I am grateful for the number of people who have supported the upcoming God is a Brown Girl Too Retreat.  Regardless of race, religion or ethnicity — people of all cultures, ages and sexes have given their support for an organization that dispenses with the notion that God is an old man in the sky and embraces the truth that we all have the Kingdom of God within us.   With the retreat less than ten days away, the commitment from family and friends to honor the fact that we are all made in God’s image and likeness is not something that I take lightly.  In this season of holidays and barbeques, it is sometimes easier to just put our feet up and do nothing rather than make a concerted effort to center in the Spirit within.

But when we want to make a difference in our lives and the lives of others, we have to take advantage of the gift that we all have — to choose.   We can choose to transform our consciousness, choose to move beyond where we are now, choose to move to where we want to be.  It is through divine choice that this country was able to pursue life, liberty and happiness.  It is through divine choice that we have all been called to rise up and live out the true meaning of the creed that we are all created equal.  We all have equal access to God.

Regardless of what we are doing, or where we choose to go ,or do, or be, we can tap into the Spirit that lives in us, that is — as Jesus said — our counselor, teacher, and  guide.  Regardless of what the appearances are in the physical, we all have the same ability to slow down long enough to hear the divine vibrations that are centered in each one of us — as the temple of a living God.  Regardless of whether you are attending the God is a Brown Girl Too Retreat or not — find the space to re-connect with your divine self this summer.

Some of my best meditations are walking along Smith Street in Carroll Gardens, or feeling the breeze on the Brooklyn Bridge.  It was on the subway that it occurred to me that the truth that our so-called Founding Fathers had — is equally available to each one of us — to be pioneers of something wonderful, in mind, body or spirit.  In fact, I don’t believe they had any idea of the magnitude of what they were memorializing in 1776; it was much bigger than who they were in the physical.  The Spirit that led them surpassed  their time-space reality, their own boundaries of socio-political-economic dynamics.  But because they were obedient to their calling, we all benefit from their Declaration of Independence today.

We are only a fragment of what God expresses through us.  In 1942, Mahatma Gandhi said “I am a Christian, and a Hindu and a Muslim, and a Jew.”  I have moved beyond the superficiality of race and religion and class to fulfill God’s divine appointment as an expression of love for all humanity.

Take a moment in the celebration of sunshine and warmth and plant the seeds of a new story.  The harvest of autumn will arrive before you know it, so center in the consciousness that will restore and recharge you, so that you can move forward re-energized and renewed — ready to reap God’s good as you.

We will be praying without ceasing next week — July 16 through 18 — during our retreat at the Mariandale Retreat Center.  Make a divine choice to meditate with us, move with us, sing with us, shout with us, dance with us, create with us, heal with us.   But most importantly, listen with us.  God is always speaking — everywhere — at once.  And we all have equal access to God’s voice.

All of the materials in God is a Brown Girl Too® email messages are copyrighted by and may not be used without the written permission of Cecilia Loving. 

Register for the God is a Brown Retreat this July 16-18, at the Mariandale Retreat Center by going to http://www.godisabrowngirltoo.com.  You don’t want to miss it!

This Sunday, JOIN SPIRITMUV FOR THE LAST SEGMENT OF OUR 7-PART SERIES ON TERRIE COLE-WHITAKER’S BOOK, What You Think of Me is None of My Business, from 2:30 P.M. to 3:30 P.M., at the Unity Center of NYC, 213 West 58th Street, between Broadway and 7th Avenue.  NOTE THAT SPIRITMUV’S SERVICE WILL BE AT THE MARIANDALE RETREAT CENTER ON SUNDAY, JULY 18.