July 15, 2012 - Moral or mortal Chemicalization

"Running in Forest Park, St. Louis, MO"
photo by Heather Magnan

A Course in Miracles  Lesson #196
“It can be but myself I crucify.”

It seems to me that this juncture in our studies could be ripe for a reaction of mortal mind, or ego, which Mary Baker Eddy termed chemicalization. During a twelve-day intensive class in Christian Science, I experienced this backlash in thought. Everything I was learning seemed silly and irrelevant. My supposedly logical mind came up with all sorts of reasons why I should turn away from the teachings of divine metaphysics and go back to the so-called safety of muddled material thought. This seeming-crises may manifest itself in numerous ways, but the basic experience is one of lapsing back into thoughts and actions which you relinquish during a change from material belief to spiritual understanding. In A Course in Miracles, it could be seen as the ego attempting to remain in control, keeping you from experiencing the salvation realized by accepting  Truth. This is the point in this course where we are repeatedly told that we are on the brink of realizing salavation, revelation, heaven. Let's not be afraid if the belief systems we have put into practice throughout the years begin to talk back to us in protest of our new way of thinking!  We have the tools to stand fast in our knowledge. We have each other as reminders in support. We have inner knowing to tap into for verification on our path. We can move onward, upward, inward, fearless and secure in Love.

Mary Baker Eddy quotes:
“Here let a word be noticed which will be better understood hereafter,--chemicalization. By chemicalization I mean the process which mortal mind and body undergo in the change of belief from a material to a spiritual basis. S&H Page 168:30

“What I term chemicalization is the upheaval produced when immortal Truth is destroying erroneous mortal belief. Mental chemicalization brings sin and sickness to the surface, forcing impurities to pass away, as is the case with a fermenting fluid.”
S&H Page 401:16

“Mortal error will vanish in a moral chemicalization. This mental fermentation has begun, and will continue until all errors of belief yield to understanding. Belief is changeable, but spiritual understanding is changeless.” S&H Page 96:21

July 14, 2012 - Walking in gratitude

"Overlooking South Africa"
photo by Aaron Springston

A Course in Miracles #195

“Love is the way I walk in gratitude.”

Today is not about being grateful to God, but because of God! Our previous lessons are showing us how to trust ourselves through the knowledge that we are the reflection of divine Mind.  We are gaining confidence in learning how to get out of our own way and rely on the wisdom which is heard through spiritual sense. A saying we often hear is "but for the grace of God there go I". Doesn't this say that God loves me more than that person over there? How could this be possible? It can't, because God is Love and requires nothing of us other than our awareness. And so today as I walk with Love, my gratitude will be because God is the source of all good, and there is nothing else but this goodness. If I am tempted to feel put-upon by circumstances, I will remember that I can choose again and think about this in another way. Not long ago I was upset with one of the artists in my gallery, and was chastising her about some behavior that didn't fit my idea of what she should be doing. As I was telling her why I was unhappy with the situation, she simply asked me why I should ever be unhappy about anything because I was, after all, living my dream. I thank her for putting this in perspective for me. Yes, I am grateful for this understanding and the unfoldment which comes of it continually. I remember my son once asked me when the last time was that anyone told me I was wrong. I am grateful for those wise enough to do so! Namaste'.

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

"We should examine ourselves and learn what is the affection and purpose of the heart, for in this way only can we learn what we honestly are. If a friend informs us of a fault, do we listen patiently to the rebuke and credit what is said? Do we not rather give thanks that we are "not as other men"? During many years the author has been most grateful for merited rebuke.”

Science & Health Pages 8:28-3

July 13, 2012 - Open with no expectations

 A Course in Miracles Lesson #194

“I place the future in the Hands of God.”

