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Lesson 5 2026

I am never upset for the reason I think.
1. This idea, like the preceding one, can be used with any person, situation or event you think is causing you pain. ²Apply it specifically to whatever you believe is the cause of your upset, using the description of the feeling in whatever term seems accurate to you. ³The upset may seem to be fear, worry, depression, anxiety, anger, hatred, jealousy or any number of forms, all of which will be perceived as different. ⁴This is not true. ⁵However, until you learn that form does not matter, each form becomes a proper subject for the exercises for the day. ⁶Applying the same idea to each of them separately is the first step in ultimately recognizing they are all the same.
2. When using the idea for today for a specific perceived cause of an upset in any form, use both the name of the form in which you see the upset, and the cause which you ascribe to it. ²For example:
³I am not angry at _________ for the reason I think.
⁴I am not afraid of _________ for the reason I think.
3. But again, this should not be substituted for practice periods in which you first search your mind for “sources” of upset in which you believe, and forms of upset which you think result.
4. In these exercises, more than in the preceding ones, you may find it hard to be indiscriminate, and to avoid giving greater weight to some subjects than to others. ²It might help to precede the exercises with the statement:
³There are no small upsets. ⁴They are all equally disturbing to my peace of mind.
5. Then examine your mind for whatever is distressing you, regardless of how much or how little you think it is doing so.
6. You may also find yourself less willing to apply today’s idea to some perceived sources of upset than to others. ²If this occurs, think first of this:
³I cannot keep this form of upset and let the others go. ⁴For the purposes of these exercises, then, I will regard them all as the same.
7. Then search your mind for no more than a minute or so, and try to identify a number of different forms of upset that are disturbing you, regardless of the relative importance you may give them. ²Apply the idea for today to each of them, using the name of both the source of the upset as you perceive it, and of the feeling as you experience it. ³Further examples are:
⁴I am not worried about _________ for the reason I think.
⁵I am not depressed about _________ for the reason I think.
⁶Three or four times during the day is enough.
(ACIM, W-5.1:1–7:6)

This lesson taught me something that changed everything: there are no small upsets. I am either at peace or I am not, and I cannot keep even one grievance and still know peace. I can let go of a thousand disturbances, but if I cling to a single one, I have not chosen peace at all.
Here is how a seemingly small upset with my cat became a powerful classroom for this lesson. It showed me that I was not annoyed with my cat for the reason I thought, and that I couldn’t ignore the upsets I thought were small if I wanted peace of mind. And in the end, I had to face that I couldn’t keep this form of upset and let the others go. All upset must be forgiven and let go, not just some of them.
Here is what happened.
I woke up very annoyed with my cat. She woke me up at 2:00 AM because she just had to go outside. I let her know how much I didn’t appreciate this as I let her out. When I woke up, the ill feeling toward her was my first thought. For a few minutes, I wallowed in my justification for my anger, but I still value my peace of mind above all things, so I had to let the justification go.
With a clearer mind, I saw that beneath my irritation was a quiet resistance to having chosen this responsibility at all. I take good care of her, but that is just me trying to make up for not loving her, and she just wants the love. So, I am always, on some level, aware of guilt for the lack of love and my projection of that guilt onto the cat. I am at war, not with the cat, but with my feelings vs my desire for peace.
This morning, when I knew I was willing to let go of my anger so that I could be at peace, I recognized the answer I received. It told me the problem was my decision not to love, and so the answer was obvious. The war between the cat and me would end when the war in my mind ended. I already knew this, but I was ignoring it because I felt a stubborn resistance to loving her. I must be ready for a change of mind since I heard the message so clearly.
When I looked more deeply into my resistance with the Holy Spirit, I saw several objections. She takes up too much of my time, for instance. But if I loved her, I would not object to giving her my time. It always goes back to an unwillingness to love. The next thought that came was this: Love doesn’t make exceptions; it is universal. I can’t pick and choose where love goes. And that is the thought that convinced me that I must change my mind. I feel resistance lingering, but I won’t accept that.
I do not know yet how this will look in the world of form. But I know I have made a different choice in my mind. I have chosen not to defend my resistance, not to protect my grievances, and not to make exceptions to love. That is enough for now. I place this moment in the Holy Spirit’s hands and let myself be gently taught what peace feels like today.

Video: https://youtu.be/ivtGP-IjaQA

© 2026, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
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Posted by Rev. Myron Jones.

