Sexy Spirituality

The Voice of Intuition Sexy Spirituality Episode #42 Host: Lezli Goodwin Guest: Rev. Beverley Strutt, Assistant Minister at CSL East Hawaii Guest: Rev. Nan Bankston, ancient lightworker and modern-day minister at CSL Grants Pass Small Talk Lezli, Rev. Bev and Rev. Nan share their stories about mothering in honor of Mother's Day. The Voice of Intuition I'm delighted to have to lovely friends with me today, both of whom live from their deep well of intuition. Our topic today is "The Voice of Intuition" Beverley, can you start us off with your personal definition of intuition?: First thing that rises up is "did I make the right choice"; however today, it is the voice I hear inside that is literally a constant guide. I don't even question it. I listen and just do. In hindsight I recognize it as that internal guidance of the Divine. Nan: Shows up for me as a deep knowingness without question that I'm making the right turn or decision. There is ease. I just know I am always guided and directed and it is always life affirming. Life Affirming: moving us in a positive direction, never cruel, never takes. A giving and a guiding. Nan: Anything that looks smells or sounds like fear is not intuitive. Life affirming for me is also based in loving action for myself and others; not a knee jerk response. Bev: Over time listening to intuition, we allow the opening so when we hear it we tend to choose it. Then there's no doing anymore, we are just flowing. Nan: Intuition is always flowing down stream and it's easy. If I'm trying to fight my way upstream that is not intuitive insight. It's always easy and down stream. Lezli: I'm hearing Karen Drucker's "Let go of the Shore" How would you advise people to nurture their intuition? Nan: There must be a connection to source. The more time in communion with that presence, the more I developed the relationship that supported me to be able to receive the wisdom. So, be still. Be with yourself, your source energy and be open to receive. This will develop a sense of confidence. It takes consistency persistent and patience. Bev: It's about reflection and connecting the dots because often we fail to look back enough to see what happened that led to where we are. We then learn to trust the voice of intuition. Lezli: Be in the listening, in the silence, pay attention to what has happened. I also like journaling as reflecting and on the flip side, we can actively invite the opportunities to notice intuition in the present. Practice on silly things; should I eat soup or carrot? A feeling rises up from the inside and we then can learn what that feels like rising up within. Bev: Willingness and desire are important too. A willingness to feel vulnerable and trust the process. I call willingness the combo code; it unlocks everything. Open that desire to be guided. Let's talk Story! Share an Intuition Story! Bev takes a cruise; Nan moves to NM; and Lezli shadow boxes with God. Good News – Intuition will always come back around. What is yours to be/know/have you can't lose. It will keep coming back around and may even become a 2x4 and smack you upside the head! We mentioned Karen Drucker https://www.karendrucker.com/, Marianne Williamson (The Law of Circulation) https://marianne.com/, Something Good Nan: I have been working on my website, https://www.123spiritinme.com/, it is an oasis of calm and wonder. A pit stop in the middle of your day to get refreshed and revitalized. Take a good look at it and let me know if there's something you'd like to see. My email is on the website. Bev: I invite anyone that wants to come and visit the big Island virtually, join us at Centers for Spiritual Living East Hawaii, http://hawaiicsl.org/. We are a beautiful community. Our church has no walls, so it is all open and all inviting. Come on in. We are on Youtube. I speak the 2nd weekend of every month. I'd love to see you there. If you do stop in please send a little message in the live stream chat! Lezli: My something good is…I have a FREE online class coming up called "The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership." This is an experiential class based on the book of the same name. If you are ready to show up with more integrity, as well as experience more success, this class is for you. This is a 4-week class, and it's completely free but a Love Offering to New Vision CSL is always welcome. Class starts Tuesday, May 25 at 6:30 PM PST. To find out more, go to lezligoodwin.com/onlineclasses If you'd like to support Sexy Spirituality Podcast, please consider joining us on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/SexySpirituality. From bonus content to insider access, our patrons get all the sexiest stuff. Thanks to our Patrons are making this show possible. Thank you for joining us for Sexy Spirituality. I'm your host, Lezli Goodwin, spiritual mentor, minister and author at lezligoodwin.com. Our guests have been Rev. Beverley Strutt, assistant minister at The Center for Spiritual Living East Hawaii, and Rev. Nan Bankston, ancient lightworker and modern-day minister from CSL Grants Pass. Thanks for being with us! If you'd like to support Sexy Spirituality Podcast, please give a 5 start review on Apple Podcasts or the platform you prefer to listen on. It really does help! And please do check us out on Patreon. If you have any feedback about the show, we'd love to hear from you at [email protected]. You can find all of our show notes and podcast episodes at sexyspiritualitypodcast.com. Be sure to click subscribe! We'll see you on May 21st for our next episode. Thanks for joining us for Sexy Spirituality, Real Spirituality for the Modern World.

