1995-10-13-Advantages of the Greater Family

Session

Opening

Daniel: "Greetings. I am pleased to be part of your reality. The companionship and friendship which has developed over time has strengthened me and has obviously succeeded in strengthening you as well. I am proud to be your teacher. Tomas is here also and shares my greetings, my sentiments and frankly based on your sharing this evening I would like to stress the importance of your association, not only the association of you here present, but those throughout your world who have committed themselves to true fraternity.

Lesson

Family

In Michael's work here with His select few pupils and apostles of that time He mentioned that although they were few in number they were even so creating the Kingdom as they worked and lived and played together in the spirit of love which He taught them. There is reference to the goal of ultimate Light and Life, to the Kingdom being manifested on earth as it is in heaven in small but stable increments, that when partnerships are formed in devotion to ideals this augmented energy produces the rippling effect that brings into its sphere of influence those others who appreciate those ideals, thus families are brought into being.

I do not limit the use of the words 'families' to cultural norms but the spiritual family. You here gathered represent well a family and even a community. As you reach out and connect with other small groups of people who are formulating their own community of committed souls the Kingdom grows.

There is one benefit immediately apparent when we consider the advantage of the greater family and that is that none are set apart from the others. All are vital elements of this family, and as your traditional family mores have evidenced. the strength of family support has been able to endure great hardships and create empires because of the loyalty and strength of association. The Fatherhood of God, the inclusion of the Infinite Spirit, your Mother God, and you and we as offspring, are bringing about this greater family. Through this greater family you will and we have endured hardship and are creating a new empire, the Kingdom of which Michael spoke and which He lived.

When you are assured of this cemented fealty you are emboldened then to venture forth into your arenas having been made confident by the loving arms of your family. For no matter how far or near you may venture, no matter how deeply embroiled you may become in the machinations of your temporal arena, you know the warmth and security of your spiritual hearth awaits you at home in your very real, very literal and very human spiritual family.

This confidence and assurance of being loved and accepted and encouraged has been the source of many great and admirable deeds and adventures in taking the message into new places, new places in the physical plane and in the mental realms as well. The apostles went hither and yon into neighboring countries, into foreign realms in order to spread the gospel which they had learned from Michael and which they had experienced during that impressive time they shared with Him the intimacy of a spiritual family life.

Yes, there is the constant and coveted relationship between you and your Indwelling God Fragment. The relationship which you are developing with your soul is paramount and will sustain you. But the visible evidence of your true family, the truths which you have learned, the miracles which you have seen, the extraordinary events which you have witnessed, the healings which you have experienced as a result of your association with other believers puts your personality into relationship mode with other beings and this ultimately will alter the face of Urantia, will change the ways of this world from dark to light, from segregation to reunion and from isolation to community.

My friends, I am inclined to remark that in this lesson this evening I have not brought any revelation that has not been presented before by and through the teachers or your own mind. But on occasion it is well to reiterate those basic truths and values which uphold you, encourage you and lend visible credibility to our forum here in this community in Pocatello and environs. Yes, long ago it was said that Correcting Time is connecting time and you are connecting with one another in new and magnificent ways. This interworking is clearly upstepped spiritual circuitry and your dedication to attaining these hungers of the heart are what make us so proud to be here and to be regarded as your teachers. We are truly your friends with perhaps more experience, but our goal remains the same. As our younger brothers and sisters, Tomas and I are truly fortunate. It is with delight now that we open the floor for discourse or questions."

Dialogue

Rutha: "Daniel, I have kind of a question. I appreciate your talk on family. In our society it appears that the family is breaking down. We have a lot of problems with what is happening in this regard. Is there anything that we can do as individuals other than doing what we can in our own families to bridge gaps and make amends and to keep the lines of communication open, is there anything we can do to help society in general in strengthening family (and not just the political stuff of family values that we hear all the time), but to make the family like it should be in Light and Life where the spiritual values become part of it?"

Intervention

Daniel: "My response is no surprise when you reflect that we are all family members by being all offspring of our Parents, our Divine Creative Parents. The family unit has radically changed recently and has, yes, undergone much turmoil and, perhaps, fortunately will never return to what it was before this human liberation and spiritual craving set in.

