Time for a New Start in Life | Rev. John Riley

Well, good morning everyone, and happy New Year again. It’s so nice to see you all here today, and thank you for being online with us. Did you all have a good New Year’s Eve? Yeah. Woo. All right. You’re not too tired, it seems like that’s, that’s good. That’s good thing. Good to hear. Good to see. We had a nice New Year’s Eve. Tiffany Ray and I went next door to our neighbors for a New Year’s Eve party. It was just a lovely time. There were four couples. We didn’t know each other, but all of our kids kind of knew each other and so they were all having a good time. And, you know, I have to say it was the best New Year’s Eve party I had last year. It’s a true story. And we started to talk about New Year’s resolutions.

Resolutions

Anybody have a New Year’s resolution? Yeah, we’ve got some of those. And it was kind of funny because, you know, at 1.1 of the parents said, I wanna hear the kids’ New Year’s resolutions and in a very direct way. And one of the kids says, I’m going to stop biting my nails. It sounded more like a parent’s resolution than a kid’s resolution. But, you know, sometimes we have those kind of RESO resolutions. One of the, and someone, and I don’t know if this were theirs or whether they just heard about it, but someone, you know, broke out a list of their resolutions. It said 2022 resolutions with the 2022 crossed out in 2023, written above it. Anybody have one of those kind of resolutions? One of my favorite resolutions, and again, I don’t know whether this was her idea or not, but they’re, they’re opening a new exercise club in January.

This you can subscribe to it and, and start working out. So everybody has those exercise goals, right? Mm-Hmm, or is it just me? Nope. Yeah, so in January everyone signs up for the exercise goal…exercise club, and then by February it converts into a bar. So , I figured that was a pretty good business plan cuz you know, not that I ever went to that, you know, took advantage of that 30-day trial and then signed up for a full year, but only went twice. Not that I’ve ever done that, but, so that, those were some of the, some of the things that, that we talk about at Christmas. And, and it’s interesting, that list right from last year, that list from this year, and even that, I’m gonna stop biting my nails. What energy is that coming from? Can you feel that energy? Anybody, anybody want to take a guess of what energy that might be coming from? Shame. Shame. What was it? Lack of limitations. Lack in limitations. Something’s wrong. Something’s gotta be fixed. Regret. Regret. Those are such motivating energies, aren’t they? Isn’t that just make you wanna really, you know, carry that through the rest of your year? Well, today we’re going to go through a process of creating a fresh start. Anybody want a fresh start today? Woo Woo.

Fresh Start

All right. Right. We got three. Yeah. That I, that idea of, and, and I love. That’s why I love this time of year because it’s natural for us. Your human consciousness wants to have a start time. Here’s where I’m going to begin. And the problem is, a lot of times we don’t ever begin, right? We’re just still kind of moving along in the same old thought patterns. And so what we’re trying to do here is really shift our thought patterns so that our behaviors start to change. That’s what resolutions are really about. I’m going to start doing something different or being something different, or taking on a different role. And so that today is really about creating space for that fresh start. Because you can’t start unless there’s space. You’re too crowded with the old consciousness. We’re too crowded with the old thoughts and the old beliefs, and the old behavior patterns, right? So we have to release those first and create space within ourselves so that a new consciousness can emerge. And this is true in all growth, in all spiritual growth. Some things need to die and, and be let go of some old beliefs, some old patterns, some things that we’re holding onto that we’re ready to let go of, that we consciously let go of so that we can create the space to create something new within us. We have to release the old consciousness of attachment so that a new consciousness of being can emerge.

Release Yourself From Attachments

So we were releasing the old consciousness of attachment. So a new consciousness of being can emerge. I give up on my clicker. So what kind of attachments are we holding onto? What are the things that we’re holding onto? One of the big attachments that we hold onto in life are the issues that we have, right? – are the challenges that we have. All of the things that are going on in life. Anybody have things going on in life? I think we all do. Yeah, that’s just part of this experience. But when we get so attached to them and attached to the things of the past, then they become our lens as, as Lisa was talking about “that lens through which we see the world.” And so we need to release our attachments to all of those things that have happened to us in the past.

