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Study of Text, Chapter 9, III. The Correction of Error, P 3. 1-20-15

III. The Correction of Error, P 3
3 If you point out the errors of your brother’s ego you must be seeing through yours, because the Holy Spirit does not perceive his errors. This must be true, since there is no communication between the ego and the Holy Spirit. The ego makes no sense, and the Holy Spirit does not attempt to understand anything that arises from it. Since He does not understand it, He does not judge it, knowing that nothing the ego makes means anything.

I long to reach the point that I see as the Holy Spirit sees. I want to learn to disregard errors of every kind as if they did not exist. And surely that is the truth. Errors are not truth and so they are meaningless. Why do I pay attention to them as if they were reality? Only what God created is reality and he did not create errors.

Really, when I give my attention to errors, mine or someone else’s, I am giving my attention to nothing. It would not matter at all except that as I focus on the error, I suffer. I cannot enter into God’s presence if I attack His Son. Being unaware of God’s presence is the very definition of suffering.

Today I am asking the Holy Spirit to bring to my attention those moments when I am staring mesmerized at the error. Help me to “snap out of it,” Holy Spirit. I know this is always about healing my own mind. If I see error it can only be that I am seeing through the error in my mind. I am seeing the error in another because I believe in error, I think it is real, and I think it matters. That is the error in my mind. So no matter where I see error, my only function is to accept the Atonement for myself. That part, at least, is clear and easy for me to understand.

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Study of the Text, Chapter 9, III. The Correction of Error, P 2 1-19-15

III. The Correction of Error, P 2
2 To the ego it is kind and right and good to point out errors and “correct” them. This makes perfect sense to the ego, which is unaware of what errors are and what correction is. Errors are of the ego, and correction of errors lies in the relinquishment of the ego. When you correct a brother, you are telling him that he is wrong. He may be making no sense at the time, and it is certain that, if he is speaking from the ego, he will not be making sense. But your task is still to tell him he is right. You do not tell him this verbally, if he is speaking foolishly. He needs correction at another level, because his error is at another level. He is still right, because he is a Son of God. His ego is always wrong, no matter what it says or does.

Here is the way I use this information. If my brother is speaking from his ego, he is always mistaken, just as I am when I speak from the ego. But what I know is that no matter which part of the mind we are identifying with, both my brother and myself are the Son of God. We are perfect and wholly innocent. We may be confused about what we are, but that does not change what we are. I know that what someone says or does in no way defines what they are.

If the person I am speaking with asks me a direct question, then I will allow teaching to come through me. But even then, I am not in doubt about what my brother is, nor am I in doubt about what I am. I am the messenger, the teacher for God; I am just allowing information to be relayed through me to the best of my ability. The correction is not on the level of reality, but on the level of ego.

I think that when Jesus says that it is my task to tell my brother he is right, what he means is that it is my task to recognize the truth of him. In doing so, I recognize the truth of me, too, since there is only one mind shared by all of us. What is true of my brother is true of me. If I believe something that is not true of my brother, then I will believe it is the same for me. It is not true if it is from the ego, but what I believe will inform my thoughts, words, and actions, and will convince me that the untruth is true.

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Study of Text, Chapter 9, III. The Correction of Error, P 1. 1-16-15

III. The Correction of Error
1 The alertness of the ego to the errors of other egos is not the kind of vigilance the Holy Spirit would have you maintain. Egos are critical in terms of the kind of “sense” they stand for. They understand this kind of sense, because it is sensible to them. To the Holy Spirit it makes no sense at all.

Journal
The Holy Spirit has encouraged me to be vigilant for the thoughts in my mind and to ask for correction when they are not in alignment with the thoughts I think with God. I ask Him to help me to use words that are in alignment with Truth. I agree to step back and let Him lead the way. I do this to the best of my ability. What I am not asked to do is to be vigilant for my brother’s thoughts and words.

Under no circumstance is it my job to keep an eye on anyone else and to judge the sense of what they say. It is not my job to correct them or set them straight. It doesn’t matter how “gently” I correct. It doesn’t matter how many of the right sounding words I use. It doesn’t matter how right it feels to me to do this. If I am watching someone else, judging the correctness of their words, whether I say anything to them or not, this is my error and it is my mind that needs correction.

