There is nothing – No Thing – ‘out there’ that can separate us from our good or the good we can do. There is nothing – No Thing – that can dampen our love for the Truth except our love for error.

Let’s put the concept of NOTHING – NO THING – in perspective. It is critical for understanding how well-connected we are to Spirit. The powerful concepts of Omnipresence, Omni-potence, Omniscience and Omni-activity have two incredible things in common.

• They all start with the syllable “OM.” Om stands for the Christ as us, the I AM Presence embodied as us. It signifies our indivisible connection with the God of our understanding.
• These three ‘omni’s’ also have the “ni” in common. Ni is short for nihil which signifies nothing. So you see, there is nothing – No Thing – under heaven or earth that can separate you from the all knowing, everywhere present, all powerful, everywhere active nature of God expressing in, through, and as you!

When you come to know that eternal truth, your life will be transformed forever! You will walk more confidently … sleep more peacefully … and live more fully. There is nothing – ‘NO THING’ – that can separate you from the life you want.

Not your past. Not your childhood experiences. Not your bad experiences. Not your most ingrained habits. Not your lost opportunities. Not the old tapes running through your head. Nothing – No Thing – can separate you from your good … except your disbelief in Truth principles and your doubts of your worthiness.

In this moment, re-affirm your worthiness by acknowledging your Oneness. You are God expressing at the point of you … so you have the very nature of the Omnipresence, Omnipotence, Omniscience, and Omni-activity of God expressing in, as, and through you. Let your light shine!

There’s new interest these days in the Placebo Effect. Traditional medicine has always recognized the power of Placebos as a healing agent. And the pharmaceutical industry uses placebos as the foundation of its multi-billion dollar drug industry. But the rise of alternative medicine and integrative medicine is changing the way the medical community is practicing medicine. And there’s one thing the medical community has always known about Placebos –  Placebos are real, and powerful, and transformational – and, well, they work!!

We have been told that if a Placebo arrests a disease or illness, it must be that the disease was “all in the mind” to begin with. We are led to believe the disease wasn’t real. We are told there’s no way we can be healed without expensive medical interventions. But there’s one thing to understand about the power of believing. It’s an inside-out process. We know that thoughts underwrite our reality. The power of the universe is localized in our consciousness.

• We believe in the power of affirmative prayer.
• We believe in the power of positive affirmations.
• We believe in the power of visualizing health, wealth, and happiness.
• We believe in affirming the highest and best. We Unitics believe in the power of mind over molecules.

Prayer, faith, positive affirmations, visualization, healing touch, meditation, and denying the power of outer appearances are all powerful Placebos. And they work because they are the out-picturing of our consciousness!

By the way, the word ‘placebo’ can be traced back to the 14^th C when it was used in vesper services. It derives from the Latin translation which was a mistranslation of Psalm 116:9, “Placebo domino in regione vivorum,” which means, “I will please the Lord in the land of the living.”

Metaphysically, ‘please’ means ‘to apply,’ and ‘Lord’ means ‘Mind’ and ‘the land of the living’ means ‘for the sake of the body.’ So, metaphysically interpreted, Psalm 116:9 reads: “I will apply  mind power for the sake of the body.

So, you see, we don’t have to please a God ‘out there.’ We are not separated from God at all. We are God expressing at the point of us. We are the architects of placebo power!

In the Foreword to Drs.’ Rick Hanson and Richard Mendius’ groundbreaking book, Buddha’s Brain: The Neuroscience of Happiness, Love and Wisdom, Dr. Daniel Siegel has this to say about the power of the spoken word:

“The simple truth is that how we focus our attention, how we intentionally direct the flow of energy and information, and the way we communicate alters the very circuitry of our brain.”

Neuroscience has proven beyond a doubt that even fleeting thoughts and feelings can leave lasting impressions on our brain. When you add the amperage of the spoken word as a vocal expression of those thoughts and feelings you literally change the neural structure of the brain. Positive thoughts and affirmations are not only essential for spiritual growth but they are necessary ingredients for emotional and physical wellbeing and for rewiring the brain.