This quote by Eckhart Toley from a New Earth Awakening to your life’s purpose. The primary cause of unhappiness is never the situation, but your thoughts about it, the cause of our unhappiness is never the situation, but our thoughts about it, it’s how we see our life. It’s the meaning that we’re giving to all of the things that are happening. It’s the, and know, so what things are happening in your life that you’re ready to release, right? What things are you are happening in your life that you’re giving meaning your power over to, you know, thinking about them over and over again. Creating that sense of frustration and resentment and hurt and despair because we’re so attached to those things. So create space by letting go of some of those, you know, all of our anxiety and fears are about repeating all of those things in the future.

Make Space For Something New

So we’re taking from the past and we’re applying them to the future. And that’s where our anxieties and our fears and our struggles come from. So can we release our attachments to those things, those situations, those ideas so that we can make space for something new to emerge? How about the attachment to the old way of it? Everyone take a nice deep cleansing breath because we are creatures of habit and our habits, you know, drive a lot of our unconscious behaviors and we get attached to the glory days of the past and we get attached to the things we loved in the past. And if only things were like that again today. But they can never be like that cuz today is a new day. I think it was Maya Angelou says, this day has never been done before. This is a brand new day I’ve never seen this day before, have you?

No. It’s a brand new day. It’s a brand new opportunity. And so being willing to let go of the way it was, being willing to let go of the things that were, that are holding us back from expressing and experiencing something even greater, allowing that something to emerge. Louise Hay says, “the point of power is always in the present moment.” Your point of power, your spiritual power, your personal power always exists right here. It’s right now. And it comes through the thoughts and the words that we think about it comes through the things that we hold. And so, if we let go of the attachments of the way things were, we allow a new consciousness to be born in us. A new fresh start. How about the attachment to being right? I’m not sure I like this one very much. Releasing our attachment to being right, releasing our attachment to, you know, only having, you know, one way of doing things.

This happens a lot in this thing called religion, right? Because I think a lot of people have a genuine waking-up experience. A lot of people have a genuine spiritual experience where they are feeling and immersed in saying, “oh, this is it.” And how I got here was this, and this must be the only way to do it. But there are many paths to that allness of life, love, and wisdom. There are many paths to that experience of health, wholeness, and abundance. And if we honor each other’s paths, then we reduce the war, the violence, the hatred, all of those things that we’ve done, all in the name of God, all in the name of love. Because it’s all misguided. Because we think this is the only way to do it, and you better do it my way. And the only reason I know that is because I’ve been able to look at myself and say, oh, this is how I got here.

Your State of Consciousness

Let me try that again. Let me try that again. And then all of a sudden I got there without trying. I got there just by walking a lot of it. My first awakening experience was at age 14 through meditation and affirmative prayer. And it was amazing. And I think that’s when I got the calling that I’m gonna be on the stage pointing in a direction. But then I realize, you know, I get it sometimes just by going on a walk, going on a hike, feeling my experience of oneness with the world, being in the world and not being dragged down by it. Not being of it, just being in it and allowing that oneness to be the experience of it. Eckhart Tolle said, “being spiritual has nothing to do with what you believe and everything to do with your state of consciousness.” 

So it’s not, there’s only one way to pray. It’s not, there’s only one way to experience God, but rather it’s an open state of consciousness. It is a consciousness of God, a consciousness of Spirit, a consciousness of love and peace of all of those attributes that we like to frame this word called God, which is the allness of life, love, and wisdom. Because God is, Lisa said, “God is within you. Like the ocean is in the wave. There’s no separation. And this energy is all around us. Spirit is moving. That energy is moving through us. And so when we open ourselves to that understanding, then everything, everything becomes spiritual. Spirituality is in a religion, spirituality is a state of consciousness is a way of being, but being immersed in the allness, in all of the suchness. So allowing yourselves to be present, to be that expression in all of it.

