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October-December, 2017

Your Peace Is with Me, Father

by Rev. Myron Jones, O.M.C.

Now that I have been studying the Course for a number of years I have a certain perspective. I can look back and see how I have changed, though, like most words we use, change is not really accurate. I have not changed, being a changeless creation of God. A better way to say it would be I can look back and see myself as I appeared while deeply engaged in the ego, and compare that to myself as I am slowly revealed. It looks like layers of the mask are falling away as I allow the ego thoughts to be corrected by the Holy Spirit, and so it looks like I have changed.

One apparent difference is that I now understand better than I did before that there is indeed nothing for me to do in the world. I will do things, of course, as directed and guided, but it is different than I imagined. I used to think that once I knew something worth sharing, I would be a teacher, a guide, a minister, a writer. Maybe I would do workshops or speak in public. Well, I do all those things, but that is not what I am here to do. Those are just outward forms of the one thing that makes a difference.

I forgive. The effects of forgiveness look like peace, love, and joy. I express those effects in my writing, talks, counseling and all the things that occupy my time. I could do none of those things and still, the effect would be peace, and that would be a gift to all I meet. If I met no one, the peace would spread throughout the Sonship anyway because the Sonship is mind, not bodies. I really need do nothing to make any of this happen. All I need to do is forgive and everything else happens naturally.

My ego mind had a lot of resistance to this idea at first. It balked at the thought of having so little importance in the scheme of things and insisted there was much to be done, and so it kept me quite busy and distracted. But there is the part of my mind that knows the truth, and so I just kept forgiving behind all the busyness. Slowly I surrendered to the thought that I need do nothing, that I am not special, and that all things are done not by me, but through me. I surrendered to the realization that I am a vessel for God and in no way the director or creator of that Force. It does not feel like a loss. It feels like peace.

And so I give peace more the way God gives, simply being peace and so having peace I give peace. It extends itself naturally with no effort on my part. Everything goes as it was meant to go until I decide I want something else. I fully understand the phenomenon of only being able to handle so much happiness and then retreating into fear for awhile. But another apparent change I am noting is that over the years, those retreats are further apart and don’t last as long.

I might give up my peace a dozen times in a day, but I notice I have done it and change my mind very quickly. I used to go from one drama to another with only brief moments of respite, so this is quite a difference. Now, once in a while, maybe once a month, I look at some deeply held ego thought and it may take awhile to get through it. But even that is better because it is more deliberate. I choose to look so that I can allow healing. And even in the chaos of an ego storm, there is a calm center, which holds on to the truth. This is my observer, I think, the decision maker who is watching the effects of ego thinking and deciding which teacher to follow, and in the end, always chooses peace.

One thing that remains a mystery to me is that, when I broach some ego thought I am attached to, I still feel a very strong ego response. I can be deeply afraid or angry. Guilt can be almost overwhelming. It is a foregone conclusion how I will choose in the end, so why this visceral reaction as I look at the ego belief? Depending on how much of my value system is invested in this ego belief, it can feel like a little quake shaking the structure of my belief system. The good thing about it is that all that shaking makes it impossible to pretend nothing is happening. I am very aware that something needs to be looked at with the Holy Spirit.

For the last few days, I have been torturing myself with the belief that I can see insanity in someone else and think it is really in someone else. This insane belief has kept me hostage to suffering and worse than that, it has kept me from knowing myself as peace and thus extending that peace. I have done all the crazy ego things we do when we feel threatened. I have defended myself and attacked and gathered evidence and invited others to join my insanity. I feel like I have emerged from the pits of hell.

I want to say it was a waste of time and the ego wants to say I should be ashamed and embarrassed and that it was a sin. But here is the truth. It was a burning away of an idea that has held a place in my mind for eons, the idea that I can project my worst beliefs about myself onto someone else and be rid of them. Is it all gone, completely and forever? I don’t know, but I don’t think it has the same hold on me. If that idea shows up again, perhaps it will be only a shadow of its old self. 

