Click HERE to view Rev. Jimmie Scott’s guided meditation during the service.
So they found this additional creation story in a new chapter — undiscovered chapter — in the Book of Genesis. And it answered the question: Why were pets created? Here we go.
Adam said, “Lord, when I was in the Garden, we walked together every day, but now I don’t see you anymore. And I’m lonesome here and it is difficult for me to remember how much you love me.”
And God said, “No problem! I’ll create you a companion who will be with you forever and will be a reflection of my love for you. So you will feel my love and love me even when we are not together, when you can’t see me. And so regardless of how selfish you are, or childish you are, or unlovable you are, this new companion will love you and accept you and adore you, just the way you are, just as I love you, in spite of yourself.” [Congregation laughs]
And God created a new animal to be a companion for Adam. And the animal was good, and God was pleased. And the new animal was pleased to be with Adam and wagged his tail.
And Adam said, “Lord, I have already named all the animals in the Kingdom; I can’t think of a new name for this new animal.”
And God said, “No problem! Because I have created this animal as a reflection of my love for you, his name will reflect my name, too. And you will call him DOG.” [Congregation laughs]
And Dog lived with Adam and was a companion to him and loved him. And Adam was comforted. And God was pleased. And Dog was content and wagged his tail.
After a while, it came to pass that Adam’s guardian angel came to the Lord and said, “Lord, Adam has become filled with pride. He struts and preens like a peacock and believes he is worthy of constant adoration. The Dog indeed has taught him that he is loved, but perhaps too well!” [Congregation laughs]
And the Lord said, “No problem! I’ll create another companion for him … [Congregation laughs]
You’re getting way ahead of me! [Congregation laughs]
“… who will be with him forever and who will see him as he is.” [Congregation laughs] “The companion will remind him of his limitations, so he will know he is not always worthy of adoration.” [Congregation laughs]
And so God created Cat … [Congregation laughs] … to be a companion for Adam. And Cat ignored Adam, and didn’t obey Adam, and sometimes didn’t go near Adam. And when he looked into Cat’s indifferent eyes, he realized he was such a supreme being after all. And Adam learned humility. And God was pleased. And Adam was greatly improved. And Dog was happy. And Cat didn’t really care one way or the other. [Congregation laughs and applauds]
Alright. [Laughs]
So even though they’re corny and they’re old and they’re very predictable, I love creation stories, because it not only reminds us of the Creation Story, to me it reminds us of the power of creation and the power to create.
The first five words in the Bible are: “In the beginning, God created …” The first thing God did was create. God created the heavens and the earth; God created the sky and the sea; God created day and night; God created the vegetation and living creatures; and God created man and woman — Adam and Eve — in his image and likeness.
We have all been created by the Creator, which means we are creators! We’ve been told to be fruitful and multiply, which means that we are created to create.
Dieter Uchtdorf said, “One of the deepest yearnings of the human soul is to create.” Every single one of us has an impulse and a desire to create something. To build; to achieve; to accomplish; to manifest something better; something greater; something more wonderful than we are currently experiencing.
I read an article this week, and it was called, “You are a Powerful Creator; It’s Time to Stop Playing Small.” We are creators, but sometimes we play small. I ask you: Where in your life are you playing small? Where in your life are you settling? Where in your life have you kind of given up hope that this situation will ever get better? Resigned to the fact that you’ll never be as happy or find the love that you are desiring?
Sometimes I think it’s hard for us to accept that we are powerful spiritual beings. You remember that Marianne Williamson poem, “Our Deepest Fear”? Our deepest fear is not our darkness, but our light! It is our brilliance and our greatness and our power that sometimes scares us the most. And one of the things we need to do is to own our spiritual power. To own that we are powerful creators.
“I am a powerful creator.”
Let’s say that together! [With congregation]: “I am a powerful creator.”
Take a deep breath. Own it and say it with more conviction. Let’s say it again: [with congregation] “I am a powerful creator.”
“I am created to create.”
Together: [with congregation] “I am created to create.”
Turn to the person on your left and right. Say, “You’re a powerful creator; you were created to create.” [Congregants talk to one another]
You know, we are all creators. And what we don’t always realize: We’re always creating. We are always — consciously or unconsciously – creating. We create all of the circumstances and conditions and experiences and feelings that we go through and experience in life. I want you to think about your life right now. About your level of happiness right now. About the quality of your relationships. About your work or your creative expression. Think about your entire life and how you feel about your life.