Healthy Boundaries, Happy Lives Sexy Spirituality Episode #41 Host: Lezli Goodwin Guest: Savanna Riker, Spiritual Coach, Author and Minister Guest: Sarah Forbes, Spiritual Guide and Transformational Coach Small Talk Lezli, Savanna and Sarah talk: what's bringing you Joy today? Healthy Boundaries, Happy Lives We've brought together a round able of very powerful women today. Each of us are in different phases of life, in different places in our careers. And yet, today's topic is powerfully present for each one of us. Savanna, give us a nutshell description of how healthy boundaries became such an essential area of exploration for you: This is the biggest thing yet up for me. It used to be a dirty word; I didn't ever want to talk about boundaries because I didn't have any. I started digging deep into my past traumas of childhood and the ways in which I felt unsafe. So for many years of my life, I started to wonder why my relationships were so hard with so much dysfunction. Brené Brown, I believe, said, "Boundaries without consequences are merely suggestions." I didn't know what a boundary was. I wasn't modeled that growing up. I didn't understand how my experiences were informing my relationships going forward. Once I started to grasp that boundaries are very important in my life, I said I have to dive in. I have to really explore what this means and how it actually creates safety between us as human beings. It has been a huge interest of mine for a while now. Lezli: As humans we reach a point where we look around and go wait I might not be doing this in the way that serves me best. In my first marriage I am not sure I really had any understanding of adult relationships at all. The list of things that I didn't do to take care of myself in that relationship could wallpaper a house! What a joy it is to know that with every breath we get to look at it again and see how to do things differently Sarah: I had my second baby a couple years ago. He's two now. After I had him I was diagnosed with postpartum depression. While I was going through that I had a lot of responsibilities and a lot of expectations in my home life, with my husband and my family, and I also had a lot of expectations in my career. I had to learn how to set clear boundaries otherwise I couldn't heal and I couldn't do what I needed to do to find my center again. It was really crucial for me to figure out a way to get clear about what the feelings going on in me meant and once I could get clear about that I could communicate what I needed and what I wanted and really set boundaries. This time period was one of the main reasons that I was able to come out of it so quickly. Postpartum depression can last a long time for people and for me it was about six months and it's because I was working with a professional and was working in my life to really honor my feelings and communicate what was going on in me and letting people know I can't do that right now. I really got clear about the language I used and how direct I was. I've had to maintain that even two years later to make sure that I'm not going back to the other side where I just say yes to everything to helping everybody to being the best mom. We have this idea especially being maternal and having maternal instincts and social conditioning around what it means to be a mom. We have to learn, as moms especially, how to care for ourselves because it's not something we're taught. Lezli: When I was a young mom I'm so glad Pinterest wasn't a thing yet as I'm super crafty and it creates an expectation that everybody put up their brightest and shiniest and the expectation is that not only are your children going to be clean, fed, and loved, but they're also going to have sculptures for their snacks and handcrafted everything! As a mom/step mom of 5, I'm just glad nobody's been to jail they all still speak to each other! I'll take it! Savanna: The thing that I have found so tricky about being able to set boundaries with people is that I didn't always have the self-esteem and self-respect to know the behaviors that were happening which were crossing my boundaries. I wasn't really clear that I was feeling violated or betrayed, often because it was normalized behavior and how I grew up. So in order to create boundaries I have to have enough self-esteem and self-respect to know when this is OK or that is not OK. If you don't know what's not OK for you it makes it really challenging to not have [boundaries] violated often. Lezli: What constitutes a boundary? There