Our Community 💗 July 24, 2025
- johnmbroderick
- Jul 26
- 9 min read
What's Happening This Week at CSL Kelowna
Sunday, July 27: The Ego Has Landed, Soul Food Sunday with Rev. Barbara Samuel
Last Sunday: Evolving Church: Awakening the Future of Faith, with Rev. John DePalma
Upcoming Class – Emerging Church – Call for Interest
Blue Abundance Program
World Philosophies and Religions: The Role of Ego in Major World Religions
Science Corner: The Ego – A Scientific Perspective
SOAR is HERE!
Inspirational Song of the Week: Love is a Prayer, by Barbara Samuel and Neal Klassen
Connect with Rev. John
Join us every Sunday at 10:30 a.m. at Studio 9, 1180 Houghton Road, Kelowna, BC. Doors open at 10:15 am. Please visit the event page for more details and a map. Everyone is welcome!
Or, WATCH US ON
Sunday, July 27
The Ego Has Landed: A Call to Go Deep
Soul Food Sunday with Rev. Barbara Samuel
”The noise we hear isn’t always truth. It’s often ego-sonar bouncing off our own unexamined stories.”
- Alexis Pauline Gumbs
When the ego “lands,” it tempts us to live at the surface defending, performing, reacting. But Spirit calls us deeper: into the quiet wisdom of the soul, the inner ecology of Essence where healing, truth, and transformation live.
This Sunday, join Barbara Samuel - and Neal Klassen with his famous Science Corner - for a Soul Food Sunday.
Join us at Studio 9 (1180 Houghton Rd, Kelowna, BC). Doors open at 10:15 am. Enter the property by the side entrance behind the staff parking lot. Look for our signs to guide you! Please use street parking or park at Ben Lee Park (1.5 blocks away).
Or you can always watch our live stream on Facebook Live via Centre for Spiritual Living Kelowna's Facebook page.
Last Sunday
“Evolving Church: Awakening the Future of Faith”
Last Sunday, Rev. John led us though a 2-hour interactive experience based on Bruce Sanguin’s groundbreaking book, The Emerging Church. It was a co-creative conversation that allowed participants to:
· Explore how faith is evolving
· Engage your whole self—mind, body, shadow, and spirit
· Share your voice (no theological degree was required)
· Help re imagine spiritual community for a new era
If you missed this workshop or want to see it again, click here:
NEW CLASS
“The Emerging Church: Dream, Disrupt, and Co-Create the Future”
A 6-week interactive experience where your voice really does matter.
Does the idea of creating something new in Spiritual Community entice you? Did last Sunday’s workshop stir something in you? Maybe a spark of possibility? A tug toward the edge of something new?
Then come deepen the journey in our 6-week class based on Bruce Sanguin’s visionary book, The Emerging Church: A Model for Change.
This isn’t about learning doctrines—it’s about reimagining spiritual community from the inside out, a Beloved Community that can serve as the container for your own Spiritual deepening and emergence.
We’re currently gauging interest before setting final dates. If this class calls to you, we’d love your input:
Would you prefer to attend on Zoom or in person?
What would be the best month for you to start — September or October?
Your voice matters—right from the start.
Together, we’ll:
· Engage your own evolving spirituality—mind, heart, and soul
· Challenge stale assumptions and inherited “shoulds”
· Dream into being what a vibrant, authentic spiritual community could be
· Practice spiritual leadership that’s collective, courageous, and curious
This is church… but not as you’ve ever known it.
It’s participatory. It’s co-creative. It’s real.
Because if the future of faith is to emerge, it needs your voice. Your passion. Your sacred YES.
If it’s to be, it’s up to we.
Come curious.
Speak your truth.
Help awaken what’s next.
If you are interested in attending, please contact Rev. John at jdepalma@cslkelowna.org with your preferences.
CSL Kelowna’s Blue Abundance Program
Let Your Abundance Surprise You—Out of the Blue!
What if abundance could delight you with its spontaneity?
What happens when we acknowledge prosperity showing up like a dime on the sidewalk, a free coffee, or an unexpected windfall we so often over-look?