And the fact is: We created all aspects of our lives. And so my question is: What part of your life that you created that you like? What do you like that you created? What have you created that you would like to improve? What is it that you’ve created that you would like to change?
The good news is that we are creators! We can recreate! Even if it’s just changing our attitude, we can do things to bring greater peace and a greater sense of joy; a greater sense of positivity into our lives. Because we are creators! We are created to create!
So we’re in Week #4 of our five-week series looking at the five foundational principles of Unity. Week #1 we looked at: There is only one presence and one power: God the good. Week #2: That we are all expressions of God. Our nature is divine, because we have been created in the image and likeness of God. #3 last week was that prayer is the thing that taps into the allness and the abundance of God. That prayer is the way we align our hearts and minds with God.
And this week we’re going to look at that: WE CREATE OUR LIVES THROUGH OUR THOUGHTS OR OUR THINKING. Through what goes through our minds. That is what attracts and creates our reality and our experiences.
You know, whether you call it the Law of Attraction, the Law of Cause and Effect, or Karma, or the Law of Sowing and Reaping, I think we all agree — and culturally we agree — that our thoughts create our experience. Our thoughts and what we hold in our minds has a huge influence on the things that we attract and experience every single day.
And so what we’re going to do now is to look at four ways that we can use our incredible creative power: the ability to create that we all have.
And so the first thing we need to do if we want to be a better creator is to KNOW WHAT WE WANT TO CREATE. So what do you want to create in your life? What is it that you want to accomplish or to have or to become or to experience or to feel? What is your heart’s greatest desire? What are your goals? What are your dreams?
Knowing what we want to create is the first step in creation. And the fact is: We need to get a little bit more clear. You know, when the Bible tells us ask, seek, knock, decide, choose, it all means: Get clear; get clear; get clear; get clear! Know what you want and get clear about it.
And that sounds so easy! But I would say most of us aren’t always clear about what it is that we want. We sometimes know what we don’t want, but we’re not always clear about what we do want. You know why? Because we don’t always sit and take the time to tune in and really discover what it is our hearts are desiring. What it is that our souls are seeking. What it is that will really bring us the depth of fulfillment and love and joy that we are seeking.
Anybody ever been unsure and uncertain? Maybe a little wishy-washy or vacillating between what it is that you want in your life? Anybody ever been there? Anybody ever had so many choices you were afraid to make any choice at all? You know, it is amazing how most of us do not know — or aren’t clear — what it is we want or what it is we have.
And the thing about it is: If we live in a responsive universe, and what we put out comes back to us, what do you think comes back when we send ambiguous, mixed, uncertain energy and messages to the universe? We get upset, but the fact is: We weren’t clear! We weren’t sure! We didn’t know what it was that we wanted to create or attract in our lives. That’s why we get back some of that energy of uncertainty and ambiguity in our lives. We’ve got to be clear!
Kind of reminds me of this married couple. They were both 60 years old and they were celebrating their 35th wedding anniversary. And during the party, a fairy came, congratulated them and said, “I will give each of you — I will grant you a wish. You say the word and it’ll be done!”
And the wife said, “I wish to travel the world,” and POOF! She had tickets for a cruise around the world.
And then the fairy turned to the husband and said, “What would you like?”
And he said, “Well, what I would really like is: I wish I had a wife that was 30 years younger than me.”
And POOF! He was 90! [Congregation laughs]
You’ve gotta be clear! [Congregation laughs]
Now, to get clear on what it is we want to create in our lives, I think often it takes us taking a little time to ask and listen. To ask ourselves — to ask our higher self: What is my highest and best? What is the thing that will bring me the greatest fulfillment? What is the thing that will bring me the greatest joy? Because our soul knows! We just need to tune in. We need to tap into that deeper level to get clear.
And amazing thing about clarity is that: When you’re clear, your energy tends to be more focused. You tend to be more efficient. You tend to be able to create more in a more effective way.
You know, you ever been scattered? You weren’t sure what to? And when we do, you know what happens? We dissipate our energy. But when we’re clear, we direct our energy. And so being a powerful creator requires us to be clear so we can focus and direct our creative powers in a more effective way to the ends that we’re trying to attain.
Alright; so the first thing to be a better creator is to know and be clear about what you want to create.
Second thing is to SPEAK THE WORD. The Book of John, Chapter 1, Verse 1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Everything was created by the power of the Word.
In Genesis it says, “God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.”
In the same way that God spoke the world into existence, our words — we speak things into existence in our own life and our own experience. Our words are more powerful than we realize.
