This Sunday we look at the first of our core values, Community:  

In a supportive, inclusive environment guided by shared values, we are a cohesive spiritual community. We each contribute to the enrichment of the whole." 

That statement was written through a shared process by those of you who wanted a community that reflected your deepest values.

Unity Center of Davis is different things to different people, but many see ourselves in the process of being, and becoming, a sacred, cohesive spiritual community. Community gives us a sense of belonging in an environment that supports the shared experience of our human, spiritual journey.  In community, we can share our journey, which can lighten our burdens and deepen our joys.   There is a collective energy in community that can buoy our spirits, especially if we have been struggling on our own.  Jesus said, where two or more are gathered there I am. The shared intention to join with another in order to create a sacred environment is always rewarded by a palpable presence of Spirit not found in solitary practice

Many of you have shared your appreciation for the formation of UCOD because it meets your deepest need for a spiritual community that feeds your soul.  It seems we've called each together to create this energetic field that supports all of us in moving forward in our quest to know ourselves more deeply.  It is not coincidental that our self discovery is best served by getting to know each other at the same time.  This stems from the truth of our oneness. - but that's the topic for another one of our values in a later week.

Many of us found a spiritual home in a Unity community because the message fit around our heart like a warm glove on a cold night. I still remember my first Unity experience in San Luis Obispo, 21 years ago. In the embrace of a loving community, guided by the outrageously humorous and open-hearted God-loving passion of Rev. Richard, I was completely broken open. I laughed and I cried and I fell into the waiting arms of an accessible God, with a Jesus I could relate to. I am deeply grateful to that community and the spiritual leaders that guided my journey home. Rev. Richard and Maureen Levy remain dear friends and inspiring colleagues today.

This morning Denese and I reflected on those early days in Unity, to see if we could pinpoint what happened in us that was so profoundly life changing. What was it that turned us inside out and upside down and gave us fresh inspired outlook on life and our place in the world? What were the insights or aha's that brought about a complete reversal in my view of life; from consummate doubter, the classic prodigal, into an open-hearted seeker of Truth. Those questions led us through a beautiful experience of following the thread of Unity's teachings that led us from the wilderness of suffering in  spiritual desolation to the fertile field of heart centered spirituality. This field of knowing is an inner realm where the Divine is always in residence, and the answers to all of life's conundrums can be found. Quite simply and profoundly it is our understanding of God as Spirit, here, there, everywhere, closer than our very breath. This is the sublime realization ,and it can happen in every instant of remembering. When tempted to believe that life events are the determiner of our happiness, we can awaken from this mad dream, call off the search and reclaim the peace embedded in our hearts. This truly is the good news, the Gospel of Unity. In every moment of remembering this Truth, we can be healed, made whole and freed.