Center for Spiritual Living Midtown

Take the Scenic Route - Rev. Paul Gonyea

Sometimes, when we decide to step off the beaten path, we get much more than we bargained for. A moment of inattention, one chance conversation, a left turn instead of a right, and our whole life can be completely transformed. The unexpected events we encounter on the scenic route may suddenly reveal to us a greater plan for our life, something we never dreamed of before, which is exciting. Or they may completely undo the plans we've already made, leaving us completely adrift until we choose a new direction, which is also exciting, only in a different way. In either case, we always have the choice whether to listen or not. If we listen, and follow our intuition, everything may change. But if we ignore what we feel, and continue to ignore it, our life will never change, which means our next life will look a lot like this one.

Our Gift to The World - Rev. Dr. John Waterhouse

Rev. Dr. John Waterhouse, president, Centers for Spiritual Living, is our guest speaker this Sunday.

He has inspired thousands of people around the world with his unique, humorous, heartfelt approach to the teaching.  Here is a personal description of himself:

I describe myself as a teacher, guide, mentor, and leader. My life has long been about revealing the power that dwells within each person I meet. With this as my foundation, I have created a variety of expressions through which I contribute to the human experience. Today, the central focus of my life is serving with my wife Barbara as co-minister of our Science of Mind spiritual community, the Center for Spiritual Living. Barbara and I founded the Center in our home in January 1995. Today, we occupy a ten thousand square foot teaching facility, which was designed and built largely with the support of volunteer friends and members of the Center. We are located at Two Science of Mind Way in Asheville,  North Carolina and have a growing community of more than 300 members. Providing clear guidance and strong, yet flexible leadership to individuals and organizations is what my life is about. I bring these skills and abilities along with a passion for the full expression of all ideas and possibilities to every endeavor in which I embark."

Are the Rich Really Different?- Rev. Paul Gonyea

Like any other tool, some people are able to use money much better than others. It’s not because they’re special. It’s just because of what they’ve learned, and how they have chosen to apply it. No one is ever born knowing how to make incredible amounts of money, just like no one is born knowing how to use a screwdriver. Making money is simply a skill that must be learned, combined with a consciousness of prosperity that needs to be developed. And every single one of us is born with the ability to do both. How we apply that ability is what determines whether or not we end up with enough money in our bank account to live the way we want to live.

Your Emergent Self- Rev. David Barrett

Following up with Paul’s True meaning of Easter….. Once we ‘roll away the stone’ and step out into our new life, we can choose our old way of thinking, making decisions based on past or present experiences and future worries, OR we can turn to the greater idea of ourselves that we just learned about through the True meaning of Easter. It takes Faith to step out into the new world with a new idea about ourselves, an idea that we are greater than we appear to be, that we are more powerful than we think we are, and that we have the Wisdom and the power of the Universe with us as we step out into the new world.

The True Meaning of Easter- Rev. Paul Gonyea

It’s really too bad that the great teacher Jesus, who taught us so much about the power of Life, would be remembered forever by the symbol of his physical death --- the cross. The significance of the Easter story, whether or not it happened exactly the way we are told it happened, shouldn’t be that pain and suffering brings salvation. The truth is, we’re all already saved, because we were never lost. Easter really symbolizes the ultimate spiritual experience, which is the regeneration of our consciousness. No matter what darkness or pain or difficulty we may put ourselves through by our own mistaken thinking, we are always able to emerge stronger, clearer, and more aware of how to use the power of Life in our life.

Passion: Something in You - Rev. David Barrett

This week is Passion Week and a vast majority of the world will be in observance of this holiday week. While the rest of the world is looking at the Passion in one way, I choose to look at it in another way. I choose to look at the Passion of Life itself, and how it is always at the rush to come through each of us. The only problem is, is that we are too busy with our human lives to allow the Divine Life to come through. So what needs to fall away for the new passionate Life to come through? Believe it or not, the choice is ours.

Trial By Fire by Rev. Paul Gonyea

The idea that we are constantly being tested by God is one of the most limiting ideas the human race has ever bought into. While it’s true that most of us encounter some kind of suffering during our life, it’s time that we stopped seeing that suffering as something noble or necessary, because Life is not an adversarial relationship. We are not here to fight against our desires, or to suffer great pain so that we can become more spiritual. We are not here to deny our own sexuality, to stay poor, or to give up everything we own so someone else can think better of us. We are here to understand our true relationship with God, and our true relationship with Life. And there is no reason at all why we can’t enjoy ourselves immensely while we’re doing it.

Spring Forward-Rev. David Barrett

How easy it is to jump forward in time from 2AM to 3AM when Daylight Savings Time begins. Many of us would like to jump forward in time to be in a career we have always wanted, a relationship dreamt about, a better financial situation, and a slimmer body, as easily done as it is to set the clock forward one hour. It seems like such a huge chasm of where we stand today in our lives, and where we want to be at a future time. Being in this teaching reminds us that that chasm is really only one thought wide...so we learn to choose greater thoughts to bring the chasm together between where we are, and where we want to be.

From Thought to Thing- Our First Birthday-Rev. Paul Gonyea & Rev. David Barrett

Many teachers have told us (Dr. Holmes included) that everything starts out as an idea. They tell us that, but it's actually not quite true. The reality is, everything starts out as God. Then it goes through the process of expressing God, and ends up being God in some physical form. That is the spiritual explanation of the creative process...from "the nothing that is everything" to "the something that is just part of everything." Energy to form, spirit to body, idea to thing. That's how this Center started, and that is why it continues to grow and thrive today. We aren't confused about what has been created. We know exactly what has happened over the past year. We aren't "buying a building," or "growing a congregation"; we're nurturing an idea. We're practicing Principle in everything we do, learning together how Life supports us as we live in accordance with the Laws of our being.

You Can't Push On A Rope - Rev. Paul Gonyea

The practice of mental science is not something that works well by being forced. It also does not depend on the force of will or even the power of deep concentration. Too many people come to this teaching, try it for a month or two, and then walk away because they think it's too hard. That's a shame, because it shows they never really understood it. They never quite realized that this teaching is not magic, or supernatural. Its power lies in the intelligent use of the proper mental and spiritual tools to take advantage of basic spiritual laws.