And in Proverbs 18:21, it actually gives us a warning. It says, “Life and death are in the power of the tongue.” Your words can tear down. Our words can hurt and curse and diminish; or our words can build up. Our words can bless. Our words can heal. Our words can prosper. We need to use our words more carefully and more intentionally.
You know, I’ll bet if I asked how many people think they are positive, everybody would say, “Yes.” If I asked how many people think they’re negative, everybody would say, “No.” [Congregation laughs] But this guy did a study. Robert Schrauf – he’s an anthropologist and a professor at Penn State University. And he did studies with people across all ages and nationalities. And he said, on average, 50% of what we think and what we say are negative and expressed some sort of negativity in some way: of fear; negative emotions; sadness; guilt. Thirty percent, he said, are positive. And 20% are neutral.
We’re not trying to be negative, but sometimes we say words without thinking. You know, like, “My back is killing me.” You know, “Things just go from bad to worse.” You know, “Life is hard. Life stinks. Life’s unfair.” You know, “I just can’t remember anyone’s name.” You know, “I am such a klutz.” “I’m a loser.” You know, “I can never pick the right man or the right woman.” You know, “I always catch a cold in the middle of summer.”
I mean, we just say all kinds of things, and then we actually call it into reality by speaking these words! And we speak them kind of carelessly without thinking, but they have an impact on our lives.
The most negative things I think we say are in judging and complaining. Sometimes we complain: “It’s too cold!” — like I’ve been doing recently. [Congregation laughs] Or, “It’s too hot!” “The kids are rude.” “My partner never listens to me.” You know, “The economy is terrible.” “Politicians are crooks.” “The boss is a jerk.” “The Cardinals stink.” [Congregation laughs]
We have all kinds of things we complain about! We complain and complain and complain! I know people who are just constantly complaining. You know they’ve developed a new support group for people who are constantly complaining? It’s called On and On and On Anon. [Congregation laughs] Just checking to see if you were paying attention! [Congregation laughs]
But every one of us unconsciously have a litany of negativity — of negative words — that we say and we don’t even realize it. Again, with the Law of Attraction: If we’re always complaining, what are we going to attract more of? More stuff to complain about.
And one of the things I like to do is challenge myself to have a “No Complaint Challenge” to curb my complaining. And so one of the things — and I’ve shared it with you. One of my practices: No matter what happens, instead of going to complaining with negative words, if something happens that I don’t like I just say, “That’s fascinating.” [Congregation laughs] Get a flat tire. “That’s fascinating.” If I get an unexpected bill: “That’s fascinating.” If I burn dinner: “That’s fascinating.” The toilet overflows: “That’s fascinating.” Nobody laughs at my jokes: “That’s fascinating.” [Congregation laughs]
So Friday … so I make this little chia seed thing with almond milk. And I kind of soak it in it. And I put turmeric and nutmeg and ginger. Somebody’s grimacing in the front row: how nasty that sounds. [Congregation laughs] And it is a little bit!
Well, I overfilled the thing and I put it in my fridge door. And I opened it and it kind of rocked the milk, and it spilled over. And I thought, “That’s fascinating.” [Congregation laughs] And the other thing is: I started cleaning it and getting paper towels and cleaning it out — it was all underneath the salsa and underneath all this stuff. And then, as I’m wiping, I can’t get the yellow of the turmeric that’s staining the thing. And I thought to myself, “That’s fascinating!” [Congregation laughs]
And it sounds silly and playful, but curbing our complaining is important, because sometimes we unconsciously use words against ourselves. Against our own peace; against our happiness. What I’d like to encourage us all to do is to find some phrase. And whether it is, “That’s fascinating,” or saying, “This isn’t going my way, but I know God and I can handle this.” Or that, “Something good will come from this, even though I can’t see it right now.” Or, “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.” Or, “All things are working together for my highest good.”
I encourage you: Find a word; find a phrase, so that when things go bad, instead of complaining, we can put this in there to curb that complaining and to reduce the impact and the power of our own words that are being used against it. So we can use our words for us.
I love Psalms 19 when it says, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, o Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.” “Let the words of my mouth be acceptable” means: Let the words of my mouth be in alignment with the life that God has called me to live; in alignment with the life I want to live and deserve to live.
You know, Unity uses a lot of affirmations. Affirmations do a couple of good things: number one, it lifts us out of a low energy at a tough time into a higher one. In the Old Testament, as the words: “Let the weak say, ‘I am strong.'” That means when you’re down, claim your power! Claim your hope; claim your possibilities. Use our words to lift us out when our energy and vibration is low.
