Spiritual Solutions

Thanksgiving Day is almost upon us, so I’d like to offer you a way to make this Thanksgiving season even more special, with a new and different way of celebrating our traditional Thanksgiving.

Recently a woman told me of a wonderful demonstration of prayer that she had experienced and how very, very thankful she was feeling. But she admitted that she wasn’t sure how she could truly express her thankfulness to God. She said, “It somehow doesn’t seem enough just to say ‘Thank You’ to God.”

Have you ever had a tremendously wonderful answer to prayer? Perhaps a loved one who was very ill suddenly had what the medical profession calls “an instantaneous remission,” or had an exceptionally fast recovery to complete wholeness and health?

You would feel very, very thankful to that life-giving Spirit which is the Source of all healing and that humankind calls God, wouldn’t you? So how are you going to express your thankfulness?

Would it be enough to go into a church and silently say “Thank You” to God’s invisible Presence?

Would it be enough to go out on some mountainside and shout “Thank you, God” into the air and hear it echo and re-echo back to you?

I certainly think that silently giving thanks to God in prayer is very good. I think going out on a mountainside or wooded place or seashore and shouting “Thank you, God” with a fervent feeling of gratitude is a wonderful thing to do.

But I think perhaps that this is not enough. This is consciously being grateful. This is accepting a blessing, what might indeed be a miracle, from God with gratitude. But it is not what we might call “Thanks-giving,” except the giving of your time and perhaps an overflow of your emotions.

So let me suggest to you how you can really give thanks to God in this Thanksgiving season . . . and all around the year.

Here is what you do . . .

You’re grateful to God for your many blessings . . . good! You say “Thank You” to God in a quiet time of prayer . . . good! Then, because in your heart you know God has done so much for you and through you, you arise from your prayer time and determine to be on the lookout for someone who has a need that they can’t fulfill themselves . . . then you fulfill it!

Then you are truly giving, to express your thanks. And you are giving directly to God, too.

How are you giving directly to God?

Well, as Jesus said to the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:24), “God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” Spirit means “breath,” or Life. God is Life in expression through every person as their individual Being.

When you give something of yourself to someone who has a need, you are giving to God expressing as that person!

This is what the Bible is pointing out when it says, “Whatsoever you do unto the least of these, you do also unto me.”

Thankful prayer is “Thanks-feeling,” and it is good. “Thanks-giving” involves an action of giving.

Often in my years of ministry, people have done things for me that fill my heart with gratitude. And in my retirement from full-time church ministry, I have been overwhelmed by the expressions of love and appreciation that have come from so many, many people.

I thank God, and I try to thank persons with a note or a letter which includes everyone. But this never seems enough. So I figure the only way I can truly express the fullness of my feeling of thankfulness is to work diligently at doing the best job possible of teaching the Truth principles that have helped others, both today and in the future.

In short, you can express gratitude or “give thanks” by giving back more of yourself to the people whose lives touch yours.

There are Many Things You Can Give

There are many things you can give to express your thanks to God.

You can give a little time and understanding to your teenage son or daughter who needs to know that you love him or her.

You can give a happy attitude around the house that will brighten up the atmosphere.

You can give a little extra service to your customers, or do a little better job at work.

You can give a word of appreciation to the fellow who fixed your car instead of a look of suspicion that he overcharged you . . . even if he did! Then you are really giving something, and it costs a little more than just a perfunctory “Thank You, God” in prayer.

Do you get the idea?

Here’s an idea that could be better than a hundred Sunday school lessons for your children: When you sit down to your Thanksgiving table, what if you said, “Kids, we sure are grateful for all our blessings. We are grateful for this food, for our health, for your Mommy, for you, and for all the good things that we enjoy and sometimes take for granted. Tell you what we’ll do, we’ll say our Grace and acknowledge that God has given us these things, and then we will take an equal amount to what the dinner cost and we will send it to ____________ (you add whatever organization your family feels is doing a real good job in helping people).”

