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Enjoy another wonderful text by Rev. Phil Smedsted, minister Emeritus of Oasis Rising Center

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Phil Smedstad's texts are one of the ways Oasis Rising Center supports members.

A Positive Path for Spiritual Living

Oasis Rising Center Spiritual Center
Oasis Rising Center 8125 West Sahara Avenue
Las Vegas, NV 89125
(702) 804-8189
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“The Challenge and Joy of Change”

By Rev. Phillip Smedstad

This past Sunday, I shared with people that this was the second to last Sunday for me here in Key West.  After that, we will have guest speakers for a few months.  Here’s what Unity Worldwide Ministries has to say about this in-between time:
“As we move from a minister-centric model to a congregation-centric model, it’s important to ask, ‘Now that Phil (or whoever the Minister is) is no longer here, who are we and who do we want to be?  What do we want our mission and vision to be?’”  (And by the way, Unity Worldwide Ministries will be helping with this.)

Some of you might feel resistant to this change, especially if it reminds you of something unpleasant from your childhood.  Rev. Terry Cole-Whitaker once said, “As the Minister of this church, I used to be afraid that I would upset people with what I said or did.  Then, I came to realize that people are already upset.”

If, in your childhood, you were left, or felt abandoned, my retirement could push that button.  If it does, then this is an opportunity to get to deeper forgiveness with whoever abandoned you.

Whenever there is a change happening in our lives, we can either see it as a problem or as an opportunity.  If we see change as a problem, we might find ourselves resisting it.  To resist something means to oppose, to resent, and/or to criticize it.

In Taoism, the Tao is “the way, or the path.”  (You may remember that the early followers of Jesus were called “the followers of the way.”)  In truth, there has only ever been one way or path to God, and that way is called deep, inner change.

In Taoism, there is something called “the law of reverse effort.”  This means that there are times when the more we try, the worse things become.
Eric Butterworth, a long-time Unity Minister, said in his book In the Flow of Life, that our natural state is one of affluence, which, he said, means “a free flow.”  In that book, he also reminded us of one of the basic laws of electricity:  The current at the point of use is equal to the energy at the source divided by the resistance of the conductor.  (In this analogy, we, of course, are the conductors and God is the Source.)

In Taoism, “Chi” (which is the power of the Tao), is always coursing through us.  For the Taoists, the goal is to get to something called “Wu Wei,” which is a state of no friction, no resistance, and no wasted effort.  The definition of Wu Wei is “the energy that flows through us when our private egos and conscious efforts yield to a power not their own.”  This reminds me of when Jesus said, “It is not I but the Father within, He does His works.”

Deepak Chopra, in one of his books, said that the first part of the law of non-resistance is the acceptance of “what is.”  This reminded me of the delightful saying by Byron Katie:  “When you argue with reality, you lose – but only 100% of the time.”

As we’ve all heard, the only constant in life is change.  Yet, for many of us, change is always scary.  According to A Course In Miracles, the reason we are so resistant to change is that our first experience of change was when we believed we separated from God.  This was so catastrophic that we are now afraid of ALL change.

Some of you might be thinking, “This leadership change at Unity isn’t my idea.”  However, those of us who are students of A Course In Miracles (which includes me) know that this isn’t possible.  We know that everything that happens in our lives is our own idea.  We also know that there is always a gift we want to receive from it.
On Sunday, I asked people to open this e-newsletter article, and to be with the question, “What is it that I want to receive from this leadership change at Unity?”

I also shared a story for anyone who’s afraid that “we won’t attract the right next minister.”
I was once at a Prosperity Workshop where the leader said, “Don’t worry about your bills.  Pay them!”  Of course, what he meant was, “Pay them in your mind.  Whenever you find yourself going into worry, visualize yourself joyfully paying the bills.”

The equivalent for this current situation is, “Don’t worry about attracting the right next Minister.  Instead, visualize yourself having a warm and loving relationship with him or her, and how wonderful it will feel with terrific new leadership.”

Then I asked everyone to join me with a two-part affirmation:

• “I give the future of Oasis Rising Center to the Holy Spirit.”
• “I give thanks for the perfection of the Holy Spirit’s plan.”

To our real self, change is exciting and joyful.  It’s an opportunity for growth.  It’s an adventure.  To our ego mind, change always means, “I’m going to lose.”  As Jack Kornfield said in one of his books, “To our ego mind, spiritual growth is just one insult after another.”

Another thing our egos want us to believe is that spiritual growth, and surrender, are painful.  But spiritual growth and surrender are never painful.  It’s only our resistance to them that is painful.

It was the Buddha who said that the Source of all our suffering is our attachments.  So, practice accepting and embracing change.  Look for the gifts that the change can bring.  Remember, Spirit wants only your highest good, and Spirit always gets Its way.

The more we release our attachments to, “It has to be this exact way,” or, “It has to be that exact form,” the more we experience change not as a challenge but as a joyous adventure.  Let this week be about practicing non-resistance and embracing change.