October 7, 2002

• The nature of the soul

• Child prodigies

You are joined by all guides: your own personal guides, guides of those whom you know and love, but you are also being accompanied in your journey through life by the guides of those whom you have never met and will not meet during your experience of human life. There is no reason to be arrogant by thinking that the efforts you are engaged in are such that all guides are drawn to you, but rather you should understand that all guides are a part of all efforts of like individuals seeking insight, seeking a vision, an understanding, a broader faith, a deeper commitment to humanity.

We have used the analogy of the sea and the drop of water within it frequently. Consider for a moment that a drop of water is indeed surrounded not only by the entire ocean but all that has been created—the stars and planets and galaxies, the universe. The drop is a part of all. Each of you is also a part of everything. You are surrounded by everything. You do not have to be the center to be surrounded. A drop of water anywhere on earth is surrounded by all the water on earth. It makes no difference where. It belongs to the totality of the oceans.

And so it is that your soul belongs to the totality of all souls. You are in no way separated from that totality. You are not off in a corner, as it were. When you open yourselves to spiritual awareness, you are then connected to everything that is spiritual ,and through that connection you are able to learn from everything that is spiritual. Your souls belong to a gigantic network that is characterized fundamentally as a network of unconditional love. You function within an ocean of love. You are a part of that ocean of love. Move where you may…you never cease to belong.

When you meet together to contemplate God in your lives, you are connected to all guides. It is this collection of spiritual entities that helps to comprise God’s presence on earth. We say “it helps to comprise.” It is not the entire identity that you call God on earth. What is missing? It is you, each of you. All of humanity is a part of God’s presence. Each of you has a role to play. Some of you contribute in meaningful, productive, affirming ways. Others function more as barriers to overcome, but in overcoming barriers, the power of the spirit expands. Therefore there is even benefit from such barriers, for the totality is strengthened and justice, unconditional love, compassion, humility are increased.

You wonder about the nature of the soul. It is a question that is asked by all who acknowledge a belief in a supreme being that impacts your lives. Your soul is not defined by borders. It is identified by its impact. You as human beings have clear borders, physical characteristics which separate you from life around you. The soul does not have physical characteristics, physical limitations. One cannot define the soul by saying it is only in place A and never in place B.

Your soul can only be defined as a presence which is manifest in some manner. It may be in behavior. It may be manifest in emotions or insight. It is manifest through acts of love, of generosity, of compassion, of healing, of listening, of being there. This is the real manifestation of soul, of spirit. Just as ultimately you are valued not for what you say but for how you live, the soul is not given characteristics on the basis of size or shape, but on the basis of its manifestation through your lives. You, each of you, give purpose and intent to the soul.

The soul contains enormous potential. The soul carries great capacity for love. But how is that capacity realized? How is it fulfilled? How is it given purpose? It is through the way each individual lives life. A soul connected to a life that is totally unaware of its presence cannot grow as fully and as consequentially as a soul associated with an individual who is acutely aware of its presence. When you are fully aware of the presence of your soul, you cannot act with hatred or jealousy, impatience, or animosity. It is not possible.

All that is needed for the soul to develop and take on greater characteristics is merely your acknowledgment of its existence, of its importance. You do not have to do something to deserve an awareness of your soul. Simply being aware that your soul exists means that your actions become guided, are given direction, through that awareness. You do not see the soul but you see its effect. Some see an aura. The aura is a visible manifestation of something that is invisible. You feel a pressure, perhaps. That pressure, a physical pressure at some point in the body, can be a manifestation of the presence of the soul. You may be given an understanding of its location, for that helps to channel your connection to the soul. But the soul has, in fact, no specific location because it has no limits in that it cannot be drawn, and yet one can be fully aware of its existence.

You can smell smoke. The smoke is comprised of infinite particles as the result of something that is burning. It may not be a huge flame but there is some combustion that is present. You may not see the flame, you may not see the combustion, you may not fully be aware of its source, but you are aware of its manifestation. You are aware of indicators of its existence. You don’t see the wind, but on a foggy day you can see the fog move because the air moves. You can see smoke move because the air moves. You can feel the wind in your face but the actual force that is the wind, the differences in air pressure, are not seen. They can be measured, a description can be given that is scientifically correct, but you still do not see the wind. It is all a manifestation of something still deeper.