When I used to do this it was most obvious on social media. There were just so many opportunities. I would read through the postings looking for the ones that were “right” and the ones that just didn’t quite hit the mark. Sometimes I would even tell them what was wrong with their posting. Of course I would use my spiritual ego to do this so that it sounded spiritual. I told myself that I was helping. None of that was true. I was just using the ego to decide what made sense to it.

Now I always try to respond only to a direct question. If it is appropriate I might add my own experience. But I am vigilant for my motive because my spiritual ego is alive and well. I can indulge it, or I can disregard it. My choice. In all my groups, the guidelines are to share from our experience and to never correct another. I try always to live this. When I fail to do so, I forgive myself and try again.

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Study of Text, Chapter 9, II. The Answer to Prayer, P 12. 1-15-15

II. The Answer to Prayer, P 12

12 You can ask of the Holy Spirit, then, only by giving to Him, and you can give to Him only where you recognize Him. If you recognize Him in everyone, consider how much you will be asking of Him, and how much you will receive. He will deny you nothing because you have denied Him nothing, and so you can share everything. This is the way, and the only way to have His answer, because His answer is all you can ask for and want. Say, then, to everyone

Because I will to know myself, I see you as God’s Son and my brother.

Journal
This is exciting to think about! I see three things in this short paragraph that I want to think about. First, we now understand the nature of giving and receiving. If we give to get, we have lost. But if we realize that through giving we receive, there is never loss and only joy in the exchange. So we know how to give and we know that to receive we only have to accept with open hands.

The second thing I am thinking about is that the Holy Spirit is the Answer to every question and since giving is receiving, I can ask of Him only by giving to Him. I give to Him my trust and my willingness to set aside what I think I know and to accept what He says. I give him my desire to acknowledge Him everywhere I see Him.

As it says here, “If you recognize Him in everyone, consider how much you will be asking of Him, and how much you will receive.” This is the most exciting part! Everyone has the Holy Spirit and so I can recognize the Holy Spirit in each person and receive His Answer from each person! I am so rich!

Let this be a day of seeing my brother anew. I will ask to see the Divinity in each person I meet and so hear the Word of God from each one. I could not do that on my own. My ego mind will hear only ego words and meaning. But I can, and I want to, learn to see and hear truly. I am willing to make this my practice today, all day. I am excited to make this practice today!

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Study of Text, Chapter 9, II. The Answer to Prayer, P 11. 1-14-15

II. The Answer to Prayer, P 11
11 Never forget, then, that you set the value on what you receive, and price it by what you give. To believe that it is possible to get much for little is to believe that you can bargain with God. God’s laws are always fair and perfectly consistent. By giving you receive. But to receive is to accept, not to get. It is impossible not to have, but it is possible not to know you have. The recognition of having is the willingness for giving, and only by this willingness can you recognize what you have. What you give is therefore the value you put on what you have, being the exact measure of the value you put upon it. And this, in turn, is the measure of how much you want it.

Journal
Well, he used a lot of words to get there, but basically it seems that Jesus is telling me that I have everything, but I limit my awareness of that when I am unwilling to give. Giving is how I know I have. I limit my awareness of my complete abundance when I don’t accept. He also points out that accepting and getting are not the same thing.

In my mind, I connect getting with taking, grasping, getting more than I am willing to give. Accepting feels like my hands are open to receive what is put there, and they remain open to give as freely as I received. I imagine things coming into my life as I need them, then going to someone else when they need them, only to be replaced with whatever I might need now.

I had a nifty pair of boots that I liked very much. I paid way too much for something I wore maybe once a year, but I wasn’t sorry. One day a friend asked me if she could have them. At first I was so surprised that she asked for them that it took me a moment to realize she thought that because I don’t wear them often that I don’t really want them, or that they were just going to waste and, evidently she really liked them, too. So I gave them to her.

I could hear the little voice in my head saying that I just suffered a loss, but I wasn’t listening. It felt really good to give them away. It’s funny how the ego mind simply cannot grasp that giving is receiving and that there is no loss. This happened two years ago and every time I think of the boots I feel both gratified and sad, depending on which part of the mind I listen to. It makes me laugh.

