Consciousness on Demand

2022-04-09T20:19:00.001-07:00

For some reason and I don't know why, this blog lists Rev. Patrick as its author. Not sure, as I said, how this happened because I, Rita Andriello-Feren have written everyone of these blogs. If you are looking for me and my continued writing career you can find me at www.cslkauai.org. Also, the book that will finally be published this Summer of 2022 is called "What Do I Need to KNOW? (101 Thoughts that Changed My Life). I also have another blog that is located at: lovechangeseverything.blog

Aloha,

Rev. Rita Andriello-FEren

Where is Rita?

2017-07-22T14:17:00.004-07:00

Aloha Followers of this Blog!

You might be wondering what happened to me. You might be wondering where I am now and if I'm still writing.

Actually, I have a new blog that I started fresh in Wordpress called "Love Changes Everything" You can find it at Love Changes Everything

I have also began, finally, to write my book. It is called "You Have No Idea...and Neither Did We" It is about the building of Center for Spiritual Living Kaua'i. Patrick and I are both writing this, but not together. One side of the book is his version of the story, the other side is mine. Look for it in 2018...

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

A Leave of Absence

2017-02-08T10:18:00.001-08:00

I am about to take a leave of absence from this blog. I am ready to know something new and to expand my writing into another direction.

That's all I am going to say right now because I am still meditating on this idea that is coming through me strongly.

I've written almost 2500 blog posts, which leaves plenty for those of you who love this blog and desire my kind of inspiration on any particular day. It's all here for you.

I started this blog in 2010 with a very specific purpose of healing. I feel that that purpose has completed itself right now and is ready for a turn of events, a new direction. Something is wanting to be known and I need to still my pen and listen.

Interestingly, as I write this it feels like one of those moments when I am ready to jump into to the void. I wonder what will happen when I don't have this appointment that makes getting up earlier mandatory. I'll never know if I do not test myself. It's time for a new decision.

The good thing about life is that you can always change your mind. That is why I'm calling it a leave of absence. I'm leaving myself open for a time. I've always been confused when a performer said, this is my farewell concert, only to come back a few months later.

I love you and if my blog of six years has assisted in anyway I am grateful for this opportunity I've had to express myself in the writing which I have called "Consciousness on Demand."

You can always write to me with questions, discoveries and you can find me at Center for Spiritual Living Kaua'i on the Island of Kaua'i. If you every need spiritual mind treatment or are having a challenge and need someone to talk to, I am an email or phone call away at revrandriello@gmail.com or 808-431-1700.

I am standing in the Consciousness of Love and Peace and will continue to do so worlds without end.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

All Things Are Possible

2017-02-07T10:28:00.003-08:00

Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26

I don't know what your belief system is, but I believe that the Consciousness of the man named Jesus was the Consciousness of the Christ or that Consciousness that knows its true identity - that Consciousness that knows its Divinity - that Consciousness that is within each one of us.

I have no idea whether Jesus came here fully evolved in that Consciousness or whether he became illumined within his time on this planet. It doesn't really matter to me. What matters is what I can glean from his teachings and words and parables and ideas.

In the statement above I am given a very important truth. When I set about to do something and from my finite mind I think it is impossible, I know that with the Infinite all things are possible. Ernest Holmes used to state that, "There is a Power for Good in the Universe greater than we are and we can use it." He was talking about the Law of our being, the great Universal Law of Cause and Effect. We can use it not because it is outside of ourselves, but because it is within each and everyone of us. With this Infinite Intelligence that serves us, we can always know that all things are possible. We must get out of the way of outlining our outcomes or puzzling on "how" they will happen, and trust that they have already happened.

Today, I am thinking of many things that I have to accomplish this year, trips I have to take, projects to complete, and many other of what can seem like insurmountable tasks. However, if I can truly surrender them over to the Law of my being, if I can let go of my own inability to get them done with my finite means, everything is possible.

Does this mean I do not do anything, and turn on my favorite T.V. show, or go to sleep? Well, sometimes it does. However, it also means that I stop worry long enough to allow Divine Wisdom, my intuition take over and lead the way. The doors open, the people appear, money comes from unpredictable sources. If I am quiet for long enough and can cease my lamenting and complaining, I will hear and see the way.

Something just happened recently that brings this point home. We were working on the 2017 budget for our Center. We were several thousand dollars in the red. Of course, we didn't want to present this budget to our congregation. How could we bring it into the black? We were at our Board Meeting telling our Board how we had just today gotten news of a donor who wanted to increase his donation by a certain amount. One of the Board members said, "Do you realize that is the exact amount of this deficit!" It was and we hadn't even realized it until that moment.

"With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." What can we turn over to God today?

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

You Can't Out Give God!

2017-02-06T10:48:00.000-08:00

"You can't out give God." This philosophy was shared with me by my mentor Dr. James Mellon. Every time we'd be working on the finances of the church or having some specific financial dilemma. He'd say, "You can't out give God." He'd then make the payment, give the donation, pick up the tab, or write the check for whatever it was. Everything always worked out and flowed.

This is a powerful statement if truly understood and felt. For me, it says that no matter what financial issue is in front of me, I am safe to move forward and take care of it. And something as simple as leaving a tip that is a littler more generous than I might have left becomes a joy. If "I can't out give God" it means that there is always more where that came from - more money, more resources, more love, more time, more energy... .

How does it work? It's not just words; it is the feeling and understanding and faith behind the words. "You can't out give God" is not a plea to, or recognition of an outside Deity. It is trusting in the inner Source of my being. It is knowing that the more I give, the more I have. It is un-kinking the hose of prosperity and increasing its flow.

It is not always easy and sometimes I notice that I pause, take a gulp, and then let that breath go. I mentally open my hand to give and receive.

"You can't out give God, Rita." is a powerful mantra for me. It relieves tension surrounding money. It increases my faith. It is a point of surrender to the Source of my being.

Anne Frank wrote, "No one has ever become poor by giving." Wow! What a concept! Think about it. It's really true.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

Can We Change the World?