Your conditioning has been to regard the family as a sacred unit, to uphold its communal values, to stand by that which has been brought into being by the wisdom and the culture of the participating parties. Yet when there is trouble, when a family unit is in disrepair, when elements of the family launch out in search of their own values, or lash out at the superimposed values presented to them by their heritage, the tactic of honoring the sanctity of that family unit cannot hold up when it is thus. The courageous approach is to launch upon a recognition of the birth pangs of a spiritually hungry soul seeking light.

This is somewhat delicate for the mores are strong and still it's regarded as impolite to meddle into family affairs yet what would your response be to seeing a child being abused in a public place? Would you, as most, avoid confrontation by assuming that that was a family matter and none of your business? Or, on the other hand to the farthest extreme, would you assume a cloak of divinity such as Michael wore and seek divine guidance to intercede in the situation to the betterment of all parties? To the extent that you impose your faith and conviction upon troubled waters is the extent that you deem yourself capable. For wondrous things can be done for those who hurt, those who are lost, those who struggle to seek their way, whether it be through anger or defiance or through naivete and unwarranted trust. They are your brothers and sisters.

As you dwell upon an individual or a situation first trust in the Father, not to avoid the situation or what you can do, but trust that the Father is your strength and from Him and Her you gain the wisdom to know how to deal rightly with that individual or situation, even if it is only prayer. For prayer releases love energies and service direction that other entities can work with. But since you are here, since you see, and since it affects your world and it is happening to your brother or sister it is, perhaps, your assignment to follow through with your love deed."

Rutha: "That's a pretty heavy assignment, Daniel! I have been sitting here thinking while you have been talking how would you, besides prayer? Because whenever you see something like that I usually do say a prayer for the parent and then ultimately for the child. But I am just wondering, you know, and every situation is different. I think there are some you could probably approach more readily then you would some others. But I don't know! How would you do it? I would think you would have to speak with the parent from the standpoint of some psychological term like, 'It looks like you are having a bad day today' or something like that to divert their attention from the child to speaking with you. I really have been trying to figure out what would be a good way to approach what you said."

Daniel: "So I have made a monster?"

Rutha: "Yes."

Isaac: "Well, Jesus did, in fact, intervene in a domestic violence situation according to the Urantia Book and He took the perpetrator, touched him gently and said,..'I can see in your face you are not an unreasonable person. What would provoke you to do this sort of thing?' (paraphrased). But as Daniel said a minute ago that we could cloak ourselves in the divinity of Michael and that would be one extreme. He did do that. And I do agree that it would be hard to do."

PamElla: "And the other thing I was going to say, Isaac, when you said Michael touched him is that this tape I have been listening to talks about the power of touch. She is talking about with teenage children and how we all need to be touched. Sometimes if you just touch a person it makes that connection and it soothes them down and things become reasonable. So that was interesting. I just now heard you, although I'm sure I have read, but I just put those two things together. Fascinating. And the other thing is that Daniel said that in the situation we would need to pray about it and ask if there was anything that we could do in that situation. So I would think that we couldn't have a preset plan of any type but rather its the quiet time that we spend daily."

Rutha: "I agree that we can't have a preset thing but I think you need to think about it in order to approach it so that when something like this comes up you aren't just speechless. Like we did in Transition Training we could have role playing where you would work it out so that you would have some sort of an idea of what kind of words to use."

Leetah: "I'm sitting here thinking in terms of what might be acceptable to the parent. I think it is the child that we see that is abused. The thought that came into my mind is if we could offer to watch the child while the parent goes ahead and does whatever he needs to do, she needs to do, that usually it is the child interfering with that program. But then the first thought that comes up to me is time! What about the deadlines that we set? Maybe we need to be less busy so that we have time to put on this cloak, not of divinity, but of guidance, maybe, where we could help in an abusive situation...I don't know??"

