Prosperity Plus for You and Me

I love great prosperity classes. Whether I am the facilitator, teacher or student these classes inspire me. My life changes and improves. I am more aware of what I am grateful for. I am more aware of the current abundance in my life.

One of the best prosperity teachers I know is Mary Manin Morrissey. She is clear, compelling and authentic. She has proven these principles in her life and shares her experiences and struggles. Mary is  a gifted story-teller. Within her stories are gems of transformation.

I will be facilitating Mary's course, Prosperity Plus II: Harnessing Your Invisible Power beginning June 20 for 10 weeks. There is still room in this class and I highly recommend it.

Mary uses Chinese bamboo for the symbol of this course. Chinese bamboo is an interesting plant. After planting the bamboo seed, if you take really good care of it the first year, carefully watering and fertilizing it, it grows one inch. It continues to grow one inch per year for four years. Then in the fifth year, if you take good care of it, it grows an amazing eighty feet in just six weeks. What exactly has it been doing for the first four years? It has been developing a strong and powerful root system, ready to support its massive growth.

In the student guidebook, Mary writes, "Our dreams are sometimes like Chinese bamboo. We may nurture them for what feels like a long time with very little signs on the outside that anything is happening. And then,continue to nurture our dream with patience and persistence,  declining to be discouraged, it is as if overnight, everything comes together and we find ourselves living the very life of which we dreamed."

The course is an experiment in more expansive living, giving each student the opportunity to experience new levels of abundance in every area of your life.

The first thing we get clear about is what would we really love. You will be invited to think about what would you love in terms of your health, your relationships, your vocation and your time and money freedom.

There is room in the class and materials available. Call the Center today to reserve your spot. Our number is 949-240-6463.

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Timidity or Perfectionism

In David and Tom Kelley's book Creative Confidence,David writes: "We recently talked with two employees at IDEO from very different backgrounds. Yet both had the same fear of approaching the white board in a business meeting. One was an industrial design intern with sophisticated drawing skills who had studied at the Art Center College of Design in Pasedena. The other was a business designer with a Harvard MBA and  a bright and analytical mind who didn't think of himself as artistic at all. The business guy didn't want to look silly trying to visually express an idea with a whiteboard sketch. And the skilled artist didn't want to be judged by the kind of drawing he could create in thirty seconds in front of an impatient audience. One was hemmed in by timidity, the other by perfectionism. But the end result was the same. Each preferred to sit in his chair rather than risk being judged by his peers."

This really struck me as true for many kinds of risk-taking situations.

I know I have let both extremes influence my choices or lack of them over the years.

As a former teacher, it has been hard to give up perfectionism. And to purposely do something that I already know I am not good at, gives me stomach flutters. (And not the good kind.)

So I have started to look at the things I have attempted and failed and then gave up on.

The first thing occurred twenty years or so ago. I wanted to learn to play syncopation. I had an excellent teacher. I just couldn't get my fingers to move the way they were supposed to. But instead of  doing what I could have done, practiced and played imperfectly, I stopped practicing altogether. I couldn't do it perfectly, then I wasn't going to do it all.

Now the truth is that Divine mind knows no limits. If I had continued to practice and to think optimistically I might have been able to play some of those funky songs now. I would still need to practice and do it imperfectly .

How many ideas have you scrapped because you were too timid or too much of a perfectionist?

Mothers Day Thoughts

This Sunday, May 14, is Mothers' Day. It is a day set aside to express gratitude for the women who gave us birth, and the men and women who were our first care-givers. Each of us has her own story of how successfully our mothers gave us models for raising our own children. In my opinion, motherhood can be the most thankless job; yet it is the most important one for living a life that is healthy-minded.  Our mothers are our first gods. They held the power of life and death over us. They were responsible for our physical and emotional care. They fed us, clothed us and by their words and  example showed us what love is;our understanding of the nature of love paved the way for all our relationships.

There is a powerful quote that is attributed to many people including Jonas Salk,

"Good parents give their children roots and wings. Roots to know where home is, wings to fly away and exercise what's been taught them."

My parents gave me roots and wings. I am living in Southern California, my parents, who had both been born and raised in the Canadian prairies, still lived within one hundred miles of their places of birth at the time of their passing. 

Two years ago, when my mom had a stroke and while she was still in the hospital she was struggling to ask me something. The stroke had left her weak. She finally managed to say,

"Why do you live so far away?"

I was very sad and did not have an answer. My inner answer seemed to be selfish and shallow. I was living my dream of being a New Thought minister in paradise. I was living where I wanted to be.

