Back to the Roots

Sunday, March 3, 2024

Rev. Diana Johnson, IM, RScM, Chris Netto, RScP, & Chris Johnson, RScP.

Video Chapter Index

0:00	Taizé	Clicking on a chapter link will play the segment in a new YouTube tab. Your link to this page will remain open in this tab, but the video will play in the new window. Clicking on the Play arrow in the video screen above will play both Taizé and the Conscious Conversation on this page. To make the picture bigger, you may click the full screen icon in the lower right corner: To cast the video to your Smart TV, click the Play on TV button: . Also, we now have Closed Captioning available! To access Closed Captions, start the video and click on the CC icon next to the gear in the lower right of the video screen:
20:00	Guided Meditation
50:45	Conscious Conversation

Taizé

Rev. Diana – We follow the bell to the stillness within…3 Bells

Chris N. – Opening Prayer

Rev. Diana – Welcome…if you’re new with us here this morning, my name is Rev. Diana Johnson, and I am the Pastor and Spiritual Director of Mystical Heart Spiritual Center. We are an Independent Interfaith Community that teaches Universal Principles and Practical Spirituality. We open our doors in welcome, trusting that you will be led to the  Guidance and Wisdom of your own Mystic Heart.

Dalton – Taizé Chants

• Welcome Home to Your Mystic Heart, written by Diana & Chris Johnson
• I Am Remembering , written by Rev. Melissa Phillippe

Rev. Diana – I invite you to relax more deeply into the Truth of your being. Take a long, slow, cleansing breath in, and on the exhale, bring to awareness the Peaceful, Powerful Presence of the Sacred Masculine. Feel its Strength coursing through your body…feel it bring you into active engagement with all that is occurring. Now feel the Yielding Presence of the Sacred Feminine. Feel it’s open receptivity as you prepare for the new life called forth by the transition from winter to spring. Both Energies are present…both are required…for New Life to be born in you.

Bringing full awareness to the movement of the breath…allowing it to ground you…recognizing that the breath connects us everything else…to our fellow humans, and to all other creatures…we share the same life-giving air…the breath connects us to the plants…we inhale what they have given, and we exhale what they require. Breath is Life…Life is breath. There are no barriers…there is nothing to separate us from Life. Each of us is a Life in process…every creature, plant, rock, and grain of sand…every drop of water…all that exists, no matter how large or small is an intricate and irreplaceable part of the One Life.

Take a moment to breathe in that sense of connection…Sensing our deep connection with all of Life, we know it is time…it is time that we rise…in awareness and in action…that we show up for one another, and for our beautiful planet like we’ve never done before…to use the gifts that we have been given for the Greater Good of All. It is time to use our discerning minds to choose Wholeness over woundedness, Peace over violence, to choose Love over hatred or indifference. It is time to use our power of imagination consciously to create the world we want to leave our children.

The Sacred Masculine…the Strong, Active,  Supportive Energy that lives within each of us…that within us that gets things done, that brings about change…the force that moves life upward on the evolutionary spiral.

It is this active Principal that we call upon to move us from the current story of control and separation into the story of cooperation and unity. The time has come for change on a global scale. But in order for this change to occur, Myths Need to Move. The stories we have been told about the way things work must be transformed. The predominant mythology that lies at the core of race consciousness in 2024 must be re-written. And it is those who have awakened to the need for change that must re-write it for the Good of the Whole. Because when our mythology becomes outdated, we become stuck. We cannot change until our stories change.

It is believed that the last great shift in mythology happened during the Bronze Age…3300 – 1200 BC. With the influx of Indo-Germanic Tribes into the Mediterranean, came the gradual shift from lunar goddess devotion to solarized hero worship…nature reverence became nature domination. This was before the writing of our Biblical Scriptures, which have been a dominant mythology in our part of the world. By the time Genesis one and two were recorded, the Iron Age had begun…Goddess Creation stories had already been replaced by Supreme male rulers the ancient Hebrews had Yahweh and Elohim.

