Tag Archives: faith

Rise and Shine

Alarmclock about to wake her upWhen I was a teenager my mother had a horrific time waking me up in the morning.  She would, call, cajole, yell, push, pull, and most effectively, threaten to run a bath for me and then go downstairs to the basement. This would mean that if the tub overflowed it would be my fault.  Somehow that one did it. I would reluctantly leave my warm cozy bed and head downstairs to turn off the water.  The threat of more work and the trouble I would be in was enough to release whatever dream was holding me captive.

What if we could apply this same principle to our daily lives?  There are some who would say that our earthly experience is a dream itself, that we have fallen asleep to our greater, spiritual selves.  Our dreams are often captivating because we can change the thread of the dream at will.  If it’s a really good one we can stay in it and perhaps even choose the next scene. If it’s frightening we can turn a corner and begin a different dream or simply wake up.

If today, your awake dream is not what you choose to experience, change the scene.  You have the power to do that.  If today the awake dream of the world is frightening, let’s all wake up.  What appears to be immovable is movable through the powers of faith, divine love, wisdom and will.  These are innate powers within each of us. Aligned with the one power, one presence, one activity that animates all of life, we can move mountains, change scenes and see the Truth in one another.  But we must wake up. 

Whatever scene you choose to live today, let it be one that is guided by the harmonizing power of Divine Love. Let it be a day of wakefulness to the divine essence in all beings. Rise and Shine! The water is running and it’s up to you to direct the flow.

© 2017. Eileen DeRosia Patra

 

God in the Midst

God Rays.cc

“God in the midst…

I trust in You.” Job 13:15

The story of Job is one of challenge after challenge. It is one of trouble, sorrow and pain, ultimately met with a deep and abiding Trust in God.  It is this ultimate and complete Trust in God that we are called to in times of great challenge and conflict, for without it our troubles may seem insurmountable, too big to handle.  Our sense of well-being and peace may seem eternally lost. But it is WITH GOd that “all things are possible.” When we trust that the underlying Source of Life is continuously conspiring for our ultimate good, for the good of ALL beings, we find peace in the midst of any disturbance. To trust is to rely on, to expect that our needs will be met, to know that whatever is occurring is only a step in the ongoing process of returning to wholeness and oneness WITH God.

AFFIRMATION: One WITH the One Power, One Presence, One Activity, God the Good, I find Peace in the midst.

(c) 2017. Rev. Eileen Patra

Conquering Crocodiles: Living the FEAR-less Life

cc.crocodile.6972761985_b3dd85a42e_oThe crocodile trainer uses a distraction to maintain a safe distance from its powerful jaws.  He enters the pen and throws the croc a piece of rope to chew on while he maneuvers to a safe place from which to feed and appease this fearsome beast. 

Fear, like a powerful beast, can grip our minds and hearts in its jaws and pull us into a downward spiral.  Unattended, not managed, it often develops into anger, hatred and exclusion.  Managing or treating the extended symptoms of fear is a temporary and inadequate response for it fails to resolve the underlying cause. 

Fear is a tool of the human psyche meant to preserve our physical safety.  Its only job is to alert us to the possibility of danger.  The problem is in its primitiveness.  It cannot discern between the real and the unreal.  It does not sense the difference between that past, present and future.  It cannot see beyond the physical senses.  It sees but has no vision.  It hears but cannot listen.  It feels but cannot touch. The response is up to us.  The typical responses; fight (anger), flight (leave) or freeze (apathy) are inadequate, for they fail to create a sustained sense of safety.  They do not appease the aspect of consciousness that raises the symptoms of fear.

So, what to do then? A completely new response to fear must be implemented if we are to transcend its grip and evolve as a collective consciousness.  Facing fear and its extended we bring them into the Light of greater understanding.  We recognize the underlying cause as fear and we shine the Light of Love and Harmony.  We create for ourselves and safe space sheltered by the shield of Divine Love that transforms and harmonizes the energies of hatred and fear.  From the shelter of Divine Love we open our hearts to forgiveness and inclusion.  We refuse to engage in hatred. We refuse to respond with anger.  We allow a greater wisdom and peace to transfuse our minds and hearts and we become the beacons of Light.  We hold an image of Love and Light that transforms every fear-filled soul into a vessel of peace and harmony.  We listen with our hearts and we respond with Love.  We hear the crocodile mind speaking from the back of our humanness and we say Peace, Be Still. The Christ in me is awakened. Thanks for the warning but God and I have got this. 

