makes up his mind to be. ”

Such a statement certainly gives us something to think about, especially in light of the declaration of the wise Socrates, made more than four centuries B.C., when, as we are told, he said that the ultimate good we seek in life is “happiness.”

We find that happiness is closely related to joy, with the simple distinction that happiness tends to be a state of mind and a way of life that endures.  It carries the message that fundamentally everything in our life is all right and highly satisfactory and that makes us feel good. We accept, in thought and feeling, that “God is in His heaven and all is right with the world.” Joy is the state of mind resulting from the conviction that for the time being there is something to celebrate. We can learn to make “joy” a phenomenon that repeats itself over and over in our life, when we understand and deeply agree that it is our thought of the moment that generates and determines the feeling we experience. Knowing that our joy is not function of external circumstances unfolding around us or in our world, but rather the intense feeling resulting from thoughts of satisfaction, fulfillment and optimism we allow in our mind, will lead us to create a new habit. We will intentionally practice inviting thoughts that bring sunshine into our life. We will know that when joy seems to elude us, there is something we can do about that.

As appearances around us seem to offer good reasons that we should be unhappy and sad, we may pause and think of ways to unmask the fallacy of these appearances suggesting closing ourself to joy.  For instance, when the sky is very dark, or when it is raining heavily, we would not think that the sun no longer exists; we would rather expect to see the sun rise sooner or later. And when our circumstances seem to be dire circumstances, what can prevent us from thinking and saying: “This too shall pass”? In addition, it will always help us to remember this statement wrapped in humor, but nevertheless so true and practical: “I have died of a thousand deaths that never materialized.”

God of infinite goodness, I choose to remain in tune and live in harmony with Your universe, which is a place of order and beauty, the very expression and manifestation of Your holy Presence around us. I know that “in your presence there is fullness of joy.” Thank You for helping me to live in the practice of Your presence, that I may see joy wherever I turn and joy in whatever happens.  I choose to remember that above every gray sky there is the shining sun and in every dark cloud there is a silver lining. Because of this, my soul is trained to say: Joy anyway!

A former teacher used to point out how ironical it is that when two people are “in love”, in a state of euphoria which tends to impair your judgment, it is the very time that they are being asked to make the awesome decision to commit their life to each other for as long as they will live. Statistics, showing that well over 50% of marriages end in divorce the first time around, would tend to support this view if this was all there is to love.

When we go deeper into the matter, we realize that love is much more than the impulse that brings two human beings to the decision to unite their lives. Charles Fillmore, the co-founder of Unity, wrote: “ love is not the plaything of human volition, but the action of divine law.” This takes our vision beyond the finite of human consciousness to the infinite divine consciousness and wisdom, which creates life and love and is life and love. To know that God is love and there is a divine design that brings people together in a wide variety of circumstances, be it as family, be it as friends but always for a very good reason, will allow us to understand how we got to spend part of our earthly experience with our friend, John, whose life we are celebrating today. Underneath the visible aspect of the circumstances and of the collaboration we have shared with John, there is a divine intention and a divine plan; there is the eternal divine love eternally present in each one of us, that has brought us together to exchange a gift with each other. And that gift is none other than divine life and love implanted in us forever, to give and receive loving services, to exchange loving kindness and appreciation, to create loving memories. All this can never die and will never die, though the human dimension may disappear, for God in us and in our life, who is love, remains the same yesterday, today and forever.

Today, it is divine love that brings us to remember John and celebrate, his life, his goodness, his dedication and his love. He meant so much to those of us who have known him. He gave so much of himself, his time and treasure to the Unity ministry that he loved.  May his ongoing journey be one of peace, love, joy and fulfillment in the light, life and love of God that will never end! In grateful and loving appreciation we say to him:

John, we love you, we bless you, we thank you and we behold the Christ in you. We see you always radiant in the light, as your God and our God, your Father and our Father keeps your consciousness filled with the sweet assurance, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a little, I will set you over much; enter into the joy of your master.’ Amen

We engage basically in two forms of thinking. We are free to think what we choose to think, and how . We may call the first form of thinking: “horizontal thinking”. It is our habitual thinking that considers the familiar circumstances in our life without venturing into any new territory and adopting any new idea. When our thinking about ourselves, about God, about anything and everything remains unchanged, therefore is always the same, our life, the effect of this thinking, remains accordingly at a level that does not change either. Yet, there is a built-in principle in us, which calls for movement, change and growth. It is the very principle and mode of operation of the universe to which we belong. In this universe a natural evolutionary process must be unfolding all the time. Where there is no movement and no growth, there will be regression or stagnation or decay. We are told that the universe changes constantly from one instant to the next.

The other form of thinking that we do, we may call it “vertical thinking.” It occurs when we think something new, to which we have never paid any attention before. This is what can stretch our mind, broaden our horizon, expand our vision and literally take us into the unexplored possibilities present in Divine Mind. It elevates us to the height from where we may see a larger picture. This kind of thinking deepens our understanding, lifts our vision and our entire being above our current set of circumstances. It gives rise to what psychologists call an “ AH HA!” It transforms us and changes us into a new being, and it is not a coincidence when we are reminded, “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” Nor is it a coincidence that Jesus is called “the first-born among many brethren.” We could say that He is the first resurrected one among many others called to resurrection also. And in more ways than we could explain in this essay, He shows us what can be done, and how, in order to pass our tests. He tells us in our heart that, “If others have embraced a new thinking and have been transformed, so we can. ”

Today I understand that each time I embrace a new idea that transforms me and helps raise my consciousness, it is a resurrection experience in my life. I give thanks and praise to the Christ in me that is calling me to an ever new and growing awareness of my oneness with God. Through faith and by my application of the teachings of Jesus, I know that His resurrection is a prelude to my own and that each day brings new opportunities to take steps toward my conscious return to the pure Christ consciousness and to His spiritual kingdom, in keeping with my divine calling. Amen