On Eagle’s Wings

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“If you don’t like where you are, move. You are not a tree” – Unknown

“Believers do not carry their faith, faith is their wings. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary.” – Ibrahim Emile

In my dream,​ I’m standing alone in an expansive ​barren field. My view is clear, far into the distance and high above. I look way ​up in the sky and see a bald eagle majestically riding the current of the wind. Intuitively, I know this bald ​eagle will fly down within seconds to land on my left shoulder. I brace myself and prepare for the powerful whoosh of the eagle’s landing and the piercing of the eagle’s mighty talons as they grip onto my body. Astonishingly, the eagle lights without a sound, without so much as raising a hair on my head, softly and gently as a single feather. The eagle perches on my shoulder and together, we stand and just look, for a very long time.

​Have you ever felt like you’re lost in your life and you don’t know what you’re doing anymore? Like you just wanted to sleep until everything sorted itself out? Like you were alone and lost in a barren field of nothingness not knowing how to find yourself and just at that breaking point, an “eagle” of sorts appears – possibly as a new insight or a remembrance of something you already knew, but had forgotten in the flurry of your despair?

​Some that know me well are aware I’ve been grappling with what’s next in my life. I’ve given up trying to hide my struggle. My journey hasn’t been very pretty and it’s definitely not over.

Oddly, through this writing, I discovered for myself that I don’t really like change. I see that while I crave change desperately, I have been resisting it by staying mired in confusion and feelings of hopelessness. Carolee Dean’s quote​ “As long as you’re breathing, there’s still hope” gives me comfort as some days I wanted to do nothing more that retract, retreat, close down and give up!

Another fairly obvious insight I imagine many might identify with is that I forget what I ‘know’. As a ‘practicer’ in the Science of Mind philosophy and teachings, I now ‘rechoose’ the truth of our teachings. I choose Faith now and move into a place of gratitude for this transition I have so stubbornly resisted. I let go of my need to know what’s next and I embrace now as a time to purge, to rethink priorities and to be intentional about new habits. I choose to move forward freely rather stand still and continue to suffer.

​Holding this view when we consider our beloved CSLT and the transition we too as a community are going through, might serve us well. Let’s fully embrace this fertile transition with excitement and exuberance! Let’s proudly acknowledge our progress and forward movement! Our currently barren but fertile land on 22nd St stands ready for the seeds of new creation just as my life is now fertile for that which I choose to plant, when the time is ripe for the planting.

As a community, it’s time for us to solidly ground and practice our Faith and hold on, because when we do, the power of our collective creative imagination will and must manifest!!

“We wish a faith based on the knowledge that there is nothing to fear! Faith is a substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. The thought of faith molds the undifferentiated substance, and brings into manifestation the thing which was fashioned in the mind. This is how faith brings our desires to pass. When we use our creative imagination in strong faith, it will create for us, out of the One Substance, whatever we have formed in thought. In this way, man becomes a Co-Creator with God…This is not a difficult task, but a thrilling experience. (Ernest Holmes, The Science of Mind 156.5-157.2)

Funny, how we forget what we know…

In fearless faith,

Holly Baker​

Releasing the (Inner) Warrior

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I am ever grateful for the philosophy and tools I have learned here at CSLT because they have changed my approach to living. During the last few weeks I faced some challenges that would have defeated my old self. But I learned way back in Foundations class that when the brown stuff starts to pile up that is the time to start getting out the spiritual tools like meditation and prayer. One of my lifeline quotes from Ernest Holmes in The Science of Mind is on page 282.4. (I know it is important because it appears totally in caps):

TO DESERT THE TRUTH IN THE HOUR OF NEED IS TO PROVE THAT WE DO NOT KNOW THE TRUTH.  When things look the worst, that is the supreme moment to demonstrate, to ourselves, that there are no obstructions to the operation of truth.

Holmes is talking about keeping the faith in Good when everything seems grim. All around me everything sure felt negative. I had been personally attacked and undermined on my job. I saw a long- time coworker and friend involuntarily transferred out of my unit. A friend at the Center decided to steer her life away in a different direction. I had my faith denigrated by a person close to me as “fortune cookie nonsense.” I was left thinking “What the hell?” I felt angry, very angry, and I also experienced a sense of loss for the people no longer in my daily sphere.