Lesson 4 2026

These thoughts do not mean anything. They are like the things I see in this room [on this street, from this window, in this place].
1. Unlike the preceding ones, these exercises do not begin with the idea for the day. ²In these practice periods, begin with noting the thoughts that are crossing your mind for about a minute. ³Then apply the idea to them. ⁴If you are already aware of unhappy thoughts, use them as subjects for the idea. ⁵Do not, however, select only the thoughts you think are “bad.” ⁶You will find, if you train yourself to look at your thoughts, that they represent such a mixture that, in a sense, none of them can be called “good” or “bad.” ⁷This is why they do not mean anything.
2. In selecting the subjects for the application of today’s idea, the usual specificity is required. ²Do not be afraid to use “good” thoughts as well as “bad.” ³None of them represents your real thoughts, which are being covered up by them. ⁴The “good” ones are but shadows of what lies beyond, and shadows make sight difficult. ⁵The “bad” ones are blocks to sight, and make seeing impossible. ⁶You do not want either.
3. This is a major exercise, and will be repeated from time to time in somewhat different form. ²The aim here is to train you in the first steps toward the goal of separating the meaningless from the meaningful. ³It is a first attempt in the long-range purpose of learning to see the meaningless as outside you, and the meaningful within. ⁴It is also the beginning of training your mind to recognize what is the same and what is different.
4. In using your thoughts for application of the idea for today, identify each thought by the central figure or event it contains; for example:
²This thought about _________ does not mean anything.
³It is like the things I see in this room [on this street, and so on].
5. You can also use the idea for a particular thought that you recognize as harmful. ²This practice is useful, but is not a substitute for the more random procedures to be followed for the exercises. ³Do not, however, examine your mind for more than a minute or so. ⁴You are too inexperienced as yet to avoid a tendency to become pointlessly preoccupied.
6. Further, since these exercises are the first of their kind, you may find the suspension of judgment in connection with thoughts particularly difficult. ²Do not repeat these exercises more than three or four times during the day. ³We will return to them later.
(ACIM, W-4.1:1–6:3)

Contemplation
“I love this first cup of coffee. I wish I had gotten up earlier. I hope I have time to do my Text work today. I feel anxious when I get behind.” These thoughts do not mean anything. They are like the things I see in this room.
I could have gone all day without these thoughts… literally. I’ve probably had the same thoughts, and many like them, thousands of times. Even more. All they do is hide my real thoughts from my awareness. I think of thoughts as the veil that hides reality, the veil I am learning to lift and will soon recognize as nothing. Just illusion. When that happens, it will disappear completely, and I will see the real world.
So, I continue this lovely practice of lessons and whatever else the Holy Spirit guides me to do. I will continue to watch the veil thin, and the Love that is the stuff of reality is exposed more and more. Even now, I feel such joy and peace, and I feel it for no reason that I can discern. It must be that joy and peace are simply natural when we turn from the illusion and toward God.
That was what I wrote last year, and what once felt like insight has now become lived discovery. This year, I first want to emphasize that Jesus says this lesson is a major exercise. When he says things like this, I pay attention. These seemingly random thoughts that pass through the mind all day serve the ego’s purpose. They keep us from awareness of our real thoughts. That’s why it doesn’t matter if the thoughts are happy or upsetting; both obscure reality.
In this exercise, Jesus isn’t asking us to stop thinking. He is asking us to notice, to realize that these thoughts, like the things in this room, do not mean anything. Yesterday, I visited with my daughter and granddaughter. They were happy to see me, and I got hugs. We played games, and it was fun. More hugs as I left. It was a really pleasant experience.
When I got home, I turned on the TV. When I am not watching a show, the screen savers are pictures from my collection. I saw a sweet picture of my daughter and quickly turned away. I was aware of the reaction but chose not to think about it. Later, I realized that since my brother’s sudden death, I have come to realize just how strongly I resist love. Slowly, over time, I have allowed myself to examine this idea as I saw the effects of the belief in loss.
This was another example. Another time, I would have seen that picture and smiled. This time, it seemed to mock me with the loss of my daughter. Not literally or permanently, but with the possibility. I resist loving too much in case I lose that love. I fear the loss of love, so I tamp down the love I let myself feel. I know. It’s insane, but there it is. Proof that this thought of loss doesn’t mean anything. I would like to stop giving it this insane meaning.
As many times as I have done these lessons, I still find them exceedingly helpful. I have another chance to use these foundational lessons to heal the insanity in my mind. So, today, I will practice recognizing that my thoughts do not mean anything. This will help me to uncover my real thoughts.
It has already helped in this a great deal. Most of my life, I had no idea that I was using thoughts to hide from myself this fearful belief, that love is fragile and its loss inevitable. But slowly this has been revealed to me so that I can forgive it and let it go. Beneath it is the truth about love. I am determined to know the truth rather than my meaningless thoughts.

Video: https://youtu.be/gjzR25OgA9A

© 2026, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
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Posted by Rev. Myron Jones.

Lesson 3 2026

I do not understand anything I see in this room [on this street, from this window, in this place].
1. Apply this idea in the same way as the previous ones, without making distinctions of any kind. ²Whatever you see becomes a proper subject for applying the idea. ³Be sure that you do not question the suitability of anything for application of the idea. ⁴These are not exercises in judgment. ⁵Anything is suitable if you see it. ⁶Some of the things you see may have emotionally charged meaning for you. ⁷Try to lay such feelings aside, and merely use these things exactly as you would anything else.
2. The point of the exercises is to help you clear your mind of all past associations, to see things exactly as they appear to you now, and to realize how little you really understand about them. ²It is therefore essential that you keep a perfectly open mind, unhampered by judgment, in selecting the things to which the idea for the day is to be applied. ³For this purpose one thing is like another; equally suitable and therefore equally useful.

