1995-09-01-Appreciation in Life

Session

Opening

Daniel(TR #1): "Greetings my friends, I am Daniel, your guide and teacher. Tomas and I welcome you on this evening. We have thoroughly enjoyed your thoughts and your companionship.

Lesson

The mode for continual growth is very much the workings of your Indwelling Spirit and your willingness to allow the growth to continue. You have demonstrated time and again your wanting and desiring to know, your wanting and desiring to ascertain greater knowledge and through this you have been at that place where you must look at your own nature, your own ways. You must take stock of your values, your morals, your actions.

When one continues to be in the framework of God-consciousness one naturally displays those attributes which are righteous, which are growth promoting. You have all been participants in this growth. It has been a challenge for many even more so. Each of you have been placed in that situation where you have, through your desire to continue to allow the will of the Father to lead you, been forced to lay aside, to strive to change a personal trait, characteristic, behavior or habit.

For this striving, this work, you have realized a change in relationships in all areas: work, recreation, spiritual outlets, in your relations with peoples you come in contact with, in all phases of your life. You have grown into a person who is most appreciative of the understanding gleaned and you are at that point where this appreciation is bringing you into a level that will put you in closer contact with others, that is, by your actions you will be a harbinger of love. Tomas and I wish to address you this evening regarding that aspect of appreciation.

Appreciation

Appreciation is not an innate characteristic but is one that develops and is progressive. It is one that not all mortals are able to fully develop during their lifetimes. Certainly you understand that the infant is aware of caretakers, that the infant and the toddler go to these caretakers to have their needs met. But it is only as the child grows in their understanding that they develop a sense of appreciation for what has been given by the caretaker. This is the method by which humans grow in appreciation, by steadily becoming more self aware.

As you become knowledgeable about who you are, you instinctively realize the importance of others around you and through this realization there develops a greater sense of appreciating each individual for who and what they are and you begin to appreciate all the understandings that arise in a relationship. You furthermore begin to appreciate people and things for the benefit that you derive from them.

There is a real dividing line between appreciation and genuine gratitude and that of the ego wanting and desiring only those things that benefit him. Appreciation is underlined and supported by the essence of love. For those of you who genuinely appreciate something feel inwardly a connection to that which is appreciated. You appreciate because it is a gift not because you demand. Because you are given something you genuinely come from an inner space that transcends the gift itself. This is appreciation on a human level.

It is much the same on a spiritual level. Think back, if you will, to your younger days, to the times when you thanked God, but did it out of fear of what the repercussions could be if you did not give thanks. Those who are in the ascending career of God-consciousness thank God from a genuine appreciation for what they have been given.

And so the point of this lesson is to ask you to look into your lives and realize what appreciation means to you for you will undoubtedly know that you are moving into a higher realm in your understanding of the overcare and generosity of the First Source and Center. Spiritually you will grow in a mode of such appreciation as it is one aspect that is a part of worship. And with these remarks Tomas is ready to speak."

Tomas(TR #2): "Good evening friends and companions. I am glad to once again be in this company and to participate in the format which has been given to us. I have appreciated Daniel's wisdom in his presentation this evening and I would ask you now to appreciate your status as caretakers of those who are now responding to your light.

Your light burns steadily and is no longer hidden under a bushel. Your efforts have contributed to this steady illumination in our venture into social fragrance. Always appreciate that your status is as a result of your efforts as Daniel has stated, but now your growth asks you to appreciate the growth of those who have not been benefited by your steady ascension.

There is a responsibility in radiating light. It is not wise to blind your fellows and expect your light to shine steadily as they enter into these realms of soul searching and development. Appreciate the level of understanding of your friends and appreciate that it takes time to develop what you have attained. Never overlook your responsibility to your younger siblings. One moment, I am going to cut this TR loose."

(pause)

Daniel(TR #1): "My friends, I am Daniel. The ability to maintain focus is difficult for the TRs this evening. Please bear with us.

It is always important that you help your brothers and sisters on their pathway by shouldering them through your example. When you are ever vigilant about being thankful and expressing thanks and gratitude your brothers and sisters will take note, and in this process you plant seeds that will in time help them to appreciate, love and be grateful in the higher sense, not just out of niceness or manners but out of genuine love coming from within. As was stated earlier, this aspect of knowing how to appreciate must be developmental and requires practice in many areas. For in the practicing, at some point, the individual will come to terms in the reality of knowing what they are saying. There will come the time when they say,`thank you' and they truly come from within. At that point their appreciation and thankfulness goes from a lower level to a higher level where their further appreciation in life will take on greater and greater depth. They will not be shallow meaningless words but will be something that comes from the depths of what they are feeling and what they know.

