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Those you who live locally know that the summer is in full swing here in Tucson. Our newsletter editor and licensed Unity Teacher candidate, Sue Nyhus, has a great message for us about Light, which should help us all o bring a new dimension of gratitude to our summer sun. Enjoy!
Honoring the Divine within each of us, our mission at Unity/Peace Tucson is to inspire, empower, and support practical spiritual growth. Namaskar!
Thank you for your support!
 Summer Solstice, the Day of Light by Sue Nyhus
The origin of the word, solstice (solstitium) means sun-stopping. This year we will celebrate the summer solstice on June 20. It is the day when the hours of light are the longest and is considered the first day of summer in the Northern Hemisphere. On the solstice, the sun doesn't rise precisely in the east, but rises to the north of east and sets to the north of west, meaning it's visible in the sky for a longer period of time. It is a day of celebration in many places around our global community. It is a day of light! (http://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/june-solstice.html)
Our way-shower and elder brother, Jesus told us; "You are the light of the world" (Matthew 5:14). A few verses later he tells us to let our light shine so that others may know the presence of God. In Unity we affirm this truth. We are here to be lights for the world. Definitions of light found in the Merriam Webster Dictionary include "an illumination, something that makes vision possible and something that lightens and informs" (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/light). Using a favorite cliché of my mother's, Jesus "said a mouthful" when he used the metaphor of us being lights.
Lights provide illumination. By simply being, they do what they're here to do. It took me many years to begin to understand this concept. I was raised to be a "doer." I think this is true for many of us. In our culture it is not uncommon to define ourselves by what we do rather than who we are. My "I am" statements were I am a nurse. I am a wife. I am a parent. I am an aunt. I am a sister. I am a student, etc. However, I am learning we can limit ourselves by what we have done and what we think we have left undone.
Light makes vision possible. When we affirm, "I am light," we affirm our divinity. This allows us to see ourselves with clarity. We realize we are each a bundle of unlimited...divine...potential! We are the presence of God on this planet we call earth! How very amazing is that?
Light is something (or someone) who lightens and informs. As lights of the world we are here to remind each other of our divine potential. We do this by being present, listening and honoring that each of us have our own paths to walk. This has been another important lesson for me. I've spent a fair amount of time thinking I was supposed to be "doing" something for others. In other words, I was a fixer. Through Unity teachings I am learning one of the best things I can do is get out of the way and let others be who they are called to be. It also means, no matter how the outer appears, I can choose to hold the vision of the Christ each of us are.
This can be easier said than done! We know there are times we experience an absence of light and life can seem very gloomy. We can all attest to the fact life conditions on planet earth include times of pain and sorrow. What do we do then? In those moments we have the choice of remembering the two divine attributes of understanding and will, also referred to as the greater and lesser light. When light seems absent I can choose to affirm I am willing to be willing to know this too shall pass. I can affirm I am willing to do what is mine to do and allow others the gift of doing what is theirs to do. I can reach into my spiritual tool chest and embrace the divine attribute of faith. I can have faith that the divine I am is the presence of God. I can have faith in humankind, keeping in mind separately, and together we are the expression of God. I can pay attention to the thoughts I think, the words I say, and the behaviors I demonstrate knowing they affect the whole.
When I do, I experience spiritual understanding, the greater light. I recognize it is a privilege and responsibility to practice letting go of self-doubt and have faith in myself. Likewise, I can have faith in humankind. I can know deep within the most important task I have to do is to recognize the unlimited... divine... potential I am, you are and we are. The day of light, the midsummer solstice is upon us! It is a time to experience and express the joy of the truth of our beingness. Using the words of Unity's co-founder, Charles Fillmore, we "are to be lights that glow with a perpetual current from the one omnipresent energy" (Keep a True Lent). Let us set this year's summer solstice, June 20th, aside as a day of celebration. Let us affirm together that we will let our light shine brightly and remember we are the hands, feet, eyes, ears, voice and all of God presence residing on this planet we call earth!
Sue Nyhus discovered Unity Spiritual Center of Peace six years ago, the first year she and her husband, Butch, spent winter months in Tucson Estates. Although she had been a Unity truth student for many years prior, she'd never had a Unity center that she could call home. She is now a licensed Unity Teacher candidate in the Spiritual Leadership program at Unity Village. Her husband Butch, their poodle, Little Man and Sue spend part of the year in Minnesota and the other in Tucson.
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