are internal boundaries and external boundaries. They are a way of communicating either to yourself or to someone else that something needs to change, or something needs to stop right there. Determining if something is OK or not OK or doesn't feel good. Feelings and emotions are the guide. Some of us aren't in touch with our feelings which makes it harder to know if boundaries are being crossed or need to be set. If we don't have a clear "if X then Y" and then actually honor whatever that is, then we as well say I think everything should be grape jelly, my furniture should be grape jelly. It's all just kind of an imaginary thing until there is a firm "I will step away" or "we will need to take a break" or "we'll have to have a conversation about other options." We then have the responsibility as the boundary former [creator] to communicate the boundary and then also to honor and follow up on any clear set outcomes. I stayed way too long in relationships with people that were abusive because I I didn't follow up. I would set a boundary but then I would allow the behavior to continue and never actually implement what I said which means that you're basically teaching this other person how to treat you. You're teaching them that this is OK and therefore they keep doing it Lezli: So what do you say to the people who say, "I hate boundaries?" A person saying that may not have any and boundaries. [Boundaries] show people how to love us. Some of the most compassionate people that I know are some of the most boundaried people that I know. [They are] just so clear on where they stand. I never have to question where they are and where they're at and how they feel about me or a relationship or our friendship. When people think of boundaries they often equate it to conflict. What gets missed in that is that [setting] boundaries is actually a way to prevent long term conflicts. It's a way to keep you in a relationship that's healthy so that all these unnecessary conflicts don't keep coming up. So short term you might have to endure a little bit of conflict but in the long term when you get good at setting boundaries, you avoid a lot of conflict. Conflict naturally fizzles out when you learn how to set the boundaries that you need to keep you healthy and take care of yourself. Lezli, Kicking the Coke Machine Analogy: This can be what it's like to train people to recognize I'm serious I'm holding this boundary. They may push it [the boundary; put a dollar in] a couple times to see if they can get you to follow the old pattern [spit out a coke] But they might kick the Coke machine and [eventually] they learn this dollar is not going to get me a Coke and they stop putting in money I would just self-abandon my own needs and my own value for someone else's desires instead of standing in my own truth and setting my own boundary. In turn, I was dishonoring myself and continuing a cycle of toxic, addictive, abusive [relationships]. For me it was all of those things which really didn't call people higher or to the plate. Then the challenge [becomes] well then you lose those people. What do we do with that? If we don't have that self-worth piece it's so hard to let go of the other person because we think they're providing our worth, they are completing us, there's that codependency piece. Developing this self-worth and working on learning to love yourself and care for yourself is so essential in this practice of setting boundaries Lezli: Even thinking I'm worth spending the time in my own consciousness and in my own awareness to recognize what boundaries should be for me. It is an interesting process for me to recognize I don't have to be the cool girl I don't have to be the girl who's down for everything and I don't have to be the easy one in the room, meaning the one that never cares what restaurant we go to, or what time we're meeting up. Not just in romantic relationships but I think I was really guilty of that in my girlfriend relationships. I just want to be included. It didn't even occur to me that I was worth having an opinion. Sarah: I think, as women especially, we are anger phobic. We are taught that anger is [bad] and we're not the cool girl, or we're the one that's losing it. So we are taught to be scared of our own anger and to shame our anger. Our anger is the clearest signal that a boundary has been crossed so one of the things that we really have to do, especially as women, is be comfortable with our anger, be OK with it and that can be a process for a lot of