Minister’s Message, January/February

Your Faith Will Get You Through by Rev. Lane Williams

            From a broad prospective of our human history we like being scared. In the past we liked watching scary things like public executions and gladiator events, and now it’s boxing, wrestling, professional football, hockey, video games, and violence on TV and movies. Our media vies for the scariest headliners to drive up the public’s attention. Being scared brings up the ratings. As a people we are adrenaline junkies.

            There’s a great horror film, The Fly, about a brilliant but eccentric scientist who is experimenting with teleportation. Naturally the experiments begin to go wrong, and before long he starts turning into a huge and scary insect. When he pleads with one of the characters not to be afraid, the reporter working on the story contradicts him with what has now become a classic line: “Be afraid. Be very afraid.”

     In the movie this is humorous; today it well describes the contemporary cultural mood. Constantly we are told to be afraid, to be very afraid. You could even say that we are now afraid of not being afraid. “Be very afraid!” has become the motto of the political parties – what will happen if one or the other is in control of the government. Now there are things to be concerned about, very concerned about, but when you compare our lives with our ancestors, we are safer than we have ever been. When we look at the stories of floods, famine, slavery, plagues, war and exile in the Bible, life was “poor, nasty, brutish, and short.” And yet what is the refrain that you hear again and again throughout the Bible? “Do not be afraid.” In the midst of these fears and dangers, “Be still and know that I am there. I am with you,” says the Lord, “I am with you!”

     In the midst of our fear we are to draw upon our faith that God is ever present; we are not alone. For as our fear tightens us up, we close down, we retreat and attempt to protect ourselves, or flee from the danger – the fight or flight instinct. In our fear, we shut ourselves off from any creative solutions. We separate ourselves from the Allness, the Oneness where we know that there is only good and we are divinely protected. BUT Faith is fearless, because faith trusts in God, the ever-present source of all that is and will be. That is the gift and privilege of being alive today, to be consciously awake and aware. And no one and no thing can take that away from us. How can I be afraid when I am the beloved expression of a loving Creator?

     Faith is our ability to commit ourselves totally to spiritual truth. It empowers us to see the good even in appearances to the contrary. It is the power to move unseen good into manifestation. Charles Fillmore said faith is “the perceiving power of the mind linked with the power to shape substance.” This definition explains how faith works to manifest the ideas we are focused upon. From the underlying field of all possibility, the substance from which all is manifest, as we focus, as we tap into this power of faith, we bring forth that which we desire. That is how it works.

     There is a tale of a visiting monk, a referred spiritual teacher, who was being guided to the temple by two young initiates. As they approached the gate to the temple, the huge snarling dog that guarded the gate broke its chain and came rushing toward the monk and his guides. In fear, the young men fled from the dog. But what did the monk do? He ran toward the mad dog and the dog turned and fled from him.

     So it is for us. When we calmly turn toward those things that scare us most and face them awake and aware, we gather the strength and the resources to solve them. For our minds are always connected to that creative ability to bring forth the perfect solution, but our fear closes us off from Source. When we relax in even the scariest situations and breathe in calmness, we open ourselves to the power of Divine Wisdom. When we shine our light, this Divine Light into the darkness, we see the truth of what lies before us and from this place we can bring forth perfect solutions. And so it is and so it is.

Minister’s Message, November – December

Lift Your Eyes to the Light by Rev. Lane Williams

      Recently I decided to look for any scientific evidence that could explain the Christmas star of Bethlehem. Some say it was a harmonic convergence of planets, others suggest that it was from comets passing close to the Earth, and some others hypothesize that it was the light from supernovas so bright we could see their light clearly even so far away on Earth. But there is no conclusive proof for any of these ideas or that even that there ever was such a star appearing at the time of Jesus birth. For me it does not really matter. If it is only a myth or even if it is a tale manufactured by the early Christians to add weight and veracity to the sacred and divine quality of Jesus coming, I don’t care. I still am moved and inspired by the mystery and wonder of this time of year and by that amazing light in the sky.

      In Christmas pageants all over the globe the star of Bethlehem, real or not, shines over the humble stable of Jesus’ birth year after year. This is the glorious star that alerted the Wise Men traveling on camels bringing their gifts from afar; it awakened the shepherds as they tended their flocks, called forth all the angels heard on high, and even summoned the little drummer boy. They all gathered miraculously at the same time to greet the baby Jesus and his parents. They represent all of us, metaphysically. We too honor his life, his teachings, his message and the promise his life foretold of living in peace with one another.