The Greeks had Zeus whether Yahweh, Elohim, Zeus, the Romans had Jupiter and Mars.

This is how long global culture has been steeped in patriarchy…the energy of control, fear, lack, and separation…the shadow side of the Sacred Masculine. This is why the pull is so strong. This is why we must invite a Power greater than myth, greater than story, to move through us now…to move through our thoughts, words, and actions…to bring Its mighty Love, Kindness, and Compassion…to send Its Peaceful Presence and Clarity to our hearts and minds…to show us the way to Harmonious Co-existence with one another, with all creatures, with our planet.

I share a quote from Joseph Campbell:

Mythology is not a lie, mythology is poetry, it is metaphorical. It has been well said that mythology is the penultimate truth — penultimate because the ultimate cannot be put into words. It is beyond words. Beyond images, beyond that bounding rim of the Buddhist Wheel of Becoming. Mythology pitches the mind beyond that rim, to what can be known but not told.

Let us consciously create a new mythology now, not only by our words, but by our actions. Let us heal the wounds that hold us back, both individually and collectively, so that we might bring Sacred Masculine into harmony with Sacred Feminine, neither over-stepping in this cosmic dance.

Chris J. – Guided Meditation

When we were born, we entered as a new character in a story that began ages ago… this story affected the way we were domesticated… what our parents, teachers, and people around us accepted as true seeped into us, shaping our emerging worldview… defining our role in the story…

Later we have some choice as to how we show up in the world… but our choices are unconsciously limited by the archetypes in our story… and by how they were presented to us… We identify ourselves and others through these standards… but not everyone fits into the traditional paradigm…

Let us contemplate the story that underlies our life… Where is it working for us?… Where is it not?… In our three minutes of Sacred Silence today, I invite you to ask your Inner Wisdom… “What assumptions do I make based on my story?… How might I change the story to align with my highest vision for the world?…”

Silence – 3:00

As we return our attention to this time and place, we give thanks for these moments of introspection and communion… thanks for the parts of our story that still serve us… and for the courage and imagination to change the parts that are no longer appropriate…

We open our hearts to be transformed and renewed by the inspiration of Rev. Diana’s continued message this morning… allowing all the shadows to be illuminated… and letting our story evolve into an ever more empowering mythology… And we wholeheartedly accept that even our own personal Myths Need to Move…

Rev. Diana – I share with you now, a mythical story of remembering…it is mythical, but it is not ancient…it is a modern Creation myth. Use the vast Power of your Inner Vision to picture the images as they are offered. Like all myths, this story points to Truth…it may spark a memory in you.

Once upon a time, Source Energy was all there was. It was ever-present, everywhere…if I can liken it to anything, let’s say it looked like the Sun. And that Sun’s Essence was Pure, Pure Love. Countless rays of sunshine extended from this Source. Each of these rays was unique, and each ray was loved immeasurably by Source, as each one was Its creation…an extension of Itself. It was the Source Energy sharing Itself that created these rays. Because Source was essentially pure Love, so too, were the rays, as they were extensions of Source’s Love…Pure and Whole and brilliant.

They extended out from Source to explore and experience and co-create, and as they did, they contributed to the expansion of the Universe. Even though the rays were each individual, they knew themselves to be Whole, Complete, and One with their creator at their core…and they lived in constant bliss. Then as the rays explored further and further, deeper and deeper, they decided that they wanted to explore and play with what it would be like to be on their own, to be separate from Source. Even though this could never really happen in reality because of what they were, they wanted to play with what it would be like to be their own creator, to be their own separate self.

So they started dreaming and imagining, just like children do. The rays pretended to clothe themselves in a physical body, and they created an imaginary world where their bodies could roam around and explore and create and experience and play in the dream of separation. And it was fun for a while. But eventually, they completely forgot that they were just playing, dreaming, and imagining. And eventually, they began to forget who they actually were and where they came from.

