January 1, 2012 - Meaning?

ACIM Lesson #1

“Nothing I see in this room [on this street,

from this window, in this place] means anything.”

Photo by Aaron Springston

[Marsha's thoughts]

Everything is important; nothing is important. The much-repeated Buddhist axiom is the first thing which comes to mind when reading today's lesson. We tend to place meaning and importance on everything around us, in varying degrees of intensity, with good and bad connotations. We set up a dualistic situation with absolutely everything, and then we tell ourselves that it's necessary. People often say that if we didn't have bad, we wouldn't know and appreciate good. How would we know what light was if we didn't have dark as a contrast? I think it's worth giving it a try, don't you? Let's allow it to just Be and see if we don't appreciate how wonderfully perfect it all Is! Let's not worry when things are harmonious, wondering how long it can last. But rather, let's accept what's happening around us without placing a meaning on it. The freedom gained from this abandonment of preconceived notions is our heritage.

 Let's not be shy about claiming it!

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

"The enslavement of man is not legitimate. It will cease when man enters into his heritage of freedom, his God-given dominion over the material senses."

Science & Health Page 228:11-13

December 31, 2011 - Introspection

ACIM Lesson #365

"This holy instant would I give to You. Be You in charge. For I would follow You, Certain that Your direction gives me peace."

"Yield" sculpture by Roxy Paine
Photo by Aaron Springston

[Marsha's thoughts]

At this time of introspection and retrospection, I'm remembering the disciplines people practice which are based in Love. This is the parenthesis in eternity where we are all living the Principle we know as Love. Everyone I talk to is excited about the prospect of this shift in consciousness! Even those who may fear change are wondering what is happening, and many are embracing it. The number of changes we're witnessing around us testifies to the major thought turn-arounds we're experiencing at this moment. It is comprised of a give-and-take which we know as forgiveness. We have learned this year what reality is, and we spend every moment seeing it in our experience. This knowledge and demonstration is what spurs us onward in our daily experience of this Oneness, and our willingness to expel from thought anything which is not a reflection of this Love, which is not the peace of God. I'm ready for a new year filled with present moments!

Mary Baker Eddy quote:
"The divine hand led me into a new world of light and Life, a fresh universe -- old to God, but new to His "little one." It became evident that the divine Mind alone must answer, and be found as the Life, or Principle, of all being; and that one must acquaint himself with God, if he would be at peace."
Retrospection and Introspection, Page 27:29-4

December 30, 2011 - Reality

ACIM Lesson #364

"This holy instant would I give to You.
Be You in charge. For I would follow You,
Certain that Your direction gives me peace."

Photo by Aaron Springston

[Marsha's thoughts]

All the insecurities, the feelings of loss and lack, the guilt and blame, all these things have lost their reality to us through this year of study and insight into our true Self. Now that we see the unreality of these beliefs within ourselves, it's hard to not point them out to others when they present themselves! These last few days, I've noticed what I do say in the face of negativity, fear, anger, and hate. After a snide racial comment from a terse-lipped woman, I said, "Keep smiling!" Whereupon she gave me a fake smile and I gave her a small Namaste' bow and left. When asked advice concerning happiness, (knowing through experience that none of us can fix any other of us) my only suggestion is to concentrate on what brings us happiness and fulfillment, and the unhappiness and emptiness will be lost in its face. We live what we've learned, giving to others from our receiving. What fun to see the joy this day will bring!

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“The sculptor turns from the marble to his model in order to perfect his conception. We are all sculptors, working at various forms, moulding and chiseling thought. What is the model before mortal mind? Is it imperfection, joy, sorrow, sin, suffering? Have you accepted the mortal model? Are you reproducing it? Then you are haunted in your work by vicious sculptors and hideous forms. Do you not hear from all mankind of the imperfect model? The world is holding it before your gaze continually. The result is that you are liable to follow those lower patterns, limit your lifework, and adopt into your experience the angular outline and deformity of matter models. To remedy this, we must first turn our gaze in the right direction, and then walk that way. We must form perfect models in thought and look at them continually, or we shall never carve them out in grand and noble lives.”

Science & Health Page 248:12-29

December 29, 2011 - Listen and Rejoice

ACIM Lesson# 363
"This holy instant would I give to You.
Be You in charge. For I would follow You,
Certain that Your direction gives me peace."

[ACIM commentary]
"And if I need a word to help me, He will give it to me. If I need a thought, that will He also give. And if I need but stillness and a tranquil, open mind, these are the gifts I will receive of Him. He is in charge by my request. And He will hear and answer me, because He speaks for God my Father and His holy Son.'