2017-02-05T08:49:00.002-08:00

It is another Season for Non Violence. If you do not know what it is, the Season of Non Violence is 64 days put aside every year between January 30 (the Assassination of Gandhi) and April 4 (the Assignation of Martin Luther King, Jr.) devoted to the practice of nonviolence. The Season was established by Arun Gandhi, Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson in 1998, as a yearly event celebrating the philosophies and lives of Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. There is a calendar that has a principle of nonviolence to practice each day.

I am thinking of this particular wonderful inspiring idea. In fact, I remember a church I used to attend that celebrated this tradition every year and on each Sunday lit a candle for each of the principles that week, while reading a short quote. It was a beautiful tradition.

However, we must get beyond words and traditions and rituals. I am all for them, but if they do not bring us to action what good are they? Many people have tried to change the world through their words and those great people put those words into action - Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., Jesus, and others. There are many people we know of who are less famous, including ourselves who have put our words into action.

However, why hasn't the world changed? Why are we still at war? Why is there poverty? Remember the song, Where Have all the Flowers Gone? Well, "When will we ever learn?"

We follow these people while they are here and then their messages begin to dissipate when they leave. We fail to do it on our own to lead ourselves. I continue to believe that it is because we are not getting it on an individual level. The individual must heal himself before the world will heal.

Why did I hear yesterday that someone I knew briefly just hung himself? What would bring someone to end his or her own life? Why didn't I know so I could help? We might blame it on chemical imbalances, depression, mental illness, etc. We throw our hands up in the air and ask "Why didn't he get help? Why wasn't he helped?"

First of all, we do not know the answer. How far back can I step to measure another person's life or his or her decisions. I don't know. However, I do know this. I do know that unconditional love is the answer to everything. I know that wherever this person is right now, I can know that he is surrounded by, infused with and supported by unconditional love.

We cannot change the world. We can only change ourselves. We cannot expect other people to act the way we want them to act. We can only be examples of Love. We can live our lives fully and filled with love. We can take care of our own lives and reach out from within to assist others.

We do not need to wait for the Season of Nonviolence to make a difference. We do not need to light a candle or recite a poem, we need to go into our own closets, and return there over and over until we are transformed enough to live from the space of unconditional love.

I do not want to change the world. I want to change myself. I invite us all to forgive ourselves, appreciate ourselves, love ourselves by remembering who we are.

I am stuck on the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. "Our goal is to create a beloved community and this will require a qualitative change in our souls and a quantitative change in our lives." We each must go through this change.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

What the World Needs Now?

2017-02-04T09:59:00.002-08:00

You can see the words of the Dali Lama in this photo. Do you agree?

When he says the world does not need more successful people, I would disagree. We do not need, perhaps, people striving for success as their goal. You could end up giving up a lot along the way. However, we do need more successful people.

What I define as success is the outcome of a well lived life. Success is the outcome of living our true selves, our passions. Success is the outcome of being at one with ourselves and others. Successful people in the true sense are people who reveal the glory of the Divine. I would say that the Dali Lama is a successful person. He lives his truth. He lives by example. He inspires us all to be better, to love more.

So, yes, the world needs more successful people. Again, not those striving to be successful, but those striving to live life to the fullest, to be happy, to serve, to love.

He goes on to say that the planet "desperately needs more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers and lovers of all kinds." Yes, these are successful people. Where do you fit in?

I believe I am working on being all these things. I strive to be peaceful in my life. I want to heal with my presence. What is a restorer? My dad used to love to restore old furniture and make it beautiful. We are always restoring our lives, taking what has gotten off track and bringing it back to its wholeness. We should never give up on this idea. We can always restore what seems broken or lost. Right under the surface is the true nature of whatever it is - the spiritual prototype that is perfect.

And what about storytellers? Yes, our stories are important. We should share them, not to lament about them, but to be inspiring. We can share where we have been and where we are now. I love a good inspiring story. I love to share my own inspiration.

Lastly, he says we need lovers of all kinds. What does it mean to be a lover? I don't think he is talking about making love in a sexual sense. Although that's certainly good. I believe he means lovers of life and others.

The Dali Lama is always smiling. There is a reason for that. It is a genuine contagious smile. It comes from the deep love that he emanates from within. He truly sees the good in life and lives from that place. If I am to be a lover, I must love life and live life like I love it.

We are so blessed to live right now at this time. We get to be all these things. We get be restorers every day. We get to be storytellers and share our rich pasts to inspire. We get to be healers by being the presence of wholeness, seeing it in others wherever we go. We get to be peacemakers beginning within ourselves and emanating out into our lives and the world. We get to be lovers of life.

What a beautiful challenge that the Dali Lama has given us and one that is definitely achievable. We are all Dali Lamas blooming right now. As Mother Therese said "bloom (grow) where you are planted." Are you blooming? Yes, you are!

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

We Have IT In our Power to Begin the World Over Again

2017-02-03T10:14:00.001-08:00

Thomas Paine, who influenced the American Revolution and paved the way to the Declaration of Independence wrote, "We have it in our power to begin the world over again."

Ernest Holmes once wrote, "ANYTHING YOU CAN DREAM OF is not too great for you to undertake, if it hurts no one and bring happiness and good into your life."

We are working with and through and as an unlimited Power that created the Cosmos. It is our life right now. The here and now is where It is. We have IT in our power. The more we become aware of It, the more It becomes aware of us.

This is the time for us to step into our Power and use it for Good. I believe that the most important thing that we can do right now is to live our lives to the fullest. All those dreams we had tucked away and were waiting to accomplish need to be lived now. If each person were living their true life, the one that gives them joy, the one led by passion, we would do more to uplift the planet.

The day of making excuses for ourselves can be put to sleep. We have turned our lives over to others' opinions for too long. We have let apathy and hopelessness create a world led by a few. If we don't have vision, we become part of someone's vision.

We do have a voice. We do have the power. It is spiritual power. It is unlimited. It is the ability we have to make choices and visualize and speak those choices into Universal Law and then act accordingly.