I read something today written by someone who has Awakened and she said this: Sometimes it is not a pleasant process; it hurts like hell. It is not like growing wings and soaring over an abyss. It is like crashing, falling down an endless cliff of rocks with jagged edges, razor clouds and fire burning every last shred of anything you held to be true. Not like an angels kiss but like a stint in a Dante painting of hell.

So the next time you feel like you must be doing something wrong and that you are going backward, or like you will never Awaken at this rate, just consider that maybe awakening is what is happening and you are doing just fine.

Holy Spirit, You know what I am ready to look at. I am patient and loving with myself, as I can afford to be since you assure me that I am as God created me and so there is no danger of failure. I will not fail to accept correction of all ego thinking. I will not fail to wake up. I surrender to the process.

Rev. Myron Jones, O.M.C., is a Pathways of Light minister living in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Read more of her inspiring Healing Journal articles on the Pathways website. Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) Myron’s website is: http://www.forgivenessisthewayhome.org

© 2017, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
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October-December, 2017

Trust and Transfer of Training

by Rev. Michael Graves, O.M.C.

I have heard it said that if we could totally understand and apply any one of the concepts in the lessons of the workbook for students, it would be enough to take us home. Then the obvious question becomes, “Why are there 365 lessons, a Text, a Manuel for Teachers and pamphlets?” 

Over the last year or so, I have felt so much more peaceful and happy for “no apparent reason.” With all that was going on in the world during that time, I would think that I would have to work extra hard just to keep my spiritual and emotional balance.

Instead, life has become virtually effortless and almost “too easy.” As someone all too familiar with struggle, it seemed “too good to be true” and that it wouldn’t last. When I took this situation to the Holy Spirit, I was gifted with the feeling of “you are starting to seriously apply what you have been learning.”

This is not to say that I was being intentionally casual in applying what I had learned but rather, I was told that I was in a sort of information gathering phase and that all was well and still perfectly on schedule, which I have come to know is always the case.

Another reason for the blessings of peace and happiness I am now experiencing is that I have learned to really trust the guidance I receive. For me it, starts with a consistent willingness to be guided by Spirit. For a long time I felt that I really was trusting and counting on Spirit to guide me. And I was. But like anything else, the more I practiced, the better the results.

In my work with others I often hear, “Why is it taking so long for things to change?” Now, it is totally understandable that one wants to feel better as soon as possible. Simply realizing that a change is needed and beginning to head in a new and positive direction brings a great deal of hope and a measure of relief.                         

But there is a process that we must go through. I often tell people that changing their life after decades of errant thoughts and behaviors cannot be done overnight. Rarely has anyone ever been happy to hear this, but the logic is hard to argue with. I often say, “You cannot have next year’s life experience today.” The work has to be done, and the experience of doing it is invaluable. And so it has been with me.

In a recent Facebook post I said, “I see the turmoil that has been coming up lately as a good thing. The silver lining to the cloud of discord in this country. The only way I have ever been able to transcend defects of character and make improvements in my life was to have them shown to me in an undeniable way so that I could choose who I want to be going forward. The work was hard and painful, but absolutely necessary for my growth.”

Today I have a very different approach to my study and meditation. Because I trust Spirit and ask to be guided, I no longer have the “I have to read this or do that” feeling. I just quietly ask to be led and read whatever I read, say whatever I say, pray whatever I pray and know it is all perfect.

Because I have learned to relax, what I am exposed to is so much easier to apply. Synchronicities have become common and even expected. I cannot understate the importance of applying what I have learned. To me, this is the answer to the age old question of “Why isn’t my life better yet?”

It reminds me of the person who becomes a “professional student.” Obtaining one degree after another but never going out into the world to apply what they have learned.

I know I have done that in my spiritual work. Read every metaphysical book ever published, went to every convention and seminar ever offered, sat at the feet of the most inspired teachers and still wasn’t at peace. Quite the opposite actually. Because now I still had to figure out where I would find the “right” book, teacher, etc., the one who would give me the secret to inner peace. All the while running from the Source of it within me. It is very easy to do. The terror of looking within, resulted in a frantic looking without to find my peace.