Contemplation
The point of the exercises is to help you clear your mind of all past associations, to see things exactly as they appear to you now, and to realize how little you really understand about them.
I do not understand this cup of coffee. I find it remarkably difficult to suspend my judgment and to do this simple exercise without thinking about what I understand about the objects around me. The mind really wants to argue the point. And, of course, that is the point. How can I discover the truth when I think I already know it. Dear God, I pray for the humility of an open mind.
That is what I wrote last year, and it seems my prayer has been answered. As I looked at each object, I fully accepted that I didn’t know what it meant. Even the simplest of things, like a paper towel. Ideas came into my mind about the paper towel, but I was willing to suspend them.
What did happen was a vague sense of uneasiness. Perhaps this is what it feels like when the mind loosens its grip on what it thinks it knows. That was a surprise. I am not trying to interpret it. The feeling is simply there, and I let it be.
It feels like I am emptying the cup, so to speak, and making room for what is new. At this point, I am trusting the process and going with the flow, accepting that Jesus knows more than I do.

Video: https://youtu.be/T8ghPr7kosY

© 2026, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
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Posted by Rev. Myron Jones.

Lesson 2 2026

I have given everything I see in this room [on this street, from this window, in this place] all the meaning that it has for me.
1. The exercises with this idea are the same as those for the first one. ²Begin with the things that are near you, and apply the idea to whatever your glance rests on. ³Then increase the range outward. ⁴Turn your head so that you include whatever is on either side. ⁵If possible, turn around and apply the idea to what was behind you. ⁶Remain as indiscriminate as possible in selecting subjects for its application, do not concentrate on anything in particular, and do not attempt to include everything you see in a given area, or you will introduce strain.
2. Merely glance easily and fairly quickly around you, trying to avoid selection by size, brightness, color, material, or relative importance to you. ²Take the subjects simply as you see them. ³Try to apply the exercise with equal ease to a body or a button, a fly or a floor, an arm or an apple. ⁴The sole criterion for applying the idea to anything is merely that your eyes have lighted on it. ⁵Make no attempt to include anything particular, but be sure that nothing is specifically excluded.

Contemplation
Oh, yes! I see this is true over and over again. Now, I never doubt it. If I am upset or judging in any way, I recognize that I give all things the only meaning they have for me. It is the story I tell myself about it. My car needs some bodywork on the side panel. At first, it was driving me crazy not getting it done. Every time I saw it, I cringed. But it will be a costly job, and so I have put it off.
Remembering that I give this situation all the meaning it has for me, and therefore, I am depriving myself of happiness and peace of mind, not because the panel is damaged, but because I have decided this means I should be upset about it. So, since I am not as insane as I used to be, I changed my mind about this. I decided that it was ok that there was damage and that maybe one day I would have it fixed. And maybe not. Now, I am happy either way.
It is just as easy to give a truer, happier meaning to what I see as it is to give it a negative meaning. The only reason it doesn’t happen is that I have chosen to judge on my own rather than asking the Holy Spirit to judge for me. It is just that simple. And it is equally simple to choose again.

https://youtu.be/6j2jq3QzNik

© 2026, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice is included.

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Posted by Rev. Myron Jones.

Lesson 1 2026

Nothing I see in this room [on this street, from this window, in this place] means anything.
1. Now look slowly around you, and practice applying this idea very specifically to whatever you see:
²This table does not mean anything.
³This chair does not mean anything.
⁴This hand does not mean anything.
⁵This foot does not mean anything.
⁶This pen does not mean anything.
2. Then look farther away from your immediate area, and apply the idea to a wider range:
²That door does not mean anything.
³That body does not mean anything.
⁴That lamp does not mean anything.
⁵That sign does not mean anything.
⁶That shadow does not mean anything.
3. Notice that these statements are not arranged in any order, and make no allowance for differences in the kinds of things to which they are applied. ²That is the purpose of the exercise. ³The statement should merely be applied to anything you see. ⁴As you practice the idea for the day, use it totally indiscriminately. ⁵Do not attempt to apply it to everything you see, for these exercises should not become ritualistic. ⁶Only be sure that nothing you see is specifically excluded. ⁷One thing is like another as far as the application of the idea is concerned.
4. Each of the first three lessons should not be done more than twice a day each, preferably morning and evening. ²Nor should they be attempted for more than a minute or so, unless that entails a sense of hurry. ³A comfortable sense of leisure is essential.

Contemplation
As I did this morning’s lesson, I noticed at first that “nothing I saw in this room meant anything” didn’t mean much to me. Then, I applied it to computer camera and I had the thought that it meant I would make better videos. Oh, yeah, now I get it. I think I know what it means according to the function and importance I gave it. But I am willing to let that go and accept, instead, that it means nothing. I don’t have to understand these lessons. I only need to do them. I trust my Brother Jesus. So I am willing.

© 2026, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice is included.

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Posted by Rev. Myron Jones.

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