We’ve all read the techniques for writing and repeating affirmations — but we’d like to stretch your spiritual thinking to a whole new level by suggesting a contrarian type of affirmation statement. It goes against the rules, but our experience with it has been incredible!

First, let’s clarify what we mean by SHOOT from the Lip. SHOOT is an acronym, standing for: Spiritually Honoring Only One Truth! Every affirmation must be grounded in the Truth of No Separation. We are the physical expressions of One God, Omnipotent, Omnipresent, Omniscient, and Omni-active. So here is a template that can literally transform the way you use affirmations in your life!

I have now transcended all patterns of ________________________________ (whatever the focus of your current experience is — this is your denial statement)

I’m free and _____________________________________________________ (statement of the end result, grounded in Truth Principles, which you are affirming)

My mind and body now manifest Divine _______________________________ (essence of the power of your affirmation desire)

I _______________________________________________________________ (statement of action – what you are doing that reflects the essence of your focus area)

I _______________________________________________________________ (follow-up statement of action, along with the benefit of performing the action)

 I give thanks for ever increasing ______________________________________ (statement of the beneficial results)

I am a radiant expression of God! (final affirmation of the Truth of who you are!)

Here are a few examples:

Prosperity:

Confidence:

Now … are you ready for a mega-boost in Consciousness?  As we focused on our SHOOT acronym: Spiritually Honoring Only One Truth, we had a Divine Idea that energetically boosts everything to a whole new level! If the “ONE TRUTH” is that there is no separation and our ultimate purpose is to be the best Christ we can be—and if we are striving to be in 100% alignment between our Christ Self and our human self, then why not go for the whole enchilada? Instead of separating out each area of our life we want to work on, why not use this template to affirm the Absolute, All-encompassing Truth of who we are? So here’s a first “shot” of our Mega-Boost SHOOT from the Lip:

This may be a little too “out there” for now – so feel free to start with the separate, specific areas you want to deal with. Wherever you are in Consciousness, this template can help you create a dynamic, power-packed affirmation that is Truth centered. Never forget that you are God expressing, and you can do everything Jesus as the Christ did … and more! He told us that! When you truly believe it, and make a habit of Shooting from the Lip … Spiritually Honoring Only One Truth with everything you say, you really can walk the spiritual path on practical feet!

You can’t drive anywhere these days without running into 10 inch ‘billboards’ called bumper stickers. A growing number of people are advertising their personal, political, and religious preferences on their bumpers.

In researching this blogcast we came across a story of a Unity motorist who was waiting at a stoplight when he noticed a car with the “Honk If You Love Jesus” sticker on the rear bumper. He thought to himself, “Well, I love the Jesus quality in all of us. Why not give my horn a few beeps.” So he did.

 The woman who was driving the car in front of him rolled down her window and cursed at him, shouting “Are you blind? Can’t you see the light is red!”

So much for honking your horn if you love Jesus. And so much for advertising something you’re not living up to.

Bumper stickers were invented shortly after the end of World War II by Forest P. Gill, a silk screen printer from Kansas City. Gill combined two existing products: fluorescent ink and pressure sensitive adhesive. The result was a bright, self-sticking paper sign that could be attached to a car bumper. At first bumper stickers were used in political campaigns, but people saw their potential and quickly expanded their use. Conservatives came up with ones like: “America, Love It or Leave It” and “Support Your Local Fire Dept.” The National Rifle Association members put “Preserve the Right to Bear Arms” on their cars.  This led to one of the first humorous bumper stickers by animal rights activists, which said “Preserve the Right to Arm Bears.” A couple of stickers we took an immediate liking to are: “Caution, Driver Under the Influence of Children” and “Midwives help people out!”

During the era of persecution by the Romans 2,000 years ago, the fish was used among Christians as a secret symbol. If two strangers met and were unsure whether the other was a Christian, one would draw an arc in the dirt. If the other were a Christian, he or she would complete the symbol with a reverse arc forming the outline of a fish.

