Hi Cristina, Stephen and others interested,
On following this thread, the first thing I thought was we all need to
have patience with ourselves, "accept forgiveness" as our book would put it.
There will be moments of enlightenment, even transformation, followed by
moments of seeming retrogression. There is a great passage about this ebb and
flow I've tacked on here from the UB. Doubts will certainly alternate with
faith, a reason I think we are taught about faith-trust. In moments when
faith is uncertain, I can exercise an attitude of trust, trust that faith,
"self-conscious[ness] of the assurance of the divine presence," will come back
into my heart even when it seems I have lost it.
13:4.5.The determiner of the differential of spiritual presence exists in
your own hearts and minds and consists in the manner of your own choosing,
in the decisions of your minds, and in the determination of your own wills.
This differential is inherent in the freewill reactions of intelligent
personal beings, beings whom the Universal Father has ordained shall exercise
this liberty of choosing. And the Deities are ever true to the ebb and flow
of their spirits in meeting and satisfying the conditions and demands of
this differential of creature choice, now bestowing more of their presence in
response to a sincere desire for the same and again withdrawing themselves
from the scene as their creatures decide adversely in the exercise of
their divinely bestowed freedom of choice. And thus does the spirit of
divinity
become humbly obedient to the choosing of the creatures of the realms.
Cheers,
Dave Holt, GGC
In a message dated 6/22/2015 7:52:04 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time,
szendt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx writes:
Christina,
You raise the most probing questions, the ones that need answers from our
own experience, in concert with the "conspiracy" of spiritual helpers who
are involved with our growing ability to use the Adjutants of Worship and
Wisdom, it seems to me.
I know from my life as it is now, that I have been somewhat transformed,
from the willful and ignorant drop-out that I was when the UB was thrust into
my life, back in 1971. I certainly don't pretend to be a high achiever.
Anxiety continues to plague me as I face retirement and relocation from
familiar surroundings.
Interpersonal relationships have stretched and occasionally strained my
abilities to be of loving support to others.
Yet, in the midst of juggling many issues and ideas that come to me in
waves of awareness, when meditating or contemplating, journaling or
discussing, I can sense how my emotional responses are less volatile, more
toward a
mature understanding.
I sense my relationship to the Holy Spirit and her seven Adjutants, I seek
help from my spiritual resources, and I listen for "the still, small
voice" of the Spirit of Truth. Being in an active and stimulating study group
is
a decided plus.
I don't have easy answers to your deep questions. As Dick Bain points out,
there are no specific roadmaps to personal transformation.
All I can say is that looking back, I can see that goodness and truth have
made my life more beautiful. This gives me moments of real joy.
Sincerely,
Stephen Zendt
-----Original Message-----
From: "Cristina Hutchins (via socadmin list)"
Sent: Jun 21, 2015 10:28 PM
To: Stephen Zendt
Cc: "UB Soc-Admin (new)" , "ggc-urantialist@xxxxxxxxxxxxx"
Subject: Re: [socadmin] FIFTH EPOCHAL POWER HOUR honors Father's Day
This email was sent from yahoo.com which does not allow forwarding of
emails via email lists. Therefore the sender's email address
(cdhutchins94510@xxxxxxxxx) has been replaced with a dummy one.
<ZZZHT
Hi Stephen,
Thank you for your thoughtful reply. So last things first; your
list--these are things we understand intellectually from reading the UB.
But the four points you made at the top of your reply more address the
crux of what I'm getting at. In looking at Paper 102, how do we undergo the
process of spiritual transformation and unity; how do we let go of ego
identity (and being judgmental); let go of fear (and its brothers anxiety and
worry); let go of self-will in order to do the Father's will? This is what I'm
driving at. Unless we let go of these things, we will never truly
experience spiritual transformation and unity in this lifetime. The UB doesn't
tell
us how to accomplish this state of spiritual transformation and unity, and
so we struggle with ego, fear and self-will--even though we say a lot of
prayers.
Jesus told his followers that the kingdom was within each of them. Through
faith and our intellect we know we are in-dwelt by a divine spark, a
Father fragment. We know that this is what Jesus was referring to when he said
the kingdom lies within. Why do we, as UB readers, not know how to
experientially tap into to that kingdom? What do readers do to accomplish this
"spiritual transformation" that allows one to see the God in everyone; to
achieve unity with the Father and thus come in alignment with the doing of the
Father's will? I know a lot of UB readers who intellectually believe all of
this. I've been trying to work this out for myself. So I was hoping for
feedback from a more experiential perspective.
