1998-01-23-Seriousness of This Business

Session

Opening

Aaron: Friends, this is Aaron.

Lesson

Dialogue

It is my turn to address your wonderful gathering this evening. We have been eagerly listening to your conversations, to your supportive, loving energies, expressed through words to each other. You are becoming as a finely tuned instrument. Your harmonics are pure. The overtones are ringing clearly. The octaves are in harmony. Therefore your music is beginning to echo the songs of the spheres. My friends, do not be put off by my apparently flowery language for this is a morontial school and your awareness transcends the material realm. Even though we are based on Urantia you are in the Melchizedek University. That is why your progress is quite astounding to you at times. This is serious business that we are about. We are not playing egocentric games with money passing under the table. This is the rest of your life we are dealing with.

At the same time, that is serious, it is also joyful. I have not come this evening to impose another exercise upon you for your have of your own freewill engaged in a promising, deliberate, and effective program of spiritual calisthenics of personal interaction which has overtones of eternal value and worth. Lest you think that I have given you the stamp of approval that states that you have arrived at perfection, be assured, of course, that this is not the case as we have not reached the portals of Paradise yet. But I am speaking for myself and the others in our Teaching Corps when I say that this group and others likewise have exceeded our expectations. The progress is greater than we expected even though we were appraised that this was very experimental. The pessimists among us, if that is the proper way to state it, were of the opinion that things would move much more slowly, whereas some of us, who are perceived as on the wild side, were not quite as taken back by the enthusiasm which as been displayed. I have no lesson tonight to give.

Ken: That was a lesson tonight, my friend.

Aaron: Thank you, Ken. I appreciate your comments. By saying I have no lesson to give, I was about to complete the thought... which is that we feel that you have reached the point where often you generate your own lessons, as it were, from your interactions, from your sharing. You are, like the original apostles, moving past the point of mere receptivity to that place where you are each teachers to each other. I am wanting, however, your input at this point and feel that it is our turn to interact with your agenda rather that require you to interact with our agenda. Do you understand what I am leading up to? I would like to open this to you tonight in terms of whether there was a concern or question in anyone's mind, not of the pure curiosity sort, but having to do with your life in service to Michael, in love, with each other. Is there a question or concern that you wish to address to us teachers? Present tonight are Daniel, Ham, Tomas, and your personal teachers as well as Minearisa. Other teachers are on call as they always are and can possibly be reached. This ends my part of this evening's interaction. I await your input. I am Aaron. Another will follow and take my place. Good evening.

Minearisa: Greetings to all of you, my dear group. This is Minearisa, your instructor in residence, with a brief comment before opening the floor to your questions and comments. One of the best ways to worship the Father is to determine what it is that makes you exude joyfulness in your life for in this is a celebration of life itself, and therefore, the Father. The floor is now open and this TR has been request that Bob S., if he is willing, to TR what he receives.

Dialogue

Tomas: Greetings friends. We do take delight in your humorous banter. Yet it belies the seriousness of our work together. Doubt not that your humor offends any of us. We take great enjoyment. It encourages us when you feel comfortable enough with us to allow your true feelings to come out. Therefore, do not put yourselves down or keep your light under a bushel, so to speak. It is of importance that you allow the true range of your emotions to show forth, for that is the aspect of your personality which is the one which we hope to assist you in development the most. I will now pause in my discussions to allow questions to come forward. Yes, I did not tell you my name. I am Tomas. I am delighted to return to the environment where I had so many wonderful memories.

Virginia: Good evening teachers. I am wondering if one of you would given a refresher course on the relationship between body, mind, and spirit. It doesn't have to be long, a course, a comment.

Health

Daniel: I am Daniel. I will restrain myself as much as possible to avoid being overly loquacious, my dear Letah. However I can not fully promise that this will be terribly brief. Body, mind and spirit, or physical, mindal and spiritual, are the three universe levels of reality as perceived from a qualitative point of view. That is to say, there is a sharp difference between any of the levels, physical, mindal and spiritual. Each level is as real as the next although beings who dwell in any particular level are more included (inclined) to think that their level is the most real. For a being who is spiritual, morontial and physical are less real. But mindal levels are a part of spiritual existence and sometimes are part of physical existence. You as a mortal who live on the finite plane experience all three of these levels in an integrated fashion, for you are made up of the physical body, a material mind, the gift of the Mother Spirit, and host to the Indwelling Spirit of God, the Father. Mind is intermediary between body and spirit. It is in the realm of mind that decisions are made, but spirit seeks overcontrol of mind even as mind seeks the over control of the physical. It is not necessarily true that the spiritual will control the mindal, for that is the minds prerequisite, to choose whether or not to submit to the guidance of spirit. But mind and body are inseparably connected. They are two different realities, but they are unified in human experience. It is error to say that mind is the product of the physical. It is not. It is closer to reality to say that physical is a product of mind, but that is not correct either, exactly. I apologize for my tendency to lecture. Letah, has this helped you in any way?

