Living Consciously August 3, 2009

Dear friends,

Last night I awoke to the crash and boom of a huge thunderstorm. It had been hot the previous evening so all my windows were open and I had pulled back the curtains to allow the air to circulate. The lightning flashes lit up the night sky again and again and the resulting thunder was, well, thunderous! I thought of early humans and how terrified they must have been to witness such a display without any knowledge of the cause of it. Science dispels superstition, but without it, the human mind will make up its own rationale and give meaning to what it does not understand, ie: the Gods must be angry to produce such wrath and ruin. Later on those early humans may have modified their rationale by connecting the blessing of rain to the power. Maybe then they decided that blessings are preceded by danger, or that God is a terrible tease or merely mean-spirited but in the end, suffering is rewarded.

When we cannot figure out how something happens, we will make up a story about it. This is the protective aspect of the ego, which is survival oriented. It protects our emotions as well as our physical body. It will craft a scenario for why we are not doing better at work or in our relationship and its tendency is to place the power outside of our grasp. It is always someone else’s fault. The reason is out of our hands. We are the victim of discrimination or jealousy; our luck has gone bad; there is not enough to go around. This kind of thinking is common when we are not aware of the creative intelligence within our own being-ness. Until we realize that the power to make all things new is a function of consciousness, we will stand on the ground looking up, either pleading for change or shaking our fist at the Gods who seem to be in control.

Affirm: The creative power I am seeking lives within my own self awareness.

Peace and Blessings,

Rev Carol Carnes

Living Consciously August 4, 2009

Dear friends,

A friend received a small gift of a packet of sour dough bread mix from San Francisco. They were so excited because they had not used their bread maker in a long time and the idea of baking a fresh loaf was tantalizing. When they opened the package and read the instructions, they were so disappointed to find that the yeast was not included. The key ingredient that makes bread what it is was missing!

When we feel that there is something missing in our relationship, our work, our general state of being, it is often passion, the key ingredient for making life what it is meant to be; a grand adventure. Of course we have moments of routine, times when we must attend to business and take care of our loved ones. Yet it is the underlying natural passion for living that sustains us and gives us a creative freedom in ordinary experience. It is not a passion for the project that makes it work so well, it is a passion for our life in general that makes everything better. We bring it with us into every setting.

My friend got in the car and drove to the supermarket to buy some yeast. That afternoon they enjoyed a slice of aromatic homemade bread slathered with sweet butter. Where do we go to regain our inherent joy and passion? We cannot find it in shiny new toys or a change of scenery. Those energy activators are temporary and will not produce lasting results. The only place that offers what we are longing for is at the center of our own being. It can be found at the core of mind, awaiting our taking it off the shelf and adding it to our daily spiritual practice. Give your mind the opportunity to catch up to the affirmation below. What we give our attention to, tends to rise up in us and become active in our lives.

Know this: I am passionately alive and living in natural joy.

Peace and Blessings,

Rev Carol Carnes