EARTHQUAKES AND OTHER SCARY STUFF

I could feel the floor starting to tremble under foot, first a jolt and then a gentle tremor. I saw my office door begin to swing slowly, then I realized...  Here we go again, still another earthquake. 

I happened to be on an important telephone call at the time and as the senior manager in my building I knew I should set a good example and evacuate immediately but, even though the ceiling tiles were falling, books being jostled from the bookcase and there were sounds of screaming in the hallway, I stayed on the phone for the a couple of minutes to finish the conversation. The guy on the other end, one of my staff members, was laughing at my plight as he was safely in his office in Oklahoma, far from my Southern California location. The screaming continued, I left the office for safety outside.

When the dust settled and we received an “all clear” from Security, we all returned to the offices and I addressed the source of the screaming. I called my administrative assistant

into my office. One of her duties was “Building Safety Coordinator. I told that I had seen her grab her “hard hat” and run out into the hall as the tremor started. That was good. But, we also discussed how that it was probably not appropriate for her, as the Building Safety Coordinator responsible for an orderly building evacuation, to run down the halls screaming “Run for you life! We’re all gonna die”!!!

I suggested that perhaps it would be better for her to give up that additional duty position and to accept another duty that was less stressful.

Now I personally know a lot about FEAR. I have sampled various fears many times in many of its disguises and know it intimately.

For example, Fear comes in many disguises. What is frightening to one may not be to another. 

SKEERD?  Not Me!!!!!

Panic Sets In!!!!

Fear is irrational. I have felt perfectly safe on a very bumpy flight, experiencing heavy turbulence, while the person next to me was reduced to crying and shaking. And, I have felt inexplicable fear in a packed elevator while others crammed in next to me laughed and talked, oblivious to what was frightening me, while I was about to implode.

If fear were rational, we would all fear the same things, which proves to me that FEAR is individual and within our own consciousness.

Courageous Burmese political figure, Aung San Suu Kyi is

quoted as saying: “The only real prison is fear, and the only real freedom is freedom from fear.”   Intellectually, we know that it is important to stay calm, and we should exercise caution. Author Neale Donald Walsch says:“Caution is what causes you to look both ways before crossing the street. Fear is what keeps you frozen on the curb forever.” 

When FEAR lifts its ugly head, we all react differently. Fear and confusion often block intelligent actions, sometimes we seem to become immobile. A Flying Safety magazine article some years ago reported that the Landing Gear warning horn was so loud and insistent as his jet fighter aircraft approached the runway, creating fear and confusion in the pilot’s thinking, that ironically, he landed without lowering the landing gear.

Since fear is subjective, in our own thinking, I have often contemplated Job’s observation and its relevance to myself. In the Bible, in the Book of Job, we find:" For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me." *1  

Is the fear, that "Gear Warning Horn" so loud and insistent,   “coming upon me” because I am entertaining it, giving it place, honoring its presence by believing it? If I didn’t fear, would the “thing” happen?

Now I am not saying that my Administrative Assistant caused the earthquake!! But her reaction certainly reflected a fear that was personal to her.   BUT, what causes fear? How can we conquer it? 

It seems that FEAR is a feeling that somehow we have become separated from our Creator, that we are alone without support. We may we feel that we are adrift in this world, vulnerable to something that is about to happen, or may happen, or will happen!! We feel a lack of firm foundation, and we ACCEPT those fearful, threatening thoughts and cling to them!

But do we have to believe everything that comes into our thought, everything we see, hear and feel? Are we “authorized” to sort the thoughts that come to us, do we have permission to keep the good ones, discard the bad ones, the fearful ones?

In her book, Rudimental Divine Science, Mary Baker Eddy cautions that : “Accepting the verdict of these material senses, we should believe man and the universe to be the football of chance and sinking into oblivion'.”*2   In her Bible companion book*, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, she challenges us, when threatened by belief of disease or any erroneous belief, to guard the door of our thought: She counsels: " Reverse the case. Stand porter at the door of thought. Admitting only such conclusions as you wish realized in bodily results, you will control yourself harmoniously." *3 

God’s plan for us is never frightening, never leading to danger, doubt, discouragement, disease. We are never separate from our divine Source, never out of the Mind that holds us in His consciousness never threatened by God, who is LOVE.

Jesus of Nazareth, the humble preacher centuries ago, knowing that he was ALWAYS hand in hand with his heavenly Father, faced every situation fearlessly. He said, “I and my Father are ONE.”*4   And the apostle Paul comforted us by assuring us of our inseparability from God when he said:   “In Him, we live, and move and have our being.” *5   Definitely a statement of our true, spiritual existence.



