Divining the Body: Reclaim the Holiness of Your Physical Self
Author: Jan Phillips
Published: 2005, First Edition
Use our handy-dandy Amazon link on the Suggested Reading pages to order your copy

Inside front cover:
To find God, you only have to look inward…

What impact can your hands have on the world around you?
How can you feel the energy of the earth in your back?
What would God see if God saw through your eyes?

This joyful and liberating exploration of the human body allows you - whatever your religious background - to delve into the mystery and spirituality of your physical self. Award-winning author Jan Phillips examines the ways we view our bodies and helps you to unmask and embrace the holiness of your physical self, allowing you to walk confidently, speak with authority, and connect with the Divine in new and surprising ways.

Diving the Body takes a practical approach to the work of debunking years of societal and religious myths about the human body, leading you step by step through the major centers of the body and offering meditations, writing exercises, and suggetsions for group activities along the way. At the end of this spiritual pilgrimage you will find yourself more in tune with your body and the people around you, for when we embrace the Divine within ourselves, it becomes natural to find and love the Divine in others.

From the back cover:
Honor Your Body as the Instrument of Your Soul …

Our view of the human body is always evolving. From the goddess-worship of civilizations millennia ago, to the strict social rules of Victoria England, to the modern feminist movement, the human body - particularly the feminine body - has always been a point of interest, mystery, and contention.

Discover an entirely new way to look at your body - as a pathway to the Divine. Award-winner Jan Phillips takes you on an energizing journey through your physical self, drawing connections between the bone, muscle, and simew of your body and the spiritual teachings of various faith traditions, modern scientific research, and her own experiences. You will find yourself empowered to work to transform the world around you and overcome self-defeating thoughts through positive, practical exercises and meditations that show you how to climb back into your body and honor it as the temple of God that it is.

This book is an attempt to undo the damage we’ve sustained living in a culture that thrives on self-hatred. It is a sanctification of our human bodies, a consecration of ourselves as hosts to the Great Beloved. It is a journey of awe and reverence through the sacred terrain of foot and hand, back and breast, heart and brain. The path to peace is the pathway through ourselves, starting with the inward step, the brave, gentle step toward the Divine within.

- from the Introduction

Ordered to Return: My Life After Dying
Author: George G. Ritchie, Jr., M.D.
Published: 1991, First Edition
Use our handy-dandy Amazon link on the Suggested Reading pages to order your copy

From back cover:
“George Ritchie’s gripping account of his near-death experience and subsequent spiritual transformation is the best such book in print. Dr. Ritchie is the finest man I’ve ever known, and I urge everyone who is interested in the extraordinary visions of the dying to read Ordered to Return.”

-Raymond A. Moody, Ph.D., M.D.
author of Life After Life, inspired by
Dr. George Ritchie’s own story

In December, 1943, 20-year-old Army private George Ritchie died of pneumonia. Nine minutes later, he came back profoundly changed. What happened to him while his dead body lay under a sheet would change his life, and that of his family, friends, and patients.

His first book, Return from Tomorrow, has sold over 200,000 copies and has been translated into nine languages. Now, in Ordered to Return, George Ritchie briefly retells the story of that strange experience and then tells what happened later, including the real miracles that he has seen in his years of practice as a physician and psychiatrist.

What’s more, using plain, everyday examples from life, he offers penetrating insights into what is wrong with American life today and how it can be set right.

From: Flower Essence Society
To: Michele Doetsch
Sent: Sunday, May 25, 2008 5:19 PM
Subject: FES Member alert

Dear Ms. Michelle Lynn Doetsch, NCTMB,

We are writing to alert you to an article published in April Consumer Reports that ridicules homeopathic medicine and, by implication, all vibrational remedies.

The Organic Consumers Association is organizing a letter-writing campaign protesting this article.

We urge you to join in this effort at http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/642/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=24667

You can read the original Consumer Reports article here: http://blogs.consumerreports.org/health/2008/03/homeopathic-rem.html

The article cites for its evidence a long discredited research study, described here: http://www.trusthomeopathy.org/csArticles/articles/000000/000060.htm

The Consumer Reports article is premised on the supposition that without a biochemical mechanism of action, it is impossible for any remedy to be effective. The author of this report looks only for  evidence to support this erroneous supposition, and dismisses important scientific evidence that shows otherwise.  The Consumer Reports article violates the very foundation of scientific research by ignoring the reality of the presenting phenomena; this logic is tantamount to declaring:  “If we don’t believe the sun can shine, then we will ignore any evidence premised upon the reality of the shining sun.”

The Flower Essence Society is strongly committed to scientific study of flower essence therapy, through clinical case research, plant study and well-designed comparative studies.  The same bias that rejects homeopathy also rejects flower essence therapy and it is important that members of the Flower Essence Society voice their concern.

The future of flower essence therapy depends on the vital participation of members like you who are willing to take action.  We thank you for your ongoing support.   

Richard Katz and Patricia Kaminski

Session Reports are currently being delivered within their normal time frames, however, due to a continuously busy schedule, there may still be some periodic delays of up to an additional week.

Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Regards,
- Sabrina

The newly updated, newly revised Course Offerings Book, complete with class registration forms, is now available. This edition has all classes listed by category and includes new color-coded course charts for easier viewing. At a total of 31 pages, it may take a minute or two download, depending on your connection speed.  

You can download it from the Courses & Trainings page of the RBBT website.  

I am currently working on implementing on-line and correspondence studies for non-energy modality trainings, such as Emotional Freedom Technique/Therapy and the brand new Intuitive & Psychic Development Series.

I look forward to announcing these additions as they become available.   Abundance and peace be yours, - Sabrina  

The Second Coming of Christ: The Resurrection of the Christ Within You: A Revelatory Commentary on the Original Teachings of Jesus - Volumes I and II
Author: Paramahansa Yogananda
Published: 2004, First Edition
Use our handy-dandy Amazon link on the Suggested Reading pages to order your copy

From back cover:
“In titling this work The Second Coming of Christ, I am not referring to a literal return of Jesus to earth … A thousand Christs sent to earth would not redeem its people unless they themselves became Christlike by purifying and expanding their individual consciousness to receive therein the second coming of the Christ Consciousness, as was manifested in Jesus … Contact with this Consciousness, experienced in the ever new joy of meditation, will be the real second coming of Christ - and it will take place right in the devotee’s own consciousness.”

In this unprecedented masterwork of inspiration, Paramahansa Yogananda takes the reader on a profoundly enriching journey through the four Gospels. Verse by verse, he illuminates the universal path to oneness with God taught by Jesus to his immediate disciples but obscured through centuries of misinterpretation: “how to become like Christ, how to resurrect the Eternal Christ within one’s Self.”

Never before available in its entirety, this landmark work by one of the most revered spiritual teachers of our time transcends divisive sectarianism to reveal unifying harmony underlying all true religions. A groundbreaking synthesis of East and West, it imparts the life-transforming realization that each of us can experience for ourselves the promised Second Coming - awakening of the all-fulfilling Divine Consciousness latent within our souls.

“A masterpiece of divine insight … [Yogananda's interpretation] is not a product of scholarly study or comparison of existing Biblical commentaries, but has come forth in an awe-inspiring originality from the deeps of an unerring spiritual and intuitional judgment. It will live when whole libraries of intellectual theorizings on Christ have long been forgotten - the most important clarification of his teachings that has ever been offered the Christian world.”

- The Reverend Arthur Porter, D.D.

“Yogananda was a God-filled seer and saint, philosopher and poet who experienced a multitude of the innumerable aspects of Ultimate Reality … A rare genius who has penetrated further than most men into the secrets of spiritual existence.”

- Raymond F. Piper, Ph.D,
Professor Emeritus of Philosophy,
Syracuse University, New York

Why Pay for Reiki?
L. Sabrina DeVaney

First, let’s define the question: is the real question “Why pay for reiki energy?” Or is it “Why pay for reiki treatment?” Or is it “Why pay for reiki training and attunements?” 

“Why pay for reiki?” is too general a question, so let’s be specific…

Why Pay for Reiki Energy?
This question is simple. Never pay for the reiki energy itself. If you aren’t sure if your practitioner or teacher is charging for the energy itself, ask! If the practitioner or teacher is including the energy itself in his or her fee schedule, leave and do not look back. Reiki energy is free. 

A reputable practitioner/teacher will never charge for the energy.

Why Pay for Reiki Treatment?
This is an entirely different question. Though a reputable reiki practitioner will never charge for the reiki energy, he or she will likely require an exchange for his or her time, skills, and knowledge, which is perfectly fair and just. Just as one would expect to pay for services such as plumbing work, electrical work, car repair, dentistry, a well-check visit to the doctor, and the like, one should expect to pay for holistic healing services as well. 

These days, in many locales around the globe, one even expects to pay for air to inflate car and bike tires. This makes a great example: one doesn’t pay for the air, but one does pay for the use of the air pump machine and the electricity required to operate it. The same is so with reiki treatment. 

Also, a good, professional practitioner keeps well-organized files on all clients. The time and materials required for such organization requires monetary investment: a PC and the electricity to run it, manila folders, paper, ink, filing cabinet, website fees, e-mail service fees, phone lines, et al.  Most practitioners also use a massage table and/or treatment chair, need gas to travel (those of us who do home and Hospital visits), essential oils, incense, candles, stereo and music CDs for audio relaxation. These two lists can be long and varies between practitioners. 

Professional practitioners have business expenses that must be covered! We can’t pay our electrical and water bills with a basket full of fruits and a homemade cake any more than the next person would be allowed to. However, many practitioners accept other forms of payment in lieu of monetary payment. I am one such practitioner. If one truly desires a healing treatment and truly cannot afford to make a monetary investment, he or she can always contact the practitioner and ask about making another type of exchange. 

Keep in mind most reputable practitioners also have sliding fee scales and offer free services to those in need.