We cannot change others, but we can change ourselves. We can change our thinking from hopelessness and self-absorption in misery to living our life to the fullest expression of love. We can begin this right where we are with who is right next to us and then take it out into the world step by step.

We can stop hiding from ourselves and our true nature. It is okay to have confidence in our beauty. It is okay to be great. We are great. What is greater than a Divine idea in the mind of God. That is what I am. That is what you are.

Ask and it shall be given. We have to announce what we want. We have to act as if we already have it. We have to direct our minds by love and nothing else. Love beginning with the self and reflecting that self out into our world.

I am grateful for Life living and breathing through me. I am grateful for the blessings of awakening in this changing world and knowing that I am responsible for how I live in it. I am a projector of life, of love and of unity. I will do my best to remember this.

I agree with Thomas Paine, "We have it in our power to begin the world all over again." I don't care how many mistakes we've made or how bad we think it is. By changing the course of our thoughts and actions in any moment, we change the wheel of causation. It is Law - the Law of Cause and Effect and it is guaranteed.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

We Do Know

2017-02-02T11:35:00.002-08:00

What is the first thing we do when we have an unexpected physical pain of some kind? It happened to me yesterday. I started to panic for a moment and then I immediately went into treatment.

I remember a day when I'd get a pain and panic and immediately think something was wrong. I don't do that any more. I treat and wait for inner guidance on what to do next. It always comes. Everything I could ever want to know is inside of me, and if I approach everything from that standpoint, the answers always manifest.

Last night as I lay in bed with this pain and as I began to treat, it was as if I saw this shadow in my mind's eye covering the bed. It was like a mass of thoughts - not the most self-serving that seemed to swallow up my Spirit. I continued to pray and finally found myself comfortably and peacefully asleep. I awoke with the pain slightly lingering and felt compelled to listen to Emma Curtis Hopkins' Radiant I Am, and I did. I am feeling much better and I stay open to more direction from within.

All the great mystics have encouraged us to go within for guidance and direction. They've said things like "Know thyself!" and "The Kingdom of Heaven is within," and "all is mind." It goes back as far as the beginning of civilization as we know it. There were always deep thinkers who inspired us to be confident in our inner knowing.

We seem to still deny the inner journey and I believe our world demonstrates this. People strike out without thinking. We think we can solve our problems from the same energy that created them, when all the while there are spiritual solutions to everything. Emma Curtis wrote, "I know all I will ever know and it is time to make myself known." This doesn't mean that we are closed from future illumination. For me, it means that everything we could ever need to know is within and it is time to make that Self known, to reveal that information, to expand, to allow for further illumination.

Someone asked me yesterday how you can tell if something is your deep intuition or if it is not. There is a definite way you can tell. If your guidance is life-giving, creates more happiness for you and others, and feels good in a deep way, you can know that you are not being guided astray.

We know when to call 911. We know when to pray. We know when to turn left or when to turn right. We know whatever it is we need to know.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

You are the Face of God

2017-02-01T11:14:00.000-08:00

In the philosophy that I practice, I believe that there is one Mind, one eternal Spirit in which we all live, move and have our being. It is Infinite and it has always existed. This makes the most Spiritual sense to me.

Because there is only One, I am in unity with everything seen and unseen. I am in unity with everything that has ever been and ever will be. This same thing is true for every part of creation. The one Life, the one Mind, the one Spirit is expressed through me individually and uniquely. It is expressed through you the same way - individually and uniquely. There is only one me. There is only one you. However, we are made from the same Universal stuff and so is a plant, a tree and the ocean. Everything swims together in the same Life Stuff.

Why is this important for me to know? Well, if this is true, which I believe it is, then everything I think and do is felt everywhere. As I make individual choices in my own life, it becomes a part of the whole consciousness.

In these challenging times in which we live, I believe it is important to make mental choices that are loving and benevolent even toward those who we say we are against. Our mental choices make a difference, and more of a difference when they are backed by emotion and feeling - negative or positive.

We cannot say we want love in our world and then hold our love back from this person or that person. We either love or we do not. Loving doesn't mean we sit back in a non active way and passively agree with everyone. It means that we see beyond our differences into the true essence of each person. That essence is always perfect Spirit, no matter what that person is expressing. The more we can truly focus on that true essence, the more it is felt everywhere and cannot help but be felt by that person.

When someone comes to me as a Spiritual Counselor and tells me that they want another person to change, I can do nothing, but change my own perspective. I see perfect Spirit everywhere and in everything. I am not responsible for how someone chooses to use their individuality, but I am responsible for how I engage with my mental attitude toward them. Life changes as we change our mental attitudes toward it.

We have a song in our faith tradition written by Karen Drucker called, You are the Face of God. The words expressed are "You are the face of God. I hold you in my heart. You are a part of me. You are the face of God." These are true words and if we can say them to each and every person (without condoning behavior), I believe we can begin to shift the consciousness of this planet.

Mother Therese wrote, "Seeking the Face of God in everything and everyone at all times, and the hand of God in every happening; this is what it means to be contemplative in the heart of the world."

Call it God or call it what you will, it is one thing and we are all expressing it. Sometimes we totally miss the mark because we are always at choice. However, the Presence never leaves us. The more we can see it everywhere, the more it will appear. I believe that as we sit in this loving state and listen deeply, we will be divinely directed as to what is ours to do, to say and to assist in the physical plane.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

It Can Be A New Day

2017-01-31T10:44:00.002-08:00

It is the last day of January. I am putting this month to rest and giving birth to a new day. It has been both a wonderful month and a challenging month. So much has occurred. If I truly looked at each day with the eyes of awe, I would see that even in the challenges it was a truly amazing month. However, like I stated, January is over and the new month is beginning.

I now get to start anew. I do not have to carry January with me. Even if I remember it, I can choose to change my outlook on those memories. I can step back and look at them from a new perspective; or, I can let them go completely and just start right now.