© 2017. Rev. Eileen Patra. Rev. Eileen is an ordained Unity minister currently serving as pastor at Unity of Livonia in Michigan.

Amazing Days Every Day

amazing-dreamstimefree_2246985“Something Amazing Happens to me Today!” This is the affirmation the members of our ministry are working with this week based on last Sunday’s talk and Pam Grout’s book, “E-Cubed.”  Some truly amazing results have occurred over the past few days for each of us, simply by setting this intention before getting out of bed each morning.

Today, just happens to be Friday the 13th.  It has always been, for me anyway, an amazing day.  And, this has been the result of the intention I set for this day based on an experience from my childhood.

When I was in the 3rd or 4th grade, I was working on a science project and drawing a picture of the solar system.  It was Friday the 13th and I had recently heard that it was an unlucky day.  As I struggled with the drawing, using dishes, glasses, cups and saucers as templates for the planets, I voiced my concerns about this very unlucky situation.  My mother told me that a day could only be unlucky if I believed in such things.  As I struggled with creating the correct proportions of planets with my very limited circular tools, I considered this idea.  And suddenly, everything changed!

My brother, who was married, much older than I but living nearby showed up with a contraption called a compass and showed me how to use it. Amazing!! I could make circles in whatever size I chose! What had been limited and frustrating only moments before became a work of joy.

Today, as my husband and I wait for a phone call that will likely mark the beginning of a path some would call challenging, I am affirming “Something Amazingly Awesome Happens to us today!” and I believe it.  Friday the 13th has never failed to offer me something wonderful.  Whatever the message we receive today, I know there will be opportunities to expand and the circle of Divine Love to be expressed through this is unlimited. The circumference of our experience will be determined in proportion to our intention of living in this infinite, spiritual principle; “There is only one Power, one Presence, one Activity in our lives and in the multi-verse and we are one in it.”  Today and every day are amazing opportunities to be the expression of this one Power and Presence that I call God.

© 2017. Rev. Eileen Patra

Rev. Eileen is an ordained Unity minister currently serving as the Spiritual Leader of Unity of Livonia in Livonia, Michigan. 

Miraculous Armor

The miracle I witness today is the ability to lay down the sword and put on the armor of God. This is what David did when facing Goliath. The world is at battle with itself, but I do not have to participate. A world at battle with itself is the reflection of the mind at battle with itself. The battle is the struggle to hold on to what is impermanent. The armor of God is not a suit of steel. It is not of the world. It is a consciousness, a stream of thought that is centered in the Tree of Life and not fooled by the knowledge of good and evil. In the consciousness of God, what seemed huge and powerful and terrifying has no power at all. When I put on this armor of God, I see beyond the illusion of separation. I see the essence of life that precedes all things. In this awareness, there is no battle to fight, there is no-thing that has power over me. I am guided by what is true and what is REAL. What seemed to be terrifying has no power at all, for God is the only power. Jesus said that heaven and earth would pass away but His words would not. What is permanent and does not pass away is the Truth that He taught and lived. In the human mind that believes in the permanence of the world there is constant battle and struggle to hold things as permanent. In the mind of God, there is only wholeness and Life. There is no battle. There is nothing to battle for. Today I put on the armor of God. I let go of what I know will pass away and I gather only what is True. I face the giant energies of a world at battle with the stones of faith, hope, love, wisdom and Truth. There is nothing that stands before me that is more powerful than the power of God within me.

© 2016. Reverend Eileen DeRosia Patra

Rev. Eileen is an ordained Unity minister currently serving at Unity of Livonia in Livonia, Michigan.

The Miracle of Hope

hope-dreamstimefree_30348689HOPE is a doorway to the miraculous.  HOPE is our ability to expect a positive outcome when there seems to be little evidence of it.  HOPE is the first glimmer of Faith that causes us to take action.  The woman who touched the hem of Jesus’ garment HOPED that she would be healed.  After 12 years of hemorrhaging, she saw a glimmer of HOPE in Him and His growing reputation as a miraculous healer. Jesus told her that her Faith had made her well.  Faith is HOPE in action. It is HOPE that causes the quickening of Faith, Strength and Will.  When we look out into the world and wonder how we can stop the hemorrhaging, it is this miraculous ability to have HOPE that stirs the greater power of the Christ in us to take positive action in order to manifest the peace, harmony and wholeness we wish to see and experience.  Through HOPE we know that our prayer intentions are more than just a plea to a chaotic universe.  Through HOPE we establish ourselves in the power and presence of the invisible Source of all peace and harmony.  We align our minds and hearts with the All-ness of God and our Faith returns us to the wholeness from which we come.  Today is the day to have HOPE and move in the direction of this miraculous stimulus for healing.

