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Thursday, December 24, 2009

Christmas Hope

Spiritual resource to share: readings from inspired writings



As I looked at the Glossary from Mary Baker Eddy's book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, it struck me how many words applied directly to the Christmas story. So that became the basis of my readings for a Wednesday evening testimony meeting. Enjoy! And have a blessed Christmas!

Jer 17: 7
Job 11: 17, 18
SH 591: 23

Isaiah 9:6-7
Psalm 72:17

SH 581: 4
SH 588: 7
Luke 1: 26- 37

SH 494: 15 (only)
135: 6
591: 21
Luke 1: 38- 47, 56

SH 589: 19
582:14
589: 16-18
Matt 1: 18-24
Luke 2:4-7

SH 596: 11 (only), 15
510: 9
593: 4
Matt 2:1, 2, 5, 6, 9-11

SH vii: 4, 2
594: 12
584:26
298: 28-30
Luke 2: 8- 20, 22, 24

SH 583: 10
590: 9
582: 1
Luke 2: 25-33, 36-40

29: 20-1
298:13-15, 19-20, 22-24
319:5-7
446:20-23
45: 16
482: 19-22, 23

Hymn 236
Hymn 310
Hymn 222









To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Monday, December 14, 2009

Lessons from trees and babies and patients

Spiritual resource to share: fun


No one ever told me how much laughter happens when you are in the daily practice of Christian Science. There is much joy to be harvested here -and sometimes that joy comes out in full throated guffaws. You operate on honesty and earnestness and you expect and demand results. It has to be practical. It ends up being joy-full.

In one particular conversation with a patient, we were talking about moving forward and how this is natural for us to do. As natural as the seedling rises to its full purpose of a tree, it is part of our nature as children of an all-loving intelligent God, to rise to our full purpose.

A favorite quote comes to thought: "The place where God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet." (F. Buechner) It is not what we love that moves us forward , it is THAT we love that we cannot help but move, grow, and continue to bless others as well as ourselves. God calls us to fulfill Her holy purpose. We respond.

But what about dealing with obstacles or seeming setbacks? What would try to divert, hinder or stop us from moving forward. Perhaps it is nothing but our own fabrications.

So, our conversation continued, how would a child learning to walk deal with a stumble? We know that something in them moves them forward; some compelling and holy curiosity gets them to stand up and try again. This is not heroic or out of the ordinary. This is what babies do! (Can you even imagine a baby taking a tumble and then refusing to get up? "Oh yes, you see," this hypothetical baby might try to explain, "I just must be the falling down baby type. Perhaps I am really meant to be on the floor." Preposterous.)

Segue to the Bible's book on II Timothy, where it states:

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.... Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus ....

And answering this calling, and practicing this Truth, and sharing/discovering it with others leads to a joy that just makes you want to look up, hold your arms out and laugh.


To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Friday, December 11, 2009

a gift for a child

Spiritual resource to share: our gifts


This just in .....

barbie horse with a pink saddle joyce

Ok, (writes her mom) so Joyce typed the above in, BUT if you would like to be her 'pink' heroine she is the perfect age for dressup stuff. She has not had a good boa since the last one blew up. She just had a light up tiara fatality on the back yard swing set, and would be forever greatful to her favorite Aunt Kim for a box of girlie whatever. .... Anything else? Yes, she pretends most of the day, and fairies and princesses are on the top of the list. (Right after dog and horse)
This was in response to our family's annual gift exchange. I am fortunate enough to have enough nieces that I (coming from a heavily male-oriented family) can get my girl fix in on a regular basis. I get to choose pink things, and musical things and romantic movies and girls' athletic wear, and share books, favorite charities, innovations and woodland adventures with the best of them.

Successful gift giving all depends on what each girls' gifts are and where they are in their lives. That makes sense.

But little did I know that when we first got the first inspiration that a child was on the way, what gifts a child would bring to our lives. Little did I know the depth of love that is felt, the frustration, the surprise, that comes with the package of parenting.

Each child comes to us complete with an inherent mission, a cluster of spiritual qualities uniquely expressing their infinite Father-Mother God. We have the awesome job of seeing these qualities bloom perenially. Through sleepers and night time feedings, to ice skates and fairies, to car keys and college, each child's purpose blossoms and grows.

And I think, do we know just how important our gifts are to them? Our gifts of effort and earnestness, of love, experience and time provide their nourishing soil. We, as parents, are there to remind them that they are known, that they have a purpose and that they are loved.

So in this happy exchange of gift-giving, the deeper current of being known for who you are and who you will be moves forward and we celebrate it! That's the best gift for a child!









To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Saturday, December 05, 2009

good is not helpless

Spiritual resource to share: true power in organizations

These statements have persistently intrigued me: that good is not helpless; truth always triumphs and love never fails. The power behind these absolute statements forms the basis for their expression.

So - I have puzzled - how do you engage with organizations that seem to fall flat of ethical and noble goals? Who have told outward lies, blatantly disregarded laws? Quitting those organizations is one option. Staying with and trying to bring about change is another. Both responses to these moral dilemmas are difficult.

Once a group hired a non-professional musician who was earnest and consistent and, as one friend said, "he plays most of the right notes most of the time." This grateful and compassionate approach helped me to see how I could engage with other groups where I didn't always agree with how they operated. I could see the good that they do and work with that.

But this went deeper. This wasn't a Pollyanna approach.

I understand that good works are born of honesty, commitment, dedication and selflessness and are powerful. In fact, these are the only qualities that accomplish anything worth accomplishing!

Deeply understanding the fixed nature of good trumps the mesmeric and discouraging aspects of greed, selfishness and even criminal thought that would bring on apathy and a sense of hopelessness.

Understanding the nature of good also heightens our awareness of good so that we don't mistake well intentioned efforts incorrectly.

I realized that it doesn't matter how many people are involved in an organization or how many differing opinions arise in the operation of an organization. Good will prevail.

Tangled bureaucracy, rumor mills, gossip and lawlessness do not have an absolute or spiritual basis. They can't stand.

