Together, We Light the Way

Click link to go to:
Together We Light the Way Index

A Better Question

This message is an answer to a question posed on a Yahoo discussion group site. I thought it was of general interest so I am posting it here as well.

—- In NTIDiscussionGroup@yahoogroups.com, “julieta_in_bcn” <julieta_in_bcn@...> wrote:
> At the end of the third paragraph you wrote: As I was persistent in my asking, I was giving myself time to form the right question, or perhaps to finally really want what I was asking for.
I really get that last bit about really wanting what we ask for, but
could you please elaborate on the forming of the right question?
Do you think the words are important or can I just trust that HS will
> see my true intent regardless of how I express it?

Julieta, thank you for asking and giving me this opportunity to clarify in both our minds what I was saying.

I know that I can truly and completely trust the Holy Spirit. He will never give me what I do not want. So I can pretend to want something, or think I want it and ask for it, or I can be less than clear in my asking, and it does not matter. He disregards my words altogether and answers my heart. So you see, I cannot mess this up, and I will never receive what I do not truly want. The reason I want to ask the question, to clarify the question and to ask the right question is for my own benefit. This helps me to see what it is I truly want.

Asking the right question can look different at different times, but here is an example. Yesterday I had to work in the rain. It was cold and wet and I was slipping and sliding in the mud. I was miserable. The question (which I had not formulated into words as a question, but which was the question of my heart) was, why do I have to be out here and why does the weather have to be this way, and why do I have to be miserable?

Suddenly I remembered that I am committed to acceptance and allowance and this would be an excellent time to practice it. So my question changed. I told the Holy Spirit I was willing to accept the weather and my condition exactly as it was, but that I didn’t know how to do this. I offered to open my mind. This was an entirely different question. Since my goal is to awaken, it was the right question.

I got out of the car to do the next job and just stood there getting wet and being cold. I was given the thought that I could withdraw the judgment that this is bad. So I just noticed how the wind felt on my skin. And how the rain fell gently on the hood of my jacket. I noticed how it smelled very sweet. I finished this job and got back in my car and noticed how it felt to be warm and dry. Then I went on to the next job and did it again.

I began to rejoice in the day that we had created and to rejoice in the power and creativity which produced this day just for my awakening. How extraordinary we are when we allow the Love of God to create through us. I am so glad that I decided to enjoy and appreciate the moment rather than to reject it.

My first question was “why am I in this situation?”, and the better question was “what do you want me to do with it?”, or another way to say it is “how do I use this for my awakening?” The better question was more helpful to achieving my goal and so that was why it was a better question.

© 2008, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice is included.

Tell a friend about this article.

Printable Page

A Holy Encounter in a Store

I was at a store today and there was a woman standing at the counter. Her body was badly deformed.  When I was young I have been repelled by this kind of thing, and would turn away.  As I grew older I was still repelled but ashamed of my feelings and would cover them over with pity. As I matured spiritually, I began to learn that neither response was appropriate, but that was just learning, the collection of new ideas. How I felt had not really changed and so I was conflicted between how I felt and how I thought I should feel. I would still turn away and still feel guilty, the only difference is that I was now confused about my feelings..

This time when I saw the woman I felt that sense of confusion, but beneath it was something else, something new. However, it was not clear. But it was right there, like a word on the tip of the tongue that I could not quite grasp. So I showed my confused thoughts to Holy Spirit. I asked Him how to see past what the body’s eyes show me. Immediately this beautiful, perfect thought came into my mind. “The soul that animates this body looks exactly like your soul.”

I had spent a lifetime imprisoning myself within the ego, looking out of the body’s eyes and seeing only an illusion. I had tried to see differently using the body’s eyes and that had left me only confused and frustrated. I still saw a separate being, different than me, whose goals were different than mine. In that one instant, with this new thought, I saw truly for the first time and knew this woman as myself. I knew the body I thought of as myself was only a tool, a communication device, something useful for that purpose only. I had heard those words before, but this was the first time their meaning had come alive for me.

As I looked at that woman’s body I saw that the mind chose a different communication device to learn specific lessons. It was not a sad or frightful thing that had happened to her. It was soul choice to learn in a particular way and so it was perfect for that soul’s lifetime desire. She was not deformed, the body was deformed. Deformity was not bad, only useful for a time. It did not just happen, it was a choice. And as all of this fell into place within my mind, the judgment born of fear that had prompted past reactions fell away, and my vision cleared. I didn’t see an unlucky or cursed woman, but another part of myself having an experience. In that holy instant I saw no separation and wanted no separation.