Today this fish symbol is commonly seen in the form of a bumper sticker, or casting, mounted on the back of cars. This has inspired believers in evolution to create a fish with the word “DARWIN” in the middle, and little legs underneath.

This has been met with a Christian rejoiner: the Darwin fish with feet encountering a much larger open-mouthed Christian fish about to eat it. The caption reads: “Survival of the Fittest.” Fundamental Christians are suggesting their belief in the Bible will outlast the belief in evolution. Apparently tired of all this bickering, someone has come out with a bumper sticker that shows a Christian fish kissing a Darwin fish. (We’re smiling too).

Fundamental religious groups have created a sticker based on a famous line from one of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s movies. The bumper sticker reads “I’ll be back—God.” A more liberal approach to the same topic is the sticker that says “God IS coming back soon—and SHE’s …” you fill in the blank.

Even existentialists have their own bumper sticker. It reads: “What If the Hokey Pokey Really IS What It’s All About?”

Another conservative Christian bumper sticker says, “Born Again.” According to fundamentalists, the first birth is our physical birth and the second birth is a spiritual birth that supposedly takes place when people accept Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior. This commitment supposedly frees the believer from the original sin of Adam and Eve. A liberal religious response to the “Born Again” slogan is one we particularly like. It says “Born OK the First Time” which suggests that we are born good, and not sinners. It supports our belief in Original Blessing and not original sin.

Two more we particularly like are, “God Is Too Big to Fit Inside One Religion”  and “My Karma Ran Over Your Dogma.”

It is amazing how eye opening, educational, and controversial sound bytes on a ten inch strip of paper can be! They’re extremely effective communication tools. However, the most powerful and effective bumper sticker is, and always will be, the one you wear on your sleeve, on the tip of your tongue, and from the bottom of your heart. It’s a bumper sticker you wear 24 – 7 – 365. It doesn’t come with fluorescent ink or pressure sensitive adhesive. It comes with skin, and a personality, and a spiritual perspective. These bumper stickers are one of a kind. They come in different shapes, and sizes, and colors, and temperaments.

These bumper stickers either adhere to truth principles or stick to false surfaces. These bumper stickers are you and me. They are the image we project to the world through our words, choices, and actions.

Questions to ask ourselves are:

• Are we good role models for truth?
• Are we good advertisements for the Christ Presence within us?
• Are we marques bytes for spiritual growth, for equality, for world peace, for environmental stewardship?

If someone asked you to sum up your theology on a bumper sticker, what would your sticker say?

We have several. As a matter of fact, seven stickers pretty much sum up our  theology:

• The first would say: Let Your Christ Light Sparkle.
• Another one would say: Faith It Till You Make It.
• Another: I Don’t Do Dogma. (Another version — We do DOGMA backwards: AM GOD)
• Another: Walk the Spiritual Path on Practical Feet.
• Another: We Are the Christ Expressing at the Point of Us.
• Another: Meditation Is Medication.
• And finally: Be the Best Christ You Can Be.

network of mutuality, tied into a single garment of destiny.”

Every time we pledge our time, our talents, and our money to this church we are going back to the future. Back to the pioneering contributors who made Unity Village a reality. The penny that began what we know as Unity Village made it possible for us to meet there today because this church is an extension of that mustard seed of faith.

The Unity Spiritual Life Center is here by divine right! We open these doors because Charles and Myrtle Fillmore opened doors. We pray to the God of our understanding because our co-founders prayed to the God of their understanding. We let our light shine because the Fillmore’s let their light shine. We have the privilege and responsibility of helping people understand that the Kingdom of God is within. The Fillmore’s believed it, and they believed it because Jesus the Christ taught it. And He taught it because it is true.

Inscribed on today’s pennies are the words: “In God We Trust” and trusting in God is a fundamental aspect of our truth walks. Whether it’s common sense or our sixth sense, it just makes perfect sense to trust the Omnipresence, Omnipotence, and Omniscience of a loving God. That insight will keep us on the right path.