If I want to create something new - wonderful relationships, more abundance of finances, good health, it would be better if I started with a clean slate, to wipe my memory clean of the thoughts that yesterday has to dictate what can happen today.

I am dealing with an Unlimited Source that is undefined in this moment. I get to create the mold for a new experience. I can know that any pain I feel or sorrow I feel about something I wish I'd done was created in the past and has no bearing on today. I am truly free.

When I was in theater school, we used to do an exercise where we would look at everything through the eyes of a newborn baby. We would pretend that we had no emotions or belief about anything. The teacher would instruct us to actually crawl around the floor and look at everything from that perspective of non judgment. It was an amazing exercise, and everything down to a ball of dust on the floor became a point of curiosity and wonder and unlimited potential.

What if we could do that as we start this new month? What if we could begin to look at everything from a place of non judgment and only with the desire to experience love? What if we were to look within ourselves and do the same thing? What if we were to let go of the shadows of yesterday, our mistakes that have no meaning today and just start as new born babies?

Jesus, the great Master metaphysician and teacher once stated that unless we became as little children we couldn't enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Well, he also stated that the Kingdom of Heaven is within. I invite us to experience our Kingdom as little children would - with wonder, amazement and unlimited possibilities. We can be anything we'd like to be in this moment, but we have to be willing to let go of the stories of old and begin anew. We hold the chalkboard, the chalk and the eraser.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

Love Epidemic

2017-01-30T10:38:00.003-08:00

I am certain that we create our lives by contemplation. If we think about something long enough with feeling and emotion attached to it, it becomes our experience. We attract more and more of (whatever it is) into our lives.

I heard Bruce Lipton, the Biologist and Scientist speak and he stated that 95% of our lives are created from our subconscious. Only 5% of us is conscious. Most people do not even realize what and why they are doing something. Some old tape is playing from their childhood over and over. This is probably why Jesus spoke the words, "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do."

Many people want to go into their subconscious to try to find out what and why they are thinking something in order to change it. This is not really necessary. Bruce Lipton put it simply. He said "it's all very obvious. Just look at your life if you want to know what you are thinking."

This is what we teach in our philosophy. We know that we are responsible for our life experience. Many are not attracted to us because of this. They do not want to believe this one simple thing. I create my experiences.

I know I am responsible for my life. I am not responsible for your life, but I am responsible for my reactions to everything. I am responsible for my thoughts. I am responsible for how I use the precious gift of my mind. It is a powerful thing and when I learn to use it on purpose with love, if "I say to that mountain move over there, it will move."

In today's times we are being called upon more than ever to use our minds on purpose with love. It is not easy when confronted with fear and hatred to turn to love. Yesterday was a beautiful day when so many stood together in love. "What the world needs now is love sweet love...not just for some, but for everyone." That includes EVERYONE.

"What can I do?" is the cry of many. Everyday, we are showing the world what we can do. Spirit creates by contemplation. Contemplation on _____________ (you fill in the blank) will lead to action. It is called the field of Cause and Effect. Let us go into our closets and contemplate, visualize and fill our minds and hearts with Love and then walk into the world in action.

Let us begin right where we are with our families, friends, at the grocery store, at the Post Office, at the airport and everywhere. It's happening we are already creating an epidemic of love. Things might still confront us that make us look like we are losing, but that is the time to do our best work.

Ernest Holmes wrote, "Give me one person who is for something and against nothing...and I will find another Jesus, another savior." We are all that one person - ALL OF US.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

Walking in the I Am Presence

2017-01-29T08:18:00.001-08:00

When I become aware of the I Am Presence, It becomes aware of me. When I identify myself as It, It identifies Itself as me. I have heard this truth from many faiths and traditions. Many Master Teachers have spoken the words "I Am." What exactly does it mean?

As I meditate on these two words something takes place within me. I begin to understand on a deeper level that I Am nothing but Consciousness. I am not my stories. I am not my thoughts. I am not even the thinker who thinks my thoughts. I just Am.

In the five steps of Spiritual Mind Treatment I pray from the I Am consciousness, knowing that as I speak my words into Law they become so. The most important step in this five-step prayer, really the only step is the first step - God is All there is. If I can truly speak these words from myself moving and living and breathing from this place, there are no other words to speak.

When the great teachers have said there is a place where there is no desire this is what they are speaking about. When we realize who and what we are, there is nothing to desire. We already have everything. All we are doing is expressing that everything by letting it flow through us into experience.

In the film "Awake in the Dream," Barbara Marx Hubbard spoke these words at the end (I am paraphrasing), "Visionaries, stay alive for a long time. The world needs you."

What is a Visionary? A Visionary is someone who can see the world not as it is in form, but as it is perfect in the Spirit. Form is transient. The Spirit never changes. The Spirit is the Great I Am. The Visionary knows this. No matter what is occurring in the world of experience, the Visionary observes it as part of the unfolding of the Great I Am Presence. The Visionary doesn't fret or fear, but knows that if he/she can keep his/her I Am Presence poised, even the seeming chaos becomes the road of peace. "Go placidly amidst the noise and haste and remember what peace there may be in silence. ... whether or not it is clear to you, the Universe is unfolding as it should." These words are from the famous "Desiderata."

This is a Universe of balance and order. Balance and order is unfolding in every moment. Chaos is the Universe finding balance and order. When we stay poised in the Consciousness of I Am, we walk in unison, with balance, poised and ready at all times to be of useful service to all when called upon. When we walk in the I Am Presence we do not resist what is, we find balance in ourselves in what is.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

On the Borderland of a New Experience

2017-01-28T10:00:00.000-08:00

"A new light is coming into the world. We are on the borderland of a new experience. The veil between spirit and matter is very thin..." Ernest Holmes wrote this in the 1920's. Last night I watched a film made in 2012 that said exactly the same thing. What is this new light? Has it arrived yet?

Looking around us, we might think otherwise. To some of us, it might seem quite dark. Last night during our discussion after the film, some said it was very difficult to live the Principle of Light, to truly live as the Divine beings that we are. We decided it was a process and that's okay. It will be difficult as long as we say it is difficult. Everything takes a change of perspective. That change can be long in coming or it can be right now.

