Living From Oneness

The God who made the world and everything in it, he who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by human hands, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mortals life and breath and all things. From one ancestor he made all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, so that they would search for God and perhaps grope for him and find him—though indeed he is not far from each one of us. For ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said,

‘For we too are his offspring.’ – Acts 17: 24-28

This Sunday, February 12, I will continue my series of lessons on our five core values. This week I will be exploring ‘Oneness’ with a lesson entitled “Living From Oneness.”

When our Core Value Team met to discern our definition and rationale for our core values, we developed the following statement for ‘Oneness.’

We realize and joyously embrace our unity with God and all creation.

We are one in God.

As the first of Unity’s Five Basic Principles states “There is one Power and one Presence, active as the universe and as my life.” We most often refer to this Power and Presence as ‘God.’ I prefer to think of God as the Unified Field of Consciousness in which we all live and move and have our being. It is a field of energetic vibration from which all arises, in which all has life, and through which all is connected.

From the perspective of our human consciousness in which we primarily rely on our five physical senses to perceive reality, we seem to be separate from other persons and life forms. In truth, all is emanating from the same Source. Thus, we are one in spirit and in truth.

We are one with all creation.

Because this is true, the thoughts, words and actions of one impact the whole. An energy vibration in the mind of one creates a ripple in the Unified Field of Consciousness that impacts all. We are all affected by changes and shifts in the field.

As the Butterfly Effect postulates a seemingly small and insignificant change in the field can have far-reaching effects. We may think that our thoughts, words and actions do not make a difference, but when we realize the deeper truth of oneness, we can see that they do. One thought entertained in one mind affects the entire field.

We can sense our oneness.

We may not always be consciously aware of our connection, but each of us has innate abilities to sense our connection at levels beyond the physical senses. When we awaken those senses more fully, we become more aware of not only major changes, but also subtle shifts in the field.

Those who are familiar with the Star Wars series of movies will recognize what I am referring to as one who has become a Jedi master. He or she learns to sense the field and act in harmony with it. They learn to use the “Force” for good and can sense even subtle shifts in the field.

We all have the ability to sense the shifts in the energy field that are occurring in our country and the world now. We do not need to read and listen to the news reports or follow social media to feel the tension and unrest in the field of human consciousness. Those of us who do read or listen to the news may feel it more intensely because we are intentionally tuning into it and opening ourselves to the effects of the energy. We are, each of us, making our own choices about how we respond to it from the conscious awareness of oneness and how we live it as a core value.

We can strengthen our awareness of oneness.

Knowing the truth of our oneness and knowing that all we do impacts the whole, our opportunity is to maintain a consciousness of peace and love amid the unrest. We would have to be fully realized avatars to maintain our equilibrium amidst the shifts of energy that are occurring right now. While in truth we are all avatars, we have not yet realized it. Therefore, we must strengthen our spiritual practice.

Now is our opportunity to commit more fully to our spiritual practices, to spend more time in prayer and meditation, to focus our thoughts on truth, and to speak and act with love and integrity. We must recommit ourselves to being as Unity minister, and author Eric Butterworth phrased it “meta-missionaries,” ones who go into own minds to convert the errant thoughts and then go out into the world to share love. ¹

We can live our oneness.

Much of what we are doing, thinking and saying is habitual and based on misguided and misinformed perceptions of God, others and ourselves. Our actions are primarily based on our personal ego-identification, which is founded for the most part on a misconception of separation and fear. We must allow our own transformation through the renewing of our minds.

To live oneness as a core value, we must be willing to take an honest inventory of our own thoughts, words, actions and motivations, both individually and collectively. We must gain some understanding about why we think as we do, assess our motives for what we do and say, and gain some awareness of how we are impacting ourselves, others and the world. With understanding and awareness, we can make consciousness choices that reflect our realization of oneness.

Knowing and living oneness is the key to healing.

We do not yet grasp just how important it is for us to live from the consciousness of oneness. The belief in separation and the resulting ego-identification and fear are the cause of all the suffering in the world. Knowing our oneness in God and with all creation is the cure for everything that ails us.

When we live from the conscious awareness of oneness and think, speak and act accordingly, we are serving God, the world and indeed ourselves.

We are the ones who have the power to bring the reign of peace, good will and equality upon the earth. Knowing Oneness is the first step toward that vision.

Join us this Sunday at 10:00 as we explore the power of Living From Oneness.

¹ “Be a Center of Love” from Celebrate Yourself by Eric Butterworth