Image and Likeness

PC: Aaron Springston

"I am not a body. I am free." This is the topic of a workbook lesson from ACIM. The idea that I am not a body can seem like a puzzle, perhaps one of those intricate knots with an object in the middle which I’m trying to extricate, but there seems no way to do so. Then the solution appears in my thought and I wonder what seemed so impossible about it! We may put the puzzle away, not looking at it for awhile,  forgetting what we knew about it -- at least it’s forgotten until something reminds us of the solution. That's what the writings of Mary Baker Eddy and the teachings of A Course in Miracles do for me: they remind me of what's been forgotten. "Mind has set me free from every error." Today I will look to divine Mind for discernment. Infinite intelligence is my heritage as the expression of God. I pray to release all beliefs I have concerning reality, and allow inner knowing to show me Truth.

Mary Baker Eddy quote:

"I am the image and likeness of God; no mortal mind can confine this image in a mortal body, harm or touch it in any way, Mind has set me free from every error. Divine Love fills every avenue, flows through every channel and removes every obstruction." [This is an excerpt from an article entitled "Body" by Mary Baker Eddy, filed in the Congressional Library, January 19, 1886, found by Lyda Sandifer Hord]

Inspiring Joy

photo credit: Aaron Springston

There's a young woman who works in a market I frequent. I was surprised when she told me she had been gone for almost a year. Time is so elastic! She tells me she got married and it was a horrible experience. She said she didn't think she could ever look at herself in the mirror without blame. She wanted to tell me details, but I asked her not to. I told her she's the reflection of divine Love and that nothing could change that. I suggested she walk in the woods, plant some flowers, get plenty of exercise. She said there was nothing she would rather do than walk in the woods and talk to God, but that she didn't know where to go. I suggested a beautiful spot out of town called the Outdoor Meditation Sanctuary (OMS). When I described it to her, she began to cry and thanked me profusely for telling her. We all have times we need to hear about our true, pure Being. Never be afraid to offer someone that glass of cold water!

“If you inspire joy and others react to you with joy, even though you are not experiencing joy yourself there must be something in you that is capable of producing it. If it is in you and can produce joy, and if you see that it does produce joy in others, you must be dissociating it in yourself.” A Course in Miracles Chapter 9 VI:1

Releasing Perceived Pain

PC: Aaron Springston

I saw someone today whom I hadn't thought about in a long, long time. Immediately when I saw her, the grudges I held, the blame I apportioned, came to mind. But I stopped and thought about why it had ever mattered so much in the first place. The immediate conclusion was that I had felt self-righteous in the situation. I had taken actions and words personally AND had made assumptions about the reasons for her behavior. Now I look back and see that it just doesn't matter. Any hurt that I thought had been inflicted on me was nothing but my self-important response. Almost immediately I began to wonder if she thought badly of me. Then I realized that didn't really matter either. I'm not responsible for what anyone else thinks, only myself. As a good friend tells me time and again, It's none of my business what anyone thinks about me! I'm so happy to have released yet another perceived pain. Namasté ~~~

"If your brothers are part of you and you blame them for your deprivation, you are blaming yourself. And you cannot blame yourself without blaming them. That is why blame must be undone, not seen elsewhere. Lay it to yourself and you cannot know yourself, for only the ego blames at all." A Course in Miracles, Chapter 11:IV-5

Carrying That Weight

Mongolia

I remember a wonderful story which relates to choosing joy rather than pain. In this story, we are asked how much a glass of water weighs. Then we are told it doesn't matter what its weight is, it matters how long we hold it. If we hold it a minute, it's light. If we hold it an hour, our arm and/or hand may become uncomfortable with the weight. If we hold it all day, our arm will feel paralyzed. This scenario is a metaphor for holding onto worries and fears. If we keep them with us, we become convinced they are impossible to overcome. We are paralyzed from the carrying of this weight. All we have to do is put the glass down to be released from our burden! Then we are free to feel the joy which is innately ours as a child of Love.

“Who that has felt the loss of human peace has not gained stronger desires for spiritual joy? The aspiration after heavenly good comes even before we discover what belongs to wisdom and Love. The loss of earthly hopes and pleasures brightens the ascending path of many a heart. The pains of sense quickly inform us that the pleasures of sense are mortal and that joy is spiritual.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 265:23-30

“You who were created by love like itself can hold no grievances and know your Self. To hold a grievance is to forget who you are. To hold a grievance is to see yourself as a body. To hold a grievance is to let the ego rule your mind and to condemn the body to death. Perhaps you do not yet fully realize just what holding grievances does to your mind. It seems to split you off from your Source and make you unlike Him. It makes you believe that He is like what you think you have become, for no one can conceive of his Creator as unlike himself.” A Course in Miracles Lesson 68

Separated or Not

"Dogwood Blossom"
photo by Chris Fischer

We have insisted on separating ourselves from each other by setting up divisions such as nationality, gender, and religion. It seems to me as though it should be simple to accept our unity as an idea of divine Mind. We all have a song to sing, and we are all part of the grand symphony of Life. To rejoice in being One with everyone, to live from Love rather than fear and its imaginings, is to humbly accept the goodness we inherently are. I pray to turn away from the illusion of human differences, as I wholeheartedly accept my function as a reflection of Love, seeing that image mirrored in everyone I meet.

"One infinite God, good, unifies men and nations; constitutes the brotherhood of man; ends wars; fulfills the Scripture, 'Love thy neighbor as thyself;' annihilates pagan and Christian idolatry, — whatever is wrong in social, civil, criminal, political, and religious codes; equalizes the sexes; annuls the curse on man, and leaves nothing that can sin, suffer, be punished or destroyed." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 340:23-29

Flowing and Shifting

PC: Aaron Springston

Have you noticed people making major shifts in their lives? It seems these are not painful changes, but beautifully flowing shifts which seem almost effortless in their perfection. I love seeing people coming alive with the excitement of doing things which bring them happiness and deep fulfillment! Whether it's moving to another part of the globe, or starting a new career, or "retiring" and finding that life is just beginning, people are changing their focus in major ways. It's so wonderful that we're feeling free to follow our heart and move into the space of Love which fulfills our function. And how do we know what that is? Listen inwardly and Trust yourSelf!!

“Spirit, God, gathers unformed thoughts into their proper channels, and unfolds these thoughts, even as He opens the petals of a holy purpose in order that the purpose may appear.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 506:18-21

“When brothers join in purpose in the world of fear, they stand already at the edge of the real world. Perhaps they still look back, and think they see an idol that they want. Yet has their path been surely set away from idols toward reality.” A Course in Miracles 

Floating - April 9, 2018

unknown photographer

Have you ever dreamed you could fly? My favorite freedom dream is one of running fast, sometimes leaving the ground and floating in mid-stride. Although I haven't had this recurring dream for some time, I can still feel the perfection of it. As I watch people dance and use their bodies in other life-affirming ways, I marvel at the beauty and grace expressed in these activities. Just as physical boundaries are broken and new records set, there is more to come in this so-called physical existence. We are learning of the limitlessness of God's ideas, of which we are One. What is your highest ideal of freedom? 

"This mortal is put off, and the new man or real man is put on, in proportion as mortals realize the Science of man and seek the true model." Mary Baker Eddy -Science & Health Page 408:22-26

“Freedom cannot be learned by tyranny of any kind, and the perfect equality of all God's Sons cannot be recognized through the dominion of one mind over another.” A Course in Miracles