One Spirit
Uranda August 17, 1948 p.m. Sunrise Ranch
It is a particular joy we have this evening, of welcoming Mike and Dorothea McCann and their little girl, Pam, to introduce them to Sunrise Ranch, and have the pleasure of their company in our Service tonight. It is good to gather together. As Emissaries, we find fellowship, one with another, in the Service of our KING; but it is not that we might have fellowship; it is not that we should be satisfied to associate with kindred spirits; it is not for some attainment of our own. We have been considering, in our Services, the adjustments necessary to the fulfilment of the Will of God on earth. We have recognized the necessity of cleansing of heart and mind, the necessity of realizing that the Spirit of the Living God is One Spirit, not many spirits made manifest, but One Spirit made manifest through many Branches of the One Vine, many Members of the One Body. There is a longing in each heart to experience, to know, the wonder and beauty of a still greater outpouring of the Holy Spirit—for we know that, except we be Baptized in the Fire of Divine Love, we cannot be the instrumentalities through which the Father may accomplish those works that are necessary to mankind.
As we gather here after our day’s labors and relax in the cool of the day, we remember how, in the Garden long ago, the Lord God came walking in the cool of the day to commune with man, and tonight we do not feel that the Lord is far away. Individually and collectively, we are beginning to realize what it means to walk with the Lord, not only in the cool of the day, but all through the day, and to rest in His Presence through the night. When we consider the turmoils that are in the world, and recognize that, even in our own Membership, there is not complete freedom from those turmoils, there must come a recognition that we cannot extend into the world that which is not in us. If there is not the Peace of the Kingdom in our hearts, we cannot be the instruments by which that Peace is made manifest to others.
Having that realization, it is well that we should give heed to the meditations of our hearts. The Master said, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.” When our meditations are upon the things that are beautiful, our meditations are upon the things that are constructive, that emphasize the nobility of life, the nobility that is made manifest through those with whom we associate, we begin to build that channel of consciousness and of feeling through which the Spirit of God can work. When the meditations are upon things with which we may feel resentful, upon critical expression and attitude, we prevent the formation of a channel through which the Spirit of God may work on earth. As we let go to that Spirit, to whatever degree we are able now in this time and place, we realize that it is not through the speaking of many words, or the building up of great intellectual concepts, that the Works of God are done on earth, but it is because of the simplicity of that constant, unwavering Love Response to Things Divine, that constant expression of the constructive Spirit of Truth, that consistent attunement with the Source of all Peace—to be at Peace, and, in one sense, content, while never being content with the degree to which we have experienced fulfilment; but content to live and serve the Lord in each hour, without being content with the degree to which we are privileged to serve the Lord; to abide in Peace and yet to never, in any instant, make peace with the enemy.
Ambition, in its self-willed expression, can nullify the lives of human beings and cause them to devote themselves to that which is not worthy of such fulness of life expression; but, on the other hand, there must never develop a lethargic attitude, a spirit of willingness to drift. There must be a willingness to grow and to expand in the natural cycles of the Creative Power, but never a willingness to drift, a willingness to be satisfied with things as they are. The Emissary must learn to be content with things as they are, without being satisfied with things as they are. We do not have to be resentful with respect to any condition or necessity of life expression in order to be constructively dissatisfied with things as they are. It seems to me that it is in this necessity of balance in the Central Way that many Emissaries fail to find that fulness of accomplishment along the Way. Too often dissatisfaction with things as they are is taken as an excuse for resentment or destructive feeling reactions, or, if a person reaches a point of being satisfied, as it were, with things as they are, or content, there is a tendency toward a lethargic attitude that does not let any vibrant expression of life and function come into manifestation. To let the vision rest steadfastly upon the Goal, without trying to make the ultimate of that Goal a reality in this moment, as if one would be there in one leap, the Emissary must be willing to take, in its place, each proper step in movement forward, content and thankful for the blessings which permit the step of this moment, but never be satisfied to remain over-long at any point along the Way.
It is so easy, from the human standpoint, to begin to go round and round in circles. We know that the individual who becomes lost in the mountains, or in the forest, or on the desert, invariably begins to travel in a circle unless he remembers the fundamental principles of guidance which are possible of utilization in such a case. It is not just in physical movement, when one is lost, that there is a tendency to go round and round in circles. When one loses, mentally, emotionally and Spiritually, the correct direction of movement in life, there is a tendency in the mind or in the spirit, or in the emotions, to go round and round in endless, meaningless circles. You, as Emissaries, have made progress toward eliminating that tendency in many respects, and yet that tendency still remains in what we might call some of its more refined aspects, and once in a while manifests in a manner not quite so refined, perhaps. The point is that there must be established a balance in the heart and mind and vision in each individual Member of the Unit whereby each can enjoy true happiness, true satisfaction and true contentment in the outworkings of each day, without becoming satisfied in the sense that produces a lethargic attitude or that permits movement in endless circles that get nowhere.
