Unity Church of Tucson » Larry’s Message

Abraham Chuckled

admin — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:55:41 +0000

At a recent workshop a question comment was made by an attendee, “Things have begun to change in my life since I have started using the Law of Attraction…” At that point an answer that was accompanied by a chuckle was something like, “You’ve always used the Law of Attraction for everything is based upon it, all you have wonderfully done is to begin to interact with this founding Principle in a more precise and conscious way.”

This morning as I was participating in our Wednesday Prayer Service, I felt the words, “I am the gatekeeper of the citadel of my being,” and it took me into a whole variety of thoughts, for the most part all based on computer analogies. It has become absolutely clear to me that I am the creator of my own reality and absolutely nothing interfaces with me that isn’t a vibratory match with me. Often when these moments are not akin to the bluebird of happiness singing its tune it pulls me up rather short for I am always left with me…I am the constant component in my life, everything else vibrationally fi nds its way to me, and always based on the energy-signature I am offering.

We all have an energy stream, and for some who really don’t give too much thought to their connectivity with their higher God-Source self, the stream doesn’t fl ow that quickly, meaning nothing bad or wrong, just things are bumping along without too many peaks or valleys. For others whose focus is strong within seeking to ever see themselves as extensions of their higher God-Source self, life appears to provide more peaks and valleys and the ride is exciting—sometimes really exciting.

Then, factor into this understanding the thought that we each are the creators of our own reality, for without this affects our lives will not be given the value of importance that is required. All outer things began fi rst as a preference, a thought or what we can call an idea, and ideas are given birth, as concerns us, through the mind.

If I am the gatekeeper of the citadel of my being this means I have a measure of responsibility for how I guard or keep the gate. I can do it haphazardly or sloppily, or I can do it with deliberate intent. I can do it by knee jerk responses to whatever the speed of my energy stream is generating, or I can do it with purpose, plan and forethought. Whatever my choice, for everything is a choice, even choosing to not make a choice is one, it results in how I decorate my citadel. I can decorate it in early poverty, contemporary sickness, modern unhappiness or French Provincial joy. Change those around to meet your own decorating ideas.

Probably almost everyone now has an email account somewhere. Oh, there are probably still some hold-outs, but not many any more. I have a piece of software that checks for incoming mail each and every minute and then gives me an opportunity to screen who it is from and where it is from. I can then delete it before it even reaches MS Outlook or I can add the domain to a fi lter that automatically keeps new email attempts from even being seen ever again. There is an aspect of my mind that, I believe, can and must do the same thing. I may not be able to totally prevent something from ever, even if fleetingly, crossing into a level of conscious awareness, but I can and must learn to not allow it to go the next step which, in my analogy, would mean to allow it into consciousness where now I would claim it and its contents as mine.

It is said that anything that is solidly focused upon for as little a seventeen seconds brings its energy into one’s vibrational signature that in effect is then a request that the Law of Attraction moves upon. This Law doesn’t screen our desires or requests, our dreams and plans…that is our part of the process and must take place before we focus upon something for as little as seventeen seconds, or before we bring it in from the fleeting periphery of thought into solidly claiming it as our own. Isn’t this great information!

Now then, how do we exercise our mental fi lters to our advantage? An old Chinese proverb says one may not be able to stop a bird from landing on one’s head, but the bird can be disallowed the ability to build her nest…or some such words. It doesn’t work to assume a mantra that speaks to our not thinking about this or that, for that has the opposite effect in that we are then thinking about it.

The key is to consciously begin to quickly change the focus of our thought to something we know will be benefi cial to our process…not to do it, especially when we know we are the creators of our own reality is pure and simple laziness…it is a choice to respond to life from a knee-jerk mentality and then when things are not working out the way we would like, to scan the horizon for reasons why. Well, we are the reason why and the sooner we can truly see from this perspective is the sooner we can consciously be in a tuned in, tapped in and turned on level of living.