Lela Eugenia Clark, my mother, made her transition on June 23, 2016. She was not a woman without flaws. She had her own insecurities as well as an abundance of strengths: she modeled creativity, commitment, leadership and fierce independence. I am very grateful that she was my mother. Some traditions say I chose her. 

I talk to her when I see butterflies when I am out walking. I talk to her when I see a pair of doves building a nest, knowing she is now with my dad again.

And now, I can answer the question:

"Mom, I am living so far away because you did such an amazing job in giving me roots and wings."

Of the three daughters in the photo below, my oldest sister, Kathy stayed close to home, my baby sister Cheryl has lived in Calgary for thirty years, about nine hours away, and I have lived here in paradise for 24 years. Good job, Mom. 

Happy Mothers Day to all mothers. 

Lela Clark and daughters Kathy, Cheryl & Heather

Honoring the Students

I love teaching the principles of the Science of Mind. This week we completed ten weeks of study on a course entitled, "The Essential Ernest." This class is one of my favorites because it invites students to explore the ideas that excited and intrigued Ernest Holmes. It is based on a book compiled by Rev. Dr. Jesse Jennings of the same name. Dr. Jennings organizes the material into logical pieces and organizes it all around our Statement of Principles. I love seeing students have personal insights through committing to spiritual practices and awakening to being the directors of their own lives.Today I am going to share some of the amazing creativity that sprang from that class. Our class ranged from a college student to retired  people.

One of the assignments was to create a one-page paper on the distinction between a diagnosis and  a prognosis from both a medical and a metaphysical viewpoint, and how and why you would explain this to a friend suffering from an unwanted condition -- or otherwise communicate your sense through a musical, visual or poetic representation. We received some lovely answers including from Robert Welch:

"Medical works with appearance in the world; metaphysical works with spiritual world.

Medically a diagnosis is the art of identifying a disease from its signs, e.g. finding arthritis. A prognosis is a forecast of what will happen. Looking again at a person's arthritis, medically the prognosis is the forecast is going to be on the illness. This is the world of appearance. 

Ernest Holmes, (Page 134 of The Essential Ernest) relates diagnosis to facts or present situation. This is relating to the appearance of the condition arthritis.Now there is a great distinction between medical and metaphysical. Prognosis metaphysically means seeing the truth or anticipated reality coming from a field of external reality. 

The condition of arthritis can be explained to another person as a condition that does not have to be accepted but can be seen beyond the present. There instead is wholeness, wellness and love which are greater. The worlds of medicine and metaphysics work together to create wholeness and wellness. This is for a better vision of life."

College student, Kay Allen wrote this beautiful poem about her friend, Pamela. You will see by Kay's words that she paints a picture of wholeness and beauty, always the spiritual Truth.

"I picture your rosy smile when I hear the name Pamela. I see your tiny body wrapped in sepia braids and love awards. It is not the bandanna covering your forehead, or the hospital gown, or the Hodgkin's Lymphoma. It is simply the high, pink cheekbones, squinty blue eyes, and that wide smile that I see. I only wish you could see the golden dust on your fingers, the electricity pumping your blood, instead of the anger. Your diagnosis carries no gun. And, you are in no danger. Instead, you are branching out, growing leaves, reaching with your roots, and allowing yourself to be. With a prognosis in development, you are out there, lighting the fires for the stars to see, and dancing with the embers."

A person who decided to write a song to answer this question is the amazing Rick Dale, RScP. Rick demonstrates both his musical skill and his skillful use of language to encourage the person who is afraid of dying. "All Things Right," is a tender ballad  about fear, disease, God's love, and the power of faith.


For our last project, students were asked to write about what they thought Ernest's  Cosmic Illumination experience was about. We had a wide range of answers. Two people wrote about having a felt  sense of Presence. Both examples were about the Peace that accompanied the confirmation that life is eternal.Both about their own parents who had made their transitions. It was very sacred as they both revisited a special time in their lives. Three people wrote stories which were accompanied by their own photography. Toni Sparks made a beautiful key to consciousness, based on Holmes' idea that the whole key to consciousness is "It is done unto you as you believe." Kathy Storey shared the dramatic effects from the question, "Am I Seeing Rightly?" Kathy showed us a large poster board that seemed to be blank except for a large pair of glasses. When illumined with black light we saw all the qualities of the Divine. Her point was simply, when we see with the heart we see rightly.

