1992-06-14-Building Trust

Session

Opening

Opening Prayer: Prayer of St. Francis

Daniel: "Good evening my dear friends. I am Daniel. I am your teacher. I am aware of the concern that you feel for your brother J4. This wonderful man is a true servant of the Father, has dedicated his life to following His will. And know that within the whole picture, within the framework of God's plan, all things will be brought to greater good. Know that even though there are those times when you are left with doubt, left with the unknown, that is the time, the most important time for you to go within to seek the silence, to be of one mind with the Father, the First Source and Center. And so know that in faith, in trust, you will continue to progress, to move forward. You will be able to stand with courage to endure. And know that J4 has much faith, much trust.

Lesson

Trust

My lesson this evening is on this building of trust. This is one of those most important gifts that you can ever know. Trust is like one of the pinnacle attributes that is necessary in order for there to be relationships, in order for there to be organization within society, in order for there to be a faith between you and the First Source and Center. Think in your own lives about the value of trust. And now think what you life would be like if it was void of trust. And from this you will glean a true value of this wonderful gift.

Trust is that gift that you give to one another. It is a gift given between you and the First Source and Center. If you cannot feel trust then what you feel is fearful, full of delusions, full of misconceptions. Trust must be built so that there is not this chaotic endeavor in life. In a relationship, let us start with you and the First Source and Center.

Your being here tonight testifies to the fact that you are trusting; that your faith allows you to trust what is happening; to trust that the words being spoken to you this evening are those which will bring you to further enlightenment, will help guide you so that you will know what the Father's will is. You lay your trust in the First Source and Center on a daily basis. When you are able to let go and let God, you are demonstrating a very profound state of trust. You are, in fact, turning your being over to Him, trusting that you will receive guidance, you will receive those things necessary for you to continue, not only in your spiritual aspect, but in your human material world as well. Trust cannot be taken lightly. And at times when there is doubt, when there is confusion, then the element of trust is very much put to the test. And know that you can always rely on the First Source and Center, for in following His will, that which transpires will bring you to further spiritual growth, even though in your limited human aspect, you cannot understand the reasoning, the circumstances that occur. And you have all felt this.

It is at those times when things are not as they seem that you need to be more trusting of the Father's will, to turn your lives over to Him. And you do this when you come to your quiet time, and you turn yourself over to Him. It is in this quiet time that you will receive what is necessary for you to be ever more trusting, for you to carry on. And so know that in all instances you can always trust in the First Source and Center. And this is a very big difference from that which you have with your fellow brothers and sisters, with society at large.

Most of you strive to be trustworthy yourselves. This is the one the greatest virtues you can covet for yourself, to always be trustworthy. For when you are trustworthy, you know that can always be counted upon. That which you are, that which is your being, can be looked upon as that which will always be a firm rock for those around you. And you develop this trustworthiness through building your foundation, in your understanding of your sonship, your daughtership with the Father, in your understanding of your brotherhood and sisterhood of all humankind. When you can understand this, when you can always know that what you speak, that which you are in action and doing is on the right path, then you will be trustworthy. And honesty, tolerance, love, service are all those things which are thought about in a trustworthy person. If you can be relied upon to be those things, then you have, in fact, made a most remarkable tribute to your own soul growth. And so my words this evening are to call upon you to build your foundations, that they may be seen in the light of those around you as being trustworthy.

And you know from experience the necessity that trust has in a relationship. And know that so long as you are trustworthy that your relationship with another can never deteriorate because of that aspect. It is through your trust that you cement and bond. It is only when the trust is violated that relationships crumble, that there is deterioration. And there are, as with all things, various levels of trust. I have started this evening with the higher trust of that between you and the first Source and Center, and now between you and fellow brothers and sisters on personal relationships.

And there must also be trust that you feel within the general society. You must have trust that your institutions are on the up and up, that your government is functioning, that what you do for a living, your employer can be trusted. So trust, then, is on this level. And you have noticed, you have seen first hand, what happens to governments when trust is broken. You have seen what happens in corporations when trust is broken. So, again, trust can only be meted out to the general public in accordance with the individual trustworthiness of the members of society. When you are doing your part in this arena, then you are contributing to the general good of society. For you are, in effect, being one who can govern themselves, one who understands what liberty really is.