More…to then consciously be aware of the seventeen second “rule” and to now spend at least that in concentrated focus on the thought that feels good, for thoughts that truly are benefi cial to our process always feel good. That is our indication that tells us we are in the zone. Another seventeen seconds now brings us to thirty-four, and another to fi fty-one and yet another to sixty-eight, and sixty-eight focused and dedicated seconds of thought is unstoppable in its power to bring into focus its happy result.

All of this is either worthless gobbledygook or provable as we take up the mantle of being the conscious and awake gatekeeper of the citadel of our being. Note, I am not saying the hovel of our being, but citadel which among its synonyms is found sanctuary and castle. Joel Goldsmith wrote a book with the title, Man Was Not Born To Cry. Not only is this true for each of us, but then to understand that we are born of worthiness to create within our life experience, through the Law of Attraction, not sorrow, but all the joy we choose. We can have it all.

Our opportunity? If it is too laborious to monitor thought, at least monitor feeling for if something is dark or unhappy, then to realize that a currently held thought needs to be put under the magnifying glass, and when found to then with purpose and focus realize what is happening to then take back the reigns of power by making the choice to move to something that is benefi cial…its byline will be of joy, excitement, appreciation, praise and an easy smile.

by Larry Swartz

Larry’s Article Trepidation or Excitement

admin — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 16:31:44 +0000

Where are you on the emotional
scale that is represented by
the title for this article? I think
we can all agree that these are “interesting”
times and I would further agree
with the assessment made by many that
the global ramifications of these times are greater than ever
within recorded history. I said recorded history because
major ice age experiences as well as the asteroid that some
say was responsible for the demise of the dinosaurs certainly
would qualify as events that had global ramifications. Yet,
over the past scant 400 years we have been witness to the
equivalent of the earth’s history of over four billion years
of change condensed into a micro second and we are here
witnessing it all.
Starting with the first rudimentary beginnings of newsprint,
all the way to today’s instantaneous ability to receive
and share ideas and information, our collective attention has
been and is being focused, and probably somewhat manipulated,
by the various factions of today’s electronic media
toward usually what is going wrong. From one perspective,
which would include those who exercise minimal if any
discretionary filtering of these avenues of information, we
see a heightened level of trepidation. From the other
end of the stick, or opposite side of the coin, we find
a growing number of people who either exercise their
discretionary filter by turning off whatever, or are able
to see or hear without also internalizing a bottom line that
causes many to be trepidatious, instead accepting for themselves
a role as co-creator of their own realities and instead
sees within this fast moving experience of life, excitement.
Which are you?
As this is written we have a new president of about 5
months into his presidency, and like most presidents he has
become a lightening rod as an ever more obvious polarization
is being witnessed within our nation. The numbers who were fairly neutral about him have diminished dramatically
as people are either genuinely optimistic and expectant about
his programs and promises, or pessimistic and doubt-filled
about the same things.
This article, I guess, is perhaps
directed more toward those who
might be pessimistic and doubt fi lled more than those whose response
to our president is on the side
of optimism and hope, for if you
read this article and are optimistic
and fi lled with expectation concerning
our president and everything in
government, then everything is well
with your world and the bluebird of
happiness is singing in your ear. Yet,
what I want to visit in this article is the choice everyone
has to invite the bluebird of happiness to sing in their ear
regardless of any facet of government or for that matter,
anything outside of them, which hopefully depoliticizes
my intent and purpose.
When Unity and New Thought make the statement that
we are the creators of our own realities, it is made without
caveats of exceptions or loopholes within which to find justifi cations for those moments when it is absolutely impossible
for such a statement to have a shred of evidential truth.
It simply says that we are the creators of our own realities.
Further translated, it doesn’t say that because of anything
that might have happened or is happening outside of our
direct control that this is now true for only thirty or forty
or seventy percent of the time. It is a Principle, and like the
Law of Attraction—like gravity—like centrifugal force—
like why seven times seven is always forty nine if we stick
with numbers to the base ten—it is always what we might
call a universal Truth.
If indeed we are the creators of our own realities, and if
we are not presently allowing the bluebird of happiness to
sing in our ears, cause wellness in our bodies, abundance in
our financial lives and interpersonal relationships of joy, then
is it possible we need to be more selective in our choices of
architects and builders than we have exercised in the past?
For the purposes of this article, the answer is yes!
Collectively we are lazy in our refusal to make the
necessary leap from victim-hood to one of deliberate
creation, which is a state of allowing everything that has
been placed in something akin to a vibrational escrow
account by us, to find its way into manifestation. Why?
How many of us were taught by our mother’s knee the principle
of the Law of Attraction and the concept of what we
place within our vibrational signature is what this Law works
upon to bring whatever we want to do, be or have into focus
in our present moment? I was born into a Unity family and
that was the piece of the puzzle missing in my life as well.
There is a bumper sticker that, while using another word
that is usually offensive to many, says “Stuff Happens.” Not
so, for extrapolated this is the foundation upon which luck,
accident and chance can so easily rest…Stuff is the result of aprocess…it doesn’t just happen. Our lives, whether we want
to look at them from a historical, present day or future perspective
happen because of a process, and each and every
time we are the instigators of that process and it begins
with thought.
The bottom line to this article would state that ultimately
we are the allowers or disallowers of the process of our good
finding its way into our lives. Certainly we can be temporarily
affected by external conditions and circumstances that
can be lumped into different categories, but to the one who
holds steady and solid to the Truth of their connectivity to
Source Energy…the same Source out of which universes are
formed…that knowing will cut in and take precedent over
the actions, activities and even foibles of humankind. The
illustration that makes this point is the stock market crash
in the 20’s. Those who held the course were back where
they were or beyond in a few short years, and those who
didn’t weren’t.
We are the extensions of an eternal Energy and the
channels that are available for Its demonstration are endless.
We can never miss our ship that is representative of
this Energy for they just keep coming, the only thing we
can do is temporarily take ourselves out of the loop of
receptivity—too strong—diminish our receptivity by
bringing into our vibrational signatures the pronouncements
and prognostications of others that bring into our
emotions the feeling of trepidation.
So, if we are feeling trepidation let’s give it a new
purpose and allow it to serve as a reason to begin aligning
our words and expectations around what we want to do,
be and have, not what we do not. If necessary, fall back on
the logic that as an extension of pure Source Energy you are
no less worthy than anyone who has walked the face of this
earth, and then build a new story around this understanding,
not the false understanding that what someone might do
can permanently hold you away from your good. Now, that
understanding is exciting!
What story? Things always work
out for you! Everything is getting
better and is going to be all right!
Your internal guidance system can
be trusted to rendezvous you with
everything you desire to do, be and
have. No one or nothing can stand
between you and this greater good
unless you give it permission by
buying into its energy.
There is a story of a woman who
advertised for a chauffeur. To each
who responded she asked to be driven for a few miles and
told each that a near by intersection was very dangerous
so be cautious. All but one drove directly to that intersection
and proceeded through it with caution. To the one who
didn’t he was asked why he avoided the dangerous intersection
to which he responded, “Why should I go out of my
way to take my future employer into danger?” He got the
job. Moral? Don’t go in consciousness to any “intersection”
that elicits from you feelings of trepidation.