That state of consciousness. And here’s my favorite, our attachment to fixing…anybody a fixer? Yeah, I was, I’m a fixer anonymous, you know. I have let go of trying to fix things for a long time. That’s how I found my sense of self-worth. You know, I could, I could do something. I’m kind of a jack of all trades and I figured I’m a jack of all trades cuz I’m a master of divine idea. I’m a master of divine intelligence, and I’m a master of just allowing things to come through. And so I can do a lot of stuff and by fixing or solving someone else’s problem that gave me a sense of self-worth. But where am I placing my self-worth out there? What happens if I can’t fix it?

What happens if there’s no appreciation for what I did? What happens if you know, something else breaks or it breaks again? Where’s my self-worth? This idea of fixing comes from what we talked about earlier, a consciousness of lack and limitation. A consciousness of it’s broken. So if you’re coming from the awareness of it’s all broken, you know, obviously everything needs to be fixed. So what are we seeing in the world? If we’re coming from a consciousness of it’s broken, we find everything that we think is broken. What if nothing is broken?

Look at The Good In Your Life

What if nothing is broken? I think it was Eckhart told who said, “you know, everything in here, everything that you’re experiencing, is for you. And how do you know it’s for you? Because you’re experiencing it because it’s there in front of you.” So what does that mean? It’s for you. Instead of being broken, instead of there being something that needs to be fixed, maybe everything is an evolutionary driver. Hmm. Think about that for a moment. This stuff that’s happening out there, you know, isn’t bad. It’s just an evolutionary driver to help me grow in consciousness. To help me let go of the things that I’m attached to so I can make space for a greater self-awareness, for a greater awareness of all of the good that we have in our lives. So think a moment. Just take a moment now to think about all of the good that you have in your life.

Take another moment. Is it becoming difficult? What’s edging it out? All of the things that need to be fixed, all of the stuff that’s broken, all of the things we need to do, all of our attachments, our fears from the past or fear about the future is all pushing out all of the good that we already have in our life. And the more we come to life from that consciousness of seeking the good, of having space for good, the more of the good we will experience and that we will see. It was Thich Nhat Hanh that said, “people have a hard time letting go of their suffering out of the fear of the unknown.” They prefer suffering. That is familiar.

That’s another way of saying, you know, we become addicted to our pain. You know, our suffering, our stories become who we are. It’s not the truth of who we are, it’s just the persona that we’re, we’ve adopted. Because the truth of who we are lies behind all of those stories. The truth of who we are is that you are a spiritual being. You are a child of the most high. You are the spark of the divinity. You are the light of the world. You are the light of the world. And can you hear that without saying, yeah, but look at all these things in my life.

See all of this old attachment consciousness prevents us from growing, prevents us from transforming, prevents us from evolving into something new, into a greater experience, and to have a greater experience of life. I’ll take an order of that secret sauce please. Because it does take practice. It takes practice. Anybody who’s had like this waking up experience knows that, oh, there are things that I need to do and continue to do to continue to have those waking up experiences. I may have it once and then I set it down, you know, and then I come back to it and pick it back up. And there’s nothing wrong with that. When we forget, when we get lost in the attachments, the last thing we want to do is to start shaming ourselves about it. Cuz that just brings us all the way back to it’s all broken for our pain and suffering.

Transform Your Life 

So this is an opportunity today for a fresh start. Our mission statement here is really is to transform lives. Is to transform lives and to inspire people to do good things in the world. To create good things in the world, to be a positive force in the world. That’s really what we’re here, here about, is to help you transform your life. And the first step in that fresh start is by letting go and giving yourself some space, a little inner space. You know, creativity can’t happen unless it you give it time. You know, so much, so much of our day is blocked by all of the things and the stuff that we don’t really have time to be and think and allow and unfold. And so it does take a little practice. And I, what I love about the first, well, it’s usually the last Sunday of the year, but because that was Christmas it’s now the first Sunday of this year is our burning bull service. We get to take, we’ll go through a process of discerning what’s blocking us from experiencing the good in our life. We go through the process of discerning what I’m willing to let go of this year.