people. I'm still working on it how to be OK when I'm angry. It's a natural human emotion. It's a signal. It's telling me something and it's wise and I need to hear it and honor it and listen to it Savanna: When I first started setting boundaries, I was so in my anger about it because they had been violated for so long that there was like this self-righteousness. I had to set a very firm boundary and it has to stick. So, I would go overboard to the point where people felt so pushed out that they thought I was crazy. It's a process of using our anger in a way to not only explore the anger deeply, but to channel it in a way that we're setting a boundary not from just a place of anger [seeking balance]. In this Episode, we mentioned Brené Brown https://brenebrown.com/, Thich Nhat Hahn https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/ …. Something Good Savanna: I'm always having a class coming up and you can find out more information about what I'm offering, what lectures might be coming up, on http://www.savannanoelle.com/ You can also find me of course on social media, @savinoelle is my Instagram handle and of course Facebook also has all of this information. Sarah: I'm working on a class right now about trauma informed care and how to implement trauma informed care into spiritual guidance and practice. I'll be teaching the class either in summer or fall. If you want more information about the class you can go to my website: http://www.theinspiredmindhealing.com/ Lezli: I have a class coming up called Podcasting 101. Podcasting can be a fun, creative way to embrace the idea of a church without walls, connecting with people all over the world. It can seem overwhelming, but there are simple, inexpensive ways to make your podcasting dreams a reality. In just a few weeks, you could be ready to launch your first podcast and get your message to the people who really want it. Cost for this 4-week class is $89.00. Class starts Thursday, May 6 at 6:00 PM MST. To find out more, go to lezligoodwin.com/onlineclasses Thank you for joining us for Sexy Spirituality. Our hosts today have been Lezli Goodwin, spiritual mentor, blogger and author at lezligoodwin.com, Savanna Noelle Riker, Spiritual Coach, Author and Minister, and Sarah Forbes, Spiritual Guide and Transformational Coach. Thanks for being with us! If you'd like to support Sexy Spirituality Podcast, please give a 5 start review on Apple Podcasts or the platform you prefer to listen on. It really does help! And please do check us out on Patreon. If you'd like to support Sexy Spirituality Podcast, please consider joining us on Patreon at patreon.com/sexyspirituality. From early access to episodes to patron-only content, our Patreon community gets the very sexiest stuff from us! A big thank you to our patrons for making this show possible. If you have any feedback about the show, we'd love to hear from you at [email protected]. You can find all of our show notes and podcast episodes at sexyspiritualitypodcast.com. Be sure to click subscribe! Thanks for joining us for Sexy Spirituality, Real Spirituality for the Modern World.

4.9.21 Sexy Spirituality Show Notes "Exploring Spirituality through Songwriting" Recorded 2.9.21. 10:00 AM MST Exploring Spirituality through Songwriting Sexy Spirituality Episode #40 Host: Lezli Goodwin Guest: Denise Rosier, Contemporary New Thought artist, and award-winning singer/songwriter Guest: Heather O'Day, Musical Director of Sonoran Desert Center for Spiritual Living in Amado, Arizona Small Talk Lezli, Heather and Denise talk birthdays! Exploring Spirituality through Songriting Okay, we've got singer/songwriter madness going on here today I wanted to have Denise and Heather on today, as they are both wonderful songwriters, performers and spiritual leaders. I came to know each through the Empower Music and Arts organization, the group that gives the Posi Awards for positive music. Https://empowerma.com Denise, give us the nutshell version of how you landed in positive music: Starting out as an inspirational Christian artist, as my spirituality changed my music changed. During a performance break, someone suggested that a spiritual center community would appreciate my music. I didn't know the songs, so I had to write to find songs that would work. Heather: A director at Tuscon New Thought was looking for musicians to sit in for Sunday Celebration Services. My path was taking me there, but I didn't have a community or a name for it. Before I knew it, there was an entire community