Drs. Bil & Cher Holton are Spiritual Leaders at Unity Spiritual Life Center in Durham, NC, where they practice positive, practical, progressive Christianity. Visit their website at Unity Spiritual Life Center and sign up to receive a complimentary 4-week e-course.

Just for kicks; we did a little Google search as we were preparing this article. We searched the phrase “Flu Bug” – In .18 seconds, there were 1,430,000 hits! There were multiple interpretations-Even “Flu Bugs of the Zodiac” which provided information about how each of the zodiac signs handles the flu! But guess what? When we googled the phrase “Love Bug,” we were inundated with 30,700,000 hits in .15 seconds! The obvious favorite! Unfortunately, a lot of those hits had to do with the bugs, not the emotion! And the phrase “Love Bug of Truth” got zero!! (Until we get this article on our blog!)

The Love Bug of Truth is the one bug we WANT to catch and spread to others! And just as that pesky flu bug has a list of symptoms, guess what? The Love Bug of Truth has THREE symptoms too! Your adventure this week is to see how many of these symptoms you feel and how you can keep those symptoms flowing! They will be simple to remember just remember the word BUG!

B=BELIEF:
When you are bitten by the Love Bug of Truth, you experience a strengthening of Belief. Belief is the difference between living life in HOPE of something, and KNOWING that you know that you know. Belief actually affects your sense of inner peace. When you know Truth, from the depths of your being, you can move through any situation with calmness and assurance.

Example: There is an interesting observation we’ve made in the field of professional speaking, which we’ve done since 1984. It is a cyclical business It doesn’t really matter how fabulous you might be, the speaking business has definite ups and downs, and fairly predictable cycles. When you’re just starting out, and hit a down time, you panic, worry, and run around trying to force results. No matter what anyone tells you, you think the world is coming to an end, you’re finished, and you’ll have to actually return to that “real world” of work!” Once you’ve been around that block a few times, you recognize the cycle, and you live from that knowing that you don’t need to panic. Instead, you take advantage of that down time to rest, take care of yourself, and work on new material or marketing tactics. Then, when the up cycle comes around again, you can enter it refreshed and ready to dazzle with your new stuff. Meanwhile, the newbie enters the up market exhausted from all the needless worry! Those who don’t learn and know won’t succeed in the business!

The same principle is true in our Spiritual life. When you hit a drought in your prosperity flow, or run into challenges with health, career, relationships, whatever Stand on the foundation of BELIEF, and don’t allow yourself to fall into doubting the Principles. Instead of doubting principles, this is when you get busy USING them!

When you feel yourself facing a challenge from that place of BELIEF, you can be sure you’ve been bitten by the Love Bug of Truth!

U=UNDERSTANDING:
When you are bitten by the Love Bug of Truth, you sense an “inner click” of Understanding. Understanding is the difference between acting a certain way because someone said you should be doing it, and doing it because you “get it!” It is that A-ha that hits you when you smash through a Truth barrier.

Here’s an example to help explain what we mean. We saw it as we watched our grandson playing with one of his toys. It is this big block that has shapes cut into it. There are a lot of plastic blocks cut into the same shapes, and our grandson is supposed to figure out how to drop the right shape into the hole of the same shape. And every now and then, by accident, he hit it right – and it’s exciting! But the awesome time came when he realized how he did it and was able to replicate it over and over! It’s that a-ha!

Consider the practices we have as we live our Truth principles. How many times do we do stuff because someone said we should for example affirmations? We worry: “Am I saying it correctly? Did I use the perfect words? Is there enough energy behind it?” But when our affirmations are grounded in Truth, we understand that they always work! We UNDERSTAND that things don’t become true because we affirm them We affirm them because they are Truth!

When you feel that inner click that says “I get it!” that click of Understanding, you can be sure you’ve been bitten by the Love Bug of Truth!

G=GRATITUDE:

When you are bitten by the Love Bug of Truth, you live life from an attitude of Gratitude. Living in Gratitude is the difference between allowing outer circumstances to determine our emotional state and choosing to live from a place of gratitude no matter what is going on.