I do believe there are some people who have experienced spiritual
transformation--a profound experience, one that changes one's entire way of
seeing
and interacting with the world. They would be operating on an entirely
different level than the rest of us. They would truly be coming from a place
of
love--in the profoundest sense. They would experience a profound peace and
calm. They would be fearless. I think the rest of us are still struggling
to let go of ego, pettiness, judgement, and fear; we have not figured out
how to subordinate self-will for the Father's will–even after praying for
help in overcoming these shortcomings. We are not coming from a place of
unconditional love. How do we get there? Prayer? Meditation?
Stephen, these are the thoughts/questions that arose when I read the UB
quote in your Power Hour today.
Cristina Hutchins
____________________________________
From: Stephen Zendt <szendt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: Cristina Hutchins <cdhutchins94510@xxxxxxxxx>
Cc: UB Soc-Admin (new) <socadmin@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>;
"ggc-urantialist@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <ggc-urantialist@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Sunday, June 21, 2015 7:03 PM
Subject: Re: [socadmin] FIFTH EPOCHAL POWER HOUR honors Father's Day
Hi, Christina!
Because the quote is out of its context, the whole of Section 1 is
important to understanding what is meant.
However, in my own view, it is through (first) acknowledging our awareness
of, and our relationship to, God our Father.
Then (second) to undergo the process of spiritual transformation, to
relocate the seat of our identity from ego to soul.
And (third) to seek to "do the Father's will" in our daily lives, to love
and serve our fellow family members in willing and faithful affection.
We become willing to respond to God's invitation to "come home to me,
Agondonter, my beloved child." [not a quote from the UB]
But rather than oversimplify such "personal participation", there comes:
1. the awakening to our cosmic citizenship
2. our realization of the gigantic cosmos
3. its trillions of inhabitants, in Seven Super-universes
4. surrounding the central abode of the Paradise Isle and the perfect
Universe of Havona
5. the eternal life that awaits us, beginning in Mansonia
6. the encounter with Michael of Nebadon
7. the betrothal and fusion with our Mystery Monitor, and the
subsequent journey to Uversa
8. traveling through the perfect worlds of Havona on the way to
Paradise
9. the realization of The Infinite Spirit, The Eternal Son, and
arrival on the Isle of Paradise
10. The Paradise embrace with The Universal Father
These are some ideas, but others may well have other perspectives, and
deeper thoughts about this.
Stephen Zendt
-----Original Message-----
From: "Cristina Hutchins (via socadmin list)"
Sent: Jun 21, 2015 5:49 PM
To: Stephen Zendt
Cc: "UB Soc-Admin (new)" , " ggc-urantialist@xxxxxxxxxxxxx"
Subject: Re: [socadmin] FIFTH EPOCHAL POWER HOUR honors Father's Day
This email was sent from yahoo.com which does not allow forwarding of
emails via email lists. Therefore the sender's email address
(cdhutchins94510@xxxxxxxxx) has been replaced with a dummy one.
Lovely, Stephen. I would like to ask everyone how you interpret or
understand to mean the last part of that paragraph: "our personal
participation in
the divine manifestations of his infinite reality."?
Cristina Hutchins
Stephen Zendt <szendt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Dear Urantia Book students and friends,
How unique to have Father's Day and the Summer Solstice happening at the
same time, on a Sunday!
We in the Northern Hemisphere are in the season of hot weather, now, while
those south of the Equator enter Wintertime.
Whether cold or hot, it is a day to pay attention to creators, those who
sired us and those who created our Universe. The big opportunity here is
open expression of gratitude, for time and sacrifice made in order to provide
home and watch care. Our heavenly and earthly fathers need to know that we
care for them and send them love.
In honor of today, I want to provide a single paragraph that lifts my own
soul up whenever I read it. PAPER 102; Section 1, Pp. 5.
_102:1.5_ () God is so all real and absolute that no material sign of
proof or no demonstration of so-called miracle may be offered in testimony of
his reality. Always will we know him because we trust him, and our belief
in him is wholly based on our personal participation in the divine
manifestations of his infinite reality.
Stephen Zendt, Walnut Creek, CA
