My Own Set of Wings

About a month or so ago, I traveled back and forth from Winter Garden, Florida to Melbourne, Florida to attend a week of SEE (Spiritual Education and Enrichment) classes that were being held at Unity of Melbourne. For me, these classes are vital prerequisites prior to enrolling in ministerial school. A total of 250 class hours are needed and I'm mighty close to completing those. As God would have it, I had the money for these classes, as well as the financial wherewithal to pay for the crediting. (At Unity, SEE classes can be taken at any time by anyone but unless you pay to receive the credit, it is assumed you are merely auditing the course. These classes are NOT ministerial classes but for me they are required prior to enrolling in ministerial school).

Anyway, before I launch into my experience with the Christian Scripture class, aka the New Testament, let me tell you how God blessed me.

In my 12-step recovery program, I have a sponsor and her name is Karen. Karen is my third sponsor since coming into the program and this should come as no surprise to those of you who have followed my blog for any period of time. Apparently, I can be a bit of a hard-head, difficult, moody, stubborn. I hear you saying right now, "No, no, Linda, you are sweetness and light!" To which I would reply, "True, thank-you for appreciating my gentleness, kindness and loving nature." Whatever...I'm just so very grateful for Karen who seems to know how best to tackle...I mean handle me.

My sweet sponsor, Karen

In any event, just days before my hour and a half back and forth drive to Melbourne was to begin, I was wondering how gas money and toll money was going to show up. I promise you I wasn't the least bit worried about it because I had had my conversation with God about whose financial responsibility this whole thing was going to be...it wasn't going to be mine!!! Classes, books and crediting had been paid for by moi so the rest was on God.

I had a meeting with Karen on the Friday prior to classes beginning on Monday and she tells me this story about her walking in her neighborhood and finding a dollar bill on the sidewalk. When she arrived home after the walk, she unfolded it and saw that it was not a $1 bill but rather a $100 bill !!! She decided to gift it to me. When asked why she said, "Because I don't need it and you do." This folks, is grace, love in action. That $100 covered my gas and my tolls that week plus I had precisely $1 left over when the week was completed. I AM SO BLESSED!

Okay, so now to my meltdown in my class which was an overview of the New Testament. For those of you not familiar with Unity or New Thought, it is not what those of us are accustomed to who came from more fundamentalist teachings. New Thought has a more open belief system, allowing it's members to grow into a system of belief that works for them rather than a dogmatic hammering of what is believed corporately. Unity teaches a more positive approach to life and life's challenges. It believes that God is everywhere present and every religion is fulfilling the needs of specific groups of people. There is none that is right or wrong. Unity respects all religions.

Because I was deeply embedded in fundamental Biblical teachings, Unity's take on these same teachings was difficult for me. I could not just toss out decades of a belief system and embrace something new. In fact, there was nothing specific to embrace.  I sat in my chair feeling as though someone had pushed me out of an airplane without a parachute.  I appeared to be the only one in class who struggled. I cried through every class and though I was lovingly held and my questions and challenges were lovingly answered, I had quite a difficult time. My teacher said my tears were holy water and that I would soon experience a breakthrough. And a few weeks later and after MUCH study of biblical scholars, I have definitely experienced something. I now know that what was being taught mirrors hundreds of years of digging into archeological documents. The class has actually set me free, allowing me to explore for myself what my belief system is. I am so very excited to have this opening, to have wings to fly rather than being tied to someone else's parachute.

May you discover your own path. Blessings!!