Introduction. Rev. Russell Heiland. Welcome to Unity Awakening 2016!

Transcription

1 Introduction Welcome to Unity Awakening 2016! Dear Friends, This is the fourth year for Unity Awakening a series of Sunday talks and small groups designed to create community and deepen our understanding of Truth principles. For this year s Unity Awakening, we will be studying the book Discover the Power Within You, by Rev. Eric Butterworth. The late Rev. Butterworth served in four Unity churches in Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Detroit, and New York City. Oprah Winfrey said about Discover the Power Within You, This book changed my perspective on life and religion. Eric Butterworth teaches that God isn t up there. He exists inside each one of us, and it s up to us to seek the divine within. 1 In the pages of Discover the Power Within You, you will find what is quite possibly the best explanation in Unity literature about why Jesus is considered to be our elder brother, teacher, and way-shower. Butterworth beautifully and simply highlights why our teaching is the religion of Jesus rather than the religion about Jesus. You will experience Bible metaphysics in a way that will open your mind and heart to the personal empowerment found between the covers the bestselling book of all time. Discover the Power Within You focuses on Jesus Sermon on the Mount, found in Matthew chapters 5-7. Although covering three chapters of Matthew, the sermon itself is fairly short. I encourage you to read it through prior to your reading of Discover the Power Within You. Any version of the Bible will do. You will find added richness by reading some different versions of the Bible. A resource I use is biblegateway.com. On that site, you will find easy access to multiple versions of the Bible. Unity Awakening 2016 is the third of our SpiritGroups series at Unity of Fairfax this year. This year s program comes with an added plus. For individuals seeking Spiritual Education and Enrichment credit with Unity Worldwide Spiritual Institute (uwsi.org), that is now an option. Details are found at the conclusion of this study guide (p. 26). Yours in discovering the power within, Rev. Russell Heiland Rev. Russ 1 Discover the Power Within You. 2012: Discover the Power, Unity. Accessed September 21, Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 1

2 Divine Order of Unity Awakening 2016 Week 1 October 2 Sunday message: The Great Discovery. Read: Preface, Introduction, Prologue, Chapter 1, and Chapter 2, pages v Week 2 October 9 Sunday message: The Great Decision. Read: Chapter 3, Chapter 4, and Chapter 5, pages Week 3 October 16 Sunday message: Your Thought is Your Life. Read: Chapter 6, Chapter 7, pages Week 4 October 23 Sunday message: The Forgotten Art of Prayer. Read: Chapter 8, Chapter 9, pages Week 5 October 30 Sunday message: Sufficient Unto Today. Read: Chapter 10 and Chapter 11, pages Week 6 November 6 Sunday message: The Miracle of Abundance. Read: Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14, pages Week 7 November 13 Sunday message: The Great Demonstration. Read: Chapter 15, Chapter 16, Chapter 17, Chapter 18, pages Note: Throughout the text, there are references to pages from Discover the Power Within You. This refers to: Butterworth, Eric. Discover the Power Within You, Harper San Francisco, Copies of Discover the Power Within You are available in the Unity of Fairfax bookstore. 2 Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You

3 Week 1 - October 2 Discover the Power Within You, by Eric Butterworth Reading for this week: Preface, Introduction, Prologue, Chapter 1-2 Welcome to the first week of your seven-week small group study! In the first meeting, your facilitator will lead you in a conversation of group dynamics and practices including such things as opening and closing prayers, late arrivals and absences. Your active participation in the discussions will enrich this experience for you and the other members of your group. Please note that this discussion guide is just that a guide. Sometimes a group will have such a rich discussion on one question that the group will not cover every question in the guide. That s perfectly okay. Each group, and each meeting of the group, will have its own rhythm. Group members will be at different levels of comfort with small group processing. Below you will find a listing of group agreements with space to add any others that your group creates. Following these agreements will foster a sense of trust that will add to the vitality of your group. Our SpiritGroups Agreements The intention for this SpiritGroups Exploration is: We will start and end on time, meeting (day) from to for the next weeks. We agree to be a (open/closed) group for the duration of this agreement. ( Open means allowing new people to join the group at any time during the seven weeks.) We agree to the following values (check those the group agrees on): Confidentiality: I will keep anything that is said strictly confidential. Attendance: I will give priority to the group meetings for the agreed number of weeks. Acceptance: We accept each other unconditionally. We are not here to fix each other. Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 3