I have a card on my altar with a quote by Ram Dass that says: Everything in your life is there as a vehicle for your transformation. Use it! That means everything that happens to me is ultimately for my good. I knew I had to start looking for that Good. I remembered Reverend Janis quoting Nelson Mandela as saying that if he continued to be bitter and angry at those who held him captive, it would be like keeping himself in prison. That told me I had to process my anger too, and that didn’t mean eating a box of chocolate to numb out. It meant a form of radical acceptance, just letting myself feel my emotions. I sat with my anger in meditation and let it tell me where it lived in my body and what it wanted me to know. I was aware that behind every emotion is a thought. As I sat I discovered the thoughts behind my feelings of anger and loss and the story I created about my reality.

My freedom of choice allows me to reframe the meaning of any experience, to rewrite my stories. I asked myself “is there a different way to look at this situation than as a victim?” That’s when I remembered that I had stated my desire to get in touch with that warrior woman archetype within me a few weeks ago. I had said I was attracted to the independence, decisiveness and strength of the warrior archetype and wanted to bring it into my personal life. Bingo! I had brought the perfect opportunities to myself to practice! When attacked on the job I strongly asserted myself and spoke my truth in a way I had never done before. When ridiculed for my beliefs, I accepted that I no longer needed others to accept me and approve what I do. When the two friends moved on, I realized I had not lost them but their daily absence from my life did spur me to remain independent in my work and growth. I indeed began to see all these events as catalysts for my transformation. I found God and saw the good in the events that had seemed so hurtful.

Like dough to make good bread, I sometimes need the leavening yeast of challenges, along with a good kneading, to make me rise and be strong. Once risen I know I can go out into the world and help others rise as well. In the New Testament, Luke 13:20–21, Jesus gives his shortest parable:

“To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? It is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, until it was all leavened.”

I now know I can prove the Truth to myself. It only takes a few people living the Truth to help others so we may all rise together and create the Kingdom of God right here.

And So It Is!

By Leah Hamilton

Creating a Common Vision

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Reverend Janis’ recent reminder of the faith of Genevieve Behrend to manifest study with Thomas Troward even though he was across the sea and she had no money to get there, inspired me to think how we in our Center can manifest the home of our desires.

We now own property on 22nd Street near Swan, a flat buildable five-acre parcel on a busy and visible thoroughfare.  What is our vision for the asset that we now own? Even when we do not yet know how the Universe will provide it, just as Reverend Janis suggested during her recent reminder, I propose we come up with a vision that we can share and envision together.  A common vision requires a picture that we can focus on individually and collectively as we imagine the reality of how the building that houses our sanctuary and education center looks like on the land we now own.

As Genevieve Behrend, we have some legwork to do to educate ourselves on the cost and processes so our vision has a point of direction. Genevieve knew how much money she needed to bring her dream to reality, she knew her mode of transportation and costs, she knew where she would stay when she arrived in England and she knew where to find Thomas Troward. She had done her research so she could direct her mental work to accurately envision herself counting the cash she needed from one hand to the other, cruising on the ship carrying her to England, residing in the room she would occupy, and once there, walking up to Troward’s house and knocking on the door.

With a collective vision, we can each picture the money we need already banked in the facility fund, the city granting permits, the electric and water being run into the property, the foundation being poured, the hustle and bustle of the building going up, the spades turning the earth and the gardens been planted, and the parking lot being paved.  We can each imagine ourselves in the light-filled sanctuary for Sunday celebration, hearing the music the stirs our hearts and animates our energy. We can each listen to the spiritual message of Reverend Janis’ inspired and challenging words of truth resounding in the warm and inviting new space.

We can each picture ourselves in the education center partaking of exciting classes, brimming with knowledge and tools to help us shape our lives, supported by the smiling faces of our loving Community. We can each smell the gardens growing on the land and mentally walk the meditation path or labyrinth to remind ourselves of Omnipotent Bounty. We can each envision the sign out front boldly declaring our new home to all those who pass by. We can see the paved parking filled with cars transporting those of us already participating at our center to our new digs, and those who are new to the center curiously coming in to find out what we offer.

