August 15, 2012 - Experiencing the Holy Instant

"Still Standing"
(Reality is That Which Does Not Change)
painting by Carol Dickie

A Course in Miracles Lesson #227

“This is my holy instant of release.”

I have been wondering what it is which keeps people from wanting to know God. It would seem there are many reasons, ranging from a misunderstanding of what deity actually is, extending to a fear of losing independence and individuality, and including simple embarassment from giving yourself to something which cannot be intellectually explained. Some of us want a quick fix and believe it would take too much time to understand something we've been taught is unknowable. Others of us feel unworthy of gaining favor from this great judgmental being, and run the other way. There are as many reasons as there are people, but ultimately it doesn't matter what we think about such things. Every moment is a holy instant whether we realize it or not. We can accept illusion as truth, deciding that the body is the ruling entity which sentences us to sorrow and pain. Or we can admit that there is more to this existence than meets the eye. This holy instant which is spoken of today is ours, now and eternally. We have few glimpses of it, as we've built up layers of materiality to conceal it. But it's always there. "This is my holy instant of release". Every moment is this holy instant, which we fearlessly claim now. Let's not worry about what is not, but let us focus on what Is. By recognizing illusion, the way is cleared to see Truth. The holy instant is my Life. I revel in it today!

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“The true idea of God gives the true understanding of Life and Love, robs the grave of victory, takes away all sin and the delusion that there are other minds, and destroys mortality.”

Science and Health Page 323:24–27

August 14, 2012 - True Home

"People in China - 2009"
photo by Aaron Springston

A Course in Miracles Lesson #226

“My home awaits me. I will hasten there.”

Generally when we speak of departing this world, we are referring to the change we call death. In today's lesson, this departure refers to changing our mind about the purpose of the world. When I read the words, "... change of mind about the purpose of the world", a catch phrase is remembered: "Just say NO!!" Today I will just say no to any thought, any thing, which is not of God. When a thought makes me feel uneasy, I will challenge it and see what it looks like from a slightly different perspective. What does it mean that my home awaits me? I mean, really! How does this affect my existence? Certainly accepting the Truth of our being may translate into manifestation in many ways. Something I look forward to is communication without words. We see this sharing of thought in the animal kingdom. It can be observed in watching birds fly in formation, or your dog expecting you home five minutes before you get there, or any number of insights we may tap into on occasion. I truly feel we are all doing the best we can.  Sometimes this doesn't seem like enough to us, whether within ourselves or for others. With each stretching past our accepted limitations, fresh insights will appear. I watch those who are frightened of this new/old way of living. They find reasons to stand still, afraid  that things could be worse than they are. I see you, dear One, flying, leaving behind stuck thought and seeing from a higher perspective than you knew was possible. Today I change my mind about the purpose of the world, and live the kingdom of God which is within. Therein lies the safety of home. I'll see you there

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“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 573:27-2

August 13, 2012 - To Love Totally ...

A Course in Miracles Lesson #225

“God is my Father, and His Son loves Him.”

"Aaron in Germany - 2006"
photo by Mike Cheathum

The ebb and flow of divine Love does not mean that it comes and goes like the tide, but that there is an ever-present circulation between its Source and the creation of divine Mind. Divine creation includes you and me, our true Selves as the reflection of this Love. The admission to myself that there is only one thing I want, which is to know God, to understand the relation of myself to All that Is, allows me to also confess the Love I feel for God and all of Creation. I remember my son once told me he didn't understand why I had so many pets. At the time there were three dogs and three cats. But then he said that it was a good thing because I had too much love for just him and his brother, and if I didn't have the animals, I'd be leading them around town on leashes and patting them on the head. Although we laughed at this at the time, I see there was truth to his statement. We all have too much Love to be contained in any human relationship(s). The all-encompassing divine Love which we are reflecting must be given freely, but it is too huge to be satisfied in simply material expression. To love God is to express the ultimate in what we may have been limiting by our erroneous beliefs in the reality of Love. And releasing the full power of this divine Love is translated into loving actions and thoughts in everyday life. We need not plan to be kind and loving (as some I know seem to do), but by loving only God this expression is found in surprising ways! Leave notes on the blog with ways you have demonstrated this phenomenon! www.divinemetaphysics.blogspot.com