© 2008, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice is included.

Tell a friend about this article.

Printable Page

Let Me Forget My Brother’s Past Today

The past is a lifetime ago, a year ago, even a moment ago. No matter what I said or thought or did, it is over. I feel guilt only if I insist on dragging the past around with me like a wet bag of sand. Each moment is brand new if that is what I choose. My life is recreated with each thought I have and it will be recreated differently if I choose different thoughts. This is why it so important that I notice my thoughts, take responsibility for them and for their effects, and then ask the Holy Spirit for a different way to see. I do not want to continue as I have been by thinking the same thoughts, making the same judgments. I am ready to be wrong about everything I think I know and to allow the Holy Spirit to replace it all with the truth.

I wonder what it would be like to release the past completely and to see each one in my life as if they were brand new to me. I don’t mean that I would forget everything about them; that would be Alzheimer’s. I mean, what would it be like to see each person as if they had never attacked me, never hurt my feelings, never disagreed with me, never abandoned me.

I was thinking about my father. When I think about him I think about all the labels I have given him. He was an alcoholic. He made our lives miserable and then abandoned us. He made me special then betrayed my specialness. When he wasn’t drinking he was the best dad in the world and somehow that made his drinking behavior all the more painful; his betrayal all the more unforgivable. He was a gifted speaker, a songwriter and singer. His heart was open and child-like, he was playful and fun.  Though he had little follow through, he had the capacity to dream things others could not fathom.

What if I could withdraw all my projections and surrender my perceptions. What if I could allow myself to see him without the armor of my judgments. Who would this man be? I imagine him not as my father, but as another brother using his ego story to help him wake up. I see him walking his path through addictions and mental illness. I see him trying on this mask and that one looking for something that fits, something that brings happiness and peace.

I see him presenting me with opportunities to look through my bag of ego tricks, to try first this one and then that one, to discard each as it does not work. I see him moving on to his next rendezvous in this play and me moving onto mine. Where is the attack now? Where is the betrayal, the abandonment? From this forgiven perspective I meet him again and I see him without those labels, those judgments, those projections, all that I had created as his past, and now I see only the innocent Christ.

Holy Spirit, what if I could do this for each person I encounter? What if I could withdraw each judgment, even as I make it, and withdraw it so completely that it leaves not a stain upon their visage so that each encounter with that person is brand new, completely untainted by the last encounter. What if I could encounter a brother on the street and he knock me to the ground and yet I see only my innocent self interacting with my innocent self? Could I ever be so free of judgment that the past would not follow me around? Could I encounter that person later and not flinch? If I can see it in my mind, I can live it in my life.

Holy Spirit: Do you feel the fear and resistance at this thought, my friend? Allow yourself to do so. Don’t try to bury it. (I stop for a moment and feel the fear and doubt. I notice I feel overwhelmed and think it is too much to even try. It feels hopeless.) Those feelings, dear one, are the ego defenses designed to keep you forever in its world of separation. The ego warns you that you are being asked to go naked and unprotected into a dangerous world. You do not have to believe its lies.

Today you will encounter many people on whom you have projected a history. Do not try to see them without this history. Do not try to do anything. As you meet them simply ask Me to show you what I see. Does this feel doable to you? Does this feel overwhelming and frightening?

Me: (I smile and then laugh.) Holy Spirit, I keep forgetting how easy this is. I keep forgetting that God is not asking for sacrifice. I can do this and I want to do this. Thank you.

© 2008, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice is included.

Tell a friend about this article.

Printable Page

Who am I?

The hush of Heaven holds my heart today.

This morning I woke up with a question: Who am I? The answer came quickly. I am Christ. I am moving up and through this vehicle, slowly displacing the ego as light displaces darkness with its very presence. I move slowly as not to startle, but I move inevitably for I am being made welcome. I do not force my way into conscious thought, but come quietly and gently at invitation.

Is it arrogance to think of myself as Christ? Or is it simple truth and only recognition of what has been known deep within all along? Is it only foolishness to pretend to be small and unlike my Creator just because I am playing at making a world that could never exist? The ego feels very sly today, truly the serpent in the garden slithering slowly into my awareness, whispering fearful warnings of overstepping my bounds, of drawing attention to my errors. “What will people think? I don’t act like a Christ. Who do I think I am?”