"Adventures in Mongolia"
photograph by Aaron Springston

Being open to anything with no expectations is what "placing the future in the Hands of God" means to me. It has taken years to get to this point. I used to be a worrier, too. I remember the feeling. When I would be waiting for a loved one to come home and they would be late, the worry was so intense that I couldn't stand myself! I remember at one point I just started thinking that the worst had happened, that this truck-driving husband had died on the road and I'd never see him again. This seemed to be easier to accept than all the what-ifs involved in the waiting and wondering game. Whew, am I glad that's over! Today, if I made a list of things I could worry about, it would be far longer than it was back in the day when I would imagine insane scenarios. But it doesn't matter now, because I only want to know one thing: the nature of God and what my part is in that relationship. Everything else is incidental to this understanding. When something comes up which requires a decision, I go to God. Not in a pleading or asking-what-I-should-do type of way, but in a quiet, listening way, affirming my Oneness with God and my unity with everything and everyone. And through this prayerful acquiescence and acknowledgement, answers and solutions come to thought. Now I'll admit that sometimes I say, And what am I supposed to do with that? But waiting and trusting has become second nature, and I'm no longer fearful of the silence or of the answer. It is stated in this lesson that if we see this yielding to God for the deliverance it is, we won't be hesitant to give it our wholehearted effort in order to make it a part of us. Eventually it will become the thought that rules our mind, a habit in our problem solving, a quick reaction to temptation. In other words, this trust will permeate our every thought and action, allowing us to see the world as a friend rather than the opposite. What a beautiful Life!

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“The ancient prophets gained their foresight from a spiritual, incorporeal standpoint, not by foreshadowing evil and mistaking fact for fiction,--predicting the future from a groundwork of corporeality and human belief. When sufficiently advanced in Science to be in harmony with the truth of being, men become seers and prophets involuntarily, controlled not by demons, spirits, or demigods, but by the one Spirit. It is the prerogative of the ever-present, divine Mind, and of thought which is in rapport with this Mind, to know the past, the present, and the future.”

Science & Health Page 84:3-13

July 12, 2012 - Disappearing swords

"Transportation in the Gobi"
photo by Aaron Springston

A Course in Miracles Lesson #193

“All things are lessons God would have me learn.”

Does God really want me to learn anything? Of course not, because Deity  knows nothing of learning, any more than It knows of pain or sorrow or death. What I am learning today is this: "Forgive, and you will see this differently." Today's lesson reinforces yesterday's plan to cast away the sword hanging over our heads. In other words, any grudges we are holding are keeping us a prisoner to them. "I will forgive, and this will disappear" is my favorite sentence in lesson #193. We often hear people say they can forgive but they can't or won't forget. This forgiving spoken of in today's writings is total; forgetting whatever we think has wronged us. The thought of wrong-doing will not hang around to be brought out and re-lived for ourselves and others. I've often said that the collective consciousness shift which is taking place right now will be such a thorough change of thought that we won't even realize it has happened. It will simply be a brand new world of harmonious being. Those who fought the change will not even know they have changed! But happiness and Love will be the law of the land, and we won't need anyone to tell us what is right or wrong. Haven't we always known this?

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“Accompanying this scientific consciousness was another revelation, even the declaration from heaven, supreme harmony, that God, the divine Principle of harmony, is ever with [us], and [we] are His people. Thus man was no longer regarded as a miserable sinner, but as the blessed child of God. Why? Because St. John's corporeal sense of the heavens and earth had vanished, and in place of this false sense was the spiritual sense, the subjective state by which he could see the new heaven and new earth, which involve the spiritual idea and consciousness of reality. This is Scriptural authority for concluding that such a recognition of being is, and has been, possible to men in this present state of existence,--that we can become conscious, here and now, of a cessation of death, sorrow, and pain. This is indeed a foretaste of absolute Christian Science. Take heart, dear sufferer, for this reality of being will surely appear sometime and in some way. There will be no more pain, and all tears will be wiped away. When you read this, remember Jesus' words, "The kingdom of God is within you." This spiritual consciousness is therefore a present possibility.”

Science & Health Page 573:13-2

This material is copyrighted by Marsha Havens, Eureka Springs, Arkansas. All rights reserved. All writings, other than quoted material from A Course in Miracles or Mary Baker Eddy are the personal interpretation and understanding of the author.

July 11, 2012 - Hold no prisoner with anger

"Soccer Friends in Spain"
photo by Aaron Springston

A Course in Miracles Lesson #192

“I have a function God would have me fill.”