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“Not materially but spiritually we know Him as divine Mind, as Life, Truth, and Love. We shall obey and adore in proportion as we apprehend the divine nature and love Him understandingly, warring no more over the corporeality, but rejoicing in the affluence of our God. Religion will then be of the heart and not of the head. Mankind will no longer be tyrannical and proscriptive from lack of love,--straining out gnats and swallowing camels.”

Science & Health Page 140:7-14

August 12, 2012 - "Compassion in Emptiness"

A Course in Miracles Lesson #224

"A Gathering of Friends"
photo by Marsha Havens

“God is my Father, and He loves His Son.”

The Dalai Lama always has such profoundly beautiful messages for us! He speaks of peace and love, reminding us of our true identify in such an unassuming and pure manner. His gleeful words never leave me where they found me, and for this I am most grateful. Not long ago I watched a DVD of his entitled "Compassion in Emptiness". As usual, every time I read or listen to him, another little chip falls away from any leftover hardness of heart I'm holding on to. This hardness could be in the form of anger, pain, sorrow, any negative emotions I've liked too much to let go. In this most recent DVD, he speaks to the importance of relationships based in honesty and trust. The joyfulness birthed in these relationships is essential to our liberation from fearful illusions. This peaceful happiness is the Truth of our Being. Let's not be afraid to share this with those we know -- and those we don't know! This trust and honesty the Dalai Lama speaks of isn't limited to those who have "earned" it. It isn't limited in any way. When today's ACIM lesson tells us that God is my Father, it means that God is everyone's Father, and by that revelation we are all the same, all worthy of goodness and love. So as we go through our daily activities, let's remember to treat everyone with the loving respect and courtesy with which we would afford a dearly beloved parent or child. Let kindness and joy spread to every person you come into contact with today, and everyday. And if you happen to forget what that feels like, pick up a DVD of the Dalai Lama and let him remind you!

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“Give up your material belief of mind in matter, and have but one Mind, even God; for this Mind forms its own likeness. The loss of man's identity through the understanding which Science confers is impossible; and the notion of such a possibility is more absurd than to conclude that individual musical tones are lost in the origin of harmony.”

Science & Health Page 216:30-5

August 11, 2012 - Freedom in Unity

"Colorado Wildflowers"
photo by Aaron Springston

A Course in Miracles Lesson #223

“God is my life. I have no life but His.”

The freedom which comes from admitting my unity with all of Creation came as a great surprise to me. The majority of my life I was insistent on doing it my way -- whatever that way happened to be. I rebelled at authority in any form and believed myself to be a nonconformist. Even the thought of such rebellion makes me chuckle at its silliness. Now I find that true freedom only comes from the acceptance of my being as a creation of divine Mind. In reading our subject for today's lesson, many remembrances of events and circumstances pass through my mind. "God is my life." I could say so much about this. But the cool breeze being swept in with the attic fan says it all. After numerous weeks of extremely hot weather conditions, we have cooler days, with a hint of fall in the atmosphere. The cool night air is exquisite.. Resting in this perfection is enough. One of my favorite expressions of gratitude is a Native American saying.  I reach out to everything, to all that is, with a silent "Thank You greatly!". I allow this feeling to flow through me as the cool air flows through this house. Life is good. Thank You greatly.

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

"God is divine Life, and Life is no more confined to the forms which reflect it than substance is in its shadow. If life were in mortal man or material things, it would be subject to their limitations and would end in death. Life is Mind, the creator reflected in His creations. If He dwelt within what He creates, God would not be reflected but absorbed, and the Science of being would be forever lost through a mortal sense, which falsely testifies to a beginning and an end.”