Why Pay for Reiki Training/Attunements?
Many factors need looking at here, so I will cover only the most basic. Just like with a treatment, the practitioner has expenses that need to be covered: student manuals, one-on-one corrective training, books, paper, ink, files, and a slew of other resources the students need. The practitioner is also investing his or her time in and with each student. The practitioner also has knowledge and skills which he or she is imparting to the student. It is a show of respect to compensate the teacher for his or her time and efforts in properly training the student. A reputable teacher is bound to the student for life, and almost always, after training is completed, the teacher becomes a lifetime mentor to the student. 

You would expect to pay for any other type of trainings whether through college, vocational training, a special workshop or a seminar, so expect to pay for energy-based healing educations as well. 

Anyone looking for a teacher must consider many things when choosing a teacher and deciding whether the training investment is reasonable and valuable: 

• How long have you been working with reiki?
• What training have you had?
• How often do you teach?
• Do you teach anyone who is interested or are you selective in accepting students? Explain.
• How do you personally use reiki?
• What is your lineage?
• Will this training initiate me into, or progress me within the Usui lineage?
  • If not, then what lineage?
• How did you become involved with reiki and why?
• What qualifications are required to take reiki training?
• Will I receive a certificate and a manual?
• Will I receive textbooks aside from the student manual (if manual included)?
• Will there be practice?
  • If so, how much/how many hours?
• Can I take notes and tape record the class?
• How many symbols will I learn?
• Is there a reiki support group in my area or can you help me establish one?
• Will you openly support me in being a successful practitioner or master?
• Do you have a positive respectful attitude toward other practitioners and masters regardless of lineage or affiliation?

Be aware of how you feel about their answers and if they are responding in a loving manner that is supportive and empowering. Listen to your heart and gut intuition and you will be guided to the right teacher. ¥

My personal belief is that if one receives only an attunement with a manual from which you end up essentially training yourself, with no further contact, training, or support from the teacher, it is not worth the investment. If, however, the course includes documented practice, quizzes, exams, et al, the teaching will be more beneficial to both the student and the practitioner.

When engaging in correspondence courses, always consider the following additional questions:

• Will the manuals/textbooks/certificates be sent via email or post service?
• Is the certificate a professional copy and suitable for framing?
• Will I be required to document practice hours?
  • If so, how is this done?
• Will I be required to pass any quizzes, tests, or exams?
  • If so, how many?
• Will there be reading and/or written assignments?
• Will I have reasonable contact with the teacher?
  • If so, through what venue will this be achieved (phone, post mail, e-mail, IM chat windows, chat room, message board, et al.)?
• Is mentoring available through the course?
  • If so, is this included or additional?

Resources:
¥ Choosing the Right Reiki Teacher
Brian McCullen © 2002 - 2004
http://www.reiki.ie/A%20choosing.htm 

Additional reading:
Reiki Online
Half Gods, Martyrs And Hypocrites - A MUST READ!
http://intuitivesilence.wordpress.com/2007/07/23/half-gods-martyrs-hypocrites/

 ©April 2004, Reiki & Bio-Balancing Therapies, L. Sabrina DeVaney
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Due to the number of clients currently undergoing treatment there is currently a Session Report delay of approximately two weeks.  The two weeks is in addition to the normal expectancy of approximately 7 business days, meaning Session Reports may take up to 3 weeks from the date of the session to be transcribed and delivered.

Thank you for your patience as I work through this very busy time. 

Yours,
-Sabrina

[UPDATE: As of Tuesday, May 6, 2008 this is still in effect; and will remain in effect until posted otherwise. Thank you all for your patience and understanding in this matter.]

Pet Support Services is a Lansing-based non-profit corporation which is run solely by volunteers and donations from the community and local businesses.

Their mission is to assist people with special medical and physical challenges in keeping, feeding, and caring for their companion animals.

PSS is unique in that they serve as an intervention at the request of the pet owner when the pet owner has fallen upon short-term or long-term financial or physical hardships, so the pet does not have to be given up by the pet owner, a situation that adds to our overpopulation of homelss pets and leaving the owners without what is often their best friend and companion.

Clients must reside in either Eaton or Ingham counties of Michigan.

Please download this brochure for more information.

If you’re like me and a bit of a tree-hugger, you’re probably often on the lookout for ways - big and small - to help make a difference. While I was at the post office the other day I did something I never do (never say, “Never!”): I browsed the resource table … and found these great ideas - (all links are to PDF files; copies of the flyers I found and brought home)

Book Recycling - available only Saturday, April 5, 2008 - East Lansing, MI
taking paperbacks, magazines, boxboard (cereal boxes, shoe boxes, etc), hardcovers, phonebooks

Cell Phone & Household Battery Recycling - Ingham and Eaton Counties in MI; please also remember our servicemen and women: donate your old used cells to them! Check with your local post office for a post-paid mailing envelope.

Clean & Green: Non-Toxic and Inexpensive Cleaning Resources 
a list of books and websites

Cooking Oil Disposal - Holt MI and Lansing MI

Mercury Themometer Exchange - Lansing MI

Plastic Bag Recycling - Lansing MI, Dansville MI, Mulliken MI, Sunfield Twp MI, Charlotte MI, St. Johns MI, Okemos MI

Pass it on and pay it forward!

Blessings,
- Sabrina