Later in life, when they imitate their Dad and Mom, they will find that you always get back, in some way or another, more than you gave when you give out of a feeling of thankfulness. It comes back to you, increased and multiplied!

Make this the most unique and rewarding Thanksgiving of your life. Give thanks to God in prayer, yes, but then start looking for needs that people can’t fulfill by themselves, and fill the need for them . . . and don’t tell a soul that you did it!

God is Blessing You, Right Now!

Rev. Alan A. Rowbotham
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There’s a story from when Charles Fillmore, co-founder of the Unity movement, was still alive and at Unity Village. It’s told that a young girl who was working there came to him and said, “Oh, Mr. Fillmore, I dreamed last night that I became so spiritual that I could fly.” He responded, “Well then, that’s all very well but are you so spiritual that you can pay the rent?”

Charles Fillmore was very focused on his Christianity being practical Christianity, on applying the truths of being to every aspect of our lives.

I want to share with you some of the prosperity truths that are recession, depression, and inflation proof. You will enjoy using them often. Let me share two with you now, starting with a quote from Charles Fillmore right here at the beginning. He says, in his book Prosperity, “The law of supply is a divine law. This means that it is a law of mind and must work through the mind.”

In other words, prosperity, health, well-being, all of those aspects of our life which we equate with prosperity, must come through our prosperous thinking. And our mind can be trained to think prosperously in simple and delightful ways that will bring satisfying and delightful results into our lives. <!–[if !vml]–>

Read the rest of this entry »

Last week we considered the Preface and the First Conversation in the little book The Practice of the Presence of God - The Best Rule of a Holy Life, by Brother Lawrence. 

The essence of what was covered is as follows: 

We learned the importance of establishing ourselves in a ongoing sense of God’s presence, of continually conversing with God, and of feeding and nourishing our souls with high notions of God, practices which bring feelings of great joy into our everday experience. In other words, we are to praise God and give thanks to God in an ongoing basis, in order to develop a continuing sense of God’s presence in our life through an ever-deepening feeling of gratitude.

And we are to do this without being overly concerned about others “sins” or misdeeds, praying for them but simply leaving that all in God’s hands.

Encouraged to quicken, or enliven, our faith, we are to “give ourselves up to God” in both temporal and spiritual things. As we are faithful in times of “dryness or insensibilities or irksomeness in prayer” we will find that these can be times of spiritual advancement.

Even when we cannot feel God’s presence, we are to continue in our faith in God, in our praise and gratitude toward God for all the blessings in our life.

As we are attentive to our passions in both spiritual and material things, God will give light and direction to those who truly desire to serve God’s highest purpose for our lives.

This week, we turn to the “Second Conversation.”

SECOND CONVERSATION

That he had always been governed by love, without selfish views; and that having resolved to make the love of God the end of all his actions, he had found reasons to be well satisfied with his method. That he was pleased when he could take up a straw from the ground for the love of God, seeking Him only, and nothing else, not even His gifts.

That he had been long troubled in mind from a certain belief that he should be damned; that all men in the world could not have persuaded him to the contrary; but that he had thus reasoned with himself about it: I engaged in a religious life only for the love of God, and I have endeavored to act only for Him; whatever becomes of me, whether I be lost or saved, I will always continue to act purely for the love of God. I shall have this good at least, that till death I shall have done all that is in me to love Him.

That this trouble of mind had lasted four years, during which time he had suffered much; but that at last he had seen that this trouble arose from want of faith, and that since then he had passed his life in perfect liberty and continual joy. That he had placed his sins betwixt him and God, as it were, to tell Him that he did not deserve His favors, but that God still continued to bestow them in abundance.

That in order to form a habit of conversing with God continually, and referring all we do to Him, we must at first apply to Him with some diligence; but that after a little care we should find His love inwardly excite us to it without any difficulty.

That he expected, after the pleasant days God had given him, that he should have his turn of pain and suffering; but that he was not uneasy about it, knowing very well that as he could do nothing of himself, God would not fail to give him strength to bear it.

