Unity Church of Castro Valley
Sunday Message for March 14, 2010
THE RIGHT USE OF STRENGTH
So... this month we are discussing the spiritual power of Strength. All strength is of and from God whether it be spiritual, mental, or physical. We have to remember who God is and who we are so that we may have an awareness of our relationship with God. Then we will begin to understand the right use of strength and receive God’s gifts of joy and peace. If you really want to transform your life you will need the spiritual power of Strength.
STRENGTH IS REQUIRED ON MANY LEVELS
Strength is required on many levels: We read in the book of Judges that the lords of the Philistines offered Delilah eleven hundred pieces of silver from each of them if she would find out what makes Samson’s strength so great. So Delilah said to Samson, "Please tell me what makes your strength so great"a So he told her some nonsense that came to him about tying him up with bowstrings just to stop her nagging. She did that to him while he was asleep, the Philistines showed up, and of course he broke loose and scared the heck out of them. What amazed me, was that he continued to stay with her after this incident. Sounds to me like Samson needed to develop his spiritual power of Wisdom.
But Strength is required on many levels:
On the spiritual plane, it is strength that makes persistence prayers possible, so that we may let go and let God. It is strength that helps us to ignore the gloomy outward appearances and to keep declaring the Truth. Strength is that power essential to the development of all our other Powersb. If we don’t have spiritual strength, our other powers are useless.
On the mental plane, strength is that quality that makes it possible for us to follow through on decisions, no matter what comes up. It helps us to accomplish our goals, to stand by our commitments, and to live principles in daily living. If you don’t have mental strength, all your cleverness will amount to nothing.
On the physical plane, we tend to connect strength with force, tension and exertion. We know how to create change through the strength of our authority.
MISUSE OF STRENGTH
So let’s look at the misuse of strength. Samson lied to Delilah about his source of strength So the secret of his strength was not known.c
From somewhere in our past, we got the idea that we have to fight. We misuse our strength by mentally and physically fighting or resisting our environment - people, conditions and situations.
STEPS IN RIGHT USE OF STRENGTH
So that constitutes the misuse of strength but let’s look at the steps in right use of strength: Our scripture reading last week said, For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength. ..."d
So the first step would be Nonresistance: Lao-tzu wrote 25 centuries ago, "You are but a guest in this world, accept what is offered."e Nonresistance can be a very positive quality. You are not swayed by the world but are in control of your own thinking and feeling. You have to have self-discipline to follow the path of nonresistance. Your actions are based on what you decide to do and be. As you allow the Christ within you to guide your strength, you remain poised, calm, and serene. Nonresistance is a builder of strength.
And then there’s the second step: Relaxation: Relaxation will help you eliminate the bad effects of stress and tension. Whatever it is that you have to do, approach it in a relaxed state. Then throughout the day, take breaks from your more difficult tasks. You will find that this increases your productivity and endurance.
The next step is Direction: As we increase in the spiritual power of Strength, we need to watch that we use it in ways that encourage fairness, acceptance, positive thought and right action.
And the last step is The Resulting Experience: As we increase in strength we will see that it permeates our whole being - physical, spiritual, and mental. It is a part of us and is experienced and demonstrated in all phases of our lives.
ANATOMY OF THE SPIRIT
Using Caroline Myss’s material on the Anatomy of the Spirit I would think that the power of STRENGTH is associated with the third chakra, which is about lessons related to love, forgiveness, and compassion. This would tie in with the sacrament of Confirmation, which is to receive or bestow an expression of grace that enhances one’s individuality and self-esteem. And the sefirot of Hod and Nezah which is the energy of the majesty of God and the energy of the endurance of God. The three of these dovetail into the sacred truth, "Honor Oneself."f
The archetypal forces at this level direct us to develop self-esteem and self-respect. This chakra contains our "survival intuition," our sense that protects us when we are in physical danger and alerts us to the negative energy and actions of other people. We violate this energy when we disregard our gut instincts.
The symbolic meaning of the sacrament of Confirmation is the acceptance of responsibility for the quality of person we become. Part of the process of becoming conscious of ourselves is a "coming of age" ceremony. The spirit requires such an experience or ceremony as a marker for emergence into adulthood; when this marker is absent we manifest a lack of psychological strength. We seem to have a continual need for the approval of other people and an inability to appreciate ourselves.
The symbolic meaning of the sefirah of Nezah is endurance - the power to maintain strength and stamina beyond the capacity of the physical body alone. This power awakens when we accept our life as it is. We lose this power when we focus on what is missing from life, or when we see life as empty and meaningless and need to learn to accept our personal responsibility for having created it. The symbolic meaning of the sefirah of Hod is majesty or integrity, an energy that allows us to transcend the limitations of self and awaken our spiritual connection with Divine authority. The energy of Hod is enhanced by developing an attitude of appreciation and gratitude for all we have, and for the gift of life itself.