And you know, a month from now after your membership, 30-day trial membership runs out and you’re back to where you were, it’s another opportunity to let go releasing and letting go. It’s, it’s kind of an ongoing process. It’s an ongoing experience. You know it, and it’s what Charles Fillmore, one of the co-founders of the Unity movement, talked about as denials. Now today, we talk about being in denial and it has a completely different meaning, but denial or renunciation is the letting go of something that’s blocking our good, letting go in consciousness so that a new consciousness can emerge. And in that letting go, we are reclaiming our power. All of the power that we’re giving to those stories of suffering, all of that energy that we’re, that we’ve been spending on that, you know, how has that affected your life? What if you could use that power to create something good, to be the light, to, to just be, you know, a more joyful presence? It’s a choice. It’s not always easy. And we, we, you know, we come back around the circle and we, when we awaken to the fact that we’re back there, it’s another choice to let go, to release. It’s another choice. It’s another opportunity for a fresh start.

Letting go of old thoughts in order that new thoughts may be placed in our consciousness. So we’re going to go through a process in a moment of, of discerning, of discerning what those old thoughts are. And you should have received a little envelope when you walked in. If you didn’t raise your hand. And Karen or Lisa will hand you an envelope. A few in the back there. Thank you. Nice to see you Laura. Welcome. And inside the envelope, there’s a pencil. It’s a little pencil and there’s a piece of paper. It’s a little piece of paper. Oh my gosh, it’s so little. I have such a story. So why is it little? I just gave you the answer.

If it’s big, we’re gonna go into the story. If it’s big, we’re gonna start explaining why. You know, my suffering is so great. If it’s big, we’re going to, and that’s gonna re-trigger us, right? Anybody ever experience that? We start to dig into the story and all of a sudden, boom, we’re right there again. So we keep it small and simple. Now, you can write really small if you want, or you can use one word or one phrase to represent that which you want to release today. And we’ll go through that discernment process. And when you’re ready, you can write it down. And at the end of the meditation, what we’ll do is we’ll invite everyone to go out to come forward and go out this front door and we’ll, we’ll have a little pot out there with fire. So be careful. It’s going to be monitored by our, our dear friend, Kent Whitfield

Fire. So Kent will be assisting you. So there’s no need to place your hand in the bowl. You can just kinda let it go and release it symbolically, release it and allow it to, to disappear, allow it to go away. It’s a wonderful symbolic experience to just allow that which you’re ready to release, to let go, to give yourself a fresh start. You can come back in through the back or through the side door. And when you give back to your seat, while everyone else is doing their thing, take the pencil and you notice at the top is what we call a prayer request.

This is an opportunity for you to affirm what you want to create in that space. So if I’m releasing fear, for example, might want to create and affirm self-confidence. If I’m releasing an old habit, I might want to affirm a new habit. Affirmative prayer is all about putting the focus of our energy, our consciousness in what we want to create, not what we want to get rid of. You were already burnt it, so there’s no reason to pray for it. Rather, we affirm the truth of our being, that we are holy, that we are whole spiritually, that we are beautiful, that we are blessed, that we are grateful. So I’ll invite you to create your affirmative prayer and then you can just slip it into the back of the box or you can go, if you’re online, you can go onto our website and click on the prayer request and put your affirmative prayer there. And we will hold these in prayer for the next 30 days. And at the end of the month, we’ll send it to silent Unity where it will be held in 24 hour prayer for another 30 days. Holding it in that prayer consciousness, that idea of affirming your truth. Any questions? No questions. I did a good job on explaining.