Meta-Musing ~ Loving Yourself Warts and All!
Galatians 5:14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
 
John 8: "Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her"..."Neither do I condemn you...now go, and sin no more."
 
"We forgive sin in ourselves every time we resolve to think and act according to the divine law." Charles Fillmore, co-founder of Unity
Warts And All
Blessings to you!
 
I've had "one of those weeks." In Unity we call it "interesting." That is because we know the importance of holding positive thoughts, words and actions regardless of the circumstances we find ourselves in. 
 
My week was one of finding myself in circumstances where I needed to say "My mistake," or confronted with people and issues from the past, bringing up unhealed or unresolved anger, resentment or such, requiring me to back-pedal, breathe, remind myself of the teaching, and start over again.
 
In our quest to "be perfect as the Heavenly Father is perfect," we forget that we are also a work in progress. Sometimes in the course of our lives the unrealistic expectations of perfection we have for ourselves can be demanding, tempting us to "throw in the towel," so we would not need to risk rejection or failure to live up to our own or others expectation of perfection. 
 
I held that thought BRIEFLY this week. Then I reminded myself that sharing the life-changing teaching that has so blessed my life is non-negotiable. It is my mission. It is my passion. I am capable and equipped to do the job.
 
Each of us sometimes hold unrealistic expectations of perfection for ourselves.  In Spirit and Truth we are perfect. Paradoxically, we are also working toward expression of that perfection and Mastery.
 
Even a great healer can be a "wounded healer;" with the very wounds they bear assisting them in the healing of others through the wisdom we glean from our painful experiences. We confront our own "imperfection" and assist others in healing theirs, which in return heals us.
 
One day many years ago when I was in cooking school, I attempted to make Hollandaise Sauce. This is a tricky thing to do, as one mistake and the sauce "breaks," or curdles and it is useless. I had broken two batches and was working on the third. This one was coming together beautifully. The sauce was thick and shiny.
 
Then...to my horror...the bowl slipped from my hands and went crashing to the floor. That moment was a turning point in my life.  I stood at a crossroad...do I "get into" the emotion of the event, wasting time and compounding the problem, or do I move on?
 
By the Grace of God I resisted the temptation to be "victimized" by the experience. I decided to quickly let go of the anger and frustration and get about cleaning up the mess and moving on.  And so I did. The next batch was perfection, and I emerged wiser and more experienced.
 
The same thing is true in each of our lives. We may have spilled the milk or broken the sauce, but the sooner we clean up the mess and move on, the better.
 
We may not be able to put the milk back in the bottle. We may not be able to put "Humpty Dumpty" together again. But we are able to reflect, repent (re-think...get the lesson), RELEASE the negative energy. We are able to clean up the mess to the best of our ability and get back to that which God would have us do.
 
Making mistakes is a part of the learning process. Accepting the perfection of our imperfection and learning to love ourselves just as we are, "warts and all," is in fact a part of that process. We may disappoint ourselves, but as long as we are doing our best we can never disappoint God.
 
So...if you are tempted to criticize yourself for the areas you are still growing, or for your "sins" or errors, STOP quickly! Clean up the mess to the best of your ability (i.e. apologize, realize and learn from the error) and move on.
 
Have a bright and beautiful day, and know that I behold the divinity...the perfection in YOU! (and me!) RevAli
 
 
 

For more information on Spirit of Unity, please visit our web site www.spiritofunitychurch.org

by email to spiritofunity@sbcglobal.net or Call Rev. Alicia at 860-575-8797