Could I turn my attention from the ego mind and let it hiss at dead air? Could I do this just for today and allow myself the respite of utter peace, the hush of heaven, as promised me? I am willing for that to be true for me this day. I am willing to set aside my guilt and fear and experience my Self as God created me. I get shivers at the thought, though I am not sure how much of it is expectation and how much fear.

Yesterday was so productive. I noticed many moments in which I was judging and was completely willing to see differently. I was more than willing; I was determined, and excited to see differently. I reminded myself often that I and my Father are one, and I began to include the one I had judged. I and my Father and David are one. Once, the group got rather large. 😊 Well, the more the merrier. All I could think about was how much light I was allowing into my mind every time I chose forgiveness.

© 2008, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice is included.

Tell a friend about this article.

Printable Page

What limits can I lay upon God’s Son?”

Though they be only in my own mind, and far beyond the reach of Truth, I place limits on God’s Son so much that it is hard to keep up with it. I do it to myself and to those I know and to those I just happen to run across. It doesn’t matter since each different body is just a symbol of the separation thought. Sometimes the limit is obvious. I think someone is too fat, or dresses badly, or has a terrible haircut. I think someone is rude or obnoxious. I think someone cannot write well, or speak well. Sometimes it is just a fleeting thought, hardly in my mind long enough for me to notice, but it shows me that I believe in limitation and would impose it on myself and others.

I sometimes hide the limits behind humility, or behind a compliment. I limit as I compare one person to another. I could never do what you are doing, or look what an advanced soul she is. And right then I have limited everyone else and even her because while she has gone so far, she is not there. I hide it behind “love” as I tell my children they cannot do something by doing it for them, or giving unneeded advice.

I limit through worry. What if I cannot do this, or if that happens? How will I handle something? Will I have enough money or enough time? The implication always being there is a limit. How often have I said that I can no longer do that because I am too old, or my memory is not as good as it used to be, or I just tend to be that way or this way?

This morning I sat here thinking that I can’t understand why I hold onto the ego like I do. Why can’t I just let it go? I see what I am doing, and yet I keep doing it. The limitation implied is that I have no control over this, that something is keeping me in this place. I think of the many times the Holy Spirit has encouraged me to be patient and I think, there I go again trying to rush things; another limitation – I’m not able to be patient, never have been.

As I wonder how I can make all these changes, the Holy Spirit reminds me that there are not a million changes in behavior that I need to make, but only one change. In choosing the wrong teacher I learned to believe in limitation.

Holy Spirit: Dear one, you forget who you are and all that implies. You are the holy Son of God dreaming of bodies, pretending to be limited. You don’t need to learn to be unlimited, or even, as you were thinking, learn to not be limited. You only need to decide to be what you are instead of what you pretend to be.

Each time you notice one of the many forms that limitation can take you are deciding to remember who you are. Each time you use that moment to express your willingness to return to your true nature you are undoing the belief in limitation. It does not matter if the limitation seems to be on you or on someone else as it is not a particular behavior that needs correction, but the thought that caused the behavior.

Remember that you are completely responsible for everything you see in your world. If there seem to be limits everywhere you look, those limits are there because you want them there. Do not be discouraged by this discovery, but rejoice that you have decided to realize what is going on. Your willingness to accept responsibility is your freedom. It is the key to freedom from the belief in limits.

Me: Holy Spirit I feel very frustrated. I accept responsibility for my world. Well, really I don’t a lot of times, because as soon as I said that, I remembered just yesterday thinking I felt bad because of something someone else said. But I do understand the concept of self responsibility. What I don’t understand is why I cannot simply let go of the belief in limits. Why can’t I just wake up from this dream? I think I really want to and yet, if I wanted to I would. What is wrong with me?

Holy Spirit: Precious child of God, remember that I said you forget who you are. That forgetfulness is not accidental. You choose to forget that you are holy beyond measure, perfect in a way that in your forgetfulness you can no longer even imagine. You choose forgetfulness because you believe what you have now is preferable. You would rather be ruler of a broken and limited kingdom that to be part of God’s kingdom. As long as you place some value in being separate from God, you will remain (in your mind, only) separate from God. You are created to be free, and that means you are free to be miserable if that is what you want.

Remember, though, that you are equally free to be joyful. There are no magic words to bring you to your joy. I know you want Me to give you those words which will free you from your own choices, but you do not need Me to do this for you. I will not teach you that you are limited in this way by doing for you what you can do for yourself. That would not be kindness. Returning to your natural state, which I remind you does not change in spite of your dreams to the contrary, returning to your natural state is as simple as changing your mind. When you cease to value your dream it will end. Just like that.