That when an occasion of practicing some virtue offered, he addressed himself to God, saying, “Lord, I cannot do this unless Thou enablest me;” and that then he received strength more than sufficient.

That when he had failed in his duty, he only confessed to his fault, saying to God, “I shall never do otherwise if you leave me to myself; it is You who must hinder my falling, and mend what is amiss.” That after this he gave himself no further uneasiness about it.

That we ought to act with God in the greatest simplicity, speaking to Him frankly and plainly, and imploring His assistance in our affairs, just as they happen. That God never failed to grant it, as he had often experienced.

That he had lately been sent into Burgundy, to buy the provision of wine for the society, which was a very unwelcome task for him, because he had no turn for business, and because he was lame and could not go about the boat but by rolling himself over the casks. That, however, he gave himself no uneasiness about it, nor about the purchase of the wine. That he said to God, It was His business he was about, and that he afterward found it very well performed. That he had been sent into Auvergne, the year before, upon the same account; that he could not tell how the matter passed, but that it proved very well.

So, likewise, in his business in the kitchen (to which he had naturally a great aversion), having accustomed himself to do everything there for the love of God, and with prayer, upon all occasions, for His grace to do his work well, he had found everything easy, during fifteen years that he had been employed there.

That he was very well pleased with the post he was now in; but that he was as ready to quit that as the former, since he was always pleasing himself in every condition by doing little things for the love of God.

That with him the set times of prayer were not different from other times; that he retired to pray, according to the directions of his superior, but that he did not want such retirement, nor ask for it, because his greatest business did not divert him from God.

That as he knew his obligation to love God in all things, and as he endeavored so to do, he had no need of a director to advise him, but that he needed much a confessor to absolve him. That he was very sensible of his faults, but not discouraged by them; that he confessed them to God, but did not plead against Him to excuse them. When he had so done, he peaceably resumed his usual practice of love and adoration.

That in his trouble of mind he had consulted nobody, but knowing only by the light of faith that God was present, he contented himself with directing all his actins to Him, i.e., doing them with a desire to please Him, let what would come of it.

That useless thoughts spoil all; that the mischief began there; but that we ought to reject them as soon as we perceived their impertinence to the matter in hand, or our salvation, and return to our communion with God.

That at the beginning he had often passed his time appointed for prayer in rejectng wandering thoughts and falling back into them. That he could never regulate his devotion by certain methods as some do. That, nevertheless, at first he had meditated for some time, but afterward that went off, in a manner he could give no account of.

That all bodily mortifications and other exercises are useless, except as they serve to arrive at the union with God by love; that he had well considered this, and found it the shortest way to go straight to Him  by a continual exercise of love and doing all things for His sake.

That we ought to make a great difference between the acts of the understanding and those of the will; that the first were comparatively of little value, and the others, all. That our only business was to love and delight ourselves in God.

That all possible kinds of mortification, if they were void of the love of God, could not efface a single sin. That we ought, without anxiety, to expect the pardon of our sins from the blood of Jesus Christ, only endeavoring to love Him with all our hearts. That God seemed to have granted the greatest favors to the greatest sinners, as more signal monuments of His mercy.

That the greatest pains or pleasures of this world were not to be compated with what he had experienced of both kinds in a spiritual state; so that he was careful for nothing and feared nothing, desiring only one thing of God, viz., that he might not offend Him.

That he had no scruples; for, said he, when I fail in my duty, I readily acknowledge it, saying, I am used to do so; I shall never do otherwise if I am left to myself. If I fail not, then I give God thanks, acknowledging that the strength comes from Him.

God is Blessing You, Right Now!

Rev. Alan A. Rowbotham
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Rev. Alan A. Rowbotham, a Unity minister for over thirty-six years, invites you to enjoy more articles and/or subscribe to his free inspirational newsletter, Spiritual Solutions or go directly to the Spiritual Solutions Blog

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