The Universe is Calling

Eric Butterworth writes:"The call of the universe is like the pull of the sun on the sunflower, which causes the blossoms to open up and face the sun continuously as it crosses the sky. It is the pull of life upward and outward on all growing things. It is the healing activity in which life is always biased on the side of health. 'Many are called, but few are chosen,' said Jesus (Matt.22:14) This is not stating discrimination. It is the universe calling, and it is a continuum, innate in all persons. It is the call to come up higher, to take charge of your life, to release your imprisoned splendor. The universe is calling, but sadly, few persons respond with a commitment to make progressive changes in their lives."

This Sunday, we will begin a new theme, The Universe is Calling, based on the book by the same name. The quote above was taken from the Prologue.

Northern Lights

I am fond of Eric Butterworth's writing. I always find wisdom in it.

I love to be reminded that life is for us and its nature is love. Isn't it great to think about the "imprisoned splendor" within us? If that splendor is Truth, Beauty, Grace, and Love, then what or who imprisons that splendor? 

It cannot be anything exterior to ourselves. Then it must be something within ourselves. My best guess is that it is belief and likely the beliefs that we are not conscious that we have. The greatest lie of all is that we are not enough. So many of us have believed that lie for far too long. Not only are we enough, but we are brilliant beyond measure.

That reminds me the Marianne Williamson's famous quote: "Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” 

Maybe we could challenge ourselves to look for the good within us. Perhaps, instead of avoiding mirrors, we could pause at every mirror, look deep into our eyes and say, "I love you. I really love you."

What would our world be like? I believe self love is one of the ways we can listen to the call from the universe.

The Meaning Of Surrender, Sunday Service

I do not resist, I surrender. I easily accept what is and am free in this moment. In surrender I am connected with the source energy of Being. Through surrender I choose inner freedom and inner peace. And so it is.

The Meaning of Surrender

Eckhart Tolle writes: "To some people surrender may have negative connotations, implying defeat, giving up, failing to rise to challenges, and so on. True surrender, however, is something entirely different. It does not mean to passively put up with whatever situation you find yourself in and to do nothing about it.  Nor does it mean to cease making plans or initiating positive action.

 Surrender is the simple but profound wisdom of yielding to rather than opposing the flow of life."

Surrender means to accept the present moment unconditionally! It means to release inner resistance to what is! It reminds me of Desiderata by Max Ehrmann.

That certainly changes the concept of surrender for me.

How many times have I thought that something was amiss, wrong, unacceptable? I must admit the answer is often. The most recent example is my mother's health. Of course, I don't want my mother to be in pain, but there has been a lot of resistance in me this year to the actuality of my mother's health. It isn't that I fear death. I absolutely believe that we each will experience another dimension to life when we leave this plane of existence. However, there seems to be much more than I had ever conceived between being fully independent and being fully dependent prior to death.

This past winter and spring my mom was hospitalized for high blood pressure and lack of strength. We came to find out that she had likely had a small stroke. Her mind still is quite clear although she sometimes has difficulty articulating what she is thinking. She had no appetite and could not feed herself. She weighed less than 60 pounds! My sister and i thought she would not be able to survive in such a fragile condition.

However, she has survived! I am deeply grateful. She now is ravenous and eats everything that she is fed.  I think she is content. (She has never been great about directly sharing her feelings.) She does snot complain about much. (One day when the outside temperature was 85 degrees, I left the fan on and she complained that "she nearly froze.")

I believe Mom is living as fully in the now as she can. For the most part, she has surrendered to what is. The lack of surrender is in her children , at least this one.  I am working on myself to allow the universe to unfold as it is.

 Mom's 90th Birthday
Left to right top me, Kathy Hoiness
Bottom  Gerry Clark, Lela Clark,John Clark

               

Enlightened Relationships, Sunday Service

I am open and honest with myself and my partner. I do not judge. I accept others and myself, as we are. I am aware of what I am feeling. As I accept the present moment fully, I am at ease with myself, and create a space for love, joy and peace to enter. Love is a state of Being. I am a state of Being. And so it is!

Conscious Relationships

Relationships...there are many kinds.
It seems that I am not too good at the intimate variety based on my history. I have been married and divorced three times. I haven't had many relationships between, or even dates as a matter of fact.

However, Ernest Holmes reminds us: "Principle is not bound by precedent."

What does that famous quote mean?  It means that the Divine Principle of the Creative Process does not depend upon what has happened in the past. Rather it is forever making all things new, according to our thoughts. That is the rub!

We learn from the Bible that "..you can't put new wine into old wine-skins."

In order to have  anew kind of relationship, I need to be willing to have a beginners mind about relationships. I cannot let my past become my future.

What kind of relationship would I like to have? I would like a compassionate, honest, caring, tender meeting of the minds. When I was in Edmonton recently I visited with an old friend whom I hadn't seen in over 8 years. We both look different but I think we still both have the essential nature that drew us together as friends in the first place. She has a great sense-of-humor and is very friendly to everyone. She fearlessly tells the truth no matter what the circumstances.

She told me of a recent trip to Mexico. She was having dental work done so was there for a couple of weeks. One night she went to her favorite seafood restaurant. There was a noisy man from Alberta, her province. This man sounded like a know-it-all rich oil man. He had ordered  a steak and was complaining loudly that it was tough. My friend told me that she said, "Well, why would you order a steak at a seafood restaurant? I'm having the shrimp and it is delicious!" The man ordered the shrimp and my friend said, "And by the way, you are going to pay for that steak, too. These servers should not have to pay for your lack of intelligence!" He did pay. The servers thanked her.