4 Feelings: We respect each other s feelings. Okay to Pass: No one is required to share. Okay to Disagree: I accept that others may not hold the same view. Participation: I speak for myself only, and I listen to others attentively. Balance: We seek a balance in our sharing times. Everyone is welcome to share, and no one dominates. Prayer Support: I am willing to pray for others. Other agreement: Other agreement: With God as my guide, I, intend to uphold the above agreement to the best of my ability. Note: As was the custom at the time the book was written, masculine pronouns are used throughout the text as are references to man. The terminology is intend to include the both male and female, men and women. 4 Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You

5 In the Introduction, Butterworth says, This book will ask the question, What did Jesus really teach? (p. xi). As a way of introduction, and to the extent that you are comfortable, please share with the group your understanding of what Jesus taught. Feel free to address what you may have been taught in other times or settings in addition to your current understanding. The author s premise is that Jesus great discovery was the Divinity of Man. Jesus goal was to help everyone - you and me - to understand the great potential within the Adam man, and to help us make the breakthrough for ourselves. His entire teaching, shorn of the theological embellishments that have been added, is a simple outline of techniques by which we can release our own innate potential and be transformed by the power of our own divinity. (p. 8) What do you think or feel when you hear the term divinity of man? Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 5

6 For God so loved the world that he give his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life. (John 3:16). This verse is considered a profession of faith among many Christian communities; however, as elucidated by Butterworth, it becomes an affirmation of the Divinity of Man. Describe why you agree or disagree with Butterworth s interpretation of the passage. Discussion of it is found on pages 11 and 12 of the text. In the ultimate, every man must fulfill this mystic utterance for himself: And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us. We, too, like Jesus, must make the great discovery of the Divinity of Man, and make the ideal of the Christ in us real in the flesh. For this principle of the Divinity of Man is a universal principle it is the law of life, the law of your life. By this law, by this principle of Christ-indwelling, you can do all that you need to do. You can even do all that Jesus did, and greater things than these you shall do. (p. 13) It is common in Unity circles to talk about giving expression to the Christ within. What does that mean to you? [Jesus] knew, as no other man had, that what God has done God can do, that what was true of Him must be potentially true of all men. ~ Discover the Power Within You, p. 9 6 Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You

7 Week 2 - October 9 Discover the Power Within You, by Eric Butterworth Reading for this week: Chapter 3-5 Beginning with the second week of the study, the first question for consideration will be the same. It is this: Is there one idea from last week that you would like to explore further? If so, what is it? Also in the second week, you will find that the second question will be the same each week. The question is this: Of all the sections in the reading for this week, is there a topic that stands out for you as especially thought-provoking and why? It s possible the group consciousness will have been drawn to one or two sections over all the others. If so, the facilitator may initiate a discussion of those sections prior to, or instead of, addressing the questions in the study guide for this week. Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 7

8 We have been misled by the focus on His divinity. We have overlooked the fact that He focused on our divinity. He said, in effect, You can do what I do, if you have faith if you make the decision, the decision for Christ. But this is simply a decision to accept the Christ in yourself, to follow Jesus guidance and make the same discovery of the unity in yourself that He had found in Himself. (p. 20) What changes in your life when you decide to accept the reality of the indwelling Christ? Jesus had a unique concept of God. To Him, God was not an object of worship, but a Presence dwelling in us, a force surrounding us, and a Principle by which we live. It is not too much to say that anyone who catches Jesus concept will find himself caught up in a new consciousness that will change his whole life. He will never be the same again. (p. 27) What is your concept of God and how was it formed? 8 Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You