As you continue to appreciate each individual you meet you will grow to love them more. It is not conceivable that you can at this point in time appreciate everyone on this planet except in a global consciousness of them being a part of the creation of the First Source and Center and that by being such a creation they are endowed, as you are, with that Spark from our Parent. And so while you, yourselves, are continuing to grow in appreciation while you cannot encompass all do strive to meet those whom you come into contact with on a level that transcends mere politeness, on a level which invites you to look into their eyes and understand and realize that the First Source and Center is working, is a part of their being. In this manner you can then appreciate them for where they are. And with that as your second assignment this forum is now open for questions."

Dialogue

Isaac: "Daniel and Tomas, this is Isaac. I want to thank you for your words tonight. In particular what you have discussed is something that I realize has been my experience to a greater and greater extent, that my life in the last few years has been characterized by more and more appreciation of all the goodness that comes forth from God the Father, from Michael's creation, from companionship with you teachers, from the ever expanding knowledge of the overcare of everything and our place as brothers and sisters and sons and daughters in this wonderful universe. And this morning as I was driving along the road I was aware that I really am more and more beginning to realize that people are my brothers and sisters. Even though I get lost in the details of the time press whenever I am able to reflect for a moment or can expand my horizons I snap back into that awareness. So what you said has proven true for me, certainly. I like also the fact that you said that appreciation and gratitude is part of worship. So that is very encouraging. Worship is difficult to get a handle on for me.

Dissemination

And the last thing I want to comment on and maybe there is a question has to do with this sharing with our brothers and sisters. Tomas you said not to blind them. Sometimes when I am in other social contexts where I have a chance to share things, sometimes at a formal meeting or sometimes at my job I struggle with this. Am I dumping too much? Am I being understood? It's a difficult thing to know how to share that. As I was joking earlier this evening it is difficult to talk about hearing things in your head and talking with invisible people because this is regarded by most people as sure evidence of insanity. You know all these issues. My question is, beyond seeking inner guidance and using the best judgment you can is there anything else that I don't know about that I could be advised on that would assist in this business of sharing the reality that I know and experience? I guess that's it. Thank you."

Tomas(TR #1):: "Yes, Isaac, I will be glad to address that for you.

The aspect of knowing when and how to present truth is always one that has been predominant for all missionaries, all apostles. The correct thing must be this. You must live what you believe and in living what you believe you are then planting those seeds. If you will strive each day to work more towards this end you will be able to reach more than you realize. It may be subtle, but that is what I have spoken about. Those who are overzealous tend to turn people away. It is the unsung hero, so to speak, the person who is always there when a friend is needed, the person who gives joy, who has a positive remark to make. It is the person who sees a job and does it without being asked. These are the ways that the Spirit moves to help you bring forth that which is good, that which is truth, that which is beauty. It is through your actions, then, that you will reach the most.

However there are also times when it is necessary for you to verbalize. This is where that Inner Guide and that constant inner action through the stillness between you and the Source will guide you the most. And the words that you so know and so believe will come easily.

The other aspect that I would state is that you need to have some knowledge and some understanding of the person with whom you are talking. Sometimes you can only say one sentence, for to say more would be too much. Other times you could go on for an hour and the receiver would still be open and inviting and ready to hear more. So use caution as to whom you speak, how long, and what you say. Sometimes your words do not need to be in the context of, 'This is what I read in the Urantia Book', or, 'This is what I believe about God', but rather it might be in helping someone to become or to see with a little more tolerance or a little more compassion. Are you understanding those words?"

Isaac: "Yes, I am. That is a terrific summary of what I asked you to talk about. I am thinking that you have spoken on all of these things probably in the past but that is a beautiful compacting of all that truth, Daniel. . I will, of course, think on this more. You have also comforted me a great deal and challenged me at the same time. So thank you. It was a very complete answer."

Tomas: "Exactly, Isaac, Not that it makes any difference to Daniel and myself, but I have been Tomas speaking, for you asked the question of Tomas."

Bill: "Thank you Tomas."

Love

Gerdean: "This is Gerdean. Daniel, thank you for that lesson. As sometimes is the case I get so embroiled in your words I get off track. And when I was trying to transmit Tomas I just kept thinking, `Daniel already said that'. And I was not responding well to Tomas. Nonetheless I do appreciate your lesson and I was wondering if, in fact, this might not be a better manifestation of what we would call `love' than we are accustomed to, to encounter people in the mode of appreciating them rather than `loving' them because `love' is such a bizarre word in our culture. And I am speaking as a missionary, as an evangelist that when I go out to manifest, share, and spread the Father's love I don't, certainly, feel the Father's love all the time because I have to deal with these human beings. But I can really appreciate a lot of these human qualities of my fellows. I can appreciate why they do what they do; why they think the way they think; why they have this fear; why they have this perception. It helps me to have more compassion and understanding then if I were to just set out to `love' them. So the concept of appreciating is somehow to me a lot richer and warmer and more well rounded than the word `love'. Am I totally off base here?"