You must also have trust in the natural unfolding of life. You trust without even thought, that there will be night and day; there will be changes of season; there will be a sun and moon. You trust that your body will be able to breathe, to carry on its bodily functions. You trust that the seeds you plant in your garden, when given proper care, will sprout and grow.

Trust is manyfold and necessary on all these levels for there to be true functioning. Look to your inner being now and build that trust. And I must look at you and say that you, those in this room, are glowing testaments to knowing what trust is, to valuing it, in that you are always striving to make sure that what you are is real, is genuine, can be trusted. This is a very necessary element in soul development, in your being able to live lives in your humanness and in your divineness. I congratulate all of you in this area of trust. When these teachings were brought to you, you had your natural doubts, your natural skepticism, yet you put them aside, you trusted, and you allowed the door, for further growth and opportunity, to open for you. Your faith is often tested and that which is tested is often built on being able to trust, being able to know that the First Source and Center will lead you not astray when you are in that alignment, when you are desiring that your will be His.

Grow even more aware of this trust. Know ever more deeply how valuable it is to be trustworthy. Let this very beautiful virtue be a testimonial of your life. There are no material things that you can take to the grave with you. Only those things that build your soul carry on. And in the mind of your brothers and sisters, let them always remember you as being one who could be relied upon, could be trusted. For under the virtue of trust are many other virtues that are seen. And you, my friends, are building that foundation. And your fruits are many. I am so fortunate to be a teacher to those who are so dedicated, who are so willing to keep trying, to keep working, to be steadfast, even when the work you must do to be this way is often very tiring, often calls upon you to show much endurance. I love you. You are all growing. You are all showing forth that true virtue of being trustworthy. And I see this very evidently when I visit you. Continue, for you are all headed in the right direction, yes! And now I will gladly accept questions."

Dialogue

F1: "Hi, Daniel! I want to tell you that I love you and thanks once again. This lesson tonight is one that I really need in this time in my life. And I also have a question on it concerning everyday life and with the people, who.. Are we just to trust everyone for exactly who they are ? For example if we are an employer and we have someone come to work for us that we know may steal from us and when they come to work for us can we just trust them for being exactly who they are, a stealer? If you'd say that, and just set an example of being a way shower for them through our actions that that's not the way we are. Am I understanding that correctly?"

Daniel: "Trust in relationships with others must always be built. And as you work with others they see you in action. As your inner actions relate they will know from your being, from what you do that you are trustworthy, and you must then always be one who can be trusted. In your outworkings and work with others you must allow them to do those things which bring forth trust. And know that you can and should always love all for the persons they are. And be, of course, a way shower for them, that they will understand what it means to be trustworthy. It is a sad commentary on many aspects of this society that the value of trust has been eroded, has become decayed and many young children coming up do not value or understand trust, do not see it as anything to place value on. For, you see, when one is trustworthy, one is responsible and accountable. And many young children do not understand this. And so those of you who work with the young, help them to understand this wondrous virtue, to plant seeds for them that they can begin to be trustworthy individuals themselves.

If you are an employer and you are going to hire someone that you know is dishonest, is a stealer, then you are risking that this person will either take a higher path or the lower one. I can not say what you must do but I will say that if you hire someone and you know about this, his characteristic of stealing, then part of the work you do when you hire him should be to talk about this aspect, to be honest with him and upfront with him or her, so that this person knows that you wish to trust him. You possibly will give him this chance to prove himself. It is only when you can be honest with others that you also prove your own trustworthiness. If you were to hire this individual knowing what you know but not discussing it then you are, in effect, not giving him or her the opportunity to grow, to prove themselves. So you see you must be honest in all areas. Is this more helpful?"

F1: "Yes, it is. And I think that also, if you wanted to hire a person like that and help them simply by trusting them, it would be setting an example for them in itself. And being honest with them and with the knowledge that a person had it would be setting an example for them in itself."

