It was three years ago, this month, that I came to present a workshop at Unity of Sedona, as part of my annual tour to Sedona. At the time that I was first asked if I would be interested in serving here as the “Spiritual Leader.” And although, it was a huge unlikelihood (based on my pre-scheduled life). I have to say that I was taken by the sincerity behind the requests and by the excitement that was generated as soon as the word got out. It was clear that this was a Divinely Inspired idea. And since that time, so much has changed in my life and at Unity of Sedona.
Most of you have probably heard me say that all relationships can go through three stages… And although most people only make it to the second stage of relationship, I want to thank those of you who made it through to the third stage with us at Unity.
Many of us at Unity have gone through the euphoric times of the first stage of relationship–mainly during my first year here. Then some of us have been courageous and evolved enough to go through the second stage of relationship. We usually feel the temptation to doubt the goodness and authenticity of such powerful relationships–yet without succumbing to such doubts. This was mostly felt during my second year here.
And although this second stage is quite normal for any relationship, we can see who is/was truly authentic and spiritually evolved by seeing who is/was most able to push through any periods of doubt and emerge into the third stage of relationship.
When we move to the third stage of a relationship, it’s a more mature experience with a more authentic love and respect for one another–rarely attained by most people because this stage takes such high levels of responsibility. This began roughly when I started my third year here in Sedona.
It is partly due to the high level of love and respect that we share at Unity that helped me to recognize that we’ve made it to this third stage of relationship–a holy relationship. But our recent Beltane Festival and our Summer Solstice Festival have shown me the manifestation of the incredible spirit of joy and celebration that we have created. I know that there are people in this town who continue to express their jealousy and gossip toward us. As long as we focus on remaining connected to God and sharing love and respect for one another, we are demonstrating to others how to truly live the Christ life on earth.
A Course in Miracles refers to this stage (the third stage of relationship) as a holy and healed relationship. And, I am thanking all of you who have made it to this place with us because it’s rare. We should all thank and honor those who can make it there with us. I am also thanking all of you because Christ tells us that reaching the stage of having holy relationships is simply the most important thing on earth–not to mention that it’s the only reason we are here.