God-possibilities

Photo by Lloyd Pentecost

Recently, I was very fortunate to catch Unity FM, where one of my very favorite teachers, Rev. Tom Thorpe, was discussing one of my very favorite authors, Eric Butterworth. It’s a great series, and I urge you to “stop by.” There were even clips of Butterworth’s lectures, and it was interesting to hear his human personality through his voice - quite different from the voice of his writings…

Eric Butterworth’s “Discover the Power Within You” was an immense inspiration to me very early in my spiritual journey, and I have enjoyed his other books as well. The recent segment, “Who do you think I am?” talked about the “Christ spirit within,” and how we approach this Allness that is so much a part of us from our often less-than-confident point of view.

The big takeaway for me was his statement, “Christ is the God-possibility within every person.”  Wow! That statement in itself frees us to reach for our greatest potential, does it not?  What is my God-possibility going to look like as I proceed through life?  What if knowing of my God-possibility inspires me to reach for great heights?  How can I best fulfill the expectations of my own Christ nature? 

Do I dare think that I can personally achieve such greatness?  Jesus did, and was. But I’m not Jesus!  What is my true potential? Its funny:  we look at ourselves with our perceived shortcomings, and fail to miss Jesus’ big message! That we will be able to do all that he did, and do greater! As Rev. Tom says, its one of the portions of the Gospels that is inconvenient to look at, and so we often don’t. Rather let Jesus be the only one with that huge role, right?

Sometimes we have to achieve greatness, even if we don’t think we’re capable. We are an expression of God, created in God’s image. What a shame to let it be wasted! 

Lets look at a poem by Marianne Williamson that captures our dilemma – and our strength:

Living from Greatness

Our deepest fear is not that we’re inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we’re powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?

Actually, who are you NOT to be?

You are a child of God.

Your playing small does not serve the world.

There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.

We are meant to shine, as children do.

We were born to make manifest the Glory of God that is within us.

Its not just in some of us, its in everyone.

And as we let our own light shine,

We unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

                                                                      Marianne Williamson