Now the reason my friend can get away with such "rude" behavior is that she does everything in a playful-like-a-puppy manner.  She has many, many friends. She is planning her retirement thousands of miles away from her current community. When asked if she won't miss her friends, she simply states that she will make new ones.

That kind of confidence goes a long way in creating conscious relationships.

I am blessed to have many caring, forgiving friends, to. I know when we are together, I am heard and seen. Recently we attended  Motown the Musical as part of our Gourmets for God program. This is a picture of some of my friends.

June Dickson, Doris Palardy, Diane Hennessy, Rev. Judee Chapman

Best Selling Authors and Nationally Recognized Toltec Naguals, don Miguel Ruiz and don Miguel Ruiz Jr. to Visit CSLCV Aug. 1

Be impeccable with your word.

Don't take anything personally.

Don't make assumptions.

Always do your best.

Four simple suggestions to live the life of your dreams, put out into the world by a Mexico-born medical doctor who turned to the Toltec healing ways of his mother after discovering that healing was more mental and spiritual than physical.

Don Miguel Ruiz's ground-breaking book, The Four Agreements, touched so many lives as it resided on the New York Times Best Seller list for 7 years. It didn't take long for healing the world with Totlec ideas became the family business and his sons, don Miguel Ruiz Jr. and don Jose Ruiz, began sharing, writing and speaking.

Recently, don Miguel Ruiz Jr. released his book, Living a Life of Awareness, that takes his family's wisdom and breaks it down into a 60-day program featuring meditations for releasing fears and old beliefs and creating a life worthy of our dreams.

Ruiz Jr. will offer this wisdom as well as practical ways to live the Toltec path at the Center for Spiritual Living Capistrano Valley on August 1 joined by his father Ruiz Sr. With both men present, the event promises to feel like sitting around the Ruiz family dinner table as they discuss Toltec wisdom and creating a life of authenticity.

"We have presented together many times before, from when I first started giving presentations through the promotional tour for my first book, and each time is a fun experience for us both," said Ruiz Jr. "We both have our talking points, but we are flexible enough to follow the line of thought of the other when we get inspired during the presentation. We are quite playful when we are on stage, and the magic that the audience will see is a loving relationship between father and son who like to share how they dream."

The Center offers fans and followers of The Four Agreements and the Ruiz family a very intimate opportunity to experience this pair of modern-day Shaman. For the people who purchase VIP tickets they will have a private meet-and-greet with both men as well as reserved seating in the first two rows.

"Our Center offers such an intimate setting to witness these two dynamic men steeped in spiritual wisdom and the Toltec philosophy. We are honored they chose our Center for this event," said Dr. Heather Dawn Clark, senior minister at the Center for Spiritual Living Capistrano Valley. "The last time I saw don Miguel Ruiz speak at a conference, he was mesmerizing. He had us all captivated by his Toltec wisdom and his tools for living more fully. And to have don Miguel Ruiz Jr. too is a wonderful opportunity."

We've also been told that Ruiz Sr. is curtailing his in-person events, so this is very likely the last time he will be speaking in our area. He will have a new book out in October, but he will be promoting that in other ways.

VIP tickets are available for $90 and include a meet-and-greet before the workshop and reserved seating. General admission tickets are $65 if purchased on or before July 24 and $75 after July 25. On-site child care is available. For more information and to purchase tickets visit http://www.cslcv.org or call 949-240-6463.

YOU can Win a Signed Copy of The Four Agreements or Living a Life of Awareness.

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The State Of Presence, Sunday Service

I am totally present, right here and right now. In the Presence, I allow myself to be. This conscious awareness, this moment of Satori, is my connection to Being. In this, I am total Presence. There is nothing more for me to understand. I exist in the perfection of the Now. I am Free! And so it is!

The State of Presence

What are the moments that take your breath away? When the light falls on leaves in a certain way, I am acutely aware of the beauty of nature. When I hear music that stirs my soul, I see beauty; when I hear the poetry of David Whyte or Mary Oliver, something awakens.

"Beyond the beauty of the external forms, there is more here; something that cannot be named, something ineffable, some deep, inner, holy essence. Whenever and wherever there is beauty, this inner essence shines through somehow. It only reveals itself to you when you are present. Could it be that this nameless essence and your presence are one and the same? Would it be there without your presence? Go deeply into it. Find out yourself." 

Eckhart Tolle, The Power of Now, pp 96-97

I first traveled to Southern California in May of 1993.  A stunning tree, unknown to me as a Canadian, was flowering everywhere. I had never before seen a tree that was entirely flowers -- the beautiful Jacaranda. I was high on life, beginning the next part of my life as a senior minister. There was beauty everywhere.

The second part of the quote is very important. The beauty to which we are responding is the Presence of the Divine in us.  This is vastly important. By being still, by letting the chatter stop, we touch the Thing Itself, the beloved within.

This Thing is magnificent! It is breath-taking! Take a moment today and appreciate the wonder that YOU are.  Don't think about it. Just let the sacred self within bedazzle you.

Poet John Keats wrote Ode to a Grecian Urn in the  early 1800's and said:

'Beauty is truth, truth beauty,—that is all
Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.'

Moving Deeply Into The State Of Now, Sunday Service

I accept who and where I am. The I AM exists totally in the NOW. I consciously and purposefully move my attention, place my being, and focus my awareness firmly in the space that is at this moment, and every moment, deeply in the State of Now! And so it is!