at home, in my back yard, and led to a Music Director position. There was no hymnal! So, I was guided to some new thought musicians, and I did a retreat with Karen Drucker, who said, "This genre needs new voices. This genre needs your voice. Why not start now" Lezli: I came to all of this exactly background. I grew up doing performing arts, and then I took a 16-year break & developed stage fright. During practitioner training, I was assigned, "Go do the scariest thing you can think of." The scariest thing I could think of was to go back into vocal training. Dawn Kerlin made herself available to do some vocal training, which turned into song writing, which turned into recording albums. The more you write, the better it gets. You have to get the muck out. Tom Kimmel once gave me the homework to go home and write a hundred terrible songs! It takes the pressure off. Densie: a Christian label pushed me to write, as they wanted every singer to write their own songs, and I loved it. Sometimes I have to just be with a song until a word lands, just let them move around in my mind and then BAM, there it is. It's amazing how people have such deep meaning and feelings about songs, and I remember, "I was microwaving spare ribs when I thought of that line." The funniest things stand out. Writing songs (and messages for Sunday) come from what we're working on in our own lives. It's true in inspirational music as much as any other kind of music. Denise: I was very clear that I was going to write the songs I wanted to write and produce them the way I produce them. I didn't care of anyone else liked them. Luckily, people did respond to them. When it comes to inspirational music, I am simply just reaching out to Spirit and having a conversation with God. We're kind of like the greeting card writers for people who maybe don't know quite how to say what they are feeling. We create a space for people to be with God in that moment. "To sing is to pray twice." St. Augustine (sorry for the misattribution) What is the greatest lesson from being a spiritual song writing for non-writers: Heather: That everything is an act of creativity, that there is only One Mind and One Heart. It's all coming from a personal place. We mentioned Daniel Nahmod http://www.danielnahmod.com/, Karen Drucker https://www.karendrucker.com/, Tom Kimmel https://tomkimmel.com/, Harold Payne https://haroldpaynemusic.com/, Lezli & Dawn https://www.reverbnation.com/lezlidawn. …. Something Good Heather: I am the host of Wednesday Night Live, which is a New Thought music driven video podcast Facebook.com/CSLSonoranDesert. Plus, new music called "The Journey" at www.heatheroday.com for info. Denise: In addition to my music, one of the things I did during COVID was work on some ministry resources. Go to deniserosier.com for info for ministers and music directors, free chords for congregational songs. I'm developing workshops for pulpit ministers and music directors to build a stronger connection for creating a bigger and more robust music ministry. And I'm starting a new album this year! Lezli: My something good is…I have a class coming up called Podcasting 101. Podcasting can be a fun, creative way to embrace the idea of a church without walls, connecting with people all over the world. It can seem overwhelming, but there are simple, inexpensive ways to make your podcasting dreams a reality. In just a few weeks, you could be ready to launch your first podcast and get your message to the people who really want it. Cost for this 4-week class is $89.00. Class starts Thursday, May 6 at 6:00 PM MST. To find out more, go to lezligoodwin.com/onlineclasses If you'd like to support Sexy Spirituality Podcast, please consider joining us on Patreon at patreon.com/sexyspirituality. From early access to episodes to patron-only content, our Patreon community gets the very sexiest stuff from us! A big thank you to our patrons for making this show possible. If you'd like to support Sexy Spirituality Podcast, please give a 5 start review on Apple Podcasts or the platform you prefer to listen on. It really does help! And please do check us out on Patreon. If you have any feedback about the show, we'd love to hear from you at [email protected]. You can find all of our show notes and podcast episodes at sexyspiritualitypodcast.com. Be sure to click subscribe! We'll see you on April 24 for our next episode, "Expressing Spirituality through Songwriting". Thanks for joining us for Sexy Spirituality, Real Spirituality for the Modern World.

