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Unity Viewpoint with
Rev. Bettie Barta

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No mater how you describe it a mess means trouble....and trouble is something we can do without. It usually means unhappiness, resistence, furrowed brows, tension, impatience, anger.

Trouble, whether it be illness, a record-breaking snow storm, an unexpected drain on our finances, or whatever, is a powerful temptation to respond with some kind of a negative emotion. It is like a huge figure of Frankenstein waving its arms at you and saying, “Come on, get upset, get scared, get angry!”

You don’t have to respond to that temptation the way Old Man Trouble is tempting you to respond, but you usually do. You usually excuse yourself by saying “Who wouldn’t get angry, ir afraid, or unhappy at this situation?” Can you guess where I am going with this? You don’t have to respond the way the trouble appearance, or condition tempts you to respond.

There is a saying that goes, “Nothing is improved until it is disturbed.” Take a pearl. A pearl is a beautiful thing. And a good pearl is very valuable. It is so universally and timelessly considered a thing of value and beauty that Jesus, 2,000 years ago used a pearl of great price in one of His parables describing the Kingdom of God.

How is a pearl made? Where does it originate? How does it come into being? A piece of sand gets inside the shell of an oyster. This disturbs the oyster, troubles it, something has to be done to reestablish harmony, right adjustment, order in the oyster’s world. So what happens? An instinctive intelligence in the oyster causes it to form a coating around the disturbed, apparent trouble and step by step, in time a pearl comes into being.

God in you is the instinctive intelligence that guides you into turning trouble (or a mess) into a pearl— a victory. What we call trouble, is actually a gateway that appears in our path of life. Of itself it isn’t bad, it isn’t good, it just is. You can curse it, or you can bless it. You curse it when you get angry, or tremble in fear, or get tense, upset, hate it, resist it. It becomes for you, the gateway to a land of misery and unhappiness.

To bless a mess, is to first of all stay calm within yourself. Then, turn your attention to the spiritual Truth that God is the Source of your being, that your mind (consciousness) is like a stream that is being fed by an underground spring, from deep inside you. Whether you are aware of it or not, wisdom, guidance, and right action is flowing to you this very moment as you depend on God’s inner direction.

To bless a mess, refuse to respond emotionally to it. Make that inner choice to become calm and see it not as a threat, but an opportunity to see just how much spiritual understanding you have gained.

Here is a three step formula for Blessing A Mess.
1. Work at continually living in an awareness of God’s presence in you at all times, regardless of appearances. Remember that you are a Spiritual Being, an individualized expression of God in action. 2. Do not be blinded by the facts, the physical appearances. Develop the habit of seeing through the facts to the ever-active, ever working toward good, Spirit of God. Facts are in a constant state of change, never remaining the same even an instant, so do not expend energy on something that is transient. 3. Inquire in His Temple. That Temple is within you, now, this moment. When an unexpected or disturbing event or circumstance pops into your experience, hold back that compulsive response. You can do it if you try. Instead, dash into the Inner Temple. Become quiet. Let the light of Understanding shine on your mind to guide you to the right response for that particular confronting moment.

Example: A “mess” suddenly and unexpectedly appears in your life: a flat tire when you come out of the supermarket, or a rumor at work that there is going to be several cutbacks in staff, or a family disagreement making everyone upset, someone you love, leaves. What to do!

The first thing to do is: remember that you are a spiritual being. You are one with the ever-present Spirit of God in all circumstances, at all times. You have the power of mastery over your thoughts and emotions, even when you are being tempted so strongly to “loose it” as the saying goes. Find a quiet place alone, then find a phrase or word that will remind your subconscious mind of your personal power. A word such as, “Hold it!”“Stop!”“Woah, I’m not going to give in to you.” Having these responses programmed into your mind will give you a jump start on checking your response.

Secondly, as you look at the facts of the situation, you refuse to see them as bad, evil, threatening. You see them as factual conditions that are not permanent. They will change. Time alone will take care of that. You mentally see them changing into a happy and successful experience for all concerned, all of the friendly forces of the universe are working for you and through you in that direction.

Third, Get calm. Make yourself open and receptive to a thought, an idea, that is guiding you to the wisest thing to do. When you are calm, God will guide you to the wisest action to take in the now moment. Never mind trying to figure out the next step, you will know what to do when you need to know it. When you look back, what, at the time, seemed a Mess, will actually be revealed as a stepping stone in your ongoing process toward growth and success.

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