Imagine ...

photo credit: Kailey Jones

ACIM Workbook Lesson #283

“My true Identity abides in You.”

Imagine the utopia of living life in the acceptance of our true Identity as a creation of divine Mind. When we see that we are a reflection of Love, when we understand that our essence is Truth, then we are able to accept our identity and watch it blossom in daily life. Over the years, we develop a complex idea of who we are, and we spend a great deal of time defending and adding to this concept. The thought of giving that up can be distressing, and many of us refuse to even consider it. But what if this yielding expanded our identity rather than causing it to disappear? There is no need of losing yourself in the process of acknowledging unity. Just imagine — 

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“Man is not absorbed in Deity, and God’s man cannot lose his individuality, for he reflects eternal Life; nor is he an isolated, solitary idea, for he represents infinite Mind, the sum of all substance.” Science & Health Page 259:1-5

No Fear in Love

"Tarantella of Autumn"
creation of Sandy Starbird

ACIM Workbook Lesson #282

“I will not be afraid of love today.”

Seeing everything as love (or a call for love) can sometimes seem daunting. My son and his girlfriend are visiting from out of town and I drove to get them when they flew in today. As my son’s dad lives close to the airport, we arranged to meet him for lunch before driving home. Although this man and I share a son, we share very little as far as opinions about life, Love, and politics. My practice of saying “you may be right about that” certainly was tested today — but I steadfastly held in thought that he was doing the best that he could, that he is a creation of divine Love, and that he has many wonderful qualities which drew me to him almost 40 years ago. Today has been a lovely lesson in realizing that I can focus on separate forms or choose to see love reflected in Love. And I was not afraid ---

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“Love is priestess at the altar of Truth. Wait patiently for divine Love to move upon the waters of mortal mind, and form the perfect concept.”

Science & Health Page 454:21-23

Counterfeits of Truth

photo credit: Arthur Lau-Sed

ACIM Workbook Lesson #281

“I can be hurt by nothing but my thoughts.”

I listened to a video which told me that thought brings experience, and listening to the thoughts of the ego brings the experience of pain, loss, and lack, because the ego thoughts originate in a belief in separation from divine Mind. Two friends of mine are currently going through a period of emotional upset stemming from such a belief. One has been spoken to harshly by a neighbor, and the other is a vendor at our farmers market whose feelings have been hurt by public comments from a customer. I have told them both that it’s none of their business what anyone else thinks about them; that only they know the truth of their intentions and, if they’re pure, there is no reason for distress. I welcome reminders that it is my own perceptions which need adjustment, not someone else’s actions — and for these prompts, I am most grateful!

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“When examined in the light of divine Science, mortals present more than is detected upon the surface, since inverted thoughts and erroneous beliefs must be counterfeits of Truth.” Science & Health Page 267:19-22

Limitless Mind

photo credit: Aaron Springston

ACIM Workbook Lesson #280

"What limits can I lay upon God's Son?"

How do you limit yourself? I can think of lots of ways I keep myself imprisoned. When we think we are material human beings, we limit ourselves — but we are freed by the realization that our real self is Spirit, and Spirit is not contained in matter. Okay, so we are truly Spirit, but we appear to be matter, and this thing called Spirit isn't in matter. So how does that work? Our governing force, our True Self, is spiritual. We are an idea -- a divine, compound Idea of God. This idea is what is perfect. The materiality we see all around us changes, it disappears, it does not fit any definition of perfection we have in our vocabulary. So we try to make it fit, saying that everything is perfect just as it is, which leaves us feeling somehow punished because we're so miserable. I have found that concepts which include spirit as being somehow co-mingled with matter bring me to a dead-end in thinking. Only by agreeing that we are limitless Spirit, neither compressed in nor bound to matter, can I feel the freedom that has no limits. I Am infinite Mind! I Am divine Love!

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“Mind is limitless. It never was material. The true idea of being is spiritual and immortal, and from this it follows that whatever is laid off is the ghost, some unreal belief. Mortal beliefs can neither demonstrate Christianity nor apprehend the reality of Life.”

Science & Health Page 353:28-32

Glimpses of Freedom

photo credit: Aaron Springston

ACIM Workbook Lesson #279

“Creation's freedom promises my own.”

When we are told we are free, we have images of what that means, and these imaginings may cause us to wonder about our perceived bondage. I know I live with limiting beliefs every day, and it often seems impossible to be released from them. We think a multitude of rules and beliefs must be obeyed in order to survive and thrive, and when we start to realize most of these so-called rules have nothing to do with our true existence, it can be frightening -- and exhilarating! The freedom of our true creation is seen through a change in our perception of reality. Taking ourselves out of the prison of preconceived notions allows the Love we are to show through our actions in sublime ways. And we glimpse freedom!

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“The periods of spiritual ascension are the days and seasons of Mind’s creation, in which beauty, sublimity, purity, and holiness — yea, the divine nature — appear in man and the universe never to disappear.”

Science and Health Page 509:24-28

Infinitely Unbound

photo credit: Aaron Springston

ACIM Workbook Lesson #278

“If I am bound, my Father is not free.”

It's easy to feel bound by illnesses and injuries, financial burdens and grief. Our lives appear to have a beginning and an end, but do we believe there is an end to Love, to Spirit, to Soul? We are gaining an understanding that we are the image and likeness of what we call God, or Mind, and that as this Idea we are without beginning nor end, free and boundless as infinity! And the Truth sets us free!

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“The admission to one's self that man is God's own likeness sets man free to master the infinite idea.”

Science & Health Page 90:24-25

The Law of Freedom

photo credit: Aaron Springston

ACIM Workbook Lesson #277

“Let me not bind Your Son with laws I made."

Change is good! We are all releasing laws that hold us to thought which simply is not working. We're changing many things in our experience, from the way we shop to the way we love. As we examine the beliefs we live by, we realize we can be a law unto ourselves. The fears which have followed us throughout our lives have shaped our views of everything around us, but a universal shift in thought is upon us and we're each feeling it in our own way. The understanding that we don't have to be bound by any material belief, because our true identify is spiritual, is bringing us to a tipping point in consciousness realization. This freedom will be absolutely experienced, not only personally, but in the collective. When? Well, since we're not slaves to time, why not now!!

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

“Laws of nature are laws of Spirit; but mortals commonly recognize as law that which hides the power of Spirit.” Science & Health Page 183:19-20