Spirituality and Pop Culture Sexy Spirituality Episode #39 Host: Lezli Goodwin Guest: Rev. Dr. Raymont L. Anderson, Senior Minister of The Center for Spiritual Living Greater Baltimore Guest: Rev. Barbara Bue, Manager of Field Services for Centers for Spiritual Living Small Talk Lezli, Ray and Barb talk about favorite Easter goodies and traditions. For Ray, it's chocolate. For Barb, it's Cadbury Crème Eggs. So terrible and so amazing. Spirituality and Pop Culture We've got a gathering of proud geeks here today I wanted to have Ray and Barb on today, because these are two people I can always count on to get my geeky references and take them one step further, exploring the spiritual messages in pop culture. Ray. Tell me about how you came to connect your favorite pop culture icons with your spiritual life. Ray: I originally got into all of this through reading. Wonder Woman, Bionic Man, Bionic Woman. But at Carlo College, a philosophy teacher and a nun told me that spirituality and mythology are closely connected. Also, that the Bible is not in inerrant word of God. And then my father re-introduced me to Joseph Campbell. In order for SPider Man to become Spider Man, Uncle Ben taught him that with great power comes great responsibility. If we're going to walk this walk, there is responsibility. It's in Yoda, and in the Judeo-Christian theology. Barb: It's also practice, choice-points, the biggest opportunities for growth. Let's use Harry Potter – they learn your word is your power, but you must practice to say it rightly and use intention. All the things Science of Mind has been teaching for 150 years is in all of this, even from way before of course. The journey is never complete. You can be successful, and then step right back into the next expansion of the self. There is always another Heros Journey. Yoda learned for 600 years, to become the person who said you failed because you did not believe, you're not convicted. Two generations now have grown up with the Star Wars universe, and it's changing the world and wanting to make the world be different. The MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) is the most current wave in culture, echoing what Star Trek and Star Wars did in the last generation, comic books before. George Lucas is a Science of Mind guy! The Force was what he came to about God from the Science of Mind. Ray: Gene Roddenberry, communicators & now flip phones. Touch screens are now literally touch screens. Thought becomes form, it's in real life now. In Harry Potter, "Is this just my imagination?" Dumbledore, of course it's in your mind. WHy would that make it not real? Do we ever get to let go of the war or idea of the need to fight? The Declaration of Principles says the ultimate goal of life is freedom from discord of every nature, and this freedom is sure to be attained by all. Luke was at war with himself. We can get past the idea of needing to harm another, and move into challenging ourself and others. Like chess – that's a challenge, but not war. We can talk about how we can all win. Some people think that's fantasy thinking, but this is that episode! It's the old rising tides should float all boats. This idea that fantasy is just daydreaming, but Albert Einstein said imagination is more important than knowledge. All new things come from imagination, fantasy, thought first. Fantasy is just another way that the Divine is expressing. The key is separating the idea that fiction is for children. We do such a good job teaching children that anything is possible, and then we tell them to grow up. Lezli's generation (born in 1975) never knew a world without Star Wars and Star Trek, and we never stopped believing in possibilities and the bursting forth of technology shows it. Dr. Strange: At the root of existence, mind and matter meet. They are not divorceable. There is only one Mind, and that Mind is God. We know mind affects the body, physiology. If not, there wouldn't be 1-900 numbers. That wouldn't be a multi-billion -dollar industry. "Don't worry yourself sick." We say that because we know you can. So many of these stories also involve intuition, trusting the inner voice. How do we reconcile the comic book "There is only one" in a teaching where we are taught that we are all the chosen one? Each one of us are The One, and it's always manifesting as individuals, and as a team. Buffy had the Scoobies. Harry Potter had Ron and Hermione. Spider Man had the Avengers. They set it up as "The One," and then the hero chooses to build a family/team. Nobody is the Ron in their version of the story. Nobody is Xander. This even holds for Jesus, Jeshua, the Christ. But he says that he did these things but you will do greater. He built the family of apostles and then awakened it for all of us. IF we connect to it. What is our responsibility as New Thought teachers to reference pop culture for relevance? Barb: Those of us that do attract younger crowds include pop culture, sports and science, to men and women in balance. I do think it's important. Young people are coming in and they know all this because they grew up with Harry. We try to make it high minded and they are like, "Yeah, I learned about this when I was five." If you are brave enough