9 We have been chained to the unfortunate belief in good people and bad people, and of strong people and weak people. We assume that the world s problems are caused by the bad and the weak. This concept must be changed. Perhaps it is one of the most important breakthroughs to made in our time. In the concept of the Divinity of Man, there are no bad or weak people. There are only good people expressing themselves incompletely, and strong people frustrating their potential of strength. (p. 52) Explain why you agree or disagree with Butterworth s assertion. There is always that of you that is greater than your littleness. There is always that of you that is stronger than your weaknesses, wiser than your follies, better than your deeds. ~ Discover the Power Within You, p. 52 Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 9

10 Week 3 - October 16 Discover the Power Within You, by Eric Butterworth Reading for this week: Chapter 6-7 Is there one idea from last week that you would like to explore further? If so, what is it? Of all the sections in the reading for this week, is there a topic that stands out for you as especially thought-provoking and why? Chapter 6 of the text provides an inspired interpretation of the Beatitudes, an eight-verse poem that opens the only fully-recorded sermon of Jesus recorded in the Scriptures The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7). Which of the eight verses (or its interpretation) is most significant to you and why? 10 Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You

11 Chapter 7 of the text begins an inspired interpretation of the balance of the Sermon on Mount. Which one of the sections and its interpretation is most significant to you and why? The Church would do well to embark on a new evangelism based on the omnipresence of God, the good, and the practice of viewing life form the highest, rather than the lowest point of view. People need to be trained to develop a spiritually oriented insight that will lead to the positive, creative, and loving outlook. (p. 69). Describe some ways this new evangelism might happen. For every spiritual concept that excites you, get still and reflect quietly upon it until something happens in you. When you read something that seems strangely familiar, something that is inspiring and unforgettable, it is because the words have stirred up an awareness of a depth of spirituality within yourself. The words of the teacher, the book, or the course of study even the words of the Bible are not the object of your search, but the means to the end of personal revelation of Truth. (p. 77). Describe a time when you had this type of experience of revelation of Truth. Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 11

12 If you want to be loved, you must love; if you want friends, you must be friendly; if you want just treatment, be just. Life is lived from inside out. You may not always be able to change the world about you, but you can change your thoughts about the world; and when you do this, you change your world, which is the world of your thought. ~ Discover the Power Within You, p Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You

13 Week 4 - October 23 Discover the Power Within You, by Eric Butterworth Reading for this week: Chapter 8-9 Special note for this week: At the conclusion of this section is a litany (responsive reading) based on the Lord s Prayer found on pages of the text. Your group may opt to use it as the opening and/or closing prayer for this week. Is there one idea from last week that you would like to explore further? If so, what is it? Of all the sections in the reading for this week, is there a topic that stands out for you as especially thought-provoking and why? Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 13

14 Chapter 8 opens with a story Abraham Lincoln told about the usefulness of a big horsefly in the accomplishment of a task (p. 88). Describe a time when a thorn in the side was a benefit to you. Butterworth says, Remember, you may not be able to change or control the people around you, but you can determine the level of consciousness on which you meet them and react to them. (p. 98) What do you think Butterworth means by this? Cite an example of consciously deciding how you met or responded to a person or people who may have posed difficulty for you. Describe what prayer is to you. 14 Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You

15 The most important purpose of prayer is lifting ourselves to a high level of consciousness where we can be conditioned in mind and body with the all-sufficient life, substance, and intelligence of God. (p. 111) In your own words, re-frame this quote as you understand it. Prayer is not something we do to God but to ourselves. It is not a position, but a disposition. It is not flattery but a sense of oneness. It is not asking but knowing. It is not words but feeling. It is not will but willingness. ~ Discover the Power Within You, p Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 15

