Spiritual Awareness

Spiritual Awareness

I recall asking my parents to have the country song "Me and Jesus Have Our Own Thing Going," played at my funeral if I should die while I was still a child. Looking back I realize, It was my own personal statement of awareness’ perhaps of the first insight even at the age of 5 or 6. As I grew older the awareness grew stronger. I knew that I sensed things that the adults around me did not. My God with his divine unconditional love was not theirs with the big stick of fear, guilt and shame waiting to pounce on your whenever he got the chance. I learned not to asked the questions and upset them but deep inside I knew there was an "energy out there" that was not understood or communicated with by my parents, community and church. As in the 4th insight to remain around certain people would only result in drained energy and I would actually find myself sick. It was then I became somewhat of a loner but seldom lonely except for the cold winters when I could not communicate with nature and be lifted by its beauty and positive energy. Humans who are not aware of the oneness of all things created by the Spirit and thus connect with all things cut themselves off with the selfishness of the ego, where the ego is always focused on self at the price of others.

I am a professional storyteller, often when folks are listening to my stories they will say, "How is it so many astounding and coincidental things seem to happen to you and not others?" For a while I thought I just recalled them to use in my stories and they did not since they were not storytellers. However, lately I realized there is something unique in my life and has been there since I was a child. Perhaps, it is in everyone's life and I just tap into mine. After taking this class and my son saying to me just lately, "Mom you live a most unusual and charmed life. It is as if circumstances and things in life, play right into your hands when least expected, " I am aware that because I attempt to be at one with all things created by Spirit it does seem circumstances unfold upon my behalf with great mystery.

Just yesterday was a great example. I had painted a door prize for the International Thanksgiving dinner for peace among all faith and cultures. A piece of my soul was in the painting for I had felt such love for all mankind as I painted it. It was warm in its earth tones accented with blue for personal truth. I titled it - A Time for Gratitude - Thanksgiving. As I delivered and set it up I held it to my chest and with my minds intent said, "May the person who gets this painting feel the passion and beauty I felt painting it" I did not know the couple who won it but hoped it would not end up in some closet somewhere. Yesterday, I went to church and read that we had guest, Art and Cathy, a man and wife, that would be doing the special music. Suddenly, I noticed their faces and realized they were the winners of my painting, but the real treat came when all 4 of their songs were on Gratitude. I knew my oneness with all the Universe had brought my painting to them and their song, I Danced While I Could was their gift to me. I have loved to dance all my life but after an accident that left my knees in a lot of pain I leaned to swim instead and now instead, make my fingers dance on paper with my paints. As I was painting their painting I had said to myself. This is almost much fun as dancing as I splashed the paint on paper and moved more like a dancer than a painter on the paper.

While I have been involved in a peace mission for years as a teacher I have found until each person hears their own inner calling and listen to this voice within they are not ready to find a better path, and thus the teaching is useless. However, I have noted that just being able to forgive and send love energy to those who seek to hurt me and others often is enough to help the closed door of their minds open to a higher self.

After reading, Dr. Emoto book on blessing water. - Messages in Water, A year ago this month I started blessing the water I swim in each day and all the people that swim in the water. I bless the oceans, the lakes, the streams, the rain, puddles, tears and the water in all plants and humans on this earth. Just this simple act appears to have others opening up and asking for a better way. It is at this point I can teach and they are open to learning. I have a blog site where I have asked others to join me as they bath each night or morning in blessing all the water of the earth for in this way all humans and Mother Earth are blessed daily. I have not had a lot of takers yet, but I have faith they will come and join me with time in this blessing. There is a 100 Monkey concept in science that when 100 monkeys are taught a new trick that for some unknown reason the universal mind picks this up and monkeys all over the world can suddenly do the same thing. I believe as more and more of us commit to love and spirit and not the ego that this too will be picked up by all the universe. I feel our reason on this earth is to know this divine love and beauty that is a part of our heritage being created in the image of the Father/Mother Spirit who is Love.

Many of the things shared in this course are things I have been doing all my life. I think the joy of the class has been that I am now aware I am not alone. This inner voice of wisdom is calling to many, I just have not known it until now. It reminds me of a fiction book I read in college long ago by Stephen King, The Stand. In the story there are people all over the US hearing this same inner calling of wisdom to a better way, while it appears the rest if the world is falling apart. Instead, all these people follow the wisdom of the voice and as the world comes to an end for those going the wrong direction, there are those ready to lead those seeking the right direction.

