Be a Light to the World

and my light dims a little. My mind goes straight to - How can little ole me make a dent in the overwhelming pain and hardship out there? I mean, that would just take a miracle. Well, every moment of life is a chance to align with the Divine, and as Soul, an eternal spark of God, we can create everyday miracles. I'm gonna say that again: We can

create everyday miracles. And in today's episode, Be a Light to the World, we'll explore easy ways to claim our creative power as Soul and uplift any situation life throws our way. God's love

is the key. Here's some

actionable spiritual wisdom from Sri Harold Klemp, the spiritual leader of ECKANKAR. He says, "Soul is in this life to learn to give and receive Divine Love, and its ultimate goal is to become a Coworker with God. To be a Coworker means that no matter what you are doing, you make it easier for the next person." Now, making it easier for the next person? If that's being a Coworker with God, I'm in. Because how easy is that?

And, for me, super empowering. I feel my glow returning already. Now, get ready for two stories today from a dynamic father and daughter duo. First, we have a rare gem of a story. It's an interfaith miracle really, where a teen goes beyond just supporting her friend of a different faith. She takes creative action to make it easier for her friend to stay true to her religion and fit in

socially. Next, her dad, who is a senior manager in the data communications industry, tells his story about the power of a listening heart. They both make a difference in the world in their own unique way. So here is Jemma and Lawrence Chase. They spoke at a service at the Temple of ECK in Chanhassen, Minnesota.

to be with you here today. A

couple of the stories we're going to share really sort of underscore some of the main -- two points of ECKANKAR, the main tenets, which are that Soul exists because God loves it and that the purpose of life is to learn how to give and receive more of God's love. So a couple of our stories, I think, are showing ways that we've found those experiences to be happening in our lives and opportunities to work with in

our lives. And I think, Jemma, you have a quote from Sri Harold that you'd like to read to set the context for your story.

One of my friends is a member of a religion that doesn't allow her to expose her skin in mixed company, except her forearms and face. And she didn't want her religion to stop us from swimming or hanging out.

lot to her. So I said that I would bring leggings and a T-shirt and she could too so that we would be matching when she swam so she didn't have to feel like the odd one out. After I said that, then all my friends said that they would bring their leggings and T-shirts too. My friend was very insistent that we didn't need to do that, but we had already made up our minds. I knew that she was worried about the spiritual consequences for just a few hours.

hill together. We were holding on to each other and grabbing each other if someone slipped. We were all there for each other every step of the way. When we finally made it down, we set our things down and immediately jumped in the water and swam. After a time, we realized that there were some issues with this area. It was very rocky, and it was in the shade, so it was very cold. We decided to head back to

the public beach. Once we got there, we all put on our leggings and baggy T-shirts to match her and make her feel more comfortable. We all went swimming together, and we had a fantastic time.

great story. I had something

similar happen to me recently, where I had the opportunity to travel for our sales meeting, our annual sales meeting, but the condition of going to the event was that I had to work in this thing called the Hub, which was basically a trade show type environment. And I'm pretty much by nature, a little bit of an introvert more than an extrovert. So I find that working in the crowds for long periods of time can kind of be draining.

at it as a negative. And I also thought, going into it I vowed that I was going to look for ways to make it uplifting for not just myself but for anyone I encountered and look for opportunities to have an experience that was uplifting for all. So as I arrived at my booth the first day, I had brought with me two coffees because I knew that energy might be an issue. So with the long hours and no breaks, I brought a

couple of coffees. But when I got to the booth, I noticed there was another woman there that was going to be working the booth with me. And she had been hired by the event producer as event staff. And I'll just say a thing about the event staff is that they were wearing yellow T-shirts so that people could

recognize them. But they had them doing things that were kind of strange tasks to me, like they would have them holding signs that would guide people to the lunch room or the main hall or whatever, but they were just basically human signposts. And it got to a point where I would notice that the people would walk past them and wouldn't even see a person there. They would just see a lumpy yellow signpost that happened to be breathing, but they wouldn't interact with

them. And while I was there during this event, I was taking opportunities to say hi to the signpost as I walked by, and, you know, greet them -- How's your day? -- interact with them, because they were people. They were Soul. So anyway, as I get to my booth, I see yellow-shirted Sheila is in my booth, and I thought, Oh, here's an opportunity to

interact with a person. And so I had two coffees, so I offered her one, and she immediately in a very gruff East Coast accent says, "I don't want no coffee." And so I was, like, taken aback a little bit and it took me off guard, but I decided not to react or form judgments or opinions about that and rather see her as a person, as Soul, who may not be as happy to work

this booth either. So through the course of the week, I started engaging with Sheila and asking her about herself and about her life. And I would just ask her, or give her the opportunity to tell me about her life and her experiences. And as I did so, I would sing HU inwardly to really create a space, just of, you know, quiet grace and peace and calm for her

to tell me about herself. And this went on throughout the week, and I found that she actually was an amazing person who had lived an amazing life. She was retired now, but she had been an educator all her life.