and audacious enough and unapologetic enough to bring the fantasy into real life, not only will your life change, but the life of your community, city world will change, one thought at a time. Pop culture is the great example of how this happens. Something Good Barb: If you are looking to plug into community that thinks like this, that explores like this, find a Center for Spiritual Living. My personal favorite is New Thought Norther Colorado, which is a community I helped birth and I'm still attached to. Life can still be magic. www.NewThoughtNoCo.org Ray: Feel free to find me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc. (Raymont Anderson) www.cslgreaterbaltimore.com Lezli: My something good is…I have a class coming up called Creating Powerful Memes. A picture is worth a thousand words, and the evidence of gorgeous branded memes are all over social media. The amazing thing is you can learn to create these impressive and impactful images more quickly and more easily than you think. Come explore free and low-cost technologies and techniques that will open the door to a completely new world of marketing magic! (Held as part of the Centers for Spiritual Living Advance and Thrive Series) Cost for this 4-week class is $89.00. Class starts Thursday, April 8 at 6:00 PM MST. To find out more, go to www.lezligoodwin.com/onlineclasses If you'd like to support Sexy Spirituality Podcast, please consider joining us on Patreon at patreon.com/sexyspirituality. From early access to episodes to patron-only content, our Patreon community gets the very sexiest stuff from us! A big thank you to our patrons for making this show possible. If you'd like to support Sexy Spirituality Podcast, please give a 5 start review on Apple Podcasts or the platform you prefer to listen on. It really does help! And please do check us out on Patreon. Thank you for joining us for Sexy Spirituality. I'm your host, Lezli Goodwin, spiritual mentor, minister and author at lezligoodwin.com. Our guests have been Rev. Dr. Raymont L. Anderson, Senior Minister of The Center for Spiritual Living Greater Baltimore, and Rev. Barbara Bue, Manager of Field Services for Centers for Spiritual Living. Thanks for being with us! If you have any feedback about the show, we'd love to hear from you at [email protected]. You can find all of our show notes and podcast episodes at sexyspiritualitypodcast.com. Be sure to click subscribe! We'll see you on April 9 for our next episode, "Expressing Spirituality through Songwriting". Thanks for joining us for Sexy Spirituality, Real Spirituality for the Modern World.

New Thought and New Media Sexy Spirituality Episode #38 Host: Lezli Goodwin Guest: Rev. Robert Brzezinski, founding minister and Creative Director of New Thought Media Network Guest: Cerise Patron, Singer, Songwriter, Speaker and Author, Spreading the message of Love to the world. Small Talk Lezli, Robert and Cerise talk about what book really inspired them. Cerise: The book that changed my life was "Conversations with God" by Neale Donald Walsh (https://www.amazon.com/Conversations-God-Uncommon-Dialogue-Book/dp/0399142789) but the one that really set me in motion was "Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway" by Suzanne Jeffers (https://www.amazon.com/Conversations-God-Uncommon-Dialogue-Book/dp/0399142789) Robert: Thank you so much, Cerise, for not limiting yourself to one! "The Celestine Prophecy" by James Redfield (https://www.amazon.com/Celestine-Prophecy-James-Redfield/dp/153873026X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1NFDQDJ3Z9OAM&dchild=1&keywords=the+celestine+prophecy+by+james+redfield&qid=1615562059&s=books&sprefix=the+celestin%2Cstripbooks%2C202&sr=1-1) but I read it long before I was introduced to New Thought. What really launched me was "The Science of Mind" by Ernest Holmes (https://www.amazon.com/Science-Mind-Complete-Ernest-Holmes/dp/1585428426/ref=sr_1_3?crid=2BRDXADYW24QW&dchild=1&keywords=the+science+of+mind+ernest+holmes&qid=1615562145&s=books&sprefix=the+science+of+m%2Cstripbooks%2C223&sr=1-3) But the most influential is Michael Singer's books like "The Untethered Soul" (https://www.amazon.com/s?k=michael+singer&i=stripbooks&ref=nb_sb_noss_2) Lezli: "A Return to Love" by Marianne Williamson (https://www.amazon.com/Return-Love-Reflections-Principles-Miracles/dp/0060927488/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1VDCFP56KV8B2&dchild=1&keywords=marianne+williamson&qid=1615562328&s=books&sprefix=marianne%2Cstripbooks%2C208&sr=1-1) and "This Thing Called You" by Ernest Holmes ( https://www.amazon.com/s?k=ernest+holmes+this+thing+called+you&crid=2DIAN49ELMXM4&sprefix=ernest+holmes+this%2Cstripbooks%2C201&ref=nb_sb_ss_fb_1_18_ts-doa-p) New Thought and New Media I wanted to have Robert and Cerise on today, because I see each of them using New Media to expand their message to a broader audience in interactive ways. Robert, it has been really interesting to watch you walk out your New Thought ministry through New Media. Tell us a little bit about how this focus came about for your ministry. Robert: The thing behind it all is the Life Visioning process. After exploring a pulpit ministry, I came to explore what ministry was going to be for me. I dove