My Welfare is OK; Yours is No Good

Social Security.
Medicare.
Free public schools.
Low tuition community colleges.
College tuition grants.
Federal work-study programs at colleges/universities.
Federal student loans.
Military retirement pensions.
Public school lunch programs.
Civil service benefits.
Small business loans.

We aren't opposed to government programs. We are only opposed to government programs that we don't feel we need. We seem to think we're entitled to the ones we enjoy.

Save "my" government program; just don't let "them" get the one "they" might need. "Mine" is legitimate. "Theirs" is frivolous.

How did the "Land of Opportunity" become so lacking in public generosity? And is it possible to call us back to a compassionate, caring path?

Government IS Involved in Healthcare

Guess what? The US government is already involved in health care. The poorest families with children get medicaide. The elderly get medicare. The military has its own hospitals. Veterans get VA benefits. Why not provide care for the rest of Americans who are uninsured? The people who are so angrily opposing universal health care either have it themselves and don't care that others who need it can't afford it or otherwise can't get it, or they have allowed themselves to be frightened by untruths and vitriolic rhetoric. The government already insures many Americans...it's time to make sure EVERY American has access to quality health-care. It is not only the moral thing, but as a Christian minister I also believe it is what Jesus would endorse. Jesus spent a great deal of time in his ministry caring for those who were ill. Followers of Jesus should likewise be concerned for the well-being of all people. This isn't about partisan politics; this is about doing what is best for every person in this country. And as the government already provides coverage for many, let's go the rest of the way and make sure there is coverage for all.

Pray Without Ceasing

Pray Without Ceasing
by Durrell Watkins

Can we really pray all the time? We pray continuously when we let our lives be prayer. When praying with our words, a useful formula is to acknowledge the Power of Life (God/Goddess/Higher Power/Spirit, etc.), realize that we are not separate from this Power (it is within us, around us, flowing through us, expressing as us), trust this power to lead us to our highest good (we express trust by affirming our progress), give thanks (an attitude of gratitude is a magnet for miracles), and finally release the prayer to the activity of divine right action ("let go and let God").

The affirmative prayer then might simply say, "Dear God, my heart is your home; your heart is my home. You are expressing in and as my life, and you are All Good; therefore, I confidently affirm the blessings of happiness, hope, and harmony and I am grateful that these blessings are even now being made manifest in my experience. I now relax and allow life to unfold in joyous, wonderful ways. Amen."

But did you know we can live that prayer as well as say it? And living it is praying it! We can at any moment quiet our minds, notice our breath, and feel an instant, inner calm (acknowledging the divine presence and our unity with It). Then as we perform any task (paying bills, watching television, answering an email, washing clothes, walking the dog, etc.), we can do so mindfully and joyfully, affirming with our attitude and action that in that moment all is well. Experiencing such a moment of well-being, we can be glad and grateful, and naturally enough, we will find ourselves more relaxed (letting go).

The spoken prayer is a model for how to live prayer. Whenever we are aware of Life, remember It is expressing as us, believe in our potential, feel thankful, and allow ourselves to "let go," we are praying. The more we practice "living prayer," the better we get at it, and we will find that we are actually praying continuously.

{Reprinted from Healing Rays: A Progressive, Positive, Practical Weekly Reflection, January 27th, 2009}

Children of God

Children of God
“[Jesus] did not claim unique Sonship of God but boldly declared that all [people] are God’s [Children].” - Albert C. Grier

Albert Grier was a Universalist minister who in the early 1900s founded the Church of Truth denomination. He was a pioneer in the New Thought movement. He taught that the Christ Consciousness is actually within every human being. Grier, along with other important thinkers of his time, saw Jesus as our great Example showing us what we are meant to be and how we can live with power in our world. He reminds us that we are all children of God; and as children of God, we have unfettered access to God’s wisdom, grace, and love. Today, let’s recognize and embrace these divine gifts in our lives.

I am a child of God, made in God’s image and filled with God’s spirit. I live in the joy of this truth, and so it is!

Today’s devotional prepared by Durrell Watkins
{taken from Spirit & Truth magazine}

Remembering Hiroshima

Today is the 64th anniversary of the U.S. bombing of Hiroshima. From that attack, about 144,000 people were killed (about half from the initial blast, the others from wounds and illnesses that resulted from the blast). Over the next few decades, hundreds more would develop cancer or leukemia as a result of the radiation from the attack. Most casualties were civilians.

I am glad that no other war has ended in nuclear holocaust; and I do hope that nuclear weapons will never again be used.

I’m not writing to defend or condemn the actions of a war that took place decades before my birth. I know the Japanese Empire was given an ultimatum before the attack was launched and I know that Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor is what officially drew the U.S. into WW2. I’m not interested in rehashing the rationale for the use of such deadly force at Hiroshima; nor am I interested in trying to discern if in the end such action was ethical or necessary. What’s done is done.

What I do want to do today is honor the lives of innocent people lost in every war. I want to acknowledge the horror of Hiroshima, the brutality of war, and the sacredness of human life. And, I want to express an on-going wish for peace in the world and a constant desire for the day to come when conflicts can be settled by means other than violence.

For those who lost their lives at Hiroshima in 1945…Rest in peace.
For all who have lost their lives because of any war at any time…Rest in peace.
For those who risk their lives in service of their country…May you never be unnecessarily placed in harm’s way.
And for our world that longs for peace, justice, and stability…May an Abiding Peace bless us and keep us, now and always. Amen.

Full Moon

I love a full moon...lots of positive energy. Good for new beginnings. Make a wish. Better yet, make a commitment, and get started moving toward the goal! Happy Full Moon everyoone :-)

Re: Using the Bible to Protect Marriage Norms & to Vilify Same-gender Couples

Biblical marriage looks nothing like the contemporary, monogamous, western norm. Whether we look at the mythical Adam & Eve (from either of the two contrasting creation narratives in Gen.1-3) or the polygamous marriages of Jacob, Abraham, David, Solomon, and many others, or the apparent celibacy (and sexual hangups) of the Apostle Paul...we see very little that looks like the relationship norms of our day and culture. The bible has long been used as an excuse to demonize or marginalize others. Eventually, we always come to regret using the bible in such a way.

--Durrell Watkins, D.Min.