Center for Spiritual Living Midtown

The Body Remembers - Rev Dr John Karn

Our bodies, being intricately connected and responsive to our minds, remember even the stories that our minds have pushed aside. This week, we will explore the mind/body connection, how trauma or pain is translated from the mind to the body, and methods for understanding and releasing these burdens. 

Weekly Affirmation: I feel and honor every sensation in my body. 

Loving This Body - Rev Dr Bob Deen

Our bodies are perfectly and wonderfully made! By learning to love our bodies exactly as they are, instead of demanding that they become something they aren’t, we open to the experience of the here and now and can move into reverence and awe of this absolutely divine creation. The body is not separate from our spiritual life, but is an amazing and awe-inspiring manifestation of our spiritual life. We are not souls trapped in fleshy boxes which carry our consciousness from room to room, but rather fully integrated organisms who inhabit and contain dynamic, living temples. Our bodies exist in all their glorious variety so that the One can express itself in creative and beautiful ways, just like there are a variety of flowers in a field, so there is a beautiful magic in bodies of all kinds. 

Weekly Affirmation: I delight in the wonder of my body and I treat it kindly.

It’s All the Same Thing - Rev Dr Bob Deen

The body is the one thing in this world which is completely and intimately ours. Rather than engaging in a spirituality that denies the body, we engage in an experience of the Divine in this moment through fully embracing our bodies. They are magnificent and magical conduits between Spirit and our individual consciousness, and ought to be celebrated for the way they allow us to experience the world in which we live. All bodies are good bodies, and the body offers a direct and clear path to the Divine experience, if we will allow it. By loving the body, using it to connect to our minds and hearts, and listening to its wisdom, we celebrate its magnificence and awaken to this everyday wonder.  

Weekly Affirmation: My body is the presence of the Divine on Earth. 

Low Tide or High Tide? Rev Dr Bob Deen

How do we move through the constant ebb and flow of life, ride the waves, and stay afloat?  Grab your life jacket! 

Weekly Affirmation: My sadness is transformed to gladness through love.

Looking Anger in the Eye - Rev Dr Bob Deen

Anger can be like a hurricane. In the “eye” of the storm there is peace.  Therefore, I can find calm waters in the midst of the turbulence. 

Weekly Affirmation: At the center of anger is peace and calm.

If You’re Happy and You Know It - Rev Dr Bob Deen

Let’s sing, dance, hum, laugh, smile, and shout from a happy place because we’re alive!  No matter what’s going on, let’s celebrate life and the joy of living.  We have the chance to start anew and make it a great day, every day. 

Weekly Affirmation: I’m happy to be alive living a joyful life.

The Fear Factor - Rev Dr Bob Deen

For too long many of us have allowed fear to plague our lives and deter us from our good. We have the power to change the narrative and allow faith to lead the way instead of following fear. 

Weekly Affirmation: I face my fears through courage, strength, and faith.

What’s On Your Spice Rack? Rev Dr Bob Deen

The vast variety of emotions serves to add spice to our human mix. As we lean into learning from emotions and creating balance, our recipe is perfected with just the right blend to create a mixture of harmony, wellbeing, and growth. Weekly Affirmation: I am blessed and grateful for my emotions and feelings. 

Boldly Go... - Rev Dr Bob Deen

Your dreams are waiting for you to come true. Maybe it’s time! So far, we have looked at the creative impulse in the individual, danced with our donkeys of resistance, transcended the world of effect to expand our visions, and embraced a higher idea of our own divinity. What’s left? It’s time to stop tying our “nots” and bring our creative selves and whatever it is we are wanting to do, to the world. In summary, when we dare to present our talents, gifts, and passions, we are both vulnerable and victorious. Here’s the issue: to be victorious, we must be vulnerable. We must open our hearts, let down our ego defenses, and dare to live authentically if we want the rewards of a life well-lived. This week is not about judging the quality of a performance or assessing the efficacy of a creative desire. This week is all about each of us knowing our authentic life purpose. 

Weekly Affirmation: I dare to be me. I am hot stuff! 

Reveal, Release, Rise (Repea) - Rev Dr Bob Deen

The creative message of both Passover and Easter is about rising above or transcendence. We rise when we transcend our fears, prejudices, and histories to be instruments for divine creative expression. We “rise in faith, believing,” means we inhabit and create from a field of pure potentiality that exceeds and celebrates our precious, unique and beloved humanness. The Easter Bunny, originally a symbol of creation and fertility, just called: That which you are seeking is found within. (Spoiler alert: It’s way better than Peeps or chocolate eggs!) 
Weekly Affirmation: Daily I rise in wonder, gratitude, power, and glory!