For example: How many people do you know who gripe about how their vacations were ruined because of the weather? Personally, we have this one pretty well down! Since way back years ago, we started making a conscious decision to claim and set the intention that weather would never affect our enjoyment with our vacations! Now this doesn’t mean the weather will always be perfect on a vacation time. What it means is that we will not allow our emotional well-being be dependent on weather. And we have enjoyed every single vacation we’ve ever had, regardless of the weather we’ve experienced!

So remember, Gratitude is an attitude, not an event! We develop it by choice. This week, when you open your eyes in the morning, just take a moment to affirm “I greet this day with gratitude and joy!” Throughout the day, if you happen to feel yourself dreading something you need to do, pause a moment and repeat, “I am God in action! I do what I need to do with gratitude and joy! In all things, I give thanks!”

When you feel yourself facing a challenge from a deep place of Belief, when you experience that inner click of Understanding, and when you realize you are living every moment of every day from an attitude of Gratitude, you are experiencing the BUG symptoms – and you can be sure you’ve been bitten by the Love Bug of Truth! Pass it on!

Drs. Bil & Cher Holton are Spiritual Leaders at Unity Spiritual Life Center in Durham, NC, where they practice positive, practical, progressive Christianity. Visit their website at Unity Spiritual Life Center and sign up to receive a complimentary 4-week e-course.

Did you know that WORRY was an acronym? It honestly is. It stands for When Our Rationalizations Really Yodel!!! Just consider — when we think of a yodel, we think of an echoing, meaningless refrain, repeating in varying vocal levels. That’s very similar to what worry does in our Consciousness! We value what Leo Buscaglia says about worry: “Worry never robs tomorrow of its sorrow. It only saps today of its joy!”

Consider these interesting statistics on worry:

• 40% are about future things that never occur;
• 30% concern past decisions which cannot be altered;
• 12% center in what others are thinking about us;
• 10% (which seems low to us) focus on our health, which only get worse when we worry;
• 8% are legitimate, demonstrating that life does have real problems which may be met head on when we’ve eliminated senseless worries!

So how can we move from worrier to warrior? Here’s a quick 3-step formula that results in the transformation!

Step 1: Realize you are worrying! You can’t transform something until you recognize it for what it is. This means you must become aware of your worry signals. Learn to pay attention to your thoughts. Do regular heart checks to recognize how you are feeling emotionally. Your body will let you know when you are worrying instead of acting.

Once you realize you are in the midst of being a worrywart, do not beat yourself up!! Simply acknowledge the fact, then move on to step 2.

Step 2: Release the Worry! We admit it! This sounds (easier|simpler than it is! But let us give you a couple of great techniques:

• Worry Jar: Worry preys on our mind, and prevents us from doing what needs to be done for our growth and development. So we recommend the Worry Jar. Here’s how it works: Find a jar, pitcher, coffee can or other suitable container that has a lid. Label it as your Worry Jar. We invite you to decorate the jar any way you choose. Select a designated worry time (DWT). This should be the same time every week (for example, Friday night at ten o’clock.) Place your Worry Jar in a conspicuous place and then move on with life as normal.
  Throughout the week, every time you find yourself fretting over something – stop! Take a piece of paper and a writing instrument, jot down your worry, fold the slip of paper and place it in your Worry Jar. Remind yourself not to worry about whatever is worrying you until your DWT. When it’s time to worry, according to your DWT plan, open the jar and read the worrisome entries. Some of the things you may have worried so loyally about are history and no longer relevant. Gloat over them before you throw them in the trash. Other issues will be pending issues, so go ahead-worry about them for a few minutes. You will discover it is difficult to worry on demand! You may even chuckle a little. Once you’ve worried sufficiently over your current issues, refold them and redeposit them in the jar, where they’ll be ready for next week’s DWT.
• Meditation: This is the most critical technique. Once you’ve been through the Worry Jar, allow 20 minutes in the Silence, affirming Divine Substance is bringing you everything you need to resolve them, and you are open and receptive! This is the very best way to gain a sense of inner peace, where worry cannot exist.