Dena Hart Van Slyke wrote a long narrative poem titled "Cosmic Illumination"  It follows:

While on a recent mountain vacation/ I took some time for relaxation
And sat in silent meditation/ Observing creek side animation.
Sometimes I kept a gaze fixation, / Then watched as bubbles in formation
Created foam in swift flotation/ Which slid to the next elevation.

I sat in deepest contemplation/ Of all the breadth of God's creation.
I sensed a head to toe vibration. / Then came a bright illumination!
My heart and body felt elation/ While hearing my heart's palpitation -
I felt a cosmic inspiration.

I don't recall the time duration/ But, when it came to culmination
I had a really strange sensation/ Of shelter and emancipation.
And thought I heard, a congregation/Of all the souls in Syncopation
The sang a song of sweet flirtation...Was All this just hallucination?

I prayed in full anticipation/ While standing on my God's foundation
I said, "Right now, here in our nation,? We see an increased circulation,
We end all hunger and starvation, / No victims of discrimination." 

Then just as if taking dictation, / I channeled cosmic conversation/
(I swear this is no fabrication.)/ Or was it my imagination?
InSpired by that Holmes' quotation/ About his cosmic revelation? 

So then, fluid fascination, / I wrote, "God, should we seek salvation?"
Before I reach my destination/ What is my real motivation? 

God answered with this declaration,/ There's no such thing as termination.
When you let go of 'separation' / You are assured a transformation.
You'll be reborn at full gestation. 

I asked "Can we have visitation/ Is death our final limitation?
Or is there life's reincarnation?".../ My hand wrote without hestitation,
"Though some may have the inclination/ Upon further examination
You'll find, it's mostly simulation / or, just a good impersonation. 

Well, I was filled with exaltation!/ Then after further rumination,
The writing seemed an ordination:/ "There's no such thing like pre-destination.
Your life comes from your orchestration,/(with focus and determination)
and your assertive integration/ Of your thinking's cogitation
With your loving heart's pulsation. 

Then I asked for an explanation/ "Are we equipped for transmigration?"
Or multiple space incarnation?" / Or is that future speculation?
The answer came without flirtation/ "I'll give you this one confirmation
there's no such thing as your damnation/ Or burning in hell and conflagration
Or even 'death as termination. / I'll make this simple proclamation:
"Reliable as gravitation,/ Just one thing's sure, -- and that's Taxation." 

So class, I offer this summation, / and say, without humiliation
This is my final class's obligation. I thank you for your concentration.
And take my bow at your ovation. 

Kay Allen wrote an experimental prose piece titled "THE POWER OF I IN A LAND CALLED HOME." Until she read it to us, I had never heard of an experimental prose piece. It reminds me of the genius of Jason Silva's "Shots of Awe."Enjoy:

"There's a globe around my head, spinning on a fixed axis of generous proportion. I drift with the seasons, alive with the warm breeze, a recluse in the snow. I memorize the ebb and tidal splay of my inner volume and reel in nets full of both useful and dull thoughts carrying silver moon water and flashing eels. This planet of a head, still showered in whispers of passersby, hotdog stand vendors, or crying infants, can still manage to hear the ballad of Pluto, ringing Saturn, and swiveling comets slicing up the dark blue. Inside my head, there's boiling magma which churns and folds, neon and flamboyant. It circles around like koi in a pond, rippling outwards a magnetic field and setting off lights in my atmosphere. The glory in my world is something I wish to share, with cousins, godfathers, professors, and ministers. And as I make my revolution around the home star, I see the faces of other globes, other hemispheres and continents of intricate blueprint, glowing cloud-forests, glittering leaves, and a chameleon river.Each, uniquely designed by the individual globe. And, I see there are more constellations still to discover with all of them, a one-on-one show-and-tell of each thriving and radiating light. Still, I sometimes envy the moon, for its gray quietness, the lack of voices murmuring about kitchen appliances and Machiavelli's The Prince. But, I find that my breath slows when I see my northern lights, and know that the gravity of my spinning is the same force which makes those other globes spin. It is a force of nature which allows stars to implode and sprouts to surface, and it is a force that I nor anyone has ever parted with."

I feel honored, privileged and blessed by every person who studies these principles.

Listen to Your Inner Voice

This month we have been featuring the creativity of members of our community and what a wide variety we have! Have you been going to our Facebook page to check out the variety of artists that we have? If not, now is a great time to do so. Of course, I remind you that the art that is featured represents only a small sample of the artistic endeavors in our Center. In addition to gifted photographers, painters, jewelers and teachers, we have a host of musicians, singers and song-writers. Our wonderful member Juli Isola has been posting the artwork on our Facebook page. She is an amazing artist herself.