Things are just symbols of thoughts in our mind, and the boots are meaningless of themselves. It is what they symbolize that is important. If I had listened to the ego which wants to hold onto and keep, I would have told my friend that I still had need of the boots, and I would have taught myself that the world is a small and limited place and that I must guard against loss all the time. I would have taught myself that, and I would have taught my friend that.

I have within my mind the fear that there is never enough and that I must hoard what I have or suffer loss. But I also have within my mind the certainty that I am an open channel for All That Is, and that whatever I need passes through me, staying for as long as I need it, then moving away, returning if I want it again. I know I am fully abundant in every way.

Which of those two thoughts will feel true for me is up to me. The other day I wore an outfit that seemed to need those boots and I reached for them. Then I remembered they were no longer in my closet. For an instant, I felt the loss of them, but that can’t be right. I cannot experience loss. Only the ego can. I easily let that feeling go and when I did, I felt happy thinking of my friend wearing them, and I reached for a different pair of shoes. They looked good with my outfit.

© 2015, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
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Study of the Text, Chapter 9, II. The Answer to Prayer, P 10 1-12-15

II. The Answer to Prayer, P 10
10 If paying is equated with getting, you will set the price low but demand a high return. You will have forgotten, however, that to price is to value, so that your return is in proportion to your judgment of worth. If paying is associated with giving it cannot be perceived as loss, and the reciprocal relationship of giving and receiving will be recognized. The price will then be set high, because of the value of the return. The price for getting is to lose sight of value, making it inevitable that you will not value what you receive. Valuing it little, you will not appreciate it and you will not want it.

This paragraph feels confusing to me and I keep getting up to go do other things. This is the fourth time I have sat down to consider it again. I am asking Jesus to help me understand this and to know how he wants me to use it.

“If paying is equated with getting, you will set the price low but demand a high return.” Here is an example. I want my children to want to be with me, or at least to think of me and love me. That is the high return I want. What am I willing to pay for this? I notice that I want proof of their affection, but I am not willing to give a lot of time toward that. I put a premium on my time and I am jealous of it, sharing it in small bits.

I am willing to give some of my time but I am unwilling to give it fully and without demands of any kind. To be honest, what I want is that they all become interested in what I am interested in so that I can feel better about spending actual time with them. On the other hand, I am not willing to share their lives where they do not intersect with mine.

It seems that I am saying that I am not willing to become interested in what they are interested in so that our time together will be a joy for them. Wow. So I will afford some small measure of respect for their interests and in return they must prove their love by immersing themselves into what matters to me. This is an example of giving to get, where I set a low price but expect a high return. Gosh, do you think they are lining up for this opportunity?

“You will have forgotten, however, that to price is to value, so that your return is in proportion to your judgment of worth.” Because I am willing to give only a little and to respect only somewhat, I have set a low value. Therefore, I will judge my return as being of little value. I can see that this is often what happens.

I was thinking that my daughter hasn’t spent much time with me lately, in person or by phone. I feel sad when that happens and doubt her love and care for me. I was sorting through some papers in preparation for doing my taxes. I found a piece of paper with a message from this daughter in which she expressed her deep and abiding love for me in the most beautiful way.

There was no doubting her sincerity, but because I put a low price and high demand on our relationship, I failed to see what was right there in front of me. I saw her behavior in light of the value of my price and I missed its true value.

“If paying is associated with giving it cannot be perceived as loss, and the reciprocal relationship of giving and receiving will be recognized.” I don’t always give to get. Sometimes, even often I would say, I associate paying with giving. I often give without expectations or limits of any kind.

Generally, I accept my children’s behavior without judging it. They are not interested in spirituality, and specifically not interested in A Course in Miracles. I don’t judge that. I don’t think of them as less than me or lower on some imagined scale. I don’t love them less because we are on different paths. I give them my love and acceptance without regard to what I might get from it. And thus, “The price will then be set high, because of the value of the return.”

“The price for getting is to lose sight of value, making it inevitable that you will not value what you receive. Valuing it little, you will not appreciate it and you will not want it.” There are parts of the relationship with my children that are still tainted with specialness. These are the parts that I give to get such as needing to receive proof of love and respect. And even when I get what I want, I doubt it and fail to appreciate it.