Like a blade of grass pushing up in a desert - Truth, Life and Love - all elements of good - are insistent. Truth slices away at the tons of conflicting opinions like sand dunes drifting back and forth. Love plants its roots deeply. Life continues to create and perpetuate Life.

I continue to apply these ideas to my own life, the smaller groups I belong to and those larger groups that are fighting genocide, are encouraging earth stewardship and global efforts toward peace.

A human organization with noble goals is working its purpose out as surely as I am understanding and fine-tuning my life purpose.

Compassion, patience and an absolute hold on the power of Truth continue to guide me and remove any baggage as surely as it is guiding each of those organizations that I am committed to. I found I need to be as patient and persistent with these groups as I hope others are with me.

This can only bear good fruit. Love never fails; Truth always triumphs; and good is never helpless.




To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Perfect Justice

Spiritual resource to share: inspirational readings

I chose these selections from the Bible and Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy to get a clearer idea on the transforming power of God's law. Years ago, I took a number of courses including a course in Health Care Law. It was interesting to hear that all of our current thousands of laws on the books have their roots in the Ten Commandments.

Enjoy!

From the Bible:

Ps 119: 97, 98

Ps. 89: 14-17

Ezek 44: 24

Exodus 20: 1-17

John 1: 17

Matt 5: 1-12

Gal 5: 19-23

I Pet 5: 6-11

Micah 6: 8

Prov 3: 1-4

From Science and Health

SH 4: 5

340: 9-22

174: 17

271: 21

184: 12-18

391: 17-18

36: 19-21

105: 3-10, 13-21

106:6, 15-19, 27-29

393: 16-18

63: 5-15, 18-20, 23-27

64: 1-2

65: 20-25

66: 6-7, 10

495: 28-31

467: 1-16

340: 23-29

From the Christian Science Hymnal

Hymn 111

Hymn 329

Hymn 12









To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Why I love Christian Science nursing (and you will too!)

Spiritual resource to share: an inspirational talk

Over the summer, I was asked to give an inspirational talk on Christian Science nursing.
You have to understand. I. love. Christian. Science. nursing.

In this talk, I was able to distill all of my experiences as a Christian Science nurse's aide and as administrator for a Christian Science nursing facility plus my additional and continuing inspiration and put it all into one talk.

The talk Christian Science nursing - for the dignity and defense of our Cause highlighted the full spectrum of influence of Christian Science nursing which "comforts an individual as well as elevates the race in its concept of care." It included this healing that happened to our family:

At one point, my husband badly strained his back, so much so that he couldn’t even partially turn his head without feeling severe pain. When our six year old son came in the room and jumped up on the bed, my husband screamed out in pain and scared our son. The little guy ran out of the room and came back and threw a copy of Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy on the bed and pleaded – “Mommy – you take Daddy to your work!” He knew that there was a place where his dad could go and be helped. And it was obvious that my husband needed to be properly cared for in a way that wasn’t scary to our young family.

When we called a Christian Science nurse, she helped us assess the situation and let us conclude that he needed to be in a facility to receive proper care. An ambulance was called and she helped set us up at the facility, where my husband would receive around-the-clock care.

Although my husband was new to the study and practice of Christian Science, he said he felt so loved and cared for at the facility that it was tangible. In three days, he came home, healed and playing soccer in the yard with our sons.

So what was the impact of the role of the Christian Science nurse on this individual? He was blessed by being in that atmosphere where healing was expected – this helped him to expect healing. He benefitted by the practical wisdom and proper care of the nurses. They defended the atmosphere in the sickroom. He defended his thought. Their disciplined approach to care helped his disciplined approach to prayer and helped to remove fear.

In the end, his healing was quick and complete.



To read the entire talk, go to Hill Top Center's website and click on to "Inspirational Talk from Annual Meeting 2009."

Enjoy!







To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.


Wednesday, September 30, 2009

the basic questions

Spiritual resource to share: your own inspired answer

I have often been asked about the practice of Christian Science and recently sat down to re-think and get re-charged with new inspiration. I answered these two freqently asked questions in this way:

What does a Christian Science practitioner do?
  • A Christian Science practitioner gives Christian Science treatment and prays with his or her patients. The spirit of love characterizes the practitioners’ work in which healing is expected: physical ills are cured, relationships restored and discordant situations reversed.
  • The basis of Christian Science is that God is Love. The theology of Christian Science explains that suffering is not God’s will, neither is shunning, shaming, abandoning one needing help, or dictating what another should do.
  • If healing results do not come quickly, the individual is free to seek other practitioners or other means of healing. Results matter.

What is the difference between treatment and prayer?

  • Christian Science prayer is general and can be shared under all conditions; some Christians might call this type of prayer a prayer of affirmation.
  • Christian Science treatment is specific and is up to the individual patient and the practitioner as to how the case is taken up. It is a sacred trust between practitioner and patient, and may involve communion, confession as well as personal revelation and spiritual reasoning. Both patient and practitioner expect healing to be the result of Christian Science treatment.
  • Christian Science treatment is purely spiritual and includes the work of a Christian Science practitioner. It may also include the work of a Christian Science nurse* and/or being cared for at a Christian Science nursing facility. It does not include any material methods of healing, neither is a Christian Science practitioner licensed to give medical care. If a patient decides to change to medical care, they need to go to one who is licensed to give that care.
  • A Christian Scientist who elects medical care is still considered a child of God! (Nothing can take away that status!) In Christian Science, God’s love is constant and unconditional. A Christian Scientist strives to reflect that same love. Shunning or shaming is illegitimate and has no part in the practice of Christian Science.

For other responses to these questions, check out these links:

What is a Christian Science practitioner?

What is Christian Science treatment?

*a Christian Science nurse is one “who has a demonstrable knowledge of Christian Science practice, who thoroughly understands the practical wisdom necessary in the sick room and who can take proper care of the sick.” (The Church Manual by Mary Baker Eddy)









To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Monday, September 28, 2009

your definition of God = your religion

Spiritual resource to share: infinite God



I have been sharing Godwords on my facebook page for months now. Godwords are a collection of 3 to 7 words that prompt thought into considering the multi-faceted nature of God.