Where does all this creativity come from? Well, it comes through each person as the individualized expression of the Divine that he or she is. Since there is only one Life, one causative impulse, why are these creations so different? I believe that we are individualizing the Creative Process through our unique talents and abilities, perceptions and context.

There may be a creative expression in you that is just waiting to blossom.

You may feel drawn to take up a new form of creative expression or re-visit an old one. What I know is that Spirit in you is timeless and is simply awaiting direction from you as to which direction to go.

In high school I memorized a stanza of Thomas Gray's epic poem, "Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard."

I remember feeling the sadness that not all talent or beauty is discovered.
The stanza is:

"Full many a gem of purest ray serene,
         The dark unfathom'd caves of ocean bear:
Full many a flow'r is born to blush unseen,
         And waste its sweetness on the desert air. "

Now is the time to let your light shine. Listen to the inner voice and express yourself. Live out loud. 

I do not have any artistic expression to share with you but I wanted to share one of my favorite photographs by Juli Isola. Juli let me use this photo for a presentation I was doing on Faith. She captured it in this photograph.

Faith by Juli Isola

Decide to be Creative

Are you creative? Recently i met a woman who has been collecting dolls for years. She has thousands of dolls in her home. She has dolls from every region of the world and made from various materials in every size and shape you could imagine. Many of dolls' faces were created in her own kiln. Their expressions were chosen by her. The clothing, jewelry and shoes were made by her. Nobody would deny that she is very creative! This picture is of part of her collection.

Photo by Linda Lyerly

Many people have an idea about creativity that is incorrect. They think that creativity can only be expressed through the arts. I know I used to think that because I couldn't draw things that even faintly resembled the thing I was drawing, I decided that I was not creative.

When I started studying the Science of Mind, I began to realize that we are  all creative beings. I began to understand that through our beliefs and passions we were creating our worlds. Creativity can take many forms. What we think about, comes about.

What is on your mind? That is the thing you are passionate about. If you are worried about something, you tend to visit that idea many times a day. You are actually creating the very thing that you fear. You are planting an idea. You are passionate about the idea.That idea must become your creation. It is not because God wants you to be unhappy; it is simply because you have been planting ideas of misfortune. You could start planting ideas of good fortune. You could fertilize it with gratitude.

What would it be like if you took the same time to prayerfully or passionately consider the good that is already in your life? What if you used your creative imagination to dwell upon uplifting ideas?

In his letter to the Philippians, Paul wrote these words of wisdom:

"Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."

Thinking about these things will create more of them in your life. You are creative right now! Choose something beautiful. You will have a collection like our hostess.

Imagination Gives Us Images to Hold in Our Mind

I want to be more like a flute

It may seem odd to aspire to be more like an inanimate object but let me explain.

I have heard the image of “hollow bone” spoken to illustrate the state of being empty so that one can be filled with Spirit. I’m starting to understand why images work sometimes when words don’t. I can take that image and feel it. It only takes a moment to conjure an image and the ideas behind it can germinate and grow over time.

For me the image of the flute takes the "hollow bone" even further. Like the bone I picture the long empty passage free of the mental clutter, judgement and general stuff that may get in Spirit’s way. But with the flute the breath (Spirit) has to be added to make it sing and when it does sing the music resonates outward touching everything everywhere with it’s music, it’s vibration. Our being can sense vibration long after our conscious mind is recognizing the sounds. There’s a skill to playing it which is built with practice. It can be spiritual practices, it can be a creative practice such as in playing the flute … to really bring the magic it’s probably both.

Flutes are in all kinds of stories. They are kind of magical. I like that too. It inspires my imagination.

Imaging is A Muscle
Sometimes I can hold images in my mind, sometimes I have to rely on the word to hold the image for me. I always have to remember that imaging is a skill, a muscle and will strengthen with use.

Images, Stories & Song
As we contemplate the role of creativity this month I am finding new appreciation in images and stories to connect with greater truths. Images, symbols show up in art, in stories, songs and our dreams. It’s another avenue for Spirit.

The Stories We Sometimes Need
Saturday night I was out enjoying the full moon. As I drove away I decided I needed a song. It was a beautiful full moon so I searched the iPod for something night sky-ish and not finding Van Morrison’s Moondance I settled on Jack Johnson’s “Constellations.”