And yes, again I will remind you, be patient with yourself. There are steps that must be taken, and you are taking them. Patience does not imply doing nothing. Continue to use every possible opportunity to become fully aware of your resistance. Continue to give me what willingness you have in every moment. Though it seems small indeed, you may rest assured I will use it. The little you do has a powerful effect on your mind. You are in the process of deciding differently. It seems to you to take a long time, but that is just an illusion.

Thank you, Holy Spirit. 

© 2008, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice is included.

Tell a friend about this article.

Printable Page

Crisis

Robert Stoelting on view link brought up the economic crisis and I responded to his post.

—- In Following_Holy_Spirit@yahoogroups.com, “Robert & Mary Stoelting” wrote:
>
> Robert: In every moment I have a choice of who I choose as my
> companion. When I choose the ego, I experience lack and loss, guilt and fear. When I choose Holy Spirit, I experience peace, happiness, Love and safety.
Lesson 156 tells us that we make this choice a thousand times a day.

When I journaled on lesson 156 last year I commented that my mind is like teflon. The truth just doesn’t seem to stick to it. But like Robert says, I chose ego consistently for life times and now it really does require a lot of vigilance to choose differently. It requires a great deal of vigilance just to notice I have chosen the ego. But this vigilance does pay off. I am seldom caught by ego storms unaware anymore. When I do get caught in one, I am quick to choose differently. I can tell the difference in my life because it is much more peaceful and I am much happier.

Robert says:
> With the “economic crisis” that is the major topic of discussion and
> news in the U.S., this is a time to heighten our vigilance to choose our mighty Companion, Who reminds us in each moment that all of God’s abundance is ours. God’s Son cannot be harmed, for he remains eternally as Love created him.

This is indeed a good time to be very vigilant. One cannot help but be affected by the energy of fear and anxiety that is pervading our society right now. Here in Louisiana we have additional anxiety caused by two destructive hurricanes back to back which caused damage in areas of the state that have never experienced hurricane damage. It causes people to feel fearful of the unknown and uncontrollable.

Just because I am touched by this general anxiety does not mean I have to accept it or believe it. I have a choice about this. As I listen to Holy Spirit within my mind I remember what this is for. Whatever happens in my life is a result of my desire to have it there. I take full responsibility for it. The economic crisis as well as the hurricane are my responsibility even though it does not appear to be so if you look only with ego eyes.

I gladly accept that responsibility and forgive within mind the beliefs, the perceptions of lack and the perceptions of fear, the need to defend through attack and all the other perceptions that result in the creation of chaos in the illusion. As the Ho’oponopono process suggests, I look at what I have done and I say “I’m sorry, Please forgive me, I love you, Thank you.”

The ego wants to object and say that I didn’t have anything to do with this and even if I did in some metaphysical way, it was only a little bit and lots of other people are more responsible. I just laugh at the ego. There is only one mind and salvation is not personal. We are one and we are, as one, 100% responsible.

So I treat a national crisis in the same way I treat a family crisis. I look at my thoughts, beliefs, perceptions and I forgive them. I ask Holy Spirit to be with me while I look with complete honesty and fearlessness and without guilt at all I have thought which contributed to this situation. I then ask Him to correct my thoughts and heal my mind. This is what the crisis is for; it is what the hurricanes are for.

Robert says:
> My heart is filled with gratitude that a mighty Companion walks with me Who’s strength is mine and with His help I can walk the world certain of my safety.

I, too, am grateful to the Holy Spirit. I am filled with such gratitude that I cannot even find words to express it. I am also grateful to all the enlightened help that surrounds me. Some are not in body, but stand ready to support me at my request. I now choose to call on that help, help from my angels and my guides and however that might appear. In the past I pretty much ignored that possibility, but as I have learned how powerful is the support and help of my in-body mighty companions, I have also begun to call on help from those who are out of body. I gladly and gratefully accept the loving support of every part of the Sonship that stands ready to do this service.

Robert, thank you for bringing this up for healing within mind. I am grateful to you, too, providing this healing opportunity for me. It has been on many minds and I have been teaching/learning it for a few days now, but talking about it here in this group has helped me to further my own healing.

I love you.
Myron

© 2008, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice is included.

Tell a friend about this article.