Daniel: "What you are saying is correct but it needs to be expanded upon. All of you need to understand that, indeed, the word `love' does have such a broad and varied understanding. It is seen from many, many different layers. Even in my ascension am I still not fully cognizant of what it means to be loved by the First Source and Center in all its totality. I have, because of my ascension, grown in that understanding far beyond what you now know. But this love is greater than all of your definitions put together. So while it is important to be able to express love to all you must understand that love, too, is something that must grow and is progressive. You don't usually love someone or something at first sight. You love or like one aspect at first sight. But real love requires going through all of the growth stages. Real love means encompassing and knowing the individual. And from that aspect, then, your statement is more accurate in the context of being able to appreciate your brothers and sisters. For in appreciating them you are validating them. Anytime you can validate someone you are opening many doors. You are meeting them on their level. You may not agree with them about everything but if you can appreciate certain qualities and you validate this to them then you are open to them and they are more receptive to your being and to your words. It is in those first moments of appreciation that you are sowing the seeds for yourself to come to know and to eventually love them. Does this help?"

Gerdean: "Yes. A valuable lesson. I appreciate your further remarks. As one learns to appreciate one's fellows that is the beginning of being able to love them. And, of course, they should be able to sense that and to some extent love you back or at least be willing to play those social intercourses that open up more doors for further communication and ideally further understanding of deeper love and more appreciation. A good lesson. I really enjoyed that and will enjoy reflecting on that throughout the week. So, thank you."

Daniel: "Thank you, Gerdean. I appreciate your paraphrasing. Your words have a `ring', so to speak, to them."

Leetah: "Daniel and Tomas, first of all, thank you so much for that lesson. I have a lot of images going through my mind right now. I think in terms of a summary of everything that you have said tonight. In a sermon I heard a long time ago by Isaac. The title of it was, `The Grateful Give'. And I have never forgotten that sermon. Tonight it is saying the same thing that we must become grateful for all. It makes me cry whenever I think in terms of God's love being for everyone. It's an overwhelming thought that the God who made the universes really cares and cares enough to indwell each of us! I guess that is the part that I am overwhelms me, the love of God.

But then I had a red flag so I mentioned the good first. One of the wonderful things that have come to me as a result of reading the Urantia Book is that God indwells every human being so that I don't have to `be the missionary' I once thought I had to be to change the world, but rather as tonight's lesson very plainly said, I have to be grateful and appreciate the other person and look in the eyes and know that they are indwelt by the same God that indwells me. It is a tremendous relief to know that God is at work if I fail. So I have all this baggage in this lesson tonight. I just thank you for it."

Daniel: "Thank you, Leetah, for your words. Let me emphasize here that neither Tomas nor myself have asked any of you to become `missionaries' who go door to door."

Leetah: "Thank you."

Daniel: "It is important for all of you to realize that the ministry for which you are preparing is that of your own growth. And through that growth will you be ministering and be missionaries to others. You can't help but overflow that which you are and what you are becoming. To that end we will continue our mission. The idea of being `missionaries' is never intended as you take it, rather because of your greater awareness and God-consciousness you become `missionaries' just by your own life. You are like ambassadors out among your brothers and sisters."

Leetah: "Thank you Daniel. Of course the red flag is the result of many years ago when I felt compelled to pass out tracts and try and convert people so that they could be loved by God..a dreadful situation and such a narrow concept of the God that loves all and indwells us all. So I thank you for that clarification. I know that it is our lives that speak and not the tracts that we gave out, as I once thought."

Daniel: "Thank you Virginia. I would like to add something to your first discourse regarding this aspect of not needing to convert all or to be responsible for all.

It is important that you realize and know that each individual enters this life with their own free will. They have that ability to choose. As children become aware of themselves their ego is the first aspect to react. They realize that they can manipulate those big people around themselves, those caretakers by crying, by being stubborn, by throwing fits, by refusing to eat, etc. And so this is that part of the growing infant and toddler, their ego coming into understanding of who they are.

It is really along this line that you as caretakers and teachers that you do have a responsibility to these children in helping them to grow in an understanding of themselves that is positive, that their self esteem and their understanding of themselves is above that of their ego. For if more and more of the majority of people raise their children in this fashion then the aspect of needing dogma and having to be a savior for the masses would die out. Because as people grow from infancy in this understanding of their good nature then the negative cannot take over and the religions that grow and feed upon fear will die away."