Regardless of how solid, or shaky, material foundations may seem, they are really not “the rock” that we need as

security. The assurance and peace of mind of being “at one with the Father” comes to us in a way that some of us have experienced as children when, unexpectedly separated from a parent and experiencing that sinking feeling, looked desperately for their comforting presence. Then, reunited, hand in hand with our parents, we once again felt safe and secure. That same comforting presence of our heavenly Father/Mother is always available, here and now, and will bring that same sense of peace and well being.

This poem speaks of feeling God's everpresence: 

I walk with Love along the way,

And O, it is a holy day;

No more I suffer cruel fear,

I feel God’s presence with me here;

The joy that none can take away

 Is mine;  I walk with Love today.

Come, walk with Love along the way,

Let childlike trust be yours today;

Uplift your thought, with courage go,

Give of your heart’s rich overflow,

And peace shall crown your joy-filled day.

Come, walk with Love along the way.*6

*       The Holy Bible  - Job 3:25

**      Rudimental Divine Science - Mary Baker Eddy (MBE)

***     Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures (MBE)

****    The Holy Bible  - John 10:30

*****   The Holy Bible  - Acts 17:28

******  Christian science Hymnal 427

ANCHORS, BUOYS AND BALLOONS

OK… so it wasn’t the smartest thing I ever did.    Granted!!!  

But my Father-in-Law whom I dearly love was the one that thought having a concrete block as an anchor for his boat was a good thing.   How was I to know that the laws of gravity would prevail… and a more astute sailor would let go of the anchor sooner.   

I waited a little too long as I tried throwing the anchor overboard in a rocking boat.  I’m not sure if I hit the water first or the anchor beat me by a second or two.    We did both get wet.     Lesson: You have to remember to let go of the anchor!!!

Maybe that introduction was the thing that first got me started thinking about the stages of life. As I have progressed through my own experience I have found at least three main stages: The Anchor, the Buoy and the Balloon.

Letting go of the Anchor…

Anchors seem like a good thing. They certainly are useful in holding the boat in place and serve as reassurance to the mariner.

But since that moment years ago I have remembered how clinging to an anchor can have disastrous results.   For one thing I found that all anchors aren’t cement blocks or heavy metal pointy things!!

My personal anchors have been the type that often held me back, kept me from moving ahead and prevented me from soaring.   And the problem with anchors is that, once in place, they aren’t visible, they are underwater, hidden from view and maybe forgotten, sometimes stuck in the mud, entangled in unseen objects on the bottom of the river, lake or ocean. 

Many of us may have been restrained by the anchors of limited finances, education, fear of public speaking, heights, failure, disease, death, loneliness and the list goes on.

As long as we cling to the anchor, we will not move forward, and… as I quickly learned, may get pulled under!!!

I have likened the Anchor phase to my early experiences, trying to find out who I was, to grow and learn, but held back by self imposed anchors of limited thinking.  Then I moved along to the Buoy stage.

Life as a Buoy…

Imagine the incoming waves, surf high and powerful… and the buoy… bobbing up and down  but well grounded, unmoving, serving its role as boundary, safe keeper of  mariners.  Somewhat anchored, but able to move freely to perform its mission, the buoy, along with the lighthouse, serving faithfully, needing no thanks, no high fives or pats on the back.

In my experience, the Buoys represent the steady daily life of a dad, a husband, a son, a brother, an employee, a friend.     During the Buoy stage, I found inspiration and guidance from The Holy Bible.  This wonderful book can be read as a powerful historical novel,  a record of incredible courage,  battles fought, won and lost, challenges faced and overcome, stories of the power of love, tenderness and healing, true stories of man’s struggle to escape the bonds of a matter based, temporary existence, striving to find the spiritual reality. And, most importantly, the record of the  earthly life of Christ Jesus, who selflessly taught, helped and healed and showed that Life is Eternal.

The Balloon Ascends…   

I am now in my Balloon phase!!   Now to be honest, as we go through the stages, from Anchor to Buoy to Balloon, we don’t entirely leave one phase as we enter another.  There are still vestiges of former stages, lingering and attempting to allure us back, retrograde steps, which we constantly must resist. 

As we step into the Balloon basket, we notice the Anchors, the sand bags that are attached to keep the balloon from ascending.   Yes.  Even when we get to this point the Anchors try to keep us earthbound.    In order to fly, to ascend, to soar, we have to drop those anchors, cut them loose, fearlessly discard the ballast and baggage that seem to safely harbor us to the old and familiar, and prepare to reach the heights.