Isaac: "And, Daniel, I don't mean to change the subject but I got from what you said, and of course it will be more clear when I can read it in print, and correct me now if I don't have this right, but I had the impression that you were implying that family structures as we have them in our culture are held together by forces which are not necessarily spiritual, and that there needs to be an evolving understanding of family where the spiritual dimension has more cohesiveness.

According to the UB, families were originally held together by purely monetary concerns. It was an institution of economics. And now it has moved into a kind of romantic thing , and that families that are going to hold together,(you didn't say this, I will just offer it up) are going to have to have these spiritual bonds."

Sharon: "How do you get a spiritual bond in a family that doesn't want to have a spiritual bond?"

Isaac: "And also this thing that Jesus said, you know, where He said, 'Who are my mother and my brothers and sisters? Everyone who does the will of God is my mother, brother, and sisters'. Were you implying any of that or do you want to comment on that as well as whatever else we said?"

Daniel: "I would like to say something before I completely lose track of where we are going! I have enjoyed the barrage of commentary and I encourage this kind of discourse. I might add that the Morontia Companions are quite stimulated.

However it is not my intention to get caught up in that specific example that I penciled in, but it does give rise to that quandary. I believe that the first step your might want to consider in approaching this service decision is how much are you willing to stick your neck out. And that decision is to be made today. For if you make the decision in your heart to allow yourself to be used, to be available for service work of this sort, chances are fairly great that such an opportunity will be presented to you; and you will go into it with the guidance that you need for you have already conversed with your First Source and Center as to how you may best serve. Until such time as you have weighed within yourself the extent to which you are willing to serve, until you have counted the cost, all these quandaries are only philosophic musings and are often fear fed fantasies.(chuckles) And so it is your decision once again as to how you may serve in total cooperation with the universe.

And, Isaac, I reflect that family secrets have held many in bondage out of loyalty to a system which even though it benefited and does benefit also causes pain, shame, and retardation. A true family, a family in the Kingdom, the family to which you belong and to which you aspire is based on the Fatherhood of God. I am also reminded, reverting a moment to the 'child abuse' situation and also relating to the family unit as it has evolved, that the power of the paternal influence and the influence of the material caregiver are roles which have been assigned for centuries and which are deeply rooted in the subconscious realms of Urantians. These will not dissolve and evolve overnight and in some cases they are best left alone. But when you find an individual who lets you know by longing looks or by gestures or by behavior that you see with your eyes to see, that is a call for intervention and your actions then are dependent upon the decision you have made in your heart. I encourage you to look at this decision, this potential consciousness, in your meditations in direct communion with God lest you become a meddler or an enabler or a statistic."

Discernment

PamElla: "Well, Daniel, that was quite a response. This path of inward knowing, as you said last week, knowing ourselves is a big undertaking. That puts in on the line for me to know just where my commitments lie and just how far I am willing to stick my neck out. And I don't want to become a meddler, an enabler, or a statistic.

There are aspects of tonight's discussion that are reminding me of conversation that's been on the TML list week and not so much that there are truly parallels as that I am just mulling over a lot of what is there and am somewhat bothered by it. I guess this last statement of not being a meddler and an enabler or statistic requires discernment. That has certainly been an issue on the list this week as has been a discussion of Thought Adjusters and whether they are present or not in individuals. A comment you said I know wasn't directed that way but my mind jumped on it because of this discussion. You said, 'all humans'. (PamElla and Daniel spoke in unison) Thank you Daniel. I know you are aware of what's in my mind. All humans are our brothers and sisters. You have told us before that all life is of worth. And it seems to me that our human brothers and sisters, whether they have a Thought Adjuster present or not remain our brother and sister. There were also quotes this week from the UB where Ganid was asking Michael why He wouldn't defend Himself and Michael said something about discerning whether they were truly a Son of God or not. And if they weren't, then, yes, He would defend himself, otherwise He would find another way around it.

I am just really in conflict right now about this whole discussion. I don't feel like it is my place to even try and discern whether there is a Thought Adjuster present in another individual. I feel like I ought to just assume that this is so. But I suppose that discernment is appropriate at times because I don't want to become a meddler, well, in this case, a statistic or an enabler. So if you would address that topic I would really appreciate it."