Leetah: "Thank you very much Daniel. That was another thought that had come to me from your lesson, when either you or Tomas spoke, on the gift of free will. I was one of those in the past who railed against God because He didn't make a perfect world. Of course he has already done that in the Havona universe. But the gift of free will and that we can choose to respond to that Indwelling Spirit and God's overcare is truly a gift; we are not forced. And that is a very wonderful thing. Thank you of reminding me of the responsibility we have to children. Of course, in my role I am especially conscious of that."

Daniel: "Yes. And you do well in that area. Thank you for your words."

Gerdean: "Earlier you were talking about being busy, involved and active, somehow I perceived you saying that, and that reminded me of a phrase in the Urantia Book about `messianic zeal'. I guess that came up when people were talking about `missionary'. But missionary and messianic aren't necessarily the same thing. But I have a lot of zeal and I think that is a result of appreciation and gratitude as well as a sense of urgency that really we need to get on with it here! I have always had an awful sense of urgency. We really just need to get it together! And I don't know. That might undermine a lot.

Address for me, if you would, Daniel, this sense of urgency that I get. And I know there is an emergency status that helped bring about the Correcting Time. Every once in a while I will watch a negative thing on TV and it just gives me this tremendous urgency that we really need to shake these people up so that they know what's going on, so they know that God is wonderful...and I have to smack you to get the point!!! It's a point of frustration, I am sure. I have great zeal. I love feeling zealous and I love being active in the field! But it sometimes can get really squirrelly out there! Thank you, Daniel and Tomas."

Communion

Daniel: "Thank you Gerdean. Indeed there are many ways that you as individuals go about your seed planting. Some, like you, are enthusiastically zealous, ready, wanting, and willing to stand on the mount and preach. Others are more withdrawn, shyer and would prefer to plant seeds in less defined ways. Is one better than the other? That is not the question for it takes all kinds and many roads in order for there to be a balance. What is important and is the underlying aspect is that in order for the world to change it must first start with the individual. As that individual grows and changes they bring about change in their life, in their relationship and in the things they do. It is like a chain reaction.

What is going obviously through many minds when one thinks of this is who has the bigger chain? Who is going to trample the other, the bad or the good? And while there are many instances on your planet where the evil aspect of mortal life seems to have the upper hand, seems to hold the bigger club and have the bigger chain the reality is that there is far greater good that is going on in many minuscule and unnoticed ways.

Certainly you are going to be shocked by the murder of some individual. But do you even pay attention when a mother lovingly smiles at her child? That is the good. Good will continue to overcome. It is necessary, therefor, for all of you to continually take the time to commune daily. For in that communion you will find that the doors that are ready to be opened will be opened for you. The talents and the contributions that you can make will be welcome.

And so, my dear, while you may be more ready and willing to be vocal or to go out into the jungle, so to speak, others will do as much good as you do in other areas. It is all part of the weaving of the tapestry of life. You have the threads going both ways. Does this help in your understanding?"

Gerdean: "Not only does it help with my understanding, it helps with my keynote address notes. Thank you."

Daniel: "Precisely.(laughing) Your door has been opened and you will, because of your nature, be able to reach many. Have faith in that, my dear, for your willingness has not gone unnoticed."

Gerdean: "Thank you."

Leetah: "Daniel and Tomas, I would just like to say that you are such good models of showing us how to appreciate one another. Thank you very much."

Daniel: "Both Tomas and I have grown truly beyond appreciation for you. We have a great understanding of you that is transcending. While we genuinely do appreciate your beingness this appreciation is in an aspect that is befitting of divine love. We are able to grasp this love and it is something that we have grown in, in loving you, in appreciating you, in being thankful for each of you in your own unique ways, in realizing the difficulties and trials that the rigors of life presents.

And yet through your many hours of doubting and reaffirming and wondering and searching you are all growing in so many wonderful and beautiful ways. Your lights grow in intensity as you continue to search and commune with the First Source and Center.

Closing

At this point I will draw this meeting to a close. Tomas and I send you our love. We appreciate your endeavors and your coming here weekly to listen to our ramblings. We appreciate your thoughts and questions. We acknowledge your growth.

This week you are asked to look into your own lives and decide at what place of appreciation you are with yourself and with those around you. We ask you to secondly begin seeing others from the standpoint of validating them and appreciating them. In this appreciation recall that they will, likewise, learn to appreciate.

Go in peace this week and appreciate not only the splendors of nature on this planet but also the marvelous creation that is in your brothers and sisters. Good evening."