Rising easily without the Anchors of fear, doubt, resistance, stolidity, anger, revenge, and pain holding us back, trusting the lifting power of our Creator, divine Mind, our thoughts soar, we climb to a greater  understanding of Spirit, eternal life.   

As physical science begins to realize that life is not in matter, as observed by Dr. Einstein, “Concerning matter, we have been all wrong. What we have called matter is energy, whose vibration has been so lowered as to be perceptible to the senses. There is no matter.”;   and that behind the electronic vibrations that we perceive as matter “We must assume behind this force the existence of a conscious and intelligent mind.’ as observed by German Physicist, Dr. Max Planck,   and that in reality “all is consciousness” as observed recently by Biologist/Physician  Professor Dr. Robert Lantz in his book Biocentrism: How Life and Consciousness are the Keys to Understanding the True Nature of the Universe, the view from the Balloon is exciting.   We begin to drop the idea that we live in matter and lift our thought to the reality that life is in God, Mind.

Religious pioneer Mary Baker Eddy, in the late 1800s, far before physical scientists started observing matter as an illusion, perceived what Jesus was teaching when he taught that life is Spirit.  “God is aSpirit: and they that worship him must worship him inspirit and in truth.”   (John 4:24) 

 In her book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures,  Eddy  gives a sort of translation of degrees of growth spiritually, a journey from belief in the physical universe  with its fear, depravity, sensuality, pride and envy up to the Spiritual understanding where we reflect wisdom, purity, spiritual understanding… LOVE.   I think of what I call  the “Anchor to Balloon experience” as following that pathway.   Here is a link to her book.

The following hymn has helped me on my journey from “Anchor Man” to beginning my Soaring trip as a Balloonist:

From sense to Soul my pathway lies before me,

From mist and shadow into Truth’s clear day;

The dawn of all things real is breaking o’er me,

My heart is singing: I have found the way.

I reach Mind’s open door, and at its portal

I know that where I stand is holy ground;

I feel the calm and joy of things immortal,

The loveliness of Love is all around.

The way leads upward and its goal draws nearer,

Thought soars enraptured, fetterless and free;

The vision infinite to me grows clearer, 

I touch the fringes of eternity.

Christian Science Hymnal   64

Breaking NEWS… We are “EXPECTING”!!!!

This news flash may shock some friends and family... but it is true!!

Oh, many of us have been through the “We’re EXPECTING” experience before… receiving the good news, buying a crib, bassinet, diapers, painting the room. Days filled with joyful anticipation. We know it will be good, exciting, a new page in our lives, new experiences, fun and laughter, joyous times.
But, to the undoubted relief of friends and family, this message is not about an addition to our family. It is about EXPECTING GOOD, anticipating God’s blessing, spiritual inspiration, love and kindness, new revelations of life’s secrets of happiness.

And it is a GOOD thing to be Expecting!!

Recently, watching the evening news on television it became apparent that there was a negative tilt to almost every story. It seemed that each report carried gloom and doom, broadcasting the dreary outlook that “there is no expected relief”, “a good outcome is not expected”, and promises that “things will undoubtedly get worse before they got better.”  They remind me of the statement from a 1913 novel by Eleanor Porter, Pollyanna... "When you look for the bad in mankind expecting to find it, you surely will find it."

Some media reports seem to be more negative than others, their stories leaving one feeling helpless, discouraged, upset, while others, the more positive views seen in other sources may tell the same story but offer a brighter view, maybe offer possible solutions or positive steps we can take in light of the stories.

We may all know someone whose views reflect a worrisome attitude, always expecting the worst possible outcome, frowning and fretting over each situation.

I am inspired by the Expectations of professionals. It is hard  

to imagine a baseball pitcher going out to the pitcher’s mound expecting that everyone will hit a home run and that he will not strike anyone out.   Or picture a concert pianist taking the stage convinced that she will hit many wrong notes and disastrous results.… and we won’t even discuss the fisherman who is doubtful of landing “the big catch” and preparing thought to settle for empty nets at the end of the day! 

Turning to the Bible we can see how through the thousands of years wise men, prophets, even ordinary people in all walks of life EXPECTED GOOD, looked to God, the Creator, searching for Truth, expecting to see solutions and help take place in their lives. The story of the three Wise Men en route to the birth of Jesus demonstrated the lengths they were prepared to travel based on that Expectancy of Good, the promise of redemption, or  seeing God’s presence on the human scene. In stark contrast, Job, at the height of his discomfort and challenges lamented, “The thing that I most feared has come upon me.” I have always thought that Job’s lack of faith and expectation of God’s help precipitated his problems.