They thought the dream they made was real. They thought they were actually separate from Source, and from each other. They thought the world they had dreamed was all that there was. They got lost. In the dream of separation, the Higher Connected Mind, the Mind that thought with their Creator was mostly unreachable to them, and the separated mind could only perceive opposites…time, fear, and lack, which just kept perpetuating the experience of separation. They even created the strange concept of death and thought that death was real.

When the rays forgot who they were, the lower mind took over. With limited access to Higher Mind, the lower mind became out of balance and out of control and caused untold suffering for the rays. It caused so much suffering because they thought that the mind was who they were. They believed what it told them about themselves and the world around them, and most of what the mind said  made them feel unhappy.

The Creator watched as His rays had these experiences, and it did not upset Him. He loved them so much that He had given them total free will, and total freedom. And He knew that they could never be truly lost, damaged, or broken, because of who they really were…extensions of Himself. He knew that they couldn’t be lost forever, because they would never actually find what they were looking for in the world of form. Each success, each win, each happy moment, would be followed by moments of unhappiness, loss, and defeat. Such was the way of form…it was up and down and changing all the time. There really was no such thing as making it there because it always felt as if something was missing.

The Creator knew that Her rays would come looking for Her again. Soon they would have had enough of suffering and forgetfulness and playing and separation, and they would want to find that missing piece…they would want to come Home. So as soon as the rays forgot who they were, the Creator responded by infusing their dream of separation with Her Messengers…

…rays who remained connected to Her…rays who knew the Truth. And as soon as one of her dreaming rays wanted to remember, decided to end its suffering, wanted to go Home, that ray would light up like a bright star, and would become visible to one or more of the Creator’s Messengers who would help that ray, as long as that ray kept making and confirming that decision. Because it all had to be governed by free will.

Ray after ray began to remember, and they started becoming Messengers themselves. Just their Presence and their Energy was sometimes enough to cause a dreaming ray to want to awaken. The physical world was evolving into something else, as more and more rays remembered. It became a place of Light, a place where a ray could play with form without losing himself in it. The Higher, Connected Mind…Source…entered the world of form through Its rays, and together, their creations were truly magnificent.

Closing Prayer

The Truth of this story resonates…there is only One Source…Call it Life, call it God, call it the Force…

By whatever name we call it, there is nothing else.

I Am, you Are, a ray…an extension…of the One Source.

We shine with the Light of Spirit.

It seems we have forgotten…we think we are separate from one another and from Source.

By our free will, we have become lost.

Our world shows all the signs of our forgetfulness.

But it is never too late to wake up, to change direction, to choose to remember…to end the suffering…to go Home.

I shine my light, so that I might be seen and uplifted by Spirit’s Messengers…whether I call them angels, nature spirits, ancestors, or the loving thoughts of self-acceptance and worthiness that fill my heart and mind.

Day by day, I commit to making and confirming that decision…to be the Light, and to know the Truth that sets me free.

And so I dedicate myself and my life to Love…to self-givingness…to the True Power that binds us together…that warms our hearts…that brings clarity to our minds, harmony to our emotions, and Joy to our spirits.

I commit my actions to connection and healing.

And our evolution continues along the spiral, toward greater Cooperation, Unity, and Love.

Thank You, Spirit, for Blessings too numerous to name…those gifts that I would call beautiful and graceful, and those that challenge me to grow in character, resilience, and faith.

I walk in reverence, in deep humility and gratitude for Your Creation, and for Your Powerful Presence, Wisdom, and Guidance in my Life. Thankful for all of it, I rest, knowing that my prayer is answered before it is spoken. And So It Is! Amen!

Rev. Diana – I invite you to Come back into the awareness of your body…notice the atmosphere in the room,  and when you feel ready, gently opening your eyes and allowing your gaze to take in whatever is before you.

Feel free to look around and say good morning to everyone who is here celebrating with you this morning.

This is your Spiritual Family…one of your support systems. These are some of the people who care about you, and are there for.

Love Offering

As we close our Taizé Meditation, we offer the opportunity for you to share  your financial good in support of the work we do in the world. If you’re joining us online, you can find a Donate Button and our mailing address at mysticheart.org. And we thank you in advance for your gifts.

