Redeem the Past; Change the Future

Photo by Aaron Springston

Paulo Coelho is one of my favorite authors. In his books, he takes us on spiritual journeys which show that we are indeed not alone, in either our fears or our realizations of Truth. Mr. Coelho’s novel, Aleph, was his most personal, and the main character seems to have many common characteristics with its creator. When he writes of spiritual progress feeling stagnant, I ache for him. These sentences stayed in my thoughts: "It isn't what you did in the past that will affect the present. It's what you do in the present that will redeem the past and thereby change the future." What a vibrant, hopeful statement! What you do right now is the pivotal point in your life. Let go of any and all grievances of any kind. Notice your thoughts as they peek out at you during the day. Are they reinforcing old, often-painful beliefs, or are they leading you out of them? Let’s redeem the past and change the future!

“It requires courage to utter truth; for the higher Truth lifts her voice, the louder will error scream, until its in‐articulate sound is forever silenced in oblivion.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 278:1-11

“The Holy Spirit looks through me today. Christ asks that He may use my eyes today, and thus redeem the world. He asks this gift that He may offer peace of mind to me, and take away all terror and all pain. And as they are removed from me, the dreams that seemed to settle on the world are gone. Redemption must be one. As I am saved, the world is saved with me. For all of us must be redeemed together. Fear appears in many different forms, but love is one.”
—A Course in Miracles W-295.1:1-7

One Primal Cause

Is reality what we are told by the daily news? We know there are conflicting reports of current events, and it can be difficult to discern reality within human perspectives. Is it what we learn in school? I remember how surprising (and embarrassing) it was to learn that most of the American history I had learned in school was no more than a myth, perpetuated by men who wanted it to be that way. We are beginning to understand that spiritual truth is not to be found within the religious institutions of our world. Everywhere we turn, there is a story which we have been told that has affected the way we view life. It is such a relief to know we can happily leave behind our stories of duality and erroneous thought, which frees us to listen for the “still, small voice” of truth.

“There is but one primal cause. Therefore there can be no effect from any other cause, and there can be no reality in aught which does not proceed from his great and only cause.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 207:20-23

“The miracle sets reality where it belongs. Reality belongs only to spirit, and the miracle acknowledges only truth.”
—A Course in Miracles T-1.IV.2:2-4

Calling For Love

Crystal Bridges Dining Room 

If someone asks you what is the opposite of love, what would you say? Most of us would say hate, but some of us would say fear. For those of you who are students of the Bible, you well know the words found in I John 4:18 — “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.” In A Course in Miracles, we learn that every word and/or action is either a product of love, or a call for love. Mary Baker Eddy mentions Love 465 times in Science & Health, but fear has a mere 163 inclusions. Hate appears in only 20 citations, my favorite one being this: “Divine Life destroys death, Truth destroys error, and Love destroys hate.” [page 339] And so the next time you feel fearful, or perhaps hateful, remember you are only crying out for Love. If you see these feelings coming from someone else, see it for what it is: a call for Love. Now for the fun part! Send Love right back at whatever appears otherwise! Namaste, dear friends ..

“The only judgment involved is the Holy Spirit’s one division into two categories; one of love, and the other the call for love. You cannot safely make this division, for you are much too confused either to recognize love, or to believe that everything else is nothing but a call for love. You are too bound to form, and not to content. What you consider content is not content at all. It is merely form, and nothing else. For you do not respond to what a brother really offers you, but only to the particular perception of his offering by which the ego judges it.”
—A Course in Miracles T-14.X.7:1-6

“Love inspires, illumines, designates, and leads the way. Right motives give pinions to thought, and strength and freedom to speech and action. 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. Patience must ‘have her perfect work.’”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health 454:18-24

Two Ways To Be Fooled

A quote from Soren Kierkegaard: “There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn't true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true." For me, social media is a way to keep up with loved ones who are far away, people close by, and cool happenings in town or otherwise. Of course, it is also the avenue for conspiracy theories and purveyors of horrid happenings. I truly believe most folks think they are helping others by warning them about trouble. The same holds true on the national level, when people warn us that Tom Hanks is a pedophile or that Hillary Clinton drinks baby’s blood. Hence, I come back to the sentiment in the Kierkegaard quote often: Am I being fooled by believing or not believing?? It has always seemed to me that truth just feels true. But with so much misinformation going around in everyone's heads, I think it's easier to be pulled into swirling, chaotic thoughts now than it used to be. It's rather like an approaching storm with its electric, exciting expectancy: will it be beautiful and cleansing or are we going to Oz? Hum...