QUESTIONS FOR SELF-EXAMINATION
So if you are serious about developing your power of strength - if you really want to be strong spiritually, emotionally, mentally and physically - then explore these 10 questions:
- Do you like yourself? If not, what don’t you like about yourself, and why? Are you actively working to change the things about yourself that you don’t like?
- Are you honest? Do you sometimes misrepresent the truth? If so, why?
- Are you critical of others? Do you need to blame others as a way of protecting yourself?
- Are you able to admit it when you are wrong? Are you open to feedback from other people about yourself?
- Do you need the approval of others? If so, why?
- Do you consider yourself strong or weak? Are you afraid of taking care of yourself?
- Have you ever allowed yourself to be in a relationship with a person you didn’t really love, but it seemed better than being alone?
- Do you respect yourself? Can you decide to make changes in your lifestyle and then stick to your commitment?
- Are you afraid of responsibility? Or do you feel responsible for everything and everyone?
- Are you continually wishing your life were different? If so, are you doing anything to change it, or have you resigned yourself to your situation?
STRENGTH/PERSONAL POWER
The first, second and third chakras are our power base in the world, external power. The first chakra resonates to group or tribal power, the second chakra resonates to the flow of power between the self and others, and the third chakra relates to our personal power or strength in relation to the external world.
The symbolic meaning of Nezah and Hod represent the qualities we need in order to "stand up" as individuals.
These archetypal symbols have the spiritual goal of helping us to mature in our self-understanding - the relationship we have with ourselves, and how we stand on our own and take care of ourselves. We all have to face an experience that reveals to us our own internal strengths and weaknesses as separate from the influence of our elders. We are compelled to create an identity apart from our tribal self.
How we feel about ourselves, whether we respect ourselves, determines the quality of our life, our capacity to succeed in business, relationships, healing, and intuitive skills. Self-acceptance is the most crucial spiritual challenge we face. If we do not like ourselves, we will be incapable of making healthy decisions. Instead, we will direct all of our personal power into the hands of someone else - someone whom we want to impress, or someone before whom we think we must weaken ourselves to gain physical security. People who have low self-esteem attract relationships that reinforce this weakness.
No one is born with healthy self-esteem. We must earn this quality in the process of living, as we face our challenges one at a time.
We need to consciously choose spirit over the illusions of physical circumstances. With each choice we make, we either become more involved in the illusory physical world, or we invest energy into the power of spirit. Each time we choose to enhance our internal power and strength, we limit the authority of the physical world over our lives, bodies, health, minds, and spirits. From an energy point of view, every choice that enhances our spirits strengthens our energy field; and the stronger our energy field, the fewer our connections to negative people and experiences.
If a person suffers from low self-esteem, she cannot act on her intuitive impulses because her fear of failure is too intense. Intuition, like all meditative disciplines, can be enormously effective if, and only if, one has the courage and personal power to follow through on the guidance it provides. Guidance requires action, but it does not guarantee safety. While we measure our own success in terms of our personal comfort and security, the universe measures our success by how much we have learned. So long as we use comfort and security as our criteria of success, we will fear our own intuitive guidance because by its very nature it directs us into new cycles of learning that are sometimes uncomfortable.
Belief in oneself is required for healing. But faith is tied into self-esteem and personal power and strength; because low self-esteem reflects our lack of faith in ourselves as well as in the powers of the unseen world.
CONFIRMATION
The symbolic meaning of the sacrament of Confirmation is that we become "alive" inside by becoming internally empowered. Our strength comes from within. "Be strong and of good courage, ... Do not be afraid or dismayed; for the Lord God, ..., is with you. ..."g
Self-esteem and conscious personal power sometimes develop at a memorable point in life that signifies an initiation into spiritual adulthood. Perhaps, in a sudden flash of insight, you saw how you could accomplish a task that had been previously overwhelming. Perhaps you saw yourself as powerful and realized that you could accomplish goals of all sorts, from physical fitness to financial success.
Developing the confidence to pursue goals is one way that personal power becomes an agent of personal change. At the same time an equally impressive level of change can occur within a person’s spiritual or symbolic life. Becoming internally empowered shifts a person’s center of gravity from external to internal - a mark of spiritual passage.
I would like to close with a poem by Hannah More Kohaus called I Am Stronger Than My Fears.
I am stronger than my fears,
I am wiser than my years,
I am gladder than my tears;
For I am God’s image.
I am better than my deeds,
I am holier than my creeds,
I am wealthier than my needs;
For I am God’s image.
God, whose image thus I bear
And whose likeness I shall share,
All God’s glory will declare
Through the "I": God’s image.h
a Judges 16:6
b Twelve Powers In You Revs David & Gay Lynn Williamson and Robert Knapp M.D.
c Judges 16:9
d Isaiah 30:15
e Tao Te Ching Lao-tzu
f Anatomy of the Spirit Caroline Myss
g 1 Chronicles 28:20
h I Am Stronger Than My Fears Hannah More Kohaus
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