And the other thing is that affirmations help condition our consciousness to align it with the thing that we want to call forth and attract in our lives. Affirmations are powerful! They elevate us in so many ways. Let’s do some affirmations! I’m going to say it and you’re going to repeat after me.
“I am positive, peaceful and prosperous.”
Together: [with congregation] “I am positive, peaceful and prosperous.”
“I am kind, caring and generous.”
[With congregation]: “I am kind, caring and generous.”
“I am brimming with energy and overflowing with joy!”
[With congregation]: “I am brimming with energy and overflowing with joy.”
“Success and good fortune come to me like mushrooms overnight.” [Congregation laughs]
[With congregation]: “Success and good fortune come to me like mushrooms overnight.”
“I give in love, because I love to give.”
[With congregation]: “I give in love, because I love to give.”
“I deserve everything I want in life!”
[With congregation]: “I deserve everything I want in life!”
“I feel grateful, thankful and blessed for everyone and everything in my life!”
[With congregation]: “I feel grateful, thankful and blessed for everyone and everything in my life.”
“Each and every day” … [congregation joins in] … “in each and every way, my life is getting better and better and better!”
One more time! [With congregation]: “Each and every day, in each and every way, my life is getting better and better and better!”
Amen! Woo! I could feel that! [Congregation applauds]
But can you see the power of words to lift us up and to condition our minds? It sends out a powerful vibration and energy. Words are powerful; we have that power and ability to create. We’ve got to do it consciously and allow those words to be in alignment with the life we want to live.
The next one is to HOLD IT IN MIND. Charles Fillmore, co-founder of Unity, said, “The same thought-stuff that God used to create the world is accessible to all of us in all places. In fact, we are always using our creative power to create our lives and experiences.”
Proverbs 23, Verse 7, says: “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” The power of our thoughts absolutely make a difference about what we experience in our lives.
James Allen said, “And as he continues to think, so he remains.” So, if we keep the same thoughts, we’re going to experience some of the same experiences over and over again. You know, somebody once said that 92% of the thoughts we think today we thought yesterday. So is it surprising that sometimes our lives feel stuck and not improving in any way? Because we’re repeating the same stuff; we’re holding the same stuff in our minds. And keep attracting the same types of things.
You know, that creative power — our minds are so powerful! Somebody once said that it can create a hell out of heaven or a heaven out of hell. What our attitudes and mindsets are absolutely influences our experience of life more than the conditions that we’re in.
I know people that have very simple means — very simple lives — that are joyful and happy and living abundantly in their thoughts and their minds. And I know people who have so many blessings who only focus on what they don’t have; what isn’t working; just complaining. It is what is in our thoughts that has the greatest indicator of the quality and our enjoyment of our lives.
Holding thoughts of success and happiness and healing and prosperity and joy and inner peace: All these things are powerful in our ability to attract and create the life we want.
I ask you: What is the most powerful thought you think about your family life right now? What is the most powerful thought that you can hold about your career or self-expression? What is the most powerful thought you can hold about your finances? What is the most powerful thought you can hold about your most intimate relationship? What is the most powerful thought that you can hold about your life? And life itself?
And if you have an area in your life that isn’t working as well as you’d like, what’s the most powerful thought you can hold towards that thing? I think sometimes even holding a thought of divine order and God’s will being done is a powerful and good thought in any situation! To keep holding the highest and best thought is a powerful thing: holding thoughts of peace and happiness and success.
But do you know what’s equally powerful that elevates our creativity? It’s holding positive thoughts towards other people. Charles Fillmore said that the quality of prosperity that we experience in our lives is directly related to the quality of thoughts we hold towards others. That when we are able to not only hold thoughts of success and healing an happiness for ourselves, but holding them for others, that is the highest power of creating and attracting a great and wonderful life.
Deepak Chopra says, “Forty percent of our happiness comes from helping and supporting and thinking of others.” Good thoughts are powerful! Our thoughts have power and they attract. And the greatest way is to make sure that we are using our thoughts in the most positive way for ourselves AND for others. Because that will actually elevate ourselves and others to a higher level of life and joy.
And the final one is one we don’t think about as a creative power. And that is the power of our feelings: to FOCUS THE POWER OF OUR FEELING NATURE. Lynn Grabhorn wrote a book many years ago called Excuse Me, Your Life Is Waiting! And what she said in it was: We don’t just get what we think; we get what we feel. We attract what we feel.