So when I wrote the Godwords of today: brilliance, improvisation, order, calmness and music, a friend responded:

Hi friend. Why GODwords? Are brilliance, improvisation, order, calmness and
music dependent on religion? Love you.
I thought it was a good question because it makes you ask other questions. Like -- can a spiritual quality be dependent on a spiritual discipline? Hmmmm. Or -- can religion encompass universal qualities? Can religion be universal?

I can see the larger question here.

If one understands religion as being a restrictive way to govern behaviour, a system of beliefs passed down from generation to generation, or a formalized and traditional way of determining meaning in life, it is difficult to smoosh into that narrow definition qualities of thought that are expansive, eternal, infinite and universal. So if that is the case, then the answer to the above question must be no. Actually the question itself is hard to answer because there is no dependence here.

God is infinite and infinity is not something the limited human thought can easily grasp. Humility - that quality necessary for our spiritual growth - ushers in the idea that we are not the creator, but reflect all that our Creator, God is. Seeing that God is infinite, we are in awe!



What if one's understanding of religion went beyond a system of beliefs to a practice of infinite spiritual ideas that results in harmonious relationships, bodies and organizations? What if one's understanding of religion ran parallel to math or to music?

What about math? The principles are fixed, but its applications are infinite. Solutions are found.
What about music? The notes may be the same, but their infinite combinations create comfort, inspiration , unity, and joy.

SO what about religion? I see it as a way to understand God, as all that is infinite. It does not restrict, but releases and reveals the joy, order, peace and spontaneity of God's love! Its applications are infinite and the infinite interplay of spiritual qualities create all that is good.

MBEddy writes: "The infinite never began nor will it ever end." Neither will our understanding of God ever end, but grow increasingly more comprehensive, expansive and practical. As my understanding of God grows, so does my religion.






To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Friday, September 25, 2009

God and dog

Spiritual resource to share: unconditional love













To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Home - the dearest spot on earth

Spiritual resource to share: acceptance


Home. As my sons are off to their new schools and we are preparing to blend households with my parents, thoughts about the spiritual significance of home keep coming into thought.

Every so often, I volunteer to read to a conference call full of people who, after my readings, share inspiration and healings that have come to them through their study of Christian Science. So the topic of the readings tomorrow will be on home.

Feel free to join in! Wednesday Testimony Meeting begins: 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time

Here are the details:
Hope to hear you there!

from the King James Bible:
Ps. 90:1
Ps. 91:1 -10
Ps. 23:6
Ps. 84:3
1 Kings 17: 8-16
Josh. 1:9
Prov. 3:5, 6
Prov 24: 3-5, 27
Prov 31: 10, 27
Matt 4: 17
Matt. 6: 25, 26, 28-33
Matt. 7:24-29
Rom. 8:28
Phil. 2:13
Acts 17:28 (to ;)
John 14:2
Heb. 3:4





from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy:
254: 31
58: 21
587: 25
454:5, 18
566: 1-9
60: 29
65:7-8, 11, 13
61: 4-11
205:22-32
206: 1-3
58:5
530: 5
62: 22
63: 5
66: 11
1:10
506:18
151: 23-24, 26
124: 20-31
494:10
578:16





from the Christian Science Hymnal




Hymn 213
Hymn 278
Hymn 3






To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Wednesday, September 02, 2009

beauty all around us

Spiritual resource to share: awareness


A quote from the book of Psalms starts my morning prayer work today: "Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of Thy law."

The poet recognizes that the baseline is that wondrous things are the norm, and that we have only to open our eyes to see this.

Facebook friends have written:

"Copacabana beach early in the morning, sun sparkling on the sea, gentle waves rolling in, peace and calm..."
"Gorgeous evening on the Cisco Chain last night - beautiful sunset, incredible moon, wonderful company!"


The visual wonder of nature strikes a chord deep within us that says beauty is all around us. This is what is normal. Brilliance is everyday.

So this morning, I start my week with this idea in mind: Open my eyes, so that I can see what beauty (goodness, efficiency, responsiveness, companionship, nourishment) is already here.


Happy morning and happy beginning of the week everyone!





To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Monday, July 27, 2009

Summer break




Hello!
I'll be continuing my summer break from my blog - and will only be posting sporadically. Later in September, I'll pick up my more regular postings.
For those that want to catch my summer postings, please consider subscribing! Just send me an email at kim@kimckorinek.com with the subject line as "blog." Or please feel free to browse through my postings - I now have over 500!
Happy summer to those in the northern hemisphere and a joyful winter to those in the southern hemisphere!
















Thursday, July 16, 2009

walking through particle physics

Spiritual resource to share: discovery

check this out to understand just a little about particle physics..



Family reunion! A couple of weekends ago I got to spend time with one of my favorite groups of people - my extended family! Spent lots of time talking and playing. One conversation I had with my first cousin was intriguing. And we walked and talked about his love for particle physics. And then went on to explain how he sees Christian Science and particle physics and what they have in common and what they don't. Here are some of his ideas as I remember them (this is really more of a paraphrase than his actual quotes):


When I was going through Sunday School, I always thought that evil was necessary. I mean if everything was just good - well that would get boring really fast. How much harmony can a person stand anyway?? So evil seemd to be a way to make what was good worthwhile.


When I started studying physics, I was so intrigued with what I was discovering. And I found that one discovery led to the next. I was discovering patterns that led to the discovery of more patterns. It seemed never-ending. Then it hit me. That there could be no end to the beauty and symmetry of what we were discovering. That my whole purpose was about discovery. And this was very satisfying - even compelling.


I related this to my Christian Science experience: I could also continue to discover more about Christian Science - and each discovery would lead to another discovery. It would also be never-ending. I realized that one didn't need a sense of evil to understand what was totally good. Evil is a distraction that needs to be erased, corrected, so that one can continue to explore all that is good. The discovery of the infinite nature of good is enough to hold its own.

And so we continued to walk and talk. There was a lot more to it - like comparing beauty and truth - but I'll leave that for another blog, another day.
