With a common vision and a common purpose, we could each model the actions of Genevieve Behrend and do the mental work to put ourselves in the place we want to be and hold to that vision with absolute trust that it is already so because the abundant Universe knows how to deliver it even when we don’t.  Let’s make our vision a reality!  So It Is!

By Carla Hodge

Course Corrections

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“I learned this, at least, by my experiment: that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.”               — Henry David Thoreau, Walden

Have you ever wondered why changing directions, and moving in the direction of your dream, is so demanding and elusive? I have.

Not only must we endeavor to live the lives that we have imagined, we must also be honest about our experience of time, and how we spend, or use, it. Why? Because our repetitive thoughts and behaviors created the person I became today. The possibility of change arises only after we have neutralized the power, insistent drive and momentum of the old patterns and ways of thinking.

I had this realization at age 29. By age 29, I had spent 248,240 hours becoming exactly the person that I had become. During those years, I routinely spent one hour each Sunday in community on spiritual matters, and that was all. The rest of my life was mine to do with as I pleased. I didn’t like the results I was getting from that decision.

This recognition was important because I concluded that celebrating one hour in spiritual community on Sunday would not be sufficient to change the direction, much less reverse the trend, of my life. And I realized I had no interest in slowly and casually accumulating another 248,240 hours of (perhaps) new thinking to neutralize my past. Why?

I would be 58 years old, and only infinitesimally changed. I knew there had to be a faster way. There was. Rather than taking the slow path, doing only one thing at a time (attending Sunday services), I would increase my level of engagement and do three things at the same time. Simultaneously, I gave of my time, my talent and my treasure. This doesn’t only mean participating in the church or center of my choice. It means owning and honoring my own spiritual life experience. In doing so, I attained my goal and dream sooner rather than later.

By combining the actions, and owning them, I had unexpected success in common hours. I also had the experience of success sooner rather than later. One hour out of a week, or even of a day, would have been to slow, taken too long, and probably lead to frustration. And, out of that frustration, I can easily imagine creating an excuse to quit and say this stuff does not work. Attend Sunday Celebration only, participating at a passive level, would not have allowed my success.

In summary, there is power in time. How we use it is critical. Knowing the number of hours that passed in the creation of the old me, allowed me to exercise compassion towards the “me” that wanted to become more. I became my current self by arresting the momentum of my former life and intentionally changing my direction. Are you interested in arresting the momentum of your former self and creating a new you?

by Keith Gorley

Invisible Abundance

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Since becoming a student in Prosperity Plus II, I have thought a lot about abundance and prosperity. In agreeing to tithe, I found myself contending against a fear of “not enough”. It has been a liberating experience working to conquer that fear and grow my faith in Divine Abundance. I have found, right outside my window, a perfect parable of infinite Substance.

A month ago, I noted that I spend many of my waking hours at my work desk where I am blessed to have a window looking out on a tree and a distant view of the mountains. Wanting to share an experience of nature, I purchased a bird feeder that consists of a holder for up to three different cakes of bird food. I hung the feeder in the Palo Verde tree outside my window and waited for the birds to come to enjoy the suet, nuts and seeds.

Days passed by without any visitors to my bird feeder. I was puzzled because the clerk at the Wild Bird store assured me the birds would go crazy for the different seeds and nuts, especially during this season of hungry baby birds. Every day I kept watch on the tree and more than four weeks passed with the feeder remaining untouched. It looked quite forlorn just hanging there offering food without any notice.

Then I took a week away from the office. When I returned, I was startled to see a mad flock of birds at the feeder with the seed and suet cakes nearly decimated. Sometime last week, the birds discovered the bounty of food in that tree. Tiny sparrows and red headed finches battled for access to the hanging feeder, pecking their competitors away from the food.

Seeing how quickly the food was disappearing, I went back to the store and purchased a second feeder with more cakes of varied bird food that included cranberries, mealworms and smaller seeds for the tiny birds to peck. The presence of the second feeder in the tree did nothing, however, to lessen the competition for spots at the feeder. Such is the way of nature.