Dalton – Offertory Music

• You’ve Gotta’ Move, written by Mississippi Fred McDowell

Rev. Diana – Blessing for the Offering

The local Farmers’ Market starts up again the first Saturday of April. Get ready to join us in supporting local. We’re still contributing monthly to Farmers’ Footprint. We have time for this 2-minute reminder that Hope is Here!

Farmer’s Footprint Videos:

• Meet the Team: Bjorn Minde – https://youtu.be/xKjzC3bJIyI
• Hope – https://youtu.be/Nxh68-lLrj8

Feel free to grab a cup of something warm next door and meet us back at 10:30 for a Conscious Conversation. We’ll bless you on your way with

Dalton – Closing Song

• A Soul’s Blessing, written by Chris Johnson

Conscious Conversation

Rev. Diana – Good morning and welcome, or welcome back…welcome to those joining online. If you’re new with us here this morning… my name is Rev. Diana Johnson, and I am the Pastor here at Mystic Heart. We are an Independent Interfaith Community that teaches Universal Principles and Practical Spirituality. We open our doors in welcome, trusting that you will be led to the  Guidance and Wisdom of your own Mystic Heart.

 Dalton – Opening Music

• Welcome to the Mystic Heart, written by Diana & Chris Johnson
• One Big Family, written by Robin Hackett & Gary Lynn Floyd
• The Light of the World, written by Chris Johnson

You can stay standing if you wish, or whatever brings the Presence of Spirit into the Body…fully engage your imagination as we join in the creation of a Love-Soaked World.

Know with me now that we are creating a world where all humans embody and live from the Qualities of Spirit…Love, Kindness, Generosity, and Compassion…and from this way of being, I can feel the presence of a deep sense of Joy, Contentment, and Sufficiency. Can you feel it?

In this new world, all people honor and care for one another, for all of the life forms that share this beautiful earth, and for the earth Herself.

We remember  that we are connected to all of Life…that we are dependent on the planet to sustain us, and on one another.

Being generous by our nature, and living a life true to our nature, we give of ourselves freely, offering the gifts we came here to give. With all needs met for every person, each one is free to share time and talent in ways that feed the soul.

By our every thought, word, and action, we are writing a new story in which  all beings are well-fed…have the safety and comfort of home and a deep sense of belonging and purpose. We are so grateful that once and for all, health, education, and healthy relationships are supported by social systems grounded in Integrity, Compassion and Wholeness.

We welcome this new way of living, valuing every being for its  uniqueness…we practice living Authentic lives…there is no need to defend or protect. With Love, Generosity and Kindness guiding every human heart, our world is free of hatred and violence. We recognize the abundance that surrounds us…giving and receiving flow freely in every direction and all beings  gratefully receive all that is needed to live physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually fulfilling lives.

The planet and its beings thrive like never before as we learn to see the  sacred in everyone and everything…we walk in reverence and gratitude for all that we have been given.

We maintain this Vision day by day, moment by moment; we are not swayed by appearances. Each of us works to align our actions with our Vision, living these changes first in our own lives, with our families, friends, and neighbors…and a new world is being born. In this process of profound change, this Community stands as an open and welcoming place for all who seek support, belonging, Family.

By the power of our deep faith, this prayer is acted upon, answered even before it is spoken, as Spirit knows our heart’s desire and intent. In full expectation of its Graceful unfolding…

…we release it to the Creative Power and Intelligence that I call God…to the One that gets it done…And so it is…Amen!

Bringing awareness back to the body, to the room, to this beautiful life, and to the amazing beings who share this space with us this morning…look around to say good morning to your Spiritual Family.

Our theme this month is Sacred Masculine, and the topic of Conversation this morning is Myth Needs to Move. I’ll give a really brief recap of Taizé this morning to give us a jumping off point for our Conversation…

We said that The Sacred Masculine is the Strong, Active,  Supportive Energy that lives within each of us…that gets things done, that brings about change…the force that moves life upward on the evolutionary spiral.