Virginia: It certainly is a description of those three areas. I was much more thinking in terms of the physical being in control of mind, kind of mind over matter sort of thing, in controlling the immune system, etc. Daniel: Do you mean the mind controlling the physical? You stated the physical controlling the mind.

Virginia: I mean the mind controlling the physical, mind over matter. Is that what I said? That is what I meant.

Daniel: Well, it is true that mind does strive to control matter, as I said earlier. And your science is aware that there is a physical connection between the areas of the brain which are associated with the areas of emotion and the areas where there are connections with the immune system. There is this point of contact. It is not a spooky affair in which the mind in some magical way controls the body. It is through the functioning of the brain that this occurs. Actually, though, in reality the body does influence the mind in the sense that through the connection in the brain problems that are basically physical result in mental manifestations. Again, you are understanding more as your science discovers that mental illness is truly biochemical, an electrochemical phenomenon at least at one level. While stress, which is a mental aspect in part, causes much mental and physical illness, the key factor remains mindal in nature, for even with stress the key to control is to change the mental interpretation of the meaning of events in one's life.

Take, for example, the stress of the loss of a loved one to death. To the degree that a person exercises their faith that this life is only the vestibule of eternal life, to that degree does one interprets the loss of a loved one differently than does one who's perspective is only limited to this life. In other words, if a person believes that this life is all there is, then death is a terror, for it ends the opportunity to experience love. Death is a mockery to one who believes that this life is all there is. But to one who believes that they shall see their loved one again, while grief is not eliminated, it has a different flavor. There is no need, for example, for guilt. For whatever business is unfinished will be given opportunity for completion. There is no reason for anger for this is not the punishment of an unjust God, this experience of death, it is a doorway to endless life. All of this sort of understanding occurs in the mindal aspect of ones existence. It is not a small thing to talk about the importance of faith. It is a huge thing. That is why our Master Son said to his apostles, "To a God knowing believer what does it matter that kingdoms fall and the earth vanishes? One is safe in the hands of the Father of all". (100:2.7)I am not quoting exactly but this is part of his meaning. Do you following my reasoning here?

Virginia: Yes Daniel. I think I do.

Daniel: Do you wish me to say more about your question?

Virginia: No. I think the course has been spent. Thank you.

Daniel: Then if you wish me not to I won't proceed too much further, but I feel that I have not satisfied your initial concern. You said earlier that it is not mental, that illness is not caused by ones mental state completely and that one should not feel totally guilty or responsible for having physical illness occur. With these words I concur fully for there is more than your science understands going on. Your body is an incredible machine that fights off constant attacks from very real physical entities, viruses, bacteria and some other things that you don't yet know about. When stress adds to the pressure the immune system sometimes cannot cope. But many things determine this, including heredity, lifestyle habits, and things that we ourselves, who are morontial beings, don't fully understand. We have not been apprised of all the details that the Life Carriers have planned for this experimental planet, and ever they are surprised at some of the evolutionary outcomes to the genetic engineering. Things are not entirely under their control either. And so I can tell you that, as it says in the Urantia Book, when praying for help first you should do all you know how to do to address the problem, and then ask for help when there has been the necessary homework done. And now I will cease my commentary.

Virginia: Thank you, Daniel.

Bob S.: Daniel, I have a follow up question about something I thought you said when you were talking about body, mind, spirit, and you were characterizing mind as material. Did I hear that right? Did you mean to say Morontial, or something else?

Daniel: Finite mind that you experience, while coming from the source of mind, the Infinite Spirit, is down stepped through the local universe Mother Spirit and then down stepped again through the adjutant spirits. It is received through the functioning of the brain as a FM receiver operates to receive the incoming signals which are transmitted from another source. The analogy in this case would be that the Mother Spirit is the transmitter and the signals move through the adjutant spirits. And so mind as mortals experience it has a material component, but mind in its pure state is not material. It is of the Third Person of Deity. It integrates spirit and material outside of Paradise and the Central Universe. It is an intermediary between the two. Have I clarified for you, Jonderoch?

Bob S.: Yes. Thank you.

Daniel: My friends...there is another question. Proceed, please.

Joy, Worship

Ken: Before I get to my question, a comment to Aaron on the fine tuning. I don't feel that I am in tune yet, but I'm working on it. (Laughter) Thank you for your words of encouragement, my friend. Tomas, I also would like to say thank you to you for your transcripts and the beautiful lessons. The lessons are taken to heart. Thank you. Lorenzo, I would like to say "thank you" for being there for me when I have my doubts. You are guiding me and directing me. My love, Minearisa, you made a statement about humor or joy in worship. You, of course, were tuned in to our sharing time when I was discussing the points of worship. I appreciate that. This business of humor and joy was mentioned sometime back in one of our other lessons that this would be the next phase we would be entering into in our lessons. Joyfulness was not presented, that I remember in paper 5 on worship of God. Can you expand this a little bit on joy and how it applies to worship?

