Author: Maria Schuchardt

Spiritual Bank Accounts

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How would it be if we all opened a spiritual account with the Bank of Life and, realizing that we drawing on the Infinite, each day deposited enough hope and happiness and faith to more than meet any emergency that might possibly arise? The wonderful part about this is that we know Life contains all these things and it wants to give them to us. – Ernest Holmes 365 Science of Mind page 121

Once upon a time I walked into CSLT and opened a spiritual bank account. Unlike my other bank accounts, this one wasn’t about money or investments. Instead, it focused on enriching my spiritual life. I realized that my account balance was initially zero and decided to make regular deposits to build a substantial balance over time. It is an investment in myself and a way to accumulate spiritual wealth.

You might wonder how I make deposits into this spiritual bank account. Naturally, I have my own unique approach:

Tithe: I tithe 10% of my income to where I receive my spiritual guidance.

Service: I attend service each week either in person or on Zoom.

Acts of Kindness: With every act of kindness, I make a deposit. It can be helping others, volunteering, or simply smiling at someone. I know these are valuable contributions to my account.

Prayer and Meditation: Our morning meditation group is welcoming to all and a Divine part of my day. Each moment and connection, along with the daily spiritual guidance and prayer, is a deposit to my account.

Gratitude: I practice it daily. Whenever I count my blessings, my account balance grows. Gratitude is my currency. It represents the accumulation of spiritual wealth and blessings.

Forgiveness: Forgiving others–even when it is difficult–is another way I add to my account.

Acts of Love: Acts of love are like gold bars in my spiritual vault. Whether I am loving my family, friends, or even strangers, I know that love is the ultimate currency.

As the days go by, my spiritual bank account grows. My spiritual bank account affects my overall well-being. I feel richer in ways that cannot be measured. When I am faced with challenges, I withdraw from my account—drawing strength, wisdom, spiritual guidance, and love.

Life isn’t just about material wealth. Our spiritual investments matter too. I invest wisely.

I hope you consider opening your own spiritual bank account at CSLT and make these valuable deposits every day.

–Madeline Pallanes

Grow and Flourish

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Tamara Morrison illustration

Sunday was our annual meeting. We have been without a minister since February when Rev. Janis retired. There are lots of volunteer hours used to make our center work. The full report will be posted on the CSLT website under “About” then “Organizational Documents.”

I love our little community. And I have to change my mindset about that. I love our growing community. It is necessary for our community to grow and flourish. As I am thinking about this finding the words not coming, and look to the SOM Daily Guide and find:

We must learn to trust the law of growth. We do not force a seed into a full-grown plant. There is a law of evolution or unfoldment in nature that does this in a logical sequence.

There is no mental coercion in using the law of mind any more than there would be in using the creative law of fertility of the soil. We plant a seed in it; it evolves a plant. To plant a seed of thought and then uproot it through doubt, denial, undo haste or anxiety is to neutralize our own effort. It would be like planting corn and then uprooting it every few days to see if it were growing. We must learn to trust this law of growth since it is a natural part of the order of cause and effect. Ernest Holmes, Lessons in Spiritual Mind Healing page 23.

I have been feeling a mixture of fear and love as we look for a new minister. The love of the community and the fear of funds. We are using our savings to keep going. I like that we don’t hard sell donating, but the reality is it takes funds to keep us running.

For a garden to grow it takes sunlight, rain, time to grow. For our center to grow it will take time, treasure and talent. And I, I will learn to trust the law of growth.

–Maria

Welcoming All

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“We should not study to be alike, but rather to develop what we really are.”  Ernest Holmes, “Living the Science of Mind,” page 172.1

“When individuals with diverse viewpoints and experiences converge, they often generate a fertile ground for innovation.” Unknown

I’m currently working on costumes for HIR by Taylor Mac. Hir is a pronoun used instead of “him” or “her” to refer to a person of unspecified or nonbinary gender. Included in the cast and crew are individuals identifying as gay, transgender, queer as well as cisgender with ages ranging from teens to seventies.

The director has taken steps to make sure Live Theatre Workshop is a place where everyone feels safe to be and express themselves during rehearsals. It has been a pleasure working with them in this atmosphere of acceptance and collaboration.

I think it’s ironic that in an industry where we are creating a different reality and taking on characters that are not ourselves, that individuals feel truly comfortable being themselves. If it were only as easy to be so in the “real” world.

When Rev. Janis and I first met with the staff of Live Theatre Workshop about the possibility of holding Sunday Service there, the one thing they wanted to be assured of was that we were inclusive. Rev. Janis told them about the wedding she had recently officiated for two lovely ladies.