So today, I try to be more diligent about applying the principal of even one tiny idea and trusting that it is what Spirit gave me for today, rather than finishing a chapter or a book. For me, it has made all the difference.

Rev. Michael Graves, O.M.C., is a Pathways of Light minister living in Beaumont, California. Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Web: newbeginningslifeservices.com

© 2017, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
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October-December, 2017

Thanksgiving Declaration

by Rev. Maria Kingsley, O.M.C.

I Am the Change
which I’ve been looking for.

I Am the Healing
which I’ve been asking for.

I Am the Abundance
which I’ve prayed for.

I Am the Love
which I’ve been calling for.

I Am the Ease with
which I had hoped
to walk through life.

I Am the Friend
I’ve been wishing for.

I Am the Beauty
I’ve tried to express.

I Am the Safety
I’ve wanted always.

I Am all that and more.

When I allow all things
to be as they are…

When I step back
and let me be led…

When I choose Love
instead of fear…

When I forgive and
see only innocence…

My Greatness is of my True Self.

My Glory is untouchable and eternal.

My joy is undisguised and blissful.

My Divine Nature offers
total peace.

Thank you, Divine Spirit, for
all your gifts to me, for my eternal
Presence in Your Heart…

For sharing all Your Power…

And Walking with me wherever
I choose to go…

Your Love protects and guides me.
All I need do is follow
Your bright Light

And so I will. And so I do.
And so It Is.  Amen

Rev. Maria Kingsley, O.M.C., is a Pathways of Light minister living in Tucson, Arizona. Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

© 2017, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
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October-December, 2017

My Ego, Reflected in Mr. Trump

by Rev. Robin Singler, O.M.C.

I attended an event by Gary and Cindy Lora-Renard recently, which was a wonderful experience. The topic of politics was briefly touched upon during their discussion, and I thought to myself how grateful I am to not be pulled into the frustration and fear that so many people experience when it comes to politics. Although it can trip my ego trigger from time to time, the daily news has not been a primary source of suffering for me, or so I thought.

Then an interesting thing started to happen as the day unfolded. As I sat in my front row seat absorbing all that I could from Gary and Cindy, a vivid image of Donald Trump appeared in my mind. His beet-red face was screaming, his hands held up on the sides of his face in a state of absolute fear and terror so extreme that it was challenging to focus on the image without crying. The fear and utter helplessness in this image hit me hard and I fought back tears as he kept appearing in my mind. He was screaming “Help! Help me!” so loudly and desperately I couldn’t concentrate on what was happening in the room. It was clear this was coming up for me to look at and share with others who might also benefit. 

This image of Mr. Trump bore a striking resemblance to another image I had experienced about myself. It reminded me of a healing session I had a while back, in which the facilitator saw into my unconscious mind and described an image of me screaming similarly in fear and pain, raging against God and my hapless plight as a body doomed to suffer and die. Boundless rage and a sense of loss so deep and dark was revealed to me during that healing session, and then here was Trump’s fear and helplessness appearing to me in the same way. This is the ego belief system we all must face, appearing as a deeply disturbing image of loss and isolation crying out for help. “Someone help me out of this!” We in the ACIM community say “It’s either Love, or a call for Love.” Well, if this terrifying image doesn’t qualify as a call for Love, I don’t know what would fit the bill. There is no other possible response to this cry for help than tenderness and compassion.

And so, the truth seems inescapable to me now: Trump is my brother, a perfect reflection of what is in my own mind. Any hate, ignorance or malice I attribute to him is mine; I am responsible. I simply cannot leave him out in the cold to be judged any longer, for I only judge myself. Now the transformation of this image can begin, from fearful monster to my Savior. As I forgive and accept that what I think he’s done has not occurred, we are both set free to reclaim the inheritance that waits silently and patiently for us: the peacefulness of Eternal Love.

Rev. Robin Singler is a Pathways of Light minister living in McCloud, California. Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

© 2017, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
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