"Science only can explain the incredible good and evil elements now coming to the surface. Mortals must find refuge in Truth in order to escape the error of these latter days. Nothing is more antagonistic to Christian Science than a blind belief without understanding, for such a belief hides Truth and builds on error."
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 83:6

“The idea for today simply states a fact. It is not a fact to those who believe in illusions, but illusions are not facts. In truth there is nothing to fear. It is very easy to recognize this. But it is very difficult to recognize it for those who want illusions to be true.”
—A Course in Miracles W-48.1:1-5

Giving Your All

Night-Blooming Cereus

Photo by Don Matt 

“Restraint is a very good partner to indulgence.” Hearing Nigella Lawson say this on The Great British Baking Show struck a chord deep within, as my tendency to overindulge is legendary in some circles. Not only with hedonistic pursuits, but when beginning a serious study of divine metaphysics in the 1990s, it was an all-encompassing lifestyle change. This was necessary to fill the gaps left by less-than-stellar practices which had come before. After children were grown, opening of an art gallery in our small tourist town offered an outlet for living the Love which was being realized in daily living. Everything was centered around promoting and growing that beautiful business, and it would still be in operation had life’s circumstances not stepped in. But back to the original quote from a great chef — restraint and indulgence are a beautiful pairing. I appreciate this wonderful baker who doesn’t need to eat everything she creates!

“Indirect proof of truth is needed in a world made of denial and without direction. You will perceive the need for this if you realize that to deny is the decision not to know. The logic of the world must therefore lead to nothing, for its goal is nothing. If you decide to have and give and be nothing except a dream, you must direct your thoughts unto oblivion. And if you have and give and are everything, and all this has been denied, your thought system is closed off and wholly separated from the truth. This is an insane world, and do not underestimate the extent of its insanity. There is no area of your perception that it has not touched, and your dream is sacred to you. That is why God placed the Holy Spirit in you, where you placed the dream.”
—A Course in Miracles T-14.I.2:1-8

“Let the slave of wrong desire learn the lessons of Christian Science, and he will get the better of that desire, and ascend a degree in the scale of health, happiness, and existence.”

—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 407:17-20

Truth is a Deep Kindness

Photo from Aaron Springston

“Truth is a deep kindness that teaches us to be content in our everyday life and share with the people the same happiness.” 

—Kahlil Gibran

“You do not recognize the enormous waste of energy you expend in denying truth. What would you say of someone who persists in attempting the impossible, believing that to achieve it is to succeed? The belief that you must have the impossible in order to be happy is totally at variance with the principle of creation. God could not will that happiness depended on what you could never have. The fact that God is Love does not require belief, but it does require acceptance.It is indeed possible for you to deny facts, although it is impossible for you to change them. If you hold your hands over your eyes, you will not see because you are interfering with the laws of seeing. If you deny love, you will not know it because your cooperation is the law of its being. You cannot change laws you did not make, and the laws of happiness were created for you, not by you.”
—A Course in Miracles T-9.I.11:1-9

“Happiness is spiritual, born of Truth and Love. It is unselfish; therefore it cannot exist alone, but requires all mankind to share it.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 57:18-21

Common Ground

This has been a beautiful day, which marks the ending of a wonderful week, visiting with grandbabies and their dad. Today was fun, with old friends stopping by to visit and a sunset visit to a friend’s buffalo ranch. The words from an old Beatles song have been going around in my mind for most of the day: I get by with a little help from my friends. While visiting with a woman who was like a second mother to my boys, I realized what a bond of friendship we share — even all these years later. We don’t see each other regularly, but when we’re together it’s still a closely-bonded relationship. A long term ex-husband was here and although we disagree on almost every topic you could choose, we still have a couple of points we can agree on: grandsons. These are common denominators, no matter what transpired between friends and family in the past — or the so-called future! So friends, I leave you with this thought: We’re all in this together! Namaste …

“With one Father, even God, the whole family of man would be brethren; and with one Mind and that God, or good, the brotherhood of man would consist of Love and Truth, and have unity of Principle and spiritual power which constitute divine Science.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 469:30-5

“You respond to what you perceive, and as you perceive so shall you behave. The Golden Rule asks you to do unto others as you would have them do unto you. This means that the perception of both must be accurate. The Golden Rule is the rule for appropriate behavior. You cannot behave appropriately unless you perceive correctly. Since you and your neighbor are equal members of one family, as you perceive both so you will do to both. You should look out from the perception of your own holiness to the holiness of others.”
—A Course in Miracles T-1.III.6:1-7