Serving the World: A Spiritual Practice

Learning about how serving the world can be a spiritual practice was made easier when I encountered these four helpful shifts in awareness:

From Doing To Being
From Attachment to Nonattachment
From Obligation to Love
From Duality to Oneness

The first, the shift from doing to being, represents a change in focus from being task oriented towards being mindful of the attitude with which I approach my service. Someone coined the phrase “never move faster than the speed of love,” which to me describes the attitude I aspire to when service. When I am tasked oriented, I can sometimes be rough with people, and leave an unpleasant emotional wake behind me. I’m learning to focus on how I am being while I am doing what I am doing.

The second, the shift from attachment to nonattachment, reminds me that I want to get to a place in mind where I don’t let disappointment degrade my engagement. A paraphrase of what Krisha said to Arjuna when asked what kind of people he favored might be: those who are neither buoyed up by praise or cast down by criticism are loved by me.

The third, a shift from obligation to love, prompts me to acknowledge that some things in life are not pleasant, and yet we have to do them anyway, and invites me to discover whether I can engage in the unpleasant activity with my focus on love. I am trying to not let my aversion to discomfort stop me from being open heartedly engaged in serving the world.

Finally, the shift from duality to oneness, to me is about the realization that although it appears that I’m doing something for someone else when I’m serving, it is also true that I’m doing it for myself, or the self of me that lives in all beings.

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Focus on Being A Trustee: Lawrence Edwards.

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What I Love About Being a Volunteer - Mary Ann Granieri

"I’ve always loved using my talents to contribute in some way to my community. It brings me a sense of satisfaction and well-being to help create, nurture, and sustain a healthy spiritual community that in turn supports and sustains so many others, individually as well as those in our local and global communities. Volunteering at the Center has allowed me to meet new people in a way that’s been easy and fun. A spirit of camaraderie easily develops as we collaborate on a common goal. I’ve developed dear friendships with some of the people I’ve met volunteering. It’s also created an opportunity to work with and get to know many of the talented and hard-working staff and ministers who are so dedicated to this Center. My appreciation for CSLSR and for everyone who contributes to it has grown immensely as I’ve glimpsed a bit of what goes on behind the scenes. As I’ve been able to contribute and create by volunteering, I’ve also received much. I feel truly seen, valued, and appreciated....

What I Love About Being a Volunteer - Bette Smith

"I love volunteering at the Center because I get so much in return. I meet new and interesting people and connect with people I haven’t seen in years. I like working behind the scenes so I help Allan Yeager with some parts of the website which is a job I can do from home. I work in the bookstore where I’m surrounded by beautiful items for sale. And I love teaching classes because I have benefited so much from all the classes I’ve taken. Coming to the Center for over twenty five years has changed my life. I love giving back my beloved Center that has fed me and helped me grow." -Bette Smith

Volunteer Community at the Center for Spiritual Living, Santa Rosa

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