© 2016. Reverend Eileen DeRosia Patra

Rev. Eileen is an ordained Unity minister currently serving at Unity of Livonia in Livonia, Michigan.

The Laser Beam in Me

laser-cc-845829930_15187093dc_qA LASER, an extraordinary focused beam of Light has truly miraculous capabilities.  Simple waves of Light that usually bounce off of objects of matter, become capable of cutting through the densest structures of steel.  The same powerful LASER beam is capable of the most delicate and intricate medical procedures, isolating and dissolving unhealthy cells or tumors without disturbing the surrounding tissues.  Even the delicate structure of the human eye can be treated with a LASER to improve or restore eyesight.  Like LASER beams, we too are made of Light and we too can achieve miraculous results by focusing and concentrating our thoughts and awareness on that which we wish to experience.  Faith is the tool that gathers the Light in us, Prayer and Affirmations concentrate our awareness, dissolving what is not aligned with the Light in us.  Through this heightened and focused awareness, we can cut through seemingly immovable obstacles.  We can perform the intricate procedure of dissolving thoughts and beliefs that keep us small.  Through the focused awareness of ourselves as Light, as offspring of the Light of God, we become like LASERs, cutting through the delicate veil that separates the world of form from the vastness of Beingness; and suddenly, we see with pinpoint accuracy, the Oneness of God that has always there all along.  The LASER beam of Light focused on God shining through, reveals the Kingdom of the Heavens that has surrounded us from the beginning but we have failed to see.

© 2016. Reverend Eileen DeRosia Patra

Rev. Eileen is an ordained Unity minister currently serving at Unity of Livonia in Livonia, Michigan. 

Paint A Miracle Today

paint-ccPAINT is a magical, miraculous substance capable of changing the color of an object.  A vast variety of pigments and tints can be added to this liquid substance to create a coating of the desired color and hue. Easily changed or even removed in its liquid state, PAINT becomes fixed when it dries.  Metaphysically, PAINT represents the thoughts and energy we project into our world and our experiences.  We can PAINT our thoughts or experiences in the color or hue of our choosing.  We can choose a color that vibrates with joy and harmony. Or, we can choose a color that constricts or vibrates with fear or anger.  Thoughts and energies held for long periods of time become fixed and require one or more coats of a new color, or new thoughts.  If I have been holding thoughts of fear or anger for a long period of time, it may require numerous affirmative thoughts to change the picture I have allowed to become fixed in my mind. Today, I paint a miracle. I paint the world with shades of Love, Healing, Acceptance, Forgiveness, Faith and Joy and they become fixed in my mind and in my life.

© 2016. Reverend Eileen DeRosia Patra

Rev. Eileen is an ordained Unity minister currently serving at Unity of Livonia in Livonia, Michigan.  

In the Blink of the Eyes

cc-eyelidsEYELIDS are miraculous to me in this moment.  By purposefully closing them I shut out the world and open an inner sanctuary where nothing can disturb my peace.  EYELIDS function without my thinking about them throughout the day. Such a simple yet complex party of my anatomy. They protect my physical eyes from dust, sun and other irritants.  They keep my eyes moist and restful.  But those are small gifts compared to the opening they create in me when they are closed.  What a brilliantly creative element to the human form.  I am grateful for my EYELIDS and now I close them and enter the secret place of the Most High and I am blessed.

© 2016. Reverend Eileen DeRosia Patra

Rev. Eileen is an ordained Unity minister currently serving at Unity of Livonia in Livonia, Michigan

Zest for Life

zestZEST, an energetic quality that increases excitement or flavor is a powerful aspect of being.  A tiny amount of ZEST from the outer skin of a lemon adds an incredible amount of flavor to a dessert.  Add too much and the dessert may become bitter, overcome by the astringent flavor.  ZEST, like the spiritual faculty of ZEAL must be used with discretion.  When our excitement for an activity is balanced with Love, Understanding and Wisdom, we are propelled with ease and grace toward our goals.  Today, I tune in to this natural ZEST for life.  I allow the powers of Love, Wisdom and Understanding to balance the flavor of my being and I step forward with a mighty and Zest for the Life and all that is mine to do.

© 2016. Reverend Eileen DeRosia Patra

Rev. Eileen is an ordained Unity minister currently serving at Unity of Livonia in Livonia, Michigan