Miracles News

january-March, 2008

Gentle Awakening

by Ivette Fuentes

I’d been hearing about A Course In Miracles from my cousin for about four to five years now. Whenever I walked into one of those difficult “life lessons” (wonderful opportunities for growth and healing), she would help me explore different approaches or changes in perception that might help ease the tension. I often didn’t like when I heard: “Nothing has a meaning but the meaning you give it,” “There’s no one out there but you and God,” or “This is just coming up for healing.” My least favorite of all was, “Do you want to be right or do you want peace?” I responded that I wanted peace but behaved like I wanted to be right. Besides, wasn’t my being right the path to peace? That’s what I had been trained to believe. Nonetheless, those words resonated somewhere deep inside me.

Even if I resented it and wasn’t completely ready to do what needed to be done, I knew that the task at hand was that I needed to change the way I was viewing my life circumstances.

In July, 2007, I attended the “Art of Surrender” weekend workshop led by Sandy Levey Lunden in New York. Through that process I was able to get in touch with my resistance to fully submitting to God’s Will. I was still trying to prove that my will, no matter how ill directed, was better than God’s. At that time, life was pretty good but I wanted even more joy and peace.

I was finally able to open up to God’s Will without being in a state of crisis and became willing to invite Holy Spirit’s help me look at my life and help me discover my purpose.

Within a week or two, as can only be gently orchestrated by the Holy Spirit, my dear cousin read about the Ordained Ministerial Counselor Correspondence Course offered by Pathways of Light and suggested that we register for it. She even offered to pay for it. I immediately said yes without knowing what I was signing up for but knowing, without a shadow of a doubt, that I was being guided.

This decision resulted in a three-part gift. The first part was the actual course material. I was very excited when I received the five courses for step one, “Getting to Know and Trusting the Real You.” I thought, “This is exactly what I needed.”

The second part was finding out that not only were we going to be part of a group that included other family members and friends but that it would be facilitated in Spanish. The third part of the gift has been our bi-lingual facilitator, Rev. Annie Arbona. Annie was sent to us as a mighty companion in this journey. Her love, kindness, support and wisdom have been indispensable to our collective commitment, growth and healing.

We are approaching the last part of the first step and so far, the course work is the most gentle and loving yet deep process I have ever experienced in my healing journey. A strong foundation of non-judgment has facilitated the process of observing my ego thoughts and giving them to the Holy Spirit for healing.

Working with Pathways’ materials has deepened my understanding, appreciation and love of A Course in Miracles. Through practical exercises and healing meditations I have become aware of how my limiting ego thought patterns and ego identity were making it difficult for me to see my true Self and remember that Love is my only true Identity.

The meditations have helped me to connect with and feel God’s Love and Peace. Before I started this work, I believed finding my true purpose was somehow related to employment and compensation. I have come to know that my only True purpose is to awaken! The single most miraculous gift that I have gained as a result of the guided meditations is the opening of that ever important line of communication with Holy Spirit and recognizing the clear but loving essence of that communication.

I am completely committed and engaged in the process of gentle awakening. I am eternally grateful for ACIM, for the training course work prepared by Pathways, Annie our facilitator, our group members and for Holy Spirit’s gentle plan to bring all these elements together to help us remember the Truth of Who we are.

Ivette Fuentes is a Pathways of Light ministerial candidate living in Woodhaven, New York.

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