It seems to me the bird food hanging unnoticed in the tree is like the infinite Substance of Spirit all around us. That invisible Substance is available to us with the ease of a thought, and can manifest anything we desire or choose. It is always there but unless we recognize it, the Goodness remains untouched. Once we become aware of how we can tap into Divine Abundance, we realize we do not have to struggle for our prosperity. As Jesus said, “It is the Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.” The birds do not know there is an invisible giver behind the reappearing seed cakes, or that they need not worry about sharing the abundance, but I now have a constant reminder, right outside my window, that Spirit is my Source and that I am eternally supported.

By Leah Hamilton

My Prancing Doe

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“When someone you love becomes a memory, the memory becomes a treasure“– Unknown

“Unable are the loved to die. For love is immortality” – Emily Dickinson

Mother tiptoed away in the dark and drowsy wee hours of the morning when most are enveloped in slumber. Sleeping a rare sleep, one so deep and luxurious, I fought waking like a Grizzly Bear might fight to extend her winter’s hibernation.

What had began as a faint irritation far off in the distance; the ring tone of the phone gradually became louder and more insistent. Failing to reach the phone in time, I hit “redial” and was connected to Research Medical Center’s stroke unit in Kansas City. Mother was in Cardiac Arrest; the nightshift docs were giving CPR. They wanted to know my wishes, should they continue?

Fighting my desire to sink back into the depths of night and trying to kick start my thinking brain, the first words I could muster, with lots of pauses in between, were “Well … Hmmm … She has a DNR (Do Not Resuscitate order)…” Their response: “Do you want us to stop the CPR then?” Me: “Hmmm …..well …., she has a DNR so ummm, … Yes, I guess you should stop.”

There was not even a full minute to mull over or think through the ramifications of this decision, not a second to grasp or to cling. A decision was needed that very moment; it could not be undone and would change everything. Mom had tiptoed away after a stroke four days earlier. She had been playing the piano.

The day after the funeral, I visited mom’s grave. As I started down the lane to the family plot, I noticed a young deer literally dancing, a young prancing doe dancing as if to a lovely melody.

Mind you, I know Mount Moriah cemetery. I’ve been there for funerals and each year to commemorate Memorial Day with mother; decorating the graves of family members on both sides from her stash of colorful plastic flowers. I had never seen a deer in all my years there.

I knew immediately this dancing playful deer was my mother’s spirit, now set free. Mother was showing me her spirit – joyful and boundless, free from her paralyzed by stroke and pain-filled body.

Another ‘sign’ from mom came once I had arrived back in Tucson and started back to work. Quite extraordinarily, in broad daylight, a mother javelina and her baby curled up and sleeping for hours with their noses pressed against my office window.

My mother’s death unfolded perfectly, for her and for me. Given the chance, I would not rewrite this memory. It’s a perfect memory of my mother’s perfect life song.

By Holly Baker

Copy Watches

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More than 15 years ago, I worked for about a month as a technical consultant at a petrochemical plant in Singapore. I was filling in for a colleague who had been working there for over a year straight and he needed a little time off to take care of some family business. While I was there, I had a number of incredible and amazing experiences. One of the oddest, besides eating chicken feet, durian fruit and grilled stingray on a banana leaf ‘plate’, was learning about an entire subtext of ‘copy watches’. These weren’t knock-off watches that you could possibly mistake for the original; they were obvious fakes that bore the label of the high-end manufacturer. The watch I purchased, for about $20 US, might have approximated the quality of a Timex with a faux-leather band, but the logo on the watch face clearly said Rolex. The street-hawkers weren’t pretending that they were selling Rolex watches, they were very clear with their cries, “Copy Watch, Copy Watch, Copy Watch…”

So, why would anyone buy a knock-off that wasn’t even a believable knock-off? For me, it was a memory aide that connected me to this place that was on the one hand incredibly familiar, and on the other hand inconceivably foreign. For some, I imagine it was a way to thumb their noses at the economic aristocracy that felt compelled to flash their legitimate high-end watches and such. Singapore was such a cultural mixed bag. For me, my copy watch also served as a reminder of what is true, beautiful and powerful, and what is facade, imaginary, sheep-like behavior, or simply made up.

