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Manual for Teachers: 13. WHAT IS THE REAL MEANING OF SACRIFICE? P2. 7-16-18

13. WHAT IS THE REAL MEANING OF SACRIFICE? P 2
2 It takes great learning both to realize and to accept the fact that the world has nothing to give. What can the sacrifice of nothing mean? It cannot mean that you have less because of it. There is no sacrifice in the world’s terms that does not involve the body. Think a while about what the world calls sacrifice. Power, fame, money, physical pleasure; who is the “hero” to whom all these things belong? Could they mean anything except to a body? Yet a body cannot evaluate. By seeking after such things the mind associates itself with the body, obscuring its Identity and losing sight of what it really is.

Journal
Jesus is telling us that while we associate ourselves with the body, we will obscure our true identity. This is the reason we want to stop doing this. What keeps us identifying with the body is the belief that to stop is going to require a sacrifice on our part. We do believe that the world offers us something of value.

As a body in the world, we see ourselves as seekers. in pleasure through winning, having a lot of money, eating, having power, and being famous. But do these things actually satisfy? Do they bring us joy and peace? The common belief is that they do. Here is an example from my own life.

I have gone through a lot of changes when it comes to money. I have had times when finding a dime on the ground was cause for celebration, that’s how broke I was. I had no job and bills to pay and a child for whom I had to provide. I had not yet found the Course but soon would. At that time, though, I thought that if only I had some money, I would be ok. I would be safe and happy.

I also have had times when I had more money than I needed, times when money was not an issue for me. And yet, I still worried about money, about what would happen in the future when I retired and no longer had a source for money. Even though over the years my income continued to rise, I never felt safe about it. I was always anxious about not having enough.

This feeling of never having enough slowly changed though practicing abundance as the Course helps us to see it. But before the Course, money, whether I had it or did not have it, failed to bring me peace of mind, and the only pleasure I found in it was fleeting. Even the pleasure of spending the money and having things was a disappointment. So many times I bought things I thought I couldn’t live without only to discover the pleasure of having them soon faded.

What turned out to be of value was the slow and methodical change of mind that I underwent as I studied and practiced the Course. I learned that I was abundant regardless of the numbers in my bank account or what I owned. I learned that money wasn’t the issue but rather it was a belief in lack and loss that was tormenting me and robbing me of my peace of mind and my happiness. Now that I actually am retired, I don’t have very much money at all, but I have peace of mind and I never lack for anything I need. I have something much more valuable than money. I have faith in my innate abundance.

I can do this with all the things the ego mind finds valuable in the world. None of them are of the least value. The only thing of value here is the opportunity to recognize the world has no value and thus to make a different choice about what I strive for. I am now dedicated to living A Course in Miracles as much as I can. I am dedicated to healing my mind through forgiveness, and I am devoted to my brothers. I use each moment to extend love and to join with others. This is something of true value and does not, in my experience, require any sacrifice.

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