But the love, the real love I feel for my children is steadfast. I require nothing from them and I give as fully and completely as I know how. I receive great joy and satisfaction when I love in this honest and open way. In this kind of giving the value is protected because I preserve the reciprocal nature of giving and receiving.

Jesus, for some reason this paragraph felt difficult to me, and I thank you for helping me read it. I also thank you for helping me see the contrast in the way I view my relationship with my kids, and how different the two experiences are. I truly want to allow the healing of my mind to be complete so that I always feel the expansive nature of real love. This neediness I sometimes feel is not love and feels nothing like love. I gladly ask for and accept correction when I choose to give to get, and when I think I need to get. Please help me as I seek to remember what I am.

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Study of Text, Chapter 9, II. The Answer to Prayer, P 10. 1-8-15

II. The Answer to Prayer, P 10
10 If paying is equated with getting, you will set the price low but demand a high return. You will have forgotten, however, that to price is to value, so that your return is in proportion to your judgment of worth. If paying is associated with giving it cannot be perceived as loss, and the reciprocal relationship of giving and receiving will be recognized. The price will then be set high, because of the value of the return. The price for getting is to lose sight of value, making it inevitable that you will not value what you receive. Valuing it little, you will not appreciate it and you will not want it.

Journal
I don’t know if it is just me, but I had a hard time with this paragraph. I asked Jesus to help me understand what it is he wants me to know about it and so it started to unravel for me. This is the example that came to my mind.

At work, I pay my time and effort and I expect to get a paycheck and benefits in return. I had not until now thought of it this way, but I want to give as little of my time and effort as possible and in return I want to receive as high a paycheck as I can. I also want my benefits to be good and get better with time. So I set the low price of little effort and time but demand a high return in pay and benefits.

Jesus reminds me that to price is to value so this means that in setting a low price (low amount of time and effort) I have set a low value on my time and effort. Yikes! Now here is an interesting thing. I used to be very excited about my job and enjoyed watching my commissions grow. I used to put a lot of effort into my work and I loved that my effort was making my company grow. But then I lost interest in the competitive nature of the job and so I stopped caring about this part of it.

I still do my job, but I also resent the time I put into it, and my focus is on retirement. What I have also noticed is that I have recently felt undervalued and underappreciated in a way that I never have before. I had never put the two things together until now. I thought that my value was being set by my company but it is actually being set by me. As I have often said, but failed to recognize in this case, is that it is never about someone else, but always a reflection of my own mind.

Jesus also is telling me that I can associate giving with receiving. How would that work at my job? Well, I have lost interest in the competitive nature of the job, but I can shift my desire from giving to get to giving for the sheer joy of it, giving because I know I always give to myself, giving because as I give I receive. From this place I will naturally place great value on giving and what I receive will be of great value.

I notice as I write this I feel resistance to the idea of shifting my way of thinking. Listening to the ego reasoning I have thoroughly bought into the idea that the solution to my problem lies in changing the world rather than changing my mind. But I also see that this is not working, and that actually my false logic is making the problem worse. So I ask the Holy Spirit to heal my mind of this obviously flawed reasoning. I ask that my thinking be corrected and my mind healed.

As my mind is healed, and I allow myself to give as I would receive, to place high value on giving and thus receiving high value in return, I can expect everything about my job to change. As Jesus says, “The price for getting is to lose sight of value, making it inevitable that you will not value what you receive. Valuing it little, you will not appreciate it and you will not want it.”

I have caused myself to lose sight of value in my one sided thinking. This is very much the ego way of thinking. The ego is all about giving in order to get and it always wants to win because it actually believes there is someone else to be in competition with. I have lost sight of true value as I did this, and I have experienced it reflected in my life as losing value to my company. I have valued my job little and lost appreciation for it and do not want it. I can easily turn this around and that is what I choose to do.

I choose to do this, not because the job is the issue, but because the job is showing me what it looks like to give in order to get. It is reflecting to me the effect of misplacing value. I am choosing to do this differently at work because I want a healed mind. I am using work as a way of gaining clarity as to what is going on in my mind, and to give myself an opportunity to choose healing.

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