The lyrics were just perfect and one line stood out among the others

“to find the stories we sometimes need.”

Sometimes we need stories, we need art, we need song. Their vibrations affect us long after we can hear the flute.

Here's a little Jack ... enjoy.

Expressing Your Creativity is a Spiritual Practice

the creative urge is life itself

What catches your eye? What inspires you? What is urging to be created through you? Are you up for an adventure?

“Your creative expression is an act of faith. You must give it passage from the abstract into form by trusting what’s coming through you.

 "When there is no motion, it’s only a dream and remains in the realm of possibility. You don’t need to know how an adventure ends before you begin it, nor do you have to know where your creative urge is going to take you before you begin.” ~Joyous Living Journal

I don’t know when everyone got so convinced they aren’t creative. We are infinitely creative. Even when we are not intentionally creating we are creating by default. As humans we have a deep driving need to be creative.

It’s time to indulge ourselves!

Could painting (or cooking, or writing, or gardening, or knitting, or playing an instrument, or singing or writing a letter, or taking pictures, or or playing with play dough) be a spiritual practice?

YES.

And engaging in your creativity is opening another avenue for Spirit to demonstrate in your life. And just like meditation and prayer it works better when you set aside your ego, drop the judgement and embrace some unconditional love for yourself and others. Think of practicing creativity as an act of gratitude for the beauty and joy you feel inside, a two way conversation between you and Infinite Intelligence.

Life is ever evolving in the direction of increased love and increased beauty. What other than the intentional spiritual practice of expressing your unique brand of creativity to assist in that evolution.

Let it loose in the world and you just don’t know the life it may take on.

Lessons in Creativity Sunday Service

Today I let go of 'how' my creative gifts will show up in my life and allow myself to create in joy. My gifts are needed in the world, therefore, I give them. And So It Is!

Tune into Sunday Service Live 10:30am 

Today Share Your Creativity

Life is Like a Box of Crayons

Enter into the joy of creating.

Do you remember the excitement and joy of a brand new box of crayons?

Whether it was the box of 8 or the mongo 64 count with the sharpener in the back of the box, I sure remember the thrill.

The thrill came from the infinite promise, the possibilities, oh the possibilities.

Now sometimes that thrill was dampened by the fear of making a mistake or worry that your perfect box would no longer be perfect after you used them. Maybe you had a hard time deciding what you would create or that your creation would pale in comparison to what the kid next to you was doing.

I actually remember gettting an F on a drawing project because I colored a snowman light blue and pink. And no I am not scarred from that experience as the parental uproar was both swift and furious (thank you Mom and Dad.)

Now I am in that happy place where I just love the act of coloring (or painting or drawing or whatever). It's a treat for me. I find joy in just watching the pigment meet the paper and I know that participating in the act is pleasure enough.

Maybe that's all we need to do in life.

"We must all become artists in living. 

To live by inspiration means to sense the divine touch in everything; 

to enter into the joy of living."

 ~ Ernest Holmes

And don't underestimate the "lowly crayon."

Now check out the work of Don Marco, Master Crayola Crayons Artist. Enjoy

Starting with the Ending

Here we are in the first days of 2014, a new year, a new beginning. Vision boards are still drying or are even still to be considered.  New Year's Resolutions have been made and forgotten, released, refined and some are already fulfilled.   Is it too soon to start completing 2014? Well, yes it is. However, it is my belief and my experience that if we practice conscious completion at the end of each day and at the end of the major events in our life we will experience a deeper peace and sense of well being in our lives and in the world.

Finding time to be still and complete can fell like just another to-do item on the never ending list. In today's fast paced life we move from activities so fast sometimes it makes us (literally forces us to) sit down and just stop. That is different than choosing to be still for a few minutes everyday to reflect on what has occurred, how I felt and feel now, who I connected with the aha's that I experienced. It does not need to take a long time and you might find yourself making more time for it as you get into the practice. Completion is not just a solitary experience and is powerful to share with your partner, children family and colleagues. 

I like completion because I believe it naturally leads to creativity. As I am complete with this activity, event or project I enter freely, uninhibited into whatever is next - even if that next is sleeping. As I consciously complete the events and activities in my life I find myself also completing with old beliefs, patterns and ideas that no longer serve me. I find that I am less inhibited with regret, disappointment and anticlimactic success. Completion does not automatically assume that we are happy with the way things are or have been left. It is the process of telling the truth about it and taking time to appreciate whats so. By giving ourselves permission to acknowledge how we are feeling we also give ourselves permission and the opportunity to move on with a clean slate. 