To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Monday, July 06, 2009

What is your name? - revisited

Spiritual resource to share: your nature


What is in a name? I remember choosing the names of my kids before they were born. We carefully considered every nuance of the possible names and their meanings, linked them to some family history, some inspired moments, weighed their sound and so on. I yelled them out to hear how it would sound when we would call them, whispered the names to hear how it would sound when we would talk softly. We put a lot into their names.

At a recent community meeting, a number of us have been gathering to heal a racial rift in the community that has been going on for decades. One Anishinabe who was at the meeting shared something very helpful - about where he came from, and about how his nation is named - and how this name brings honor and dignity.

He also asked us why we thought Indians were called Indians? We answered that the common thought is that when Christopher Columbus "discovered" America, that he thought that he had landed in India or the West Indies (we were mixed on that account), and so the indigenous population were called Indians.

He was raised with the explanation his grandmother gave him. That Colombus was enchanted with the richness and spirtuality of the native population and brought some of the people back with him. When he presented the people to the Queen, she asked who they were. His answer gave the name commonly used today. He said "Una gente en Dios." This means "A people in God." The "en Dios" stuck and the name Indians is derived from that. (Academics confirm this.)

What is in a name? It is a way of identifying who we are and what we are made of. So the basis of a name, in its spiritual sense, is how we are known spiritually.

I have felt such inspiration from knowing that we are made in the image and likeness of God. So, it follows that God knows Her own creation. God knows our nature, maintains our identity and we reflect in infinite ways, the infinite range of Love, Truth and goodness.


God knows us and calls us by our names, our spiritual nature. Even if we feel that we have been misunderstood, ignored, targeted or mistaken for someone else, it is a comfort to know that we are known, deeply, spiritually and eternally for who we are.


The Bible sings this out beautifully:


Isa 43:1 But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.

Ps 139:14 I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

Monday, June 29, 2009

Lift up your voice!

Spiritual resource to share: YOU




Have you ever felt you wanted to express yourself, but it was hard being heard? Or have you ever been asked to give a talk and felt at a loss?

I did a deep dive today considering what it means to have a voice.

Having a voice is about you being expressed and heard.
Having a voice enables you to be a part of a larger idea.
Having a voice is having a way to communicate ideas.

In short having a voice is about identity, communication and unity.

Identity

My identity, your identity is a result of being a reflection of God (as it points out in the Bible in Genesis that we are made in the image and likeness of God). God’s attributes are Soul, Mind, intelligence, Spirit, Life, Principle, Truth, Love. We are defined by Soul, animated by Spirit, sustained by Life, guided by Mind, intelligence, and maintained by God’s law or Principle. An idea without an expression is absurd. Each one of us is individual, unique, permanent and necessary. Each one of us has a voice that is individual, unique, permanent and necessary.

Communication

Break that word apart and you have common + unity.
“The inter-communication is always from God to His idea, man.”
Ideas are constantly flowing – connecting one another with a common understanding.
Lifting communication up to Spirit, we can trust that the spiritual substance of an idea is communicated properly. The spiritual substance of ears is that they are “not organs of the so-called corporeal senses, but spiritual understanding.”
God, Truth, is the impulse that brings ideas forward. Love provides the receptivity for those to hear. Intelligence weighs in the ideas and sorts, deletes, enhances and brings out what would best glorify God. And we are all governed by Truth, Life and Love.

Unity
"Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us?"
We are all related to Life, and to Love and to Truth. We can all understand this relationship to God – when Life fills our days with purpose, when Love satisfies and soothes us, when Truth brings us startling new ideas and solutions. As we sometimes clamber up that mountain of high hopes, we are patient and forgiving of one another, but firm and focused on our goal: to learn more about God.





To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

you can try this at home

Spiritual resource to share: your light




It was a long day for both of us. Staying in for dinner wasn't an option. My husband's day was packed as was mine, and we both had projects that involved lots of detail and setbacks.

It was so tempting to be irritated. We needed to talk over a home improvement project and our discussion started out with frustration as we sat down at a restaurant and ordered dinner.

As he was talking, I had this little twinge of a thought. What if, in the midst of a sense of tiredness and iritation, I said something really loving and easy and kind? What if I made it totally unselfish and sincere? What if, right here, with all the justifications for a crabby time talking about yet another detailed project, I smiled and agreed?

It was a little thing perhaps, but one comment, sincerely told, lifted the whole burden of irritation. A little light added to the darkness was all that was needed. A little Christly touch to lift us up. And, as a result, we came up with some pretty good ideas for our home and had a pleasant dinner together.

It struck me how easy this was. Something I'll try at home again and again.







I am come a light into the world,
that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.


sayings of Christ Jesus as written in John 12: 46




To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Saturday, June 20, 2009

"There is no strength like His"

Spiritual resource to share: song

Sitting in my office, enjoying a cool breeze and a sunny day, I came across this song to share with you today. I hope it inspires you in strength, wisdom and compassion. Enjoy!



For more background on this song and the singer, Nobel Peace Prize winner, Wangari Maathai, and on the program that produced this Speaking of Faith, click here.




To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Tuesday, June 09, 2009

the definitive aspect of winning

Spiritual resource to share: persistence

When the laws of the land do not help honest and good causes and enable monopolies and greed, what is one to think? When law is used to obstruct good, block progress or dilute authority, how is one to move forward? I hoped to answer this progressively in stages, suggesting ways to deal with this issue.

Understanding the difference between societal law and divine law
The difference between the two are great. Societal law is changeable based on a society’s highest (or growing) sense of right. Divine law is changeless. Like the law of gravity needs no group to legislate it into action, the divine laws of God are natural and simply define the spiritually scientific nature of being – of how life works. Divine Love harmonizes, corrects, and promotes progress for the health and well being of all mankind. Divine Truth purifies, elevates and empowers right activity.

Dealing with discouragement/depression
This is usually the first stop when one finds themselves encountering a false sense of law. Depressed thought comes from accepting that there are powers that can overwhelm what is good. Don’t be fooled. Winning - based on manipulation, dishonesty, material acquisition that takes from others and ignorance or omission of facts - is not satisfying and does not feed the hunger for deeper meaning and relevance in our lives. There is something more powerful, more sustaining and more satisfying. Don’t stop here. See the next paragraph…..