Daniel: "I would be glad to daughter. I chose those words, all humans, fully understanding that there were exceptions to the rule. And yet I present the plural for that is the best approach in your service ideals. Certainly there are those who are not indwelt, but in the main they are not ferocious killer animals but docile beings. This, too, is a question of discernment. For in your approach to your brothers and sisters it is best to err in believing that they are indwelt. Even if they present themselves as pitiful remember the adage that it is wise to be kind to dumb animals. In the instance of aggression even an aggressive 'killer animal' may be indwelt by a Thought Adjuster. And so the limited vantage point of your growth status best assumes the best, that all are indwelt. That way you are acting in good faith at all times. In time you may begin to perceive the presence or absence of Spirit so keenly that you will have no problem discerning in which human God is active and in which human God is vacant. This may or may not have to do with passive or aggressive social behavior. Have I addressed your point?"

PamElla: "Yes, Daniel. Here is an additional problem for me. My background, as you know, prior to the Urantia Book was coming from a more Native American approach. That is the stuff that I have been reading in which case all life is precious and you don't take a plant without asking first and showing gratitude. And the same with animal life. And so I still hold dearly to that point of view of life. I guess I really don't like the distinction made between whether there is a Thought Adjuster present or not only because I know there is not a Thought Adjuster present in animals and plants or in our environment that we are killing off but we are all part of the I AM. I wonder why this distinction is made about whether a Thought Adjuster is present or not? And I am wondering what is appropriate behavior toward animals and plants if it is not to treat them with the same love and respect that we would indwelt human beings?"

Daniel: "You are certainly correct that it is best to treat all creation with respect. And I know you understand that there is a difference between the physical realms and the spiritual realms and that whether or not an individual is indwelt by God should have be no deciding factor in your regard for and appreciation of that life as it is presented. The only differentiation I make in referencing the individual who is indwelt and is active, or for that matter, dormant is in terms of potential. Otherwise mortals, animals, flora, all are part of the physical kingdom, all are in balance and depending upon the individual attitude, all is sacred. The concept of the Great Spirit has sustained people for a long time and even today it is regarded as a refreshing, simple and pure approach to life on a troubled planet. I would take no exception to that background which you bring. Are you troubled?"

PamElla: "No, I am not troubled. But I think my difficulty here has to do with levels of reality because that is the difference between potential in the physical realms. The physical realms are said to not be real. That which is not indwelt, those human beings that are not indwelt never become real except that they become part of the Supreme. So I have problems with the different levels of reality, the concept of the I AM, the concept of what has reality, what doesn't have reality. I am sure I need to study the book more because this is something I really have not had in mind in approaching the book. And I realize that is not something you can answer now, and I am not asking you to even address it. I am just saying that I think that is where some of this difficulty is coming from, is understanding levels of reality."

Daniel: "Yes. And what you have shared with me or what I am perceiving is that much of your service motive is directed toward the pain and abuse of Mother Earth. Your approach to counting the cost may have to do with generating your creative service energies on environmental matters or ecological matters more than the social ills of the various cultural structures."

PamElla: "Yes, Daniel. And for everybody else I decided that when I grow up I am going to be an environmental lawyer. (laughter). I decided that today. I knew it would cause looks (more laughter)on people's faces. But I plan to get my degree done and I plan to raise the money. (laughter).

Isaac: "You will have to live to be a hundred now."

PamElla: "I was planning on living until 127, now I will have to stretch it out to 250. (More laughter)

Daniel: "We will all call you grandmother(much more laughter) We see how industrious we can become and how effective and successful it is possible to be when such commitments are made in the spirit of true family. So many times the words lose color and vibrancy but the reality of what we have been creating in our friendship, in our sessions, in our working, in our mission is right, true, beautiful, and good and lives in spite of all the efforts to make it appear to be fantasy or fiction. It is a joy to observe this true flowering of your community personality.

Closing

As you go about your week look to what your eyes find to see and take that into your secret place, your heart of hearts and ask Father how you may help, if He would have you help. And then decide and be. Go in peace and in faith and in trust that your path is guided and your efforts are blessed as are we and ours. Good evening."