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.
“In me salvation’s means and end are one.”
What stands out to me in today’s lesson is, “salvation’s purpose is to find the sinlessness that God has placed in me.” (1:4) To find sinlessness, I must forgive. That is why forgiveness is the central teaching of this Course. Whether it looks like I am forgiving myself or something seemingly outside me, it all comes down to letting go of the idea that separation could be real. The means for salvation is within me. That means is forgiveness. The end goal is within me. That goal is my Self, which remains as God created It.
Fortunately forgiveness does not depend on the identity I believe is me. It only depends on the identity I think of as me being willing to turn over all my thoughts to the Holy Spirit. It is His strength and clear vision that makes forgiveness possible. But without my willingness, His strength and vision are not available to me, for I am denying them. I am never alone. It is the idea that I could be alone that needs to be undone.
Each time I practice turning over my thoughts of fear and guilt to the Holy Spirit, each time I release these thoughts and receive His kind and gentle replacement, my confidence in the power and freedom of forgiveness grows. I recognize forgiveness for the gift it is to me and all my brothers. The truth that forgiveness is a gift I give myself dawns upon my mind. When I release a long held grievance, I might say to myself, “I could have had forgiveness instead of all that pain.” But I also learn what a blessing the gift of forgiveness is and I can forgive myself for hanging on to the grievance and receive the gift again.
Today I practice forgiveness again in deep gratitude that I have the means to recognize the sinlessness that was never blemished. I feel the Holy Spirit’s warm embrace as He offers me His strength and His Love. With Him complete release is possible. I have the means within me right now, this instant.
Holy Spirit, I give You all my thoughts today. I open my mind to Your vision, for I would walk with You today and see the world forgiven.
God’s Son is one. Love is one. If I am not remembering that, then I am holding on to false ideas. And holding on to false ideas instead of the truth only brings the experience of loss and lack. Forgiveness means letting go of false ideas. Forgiveness and the Atonement are one. I am learning to remember that I have a Source of truth within my mind and that Source of truth will correct all the false ideas I have accepted as true. My part is being willing to open to and accept the correction.
I am coming to realize more and more that my experience of this world is totally coming from my mind. It is an experience of individual personalities and separate things. This separation is held together by a belief in time and space, belief in a past and future and a belief that there is distance between unique things. So my experience of this world is coming from ideas, ideas that are false because now I know that separation could never be real. Salvation comes as I let go of these false stories, these false images that come from false ideas.
Thank goodness the Holy Spirit is always with me. The Holy Spirit will correct all my false ideas as I hand them over for correction. This is the process of forgiveness. Through forgiveness, my belief in the world is undone. My belief in separation is undone. This is a gradual process which I work on every day. “Let me today, my Father, take the role You offer me in Your request that I accept Atonement for myself.” (2:1)
I welcome the reminder that I can forgive through Holy Spirit and that forgiveness is what I want. I also welcome the reminder that all I need offer is my willingness.
I was starting to feel discouraged because I am having trouble releasing a grievance. As I read the above perspective, my heart lightened and I saw that it is the past I am clinging to and that is what is keeping me from forgiving. I don’t want the past to determine my future. I am willing to forgive the past and so release myself now. Boy, that feels good!
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