Understanding higher law
Coming from a materialistic culture where money and material goods would try to define our own self-worth, what a refreshing, releasing break we get by following a higher law! Jesus' two commandments – to love God and to love our neighbor as ourselves - is the higher law. And to love is the fulfilling of the law.

Moral courage
We can claim moral courage as our own way of working. MBEddy writes: "Moral courage is 'the lion of the tribe of Juda,' the king of the mental realm. Free and fearless it roams in the forest. Undisturbed it lies in the open field, or rests in 'green pastures, . . . beside the still waters.' In the figurative transmission from the divine thought to the human, diligence, promptness, and perseverance are likened to "the cattle upon a thousand hills." They carry the baggage of stern resolve, and keep pace with highest purpose."

To not be afraid
Perfect love casts out fear: the fear of being irrelevant; the fear that you have made a mistake; the fear of lack; the fear that others will think poorly of you; the fear that good is helpless. All those fears can be dissolved. Perfect love is powerful, harmonizing, gentle and unyielding. Love is an alterative, transforming thought from fear to confidence and grace.

Practice honesty
Two quotes from MBEddy:
"Honesty is spiritual power. Dishonesty is human weakness, which forfeits divine help. You uncover sin, not in order to injure, but in order to bless the corporeal man; and a right motive has its reward."
"Christian Science commands man to master the propensities,--to hold hatred in abeyance with kindness, to conquer lust with chastity, revenge with charity, and to overcome deceit with honesty. Choke these errors in their early stages, if you would not cherish an army of conspirators against health, happiness, and success."

And finally, from the Bible:
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths.
and MBEddy:
"The wrong done another reacts most heavily against one's self. Right adjusts the balance sooner or later. Think it "easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle," than for you to benefit yourself by injuring others."

Trust needs to be shifted from a temporal basis to what is spiritual and permanent. “In all your ways acknowledge Him”….Ways to acknowledge God? By expressing intelligence, acuteness, insight, unselfishness, persistence. By yielding to a greater good. By expecting good, being good, and doing good.

What is it that we win? We know that if we love - and obey the most important law of loving God and our neighbor as ourselves - we are fulfilling the law. And "self-denial, sincerity, Christianity, and persistence alone win the prize, as they usually do in every department of life." That is what it takes to be a winner. And what we win is a deeper love, a broader blessing for all and a more permanent sense of peace.

Would love to hear comments from others on this important topic!





To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Wednesday, June 03, 2009

on the loose

Spiritual resource to share: freedom

Micah and friends on the loose somewhere in Europe



"This is the best time of life" my mother would say whenever I would ask her what her favorite time of life was. No matter what decade it was, I always got the same answer.

Looking at my two sons and what they are experiencing, I'll bet they would say that now - this is the best time of life for them. With so much ahead and so much to experience right now - I am thrilled with their reminder that the world is large and full of opportunities.

One son is in Germany sometimes traveling, sometimes staying in one place, always learning, always growing. The other son has just come home from school, and in between camping, hiking and mountain bike trips and family reunions, he is helping us here home with some construction jobs.

The graduation speakers at this last son's school were provocative and moving. I'd like to share a song one teacher sung which sums up just where our boys are at right now in their lives - and others their age. Its simplicity and childlike joy and wonder hit just the right chord.

On The Loose*

Chorus: On the Loose to climb a mountain,
on the loose where I am free,
on the loose to live my life,
the way I think my life should be;
for I’ve only got a moment and the whole world left to see.
I’ll be searching for tomorrow on the loose...

Have you ever seen a sunrise turn the sky completely red?
Have you slept beneath the moon and stars with a pine bough for your bed?
Can you sit and talk with friends although a word is never said...
then you’re just like me and you’ve been on the loose...

Chorus: On the Loose to climb a mountain,
on the loose where I am free,
on the loose to live my life,
the way I think my life should be;
for I’ve only got a moment and the whole world left to see.
I’ll be searching for tomorrow on the loose...

There’s a trail that I’ve been hiking just to see where it might go...
many places left to visit, many people yet to know.
But in following my dream, I will live and I will grow...
on the trail that’s waiting out there on the loose...

Chorus: On the Loose to climb a mountain,
on the loose where I am free,
on the loose to live my life,
the way I think my life should be;
for I’ve only got a moment and the whole world left to see.
I’ll be searching for tomorrow on the loose...

So in search of love and laughter I’ll be traveling ‘cross this land.
Never sure of where I am going for I haven’t any plan.
But in time when you are ready come and join me take my hand...
and together we’ll explore life on the loose...

Chorus: On the Loose to climb a mountain,
on the loose where I am free,
on the loose to live my life,
the way I think my life should be;
for I’ve only got a moment and the whole world left to see.
I’ll be searching for tomorrow on the loose...


*written by Steve Schuch (thx Kate!)







To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

The Divine Economy

Spiritual resource to share: church service

From time to time I volunteer to help with a conference call testimony meeting, in which people from all over the United States, and others from various parts of the world, can call up and have a virtual church experience! Here we have a brief sermon based on a topic chosen by the Reader. (In this case, I have chosen the topic of the divine economy, using the 23rd Psalm as the centerpiece of the readings from the Bible and Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy.)

You can get more information by going to this site: http://www.csinteractivechurch.org/service-wed.html. You can also listen to the service on csdirectory's audio archive at http://www.csinteractivechurch.org/wed-audio-archive.html.

Here are the citations I used for the service:

Section 1 - no lack
Ps. 23:1
Phil. 4:19
John 6:5-14
SH 206:15
494: 10-15
SH 60:29

Section 2 - restoration
Ps 23: 2,3
Ps. 1:1-6
Job 33:4
Eph. 5:14
SH 593:9
518: 13
162: 4-28
423:8-26

Section 3: no evil
Ps 23: 4, 5 (to :)
Ps 139: 1-18
596: 20-27
151:18
228:20
SH 103:20-23 (to .)
327:17

Section 4: our permanent home
Ps 23: 5 , 6
Luke 12:32
Ps. 90:1
John 14:2, 12
Rom. 8:28
Acts 17:28
SH 254:31
SH 58:21
15: 25-30
3: 4-26
SH 261:4
578: 4-18










To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Friday, May 15, 2009

The loveliness of "Let" - revisited

spiritual resource to share: yielding


I was reading Science and Health this morning and came across this quote,

"Let unselfishness, goodness, mercy, justice, health, holiness, love - the kingdom of heaven - reign within us, and sin, disease, and death will diminish until they finally disappear."
It was the "Let" that got me.

