Service, Spiritual Justice and the Power Within
Introduction
What gives true meaning to our lives? Is it what we possess, the position we reach, the recognition we receive, or something much deeper?
In this thoughtful communication, Rev. Roulston invites us to look beyond the outward circumstances of earthly life and consider the spiritual purpose underlying our existence. Having been a clergyman during his earthly life, he explains that his religious calling naturally influenced the way in which he approached his new existence in the spiritual world. Yet what he discovered there went beyond doctrines, titles or religious institutions. At the heart of spiritual life, he tells us, is one simple principle: service.
Service is not presented as an obligation or punishment, but as a way of life—a joyful expression of love, companionship and spiritual growth. Through helping others, developing our abilities and allowing ourselves to become instruments for good, we discover something of our own spiritual nature.
Throughout the recording, Rev. Roulston explores several important themes: how earthly experiences influence spiritual development; why names and status matter less than wisdom and character; how justice operates without favouritism; the importance of relaxation and openness in spiritual development; the spiritual power surrounding us; and the responsibility to use our gifts for the benefit of others.
Above all, his message encourages us not to accept spiritual teachings blindly, but to listen, reflect and use our reason. Spiritual truth, he suggests, should enlighten rather than frighten us, and should ultimately lead us towards greater love, understanding and service.
Message from Rev. Roulston
Listen to Rev. Roulston’s Recording
Rev. Roulston begins by explaining that our earthly experiences help shape our attitudes and character. Some people are ambitious, others humble; some are studious, others practical; some struggle greatly while others appear to move easily through life. These experiences do not simply disappear. They contribute to the person we are becoming.
For Rev. Roulston, his earthly religious calling led him naturally towards the spiritual aspect of existence. Yet he summarises that spiritual calling in one word: service.
In the spiritual world he describes, service is accompanied by companionship and harmony. Individuals work together according to their abilities, not because of privilege or social position, but because they are suited to particular tasks. The objective is not personal advancement at the expense of another, but cooperation for the benefit of all.
This leads to another important teaching: true spiritual worth is not determined by names, titles or former earthly status.
When discussing the possibility of well-known historical personalities communicating from the spiritual world, Rev. Roulston advises discernment. A famous name alone proves very little. What matters is whether the communication demonstrates wisdom, knowledge and qualities consistent with the experience attributed to that person.
The lesson reaches far beyond spiritual communication. In everyday life we can also become impressed by titles, reputations, wealth or authority. Rev. Roulston reminds us to look instead at what a person’s life produces: their character, their wisdom and their service to others.
Another major theme is justice without favouritism.
Rev. Roulston contrasts earthly society, where opportunity may sometimes depend upon family background, education, influence, personality or privilege, with the spiritual society he describes. There, he says, people are recognised for their genuine abilities and qualities. No one advances simply because of connections or status.
Work itself is not portrayed as punishment. Rather, meaningful activity becomes a source of happiness because individuals are encouraged to express the abilities within them. Someone who spent an earthly lifetime performing routine work might discover a talent for craftsmanship, creativity or another form of service that was never developed during earthly life.
The underlying principle is simple: everyone has something valuable to contribute.
Rev. Roulston also speaks about spiritual development and offers an interesting observation. He cautions against excessive concentration, tension and striving. Instead, he emphasises contemplation, relaxation, freedom and confidence.
He recounts how a medium was able to perceive him clearly during a moment of complete relaxation. His explanation is that when the mind stops struggling and the barriers of consciousness become quieter, spiritual impressions may sometimes be more easily perceived.
His teaching is therefore not about forcing spiritual experiences to occur. It is about becoming receptive.
This same principle appears when he speaks of the spiritual power surrounding humanity. He describes human beings as already spiritual beings living within a vast spiritual universe. According to his teaching, there is a universal spiritual energy from which life itself draws strength.
Yet this power is not something to be controlled for selfish purposes. It is something to be allowed to flow through us in kindness, healing, prayer and service.
His simple prayer expresses the whole idea beautifully:
“Dear God, or Great Spirit, here I am, use me.”
It is a prayer of availability rather than demand—a willingness to become an instrument through which good may be accomplished.
Recommendations
Rev. Roulston’s teachings invite us first to examine our motives. Before asking what spiritual gifts we possess or what recognition we might receive, we can ask a more important question: How can I be useful?