Rev. Donna Michael, a new thought singer and composer, once wrote (I am paraphrasing) ...that when one is in the midst of making a change in their lives, the old ways will hold on with everything they've got. Things get even darker. She called it the last gasp of a dying fear.

The last gasp of the dying fear is the death of the ego...the death of separation from each other and God. We are holding on for dear life. Letting go is painful for some.

However, what if we just let go? What if we just were able to look at everything as a daring adventure? What if we stayed true to our Divine Nature and saw that Divinity in everyone, even our enemies? What if we relied on our Divine Intuition to guide, direct and march us through seeming chaos? What if we just weren't afraid and instead trusted in this process?

What if disasters were just what we needed right now in order for our light to shine brighter? What if disasters were darker because we are lighter? What if disasters weren't disasters at all.

What if we could flip the switch on perspective, step back and begin to see things differently? What if amidst darkness, we could keep seeing the light, seeing the world loving, giving and filled with goodness? What if everywhere we walked we spread that light, love and goodness? What if we just poured it out over everyone and everything?

I do believe "A new light is coming into the world. We are on the borderland of a new experience. The veil between spirit and matter is very thin..." However, we must go beyond the words. We must live it now. We must be daring enough to let go of our old stories and live in the void of Love only. We are not our stories. We are not this story. We are free.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

A World that Works for Everyone!

2017-01-27T10:45:00.004-08:00

A person spotted our tee shirt which reads "A World that Works for Everyone" and asked "What about the rapist?" The person didn't wait for an answer or a conversation; she merely asked the question and then promptly walked away. What an odd question; of course, a rapist could not be part of a world that works for everyone. If you think it through, the reason is obvious.

What exactly is a world that works for everyone? I translate this statement as another way of stating the Golden Rule: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." If we lived the Golden Rule, we would more than likely live in a world that works for everyone. Yes, if I weighed everything I said or what I did by this standard, I would be assisting in creating a world that works for everyone.

Is it possible to have a world that works for everyone? Many have tried. Jesus believed in a world that worked for everyone and preached and lived from this vantage point. Martin Luther King, Jr. dreamed of a world that worked for everyone and marched and preached for it. In fact, all our great mystics and spiritual leaders have brought the same truth to us in one way or the other.

We might say that they have failed because we do not, as of yet, live in a world that works for everyone. They have not failed. We do not live in a world that works for everyone because enough of us we have not yet individually lived this world. Relying on the words of mystics and teachers gone by and quoting them over and over is not living a world that works for everyone. Putting the statement into action is proving that we believe it and know it.

Do we want a world that works for everyone? It is a good question to ask ourselves. It is a good question to contemplate. A world that works for everyone is not a free ticket to getting whatever we want at the expense of everyone else. It is a barometer for living in conscious connection with each other and realizing that everything we do has an effect on everyone and everything.

If we can first connect to the highest place within ourselves and think and acting from that place, we will be well on our way. I believe we will see a world that works for everyone in our lifetime.

In Hawaii it is called the "Aloha Spirit." You can read more about it HERE; but in essence it means "the coordination of mind and heart within each person. It brings each person to the self. Each person must think and emote good feelings to others. In the contemplation and presence of the life force..." We do our best to live it. We fail sometimes, but still we continue to strive to live Aloha. Let us never give up on love, on Aloha, on the great Reality of a world that works for everyone.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

The Beloved Community

2017-01-26T10:33:00.002-08:00

I am beginning to read a book called "Creating THE BELOVED COMMUNITY" by Dr. Jim Lockard. He is inspired by the thoughts of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Howard Thurman.

My heart and vision for our own community here at CSL Kaua'i are reflected in Dr. Lockard's words as if he read my mind. I believe that we live in a beloved community that is emerging more and more every day. I am grateful for this journey.

What is a beloved community? For me it is a safe place where one can grow emotionally, spiritually and mentally with others who are compassionate and loving. Feeling that safety net, we can venture out into the world knowing that we are backed at all times with the warmth of that love in every fiber of our being. Our life becomes a beloved community wherever we walk.

It takes each person living from that place to create a beloved community. It emerges as the individual emerges as her/his true self. Yes, we are each a beloved community within ourselves waiting to reveal that self to each other and the global world.

In order to be a beloved community one must come to realize that the self is Divine. We must begin to build a beloved community in our own cells of being and then invite others to join us by seeing them from that beloved place. We are not proselytizers; we are walking examples of beloved communities.

Right now from an evolutionary standpoint we are being called to step forth as beloved communities with compassion and faith. We are being asked to be our true authentic selves, and in doing so we make the sacrifice of our small ego and the need to be right. We are being called to be compassionately accepting of the seeming imperfections and mistakes of others and of ourselves. We are being called to be in a constant state of forgiveness, to stand in love and solidarity and unity.

However, we cannot do it if we do not feel it for ourselves first. A self-loving heart loves. An insecure heart walks around in need of approval and dominance and the need to be right.

Let us reach out in compassion. Let us work from the within to the without. Let us find ways to be kind and loving, even when it is the most difficult thing we have ever done. Let us each build our own cellular beloved community and walk through the world from that place. Others will magnetize toward us and our communities will grow and flourish.

When we find ourselves saying "I don't know what to do," that is the time to start building a beloved community. Thank you Dr. Lockard for your inspiration and for mirroring back to me what is in my heart.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

Calling All Metaphysicians!

2017-01-25T10:47:00.003-08:00

When an illness presents itself to a medical doctor, the doctor will approach the healing of that illness according to his or her field of study. Surgery might be the answer to one, or treatment through drugs to another. Someone else might say physical therapy is the answer. Each professional is looking for healing, and there are many answers to the same question. All answers can offer solutions to the challenge.

The metaphysician deals with the challenge from one answer only and that is the unseen Principle, the world of Spirit, the mental cause. We do not contradict the medical world and we welcome its support, for we know that behind it all the Spirit works through and as everyone involved for the revealing of Truth to take place and healing to occur in the individual.