I was handed a book this week. Really, I was handed a book this week to pass on to someone else. It wasn’t meant for me. (Ha Ha!) That book, The Crossroads of Should and Must by Elle Luna, is a stunning, playful reminder that we continuously get to choose between following the crowd, doing what is respectable, or concurring with the ever-present shoulds and ought-tos, and actually acting on that deepest creative desire of our essential being. Even when we don’t choose, we choose by not choosing. I’ve always hated that part, because every time I try to shirk my responsibility for myself, it sticks like gum on the bottom of my sandals on a hot day.

Last night we began our 10-week foray into Mary Morrissey’s Prosperity Plus II materials. For those of you who have participated in this activity before, you know it isn’t actually about collecting money for the center, or the dreaded “T” word — tithing. I won’t lie and say that tithing is not a component of the class, because it is. From the very first video Mary talks about conducting your own experiment of tithing, just for the duration of the class, to find out if choosing to share of your financial abundance increases your general, and specific, experience of abundance in your life. For many participants, it does. It is not too late to join the class. Just call or e-mail the office and we can order class materials for you. The full set of materials, 10 CDs and workbook, is priced at $50. If you have taken the class before and simply want a blank workbook to use in retaking the class, we can order that for you for $15.

So what does this have to do with copy watches? We can attempt to be a copy of someone else, try to blend in with the crowd, pretend to be invisible or inconsequential, or we can recognize our own gifts, desires and talents and be seen as the unique and magnificent expressions that are known by our own names. Scary, I know, and yet, I believe it is a game worth playing.

To act is to modify the shape of the world — Jean-Paul Sartre

During the month of April, we continue to talk about discovery, creation and re-creation. With the energies of the holidays of Easter and Passover upon us, why not make use of this inherently creative time to break out from your own bondage into freedom, and enjoy your own resurrection?

by Rev Janis Farmer

It’s Good To Be Queen

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As part of my job I frequently visit kids in custody at the Juvenile Detention Center. To soften the impact of the stark institution, the administration lets kids paint murals on the walls and memorialize their educational achievements with painted handprints. There are also many inspirational quotes on the walls of those long hallways. One quote blazes in iridescent gold paint and I look at it on each visit. It says: Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision is just passing time. Vision with action can change the world! Lately this quote reminds me that my choices, too, create my experience of life.
In Victoria Castle’s workshop, she described two ways people tend to deal with their problems. Some people jump into action and busily do, do, do things to address issues while others take a passive and reflective approach to their problems. So, as in the quote above, some people just pass time by inefficient action and others just live in their heads and daydream. I happen to be the type of person who defaults to dreaming away inside my head, not effectively handling things. Victoria taught us a technique that works for both types of people. We can effectively address problems by managing our “state”, our internal response to circumstances. We can be in our bodies, breathe and remember our purpose and choose to be unaffected by outside conditions. Our state is where our sovereignty lies.
Likewise, in her Sunday message last week, Reverend Janis pointed out the importance of conscious choices. She said it is our responsibility is to pick what we want to experience or risk getting the default result based on race tendency of the Collective Unconscious. So, for example, we are not at the mercy of inherited health tendencies. We decide. If we pick and do not like the result we are free to pick again. To consciously choose is to exercise freedom and sovereignty in our lives.
I recognize my challenge is to get out of my head, to stop being passive and to exercise my freedom by making conscious choices and manifesting my desires. I get to be the sovereign of my own life. As a former people-pleaser, I had to learn that being sovereign means acting on my values, beliefs and intuition without seeking permission or approval from the outside world. To be sovereign is to be Self-reliant. In his book, Spiritual Liberation, Michael Beckwith said: “We are, each of us, kings and queens sitting on the throne of consciousness ruling our lives.” As I exercise my faith in Spirit I no longer feel fear about making decisions and acting on them. There are no limits to what is possible in God, but Spirit can only act through me. I must couple my vision with action if I want to change my world, and then ‘the’ world.

by Leah Hamilton

Changing My Relationship With Water

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“I don’t need easy, just possible …. and if you have faith anything is possible, anything at all.”  — Soul Surfer, Bethany Hamilton

Many summers ago, while visiting family friends at an apartment complex, I sat on a lounge chair in the pool area while my parents stood a few feet away engaged in adult conversations.  Overwhelmed with boredom, the polished reflection of the shimmering Sun swaying in the swimming pool captured my seven-year-old imagination.  Without any of the adults noticing, I rose to my feet and systemically placed one foot in front of the other and walked along the edge of the swimming pool.  My attention was focused on balance and perfect poise as I delicately took each step with exact accuracy.  Uncertain of how it happened, I momentarily deviated from my methodical stepping, lost my balance and plunged into the deep end of the swimming pool.