So, it might be too soon to complete 2014 but it is not too late to complete 2013 or any other past event from this year or years past. Sunsets lead to a sunrise and endings always mean a new beginning. Here's to the new beginnings that are being revealed for each of us!

Here are a few prompts that you might choose from for your completion process. 

Who and what am I grateful for?

Where did I feel separate from my good?

Where/how did I feel connected to Spirit, Life? 

How does it feel to be done with this activity/project/day?

What did I learn about myself?

What do I need to do, say, or write to be complete for this day?

Listen to the Stirrings of Your Heart

Self Worth: Steeped in Awareness 

Have you ever loved something and left it? I am not referring to people but that might it applicable too!

I have been basking in the glow of love and gratitude from Wednesday night's Metaphysical Interpretation of the Beatles! How blessed we are to have such talent and consciousness at our Center! Rev. Karyn Allen, Rick Dale and Dave Friedman did an outstanding job in providing both the music and the interpretation. The room was buzzing with the sounds of a happy community for quite awhile after their performances.

Today I had a conversation about my musical background which reminded me of what an important part of my life music has been. My piano sits unplayed, month after month. At one time I could just sit and play for hours, it was a way of feeling my deep feelings, and an expression of my creativity. Then I made a decision, maybe consciously maybe subjectively, that my ability was not good enough. I compared myself to the wonderful musicians in our Center and I came up lacking. So I stopped playing. I stopped doing something in my own home which brings me pleasure because I judged it as inferior to others. This was quite crazy!

Can you relate? Have you ever stopped doing something you like to do because you thought you were not good enough? Over the years I have paid for music lessons with the intention not only of learning a new skill but also I improving that skill. I really have not been successful with music lessons since I was 17 years old. I wouldn't practice enough to improve my skill. When I was a kid singing and playing piano were favorite pastimes. My parents encouraged me to learn to play piano. I used to hide behind it in social settings when it would be more comfortable to play and sing than to socialize with an extended family that I didn't know that well.

What I remembered today was that when I volunteered 30 years ago to be the accompanist for the music in the new Center I was attending, I wasn't that good. But I volunteered because the poor guy who had been trying to accompany on an accordion was really terrible! I knew I could provide something better. Besides it only involved learning two songs, and one of them was the Peace Song and would be sung every week. Also the Center was in its infancy -- and at most there were only 15 people in attendance. I knew I could do that! Five years later I was playing every Sunday, had a choir that I rehearsed with. (Honestly it was probably one of the worst choirs in history, but we had fun!) But the Center had grown and so had my confidence and skill.




Why is this story relevant to my life and maybe yours today? Whatever is going on, I remember that if I start with small, and commit to daily practice I can improve anything. I am going to listen to the stirrings of my heart and let creative expression flow! All the desires of our hearts were placed there by the Creator.

Are you listening to your desires?

WHAT BRILLIANCE IS TRYING TO EXPLODE THROUGH YOU?

“Art is when you hear a knocking from your soul — and you answer.”   ~Terri Guillemets


There It is...knocking at the door of your heart, tapping at the thresh hold of your mind, silently screaming from the depths of your soul, pestering you to let It in...What is this?

This thing is simply your own splendor urging to express itself through you.  It is your divine nature attempting to make its contribution to the world, and when it is blocked or disregarded, it can show up in life as discontentment, anger, depression, etc...


The beautiful artwork you see above was created by artist, poet and graphic designer, Eric Hart Samuelson.  I met Eric for the first time in 2009 when we took an extensive 2+ year long class together.  In that class of 12 students, we all spent numerous hours together learning, growing, and really getting to know each other (a life-long bond we will all forever share and cherish).  But most importantly, we began to learn and unleash things about ourselves that were  buried beneath old beliefs and shaded by the expectations of others.  During one of our class projects, I got to see, first-hand and for the first time, the brilliance that was Eric's artwork.  Not that we were competing with each other, but his project totally blew everyone out of the water!

Why am I writing about this?  As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”  We all have a brilliance that is urging to express through us.  It may be deeply hidden away within ourselves or simply waiting to surface by means of our own receptivity to it.  Eric's calling laid dormant for a while and finally surfaced while doing some inner work.  Thank goodness he listened to his divine urges or we wouldn't be experiencing his exquisite artwork.  If you hear that knocking from your soul, open the door and see what's waiting to come through you.  The world deserves to see your gift!