16 Lord s Prayer as a Litany (p ) Leader: Our Father who art in Heaven - All: I am now conscious of the infinite and eternal Presence in whom I live and by which I think and create. Leader: Hallowed by Thy name - All: This Presence in me is whole and complete. It is the activity of health that heals, of intelligence that inspires, of substance that prospers, and of love that harmonizes. Leader: Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven - All: I am God s glorious possibility. I now let His perfect idea of me unfold in me and through me. My desire for betterment is God s desire to perfect that which He is expressing as me, and I let Him have His way. I see myself doing that which He sees me doing. Leader: Give us this day our daily bread - All: I have no existence outside of God s Presence, for I am that Presence expressing as me. Therefore, I can never be separated from the all-sufficient substance of the opulent Universe. I claim my divine inheritance and I daily, perpetually manifest abundant supply. Leader: Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors - All: The Presence in me is my potential for dissolving all conflicts or transgressions. The Presence is Love, and it loves in me and through me as I forgive. It releases me as I loose and let go of all my limited thoughts about myself or others. Leader: Leave us not in temptation but deliver us from evil - All: The Presence in me is my light and my deliverance. There is no darkness in the light, and there can be no darkness in me when I am established in spiritual unity with the Presence within time - which is better than light and safer than a known way. Leader: For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, Amen. All: In all that I seek to be or do or have, I humbly realize that in the Presence is my power to think, my very thought of aspiration, my will to commence, my strength to keep on, my power to achieve, and the glory of all my accomplishments. This is the Truth, and it is now done. 16 Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You

17 Week 5 - October 30 Discover the Power Within You, by Eric Butterworth Reading for this week: Chapter Is there one idea from last week that you would like to explore further? If so, what is it? Of all the sections in the reading for this week, is there a topic that stands out for you as especially thought-provoking and why? Describe how your own thinking or feeling about being prosperous has evolved. Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 17

18 Explain why you agree or disagree with Butterworth s statement, The war on poverty will only be won by education in the art of thinking prosperously. (p. 129) Explain your understanding of Butterworth s point that, Every day is a day of judgment. (p.134) The Law of Compensation can be applied in many, if not all, areas of one s life. Which application elucidated in the text is most thought-provoking to you and why? Relax and let go, and let life fulfill itself in you as you. ~ Discover the Power Within You, p Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You

19 Week 6 - November 6 Discover the Power Within You, by Eric Butterworth Reading for this week: Chapter Is there one idea from last week that you would like to explore further? If so, what is it? Of all the sections in the reading for this week, is there a topic that stands out for you as especially thought-provoking and why? Chapter 12 opens with the sentence, The forgiveness of sin has always been the central factor in religion. (p. 147) Write your own definitions of forgiveness and sin. What factors have shaped your understanding of these terms? Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 19

20 Explain why you agree or disagree with Butterworth s premise that there is no unforgiveness in God and that forgiveness and transformation happen when one comes to know the Truth of oneself and one s innate divinity. (cf. pp ) The miracle healings were not only an evidence of the divinity of Jesus, they also evidenced the Divinity of Man - of the very person healed. The potential for healing is in every person simply because he is innately divine, innately whole and complete. (p. 161) Cite an example of healing you have had or witnessed that came about through unconventional means. What were the factors that were involved? How did you feel as a result of the experience? 20 Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You

21 The answer is really quite simple, though it may not be easy to accept. God can do no more for you than He can do through you. The miracle of abundance works through your consciousness, in accordance with your experience, your attitudes, your self-evaluation. (p. 183) Take time to reflect on Butterworth s statement. What has surfaced in your thoughts and feelings? We need to change the war on poverty to a program of education for abundance. ~ Discover the Power Within You, p Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 21

22 Week 7 - November 13 Discover the Power Within You, by Eric Butterworth Reading for this week: Chapters Is there one idea from last week that you would like to explore further? If so, what is it? Of all the sections in the reading for this week, is there a topic that stands out for you as especially thought-provoking and why? In Chapter 15, Butterworth presents a defense of Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus. He notes that Jesus was compassionate towards Judas and suggests that Jesus was an accessory to Judas actions. What are your thoughts about this interpretation of the betrayal of Jesus? 22 Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You

