Little did I know that our theme for the month “Hearts on Fire”, which spiritually meant that we would be passionate about renewing our love and dedication to Practicing the Presence of God during 2025. I had no idea that ten days later the City of Los Angeles would be devastated by actual flames of fire and the Village of Pacific Palisades in California would almost entirely be obliterated by fire. I know Pacific Palisades well. My son and his family lived there for 35 years and are now searching for a place to live.

The first Unity Principle teaches us that God is everywhere present which must mean that amid the ashes God Is. There is an age old saying that “Out of the Ashes the Phoenix Will Rise”. This saying is telling me that amid the human chaos and destruction, God Is there and will rise above it all for those that are willing to open their spiritual eyes to see and their spiritual ears to hear and are willing to be willing to search and find God’s Grace and blessings in the midst of the rubble. This, then, is truly the Practice of the Presence of God that James Dillet Freeman wrote in our beautiful Unity blessing that “Wherever We Are God Is and All Is Well.

Join me Sunday as we explore this symbolic and real meaning that Out of the Ashes (whatever those ashes are in our daily lives)…the Phoenix Will Rise”!

Parking:
Blue Fish restaurant parking lot (3519 Greenville Ave, Dallas, TX 75206) across McCommas Blvd. from the church. (Directions to lot: https://maps.app.goo.gl/FgKokV2AcEPtSRCe8?g_st=ac)

Speaker Bio
Rev. Barbara White was the Spiritual Director of the Center for Spiritual Living, Downey, California from 1996 -2009 and accepted the call to be Spiritual Director in Bakersfield, California from 2011 -2016.

Rev. White originates from Chicago, Illinois and attended Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois. In 1996, Rev. White graduated from Holmes Institute of Consciousness Studies in Los Angeles and was ordained in 2001
Rev. White has been a frequent contributor to the Science of Mind
Magazine and a featured contributor to the bestseller, “New Thought: A Practical Spirituality.” She is the author of “Imagine the Possibilities an inspirational guide to daily living.

In 2002, Rev. White was inducted into the Martin Luther King Board of Preachers, Morehouse College, Atlanta, Georgia During her tenure in Bakersfield, Rev. White was a member of the Bakersfield Interfaith Group and was Co-Chair of the Bakersfield Season for Non- Violence Program as well as the Bakersfield Global
Oneness Day.

Upon returning to Dallas in 2016, Rev. White became active in Unity of Dallas and has spoken at their Sunday Service for Rev. James Buchanan and has taught numerous ‘Seekers’ classes at Unity of Dallas.