Questions & Answers

admin — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 00:10:12 +0000

AS I OFTEN DO, I pull together an article for
our newsletter from a recent Sunday Question and Answer
service. I usually do this about twice a year for a couple of
reasons. First, it gives Mary Ellen and me the pulse of the
present moment of you, the congregation. Secondly, the
dates are usually well chosen for the times when I know
upcoming circumstances will not afford me the usual time
I want to spend in developing a Sunday lesson.
Generally a Q & A Lesson is well received,
in fact some say they actually prefer
it—well, so much for the 20 plus hours of
normal lesson preparation time. There are a
few who are adamant in their disapproval,
yet the Sunday lessons are at least just a
click away on www.unitytucson.com, and a
Q & A Lesson title isn’t camoufl aged. For this article a few
questions deserve further attention.
Is it unusual for a new or visiting patron to feel more
comfortable with a traditional service format (preaching,
weekly choir singing, traditional music, candle lighting,
etc.)? Probably not, but we are not traditional Christianity…
we are Unity/New Thought whose take on Christianity is
from the metaphysical point of understanding which begins
with an acknowledgment that Jesus’ wonderful role was/is
to serve as example and not exception. We do something
that many traditional approaches to Christianity do not do…
that in the absence of incense, candles, icons, choirs singing
of the spilled blood and worse and other numbing accouterments,
we encourage people to think, reason and to more
fully understand that they/we are the creators of our own
reality. And to further recognize the process by which we
are always the creators of our own reality and to begin to
be conscious of our input into this process. Then, we do not
preach, we seek to present lessons in empowered living.
How best to deal with adult children as they go through
fi nancial and martial crisis…and there are grandchildren
involved? As my mother so often said, “Mothers already
have two strikes on them.” It is a challenging question as
well as a challenging moment to be in for any parent. Of
course, there isn’t a blanket answer, just possible questions
to ask. Is this possible involvement chronic in nature, or
is there light at the end of the tunnel as concerns fi nancial
assistance? If chronic, then fi nancial involvement becomes
enabling involvement, and the fuse has already been lit. If
this is so, to prolong the inevitable is not kind. As to marital
challenges, they probably stem, at least in part from the
fi nancial arena, and one can’t fi x that. As to grandchildren,
out of the most challenging of circumstances that have even
involved divorce, world leaders have evolved. Oftentimes the opposite of divorce is more emotionally harmful.
I have experienced so much growth through being
here at Unity. Whenever I recognize that something “new”
is before me, I feel uncertain. What can I do to not feel
uncertain or afraid? Abraham said it so beautifully I will
quote their words, “You are always molding yourselves
into a better feeling place. And you will never get it done. It
will never be completely fi nished. It will never be absolutely
right. You will always have some dominant thoughts that are
not a vibrational match to the newfound desire. But that is
always what your work is. And it’s time for you to just begin
relaxing about it, and not make it a personal issue of your
own valor, or your own value, or your own integrity.” In
other words, “You can never get it done because you never
get it wrong…you are eternal.” Chill!
What is Unity’s belief on the death and the resurrection
of Christ? First, Christ can never be born nor die, it is a principle
much like a spiritual PhD that is evidenced when one
truly knows who and what he/she is in God, and Who and
What God is in them. Then, I wasn’t there so I don’t know.
I do know that much, if not all, of the resurrection story was
written from hearsay and that in the bringing together of
canon (a set of religious writings regarded as authentic and
defi nitive and forming a religion’s body of scripture) there
was a concerted effort to insure that the legacy of Jesus was
presented as extraordinary and unique, yet it closely parallels
other more ancient scriptures that speak to similar
moments with the lives of others. So, don’t get caught up
in insisting that something either happened or didn’t. The
