View this email online if it doesn't display correctly
|
|
|
|
| Wednesday Meditation: 7:00 PM Table Talk Thursday: 12:00 PM Sunday Service: 10:45 AM Sunday Social: 12:00 PM
|
| | | | Our
WINGS group met in the UCC Cafe on Tuesdays for many years. Now that
we're sheltering in place, the group really misses sharing their
inspiring weekly studies.
Since our WINGS group leader, UCC Certified
Truth Teacher, Cynthia Mackey, began to send out weekly emails to the
group, we asked if we might share her messages with our entire email list so that more people could enjoy
them.
You're very welcome to send questions or positive comments to
Cynthia at: info@unityofclearwater.org. |
| |  |
Hi Everyone,
Welcome to the last week of August and the end of another month of pandemic social distancing and isolation. I think it is the fifth month and we may have another five or six months to go. Hmm . . . that is not a pleasant thought. So, as I dwelt on that thought for a moment; my next thought was that I could use a thought changer. Many years ago, I was introduced to the ideas of Norman Vincent Peale in the form of a short pamphlet he had published titled “Thought Changers.” The idea was to substitute a positive thought of God, of the Divine, for a negative, or we could say “earthly” thought. At the time I was experiencing some difficulties in my life, so I wrote these thought changing ideas down and posted them all over my home -- above the coffee pot, on the bathroom mirror, or any place I would see them regularly. For me, it was a very successful method. As I began to change my thinking, my outer life began to change. Later, I was introduced to Unity and realized that this is a Universe of Thought and how I think is what really matters!
This brings me to the idea that I want to share with you today. I was talking to a close friend yesterday and she shared with me an idea she had heard: “The way to a serene life is to live as the center of a sandwich, between gratitude and acceptance.” I really like that! Having gratitude and acceptance keeps me in the now! Being in the now is being in the presence of God!
Unity author, Eric Butterworth, has much to say on the topic of gratitude and acceptance in his book Spiritual Economics. In the beginning of Chapter 5, “The Grateful Heart,” Butterworth wrote, “Your most important asset is the conscious control of your own life. Nothing else can fulfill unless you enjoy the freedom that comes from control of your inner world of mind and emotions.” This idea removes any ability of the enlightened person to blame others for how one thinks or feels. To me that is acceptance that whatever the situation is, I must start there to change my thinking about it. However, I must first accept what is. How do I get past that? The next step is to move further into that chapter to the idea of a grateful heart. Butterworth goes on to say, “Thanksgiving is not just a reactionary emotion; it is a causative energy. It is an effective key by which anyone can meet life as a powerful conqueror.” Giving thanks, living in a state of feeling blessed, is an expansive state of consciousness and keeps us in the awareness of divine flow.
In that chapter, Eric Butterworth tells a favorite story of mine about a couple who travels to a major city for the first time. The city, as true of most cities, is known to have many problems; however, their host first takes them to the highest point in the city for a “lofty overview.” It was a beautiful day and the visitors felt as if they could see “forever.” They continued their visit for a week and at the end went home singing the praises of their host city and enjoyable vacation. Throughout their visit they viewed everything through the lens of their original breathtaking overview, their spiritual eye view. The lesson from this is to always take the view from the top. Before you are overcome with the negative, lift your eyes to the highest possible point of view -- to the highest level of consciousness!
I hope all of you are safe and well. I miss everyone and I miss our time together, but from the high consciousness I know it is best. This, too, shall pass!
Peace and Love from the Highest Place!
Cynthia
Today I attached two photos from my 2018 trip to Paris of the lofty view of the city. The first is the Trocadero, from the highest point that I ascended on the Eiffel Tower. It stands directly across the Seine River to the east of the tower. The second is the contrast between the old city of Paris and the newer financial district on the opposite side of the Seine. That is to the south of the tower. Only tall buildings are permitted to be built in that area to preserve the ambiance of the rest of the city. What a view! |
| | | | | | Your Weekly Affirmation:
“I
ACCEPT THE REALITY OF THESE APPEARANCES, BUT NOT THEIR PERMANENCE.
ONLY GOD, THE GOOD, IS REAL AND EVERLASTING. AS FOR THE SHADOWS OF THE
PAST,
THEY ONLY CAME TO PASS.”
THANK YOU, GOD! |
|
|
|
|