[Marsha's thoughts]

"Glacier National Park"
photo by Aaron Springston

Recently my son and I have been making video segments for a virtual studio tour of the artists of Eureka Thyme. Today it was my turn to speak in front of the camera. I didn't anticipate any problems and hadn't planned what to say because I trust these thoughts to flow from their source through me. After the first "take" my son made some suggestions about what I should be saying. At this point, I started to think and plan what I was going to say. He even suggested I practice what I would say, and I did. This was the beginning of an hour-long series of starts and stops which digressed to the point of me not being able to get past saying my name before being tongue-tied or making an odd face. It was ridiculous! At this point, he suggested I speak from the heart. And so I slipped back into my native state of trusting that I will know what to say and do. I got out of my way and let the only Way come through. And so it Is.

Mary Baker Eddy quote:
"Mind is not necessarily dependent upon educational processes. It possesses of itself all beauty and poetry, and the power of expressing them. Spirit, God, is heard when the senses are silent. We are all capable of more than we do. The influence or action of Soul confers a freedom, which explains the phenomena of improvisation and the fervor of untutored lips."
Science & Health Page 89:18-24

December 28, 2011 - Calm Assertive Behavior

ACIM Lesson #362
"This holy instant would I give to You.
Be You in charge. For I would follow You,
Certain that Your direction gives me peace."

[Marsha's thoughts]
I have mentioned many times in this past year that I feel animals are showing us the way to living our true Being. Not only do they mirror back to us any emotions we may be secretly harboring, they show us how to communicate more effectively through telepathy and actions, rather than words. Today I visited four homes where dogs were very much a part of the family. Only one of these dogs was not exhibiting aberrant behavior of some sort! I must mention that my own dog has some behaviors which I find baffling. But I continue to see positive behavior changes in him as I become more honest and calm in my own reactions. In watching The Dog Whisperer, I have gained many insights into the reasons our dogs often seem neurotic and out of control. It always comes back to people. It’s a wonderful opportunity for us to see what we're really thinking! Calm, assertive behavior is the mantra of Cesar Milan. Assertive doesn't mean aggressive. It involves a certainty which is only attained through listening to an inner knowledge which is heard in quiet, calm moments. These moments express the eternal holy instant where we forever abide with the certainty of peace.

Mary Baker Eddy quote:
"The Revelator tells us of ‘a new heaven and a new earth.’ Have you ever pictured this heaven and earth, inhabited by beings under the control of supreme wisdom? Let us rid ourselves of the belief that man is separated from God, and obey only the divine Principle, Life and Love. Here is the great point of departure for all true spiritual growth."
Science & Health Page 91:1-6

December 27, 2011 - No Health

ACIM Lessons #361
"This holy instant would I give to You.
Be You in charge. For I would follow You,
Certain that Your direction gives me peace."

[Marsha's thoughts]

Included is the entire introduction to the final lessons, because we do want to go beyond words. Words will be used only as a reminder of that which we do not want in our lives any longer. We have been practicing letting go of each and every belief we ever held to be true -- or false! I am reminded of an Infinite Way tape which is entitled "There Is No Health". By the admission that there is good health, you leave the door open for the belief that there is bad health. This same principle is at work in every facet of our lives. In ceasing to think of anything as good or bad, we are simply open to what Is. Everything I need, whether it be a word, a thought, anything, I need be only open with no expectations in order to receive everything I need.

Mary Baker Eddy quote:
"God gives you His spiritual ideas, and in turn, they give you daily supplies.”
Miscellaneous Writings 1883–1896, Page 307

December 26, 2011

ACIM Lesson #360
"Peace be to me, the holy Son of God.
Peace to my brother, who is one with me.
Let all the world be blessed with peace through us.
 [Marsha's thoughts]

The Village of Elsah

When we are feeling inner peace, it seems impossible to feel anything else. And then we find ourselves in a situation which tries our peace. Is it possible to lose the peace which is God? Of course not, but we certainly can cover it up in unnecessary feelings of angst and worry and irritation. Today I feel as peaceful as I can imagine feeling (which is not to say that more isn't possible!). This feeling was shattered by a visit with a dear neighbor who is solitary and worried about most everything. My plan of spreading a bit of holiday cheer seemed on the verge of backfiring! Why does it seem easier to "catch" disruptive feelings rather than peaceful ones? It seems easier to "catch" a cold rather than to let one go. I was able to recognize what was happening and take myself out of the dis-ease which was threatening to spread to me. I took a breath, felt the peace of God, and left her home with a smile. The "reign and rule of universal harmony" is here and now. We are on the verge of this realization! The shift in consciousness we are in the midst of is causing some of us to fight back. When I feel this reaction occurring within myself, I remind myself to yield to the Peace which is the only reality of my Being. Anything else is a mirage. What a joy to watch it dissipate as I walk through it, oblivious to its seeming reality.

Mary Baker Eddy quote:
"Let us learn of the real and eternal, and prepare for the reign of Spirit, the kingdom of heaven,—the reign and rule of universal harmony, which cannot be lost nor remain forever unseen."
Science & Health Page 208:20-24