A new LGBTQ activity was started this month. This group will meet for coffee after service on the second Sunday of the month. Contact Maria if you are interested in joining.

The CSLT Sacred Covenant which we have been reciting as a group during Sunday service states “I am providing a nurturing, vibrant community welcoming all.” It is my vision that CSLT does provide a sense of ease for all who show up. Let us stand in agreement as a community in providing such an atmosphere.

(For those interested, HIR opens September 7 and runs through September 24. If anyone would like to join me, I will be in the audience on September 14. Contact me about possible comps. Be forewarned that while the first half of the show has many humorous moments, the second act does get heavy as the play deals with a wide variety of topics including transgender and transitioning, domestic abuse, stroke survivor, returning from war, PTSD, drug use and more.)

–Janet Salese

Welcoming The Divine Feminine

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The Valley Spirit never dies.
It is the woman, primal Mother,
Her gateway is the root of Heaven and Earth.
It is like a veil, barely seen,
Use it, it will never fail.
— Lao Tzu

I have been participating in a 21-day Meditation practice with Alicia Keys & Deepak Chopra that has made me aware of the Divine Feminine, which is a part of every being, and has often been pushed aside by a more Patriarchal view of many religions.

The Divine Feminine is grounded in spirituality and represents the connection to that part of our consciousness that is responsible for nurturing, intuition and empathy, regardless of our gender.

It is the aspect of ourselves that is associated with creation, community, and sensuality (in a experiential or felt sense rather than in a thinking sense) and collaboration.

The Sacred Feminine is the aspect of the Divine that brings the spark into being through the currents of love that reveal an ocean of Oneness into the multiplicity of all creation.

Through honoring the Sacred Feminine we can find a natural access to spiritual qualities like receptivity, patience, the ability to enter and to care for all of life.

I need to tap into this Divine aspect of my own being and am studying how to do it.

Isn’t it something that we all need to tap into in order to become more balanced and centered in this ongoing Pandemic?

I don’t know about you, but I need all of the above.

–Namaste, Janie

 

It’s a Wrap!

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For the third time, I am completing my term as a sitting Board member for CSLT, and this is my last newsletter article as such.  I must admit, it’s frequently been a challenge writing these columns, but I’ve also grown a whole lot through doing so, so it’s definitely been worth it.  What to write about this time?  Being on the Board, of course!

Since I’ve been on the Board three times but none of those times has been a full term, Rev. Janis dubbed me a “pinch hitter,” (I like it!)  For one reason or another, three different board members were unable to fulfill their terms, so I was asked to step in and finish their duties until the next election.  I recall the first time, when out of the blue, Pat Masters asked me if I would consider being on the Board. I was stunned.  Surely, she had me mixed up with someone else, i.e., a competent, courageous, experienced person.  But nope, she meant me.  So, I braved my fears and insecurities, and stepped up to the plate, and it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

There was a learning curve involved and it took some time to build up confidence that I had anything at all to contribute to the meetings and my spiritual center.  But I kept showing up and giving it my best shot, doing what was asked of me and sometimes even volunteering for an extra something I felt comfortable taking on.

Being on the Board is so much more than the monthly meetings and newsletter articles.  The only other time I’ve ever felt a real ‘part of’ anything was at AA meetings, but being a CSLT Board member has provided me with a sense of community and belonging I never knew was possible to have.  I’ve witnessed integrity at a very deep level, learned how to have respectful conversations involving differing viewpoints, and been a participant in supporting the Highest Good of the Center being the primary objective.  I’ve watched us ebb and flow; I’ve seen new people come, others leave, old-timers return, and I’ve had an opportunity to not make anyone wrong for their choices.  Everyone is welcome to walk through our doors, and I love that about us.

Over the years I’ve been on various teams around the Center (still am) and have taken numerous classes, but nothing has given me the clarity of who I am, who we are, and what we have to offer as much as being on the Board.

If you have completed Foundations and have been a member for a minimum of six months, you meet the minimum requirements to be a CSLT Board member. Is this yours to do?  I promise you growth, a sense of belonging to something incredibly special, and joy beyond my ability to express.  Elections for new Board members is immediately after First Sunday Potluck on October 6th – might you consider taking your turn as a contributing member at the most amazing level?  If you don’t like it, don’t worry – I’ll pinch hit for you, LOL!

“If we search for it, happiness usually eludes us.  Absorption is the key, but absorption with something outside ourselves:  a craft, service, creation – these functions allow us to become enthralled and lovingly involved with what we do, take us out of our mind’s preoccupation with our own interests, and lead us to a fruitful state of being.”

Elegant Choices, Healing Choices by Marsha Sinetar, p. 77

–Renée Mercer, September 25, 2019