Now comes Step 3: Replace It! We all know that Nature abhors a vacuum. When you release worry, you have created a void, and it must be filled. Otherwise, worry will quickly show up again and make a home there (and bring some close friends, like Fear and Panic and Depression, to party with). So make time to consciously replace your worry with something positive. For example, you may want to create a few positive core affirmations that you can repeat over and over, like: Centered in my Oneness with God, I am at peace. Or: I am one with God, and I am Rich, Healthy, Happy and at Peace in all areas of my life NOW!

Look at the issue causing you worry, and ask this question: Is there anything at all I can do about this right now? If the answer is no, then you may as well stop worrying, because it is a useless emotion! If you decide the answer is yes, then you may as well stop worrying, and take the actions to do what you can do about it! Either way — stop yodeling and start being a warrior. Oh –did we mention that warrior is also an acronym? It stands for:

When All Responses Reflect Infinite Omnipotent Reality!

In his book, The Wisdom of the Peaceful Warrior, Dan Millman says of Peaceful Warriors, “We don’t live in an ashram or a commune or seclude ourselves in the mountains. But our values, priorities, and sensibilities are likely different from those of many of our neighbors. It’s nothing special just a certain awareness, a lightness, an orientation toward service, and an expanded perspective born of inner work and life experience. And perhaps we display a little less fear, less worry, less resistance.”

So how do we sum it all up? There is a wonderful Chinese drawing that really holds the secret to it all. It shows two people sharing a pot of tea, and the ancient Chinese writing, loosely translated, says, “Enjoy today Worry tomorrow.” By following this advice every day, you will never have a worry!

You have such incredible power within, to transcend all worry and live the life of a Warrior, journeying this Spiritual Path with joy and gusto! You just need to practice the formula of:

• Recognizing Worry;
• Releasing Worry; and
• Replacing Worry!

Another great philosopher said it in his own unique way ~ Bobby McFerrin: Don’t Worry, Be Happy!

or illness, or fear to affect you. (There is no lack in my world. OR This perceived illness has no power over me.)

The denials we are talking about do not mean the same thing as the psychological term “in denial.” According to Webster, to deny means to declare to be not true; to declare as utterly false. Denials are our ability to put our error thoughts in their proper place. Denials are a way of talking back, refusing to give power to something ‘outside’ of us that seems controlling or restrictive.

Reprogram :

A denial without an affirmation is a very dangerous thing! So we must fill the vacuum created by denials with powerful affirmations what we know to be truth. In the Gospel of Luke 11:24-26, Jesus tells the parable of the man who was cleansed of an evil spirit. However, the spirit returned, finding the “house” swept clean, and so it moved back in, with seven of its buddies, more wicked than he. This reminds us of how important it is to reaffirm our beliefs and reprogram our thinking, by following up denials with powerful affirmations!

According to Emilie Cady, in Lessons in Truth, “to affirm anything is to assert positively that it is so, even in the face of all contrary evidence… Deny the appearance of evil; affirm good. Deny weakness; affirm strength. Deny any undesirable condition, and affirm the good you desire.”

The key is to affirm with power – with faith! When you use a Definitely Maybe approach, you are simply wishing. When you affirm from the strength of your Christ consciousness, you are speaking with a voice of faith and strength!

Our granddaughter graduated from Daisies – the pre-Brownies group. As a graduation gift, the leaders gave each girl a little book filled with pictures capturing the events they had participated in. We were struck by one of the pictures. The girls were lying on the ground, in front of a fire truck. The words above the photo were “Stop, Drop, Roll.” Our granddaughter explained that it was a phrase the firefighters used to tell us how to handle ourselves if we ever get caught in fire.

It really connected with us and so we applied it to the 3 R’s: STOP – Recognize the maybe’s that dilute your spiritual growth and happiness; DROP – Release error thinking and behaviors by denying their power; and ROLL – Reaffirm the transformative power of the beliefs, the Truths, of spiritual principles! Put the 3 R’s into practice so you take the Maybe out of Definitely.