Please check out the rest of Eric's artwork and let him know how much you appreciate his gifts:

http://www.onemindcommunications.com/paintings

http://www.onemindcommunications.com/mixed-media

http://www.onemindcommunications.com/photography

Now Be Aware That You Are A Creative Force

How many people does it take to change the world?

Say to the Universe; "Let it happen NOW, use Me.

Then get out of the way and watch it happen - @EkartTolle

How many people does it take to change the world?
One.

PRACTICE MAKES THE MASTER

PRACTICE MAKES THE MASTER

On Wednesday night, Rick Dale and I had the blessed opportunity to share an inspiration talk entitled, Practice Makes The Master.  This title came from a quote I heard from author and Toltec teacher, Don Miguel Ruiz, which states, “Practice makes the master. It's not about learning; it's about taking action and practicing your art (your art, meaning everything you create in your life).  As an artist, if you practice love and you keep practicing and practicing, the moment comes when everything you do is an expression of your love.  How will you know when you have mastered love?  When the story you tell yourself is an ongoing romance.”

I LOVE that...when the story you tell yourself is an ongoing romance!

So, we decided to share some simple daily practices which could be instrumental for just about anyone to experience an ongoing romance with life.  

• Practice Love--Share your love through Love Lingual:  quality time, touch, words of affirmation, receiving gifts, or service to others.
• Practice Silence--Get quiet, even if it's just for just a few minutes during the day to allow Infinite Wisdom and Infinite Peace to move through you.
• Practice Gratitude--Ponder someone for whom you are truly grateful and write them a note to let them know how much they mean to you.
• Practice Balance--Balance your life between work, rest and play.  Take the time to rest, even if it means missing out on something else.  Your body and mind with thank you.
• Practice Saying "No!"--Say, "No" to what is not working in your life and say, "Yes!" to a greater idea that does serve you.
• Practice Joy/Fun--Even if you're not feeling the joy, go out and find some fun to be had, even if you have to go to a playground and swing.  It can change your whole physiology and your attitude.

These are just a few basic ideas that can help you experience an ongoing romance with life and so easy to implement.  As Rick stated at the end, "Court life; light some candles; take Life out on a date; treat It with LOVE!"

PS.  I have to say that the pinnacle of the evening for me was watching my beloved 16 year old daughter get up in front of everyone and sing the song, "There Is Only Love".  Her raw (untrained) talent shone through and moved us all to tears.  Click on this link to hear the sweetness: 

Tell A New Story. Use Your Creativity.

All of the people of the world joined together.
New leaders and new thought on the horizon.

It was the first Sunday of 2012, Rev Heather was out so that morning Rev Patricia Truman took the podium.

The Democrat and the Republican debates as well as the State of the Union address had been monopolizing the news.

“I don’t like any of them! That’s my position and I'm sticking to it.” Sometimes I feel more discerning when I am disagreeable. But it's true, there is no candidate who articulates my vision. Then I realized I hadn’t articulated my vision.



After Rev Patricia’s first Sunday of the year I have been challenged to look at it another way.

I’ve been called to imagine the future I envision. To tell a new story. To use my creativity.

Articulating our vision isn’t for the lazy minded. It takes energy, enthusiasm and thought. I’m so thankful for Rev Patricia’s reminder on that first Sunday of 2012. Now as I watch the news I don’t think that old thought, “I don’t like any of them.”

It's has become my call to creativity. What would my perfect representative represent? Who would I want in leadership positions? It allows me to move past the illusion of two cholces. It gives me the opportunity to formulate in my mind the perfect candidate, the perfect policies.

To use my creative energies. To remind myself that I am shaping this world. We all are.

I work on articulating my vision. I imagine my candidate. I tell a new story. There’s more than two choices, even to a discerning eye.

Throw away that illusion of limited choice. We have infinite choice. We do need to take the time to dream them up and know them intimately. God is in the details.

On that Sunday I came to church to hear that I needed to articulate my vision. To tell a new story. And that has made all the difference.

How Many Science Of Minders Does It Take To Change A Lightbulb?

John Cleese on Creativity,

Creativity is not a talent, creativity is a way of doing things.

Creativity is not related to intelligence.

Creativity is the ability to play with ideas. 

Watch this most excellent talk on creativity by John Cleese, where he gives you some fantastic tools for transformation and then in the comments please answer this question,

How Many Science Of Minders Does It Take To Change A Lightbulb?