"Let" is such a welcoming word. It can mean to actively cause to happen, consent to and leave unchanged. Pretty broad definition. Other favorite "lets":

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.
Let there be light.
Let our ordered lives confess the beauty of Thy peace.
Letting is a yielding to a fixed principle of Love - consenting to that which is unchanged.

Years ago, I had a major let experience that showed me how freeing it is to "let go and let God."

I had been traveling in Central America and was supposed to meet my boyfriend at the very beginning of my trip. So many goof-ups and missed communications happened that after almost a month, we still hadn't connected and I was getting anxious and frustrated.

Finally, I was settled in one location and planned to be there for a long time, living with a local family. Plans (again) were made to meet him at the bus station at a certain time. The bus came and he wasn't on it. That's when I lost it. Storming home in a cloud of anger and frustration, I couldn't even think clearly until I got into my room. There I pulled out my Bible, my Science and Health, my book of poems and starting diving into them as a way to calm down.

I don't quite remember what I read, but I do recall a strong thought coming to me saying "If it isn't God's will, you don't want it to happen." Well, of course! I reasoned, if it isn't God's plan that we are to meet, then there is nothing I can do to make it happen. And if it is God's will, then there is nothing I can do to prevent it from happening. I had to let go of all my plans and hopes and really put it in God's hands ( where it already was any how). I had given my consent to the fixed principle that God governs every aspect of my life. What a relief!

The next morning, I had no expectation other than God was directing me in the way most needed and I felt at such peace with that. I took my books to the central park of that city, and started to read my Bible lesson in the warm sun and bustling market. It was God's day and I was happy.

It wasn't long afterwards that I looked up and saw a bus. Strange, I thought, buses aren't supposed to be running at this time. But there, getting off the bus was my friend and his friend!

We were so happy to have finally connected. He and his friend got settled in a youth hostel, and we were able to have a wonderful time together.

But most wonderful was this important lesson about let. Our active yielding to God brings peace and we see how God's plan for us unfolds - in a much better way than we could ever plan. How lovely!







Please add your own comments or email this article to a friend.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Comment on posting of "Low, sad and sweet...."

Spiritual resource to share: others' comments

I so appreciated this comment on the posting earlier this week "Low, sad and sweet..." I wanted to share it with you all.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for this Kim. Healings that need to come through tenderness are so profound and complete. Denying our emotions (or mixed emotions) and forcing change can be so jarring, but to let go of the sad feelings of saying goodbye, because we are ready to say goodbye, is so peaceful and affirms the value of that which we let go of!

There was an instrument especially popular with the American transcendentalists, I don't know what it was called, kind of a dulcimer, or box with strings across it. They would put it in the window and the wind blowing gently over it would produce a gentle sound, perhaps harmonics are in play - but the sounds were random and very bittersweet- like major and minor mixed together. I have heard one and it is intriguing. Perhaps this was the object that inspired MBEddy's use of metaphor here.







To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Monday, May 11, 2009

"Low, sad and sweet....."

Spiritual resource to share: quietness and peace


Friends and family have a a lot happening this month: Graduations, summer plans being made, school ending, houses being sold, moves being planned, new adventures ahead -- the month of May can be a lot about endings and beginnings.

In most major events, we say good bye and say hello almost in the same breath. Parting may be such sweet sorrow, but in that parting, there is a ripening of the human spirit.

When facing a major change in my life or my family's life, I have learned the wisdom of giving myself some quiet space to say goodbye. It gives me time to reflect and consider lessons learned. It gives me time to feel the gratitude for the experiences and people that make up my life experience.

"Low, sad and sweet" sums up the tone of these quiet times. It helps to recognize and reaffirm the ongoing nature of Love. This helps ease and then remove any sense of pain or separation. It awakens new gratitude for Life and reminds that however deep the struggle, however glorious the victory, God's "angel-throng of thoughts" are always present to comfort, guard and guide.

Mary Baker Eddy's poem "Christ, My Refuge" is like a blueprint for a soulful prayer of peace, satisfaction and progress.


O'er waiting harpstrings of the mind there sweeps a strain, low, sad, and sweet,
whose measures
bind the power of pain,
and wake a white-winged angel throng of thoughts, illumed by faith, and breathed in raptured song, with love perfumed.

Then His unveiled, sweet mercies show Life's burdens light. I kiss the cross, and wake to know a world more bright.

And o'er earth's troubled, angry sea I see Christ walk, and come to me, and tenderly, divinely talk.

Thus Truth engrounds me on the rock, upon Life's shore, 'gainst which the winds and waves can shock, oh, nevermore!

From tired joy and grief afar, and nearer Thee, — Father, where Thine own children are, I love to be.

My prayer, some daily good to do to Thine, for Thee; an offering pure of Love, whereto God leadeth me.







To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Wednesday, May 06, 2009

a story about a healing

Spiritual resource to share: humility

I had been struggling with an insistent back ache for three days which made driving, sleeping, walking all very difficult.

As I approached this situation prayerfully, I asked myself how much did I really know about God? I challenged myself to dig in deeper.

The more I understood God's supremacy, the more in awe I felt - similar to my time skiing on a mountain, when I took a tumble in the knee deep powder. The day was beautiful, my fall was cushioned ever so gently and the sky a wide expanse of blue. "We are loved more grandly than this." I thought.

The more I understood of God's authority, the more strength I felt - similar to the strength I feel when defending an injustice or the protection I see in the wild when mothers defend their young.

The more I understood about God's love, the more calm I felt - similar to the time I saw the Northern lights for the first time with my mom, dad and brothers. And the wonder and beauty of it seemed to include the whole earth.