I bring this idea to the state of the world right now. As I read the headlines and the comments from many on Facebook and elsewhere, I see that everyone from president to citizen sees a different solution to what they think ails the world; and everyone also has a different view on what ails the world or not. It seems that there is a great confusion as to what everyone wants as a whole. The country and the world is divided. Truth is hard to locate. Fear runs the show.

The metaphysician deals with the problem from one answer only and that is the unseen Principle, the world of Spirit, the mental cause. Instead of lashing out in anger and fear, the metaphysician goes deeply within for answers, realizing that the Universe in its true essence is harmonious, balanced and whole. It is always seeking this state no matter what is occurring in the world of effects and conditions. It might be a battle of will against will, but beyond it all and behind it all Spirit is seeking balance and wholeness. Sometimes this route can be long and seem tenuous. One thing for sure is that its outcome is secure.

The metaphysician in his/her laboratory begins to work in mind. The metaphysician can prove that spiritual thought force reigns supreme over material resistance. The metaphysician is called to action from a place of wholeness, harmony and balance. The metaphysician sees that Divine Right Action is taking place in and through everyone and everything. What might seem terribly wrong is calling forth something completely right. Love does overcome the deepest fear and Light does cast out darkness.

"Do not stand idly by." I invite all metaphysicians to go deep into their laboratories and continue their work. I invite all metaphysicians to reflect on the Power of the Unseen Principle of Love, Harmony and Balance and to call it forth, to live it each day. I invite all metaphysicans to contemplate the question: What am I for? I invite all metaphysicians to see from the heart and to continue to live from that place. In invite all metaphysicians to take loving, intelligent action. Love backed by faith, trust and conviction moves the unseen in its direction unfailingly.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

What Are You Visualizing?

2017-01-24T10:19:00.001-08:00

Have you tried to visualize your desires as manifest now? If you are poor or sick or unhappy, have you tried to visualize yourself as how you wish yourself to be. I am not saying this is an easy feat. When we are in the middle of suffering, it can be hard to picture ourselves otherwise. However, I believe, that we can we can change the circumstances of our life not be changing the circumstances, but by changing ourselves and our perceptions.

If we were to fix a physical thing, we would go back to the cause of the issue. If we were to fix a physical thing, we would go back to the law that created it and bring everything in alignment with that law. So are we governed by a perfect Law that responds to our thoughts, that responds to our beliefs.

We must go back to that Law and contemplate the good we wish to experience. We must be relentless about it. I am sure if we really were honest with ourselves, we would see that much of the time our thoughts are focused on what is wrong and not on the way we wish to live.

I do not believe in a Power that wishes anyone to suffer. I believe that everything we could ever desire is right where we are. I believe that we have the volition and choice to live our lives in any way we choose by beginning right now to live it that way no matter what we are experiencing. I believe that if we would spend more time thinking upon what we want and really visualizing it and then taking that visualization into action that we would create more of life we want to live.

We cannot fix anything by focusing on the thing. We can only go back to the First Cause, the perfect I Am that we are and begin to trust in it. It is all Power and all Glory and It is living Itself through us. We are free to recognize It or to deny It. We are free to use It in anyway that we wish.

We are born into a race mind that tells us that life is hard, that suffering is part of life, that we can't get ahead without hard work, etc. All these things are hardened in our consciousness. These beliefs are so hardened that we believe in them. We have the opportunity in any moment to change the train of causation by going back to First Cause and sitting in that place, accepting it as our True Selves and allowing it to work through us. If we can spend more time in this place then in our suffering, things begin to shift. It is guaranteed. It is the way the Universe came to be in the first place. The Spirit contemplates upon Itself and form appears. Spirit creates from Itself. We are Spirit.

I don't know why this is so, but I do know that even as I write it Science is catching up with this Universal Truth and actually proving it. However, we do not have to wait for Science of reassure us. We can get into our laboratories now and prove it to ourselves. However, we have to be willing to think beyond our conditions. We have to be willing to love ourselves. We have to be willing to fling our thought out into Universal Intelligence letting go of those things that want to pull us back into the race mind way of thinking.

We are seeing the need for doing this right now with the state of the world. We are seeing that it is up to us to begin to see the world the way we want it to be and to begin to live our lives as if it were already so. We must let go of lamenting and into visualization and action.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

Growing into the Journey

2017-01-23T10:48:00.001-08:00

When we went to the Hindu Monastery, Sadasivanatha Swami took us to the inner holy chamber of the not yet consecrated temple and he led us in the chant: Om namah shivaya. Simply put, we are recognizing the Shiva or Divine within ourselves. One of our journeyers has a picture of it with the eternal torch burning in the background. We were all quite amazed that we had this once in a lifetime opportunity, because once the temple is consecrated, no one will see that place except the Hindu priests.

I am not surprised that we had this opportunity. I am not surprised about the many things that happened on this Journey. We were ready and equal to the experiences or they could not have occurred. Each of us is already holy and we stand on holy ground at all times. The key is to recognize this holiness no matter where we are standing. I believe that this recognition took place in this Journey at a deeper level.

Today, as I continue to process the Journey of the Bold and Daring and also continue my work here at Center for Spiritual Living Kaua'i, I will allow the discoveries to flow through me. I will allow them to take me higher into consciousness and into service.

As we continue to process the Journey and make notes on what we think went best and where we can improve the next time, it is so important to relish the moments - relish the good that occurred. Yes, of course, there can always be improvements, but I want to know when I was lifted higher. I want to know what changes occurred in my own consciousness. I want to know what brought me more aligned with my truth. I want to process my most authentic moments and the moments where I was still stuck in form and conditions. I want to look at the Journey beyond the food we served and whether there was enough of this or that into my reactions about those things. I want to know if we assisted in creating an experience that was transformational.

I've claimed this year to be my year to empower instead of enable. I realize that it is in empowering that true service is realized for me. It is a bridge that I am crossing and this Journey has taken me closer to the side I want to be at.