deep into the Life Visioning process, and an old idea of a New Thought radio station emerged and I launched New Thought Radio. It was a hobby at the times. Through the development of that music radio station, more emerged. Talk radio? YouTube? Videos? Out of prayer, the New Thought Media Network was born. I was posting prayers and very quickly there was a timeframe behind it. We now have 20 hours of live video broadcasting on Facebook per week. Mental Equivalent: the capacity to envision the fullest capacity of your vision, how big can you see your dream getting? You can't realize more than you can imagine. Cerise: The pandemic, when it happened, I had just launched Sacred Spiritual Tours and had 4 tours planned in South America for 2020. So I went from an amazingly busy planned year – and I don't like it when plans don't come to fruition. Technology is really spectacular, and I created virtual reality travel experiences (one on one session in her home). The experiencer wears a virtual reality device walking through all of these amazing places while I sing to you and lead you in meditations. So concerts, showing up virtually for church services, reaching the most people is boosted by technology even during this pandemic. We can all find a way to connect with ministers, meditations, good news and be a blessing in the world. Lezli: Rev. Karin Lewis and I were able to pivot immediately when everything went online, so we didn't really lose anyone. But we're finding that out online campus has grown by about 40% over the pandemic period. And it's very active, engaged, not just being a passive "watching" population. The landscape has changed. We all became global overnight. With that came the necessity for ministries to shift to what is more palatable to the online audience. Shorter segments, Interactivity. Things that draw people in more. Friday Night Game Night, Zoom fellowship, the hilarity of how we figure out how to do things together online is as fun as the actual connection. What is our responsibility to share the New Thought philosophy via New Media? Robert: If we wish to stay relevant, absolutely. More and more people spend time in front of a screen of some kind. It is experiencing life. It's our responsibility to be available in the channels and places where people are influenced in their lives. Both Robert and Lezli have a background in marketing: Go where the people are. Is Sunday dying? Do people want to go to church? Does anything new distract or detract from Sunday? Why are we so stuck on Sunday? Lezli: I think we're teachers of New Thought, not Sunday morning professionals. Cerise: there's a call to all of us to be the Light, to offer that Light in a bigger way. Young people want something that inspires them and excites them about life, and that involves some change. The amazing thing with pandemic is that those of us who have committed to being the Light in the world have to show up as the Light in a new way every day. "We are beings of light. Is it not time for us to start traveling at the speed of light? New media moves at the speed of light." Robert Wisdom Everyday Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/wisdomwednesday You can have it all, the both/and – traditional Sunday, social media, YouTube, podcasts. The prayer of Jabaz: Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain. What do you wish more people understood about New Media? Robert: The internet is not free. Let's create a network where everyone is prospering. Please support your favorite online ministries. Spirituality is not a side-hustle! Cerise: No matter what level we are at, sharing our gifts, we're human. We're learning as we go. We're all trying to figure it out. Don't give up. If you don't know it, you can learn it. Just keep moving forward. Put some dedicated time into learning the technology so you can show up in a new way. There are classes, teachers, YouTube videos. You are never alone. CSL is running another podcasting class in May 2021 – 4 weeks, $89.00. I will share the enrollment link as it becomes available. Something Good Cerise: I am dedicated to breaking out of the chains! I'm releasing a new album this year with meditations and music. There are 3 virtual tour packages ($45.00/hour through the pandemic). There are 2 big in person tours coming up later this year. www.singingthetruth.com and Cerise's Peeps Facebook Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/2763645437240346 Robert: Join us at New Thought Media Network (YouTube channel, Facebook page, hashtag) www.NTMedia.org Saturday mornings 9am MST, team of 7 amazing speakers sharing and teaching directly from the Science of Mind textbook, all year long – open Q&A. Join us! Lezli: I am presenting as part of the Park Point Press CSL Authors Summit next Saturday, March 20th 2021, 10am to 2 PM MST. If you are curious about publishing or are looking for ways to support your book – lots of ways to approach this. I'm presenting on how to prepare yourself to market your book on a podcast. Register at www.Shop.csl.org/books If you'd like to support Sexy Spirituality Podcast, please consider joining us on Patreon at www.patreon.com/sexyspirituality. 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