As I was painfully driving up to meet with others for an all day meeting, I struggled with the idea that I might not make it through the day. At that point, I totally turned to God. "God, I cannot do this without you." It was a letting go, a total surrender. All of what I understand about God helped me to yield to a life force that is authoritatively loving and supremely good. I could not "make" this healing happen, but I could acknowledge that God and God's power is made known in our present experience, here and now.

When I got to the meeting place, my back was much improved. When the meeting started, I forgot about my back. By the time the shortened meeting was over three hours later, I was totally free.

One idea that has been so helpful over and over again is that prayer-based healing is not about human accomplishment, but about divine acknowledgement.







To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Health now determined to be contagious - revisited

What would happen if you were to see this in your local paper's headlines? "Health now determined to be contagious."

Headlines are popping up about the swine flu. And there is a great fear of impending disaster. This has always been the case throughout history. It is easy to be manipulated when one is fearful about the unknown, about being separated from help and about being made vulnerable. It is enough to be scared out of knowing that we have what it takes to deal with these issues! So, how do we un-scare ourselves?

Most of us probably agree on the following:

  • Fear spreads disease and in many cases is the cause of disease. Even my one cousin (a medically trained doctor) said that about 90% of his cases come in because of stress, and another cousin (a hypnotherapist) said that most of her cases come in due to a fear of loneliness.
  • Loneliness, stress, fear, these are all mental causes to illness. Mary Baker Eddy wrote in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures over 125 years ago, “Sickness is a growth of error, springing from mortal ignorance or fear.” (p.188)
  • Health is natural. Even the body will fight disease in an effort to cure it.

But let’s take this a little farther. Mary Baker Eddy gives a brilliant look at contagion in an article aptly named Contagion. In it, she asks that “If only the people would believe that good is more contagious than evil, since God is omnipresence, how much more certain would be the doctor's success…”

Health is good. Health trumps illness. Health is from God and is powerful, self-creative and permanent. Health, like God, is eternal.

As children of God, we reflect the power of health, the ability to see and experience the fact that good overcomes illness. We can experience a release from fear and feel God's perfect love. “Perfect love casteth out fear" the Bible writes. God as Love tenderly cares for us. And the natural attraction of Love compels us all to share the truth that makes us free: Health is contagious.



For more discussion on the issue of ensuring healing and protection from swine flu and other contagious elements, please see spirituality.com.

Monday, April 27, 2009

nature's healing balm - revisited


Spiritual resource to share: stillness and awe


A friend and I were talking about a recent transition we had made. During that time, we both needed to find healing and a new direction. And we both took off to the outdoors to give ourselves a space to do so.

I have always found it nourishing and reaffirming to be out in the open prairie, or under a pitch black sky looking at the startling clarity of stars and planets. These are the things that prompt my thought to consider the largeness and tenderness of God.


But I also know that wherever I am, I have my thought. And thought can be aligned with God in any situation, under any condition, and in any place.

I love this prayer and promise from the Bible: "For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee."

The fortitude of mountains, the yielding and playful spontaneity of rivers, and the permanence of the very air we breathe teach us lessons about God. And the biggest lesson is that strength, spontaneity and permanence is everywhere God is, everywhere we are.

Click here for an incredible display of life on earth.

What prompts you to feel God's presence?



To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right!

Thursday, April 23, 2009

an honorable man is not so easily dismissed

Spiritual resource to share: integrity

Conserve School's values and operating principles

“The man of integrity is one who makes it his constant rule to follow the road of duty, according as Truth and the voice of his conscience point it out to him. He is not guided merely by affections which may some time give the color of virtue to a loose and unstable character.

”The upright man is guided by a fixed Principle, which destines him to do nothing but what is honorable, and to abhor whatever is base or unworthy; hence we find him ever the same, — at all times the trusty friend, the affectionate relative, the conscientious man of business, the pious worker, the public-spirited citizen.

“He assumes no borrowed appearance. He seeks no mask to cover him, for he acts no studied part; but he is indeed what he appears to be, — full of truth, candor, and humanity. In all his pursuits, he knows no path but the fair, open, and direct one, and would much rather fail of success than attain it by reproachable means. He never shows us a smiling countenance while he meditates evil against us in his heart. We shall never find one part of his character at variance with another.”

From Miscellaneous Writings p. 147 by Mary Baker Eddy




To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Monday, April 20, 2009

It's all about parenting......

Spiritual resource to share: the inspiration of friends





I loved this story that was embedded in a Christian Science practitioner's comments on a weekly Bible study. (Thank you, Janet Hegarty, C.S. of St. Louis, Missouri! To read her full comments, click here.)

One summer two robins built their nest on our back porch. It was fascinating to watch the nest come together and then, eventually, to see the baby birds appear. The tiny birds were well fed and carefully protected. They grew quickly and each day the nest became more crowded.

One morning we looked out the kitchen window and saw one of the young birds perched on the edge of the nest. As we watched, he eagerly flapped his wings and flew to a nearby branch and then he joyfully hopped about in the tree and continued to test out his flying skills. Soon, another young bird perched on the side of the nest and took flight, and then another.

The last bird, though, just couldn’t bring himself to take off. He perched on the side of the nest all right, but he just stayed there – for hours.

Out in the yard, the other young birds, under the watchful eyes of their parents, had made great progress with their flying skills.

About mid-afternoon, when the early flyers had gained their full independence, flying freely and finding their own food, the parents turned their attention to the little fellow still perched on the nest. The mother bird found a worm and sat on a branch in full view of the nest. Her message was clear, “This worm is for you, but only if you come and get it yourself.” Time passed, the mother bird didn’t give in, and at last the young bird gave his wings a try. The mother bird gave him his reward and then watched over him from a distance until he, too, had gained his full independence.

This scene illustrates the kind of loving persistence that our Father-Mother God showers on each of us as we work to discover who we really are. This is our probation, our time for trying our wings under the watchful eye of divine Love. And the good news is, this process continues to go on, even after what we call death, until each of us discovers and proves our true, perfect, spiritual selfhood.