The Open Mode Of Creativity 

Creative Angst is Straight from God

"Once I saw a little boy sitting at a piano and vainly trying to bring harmony out of the keys. I saw that he was grieved and provoked by his inability to play real music. I asked him why he was unhappy, and he answered, ‘I can feel the music in me, but I can’t make my hands go right."

From The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace Wattles

This is just how I feel sometimes. No, actually I feel this way a lot. I so understand this “creative angst.” That gap between what is in my minds eye and what actually appears feels absolutely intolerable at times. It can be the spacing between letters on a graphic, the phrase that doesn’t quite capture what I want to say or how I want to say it, those proportions in a drawing that just aren’t quite right or too much salt in a dish I am cooking. Even more insidious is the large project. The hems and haws, the ideas that don’t all fit together in a proportional manner. Sometimes I just can’t seem to quite map out how it’s all going to go and it leads to spinning my wheels.

It makes me curious how people create. How much is planned out and how much evolved out of the process of doing? I asked a novelist friend of mine. I felt safe asking her, I've known her since we were sixteen. “How do you start writing a novel? It seems like such a momentous task?” She said “You start with a main character, a place, a first scene and sometimes a theme.” “Really? That’s all?” I was shocked that it isn’t all planned out.

I shared this with my step daughter Ella. She agreed with my friend. “Well, yes,” she said with absolute certainty “the writing is when the story is written.” She said it with so much matter-o-factness I couldn't help but palm myself in the forehead.  

I really love what Wallace Wattles continues to say in The Science of Getting Rich. 

"God, the One Substance, is trying to live and do and enjoy things through humanity. He is saying, 'I want hands to build wonderful structures, to play divine harmonies, to paint glorious pictures. I want feet to run my errands, eyes to see my beauties, tongues to tell mighty truths and to sing marvelous songs.'"

A Love Story Based on a True Story of Reincarnation

When a modern-day couple decides to discover through past life regression if their lives were linked in the past, a passionate 1930s love story emerges.

Synopsis
Based on a true story of reincarnation supported by documentation. It is 1934 in Rensselaer, Indiana, when Elsie Wilkins meets John McDonald―-a man unlike any other. After feeling an intense chemistry, Elsie cannot take her eyes off him. The handsome apprentice architect has swept the independent-minded teacher off her feet. Despite the fact that Elsie is still married to a man who abandoned her without warning, she and John begin a fervent courtship as all social mores fall away. As the Great Depression continues to wreak havoc around them, John and Elsie feel no hunger other than for each other. Just when their infatuation transforms to a powerful love, Elsie’s husband makes an appearance and suddenly, the joyful future they have planned is threatened.

Lifetimes Ago - A Love Story Inspired From Past Life Memories

Available on Nook and Kindle for $1.99

Member of our center, Susie Schecter, wrote "Lifetimes Ago - A Love Story Inspired From Past Life Memories." Creativity is the theme for June at The Center for Spiritual Living. This past weekend we had the privilege of enjoying the performances of our singers and dancers and now we turn the spotlight to our literary folk.

You Can Grow Ideas

Hi Neighbor! Welcome again to this neighborhood!
I'd like to show your something, do you know what this is?
Maybe if I press this button, this is a cassette player with a little cassette in here.
And there is nothing written on it, so we will just have to play it to see what it is.

Do you ever imagine things? Are they scary things?
Do you ever imagine things? Things you'd like to have?
Did you ever see a cats eyes in the dark?
And wonder what they were?
Did you ever pretend about things like that before?

Did you ever grow anything in the garden of your mind?
You can grow ideas in the garden of your mind.
It's good to be curious about many things.
You can think about things and make believe,
All you have to do is think and they'll grow.

Imagine every person that you see is somewhat different from every other person in the world
Some can do some things, some can do others.
Do you ever think of the many things you've learned to do?
Did you ever grow anything in the garden of your mind?
You can grow ideas in the garden of your mind.

It's good to be curious about many things.
You can think about things and make believe,
All you have to do is think and they'll grow.

Do you feel like going like that?
Let's give the fish some food.
Mr McFeely I did't order any whistles.
That's what they call these, slide whistles.

Do you feel like going like that?
There are so many things to learn about in this world.
And so many people who can help us learn.

Did you ever grow anything in the garden of your mind?
You can grow ideas in the garden of your mind.
It's good to be curious about many things.

You can think about things and make believe,
All you have to do is think,
You can think about things and make believe,
All you have to do is think, And they'll grow...

Garden of Your Mind / Mister Rogers Remixed