A Practitioner’s Perspective
with Susan Clark, RScP
“Sometimes, I need only to stand, wherever I am to be blessed.” This was one of the first songs that Karen Drucker sang on Friday evening to open the Women’s Retreat in Orlando. It is a fairly new song that I hadn’t heard before from her album, “My Heart Is With You”. The words immediately touched my soul and set a tone of openness for the retreat. I almost felt complete, as if had already gotten what I needed from the retreat.
The truth resonated with me as soon as I heard it. I do not need to read another book, attend another class, always seeking the Presence of peace outside myself. God, Universe, Spirit, Source is not somewhere else. I do not need to go find it. I do not need to earn it. “Sometimes I need only to stand, wherever I am to be blessed”. I only need to pause and claim and accept my blessing. God is always within me.
Like many of us, I am a seeker. I grew up in a traditional Christian church, attending Sunday School every Sunday of my childhood. As I moved into college, marriage, and motherhood, I grew away from my traditional roots and for many years God was not part of my life, though I often visited other churches, hoping for a message that resonated with me. I never found what I was seeking. I actively read self-help books, knowing something was missing, though I didn’t even know what I was looking for.
Later in my life I had a “burning bush” experience of the presence of God within me and it was transformative in my life. I started seriously searching for more meaning. I sat on hard concrete floors for many hours with the Buddhists. I visited a Unity church, and finally found my way to a Center for Spiritual Living. I started taking classes, not always understanding what I read or heard, but somehow it was always something that resonated with me and allowed me to live a better life. That was about 25 years ago.
As the retreat was ending, Karen encouraged each of us to set a goal for the upcoming week of something we would definitely do for ourselves as a result of the retreat. I decided I wanted to have Karen Drucker’s music playing in my car. This meant I needed to download the music to my phone and make it play through the speakers in my car. If I couldn’t figure it out, I would ask for help from someone who knew how….and asking for help is not easy for me. I knew I could ask a friend who has the same car I do, and he always had music playing.
Monday morning, after the weekend retreat, I was sitting at a Supercharger, charging my car. I purchased and downloaded the album as I sat there. I was trying to figure out how to make it play in my car when someone knocked on my car window. Startled, I looked up and it was my friend, Will, and another man. I told him what I was trying to do, and he helped, but then he said, I know the car but I don’t know your iPhone, but John here is an tech expert. Within 3 minutes, I had Karen Drucker’s latest album playing in my car with an App installed for easy use in the future. Spirit had sent the help I needed right to me!
As I sat there, marveling at how easy this had been, I realized once again that “Sometimes I need only to stand, wherever I am to be blessed.” I had been blessed and I sat and marveled at that gift. God had taken my wish (all thoughts are prayers) and sent me exactly what I needed. It was so easy!
One of the things I had done, early in my Spiritual journey was to play Karen Drucker’s 1st CD, “Songs of the Spirit”, over and over in my car. I played only that CD for a couple of years, often humming the songs to myself when I wasn’t in the car. When I worked for Hospice and was in my car a lot of the day, I played “I Am So Blessed” over and over again. It became like a mantra for me.
At some point, I got away from playing spiritual music in my car and began listening to talk radio. Now I had come full circle, listening to Karen Drucker’s 22nd album repeatedly.
I am so happy and I’m enjoying having spiritual music playing again, in the background, in my car. I’m sure I will now make playlists and play more of my favorites. Rev. Laine is full of suggestions for great spiritual music and albums I can add.
This has become a new spiritual practice in my life . . . actually an old spiritual practice that I have revived.
What old spiritual practices once supported your growth, but you no longer do them. What intention could you set for yourself for this next week . . . something you might want to do, but don’t know how? Can you ask for help? Perhaps, let God know and It may send that help directly to you when you’re available. TSRW . . . This stuff really works!