Printable Page

Accepting Responsibility

While I may sometimes wish that my life is someone else’s fault, I know this is not true. And really, I only wish to abdicate responsibility briefly because I understand that I can do something about it if I am responsible. As always, the only solution to every seeming problem is to choose the Holy Spirit as my teacher. Holy Spirit, I feel like I understand this lesson and accept it. Is there anything you care to share with me about this?

Holy Spirit: Dear one, be very vigilant for the subtle ways the ego mind would have you place responsibility outside yourself. Be very vigilant for signs of guilt when you notice these moments. Guilt is not a helpful response. Notice your thoughts and release them. Think of guilt as holding tightly to what you don’t want.

The thing to remember always is that you are the source of your experience. This is always true and there are no exceptions. While your experience is comfortable for you it is easy to think about this. When you are feeling physically ill or when the bank account is low, or when the children are in trouble and you are feeling helpless to do anything, the ego will argue that you did not do this.

Me: Ah Holy Spirit, I am thinking about last night when I was playing with the baby and thinking that it would be most inconvenient if I were to get her cold right now. That thought indicates it would be out of my control, that something outside me could be my cause.

Holy Spirit: Yes, those are the thoughts to watch for. There is nothing outside your holy mind, so how could something outside you give you anything. Remember that you are seeking to master your thoughts, not control your world. Watch closely as the world shows you a picture of your thoughts. Be always certain that if it is in your awareness it is your responsibility. If what you see is not a reflection of truth, acknowledge this and release it. I cannot take from you what you value and want to keep, but I will always purify those thoughts which you give to me.

Me: Holy Spirit, where my mind balks is when I think of those things in my awareness but outside my immediate control, like what is happening in Iraq and when my child is having a problem. It is hard to understand what to do about any of that.

Holy Spirit: Precious child, the confusion you experience is caused from being uncertain who you are. It is so easy, yet, for you to forget that you are the Christ, because you are not experiencing yourself as the Christ. You most often still feel like you are Myron, that you are a single body living among many other single separated bodies on a planet in a solar system. When you make this mistake, you feel very small and very helpless which is exactly what you want to feel when you identify with the ego. The ego is the thought of separation and separation is the thought of helplessness and hopelessness. But it is, in the end, only a thought, and it is a lie.

We are not talking about control. Remember that control is a reaction to fear. It is not control that is the goal, nor is it the environment that is the problem. What is happening in Iraq is your responsibility because it mirrors the conflict in your mind. The same is true of what happens in the lives of your children. The ego would run around trying to influence politicians. The ego would be frantically seeking solutions to everyone’s problems. Of course this would ultimately fail and the ego would have proven the point that you are helpless and hopeless.

There is only one place that you can make a change because there is only one place where the problem exists. Look within your mind for the source of all things. The war in Iraq is simply showing you that you hold the energy of conflict within your mind. Forgive yourself for doing so. Forgive the idea of conflict and you will know it is a lie. Do not confuse that with making the war stop in Iraq. Your responsibility is to make it stop in your mind, and even in that is your responsibility limited to noticing the need to do so, being willing to release all value you have in conflict, and allowing me to heal your mind.

You may at first think it is a simple matter to release all value in conflict, but you are heavily invested in this idea.  However, if you make the decision to change your mind, the opportunities for looking at conflict will arise before you and you will be given a chance to see differently. Choose to be aware of them and not to push the thought aside. Each time you want to push the thought of conflict out of your awareness understand that this is your attempt to keep conflict. This is the result of placing value in conflict.

If you choose not to look at the conflict in your life it is because you still think you might need it one day. When you notice this happening, simply be aware. Do not allow your mind to succumb to the ego desire for guilt. Choosing not to look is just another thought and you can see this differently, too.

Me: Thank you, Holy Spirit for helping me to see this. I am willing to release conflict. I am willing to take total responsibility for everything in my awareness. I trust that I will be given the opportunities that I am ready for and that will be most helpful to my awakening.

© 2008, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice is included.

Tell a friend about this article.

Printable Page

Page 250 of 264 pages ‹ First  < 248 249 250 251 252 >  Last ›

<< Back to main page of Together, We Light the Way

Has this page been helpful to you?
Your contribution to support this site is greatly appreciated. To make a tax deductible contribution with a credit/debit card, click here.
Click here to donate from your PayPal account.
Or send a check to Pathways of Light, 12530 Lions Chase Court, Huntley, IL 60142.