worth of Christianity is its Principles fi nding applicability
within one’s life now.
Where does the concept of “God is good” come from?
Isn’t it more correct to say that “God is?” Perhaps, yet the
“good” part probably grew out of the thinking that God was
vengeful and was a simple statement of the nature of things
that was not vindictive, but supportive and empowering.
If the succinct declaration “God IS” is serving you, then
wonderful!
What is Unity’s stand on mediums and people who see
and speak with dead people? The word “dead” muddies the
waters of understanding as the only thing ever possible are
forays from the non-physical into the physical and then the
re-emergence into non-physical. As everything is expressing
within vibrational frequency, the only thing separating
us from those who have re-emerged back into non-physical
is sensitivity to their present vibrational frequency, and some
are very sensitive to this. This is very normal to me, as my
dad was such a person.
Is it true you do not believe in sin…do you believe in
the Ten Commandments? Boy! Talk about entrapment! If
“sin” is defi ned by you within its traditional meaning or,
something that offends a moral, religious or ethical principle
that somehow reaches the level of an unfavorable response
from God upon someone, then no. If a word that simply and
non-judgmentally defi nes moments when one hasn’t risen to
their highest expectations, then that is a good start. Then
the commandments…if “belief” means an allegiance to
the literal jot and tittle of the Ten (and three thousand plus
years is a long time for Scripture accuracy), and when the
Beatitudes of Jesus (same argument as to scripture accuracy
applies) reference not “Thou shalt not’s,” but “Blessed are
you if’s” the most important values in my life come in a very
current time line from within me.
Is God an external separate being? Religion and specifi
cally religiosity has portrayed God as this and understandably
so, for such was the best that ancient man was
capable; yet the unfortunate thing is that this same level of
thinking permeates many of today’s beliefs as well. I am
growing to think that what we have called God is an eternal
Energy Source that uniquely is extended into all levels of life
in a wonderful co-creative experience within the expanding
universe, and such is who and what we are and the role we
are playing.
Please explain how our fate/destiny is affected by our
creative free will…so much of it seems out of our control.
Yes, it can appear to be so, yet if we are in full charge of
constructing our fate/destiny, then our fate is to always
rendezvous with our dreams and desires that we have
caused to be placed in what can be called our spiritual
escrow account…remember…“Ask and it shall be given,
seek and you shall fi nd, knock and it shall be opened”?
So, our only destiny is to discover our fate which is of our
own making. There is nothing outside of us creating our fate
or destiny. We are the creators of our own reality.
It is the nature of the mind to be conditioned. We, as
consciousness, are the conditioners. How do we move in
the right direction? A beautiful and insightful question. We
learn to be aware of and then listen to our emotions or feelings.
They are our built-in feedback mechanism as we were
not set adrift, so to speak, without this ongoing guidance that
tells us whether or not we are in alignment with the greater
good we seek to do, be and have. Good feels good and tells
us we are mostly in alignment with our Higher Self. “Bad”
feels bad and tells us we are not in alignment with our
Higher Self and need to re-examine where we are focusing
our energies.
Is there a way to bring a loved one home to spirit, to
their God Self? They can never not be eternally okay in their
process, by whatever name we call this. Each is in our own
process of remembering to let the variety of contrasts simply
point us to the direction of what we want to do, be and have.
If we concentrate on the contrast whose only true purpose
is to point our energies toward our true desires and goals, it
can appear as if we are seeking for love (or whatever) in all
the wrong places, but our eternal self is forever secure and
safe. This leads us to us and our vision of our loved ones. See
them as you know them to be and then give them permission
to be who they have chosen to be for any one given
moment in their eternality. Then, re-read the 2nd question/
answer in this article.