By Rev. Linda Francis

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The Universal Life Church is a comprehensive online seminary where we have various classes in Christianity, one on Wicca, along with several Pagan courses, more than a few courses about Metaphysics with more being added regularly.

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Lesson 3 Spiritualism - Andrew Longsden

Being ok with the choices my colleagues and friends make giving them assistance and guidance by setting a good example listening to their wishes and desires we each must learn by our own mistakes and choose our destiny.


Being a morale citizen.

Learning an abundance of knowledge and earning wisdom through it being a positive influence and role model for others to follow

Being a good family member and more tolerant being able to communicate effectively so as not too cause discontent amongst family and friends
 

 

Andrew Longsden
Universal Life Church

Final Essay - Spiritual Development

This was the last course in my series towards the Chaplaincy degree (and I will continue with the rest of the courses.

It took me quite a while to finish—the last year I have been sidetracked with many other spiritual/religious activities (more about that in my final essay for the complete chaplaincy program).

 

When starting the Spiritual Development course, I had a hard time getting into it. Even though I understood everything being explained, my heart/mind did not quite follow the materials. I am not sure why—maybe initially I thought some of the ideas were a bit far-fetched, or maybe because some of the subjects scared me a bit. Let's face it: it is a bit scary to start exploring other planes, other worlds, spirits, and so on.

 

But the further I got into the course materials, it all started to make sense to me, and suddenly I realized that a lot of the materials were actually already familiar to me, in some form or another. I may not have called it NLP , "6-Step Reframe", or other terminology as used in the course, but over the years of management training, employee coaching, problem solving and so on many of the same subjects were lightly covered there. This course brought it all together, and with a lot of detail to actually start using it in practice.

 

That brings me to a whole other subject related to this course: It will probably take me months or even years to fully digest the materials and put it all into practice.  I have done many of the exercises, but especially the ones in the second half of the materials are ones that need a lot of time, practice, and repetition. As Dr. Crouch mentioned, some people will "connect" with the materials a lot quicker than others. I have a feeling that I will be fairly quick, but to really take advantage of this vast pool of treasures I will need to go through it several more times while I practice and practice some more until it will come more natural to me.

 

As mentioned, a lot of the materials felt familiar. I am not sure if that also has to do with my history as an avid Science-Fiction reader when I was younger. Many of the stories I read were about alternate universes and changing outcomes.

 

One thing that came to mind as I was going through the course materials was a book I read many years ago as part of my self-discovery and self-improvement: Dianetics from L. Ron Hubbard. At the time, I did not know about the Scientology Church, and the fact that Mr. Hubbard actually used to be a SF author himself (it clicked later when I remembered I read some of his SF work).

As initially with this course, I ended up having a hard time with Dianetics, as I thought some of the concepts went off into an area which I thought was very improbable.  However, after having finished the Spiritual Development course, I have to rethink that. I am even thinking of picking up Dianetics and read it again, in light of what I have just learned. I think that may be an interesting experience.

 

Thank you for yet another excellent course made available through the ULC Seminary!

 

Rev. Peter van Sluis

 

 

 

Rev. Peter Paul Multifaith Minister, Universal Life Church Universal Spiritual Philosopher www.ulcseminary.com Phone:  (612) 208-9168

 

 

Astral Projection lesson one: essay assignment

ASTRAL PROJECTION LESSON ONE ESSAY

by Wind Walker

Wind Walker was a name given to me by a Native American Woman. She said the name was given to her in a dream, she was to give me this name and she was to tell me this name was the name of a healer. These names are given to us so the Spirits will know us.

We were asked to share who we are, our history related to astral projection and what is behind our choice to take this course.

I have walked this earth for 62 years now and I know I have not yet discovered my full potential or who I have the ability to become. I am female, I have a physical body that allows me to experience this earth journey. I was raised by a family in a specific culture, where I learned the rules and expectations of how I was supposed to walk, live, think, believe and interact with others.

Life has been about choices, levels, choosing different paths to explore, choosing to stay safe or choosing to take risks and to meet the challenges.