Daniel: Yes, it would be feeding them and nourishing them. You would be telling them that they are worthy, that they do deserve love, they do deserve a chance. And, in a sense, you would be building them, yes."

F1: "Thank you! That helped a lot."

B1: "Hello, Daniel!"

Daniel: "Hello, B1."

B1: "That answer you gave is really encouraging to me. It's really encouraging to me because I was, as you were answering F1's question, I was thinking about Jesus, Christ Michael, and the way that He interacted with the people who were not trusted in His culture, the prostitutes, the tax collectors, the other people of low status, and how with only maybe the exception of Judas, He transformed or he was instrumental in the transformation of everybody's life. I thought that because I had the same question that F1 did which was if, since none of us are perfect, and if someone has a history of being untrustworthy, you know, how should we approach this but you have answered this very clearly. And am I, do I understand this correctly that Jesus's trust of people somehow caused them to become trustworthy in return?"

Daniel: "Yes, for you see, He was one who believed fully in everyone. He could see every individual as God sees them with no prejudging, no illusions about who they were, a son or a daughter of the eternal Father, Universal Father, excuse me. And so, your thoughts here are beautiful and I thank you for bringing this up. And know that often times certain individuals are untrustworthy in a certain group because that is how they are expected to be because that is what others perceive them as being. Because of this, they have in their own internal being felt unworthy, unloved. And when they are then placed in another situation if you prejudge them because of their past, if you can not see past this, then you are telling them, 'Yes, you are unworthy.' But if you give them that chance to prove themselves, you are giving them so much. For in this being able to prove themselves they begin to change, they can start seeing themselves from a different perspective as well. And chances are that someday when they are stronger within, when they have a new feeling, a new birth within themselves, they can go back to their own group and be strong enough to be trustworthy for that group as well. Do you see?"

B1: "Yes, thank you very much."

Daniel: "One must always be ready to help others along. Do not be fool hardy in this. Use wise judgment but do not prejudge. Do not allow yourself to become a doormat as we have spoken of before but always allow a person a chance for their own growth. A fine line, and as you become more in tune, as you are in more God-consciousness, God-mindedness, you will be able to see with more clarity those who you can help and those who are beyond that at this time. Do you see?"

B2: "Hello, Daniel."

Daniel: "Hello, B1."

B2: "I just want to make a statement. I want to thank you once again for coming into our lives and mine in particular. It is amazing. I know, now, almost every week, what the lesson will be. I just know it. It confirms that you do nurture us and observe us and tailor your lessons to what we're going through. I really appreciate that. And I really feel like I'm growing from it. Thank you."

Daniel: "Indeed, you are and thank you for your kind words. I am pleased with....I am always pleased when I can see and know the growth, the steps you are all taking. It is very uplifting for us as teachers when you see those who you care about growing. Yes."

Reconciliation

N1: "Hello, Daniel, this is N1. And I, too, want to thank you very much for a powerful, moving, beautiful lesson in all its aspects. I didn't expect to be moved to tears tonight, but again I was. And I want to thank you for your continual love and support and nurturing. Your lesson, the trust with the Father, was really powerful for me because I have been having difficulties and questions there. Your later discussion of trust brought up some questions for me: one in personal relationships, one to do with society. The first question has to do with personal relationships. When trust has been violated within a relationship how should that be handled?"

Daniel: "You see, when there has been a breakdown of trust, it requires many avenues to bring forth this foundation again. It requires the person who did the violating to come to terms with it in their own right. They are the ones who must again build the trust back up. And for the person who has been violated it requires work on your part. You must be able to either forgive or to harbor these feelings. To forgive will bring you release. To harbor feelings will trap you. A choice you must make. You must also be understanding of the individual, know from where this violation occurred, the reasons behind it. You see, there are different levels of trustbreaking. As parents you understand fully what it means to be able to have a trusting relationship with your children. And there will be periods in the child's life that this trust is a very precarious thing which daily is being tested. And you know as parents this trust is often violated and there is a period where the child must again prove himself. And yet as the parent, often times the child doesn't always make it back to cementing this relationship as it was before, you have already forgiven, you have already elevated this person, you have already in your own mind established trust again. You all know from where I speak in this regard, in some instance in your life. And so often in these kinds of relationships you will, when you can understand why a person does something, be able to take down that wall which has been built, and again begin building a bridge between you. Trust is a two-way street with relationships with others. With the Father, the First Source and Center, you can always trust Him. It is yourselves in your relationship with Him that is often fragile. With relationships with other humans you must always have a give and take. It is not as easy as it is with the First Source and Center.