Science & Health Page 331:1-10

August 10, 2012 - Leaving Old Pathways

Doll created from a 40-year-old blouse,
signifying leaving old beliefs
for Reality

ACIM Lesson #222

“God is with me. I live and move in Him.”

We are waking up from our oblivious stupor, from our dream of separation from God and all that Is. This awakening is taking many forms, and I'm sure you are seeing examples everywhere, too! The admittance to ourselves that we are divine has taken us to another level of action to correspond with our thought. I'm seeing people changing life-long habits because they suddenly find them repugnant or useless. For quite some time, I've known that I can no longer eat meat. This is not because I feel I shouldn't eat something which was once alive and feeling, because I know that plants have the same attributes, although on a different level perhaps. While this decision does have something to do with kinship with all life, it is mainly because of the horrible ways we choose to raise and slaughter animals. When I was a child, my parents had a small meat processing business. People would bring in the animals they had raised and they would be quietly killed and packaged. This is the image I've had in my mind of what happens in the meat preparing process. This is no longer so, as we all know. There is no respect for the animal itself, no love involved in the taking of its life, and generally no care taken in the preparation of this food for consumption. From listening to my heart, this space deep inside beyond belief and habit, I have come to this decision. For me, this is living and moving in God. Not the decision itself, but the listening and following. Today's ACIM lesson states this: "God is with me. He is my Source of life, the life within, the air I breathe, the food by which I am sustained, the water which renews and cleanses me. He is my home, wherein I live and move ..." There are so many ways we as humans have gone astray. I join with you in watching and listening for the Truth of our existence, and to be aware of ways to demonstrate this in every action. Namaste'.

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“The theory that soul, spirit, intelligence, inhabits matter is taught by the schools. This theory is unscientific. The universe reflects and expresses the divine substance or Mind; therefore God is seen only in the spiritual universe and spiritual man, as the sun is seen in the ray of light which goes out from it. God is revealed only in that which reflects Life, Truth, Love,-- yea, which manifests God's attributes and power, even as the human likeness thrown upon the mirror, repeats the color, form, and action of the person in front of the mirror.”

Science & Health Page 300:26-4

August 9, 2012 - New Old Thought

"South Africa Sunrise"
photo by Aaron Springston

A Course in Miracles Lesson #221

“Peace to my mind.  Let all my thoughts be still.”

Today marks a transition with the Course in Miracles Workbook Lessons. The first 220 lessons have been exercises in giving up beliefs, habitual thoughts, inane or destructive actions, and numerous other things which have held us captive to sense. We now know how to differentiate between ego thoughts and the ideas of Mind. And we're not afraid to listen and trust what we hear in that silence between the words. We've been exercising our spiritual sense, while quieting our physical senses. And now we want the "direct experience of truth". Now we are ready to shift attention within ourselves, to the source Itself, letting go of any ritualistic words and dogma we have been harboring. We now understand what forgiveness is about. It's the understanding that there is nothing to forgive. We have also reached the point where we don't need specific times during the day to remind us to think about our nature as a child of God. This shift from habitual, material thought to inspired, divine ideas is feeling more natural to us now. And so, today I see us as quietly devoted to the peace of God. Every time we silently turn whole-heartedly to God -- knowing that all is Mind, Truth, Love -- we remember more of our original Being. We feel a perfect peace which allows our actions and words to be those of divine Mind, without worry, with total trust, knowing that our lack of expectation frees us. To quote from today's lesson: "This year has brought us to eternity."

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“The effects of Christian Science are not so much seen as felt. It is the ‘still, small voice’ of Truth uttering itself. We are either turning away from this utterance, or we are listening to it and going up higher. Willingness to become as a little child and to leave the old for the new, renders thought receptive of the advanced idea. Gladness to leave the false landmarks and joy to see them disappear,--this disposition helps to precipitate the ultimate harmony. The purification of sense and self is a proof of progress. ‘Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.’"

Science & Health Page 323:28-6