Yesterday I finished creating a sacred little garden area. Others speak of the peace they feel in this little sacred garden, so do I. I do love to work on houses, lawns and to create spaces that bring feelings of calm, peace, and nurturing. I am an artist and love doing much the same thing with my oil paintings and water colors.

I worked for many years as a crisis nurse. I began to study Reiki, massage, and other healing modalities. I spent part of my life learning from the Native American medicine people, elders, pipe carriers and many friends from the different nations.

Today I am very much a grandmother, worrying about a young, beautiful granddaughter who has taken off on a road trip, to escape her present life and search for a better life. I am praying for my young grandson who is going in for surgery. I am thinking of my youngest son, the father of these children. Yesterday we spent the day with friends. Once we were young and strong, now we are older, not so strong, we have our aches and pains and health challenges. We laughed and joked about sharing this new phase of our lives.

The Indian People say when we reach the age of being grandparents, that is when we begin to have wisdom. I retired a year ago and now have time to explore some different things that I could not do when I was working full time. I have the appreciation now of really wanting to learn what others have experienced and learned on their journeys. I have gained wisdom enough now to know there is so much I have not been exposed to, have not learned and if I am going to explore, I had best be doing it.

I have done enough vision questing and dream walking, to know there is another level, travels we cannot yet imagine, ways to work with the energy, the ways our thoughts can have power, ways of healing, the Spirit teachers of our inner spaces, that there are places in the universe where you can hear the stars sing, places where the history is kept, places where there is no time, places where in being there, you realize that life here is the dream.

There is so much that the ancient ones are willing to show and share and teach us in the dream walking, we only have to ask and be ready. I am hungry to learn more about the ways of my ancestors, the Celtic, the Finnish, the Gypsy and Native American.

The more I learn, the more I learn about who I am. The more I learn about who I am, the more I also learn about who others are. There has been so much that has been lost over these many generations, so much of the old ways, the old knowledge and I search to find the ways to bring back the memories of my people.

When I saw this class offered, I suspected that there would be things I would learn and be exposed to that would help me on this search.

Thank you for allowing me to share this part of my own story.

Dr Spirituality lesson # 13 Death

Hi Amy,

This course would have us deny the reality of death and see death as an "illusion".  The premise, as I understand it, is that nothing but love exists and only love is real.  Furthermore, this course teaches that the concept of death and the concept of "evil" are illusions held by the collective "conscious" mindset.  It appears to me that the underlying principal is if we all embrace love that there will be no death and no suffering.

I believe that our physical bodies are a "vehicle" for us to learn "life lessons."  I believe we are much more than a body.  When we have learned the lesson we came here to learn we then shed the current "body/vehicle" as it is no longer needed.  It is the vehicle that becomes lifeless/dead.  The spirit "life force/God within" lives on.

In terms of "suffering" an argument could be made that pain, whether it be physical, emotional or spiritual may be inevitable, however, "suffering" is optional. In our lives we experience bumps and bruises on our various levels.  We feel glad, sad, mad and we experience perceived obstacles.  We see ourselves alone and separate.  It is our thinking that creates suffering.  An example of this would be an experience I had when I was 9 years old.  I was not afraid of snakes although I lived on a ranch in rattlesnake country. One day my Dad and I were out doing chores.  I was not worried about anything and walked by a bull snake that slithered behind me.  My Dad stopped me and lectured me about how that could have been a rattlesnake and I could be dead if it had been.  He was trying to teach me a lesson about "mindfulness", however, what happened for me was: 1. I disappointed my Dad. 2. I made my Dad feel afraid for me. 3. It was wrong for me to not pay attention. 4. Snakes are dangerous and to be avoided at all costs.  These thoughts have created suffering for me.  Not because I have been bitten by a snake, but because I learned to limit my exposure to snakes by not going outside during snake seasons, by being hyper-vigilant for fear I might encounter a snake and if I did it could kill me and this would hurt my Dad.

In getting back to the prayer exercise.  I disagree that it is "my duty/responsibility as God's minister to deny the reality of death." I think it is my duty to help others see that the demise of the physical body is not the "end" rather it is the liberation of the soul/spirit to move onto whatever is next in God's plan for us. Monnie