Those that came to the Journey this year said it was the best Journey ever. Of course it was; it better be. Every year we are more and more our authentic selves. Our consciousness is more aligned. I'm not so sure that the Journey has changed. I believe it is the Journeyers who have changed the Journey.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

What Did You...I Say?

2017-01-22T08:30:00.004-08:00

We sing a chant "I am remembering who I am." Ernest Holmes wrote, "...If today is the logical continuance of yesterday, then all the tomorrows that stretch down the vista of eternity will be a continuity of experiences and remembrances. There is no past, no present, no future, but merely a continuation of being."

Continuing to remember who we are is an eternal process forever expanding. I am processing the Sacred Journey of this last week. I am willing to take what I have experienced and integrate it into my being. This is what the continuation of life is to me. As I walk, "falling forward," I am continuing.

In my processing, something profound came to mind today that explains a lot to me about myself. When I was growing up I had a father who didn't let me speak; or if I did, I was always told that I didn't know what I was talking about. Children will listen and I surely did. I can see that this statement continued with me for many years, until I became conscious of it later in life.

Sometimes we do not know why we do the things we do. We feel somewhat robotic about them. However, we are not robots; everything has an origin and we either decide to take it in or not. In this case, I took in my father's words as my truth. I can see now that I have struggled with the idea that what I have to say is worth something. Many times I kept my mouth shut.

This week at the Hindu Monastery, I had completed a prayer out loud when the Swami suddenly looked at me and said, "I've heard many prayers but never one equal to that one." Now I suppose this comment could be taken in many ways, but I took it as a compliment. I continue to process his words. I continue. However, I have to be careful, as his words are not any more important to me than my father's words. I must remember that it doesn't matter what someone else thinks of me (empowering or dis-empowering) unless I make it important. What do I think?

Thomas Troward, a New Thought writer, wrote about the ruling hand of an iron destiny we can create if we do not change the wheel of causation. If we continue to turn the wheel of our lives based on what came before, we continue to create the same experiences. For me, if I continue to rely on the words of others for my self-worth, I will continue to need them just like Dumbo's feather.

In her Radiant I Am, Emma Curtis Hopkins wrote, "I have been a listening disciple. I have let people and objects and activities come toward me and impinge upon me till I have been over-piled and mountain-covered with thoughts. But now I know that I AM at my own Center, authority over and through my universe."

When will I grow my own wings? When will I believe what I believe? When will I know what I know? It will happen when I decree it so. I cannot know something, until I know it. I cannot know it until it resonates so with me that I can use it to affect my life experience - until I can live it.

Other people's words can be wonderful or hurtful, but the only words that have power are the words I allow myself to speak to myself. All words are merely a continuation of my own evolution. As Ernest Holmes wrote, Life is a mirror and reflects back to me what I am thinking. This I cannot escape from. Swami or father came from the same source - ME - my mental equivalent.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

Reflections on My Continuing Journey

2017-01-21T10:22:00.002-08:00

I am so grateful. I have the opportunity everyday to do something that deeply matters. I am not out to change the world, but I am out to be in service. I am grateful for the day that my husband and I decided to co-create a ministry here on the Island of Kaua'i. I am grateful that we followed our heart and intuition and just let go. I am not done letting go. Every time I find myself holding on to something, I let go. Today, I feel that very strongly.

The world is ever-evolving, ever changing. Those of us who try to hold on to the way things were might find ourselves with a tether on our heart. When we can just, instead hold onto our true identity amidst the change, the change will occur accordingly. Our true Divine identity will assist us in experiencing the change with a whole new perception.

I had many experiences on this journey where I tried to hold on to the old way I did things or to ideas I had about people, places and things. In those times, I found myself stuck. When I had no resistance and was able to surrender to what is, was when the experiences had the most transforming effect on me. I began to see everything in a new light. I began to transcend the smaller reality and see the larger picture.

My most intense experience, if I had to choose one, was when the Swami took us to the inner most holy sanctum of the unfinished temple and led us in the chant "om namah shivaya." As our voices echoed in the chamber in unison something occurred within my soul. Oneness! I was there before. This song was just a continuation of something that had begun long ago.

Another time on the journey I witnessed a change in planes of existence when I saw someone I know was not on the earthly plane. I'm okay. Really.

What does all this mean? If I cannot bring it into living here and now, what does it mean? Magical and mystical experiences like the many I had on this journey allow me to let go a little more of my stuckness in the small reality of mundane pettiness. I see the more. I am more.

Today, I am marching with the women here on Kaua'i. I know it will be one of those mystical experiences. I am holding a poster that reflects the words of my mentor and friend James Mellon - "Love Only...Forgive everything...Remember who you are." I would have to say that during this Sacred Journey 2017, I experiences all three of these reminders on a very deep level. Today, I will share them and I will continue to live them.

I am grateful for every moment of this past week, but now it is over. I don't just want to go on back to "business as usual." I am unusual. I am different. I am centered. I continue to spiral upward. That is what I choose.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

My Inauguration Day

2017-01-20T09:40:00.003-08:00

Emma Curtis Hopkins, a 19th century healer and teacher wrote, "... but who hath told himself that all the objects he beholds and all their movements also are but projections of his own judgment? He seems always to be a learner and a seeker until at the center of his consciousness the fact is suddenly proclaimed that he himself produced the world as it appears. Then he no longer listens to information from without; he authorizes from himself what he would see and hear and touch; even what he would know. ..."

Emma writes this in her "Radiant I Am" and goes onto to let us know that she has found that from her own I Am Consciousness that she can emanate a world of Life, Love, Peace and Harmony by speaking, writing and living those enduring truths.

Yesterday, we visited with Sadasivanatha Swami, one of the beautiful monks from the Hindu Monastery here on Kaua'i. He took us on a tour of the Monastery, and spoke to us for over two hours. Much of what he shared with us was totally aligned with everything I believe and seek to live. One particular thing was that we cannot control what happens to us, but we can control our perception of what happens, and therefore transmute the experience. If we look for the good in everything, it is good that will be our experience. He gave many examples of this truth.

