Blog

Fear is loud, but that doesn't make it right. Rev. Marilyn Sprague joined us from Portland to explore what happens when we meet fear differently: as a messenger to learn from, as a story to rewrite, and as an invitation to let love lead instead. Courage doesn't require fear to disappear; we just have to be curious, compassionate, and say yes anyway. This reflection looks at what fear tries to tell us, and what it means to choose love in the middle of it.

Rev. Dr. Larry King told us fear only lasts 30 seconds, biologically speaking. Everything after that is on us. His talk on fierce clarity covered some brain science, a joke about a monster under the bed, and a five-step way through fear that's simpler than it sounds. He also asked: after the pause, after the clarifying, is action even required? Sometimes the answer is no.

A lot of us grew up where anger wasn't allowed. Yet, anger is a powerful tool. It's its own energy; it's information and fuels action. Angry feelings can be uncomfortable, in part because we aren't taught or given tools to adequately or appropriately express them. Examples of types of anger include the mama bear anger that protects and defends, and the bully anger that takes other people's power away and shuts them down. Both are harmful. So how can we use anger for good?

In community, we have more power than we think we do, and more than we have alone. It’s part of why what happens in our sanctuary on a Sunday morning matters, and extends beyond our walls. Whenever we walk into something new, whether it’s a job, a congregation, a friend group, or any transition, we ask ourselves a version of the same question: Is there a place for me here? We're wired for belonging. And

Our thoughts shape our world, and our automatic thoughts and responses may be limiting. How do we become more conscious of our automatic thoughts, so that we can be and bring love to everything we do? How can we change our response to effectively heal the world by healing ourselves?

Love isn't something that arrives when conditions are right. It's a force — Martin Luther King's word — and an active one. SOM founder Ernest Holmes said it would be difficult, if not impossible, to find any situation that doesn't respond to love's creative and healing power.

What to do when doubt shows up, especially self-doubt, and how to transform it.

How can you use doubt as a doorway to greater awareness and a better life experience? Rev. Gary shares ideas about how to make doubt our friend rather than foe, how to use it so it no longer stops us from creating the life we desire. When we reframe our interpretation, we shift our mindset.