      This light shining so brightly still glows in our hearts and minds today, centuries after it was first seen. The light illuminating the darkness of a cold winter’s night reminds us of Heaven’s presence all around us. But just as a light’s reflection cannot be seen clearly in turbulent water, so it is with a troubled mind. When the waters are calm and stilled, the reflection is clear. When we release any anxiety, restlessness, and enter the silence with a peaceful mind, we clearly see Spirit shining all around us. In the lake of our divine mind, there is God.

      Just as you might block the light of the sun by standing behind a tree, you can block the divine light of Spirit by standing in the shadow of the ego’s illusion of being separate and alone. But like the light of the sun, the shadow does not extinguish the light. For shadows depend on a light source for their existence, and there can be no lies without Truth to deny – the truth is that God is ever present, eternal and enduring. God is all that there is.

      We once again remember at Christmas time that through God’s love we can express the fullness of divine love toward our brothers and sisters. As we practice forgiveness, loving kindness, and generosity we return to the experience of wholeness. The image of God’s light, of heaven touching Earth on that blessed morning so long ago will always warm and comfort us. As we give to others we are blessed. And we willingly receive their love, the kindness, the generosity being offered to us. We are immersed in the light, the love, the Allness of sweet spirit.

      As I lift my eyes to the light spiritually, I am elevating my consciousness. That holy light from Bethlehem’s heavenly star, so huge and shining so brightly, dispels any fear, any resentment, and any pain. I am enlivened, renewed, and filled with a deep peace and reverence for all life. I am reminded of the true reason for this joyous season: to live and love and be the Christ light reflecting, expressing, and being the peace of God on Earth. And so it is and so it is.

Minister’s Message, September-October

The Power of Prayer by Rev. Lane Williams

      Prayer is the cornerstone of the Unity movement and an important part of our spiritual community here in Vermont. Prayer is a powerful tool for me – one that I have used since I was a child. My grandmother, we called her Nana, was a healer. She was a prayer practitioner, a follower of Joel Goldstein, a New Thought author and teacher. I can remember the phone ringing in the middle of the night when I visited her. She would listen to the voice on the other end and speak soft loving words, hang up and then move to her meditation corner. When I asked her what she did, she replied, “I see them as they are – whole, healed, and perfect.”

     Charles and Cora Fillmore said in Teach Us to Pray that “…prayer is more than asking God for help in this physical world; it is in its highest sense the opening up in our soul of an innate spiritual umbilical cord that connects us with the Holy Mother, from whom we can receive a perpetual flow of life…Prayer is man’s steady effort to know God…God-Mind, composed of radiant ideas, vibrant life, glorious new inspiration, is ours to use… When we awaken even a very slight consciousness of this co-operative spirit, we become co-creators with God, and we find we can adjust to any condition that comes into our life.”

     The most powerful way of praying I’ve found is based solely in feeling, on the silent language of human emotion. It includes gratitude, thanksgiving, and appreciation as if the prayers had already been answered. I pray the feeling with: touch, taste, smell, sight, sound. I know, with all my senses; I’m assured, it is done; it is accomplished and here present. Finally I give thanks for being part of the creative process.

     This quality of gratitude and appreciation releases the life-affirming chemistry of powerful hormones and strengthens our immune system. In effect this is raising and strengthening our vibrations – we are uplifted in spirit, and this impacts the world around us. Our vibrations emanate beyond our bodies, impacting the energy field surrounding us. We uplift the spirit of the world around us and manifest healing, prosperity, and well-being in our lives.

     Many times people don’t experience answered prayer. They pray and pray for something and no help comes. When we pray asking, praying for something to happen, we are giving power to something we don’t have. Prayers for healing empower the sickness. Prayers for prosperity empower the lack. Continuing to ask for these things only gives more power to the things that we would like to change.

     Often the spiritual breakthroughs on our path come when we are at the depths of our frustration, when we feel alone, forsaken – those dark nights of the soul. We’ve tried everything we know, and we don’t know what to do to bring relief and turn it around. Then we may say to God, “If you want me to learn all this stuff, then you’re going to have to show me because I’m tired of trying to do it all myself!” Then an opening occurs. We open ourselves to a higher power, a greater understanding – we turn it over to God and we listen.

     The Mind of God can offer a higher solution to any problem that you cannot solve alone with your human mind. This Mind is wholeness and perfection. As you dwell in that Mind of God, you immerse yourself in this higher energy. You are saturated with the peace of God, the wholeness, the perfection, the oneness of Spirit. This is the source my Nana knew so well and tapped into – so can we. And so it is and so it is.  Amen.