To gain the most from A Course in Miracles Lesson Insights, we recommend
that you read the corresponding lesson in the Workbook of the Second or
Third Edition of A Course in Miracles published by the Foundation for Inner Peace.
“I call upon God’s Name and on my own.”
As I read this lesson, I was aware of my resistance coming up. As it said, “Repeat God’s Name” again and again, I was mentally wishing that it would say what God’s name is, spell it out for me. I wanted it to say, “God’s Name is ‘xxxx.’ Say only xxxx.” That is a typical ego attempt to make rules that separate. If the Course said, “This is the Name of God to use,” then the ego would have a basis to say that anyone who doesn’t use that exact word is not praying to God and will not be saved. Thus the ego would use this name of God to separate instead of unify.
What I get out of this lesson today is that it is leading us to recognize unity as all encompassing and indivisible. It does not matter what word we use for the name of God as long as It represents to us unity and Love. It may be the meaning we give the word “God” does not represent His unity and Love. It may instead bring up feelings of fear and guilt because we have not yet forgiven God for our projections on Him, that He is judge and punisher. In that case it may be more appropriate to use another word such as Love. In ACIM we are taught, “God is but Love and therefore so am I,” which parallels the title of today’s lesson, “I call upon God’s Name and on my own.”
The key to me is that I use this exercise of repeating God’s Name to help me focus on the unity of Love that is real to the exclusion of all thoughts of separation, individuality and differences. It is the experience of uniform, changeless, all encompassing Love this lesson is leading me toward. It is leading me to remember my Self as I was created.
As I repeated “God” in my mind, sometimes interchanging it with “Love,” I had a taste of that unity. I began to feel more peaceful. Thoughts of all the “to do’s” and things of this world were laid aside. A feeling of quiet joy grew in my heart. I do not feel I fully achieved the recognition of complete unity, but I got a taste of it. I am truly blessed and motivated to continue on with the practice. I know this is what I want and I am grateful to have the means with which to reach it.
In the movie “Phenomenon,” John Travolta tells his friend to pick up an eraser and erase the words he wrote on a page. Then he told him that this is like erasing all the fear that stands in front of our seeing the Love that is there. The fear comes from all the images we have made in the attempt to replace God. All the names that represent individuality or separation that are taking the place of our remembering God need to be erased.
As we do this erasing process in our lives, we will find more and more that only God is there. In today’s lesson is a process that is much like the eraser that John Travolta was talking about to his friend. As we let God’s Name replace all the little names we have given everything in this world, it is making an open space where we can remember God, our one Self.
I see that this as our life’s work. This is forgiveness. This is letting go of what has never happened in truth. This is what we receive when we ask for a miracle. To me God’s Name is universal Love and universal means everywhere and every thing.
Today’s lesson is a very useful process for returning my mind to oneness. When I have created something that appears very fearful to me and I am like a little child hiding under the covers while having a fearful nightmare, this practice can clear an open space where I can see it is just a nightmare and was never really true at all. Only universal Love is real. All the names need to be erased through my willingness.
I get what I focus on, and today my practice is to focus on the Presence of universal Love. As this is all I want to see, this is what I will see. It is my choice today. Which will I choose?
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