III. The Decision for Guiltlessness, P 7
7 The way to teach this simple lesson is merely this: Guiltlessness is invulnerability. Therefore, make your invulnerability manifest to everyone. Teach him that, whatever he may try to do to you, your perfect freedom from the belief that you can be harmed shows him that he is guiltless. He can do nothing that can hurt you, and by refusing to allow him to think he can, you teach him that the Atonement, which you have accepted for yourself, is also his. There is nothing to forgive. No one can hurt the Son of God. His guilt is wholly without cause, and being without cause, cannot exist.
Journal
This is such an important paragraph! I have been aware lately of the need to be in a state of universal and unconditional love and so of course I have experienced the ways in which I am not in that state. The most recent and the most difficult challenge was when someone I love very much was being self destructive. I fell right into his story and into fear. Fear is not love and is not helpful, but there I was.
Constantly my mind went to the idea of how I suffered from his choices. I was afraid, I was sad, I was grieving, and all because of him. I tried not to say any of this out loud, but it would trickle through in little ways. In so doing I was telling him that I didn’t believe in him, I didn’t trust him, and I was afraid for him and he should be, too. I was telling him how guilty he is.
Fear is so compelling. Once I let it take over my mind, it is very hard to extricate myself. It doesn’t happen very much anymore, but when it does, I feel like I am drowning in it and I can’t remember how to swim. Before I could stop teaching guilt, I had to stop giving into the fear. I kept going back to the Holy Spirit asking for help, asking for healing.
Fear kept saying that I couldn’t, that I daren’t let it go. But of course, eventually I did. I remembered that the peace of God is my only goal. I remembered that I could not be the miracle worker that I want to be unless I was free of fear. There was no way I could help if I needed help, and finally I broke free of the fear.
I wish I had not said a single word to this person that would add to his burden of guilt. But I am not without recourse. Time is not linear as we believe it is. What is done can be undone and not just going forward. Miracles Principle 25 says that Atonement works all the time and in all the dimensions of time.
And the first principle says that Miracles are both beginnings and endings, and so they alter the temporal order. They are always affirmations of rebirth, which seem to go back but really go forward. They undo the past in the present, and thus release the future. So there is no reason to feel guilty. I can ask for a miracle to undo the harm I have done.
This is from Chapter 5 and is a helpful prayer for just this kind of situation.
Your part is merely to return your thinking to the point at which the error was made, and give it over to the Atonement in peace. Say this to yourself as sincerely as you can, remembering that the Holy Spirit will respond fully to your slightest invitation:
I must have decided wrongly, because I am not at peace.
I made the decision myself, but I can also decide otherwise.
I want to decide otherwise, because I want to be at peace.
I do not feel guilty, because the Holy Spirit will undo all the consequences of my wrong decision if I will let Him.
I choose to let Him, by allowing Him to decide for God for me.
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