And so, N1, I would say to you, that in these situations especially when there is much hurt and much pain felt that many times it takes years for this relationship to again form, to be of a trustworthy nature as before. It requires forgiveness. It requires understanding. It requires a non-judgmental approach. It requires a willingness on both parts to continue to rebuild this relationship. It calls for being loving, being willing to set aside your own personal pride for the sake of the relationship to build back up. And it is unfortunate that in many relationships the trust, this bonding, this trust is not always repaired. Often times, when relationships break down there becomes a more one sided avenue, where one person is striving and working to rebuild and the other is not capable, is not doing so. For a relationship to ever be a relationship there must be honesty and communication. If there is not this honesty and communication by both partners then one alone trying to rebuild does not meet with success on many occasions. Do you see?"

Law

N1: "Yes, thank you. My other question has to do with society and governments and institutions and how we must have trust in those and how that trust is crumbling in our society. I don't remember how you worded it right now but you said something about we needed to be examples for the healing of society and I guess I would like you to go into a little more detail as to what that means. Does that mean..I guess I would like to take taxes as an example. It seems that many people feel there is such a lack of trust with the government that they are willing to take liberties and stretch the rules of taxes. Or you know, speed limits is a good one for me. I speed all the time. Does this mean that we are supposed to follow the letters of laws whether we agree with them or not in order to be trustworthy and to build back trust within society?"

Daniel: "The question that you ask can only be answered by you and your freewill. I can not deem what you must do in your society. I can present some guidelines and overall purview of what you ask. First, let me say that whenever there are laws made within society, and I will speak now of a democratic society, for you see in a democracy there is a certain understanding that there is freedom within this society, that there are laws set up that govern society so that there can be structure, so that there will be a basis which you can be free in. Are you understanding?"

N1: "Yes."

Daniel: "And if you do not have this certain structure set up (and you spoke about speeding), if there are not certain laws in this regard then there is chaos if everyone could go a different speed, if there were not your stop signs, or your stop lights to help regulate and form some structure within the framework which everyone understands and abides by. If everyone could understand complete liberty they would and could not speed, could not run that stop sign, for they would realize that there must be an order for one to really be free, a structure for which to be free in. Freedom within structure. Liberty within structure. And so this is another aspect on trustworthiness. You all are familiar with the fact that when there is excessive speeding there is always a risk of, . .. there is always the danger of car wrecks, accidents, these types of things. So, it behooves you then, stay within this as a safety measure. Most of these kinds of laws are for your benefit in this regard. And for you to be that trustworthy person you must then see these laws as those that pertain to you as well as everyone. And in order for you to trust others you must come back to home base. You must trust yourself that you will follow the laws. If you are one who does not follow any laws then you tend to think and don't care if anybody else does. You figure that no one else is doing it either, and you don't have a whole lot of trust. You can perceive that for you to be trustworthy, these laws must pertain to you as well. And know that from the life of Christ Michael that even though in his own society there were many laws which he himself did not fully believe in, he did follow them, for they were those things which govern society. Those things which are not workable in society need to be changed. And therefore you need to work through the proper channels to bring about this change. In a democracy you are more at liberty to do this than you are in a dictatorship, under a dictatorship. Is this shedding some more light for you?"

Change

N1: "Yes, it is, thank you. Your last comment did bring up another question for me. Under a dictatorship, are there proper channels?"

Daniel: "You are referring to revolution, revolts, are you not?"