Minearisa: This is Minearisa. Finding those situations which bring you joy, which make you feel joyful, enhances your feeling of connection and your feeling of connectivity to that which is spiritual in nature, and also allows you to shine like a beacon to those around you exuding this joyfulness, for when you feel this lightness of being you are indeed in touch with the Father, and drawing a connection which further strengthens your bond with Him as well as with your fellow mortals. Does this help?

Ken: Yes. Thank you.

Lorenzo: Kenneth, this is Lorenzo.

Ken: Greetings, my friend.

Service

Lorenzo: I am pleased to be able to comment briefly to you regarding your questions during the sharing time as to how worship can be expressed and shared. Those were not your exact words, but I would like to say that it is important that worship be expressed through service, that worship and service are, perhaps you could say, two sides of one coin, for he who worships the Father falls more and more in love with his brother and sister. How can it be otherwise? The gratitude you experience in worship includes the fact that you are created in a family and this gratitude is expressed to family members. Those were my thoughts which I have now shared with you, my friend.

Ken: I believe you have shared them before with me. Thank you.

Lorenzo: This is true Ken, many times.

Lorenzo: It was not for want of understanding that I shared these, but there has been a distortion in regards to this teaching at times in the history of religion on this planet. I speak of advanced religion on this planet, where service and worship have been seen as antagonistic, where the person who spends too much time in worship is regarded as other worldly, fascinated with pie in the sky, and not willing to get their hands dirty in the everyday work of the world, and the person who has exulted service as the most important thing has therefore at times put too little value on worship. So that's why, for the record, I desired to have these thoughts stated. That is it, thank you.

Ken: Not yet. (Much group laughter.) You stated worship and service and two items. Generally there are three. Is there a third? I'm not playing the numbers game. Sorry, but there is a close relationship.

Lorenzo: Are you referring to aspects of spiritual growth, or are you referring to previous conversations that we have had? You are arousing anxiety in this TR.

Ken: I apologize.

Lorenzo: And he is confused.

Ken: I don't know really what I meant by that. We talk service; worship and I guess gratitude would be the third.

Lorenzo: Certainly gratitude is the connection between worship and service. That was my intent earlier, Ken, to say that gratitude over the fact that of ones sibling hood, ones brotherhood, sisterhood, comes out of the worship of God who created us, the mother and father of all, and this gratitude is expressed in service to others. Prayer is another that could be joined with service and worship, and you know the meaning of prayer. In a sense though, prayer is more like service than worship for it allied with the need to help another person which is the essence of service. How does that set with you?

Ken: Very well, thank you. Thank you very much, my friend.

Lorenzo: Remember everyone that TR’ing is a blending of the minds of the teacher and the TR, and Isaac apologies for his anxiety but I make no such apology. (Much laughter)

Ken: I apologize for putting Isaac on the spot.

Lorenzo: Well he needs to get used to it. (Laughter)

Lorenzo: My dear friends...

Minearisa: This is Minearisa with a brief comment on the previous topic. I recognize the hour is late, but I believe it is important the grasp the concept that if you give yourself permission to discover that which brings you joy, then service and worship become the same thing. Are there further questions?

Minearisa: Isaac I apologize for stepping on your toes. Please continue.

Lorenzo: This is Lorenzo. I am satisfied with our partnership as to coordination. As you are the senior member of this Teaching Corps it is my experience that your words are always profoundly appreciated. I personally, especially liked the statement that you concluded with, that worship and service mean the same thing. Yes...one moment.

Closing

Klarixiska: I have been asked to conclude our meeting this evening. It is a joy to be allowed time to speak in this setting. I am always eager to have the opportunity to address more than one person, although I cherish greatly our relationship and publicly commend Letah on her faithful devotion to our time together. Do you realize, my friends, how exciting this is to us, your teachers, because we have never had this opportunity before? We have, of course, spend eons of time, as it were, many thousands of years in educational endeavors, but never have we had an opportunity to react with our mortal brothers and sisters. We absolutely love it, just as you enjoy playing with young children. This is not to say that we are looking down upon you, but just to let you know how much fun this is for us. We know that you enjoy our contact. I wanted you to know we enjoy it just as much. No, even more. Now my speech is over and I will retire. It is my privilege to close the meeting with our love be with you all as we reflect the love of our Universal Parents, and as they reflect the love of the blessed, holy, righteous, beautiful, perfect, Paradise Trinity, the Father, Son and Spirit. Thanks be to God for our lives, for this great adventure, for everything. Good evening.