Sex on the Beach

admin — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 15:50:41 +0000

by Larry Swartz

A number of months ago…actually last Summer, I facilitated two different lesson experiences during the summer that I titled “A Co-Creative Summer”, and as a part of each Sunday I exposed the congregation to my Abraham adaptation of the Master Mind steps. This gave a number of people the opportunity to speak to a dream or desire of their heart and have the loving support of those present. We were able to perhaps get six or so people during each service. After the service, and then available on our web site, at and then by further clicking on Co-Creative Group, everyone had the opportunity of taking home with them a copy of the steps along with further suggestions as to how to implement them within a group anyone could form.

I know of a number of people who have implemented the practice and are doing so on a regular basis, which is important, as a focused momentum is helpful to the process. One particular group, along with the Abraham-Master Mind steps, also studies the various books that have come out of Jerry and Esther Hicks’ experience with Abraham wherein various tools are shared that help one’s mind wrap around how the Law of Attraction works. One of the tools is called a Focus Wheel, which is somewhat similar to what, in Unity, we call a Treasure Map.

The basis for this understanding is for us to set goals for our lives, and because we can never get it wrong for we never get it done (we are eternal) there is nothing we cannot be, do or have. So, within this group of 4 individuals who are coming together using the Co-Creative Master Mind Format as well as treasure mapping, one person somewhat whimsically cut out from a magazine the words “sex on the beach” for her treasure map. Everyone chuckled, I presume.
Then I was told the story of how the next week two of the group were either driving home together or were meeting for dinner at a restaurant on the north central part of Tucson and finding that restaurant with a group of people standing outside waiting, decided not to join them, and instead went across the street to a Sushi restaurant. There, on their menu was a combination of sushi called “Sex On The Beach”. The Law of Attraction is the manager and brought interpretation of her goal-desire into her experience. Many smiles and chuckles, and of course, they felt it was incumbent upon them to each order that particular item.