It is this active Principal that we must call upon to move us from the current story of control and separation into the story of cooperation and unity. The time has come for change on a global scale. But in order for this change to occur, Myths Need to Move. The predominant mythology that lies at the core of race consciousness in 2024 must be re-written. And it is those who have awakened to the need for change that must re-write it for the Good of the Whole. Aren’t you glad to be included?

Mythology sets powerful energy in motion in the race consciousness. When our mythology becomes outdated, we become stuck. We cannot change until our shared stories change.

Did you know that the last big shift in mythology happened in the Bronze Age? That’s a minute ago…3300-1200 BC…that’s when the gradual shift from lunar goddess devotion to solarized hero worship occurred…nature reverence became nature domination. This is how long global culture has been steeped in patriarchy…the energy of control, fear, lack, and separation…the shadow side of the Sacred Masculine. This is why the pull is so strong.

Then we did a really cool meditation using a modern-day myth as our guide.

If you missed out, you can pull up the video on our website.

Last week we talked about imagination, and how it is much more powerful than we even know…that we are using it all the time, consciously or unconsciously. I’ll come back to that in a moment.

My first question for you today is this:

What are some of the most powerful myths that have impacted your life?

What other kind of stories have had a big impact? (fairy tales)

Is there evidence of the Sacred Masculine in our cultural stories?

Are the qualities of taking peaceful action and respectfully setting boundaries prevalent in our stories, in the stories our children grew up with?

What effects does this have on our households?

What effects is this having on our communities?

What effects is this having on our world?  

We want things to be different, right? How does the imagination come into the picture?

Is anyone familiar with the term the imaginal realm?

(it is where spiritual realities can be seen in visionary experience; abstract meanings can take on abstract form;  it is where we can experience the meaning, depth, and essence of the material world; it is a meeting ground, a place of active exchange between two bandwidths of reality.)

New Thought would say that it is the place in the mind of God, Spirit, or the Universe where the prayer has already been answered…the place where possibility become reality…before it’s happened in our experience.

Remember last week, we accepted the power of imagination as much more than visualizing an outcome…we called it the Christ Consciousness working within. We acknowledged its Power at that level.

When I join you in envisioning a Love-Soaked World, I make the conscious choice to practice, with as much feeling, and with as many of my senses as I can arouse, the vision of a world where every word I’m speaking is already occurring in experience. I create, in the imaginal realm, a world in which Kindness, Generosity, Cooperation, and Peace prevail. I trust that Spirit has granted me this Vision so that I can join in its Joyful Creation.

I call on Great Spirit to further empower my imaginings…I invite Infinite Wisdom to guide and strengthen my Vision. And I ask to be shown a life where the Original Goodness of humanity is shining through the apparent darkness. And when my conscious Practice is done, I live my life as though that vision were true…as though my prayer has been answered.

It is not only for myself that I am tasked with healing any trauma that has been created within me…it is for the sake of global healing…it is a gift to all of creation.

So, am I saying that life will hold no challenge in this new world we’re creating? What will they be?

(my daily challenges come from my commitment to becoming more and more authentic…to being in greater service to the Whole…to shining my Light brighter and brighter each day)

It is likely that we’ll all still have human minds with their thoughts, and hearts with their feelings. I trust there will still be plenty of work to do in loving our neighbor…in maintaining good relationships. It’s not all magic…it will still come through our hands and hearts. We’ll just be a lot more skillful.

Last week I said that living from our Wholeness in a world healed of its trauma  is a choice…our choice. This is our responsibility. This is our honor and privilege, and can be our delight, if we allow it to be so. Can you think of any  better way to spend a lifetime? I can’t think of anything more important. And I can’t think of a better group of people to share the journey with.

Thank you for joining me here this morning. Thank you for being my family…for listening and giving me the opportunity to share my heart. I pray that it sparks something in you this week.