More than an educator, she had been a principal of high schools, she had been directors of academies, she'd actually opened schools around the world, she'd lived in many exotic countries, and you know, lived there for years to open schools and teach English and other subjects there. Really a rich, rich, varied existence. And it just reminded me, you know, that it's important to look past the

person in the position. It's important to see Soul to Soul, give them the opportunity to be more than their job or more than their post. So, throughout the week, I would introduce her to my friends and Coworkers who would come to the booth. I would tell them about her. I would find opportunities to tell her supervisor what a great person she was and how great of a job

she was doing. At one point, she had told me that her husband had been in the hospital, or was in the hospital, and had been in the hospital since May. And she told me that she didn't think that he would be coming home. And she's, they've been married for 40 or 50 years. And so again, I was singing HU inwardly and letting the space be created for my heart to open to be able to understand -- What does she need from me? Or what can I give her, or is she needing or

wanting anything from me? And through the moments of silence, I would just listen. And it . . . Surprisingly, I got that she actually didn't want or need anything from me. She just wanted it to be heard and seen as Soul. She just wanted me to hear her story and share her story and see her as Soul. At one point, I heard her on the phone to her son, and she was telling her son the best part about this week has been being able to work with me in

the booth. And I knew that she wasn't talking about me. It wasn't me that she was seeing. It was actually the Light of Spirit, Divine Love that she was able to have a part with and be a part of or be with, you know, as we shared the moments together. And the fact that she had been seen as Soul. And that was what she was responding to. And when you take a moment to really embrace life and the moment and live fully in the moment, then that's what shines

through, you know. So my choice to choose to live and look at this as a higher opportunity rather than a negative really shone through. And that's actually something that I got from Jemma, right? Jemma had told me that that's how she approaches school. You mentioned that rather than looking at schools as a negative . . .

best." And I know, maybe in the back of my mind, it's probably not the best? But I might as well make the best out of it. So whenever I come home, I'm always telling my parents all the great things, just looking forward to the next day and just keeping a really good positive attitude. And I always tell my friends, like, "Great Day! Happy day today!" Like "Friday!" Like, "We got this!" Like, texting my friends, like, "Good day today! Happy day!" you know, and just

keeping everybody motivated. And same with my parents, making sure that it's just happy day every day. And yeah. Yep.

segment, "Try Your Wings," where

you get to test drive a spiritual technique that can help you be a better channel of God's love and give you greater love and freedom in your own life. In his story, Lawrence mentioned that he would sing HU to be a vehicle of grace and calm while speaking to Sheila. And that's what the HU can do, attune anyone to God's love and guidance in the moment -- a great tool for tough conversations with your boss or

spouse, by the way. Now, if this is new to you, HU is an ancient word, a sacred sound. And when we sing it or hold it in our minds, we're literally infusing our being with the Light and Sound of God. No religion can claim to own the HU. It is a gift to the world. Anyone of any background or faith can work with this powerful spiritual technique. So if you want to experience the full benefits of the HU, a daily practice is a

good way to go. Personally, I sing HU for about 20 minutes a day, and it's a way for me to fill myself with love so that I can rise above the stresses of the world and be a light in my own way. We'll start the spiritual exercise with a short audio clip from Sri Harold Klemp, then we'll go directly into the HU song. Now, if you're sitting, it's a good time to get comfortable. But if you're driving, please keep your eyes open and on the road. Okay, here's Sri Harold.

And then the way to give it back to other people is not talk their ear off and telling all about your great experiences, but you give back some service of love to the world, to your friend, to your neighbor, and it may be a good deed a day that no one ever knows about.

thank you for listening. Please check out the free spiritual resources in the show notes, including a link to the free HU app. It's a must-have for on-the-go spiritual stress relief. And all the best on your Soul Adventure, whatever it may be.