It occurred to me as this was shared, as it also occurred to them, what if on her Focus Wheel she might have put words like, “Sex on a secluded beach in southern California, or the Caribbean, or Bora Bora?” It might have been interesting to later hear how it was orchestrated by the great manager, the Law of Attraction.

How specific should we be as we dream, desire and want? Parenthetically there is recent a book that purports to take one into the workings of the Law of Attraction with greater insight and clarity than found within the DVD The Secret, and tells us that we have to be careful not to let our ego’s rule our lives and become selfish in our desires. After the original DVD came out, I find it interesting how so many have felt the need to take what I think to be a pure teaching of how the Universe works and massage within it their personal hang-ups. What this particular author didn’t understand was a fundamental premise to the adventure of life that necessitates we continually dream and desire as we are the leading edge of the expansion of the Universe…and that we can never get it wrong because we never get it done—we are eternal!

Worry not about being selfish—it is our job description to be so aware of the powerful Self that we actually are as extensions of Source Energy that this awareness and knowledge is for the purpose of being, doing or having whatever it is we choose. There isn’t a score card or a Higher Power to please or to Kowtow to. There is but this Higher Power who is presently expressing in, through us, our children, our significant other, our mother, even our President.

The challenge we find needful to watch is whenever we factor into our Focus Wheel, Treasure Map or other helpful processes another’s pronouncement of our ego’s running amuck or their interpretation of our desires and dreams as being inappropriate within their understanding, we then lose our focus in an attempt to please them. Forget that! You are here primarily to please yourself and from a tapped in, tuned in, turned on space you can only be a blessing to others.

So, how specific can or should we be? As specific in our thoughts or in our Focus Wheels as we want to be so long as our specificity doesn’t leave us with feelings of being unfulfilled because something hasn’t manifested yet. If we can view these yet-to-be manifested things with thankfulness, joy and a willingness to be at peace wherein we presently are, then the thought of sex on a deserted beach in the Caribbean, or something similar, can yet be a delicious and anticipated experience even as we make our peace fully within the now where the sand-filled fling by the ocean, or the house, car, perfect partner, dollars or wellness is not quite here.

If that isn’t easy to do, then pet the cat. What am I saying? Goals, be they placed upon Treasure Maps, Focus Wheels, affirmations, visualizations, statements and conversations wherein we stir around in the things, events and occurrences we want to be do or have, do not have to be offered, as it were, to the Law of Attraction, ad nauseam. Once is enough, especially if thinking about it again only reinforces some aspect of unhappiness because it isn’t in our experience this red hot moment, for often this energy has a temporary effect of canceling out the dream or desire.

Why? Anything we focus upon, be it something we want or something we don’t want, because it is in our focus becomes integral with the vibrational signature we are offering to the Law of Consciousness, the Law of Mind Action, or the Law of Attraction—all the same thing, and the process begins. So, if continually thinking on our goals isn’t serving us because of being reminded over and over again that it isn’t yet ours, allow yourself to be distracted…pet the cat, enjoy the clouds, find something to appreciate. The process began the moment you experienced the desire…and it doesn’t necessarily need tending to. For many the best gift they can give to this experience is to back off and let the Law, by whatever name you might choose to call it, do its work.

So if Sex on the Beach as a sushi offering in a restaurant isn’t exactly what you had in mind, be as specific as you feel you need to be to offer a clear and concise picture to Source. Do you have to forget the dreams or desires and pet the car instead? No, only if it causes conflict in you. If you can, as an example, picture in detail a “perfect foothills home” so as to enjoy a virtual reality walk-through as you explore feelings of joy and fulfillment through envisioning in great detail a perfect kitchen, master bedroom, large walk-in closets, convenient bathrooms throughout, steam shower, a 5 or more car garage complete with cars of your choice, marble floors, home theater, vanishing edge pool, exercise room, deck, and views to absolutely live for and be in perfect peace even before it finds its way into your life it increases the speed by which it can come.

Understanding the process is the key. Understanding in peace, appreciation, thankfulness and joy, is the lubricant.