<html><head></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; ">Subject: No. Idaho Team 2014-02-16<div>Teacher: Charles, Jonathan</div><div>T/R: Mark Rogers</div><div><br></div><div>Prayer: I would like to invite our Divine Parents to join us in our circle, as if they are not, and strengthen our circle, bring us their peace and their light to add to ours as we bring ours to add to theirs and put all of us in the light as well. It is not only about the things that are out there, we must remember the self as part of the equation. Help us to do that Divine Parents. So much of life is focused on things we see, things we hear, things that are out <i>there</i>. Help us to always remember that all those things are aspects of our inner self and relationships to our inner self, that our entire experience is conditioned by our inner self and how it perceives all that is out there. </div><div><br></div><div>Charles: Good morning my friends, I am Charles here again accepting the invitation that was created with your willingness here this morning. I invite you to consider that the strength of any combination of any group, of any organization, is composed of the combination and total of the individuals who comprise the group. The more potent and powerful each individual component of a system is, the more powerful and potent the entire organization of this system may become. Therefore it is ever true, as has been stated, that the individual components are what may be strengthened by the efforts of the individuals comprising the total.</div><div><br></div><div>If you are the best you can be when you join a team, if you have done the effort and practiced your part individually, then as a player on the team, you become more valuable because you have put the energy and effort into raising the value of the individual in combination with the group. If each individual pays service and attention to their own skill level, their own ability level, then when they come together they bring much more to the table than relying on the idea that somehow, in combination their strengths will be brought forward. It is true, that in combination, strengths are brought forward, that potentials may be activated, but think how much greater the influence and how much more potent the group or team may be when all the individuals within the group have honed skills and abilities to be able to be activated in the team. </div><div><br></div><div>At this time of year, when you have your world wide games you call your Olympics, you will notice that there is a distinct and different level which are applied to individual feats of strength and endurance and group pursuits such as the team sports. But there is a great interest in the individual which can, through their own efforts, in relationship to all the others, be deemed to be superior. The one trait that you will find running through all of these individuals who make it to stand upon the podium by themselves is an unrelenting desire for self improvement. They may have coaches, they may have individuals who bring them inspiration and words of encouragement, but in the final analysis, no once can exercise for them, no one can train for them, no amount of advice will make the difference. What makes the difference for these individuals is their individual commitment and pursuit to personal excellence. That is what enables them to stand upon the podium and receive the accolades of an entire world. They have driven themselves to a level of excellence which is only attainable through personal individual efforts.</div><div><br></div><div>There is a different whole phenomenon which occurs with team sports in which you must work together, you must train together and you must rely on the skills of your teammates as much as your own skills, but nevertheless, even so, the best teams, the finest accomplishments are derived with similar pursuits, the pursuit of each member on the team to rise to a level of personal excellence, to bring their commitment 100% to offer to the organization and they are willing to work with others and play the role that they are designed to play to the best of their capacity. In so doing, they commit to the larger organization while relying on the individual commitment to the self to stay ready, to stay in tune, to stay focused and stay prepared [which] only occurs on an individual basis.</div><div><br></div><div>So whether these are individual feats of success or team oriented feats of success, success remains dependent on the ultimate commitment of the individuals involved. There is no way around this measuring of success. Just because you are on a team does not make you a great player; you must be a great player to be on the team. Just because you have aspirations to be a world class athlete does not make you one. You must follow through, you must do the training, maintain the rigorous exercises and pursue your goal with complete intention and focus. The world stands up and celebrates those who have made such achievements, who have risen to such a place of authority based upon walking the walk, not talking the talk.</div><div><br></div><div>The same dynamics hold true in spiritual pursuits. You may be involved in team sports such as your <i>light group </i>in which you gather together to bring your skills that you have honed, your talents to the table to be used in combination with others in a collective activity. This is all well and good, as you have come to know certain success is always present when you are in relationship with others, in combination with those who, like you, would come together to offer their talents and services. The effectiveness of any group is dependent upon its individuals, those who would come together and what they would bring to the equation.</div><div><br></div><div>But likewise, while you are all involved in team sports, you are also individual spiritualists in training, undergoing your exercises and doing your due diligence to keep in tone, to maintain your strength, in fact increase it, and to train your spiritual selves to go the extra mile to have the endurance required. This is your individual events, your personal bests, and you are engaged in these as well as your group pursuits. It is good to keep in mind that the true athlete is not so much in competition for their position relative to others as they are in continually furthering their personal best, that is, expanding and increasing your capacities, your potentials and your accomplishments past what they were before. </div><div><br></div><div>This notion of <i>choosing again</i> is a golden key for you to always use in these pursuits for you may continually look to rise to a new personal best with such a key to be used. Simply allow yourself the freedom to choose again, knowing what you know in this hour, using the awareness of this moment, making a new choice can instantly bring you to a position of new personal best. This is the true endurance athlete, this is the true long term spiritualist, this is the true devoted individual to personal growth, be it in a physical capacity, a mental capacity or a spiritual capacity. This is the signature of one who does not let up but rather sees life as the opportunity for further training, further growth and further expansion of the self.