Instantly, I was consciously aware of drifting downward towards the bottom of the swimming pool.  I was also aware of my Dad’s quick reaction of jumping into pool and lifting me out of the water.  Once I was out of the pool, my Mother wrapped a towel around me and I felt the warmth of her embrace.  It was not until I stood back and looked into the faces of both of my parents that I realized how frightened they were by the unfolding chain of emotional events.  From that day forward, I never had any inclination to learn how to swim or any desire to get near a pool of water.

I have always enjoyed the kinetic energy that is naturally generated from being in the immediate nearness of the Ocean.  The mysteries of the endless waves and the massive grandeur of the Ocean soothes my soul.  Nevertheless, in all its majestic wonders I could not allow myself to relax and go into the water.  I ensured my safety by remaining on the edges of the shore.  My favorite stress releasing activities were skydiving and driving big trucks.  The idea of jumping into a pool of water sunk my heart into despair.

“If you want to learn to swim jump into the water.On dry land, no frame of mind is ever going to help you.” — Bruce Lee

Recently during a meditation, I experienced a vision of myself relaxed and calmly floating in water.  During my meditation, I felt confident and supported as I floated in an open body of crisp blue water.  In that moment, I felt the mental distractions of hydrophobia melt away.  Faith of myself and of my abilities as the Greater Me opened the doors to the possibility of learning how to swim.  As a matter of fact, this past week I took a brave step towards making my meditative vision a reality and I enrolled myself into adult swimming lessons.

The most amazing part of this new venture of my life is that the day after I committed myself to taking swimming lessons, I received an invitation to a pool party! I smiled as I graciously accepted the invitation.  Somehow, I know that this day and every day is the start to a beautiful and fearless summer that has never been swam before.

So It Is!  By Carla Hodge

My New Activism

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Over the past few weeks I’ve talked to many people groaning over the outcome of the Presidential election and fearing catastrophe for our country. I’ve been asked to participate in a march or some other protest as an activist. I respond that I decline to be discouraged because I hold faith that everything works out for good and that even painful change leads to greater possibilities. Usually, my words are greeted with skepticism and sometimes frank astonishment or criticism. But I know from our teachings that I own the responsibility to construct the story of my reality, so I’m not choosing any story of doom and gloom. Instead, I choose to stand on the truth of All One, All God, All Good. I strive to see the good in every person and every event, and to live from my internal divine guidance and core values. I call this “quiet activism” because it is so different from the way society, under the influence of collective consciousness, deals with things that seem to be “bad”. Instead of protests, petitions and marches, I choose prayer as my method of activism.

Over these same few weeks, I’ve reviewed my core values just as I know many others are doing at our Center. I have examined my actions to see where they were not congruent with my values. I meditated and I prayed. I got several “intuitive imperatives” that came in hard and fast. The first was that Compassion means, for me, means that I shift my diet and become a vegan. I cannot continue to turn a blind eye to the suffering of other beings, human or animal, that results from factory food production. The second imperative came a few days after I learned the news of Reverend Donald’s retirement plans. Love moved me to volunteer to sit on our Board of Trustees to help our Center navigate the change.

None of these decisions have been easy for me to implement. For example, I swiftly discovered, as a vegan, I can’t grab a quick bite to eat anywhere ever again. I am required to plan and be far more present about the food I eat. As a new Board member, I have new duties and meetings to add to my already busy schedule. My new activism is far from comfortable. When in doubt, I pray.

I believe the state of the world of our experience reflects our consciousness. If I want to see a world of love, plenty and right action, I must hold these things in my own consciousness first. As Michael Jackson sang, change starts with the man (or woman) in the mirror. My new activism is to believe one prayer of Truth can change everything, and then I pray.

by Leah Hamilton

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