And she went to see this little pint-sized baseball player. He hit home runs like crazy! And she went up to him; he hit four home runs in the game she saw. And she said, “Hey; how’d you do that?”
And he said, “Eh. I don’t know.”
And she said, “No, really! Think about it; how’d you do that?”
He said, “Well, I just feel what it’s like to hit a home run; I go out; and I hit a home run.”
And it is powerful what our feeling is like. You know, that line from Proverbs: “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” We only hear, “As a man thinketh, so is he.” But “As a man thinketh in his heart …” It is the thought and the feeling that brings the outcome. The thought and the feeling that brings the outcome!
In a positive or negative way, our feelings and emotions can attract or repel the very things that we desire. Remember when Job said, “The thing that I have feared has come upon me”? The thing that he feared was to lose everything, and fear was the emotion. It was the thought plus the feeling that created the outcome.
Sometimes we think, “Oh, I don’t want to get hurt; don’t want to get hurt; don’t want to get hurt in a relationship.” What happens? We get hurt in a relationship!
When I was a kid — I think I’ve shared this one before. It’s like when I didn’t do my reading assignment in my English class. And the teacher said, “Who wants to summarize Chapter 1 of blah, blah, blah” — whatever it was. And all the keener kids put their hands up in the air. And I put my head down, and my hand’s not up in the air, and I think, “Please don’t pick me; please don’t pick me; please don’t pick me!” [Congregation laughs] What happens? She picked me! [Congregation laughs]
I call it “The Creation Equation.” THOUGHT + FEELING = OUTCOME. And we sometimes don’t utilize the power of our feeling to create more things in our lives.
One of the things I’ve come to realize is: Every goal you think you want, it isn’t the goal. It’s how that thing makes you feel. We say, “I want a relationship; I want a relationship!” What we really want is: We want to feel loved; we want to feel cherished; we want to feel intimacy; and cared for. That’s what we want. We want the feeling, not just the thing.
And sometimes when we say we want a lot of money, it’s like security or power or freedom. That’s what we want! When we say we want a successful career, it’s fulfillment in self-expression or to be able to make a difference. Those are the things we want!
I think we need to start looking more at the feeling nature underneath the things that we want, and maybe even starting with that when we set goals. Because it is that emotional energy that makes a difference.
If I were to say to you: What would be the five most dominant feelings you want to experience in your life, what would they be on a daily basis? Maybe it’s to feel joy! Or maybe it’s to feel gratitude or excitement or enthusiasm or inner peace or passion or confidence. There are all kinds of things! The question is, what do you want to feel? And do you want to start cultivating and using the power of feeling to attract and create more good in your life?
Sometimes we think we can’t have control of our feelings. In my prosperity class, we do this all the time. We practice feeling what we want to feel. So we’re going to do it now. So right now, I want you to feel tired. [Congregation laughs] Feel lazy; feel bored. Can you get in that neighborhood? Make yourself feel that way! Okay, not let’s go to a new one. I want you to feel excited. Feel excited! I want you to feel energized! I want you to feel powerful. Can you get there? And one more: I want you to feel grateful. I want you to feel peaceful. I want you to feel happy.
How many people would say you were able to kind of get there a little bit? And help yourself feel what you want to feel? Okay; about seven or eight of us. Great! [Congregation laughs] Yeah; I know! I know it’s more of us … But that’s how powerful it is!
We are creative, powerful beings. It is amazing how powerful we are! But we need to own it! Neale Donald Walsh said many years ago that, “The absolute worst thought in the world you could ever think is to think that you are powerless and you have no control to change and improve your life. Because it’s 100% not true.”
Yes! We all have days that we feel hopeless; we feel powerless; we feel a little overwhelmed; we feel stuck. We have those days. But the truth is: we always have the spiritual resources and the abilities to change and transform our lives and manifest something even greater and better.
We just need to do four things. Know what you want to create; get clear about what it is you desire. Speak the word; use the power of your words! Curb your complaining — “That’s fascinating!” Whatever you need to do. But speak the positive words of what you want to attract or become. Hold it in mind; hold thoughts of success and positivity and good and abundance. And hold them for other people, as well, because that will increase the blessings for us and others. And finally, focus on your feelings — your feeling nature of exhilaration and joy and gratitude. Add those into the mix and you will demonstrate and transform your life in amazing ways.
Because you are a powerful creator — created to create!
God bless you all! [Congregation applauds]