Protected
Today’s Daily Word is “Protected.”
Protection is a popular topic in the Bible, be it in the Hebrew Scriptures or the New Testament. The same is true for many spiritual works found in other religions and beliefs. Protection is a basic need. Psychologist Maslow classified such need for safety at a very low (as in more important or dominant for survival) level of his hierarchy of needs, suggesting that we cannot truly develop the higher levels (love/belonging, esteem, and self-actualization) if we haven’t first satisfied our need for safety. According to his theory, we would have to satisfy our need for safety before we can move on to develop our love for humanity, our self-esteem, and our desire to realize Wholeness. Therefore, it makes sense for the topic of Protection to be found across many if not all scriptural and contemporary works that provide guidelines and recipes to satisfied our need for safety.
Traditionally, we attribute the protector role to God in the sense that God is an entity outside of ourselves, more powerful and as such more capable of protecting us than we give ourselves credit for. Many times, when we desire to be protected, we cannot see in that moment that we already have the ability to realize safety, which is why we are looking outside of ourselves to find someone or something that will make us feel safe. But what if we had all the Power necessary to shift our perception of life towards the safety that we need? Would we then still look outside of ourselves? Probably not.
In Unity, we believe in a God not as in an all-Powerful being but in Principle. Science talks about the infinite field of potential and possibilities, a nothingness from which everything arises, and God may be that very Principle of all Potential and Possibility. Taking away the action that is often attributed to and expected from God, we now are left with the only actionable being in our lives: Us! We are the activity of God Principle! We are the ones that take that infinite field of Potential and Possibilities and move it into reality. Therefore, if we seek protection in order to feel safe, we must address such request to ourselves rather than outside of us. At the same time, we must realize that in our Oneness with God or Godessence we inherit the qualities we would attribute to some outside, all-powerful entity. There is no difference between our Potential and the one we seek, because we can tap into that same Abundance of Power and Strength that we otherwise try to find elsewhere.
Many are familiar with Psalm 23. In verses one to four we read:
“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”
If we understand to be the activity of God and learn to acknowledge that we tap into the same infinite Potential, then we realize that Psalm 23 was not about a Lord outside of us, but instead affirms our Divine birthright. We are our own shepherd. And as we learn to not want (a form of surrender to our Divinity), we lie down on green pastures, lead ourselves beside still waters, take charge of restoring our soul, and confidently move along our path of righteousness in true Understanding of our own name’s sake as in fully realizing our higher Self. And even though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we fear no evil, and we are established in our Truth realization as we hold our rod and staff to comfort us.
We protect ourselves as we gain understanding of our Divinity. In realizing of our own infinite Potential we move along in this world with confidence. Our needs are met because we fulfill them ourselves, knowing that whenever we are in need, our Oneness with God as in Principle leads to greater realization and enlightenment, for that is the Power that we seek.
Maybe today you notice those moments when you give away your Power and seek it somewhere else. Take note when you are in need and turn towards God as in a father figure that may fill that desire. In that moment, affirm your own Divinity and your Oneness with the infinite Power that is available to you. Realize that what you seek outside of yourself is already reality within you. Your true Protection lies within you; it is in your thoughts, feelings, perceptions, and understanding. You direct your sense of protection and safety as you take charge of your spiritual Growth and your Divine Life.
And so it is. Amen.
Jean-Marie
Rev. Jean-Marie Schweizer
Senior Minister Unity Fort Worth