23 The divinity of you is that of you that is eternal, ageless, deathless, whole and complete. It is that of you that is perfect even when you seem to be imperfect. It is that of you that knows even when you are facing indecisiveness and fear. It is that of you that can never be alone. It is that of you that can never really be sick. It is that of you that can never be frustrated. For it is the true God-self you. (p. 206) Spend a few moments meditating on these words. Describe how you feel when you consider them. Butterworth addresses the subject of reincarnation as it relates to the Jesus experience. in Chapter 17 of the text. What are your thoughts on the subject or reincarnation? Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 23

24 The Christian church has preached about the saving of society, but Jesus called for a society of saviours. You must be a saviour. Don t stand looking to the heavens. Stir up the gift of God within you. (p. 230). What does this statement about being a saviour mean to you? What actions would you be willing to take to give expression to this call? No matter where you are on the ladder of life, no matter what you may be experiencing, no matter how many heartaches you have had or hominy conflicts you have right now - there is more in you, there is a divinity in you, the Kingdom of God is within you. You can release your potential, for Jesus proved that you have it, and that you can release it. This is what Jesus really taught. ~ Discover the Power Within You, p Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You

25 Conclusion I hope you have found Unity Awakening 2016 to be a meaningful addition to your spiritual life. By exploring the material together, you have had opportunities to gain fresh perspectives and insights you might not have had by studying on your own. Discussion, though insightful and invigorating, of itself will not lead to change in your life or in the world. So often we study ideas and concepts, but nothing really changes. The real question is this: What challenge will I (or this group) accept as a result of this study? Please note some ideas of something you (or the group) will DO that are inspired by Discover the Power Within You. You and/or you group may consider participating in activities sponsored by the Unity of Fairfax Compassionate Community Service Team. Descriptions are founding the Fall 2016 Education, Practice, Service Catalog available in the Atrium or at unityoffairfax.org. Make a list of the members of your group and list at least one thing each person has said or shared that you found especially thought-provoking or that touched your heart. Share your list with your group, and be sure to thank your group members for their sharing. Alternately, each you could write down something for which you are grateful about each group member and give it to them. Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 25

26 Is there anything else you would like to share with your group? If so, jot some notes here as a reminder of what you would like to say. It is said that we come together in relationship for a reason, for a season, or for a lifetime. Your group may want to meet again either for discussion or dinner or a service project. Take a few moments to discuss what future activities, if any, your group may pursue. Special note for individuals seeing Spiritual Education and Enrichment credit for Unity Worldwide Spiritual Institute (uwsi.org): In order to receive credit for the class Discover the Power Within You, individuals must contact Rev. Russell Heiland (russellheiland@unityoffairfax.org) and state their desire to receive the credit. Requirements include completion of a final project (to be determined between the student and Rev. Russell) and payment of the $45.00 UWSI registration fee. The due date for completion of the project and payment of the fee is December 15, If you can find the consciousness of your spiritual unity with the Infinite and with your fellow man, and if you can become established in the conviction of the Divinity of Man, you will become an intuitively guided and effective instrument for social and political action within the framework of your interests, abilities, and responsibilities. ~ Discover the Power Within You, p. xiii. 26 Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You

27 Acknowledgements and Gratitudes Unity Awakening 2016 would not be possible without the generous contributions of the following individuals: Rev. Eric Butterworth - author and inspiration to the entire Unity movement Donna N. Lee SpiritGroups Ministry leader for Unity of Fairfax Roger and Carole Tomhave - original Unity Awakening theme song Marianne Tagge - updated lyrics to Unity Awakening theme song for 2016 Mendhi Audlin and SpiritGroups - guidance and inspiration for our small group ministry Fran Patchett - editing Gaye Newton - editing Small group facilitators Small group hosts Unity Awakening 2016: Discover the Power Within You 27

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