This is the way I have chosen to live my life. There is no good nor evil. Life merely is what I declare it to be. I cannot step back far enough to see the whole picture of all experience, but when in brief glimpses I do, all stigma, dogma and belief falls away and all that is left standing is Life. I have dominion of my perceptions, my thinking, my knowing; I do not have dominion over others and their experiences.

I am beginning to understand that it might well be true that the old world is falling way. This isn't happening literally. It is happening in consciousness. When Jesus said "...in my father's house there are many mansions," he was talking about planes of consciousness. We can be in the same room with someone else and be on different planes of consciousness.

"There is no good or evil but thinking makes it so," wrote Shakespeare. We are in this moment swearing in a new president. We all have our feelings about this moment. Some are fearful, terrified, joyful, elated or just plain indifferent. I feel that I am about to embark on the greatest adventure.

Ernest Holmes, the founder of Religious Science once wrote that, "when things look the worst is the time to do our best work." I say when things look the worst, I might want to look again. Perhaps what seems like the worst is just my time to step up and take responsibility for what I see, and change my perception and judgment, take responsibility for shifting my own consciousness, and to go to spiritual work, and as Henry David Thoreau put it: "... to live with the license of a higher order of beings.”

The definition of "inauguration" is " the act of putting a service, a person, a system, etc. into action." I am being inaugurated today. I am putting my spiritual self into action.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

The Journey Continues...

2017-01-19T08:59:00.002-08:00

The sun is rising on our 7th day of this Sacred Journey 2017. I am tired physically, but I feel emotionally and spiritually recharged. I am content with the journey experience. I feel that I have given my all to make it as special as possible for the participants. I am grateful for the all the people who have assisted us. We are definitely Ohana. As we move into the last part of the journey, I feel many things.

The most prevalent thought on my mind is the tremendous amount of surrender I feel occurred within me, as I moved from day to day. Really, I never got trapped in the enticement of worry, personal responsibility for others' feelings and emotions and judgment. I simply stayed loving and neutral. I believe I have taken a leap over a hurdle and left the past behind. What's happening to me?

What's happening is that I am letting go of what I think others think of me. I am letting go of my ego in a really good way. I can't say it has been easy, and I'm almost 64 years old, but I believe I have finally had a shift in this area. It has been the bold and daring part of this journey for me - to just let go, to trust, to allow Spirit to work through me, to allow others to step up and help, to know when I have done enough, to serve yet take time for myself at the same time, to truly enjoy the journey moment to moment.

Today, we go to the Hindu Monastery. We have an audience with the Swami. Last year, I wasn't at this particular event. I heard many things about it, and now I just have to let go and let it be this event on Thursday, January 19, 2017. I feel the ego creeping in a little, as I get a little worried about what is expected of me, but with the power of Spiritual Mind Treatment I clear the path to know that in every moment I know exactly what is expected of me - my true authentic self - that's all. It's easy to be your authentic self for there is nothing to know, nor anything to hide, nor anything to be. Just being is enough. Being our true authentic self doesn't take any effort.

I look forward to the moment by moment continuing perfect unfolding journey today.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

Believe It is Already So...and It Shall Be So...

2017-01-18T10:23:00.004-08:00

"Life always becomes to us the particular thing we need when we believe that it becomes to us that particular thing." Ernest Holmes

On Saturday, January 21, I've decided to stand in solidarity with the women of our Nation. We are marching for peace, for equality, for the safety of every human soul.

In my belief system, life is Infinite, but I can only use as much of the Infinite as I can understand and accept. In this case, I must believe that these rights already exist. I must become these rights in mind. When I do this, I am activating the Law of my being that responds to me by bringing me new understanding. It brings me what I believe is already a an accomplished fact. If I continue to tell myself I do not know or I do not understand or it is impossible, then that is what I get in return. It is the Universal Law of Attraction.

To experience these rights, I must become these rights. If I am to see this happen, I must believe it has already happened. I must stay open in every moment to new possibilities on every front. I must begin to think my life and live my life the way I want to live it. I must expand into greater possibilities every day. I must trust that I know all that I need to know in every moment.

I must drop all the possibilities of disasters. I don't want disasters in my life or in the world. I must stand up for something I do want and believe it is already so. In other words, I must believe it in order to see it.

This is why I am marching on Saturday, January 21. I am not against anything or anyone, but I am for a world that works for everyone. I am not hoping for this world. I see this world as an already accomplished fact in the Mind that maketh all. I open myself up to allow it to happen through me. I become its Soul.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita

Stepping Through the Door to the Self

2017-01-17T09:13:00.000-08:00

We are in day 5 of the CSL Kaua'i Sacred Journey of the Bold and Daring. Last night we did a workshop called "Flying Solo." The journeyers all shared a defining moment in their life through storytelling. I was honored to be part of the unveiling of truth as it flowed through each person.

Each person in some unique way stepped into a moment in their lives that had been emotionally painful. As they stepped into it, I received a strong message for myself. There is no way around pain. I must step into it. The way to transformation is that first step we take into those things that are uncomfortable to face. However, the fact that that particular thing has arisen in us is a sign that we are ready for it.

When the student is ready the teacher appears. Teachers come in all form with different faces. We cannot predict when they come or how they come. However, what I know for myself and others is that when they appear, we are ready or they wouldn't be here.

We are the ones we have been waiting for and what we are waiting for is here within us, ready to be transformed by us. Love is the purifier of all. It is hot Source Energy. It is the refiner's fire that creates the field of acceptance of a greater Self.

We do not have to be afraid to face our past or any feeling or emotion. We are loved, forgiven and accepted before we even begin the journey. As we remember our true identity, we can clearly see that all has been for our highest good. We can see that we co-created the path we are on with our desire to know ourselves.

On the doorway to the temple it is written, "Man, Know Thyself." The gateway into the inner temple is the revealing of that Self. It is the only way in and the door is always open.

Love and Aloha,
Rev. Rita