N1: "Yes, I am."

Daniel: "And often times, when there is to be radical change and there are no other avenues this has happened, will happen, until the rights of the ascending mortals on this plane are understood by all. It is not for me to judge or to say if these are good or bad. Often these kinds of revolts have brought forth much change, have in the longer run brought about good even though there is for a time much chaos, much sadness, much upheaval. Do you see?"

N1: "Yes, I have just always wondered if means and ends were not connected and to have a positive end without proper means, but I guess you have answered that and maybe there's mixed means going on so there's mixed ends, so that over time God's work uplifts, or something."

Daniel: "Well stated, yes."

V1: "Daniel, this is V1 and that brings, you know that discussion, two thoughts came to mind. Of course, Hitler was a dictator but certainly, it was against the law to try to kill him and Deitrich Bonhoeffer did that very thing for the good of the German society and the good of the planet. The other thought I have concerning Kohlberg's stages of moral development, the highest according to him (and I'm throwing this out so that maybe you will comment on it) that even in a democracy where there are laws and those laws are not for the good of everyone, according to Kohlberg, he says that the higher law is to do that which is good and maybe break the law of taxes or what ever it is. Would you just comment on that?"

Daniel: "First question, first thing, no comment. Second, know that in line of something as taxes in a democracy there are other channels. And I am not one that will say right or wrong. You must decide that within your being. I can not comment on what you must do in this regard in social changes that call for you to make a freewill choice. If you are building your foundation, if you are keeping your sights on following the First Source and Center, if you are doing what you need to do to be clear in your own being then these answers on social questions will be easier for you to answer. You must be able to make choices based on research, based on knowledge, based on wisdom and not ones that are based on fear, based on emotions, based on those things which are not well planned. Do you see?"

V1: "Yes, Daniel, I do see that. I was just thinking in terms of not specific taxes, or maybe not even breaking a law but the thought that the greater good for all is perhaps the highest moral law there is and it might be indeed doing the will of the God we both serve and love."

Daniel: "And you will always be doing the highest good when you are in that God-conscious mode. And yes, the highest good does serve mankind, does bring forth more growth, more progress."

V1: "Thank you, Daniel."

F1: "Daniel, I have one more question..that trust and becoming or being trustworthy and taking total, complete responsibility for ourselves and all our actions go hand in hand; that when we do take total responsibility for ourselves, that we just automatically become more trustworthy. Is that true?"

Daniel: "Yes, this is very much a part of it. Yes. For when you are accountable, when you are responsible, then you are not afraid when you make mistakes to own these mistakes. For, you see, in assuming accountability you also assume that you are right as much as you are wrong, and that because you are mortal, there never can be complete perfection. It is in realizing your imperfections and not being so closed, to allow others to see you in your imperfections, yet you are honest about them, that you become trustworthy; that others will strive to follow in your footprints."

F1: "Thank you very much."

K1: Daniel, I just wanted to tell you that, as B1 and F1 said, that I love you too. And I have missed not being here. And I just want to tell you to thank all my guardian angels that helped me move and made everything ok. And I love you. Thanks, Daniel."

Daniel: "And thank you M3. We have missed you as well. You are very much a part of this group. And we miss all of our members who are not present this evening. My love to you."

N1: "I too want to tell you that I love you Daniel. I know I tell that to you in my head a lot and it is kind of embarrassing to say it in front of the group so I decided to. And I just want you to know how much you are appreciated. Thank you."

Daniel: "Thank you N1. Thank you for risking. Know that to be able to risk within a group moves and propels you to greater heights. And all of you, I am aware of your love. You tell me this all the time and please know how sincerely, how affectionately I feel for you. I feel that our relationship is very bonded, very jelled, that we are friends. There is very little that you do not share with me. You are very open and you are well loved, not only by me, but by all. And know that the teachers in other areas enjoy the love that emits from all of these groups. Yes, it is very wonderful indeed. I love you."

L2: "Daniel, this is L2."

Daniel: "Hello, L2."

