Emerson once said something that I love:  "Most of the shadows of this life are caused by standing in our own sunshine."  How true that is!  How easy it is to become frustrated and irritated with events and people in our lives.  It is so easy to get worked up over other drivers on the roadway, the check that didn't come in the mail, or what the government did on any given day.  As we calm our minds in meditation, the thought occurs to us that in the sanctuary of the God-Mind, all these things are of no consequence. 

You may be thinking, "Sure, those things are of no consequence.  But what about this disease that is trying to take my life or this pain that just won't go away or this person who has all these problems that affect me?" 

As we return to God in prayer and meditation, the little things and the big things get a dose of sunshine.  Through those rays of light, situations and circumstances are transformed.  We are bolstered and renewed.  Clarity and decision come easily and effortlessly.  Our fear demons are tamed or driven out of our minds. 

We may lose our center occasionally.  This can feel horrible.  We feel the sting of hurt and anger or fear and loneliness.  We can allow these feelings to pull us deep down into misery.  The good news is that as we continue to grow on our individual spiritual paths, those occasions for misery are only brief visits.  Spiritual and emotional health doesn't mean we won't fall of the track; it means that each time we do, we recover our footing sooner, rather than later.  Instead of being shut down in our feelings for days or weeks or even months, we find we are only out of kilter a matter of hours.  After a couple of hours of wallowing in our pain, we slowly began to use one of our spiritual tools, and then another, to pull ourselves out of our pity party and get back on track. 

Pretty soon, we are back to our beautiful Christed self, living in a space of knowing that God is in everything in our lives.  As we shift our thinking back to God within and feel the good (God) in our lives, more good things show up and those distractions, big or small, are manageable or powerless. 

God's sunshine in our lives shines 24-7, 365 days, and even 366 days in leap years!  As we practice returning to the quiet space of meditation and prayer, all those outer distractions may not go away, but something inside of us changes, and we are made different. 

This week, may you see and enjoy God's sunshine and not focus on any shadows. 

Happy Spring!

Rev. Robin