Moving Toward the Light by Rev. Lane Williams
We’ve just begun the Lenten Season, a time when Christians traditionally spiritually prepare themselves for Easter, the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection. We in Unity use this time to reflect on what we are willing to release, change, forgive and be rid of in every part of our life – the physical, spiritual and emotional aspects of life. This can be a time of crucifying what no longer serves us. This can be a time of blessing all of it, the desired and that which we don’t want as we release it. This can be a very powerful time for those dedicated to enhancing their spiritual journey.
As we reflect on the unresolved tensions in relationships, those people we hold grudges against and have not forgiven (including ourselves), those habits that no longer support us and are a hindrance to our health and well-being, we can choose again. We can step forward to the light and the promise of new life – a resurrection into being more of who we came here to be. We can affirm to ourselves as we move through the process that no circumstance, no matter how troubling it may be, has the power of itself to hurt us. We give that power to them by how we choose to interpret them.
Charles Roth, Unity minister and inspiring writer, uses an analogy I like. Imagine that there are 20 pairs of reading glasses lying on a table, each one ground differently, some magnifying greatly and others less so. Then 20 people each put on a pair of these glasses and are asked to describe a certain object that’s then presented to them. What would the result be? Yes, each person would describe it differently, the size and detail of it, depending on the glasses through which she was looking. So it is with us. The world as we interpret it is determined by the lens through which we are looking – our consciousness, our awareness, our thinking, attitudes and beliefs.
Recently on a call from my gardener friend, Karen who lives in California, she told me of how she found a twig in her compost as she was turning it. Annoyed she pulled it from the mulch to discard and discovered that attached to the twig was a lump, which as she brushed off the dirt turned out to be an avocado seed. The twig was long and gangly with a small clump of green leaves at its end. Imagine this, she said, imagine that this avocado grew so diligently, so patiently in the dark, forming roots and then leaves in hopes of reaching the light and thus nourishment and continued growth.
So it is with so many of us humans. We so patiently and diligently grow in the dark, preparing ourselves for the light that we trust will be there. We have faith that we will be provided for; we have an inner urging to move toward renewed and invigorated life. We live in the midst of challenging times, yes and there is seemingly unending conflict in the world. Try as we might to remain positive there are many naysayers to point out the error of our thinking. Oscar Hammerstein wrote “that a man who is happy seldom tells anyone. The unhappy man is more communicative. He is eager to recite what is wrong with the world and seems to have talent for gathering a large audience. It is a modern tragedy that despair has so many spokesmen, and hope so few.”
Jesus trusted in the all-knowing, ever-present goodness of Life. He knew; he experienced the unconditional flow of love, good will and perfection in the universe. He repeatedly taught that anything that would keep us from alignment with Source, from the awareness of our oneness with God, is to be cast from us. Jesus knew that what we really wanted was the experience of bliss that comes from being in the Presence. Jesus knew that aside from the temporary pleasures of the human experience, what we truly want is to BE in God, in Love, in Peace, in Bliss! Let us join together as spokespeople for hope, with faith in the ever-present and all-powerful presence of God active in our life and in the world. Let us move toward the Light. And so it is. And so it is.