In another instance, a young boy destined to become King, courageous David, ran towards Goliath, a giant of overwhelming strength and experience, expecting God’s power to carry the day in this lopsided contest.    And, as Christ Jesus walked the hillsides and along the seaside, eager people gathered, expectantly, as recorded in Luke 8:40, “And it came to pass, that, when Jesus was returned, the people gladly received him: for they were all waiting for him.” Waiting for healing and uplift, confidently, and their high expectations paid off.

All good fisherman love the story of Jesus disciples

improving their "catch' by throwing their nets on the right side, the Expecting Good side of the boat!!
These examples of Expecting Good are not the result of Pollyanna  or “goody-goody” thinking, or a naive trust in Chance. They are documented proofs of the fact that God, Spirit, which is chronicled in the Bible in such terms as Mind, Love, and Truth… delivers nothing but good when we are faithfully listening and watching for signs of His presence.  Thoughts of doubt, discouragement, fear and uncertainty cloud the Divine purpose, make us miss the mark, (a definition of sin), and become obstacles to realizing God’s power and presence, available for us to use, right here!!But HOW does it work? Jesus set the example. He encouraged us to know and understand that we are God’s ideas that like rays from the sun carry the light and heat out from their source, so we are the emanation of God's qualities, the rays of goodness showering the earth.   For example: God is Love, and we are Love’s expression, here, in this place, right now!   God is Mind, and we are the outcome of that Mind, intelligent, aware, and alert.  God is Spirit, and we, His offspring are spiritual and eternal, not just little bundles of flesh running purposelessly through a span of time.  
Expectancy is the active application of faith, and we need not just sit back helplessly watching problems accumulate, feeling out of control, hiding from life, but we can actively participate, running forward like David did to meet Goliath carrying that expectancy that God is more powerful than evil. We can live the realization that we are the very evidence of God’s life and being and we can overthrow the claims of sin and disease, defeat the lies of corruption, infidelity lack… the plethora of problems that would rob us of our heritage as God’s loving ideas.
Jesus gave this counsel: “ If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you."  Matt. 17:20

When we face each day with Expectation of Good as our outlook, Seeing Good as our Goal, our lives become

more active, more fruitful, and more productive. Racing out to meet the Goliath problems, getting on the mound to pitch a strikeout, sitting at the piano keyboard to play life’s classical tunes, just going out to LOVE and let our light shine, is today's challenge and opportunity!!Theologian Mary Baker Eddy set the stage for our anticipation of Good when she wrote in her book "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures",  “When the destination is desirable, expectation speeds our progress.”

A favorite hymn carries this promise, a promise proven over and over again in my own experience:

"We expect a bright tomorrow, all will be well;Faith can sing through days of sorrow, All must be well; 
While His truth we are applying, And upon His love relying,
God is every need supplying, All, all is well."*

*     Christian Science Hymnal 350

For those who have inquired about the book, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy, referenced in some of my articles, here’s the information. This book is used in Bible study by students of Christian Science and people of many different faiths.

It explains the scientific laws behind the teachings and healings of Christ Jesus. From the first chapter, “Prayer,” to her exegeses of Genesis and Revelation, the author invites readers to deeply consider the allness of God, the perfection of man as God's spiritual creation, and how an understanding of these facts brings healing—just as it did in biblical times. For over 135 years, readers have testified that reading and studying this book has given them a spiritual sense of the Bible and their permanent relationship to God, and has also resulted in physical healing and spiritual uplift. For more information or to purchase this book, click here.

Leap-The-Dip

Who thought it was a good idea to sit here in the front row? My stomach feels like a thousand butterflies are fighting to get out. I had a feeling that this was going to happen when I was standing in line. 

 When I was young I had heard about the Leap-The-Dips, a roller coaster built in 1902 at Lakemont Park in Altoona,  Pennsylvania and it sounded like such great fun, I had always wanted to experience that. But after standing in line for some time at this newer, higher, more modern roller coaster in Ohio, seeing how high the structure was, my resolve was starting to weaken. Now, in a front row seat, looking ahead at the tracks climbing skyward, reaching almost to the puffy clouds overhead it seemed, I wished that I could jump out of the car and run back to the ice cream stand that we had just passed.
I consoled myself that the Leap-The-Dips had survived for many years and I hadn't heard of anyone getting hurt badly. Before I could ruminate and build the level of fear any further, the car had filled and we started to roll slowly, clank, clank,…. clack, clack… and my heart was echoing that rhythm, beat, beat,... beat beat... inching our way up above the midway, the entire amusement park appearing below. Just when I wondered if the car would make the summit, suddenly the bottom dropped out and we rocketed down the other side of the coaster, going faster and faster, ears filled with screams of those on board, the funny, queasy feeling in the stomach, me not knowing whether to laugh, scream or cry and with a wrenching jerk we bottomed out and started up the next hill, heading towards another adventurous descent and a sharp curve at the bottom.

