Miracles News

January-March, 2016

Help to Change Our Mind

by Rev. Susan Smith, O.M.C.

Rev. Susan Smith “The patient [brother] must be helped to change his mind about the ‘reality’ of illusions.” (P.Int.1:8)

I have found most recently that I was drawn into a circle of “emotional disturbances” and I think that most of us can say that from time to time we get drawn into these circumstances that take our Peace away. Following is what I find to be most helpful when I find myself drawn into these emotional disturbances.

First and foremost is to immediately recognize what is happening and this can be acknowledged by the feelings we are feeling, for example either say to yourself or to another: “I am feeling anxious, or I am feeling sad or I am not feeling my joyous self.” It is important also that if you are expressing these feelings with another that you feel safety and feel trust in expressing them with another. Safety and trust are the two most major components in a healing space. Also, by making “I” statements it takes the risk away of projecting or blaming and placing the responsibility of what you are feeling on yourself and not on your brother.

In A Course in Miracles, Jesus says, “Your mind and mine can unite in shining your ego away, releasing the strength of God into everything you think and do. Do not settle for anything less than this, and refuse to accept anything but this as your goal. Watch [or observe] your mind carefully for any beliefs that hinder its accomplishment [the goal of uniting your mind with Jesus], and step away from them [in other words, step back from the beliefs that hinder and just peacefully observe them]. Judge how well you have done this by your own feelings, for this is the one right use of judgment. Judgment like any other defense can be used to attack or protect; to hurt or to heal.” (T-4.IV.8:3-7, underscore added)

In summary, observe your thoughts and feelings for any ego thoughts and feelings, unite your mind with Jesus and, with the right use of judgment, experience the miracle shift to the shining Love and strength of God in your every thought and feeling. So now you can say, “I feel the Love of God, I feel the Peace and I am my Joyous self again.

If you are alone, observing and acknowledging are key factors in beginning the healing process. We can also turn to the Course “Chapter 4.IV This Need Not Be” as this is an excellent section for meditation and reflection in helping to change our mind.

Fortunately for me, I have some very close Miracle friends who aide me in working through disturbances; Miracle friends who I feel safety and trust with in expressing my thoughts and feelings; Miracle friends who can watch and observe with me and share with me the right use of judgment (thoughts and feelings) for my “protection and healing.”

If you find that there is no one you can feel safety and trust with and the disturbance is too intense to bear, it is always better to find a professional who can help. “Sometimes he [the patient/brother] needs a more structured, extended relationship with an ‘official’ therapist” (P-Int.1:7)

Jesus promises us, “Your mind will elect to join with mine and together we are invincible. You and your brother will yet come together in my name, and your sanity will be restored. I raised the dead by knowing that life is an eternal attribute of everything that the living God created. Why do you believe it is harder for me to inspire the dis-spirited or to stabilize the unstable? I do not believe that there is any order of difficulty in miracles; you do. I have called and you will answer. I understand that miracles are natural, because they are expressions of Love. My calling you is as natural as your answer, and as inevitable” (T-4.IV.11:5-12)

May our minds be united in the Mind and Love of Jesus. Blessings.

Rev. Susan Smith is a Pathways of Light minister living in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania.
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