It is exactly the same with your soul. There are many manifestations of the soul. Channeling is only one. For others it is poetry, music. For others it is painting or drama or an excitement about ideas. That can also be a manifestation of the soul. New inventions, new concepts, new ways of thinking are all manifestations of the soul. Certainly the brain is involved in creating these manifestations, but the source is still the soul.

Why is an individual especially gifted in the arts at an unbelievably, uncommonly young age while others of advanced years never seem to find their satisfying goals in the arts? How does someone so young, for example, play the cello so beautifully at an age of six or seven or eight? It is impossible to explain that in terms of schooling or training, being a student of that instrument for such a long time. It defies an explanation. Such early and profound gifts are a manifestation of the soul. One achieves those levels of development through many years, as you would measure them. Remember the soul has no age. Remember the soul is associated with human life numerous times. There is experience, there is development, there is depth related to the soul that is unrelated directly to the observation of the individual to which the soul is attached. The soul is old, if you wish to identify it as such. The individual is yet young. New inventions, new ideas, new concepts do not occur spontaneously. They are the result of something…again, the manifestation of the soul from the spiritual to the conscious level.

Channeling is difficult for many to understand. It defies logic because it does not originate with the individual. It is a manifestation of the soul. It is an indication of the presence of spirit, the presence of the soul. The soul is not the message. The soul is not the work of art or piece of music or new idea. But it is through the soul that such events evolve.

You can understand biologically your own life development, but you must always return to the question of how the system of life began. You are given life, not as a biologic accident or event. You are given life intentionally. You are living because God ordains your life through the presence of spirit. You live for your soul. You live so that you may give evidence of the soul. You live so that the soul can experience what needs to be experienced in order to grow. Your human experiences are vital to the evolution of your soul.

There is no question of the existence of the soul. There are those who wish to bring into question that existence. But questioning it does not in itself bring into uncertainty the reality of your soul. Your soul exists. There is nothing you can do to deny that existence. You can choose not to recognize it. You can choose not to listen to it. But such choices do not change the reality of that soul. Only your connection to it, beneficially, is hampered.

Your soul is a great reservoir, for it takes your life’s experiences and molds them into a life that is far greater than the sum of those experiences. You are multiplied by your soul. When you commit acts that are godly, your soul is magnified far beyond those acts. The benefit of the soul is that it takes what is good that it receives from you and radiates that goodness far beyond your own limited capabilities. It expands the good that it experiences. You are the housing for your soul, but you are also its creator in that you create the good that the soul then transforms into yet wider circles. You are the castle for the soul. You nurture it and you benefit because of the greater love that the soul emanates in comparison with the love that you provide, and therefore your presence, for each of you, is increased.

Love expands constantly. It is not a constant that remains unchanged. It grows, it widens, it deepens. That growth is not coming directly from you. It is the result of what you have begun. You are essential to the soul and the soul is essential for widening that love, that commitment, unselfishly to one another. Your life then can be viewed in its entirety as a manifestation of your spirit, of your soul, of your divine spark. Soul, therefore, is not unique. It is not something which just develops on its own. It is as dependent upon you for growth as you are dependent upon it for your growth.

We say you are with all guides. Of course, it is meant that you are with all souls. You are part of a continuum. You’re nurtured, you’re strengthened, as you nurture and strengthen. When you pray for your guides, we are strengthened, but you in turn receive even greater strength because of the power of your soul within to expand.

Human life is complex. Human actions are filled with challenges and frustrations. But each of you must remember this connectedness of all souls. You are part of an enormous, single unity, a spiritual network. All that each of you does in the name of another person, not just yourselves, benefits in turn everyone. You can make a difference. You can increase understanding and compassion. Reach out to one another. Acknowledge the common bond that is this spiritual unity. Feel yourself surrounded by all that is good. Feel yourself surrounded by all that is godly, and you will live a life without fear. Fear is living alone. Fear is feeling in isolation because you feel separated from what is safe, what is good, what is nurturing, what is affirming. But you are in that environment, and consequently each of you can work to eliminate great fear. Live with compassion but not fear. Live with love…there can be no hate.

All guides surround you with the loving protection and presence of God.

Amen.