On a clear night the individual who is not sure of his direction looks for the North Star. When morning comes the individual who is not sure of his direction sees the sun rise in the East. In the evening he knows it sets in the West. There are many other ways by which direction in the physical sense, in mountain or wood, may be determined. The individual may, conceivably, recognize that he is beginning to follow in his old tracks, to follow his own footsteps—but mentally the individual does not make tracks in the same manner as when one walks upon the ground, and movement in meaningless circles sometimes goes on undetected for a long period of time. Movement in cycles of that nature may cause the individual to remain in a position, and to begin to recognize what he might call familiar ground, but that would not necessarily mean progress. As Emissaries, we recognize the necessity of tranquility of spirit, a serenity of nature, but true serenity does not indicate a failure to recognize the necessity for forward movement.
When the expression of function in mind, in feeling nature, in the realm of Spiritual perception, leaves behind the ruts established by going round in circles, the individual attunement to the Spirit, to the One Spirit, can begin to have constructive, creative meaning for each one and for the whole. We know that that which does not bless the whole does not truly bless the individual. No one can establish blessings for himself in any true sense without establishing blessings for the whole. Therefore, the thoughtful Emissary begins to realize that it is not altogether a need for an increased attunement with the Spirit, for there is also the need for that directionalization of function mentally, emotionally, Spiritually, which allows the present degree to which we are attuned to the Spirit to be truly effective. When we find satisfaction and contentment in living through each day without ever being satisfied with the fulfilments of the day, there will develop an alertness whereby any tendencies to deviate from the correct course, any tendencies to move in meaningless circles, will be eliminated. Each one must consider this for himself or herself. No one can become a watchman for another, in the sense of being always at hand to correct any tendencies to deviate. The individual direction must spring from the Spirit through the heart of the individual himself, and he must begin to feel the difference, to have a sensitivity, an alertness, to the signs, to the indications as to whether the course is the right one. Sometimes there are tendencies to move forward, perhaps with a certain degree of vigor, but more or less blindly, without proper observation of the signs, without proper consideration of direction—and then the individual may say, “But I worked hard. I tried hard. I did so many things. Where is my reward?”
Suppose, for a moment, that tonight there should be a truly powerful outpouring of the Holy Spirit made manifest through you, so that it should accomplish according to the channels which you habitually establish with respect to the whole. Would the expression of that Spirit made manifest be, in all respects, constructive? Would the Current always be held center and moving forward? Would it always bring blessing? I am not suggesting that such a thing is going to be, but I am seeking to emphasize something which, it seems to me, too many Emissaries are inclined to either overlook or take for granted in some fashion—the necessity of alertness with respect to the course, the direction, of one’s own daily movement, when there is not proper alertness, so that some tangent tends to manifest. Very often some reactionary vibration arises which spoils or prevents the sense of satisfaction, of fulfilment, of contentment, and then, in that rebellious state of mind or heart, the individual imagines that if he were to be content he would be satisfied with things which are not right. It is here that many have stumbled. They have failed to see the distinctions involved; they have thought that to be content would be to sanction things which are not yet in the fulness of manifestation; and they thought that if they were not satisfied with things as they are, then somehow they should resent, or fight against, things as they are. Resenting, or fighting against, a condition, does not, as we well know, correct the situation. There must come a spirit of serenity that derives satisfaction and contentment from the results of the expression of the day, or of the hour, or of the moment, which does not lapse into a state of being satisfied with things as they are. I have never asked any Emissary, at any time, to be satisfied with things as they are. I am never satisfied with things as they are, although I find much joy and satisfaction in the progress that is made manifest day by day, and hour by hour.
When all of this is realized, in conjunction with that point we realized last night, that the Spirit of the Living God is One Spirit, not many spirits, but One Spirit made manifest through many Branches of the Vine, we begin to see how the expression of that Spirit through us can establish true understanding, one of another, true tolerance of the problems that manifest in others, without ever accepting anything less than the fulness of Reality as a stopping point. It seems to me that some have imagined that if they were to have a tolerant, understanding attitude toward others, then it meant that they should have a spirit or attitude of tolerance toward the unreal, that should become a lethargic attitude toward the manifestation of the unreal. This sort of conclusion is always the result of faulty vision, faulty thinking, and faulty degrees of alertness to the signs of direction along the Way. Tolerance and understanding, one of another, that abides in peace and tranquility, is not, in any sense, at any time, a process of making peace with the unreal; it is a process of living above being influenced or controlled by the unreal—and when there is developed that alertness to the proper course of action, that sensitivity to direction, the correct direction, then the satisfaction of movement therein allows one to maintain peace in heart and mind, without ever falling into the trap of being satisfied with things as they are, without ever tending to drift, without ever developing a lethargic attitude. He through whom the Spirit of the Living God is working is a Branch of the Vine through which the Power of God is made manifest—and the power of God expressed into the earth brings changes; it accomplishes things, so that there is movement—satisfying movement, that is never satisfied.
© Emissaries of Divine Light