To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Saturday, April 18, 2009

more, more, more

Spiritual resource to share: being present




Have you ever thought that if you had more time, more faith, more money, then things would be better? This just might be a major distraction to what you already have!


More time
MBEddy defines time in part as a mortal measurement. So, do we need more mortal measurements? Hmmm.... probably not. Being present and being grateful for the moment, and improving this moment is all that is called for. You will find that right now, you have everything you need. And then you move from now, to now, to now. Moment by moment, you have the ideas you need and these give you the right supply.


More faith
Do you feel that if only you had more faith, then you would be healed, satisfied or guided rightly?
Ask yourself a different question: to what am I faithful?
In this moment, you are faithful to Truth, to Soul and to Mind. You are faithful to your understanding that God as Mind is always present, always moving intelligently and efficiently. You act according to your faith in God as Truth and rightfully reject any thought that obstructs healing. You move in relation to your faith in Soul, completely aware of the satisfying sense of beauty, balance and purity that permeate your life.

More money
The spiritual substance of money is value. And the recognition of value is tied to gratitude. A favorite hymn sings out "gratitude is riches, complaint is poverty." Gratitude for what we already have opens our eyes to see even more good and opens our thought to receive more.

MBEddy has this to say about more, more, more:


"Never ask for tomorrow: it is enough that divine Love is an ever-present help; and if you wait, never doubting, you will have all you need every moment. What a glorious inheritance is given to us through the understanding of omnipresent Love! More we cannot ask: more we do not want: more we cannot have."*




*From the article on Angels in Miscellaneous Writings, p. 306





To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

the happy thing about doing good

Spiritual resource to share: your time

 

 

So what's the big happy thing about doing good?

  • You realize that God does indeed have infinite resources to bless mankind.
  • You find yourself in another's good.
  • You see the nature of grief transform into the nurturing opening nature of goodness. 
  • You understand that giving and receiving are one. 
  • Time flies when you are doing good things. 
  • The love that we have for one another - for those who have passed and for those with us now - always leads to more love. We can never lose that.
And besides that, "Happiness is spiritual, born of Truth and Love. It is unselfish; therefore it cannot exist alone, but requires all mankind to share it."

    
And I can prove it.
 

 Last week, my son and I drove across the state to a friend's house to help her clean out her lower level.

 
This is a very dear friend and a special situation as her lower level had become the recipient of the many pictures, slides and memorobilia of her parents both of whom passed on in the last three years. At least twice a day, she walked through her lower level to get to work, reminding her of the need to organize, discard, shelf and repair those things that held such good memories. It was just hard to do on many levels.

 
"Can we help?" I asked. And soon, Gabe and I packed up and were up and out the door.

 
Once we arrived, we set a plan in place and while our friend was at work, we got to work! We were surprised at how quickly we were able to get the placed cleared out! Photos were stored in airtight containers, other memorabilia were boxed and labeled, new shelves were put up and stocked, a couple trips were made to the Goodwill and soon, the unobstructed windows were pouring in light, letting us see a beautiful view of the harbour. A final sweep and wash down of all counters and shelves and we had a whole new space of possibilities!

 
I loved the look on our friend's face when she came in to her house! Happy, surprised, grateful.....and we felt the same way! Immediately, we were talking possibilities of what to do with that sunny open space! How quickly was something that seemed so heavy turned to lightness!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Easter rising

Spiritual resource to share: gifts of friends

Our family has just spent a wonderful weekend visiting friends in St. Louis. Two of my new favorite soccer-playing girls, Tanya and Yulia, shared this inspiring video with me, and so now I share this with you.

With Easter evening fast turning to Monday morning, the power and beauty of Christ's resurrection continues to renew and inspire us. Every day is an Easter. Every day, we are raised up to see new views of God's goodness and love. Enjoy!









To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Wednesday, April 08, 2009

to reassure depressed hope

Spiritual resource to share: hope


Spring has sprung in the northern hemisphere and with it, nature is sweeping away the cold and muddy, and is persistently bursting forth with new growth.

Sweeping away what is muddy to reveal new growth reminded me of healing depression. I came across this quote from Mary Baker Eddy's primary work, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures:

Instruct the sick that they are not helpless victims, for if they will only accept Truth, they can resist disease and ward it off, as positively as they can the temptation to sin. ....... The fact that Truth overcomes both disease and sin reassures depressed hope. It imparts a healthy stimulus to the body, and regulates the system.
I found it helpful to break down this whole paragraph - to get a deeper look at its healing influence. Walk with me on this one:

Instruct the sick that they are not helpless victims,

This has to do with rightly identifying ourselves - we are not thrown to the winds of chance, bad luck or bad circumstances - but have the ability to think, to choose, and to love. The qualities of intelligence, discernment and authority are spiritual, not subject to limitation.

...for if they will only accept Truth...

Openness or receptivity to Truth keeps the channels of thought open to receive new ideas. Accepting Truth, we give our consent to Truth and open our thought to the power of Truth and Love in our lives.

...they can resist disease and ward it off, as positively as they can the temptation to sin.

Truth is not a naive brush over illness, maliciousness or lack. Truth is active and transforming. Just as light dissolves darkness, Truth annihilates anything untrue. Love annihilates anything unloving. Life destroys death or anything that limits or restricts good. Physical disease can be resisted in the same way that the temptation to sin can be resisted.

The fact that Truth overcomes both disease and sin reassures depressed hope.

The active expression of Truth (of purity, honesty, principle, Love) is the antidote to depression. Understanding the omnipotent nature of Truth lifts off the burden of self-doubt and of thinking that evil has power. Hope is released.

It imparts a healthy stimulus to the body, and regulates the system.

Seeing that Truth is always operating on our behalf, frees up our thought which leads to expressions of freedom, flow and growth. Circulation of new fresh ideas becomes the norm. Balance is achieved. Systems in the physical body and systems of organization are regulated in accordance with efficiency, harmony and progress.

Check out these links to read about how people have overcome depression in their lives:

Drug-free answers to treating depression
What got me going again
Freed from depression
I shone a spiritual light on Seasonal Affective Disorder
A healing of manic depression










To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.