Thinking back, I am glad that I experienced that ride and a few other similar rides in following years. It was a great preparation for life. It’s funny how similar many of life’s experiences can be to those roller coaster rides, the ups and downs the fear and exhilaration, the moments of expectation and anticipation sometimes followed by fear and regret, that we face as we go through life.

Many of us can relate to that roller coaster ride. There are so many examples of the ups and downs that we face every day... the abrupt stock market fluctuations, perhaps our personal finances, strained relationships among countries in the world, our relationships with family and friends, or seemingly serious health situations involving our loved ones. Just as a roller coaster works because of gravity, a force that pulls things down, most often just when they are at the height of their climb, there is a sudden downward pull which frightens, discourages and at the least causes abrupt and sometimes extreme changes in our circumstances, our relationships and general quality of life.

At one time as I was working in an automotive manufacturing company.  The plant where my data center was located was an automotive stamping plant and this particular plant manager was being honored by the Corporation for excellent profitability, productivity and safety numbers.   Sitting in his office that day I congratulated him for the recognition and he told me, “Pat, in this business, when things look really good on paper they’re not as good as they look. And when our plant looks bad on paper it’s not really as bad as it looks.” And isn’t life like that?!!

That to me was helpful and I think of that often. That roller coaster, that juxtaposition of happiness and sorrow, of exhilaration and fear, of confidence and doubt are extremes which should be smoothed out by a calmer sense of what’s really going on in life. 

As I go back to my Personal User Manual, the Bible, I find such calming examples of how others in history have actually been able to smooth out the bumps and see life in a more spiritual context, see that relying on a spiritual view of life, as opposed to the discouraging and disappointing views that matter gives us, can solve our problems in practical ways. 

Christ Jesus was a great calming influence to his disciples and to others who were with him. In the midst of a storm at sea, the height of fear, when his disciples were sure that tragedy was imminent and Jesus was asleep, they awakened him and he immediately calmed the storm. To me, his action calmed their thoughts, removed their fear, as when a young child is fearful during the night and the father or mother goes into the bedroom to reassure them that all is well and that they are safe. 

In instance after instance, Jesus demonstrated in practical examples that the roller coaster of events in life can be smoothed out by reliance on God, our spiritual source, to provide food, drink, health, sanity, life where their opposites appeared to be. His greeting was usually, “Peace be unto you.” 

Another Biblical example was an occasion when the King of Syria was very upset with the prophet Elijah and sent a great number of men, horses and chariots to find Elijah and bring him back to the king. Elijah’s servant was very afraid as he awakened to see that they were surrounded by the king’s army. But, Elijah, a prophet that trusted in God’s care and protection reassured his servant. “And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them. Elisha prayed, and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha."    II Kings 6: 14

I am sure many have prayed to understand, as I have, 'What can I do to place myself on a more even keel? How can I experience more consistency, more harmony, less upheaval?'     Now we may not be surrounded by chariots and horses, but what if we could see the serene, calm picture of spiritual thought,  could see that the storm we are facing can be stilled, the multitudes of our needs can be fed, the illness healed, the tears turned to laughter, the turbulence smoothed by the calm abiding? How can we be a “God listener?"   See through the fog?  

Recent events in my own personal experience have reinforced the conviction that we can indeed slow down the coaster, quiet the fear, feel confidence and trust by turning to God for guidance. My solution is to turn to the Bible and Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, a Bible companion used by people of many religions.

One of my favorite Bible “calmers” is found in Psalms 91.

"He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday."        I like to add here, “Nor for the roller coaster of emotion”!!!

When our thought is safely cloistered within that “secret place” where we are listening to God’s thoughts for us, quietly contemplating our oneness with God, our eternal Father, Creator, the source of all being, we can relax, get off of the coaster.

Mary Baker Eddy, an influential American author, teacher, and religious leader, noted for her groundbreaking ideas about spirituality and health, which she named Christian Science, counseled this: "Man is not a pendulum, swinging between evil and good, joy and sorrow, sickness and health, life and death."      "Stand porter at the door of thought. Admitting only such conclusions as you wish realized in bodily results, you will control yourself harmoniously." * 

We can turn the roller coaster into a gentle carousel, smooth the ups and downs, listen to the calliope playing a cheerful melody as we feel God’s calming reassurance.

* Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures - Mary Baker Eddy