Interdependence

L2: "When you speak of trust I couldn't help but think of faith and hope being along the same lines. I just wanted to comment on that because they all go hand in hand. And this teaching tonight helped me to think about that and helped me in my relationship with my daughter and husband. Thank you."

Daniel: "Yes, thank you L2. And know that so many of the virtues, the gifts from the Father are so tied together, cannot be divorced from one another, must be seen in the light of the weaving in and out of these virtues. And they all form a central core of which you are building your foundations on, so that you will be seen by all as one who is an embodiment of these virtues. And know that you cannot separate them. They go hand in hand indeed. What you put in one, you receive benefit from through the others. They are all part of the same waters of life. They are all held together. They help you to define your nature, of who you are. Yes."

B1: "This is B1."

Daniel: "Hello, B1."

Teaching Mission

B1: "I'll just add my thanks to you personally, Daniel, for what you have done to help my by these weekly lessons, to apply the things that you said, the things that are in the Urantia Book, the things that I have always known. But just to do it. Just to have you as a teacher and to come, have to report to class..you know..and this is important for all the teaching missions. It really is.. it is a wonderful thing. I know you know my gratitude, but I would add it out loud today because the rest of us are saying this."

Daniel: "And thank you B1. Let me say that part of the mission, part of the plan for the teaching mission was to do this very thing. You see, when you read it in the Urantia Book it fed you intellectually. The teaching missions help to feed you internally so that what you know intellectually you can become, can be manifested in your outer life. And often times the study of the Urantia Book for many was just on this intellectual level. Many had trouble bringing it to their inner core. And these teaching missions are to help you now in the second phase. For what you know intellectually, what you can understand, then you can live, you can embrace. And so know that the intellectual part of the Urantia Book study is very important and has been. And this changed your lives. And now you are changing even more dramatically. I applaud you all."

V1: "Daniel, this is V1 again. And I know I am sounding like a tape recorder, and your lesson on trust is something that, when I hear you say a statement like that, that we are growing and changing, I guess I just have to believe you...because I'm not sure that I see that. And I keep saying that to you and I know in Ham's tapes too he has said we do not necessarily see the truth of what is happening in our lives and so I thank you too that I just have to believe you. And I feel like a first grader that I keep telling, 'you can read, you can do it'; and I thank you for your encouragement."

Daniel: "And thank you V1. And take that step and trust. I know from where I speak. You are growing, you are all evolving. And it is often difficult to see within your own being."

B2: "Daniel, this is B1 again. L2 was approached again this week by our friend who is interested in studying the Book and interested in your teachings. I don't really want to say the name, but I think you know who I am talking about. And she is again interested. I was just wondering if you had some advice on what step we should take with her to make her aware of the commitment it takes to be involved in what we are doing?"

Daniel: "Please if you will take it upon yourself to work with this woman on the Urantia Book itself. This is a very ticklish situation. Have her understand the main concepts within the Book and speak with me later about this in a week or two. We are not here to put off people. This individual does need to understand the concepts within the Urantia Book. Do you see?"

B2: "Yes, I do. Thank you."

Daniel: "Do not be concerned about what this cat is doing, this cat feels my energy, is always coming around when I am with D3. So do not worry about its presence. Please give this lady my love and again give her some understanding about the book. Thank you."

B1: "Daniel. My mother will be coming to visit. I have sent her the Urantia Book, as you probably know, to the retirement community where she lives. V1 and I were talking about whether or not we should talk to her about you and the teachings. Perhaps you would rather not discuss this with me now and therefor I would say..could we talk about it in a private meeting if that would be better?"

Closing

Daniel: "This will be fine. Yes, see D3 about a time. And I must now take my leave. The circuits are growing weak. As you might have seen, D3 has had more trouble this week, and things are now beginning to close down. Be one who can be looked upon as being trusted. And as I have said, this is . .when one is trusting one has many other beautiful attributes that go along with it. I send you my love. Go with my love. Go with peace. Go with trust in the First Source and Center. Know that you will never be let down, that He is always there for you. My peace to you."

Group: "Good night Daniel. Thank you."