Service does not necessarily mean undertaking extraordinary work. It can appear through patience, kindness, listening, encouragement, practical help, prayer or simply being present when another person needs support.
We are also encouraged to recognise and develop our natural abilities. Every person has different talents. Some lead; some teach; some heal; some create; some organise; others possess the quiet ability to comfort and understand. No gift should be considered insignificant when it is used with love.
Another recommendation is to practise discernment. Rev. Roulston does not encourage unquestioning belief. Spiritual claims should be considered thoughtfully. Wisdom, consistency, character and the fruits produced by a teaching matter more than impressive names or dramatic experiences.
We should also avoid turning spiritual development into a struggle. Prayer, contemplation and quiet reflection can become opportunities to release tension rather than exercises in forced concentration.
Finally, we are encouraged to remember that spiritual knowledge should reduce fear. Rev. Roulston describes part of the work of those in the spiritual world as helping people overcome the fear created by ignorance and misunderstanding. Knowledge offered in love should bring light, hope and greater understanding.
How Can We Apply These Teachings Today?
Our modern world is very different from the one Rev. Roulston knew during his earthly lifetime, but the principles he discusses remain remarkably relevant.
We still live in societies where success can sometimes depend upon influence, wealth, connections or social advantage. His teaching challenges us to create communities in which people are valued according to character, ability and contribution rather than status.
We can begin within our own small sphere.
At work, at home, in our neighbourhoods and communities, we can treat people fairly. We can resist favouritism. We can acknowledge quiet contributions that often go unnoticed. We can encourage people whose abilities have never been given an opportunity to develop.
We can also reconsider our understanding of success.
Perhaps success is not simply reaching the highest position. Perhaps it is becoming the person we were capable of becoming and using what we have been given in a way that benefits someone else.
Rev. Roulston’s emphasis on relaxation also has practical value today. Modern life constantly demands our attention. We rush, analyse, worry and attempt to control outcomes. His message invites us periodically to become still.
A few minutes of quiet prayer or contemplation can create an inner space in which we listen rather than demand.
His prayer—Here I am, use me—can become part of everyday life.
We might say it before beginning our day, before helping someone, before making a difficult decision or whenever we feel uncertain about what we can contribute.
And we can practise spiritual discernment. We do not have to believe everything simply because it is presented as spiritual or authoritative. Rev. Roulston himself ends his communication by telling his listeners to use their reason. If something cannot be accepted after sincere reflection, he says, they should reject it. He does not ask for blind faith.
That is perhaps one of the most valuable lessons in the recording: genuine spirituality does not fear thoughtful questioning.
Spiritual Reflection
There is something deeply reassuring in the picture Rev. Roulston gives us of spiritual life.
We are not presented with a universe in which earthly titles continue forever, nor one in which privilege determines our worth. Instead, we are invited to imagine a spiritual order founded upon justice, opportunity, companionship and service.
What matters is what we have become.
Have we learned compassion?
Have we developed the gifts entrusted to us?
Have we helped someone whose path crossed ours?
Have we allowed love to become something more than a feeling—something expressed through our actions?
Perhaps the greatest spiritual work often happens quietly.
It may happen when we forgive rather than retaliate, when we listen to someone who feels forgotten, when we encourage rather than criticise, when we choose fairness over advantage, or when we simply offer ourselves to God and say:
Here I am. Use me.
Rev. Roulston reminds us that spiritual development is not about escaping humanity. It is about becoming more fully human—more loving, more just, more compassionate and more conscious of our relationship with one another.
And perhaps service truly is the “coin of the spirit,” because everything else eventually passes away. Titles disappear. Possessions change hands. Recognition fades. But the good we have done becomes part of what we are.
His final words leave us with another important responsibility: to listen with an open heart while retaining an open mind. We are not asked to surrender reason. We are invited to examine, question and discover.
Knowledge should replace fear. Understanding should replace ignorance. Service should replace selfishness. And love should remain at the centre of it all.
If we can carry even a little of that understanding into our daily lives, then spiritual teaching ceases to be merely something we read or hear.
It becomes something we live.
And through living it, quietly and faithfully, we too become part of that continuing work of bringing a little more light into the world.
Transcription of Rev. Roulston
Recording 88