Welcome to CSL Kelowna’s Blue Abundance Program—a joyful experiment in developing a prosperity consciousness where we train our eyes, hearts, and spirits to recognize and celebrate the surprising ways good flows into our lives.
Our community is already producing great results! In addition to demonstrating thousands of dollars (and hundreds flowing into our accounts), people are having rich conversations of what’s changing in their lives because of a new awareness about prosperity.
How It Works:
When you say yes to this sacred adventure, you'll receive the Blue Abundance Journal—a beautiful, intention-infused tool designed to help you track every gift, blessing, rebate, discount, coffee bought, or extra payment that comes your way “out of the blue.”
You'll also receive three envelopes marked “Blue Abundance / Unexpected Income.” These allow you to consciously return 10% of your unexpected income to the Centre—creating further opening to the flow of giving and receiving in a beautiful, reciprocal loop. Additional envelopes supplied at your request.
If you give online, please be sure to make a note on the transaction so we can track and celebrate your unexpected income with you!
For those registered on the Blue Abundance Program, please know our Licensed Practitioners are lovingly holding you in prayer, affirming that Spirit’s infinite abundance flows to you and through you—effortlessly and abundantly.
Why Participate?
This is more than journaling—it’s a powerful spiritual practice, a shift in consciousness, and a joyful way to live in harmony with the Law of Circulation.
As you grow in awareness and gratitude, you’ll start to notice the small and large ways the Universe shows up for you—transforming not only your mindset, but your relationship with giving and receiving.
As Ernest Holmes wrote:
“We do not give because God needs the gift but because the giving increases, broadens and deepens the life of the giver.”
When you participate, you affirm:- That you are open to receive.- That you trust in the flow of Divine Good.- That what you give returns multiplied.
So… are you ready to say yes to unexpected income, unexpected joy, and unexpected grace?
Join us in this uplifting practice and see what happens when you let go of resistance and open to the Blue Flow of Divine Abundance.
Journals are available at the Centre or by request to Rev. Corinne.
Please email ministercslk@gmail.com to receive your Blue Abundance Journal.
Let the flow continue!
The Role of Ego in Major World Religions
Across the world’s major religions, the ego is often seen as a tool that must be understood, disciplined, or transcended. In Christianity, ego is tied to pride—the original sin that distances humanity from God. Humility and surrender to Divine will are the keys to spiritual growth. Jesus' teachings emphasize dying to the self to be reborn in Spirit.
In Buddhism, the ego (anatta) is identified as the source of suffering. The self, as we typically know it, is an illusion (maya). Through mindfulness, meditation, and ethical living, Buddhists aim to dissolve egoic attachment and achieve enlightenment.
Hinduism offers a layered view. The ego (ahamkara) is part of the mind’s function, but it veils our true nature—Atman, the Divine Self. Through yoga and devotion, one gradually peels back ego to realize unity with Brahman, the universal consciousness.
Islam also addresses the ego (nafs) as something to be disciplined. The greater human struggle (jihad) is the inner battle to purify the soul, surrendering to God’s (Allah’s) will rather than personal desires.
In New Thought, especially in teachings like Science of Mind, the ego is simply a limited perspective. It’s the small “s” self, often caught in fear, separation, and past conditioning. The path is to recognize the Higher Self, aligning thought with Divine Mind to co-create life consciously.
Ultimately, most traditions teach that while ego helps navigate the world, transcending its limitations leads to spiritual freedom, peace, and union with the Divine.
The Ego: A Scientific Perspective
Dr. Maya Torres sat in her cluttered neuroscience lab, staring at a glowing scan of a human brain. She wasn’t looking at tumors or trauma—she was studying the ego.
Years ago, “ego” had been the realm of philosophers and psychologists like Freud. But recent science was catching up.
Functional MRI scans now showed clear patterns of ego-driven thinking. The default mode network (DMN), a web of brain regions active during daydreaming and self-referential thought, lit up like fireworks whenever someone thought, “What do they think of me?” or “I need to win this.”