</div><div><br></div><div>That remains what is so impressive about the weekly donations that you all bring to this forum, your contributions designed to bring the spark of inspiration, the moments of confirmation, the potential for expanded awareness, the use of the gems and the tools that you gather throughout and bring them to the group conversation so that there may be expansion of the group as well as the expansion of the individuals. No more could be asked of the individual or any group than that the members remain committed, focused, on task and show up for work prepared. Such is this group and I am honored to allow myself to be considered a part of this group.</div><div><br></div><div>I now would take my leave after offering my gratitude for such an opportunity. It indeed furnishes me with both the opportunity to participate and grow within the context of a group and as well, I assure you, I grow individually as my relationship to this group proves to be an expanding experience. I stand in gratitude. I take my leave for now, enjoy your week, farewell. </div><div><br></div><div>Jonathan: Good morning my friends, I am Jonathan here and this discussion of groups and combinations draws me like the moth to the flame. I will take this analogy and work in another familiar direction. We all are familiar with the charms and distinction of individual musical artists. We marvel at their capacity to have command of the situation and to be able to hold their own if you will, to be able to make an entire complete presentation by themselves. This demonstrates accomplishment and certain success at having mastered their skills to a level of confidence that can be appreciated by any onlooker and it is very true that we all have been taken at times by the solo artist who speaks to our heart and charms us with their presentation.</div><div><br></div><div>I will also call you to witness that we have all encountered in our experience, the combination of several very good musicians coming together all bringing their accomplishments and level of success and donating them to a common cause we refer to as a band. We will all come to witness that there is a special symmetry around those who would gather together under this one common purpose and work to get on the same page as it were, of music, and follow the same guidelines and together work to fulfill their part to its greatest capacity so that the overall whole maybe something of magnificence.</div><div><br></div><div>Any one of these individual artists may in fact be able to play their instrument to a level of expression worthy of a solo performance but when combined, when harnessed, when this energy is hitched together to the same wagon, there is an additional component. There is an overall synergistic magic some would call it, where tones combine, harmonies are created and there are then subsequent overtones which occur and before long, this great combination of accomplished musicians is able to create something that may only be created through such unified effort as they are willing to give.</div><div><br></div><div>Like in the athletic world, there are the soloists who manage to be able to be recognized for their accomplishments and there are those who desire to come together and work together in the team aspect and be recognized for their coordinated contributions, their selfless use of their skill towards a more common and central goal. These are easily identified in your life experiences. I am sure you all have been taken by both the soloist and by the magnificent band. There is a place for all of these in the spectrum of life experience but the thread which runs through is the devotion of the individual, the practice to become skilled and accomplished in and of themselves that they may bring their talents and their skills to the table to be used or they may exercise their talents and skills alone.</div><div><br></div><div>Either way, it is the accomplishment of these who would have the self discipline to maintain the integrity of their musical skills which provide the basis for all these experiences that we encounter as we enjoy these musical offerings. It is ever true, and I know it from my own experience, that one must be prepared when showing up to be part of a group exercise or else they are not able to offer to the group their very best skills and I think I can call you all to witness that we all have been in groups in which we feel prepared and ready to go and willing to offer everything, and we all have arrived at group where we feel unprepared, behind the curve, trying to catch up, wishing we would have practiced. The same is true of spiritual pursuits. Sometimes we are in the group feeling on our game, ready to go, in touch and willing to give our all and other times we feel slow, behind the curve and not quite in the flow. The difference in these cases was the degree of self-service, the self preparation, of paying attention to the self so that you can be the best you can be in relation to others or simply in relation to your personal best.</div><div><br></div><div>It is always a joy to drop in to a group I call myself a member of and bring whatever I may have to bring to the table. We all are enjoying just the active participation together and encouraging each other, each one to be our personal best and to rise to the occasion. Such is my contribution here today. I bring to the table some of my skills, some of my talents as you all do and offer them for the group edification, but in the final analysis, more so for the individuals of the group because that is what makes the group strong and powerful. It is a reflection of the pieces. I do so enjoy being part of this mirrored reflection with all the rest of you. I thank you for the opportunity. Until next time, good day to you all.</div><div><br></div><div><font class="Apple-style-span" size="5"><br></font></div><div><font class="Apple-style-span" size="5"><br></font></div><div><font class="Apple-style-span" size="5"><br></font></div></body></html>