Let’s close in prayer:

In this Sacred Moment, I call upon a Power greater than myth, greater than story, to move through us now…to move through our thoughts, words, and actions…to bring Its mighty Love, Kindness, and Compassion…to send Its Peaceful Presence and Clarity to our hearts and minds…to show us the way to Harmonious Co-existence with one another, with all creatures, with our planet.

Infinite Source of all that is, we feel Your Presence in this place…in our hearts, our minds, our bodies.

We know that Your Infinite Power and Wisdom are always working for the Good of All, moving through and as each one of us in every moment.

We trust in the Power of Imagination and hold it as Sacred…a gift of Spirit that empowers our lives.

We use this Power wisely, grateful that we have been entrusted with such a blessing.

We know that by this Power, we are transforming our lives and our world.

Giving thanks for the abundance of the Earth and the sustenance it offers, we hospice all that no longer serves, allowing it to melt into distant memory.

We serve as midwife to the new life that awaits us.

Thank You, Spirit, for your Sacred Trust, and for Blessings too numerous to name…those gifts that we would welcome as beautiful and graceful, and those that challenge us to grow in character, resilience, and faith, individually and collectively.

With reverence, humility, and deep gratitude I give thanks for this time of heartfelt connection, and letting go, I rest, knowing that my prayer is answered before it is spoken. And So It Is! Amen!

Take a moment to allow your awareness to return to your body, to this space, to this beautiful gathering…welcome back.

Love Offering

I invite you to join in the celebration of the work we are doing in the world by sharing of your financial Good, should you choose to.

If you are at home, you can go to mysticheart.org to use our Donate Button or to find our mailing address.

We also have a Gracious Giving Program for those who would like to make a heartfelt monthly commitment of support so that we can more effectively budget and plan for our growth.

Tying in with our theme, please enjoy…

Dalton – Offertory Music

• Long Before, written by Danny Barca

Chris N. – Blessing for the Offering

Farmer’s Footprint Video:

• Gail Fuller | Recovering Conventional Farmer https://youtu.be/OtSkZATEcOM

Chris N. – Invitations

• The Mystic Heart Book Club meets on Tuesdays – drop-ins are welcome.
• Fast Track to Wellness is meeting on Thursday from noon to 2 pm. Another look at fermenting foods this week.
• Metaphysical Bible meets on Thursday from 3-5 pm with Practitioner Chris Johnson. Drop-ins are always welcome…BYOB.
• Jill Matthews, volunteer for Shasta Interfaith and Meditation Guide, will be leading an Equinox Meditation on Thursday, March 21^st from 6:30-7:45 pm. Come celebrate new beginnings with Spiritual Family. We’ll be serving light refreshments afterward. The suggested donation is $10.
• Raffle tickets for the Easter Basket Raffle are on sale next today. They are $2 each or 6 for $10. Please see Ellie between services or Cathy during lunch to purchase tickets.

Looking Ahead…

• Please join us at 10:00 am on Easter Sunday for a beautiful Gathering filled with ceremony and lots of music. This is the time of Active Renewal…share in community as together, we celebrate New Life.
• We still have space for you to make your reservation for our Spring Retreat at The Gathering Place at Shasta Lake. We are collecting your $100 non-refundable deposit to hold your space. The total cost per adult is $275. We need to pay in full by May 1^st, so your payments asap are appreciated.

There is more information available in the March Bulletin…take one home with you. And check out our amazing website.

Information Cards if new people

Prayer Requests: I am available after service – We invite everyone to help us make a private space for prayer here in the Sanctuary by joining us next door for lunch

Dalton – Closing Song

• Love Be With You, written by Lainey Bernstein, RScP, & Gary Lynn Floyd

Copyright Stuff:

©2024 Mystic Heart Spiritual Center, All Rights Reserved
Permission is granted to duplicate for non-commercial educational use only.
All rights to music performed remain with the copyright owners.
Diana Johnson’s music is © by Barefoot Angel Publishing, ASCAP.
Chris Johnson’s music is © by SeaJay Music & Publishing, ASCAP.