Maya knew the ego isn’t just arrogance—it is the brain’s way of forming a coherent self. It helps us remember our past, plan our future, and navigate society. It makes sense of chaos by telling stories where we are the central character.
But too much ego activity is linked to anxiety, depression, and rumination. That’s why monks and meditators fascinated Maya. Their scans showed less activity in the DMN area of the brain.
Practices like mindfulness, yoga, and spiritual surrender—once considered “woo-woo”—are helping the brain quiet the ego and increase connectivity to more empathetic, present-moment networks.
Maya smiled. The ego, it turned out, isn’t the enemy. It is a helpful tool—until it gets too loud. Science is finally validating what sages had said for centuries: to find peace, you don’t destroy the ego, you just stop letting it drive the car.
She shut off the scan. Time to meditate. Even neuroscientists need to get out of their heads.
SOAR IS HERE
There are still a few spots left
An Incredible Spiritual Opportunity Right in Our Own Back Yard
A Journey of Revelation, Restoration, and Grace
August 7–10, 2025
Banff, Alberta
SOAR 2025 Summer Retreat: A Journey of Revelation, Restoration, and Grace is an opportunity to gather, connect, and be rejuvenated through inspiring speakers, musical performances, experiential workshops, spiritual practices, meditations, and communal meals.
This year our retreat will head to the heart of Canadian Rockies and the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity in Banff, Alberta.
This intimate retreat has limited space, but there are a few spots still left for the conference.
Inspirational Song of the Week
LOVE IS A PRAYER - A CHANT
Words & Music by Neal Klassen
Vocals by Barbara Samuel & Neal Klassen
Love is a prayer
Love is a prayer
Love is a prayer
And I pray for you
LET’S CONNECT
Rev. John DePalma’s contact information
Contact Rev. John via email: jdepalma@cslkelowna.org
He is also available for one-on-one telephone conversations. To schedule a connection, visit his online calendar:
Fill out your membership here, https://www.cslkelowna.org/membership
Regular Events at CSLK
See Upcoming Events on our home page. Stay informed of all the latest news from CSLK! Subscribe now to receive notifications of future blog posts.
Sunday Celebrations start at 10:30am PT at Studio 9, 1180 Houghton Road, Kelowna. Please park on the street or at Ben Lee Park (1.5 blocks from the school). You can also watch us live on Facebook or watch the replay later on YouTube.
Our volunteers are immensely valuable to CSLK! If you can help out with making coffee, setting up and/or after-service taking down, please contact Rev. Corinne Crockett at 250-868-9090 or email corinne_crockett@telus.net.
Do you have an idea for CSLK community opportunities you’d like to experience? We'd love to hear your thoughts! Please contact Rev. Corinne Crockett at 250-868-9090 or email corinne_crockett@telus.net.
Practitioner Support
Our ministers and practitioners are in service to all of us. If you need help to see the Truth in a situation; if you are looking for clarity; if you are struggling; our ministers and practitioners are here to support you. You can contact them through the About page on our website, or you can submit a prayer request on the Contact page.
Bring Nature’s Fare Receipts to CSLK!
Nature’s Fare grocery store receipts are worth a pretty penny to us! Bring your shopping receipts to Sunday service and place them into the receipt box on the table in front of the stage in the Studio 9 auditorium. Nature’s Fare will donate 3% of the total of your purchases to CSL Kelowna! Every receipt helps! Thank you!
Your Support Means So Much to Our Community!
We’re grateful for the ways CSL Kelowna is able to accept donations:
Online via the Ways to Donate page of our website (PayPal or credit card).
Using the Donation Station (Debit or Credit Card) at our Sunday Service.
By Interac e-transfers sent to donate@cslkelowna.org.
Cheques can be mailed to: Suite 131, 101-1865 Dilworth Drive, Kelowna, BC V1Y 9T1.
For more information, please contact Rev. Melody Bailey.
MINDFUL MOMENT
"The best way to take care of the future is to take care of the present moment"
– Thich Nhat Hanh
Copyright © 2025, Centre for Spiritual Living Kelowna.
All rights reserved.
Vol. 2, Issue 28