Today we are advised to hold no one prisoner with our anger. By releasing them, we are made free. So if we feel a stab of anger toward anyone, we should thank them rather than feel pain. After years of letting go of any residual animosity I may have been hanging onto, there is a big one I persist in keeping. For the past ten years or so, my next door neighbor and I have disagreed about the turkey vultures which roost in our neighborhood. He has screamed curses at me in the street. He stated at a city council meeting that my opinions aren't valid because I'm a Christian Scientist and I have strange ideas about wildlife and disease. Events like these come to mind whenever I see him. It's time to change my thought about him, so I will concentrate on the early years and remember the times we banded together to help others. One of the first conversations I had with him was concerning a neighbor named Margaret, who rarely left her home. One day he came over to ask for my help with her. I'll always remember his mischievous grin as he said: "I know this is sort of like asking a Baptist to go to the liquor store, but would you take Margaret to the doctor?" We became friends that day and worked together to help her in any way we could. One day I saw a copy of Science & Health in her bookcase. Even though she refused to leave her house, I lured her out with a mid-week visit to our church edifice, when no one was there other than us, and I would play the organ for her. This became a regular event, and when she would leave her house to go with me, the other neighbors would go in and clean for her. Margaret was the glue that bound this neighborhood together. That is the loving energy I will remember when I see this other neighbor. And why will I remember only the good in him? Because that's the only reality. Love, and all that emanates from it, is an attribute of God. Anything else is illusion, and I will let the winds of change sweep it away.

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

"Not to avenge one's self upon one's enemies is the command of almighty wisdom; and we take this to be a safer guide than the promptings of human nature. To know that a deception dark as it is base has been practiced upon thee, and yet not to avenge thyself, is to do good to thyself; is to take a new standpoint whence to look upward; is to be calm amid excitement, just amid lawlessness, and pure amid corruption."

Miscellaneous Writings Page 228

July 10, 2012 - I Am an Idea of Divine Mind

"Reflections at Snowbird"
photo by Aaron Springston

A Course in Miracles Lesson #191

“I am the holy Son of God Himself.”

There are so many reasons we come up with for not accepting our perfection as a child of God. To quote from today's ACIM lesson: "You are as God created you. All else but this one thing is folly to believe." So I guess the question is, how did God create me? We tend to think of our limited body and brain as the child of God which is supposed to be perfect, and then we begin to question why we are so unlike our Source which we supposedly reflect. Perhaps we rationalize that everything is perfect just as it is, and if we're miserable it must be God’s will. It seems to be the only explanation in this scenario. So let's expand our mind beyond human assumptions of creation. If we accept that God does not create in the material realm, then doors are opened in thought, with none of the dead-ends we tend to find in traditional dogma concerning God’s creation. By accepting ourselves as the spiritual idea of God, we claim our birthright as the "holy Son of God". To accept that we are really, truly spiritual allows us to put aside limiting beliefs and see through the illusions which have been created for us. This new-old thought cleanses the murky lens of our sight and allows knowledge to replace beliefs. Then we see our perfection as an idea of divine Mind, and live in the light of Love.

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“Immortal and divine Mind presents the idea of God: first, in light; second, in reflection; third, in spiritual and immortal forms of beauty and goodness. But this Mind creates no element nor symbol of discord and decay. God creates neither erring thought, mortal life, mutable truth, nor variable love.”

Science & Health Page 503:20-25

July 9, 2012 - I have a choice!

"Somewhere in Italy during World Cup 2006"
photo by Aaron Springston

A Course in Miracles Lesson #190

“I choose the joy of God instead of pain.”

The idea that we have a choice between joy and pain may not be easy to accept. It could seem that if this is so, then any pain we are suffering is our own fault. But let's not allow mortal mind, ego, to lay a guilt trip on us! If it's true that we have a choice in what we accept as reality, then it might seem we're bringing illness and pain to our existence, and so we must be doing something wrong. The only thing we are guilty of is a mistaken perception, and for that there is immediate remedy: Change your thought! "Phantom pain" attests the cause of pain to originate and live in our mind. If the empty space where there was a limb can continue to ache, obviously the cause of that pain was not originating in the limb itself, but in our mortal mind. A change of that mind's idea to the understanding that we are truly Mind's, God's idea, brings us through the material illusion into the spiritual Truth of our being. So we find that nothing can make us sad or ill or miserable in any way, only us through our acceptance or rejection of what we believe to be true. The world has no power to cause anything, but we have been living as though it does. We have been taught that we are the helpless victims of life's circumstances, and it can come as quite a shock to find out this is not true. Our holiness can only be hidden by us. When we awaken to the joy which is ours as the children of God, these things we like to think of as miracles show themselves to be the normal, everyday occurrences of our Life.

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

[Please note that in this quote the capitalized Mind, Truth, Life denote God]

“The divine metaphysics of Christian Science, like the method in mathematics, proves the rule by inversion. For example: There is no pain in Truth, and no truth in pain; no nerve in Mind, and no mind in nerve; no matter in Mind, and no mind in matter; no matter in Life, and no life in matter; no matter in good, and no good in matter.”

Science & Health Page 113:26-32