December 27, 2011

This week’s text talks about idols. Do we understand what an idol is? An idol is nothing, it is nowhere, and it has no power. No matter what form idols take, they are nothing but substitutes for our reality. In some way we have come to believe that they will complete us, or save us, or give us power. We believe they will restore our peace of mind. We believe they will supply our “lacks” and add “value” to us and who we e. And so we seek beyond ourselves for even the strength to raise our heads and stand apart form the misery of the world.

But this constitutes a false impression, a false belief, and a mistaken idea that actually constitutes the gap between us and the Christ Spirit, between us and God, between us and who we really are. Some form of anti-Christ that is nothing more than a gap, a misperception, a mistaken idea. It is a wish given form, made tangible only by our belief that it is outside our mind. It is nothing more than a spot of darkness in a field of light, made dark only by a veil of thoughts drawn around the illusion of who we think we are.

Yet, how can darkness be in a field of light that has no hidden alcoves, no dark corners, and no hiding places? The veil of thought that appears to make the shadow, that makes it appear the light comes from outside of us fades away and vanishes as we turn to look within ourselves for the peace of mind we think we lack. The love of God and the joy of Heaven are right there within us waiting to be recognized and set us free from the constant searching outside that we are so ready and willing to obsess on. All we need do is simply stop a moment and look within to the peace, love, and joy of God within us and reconnect with the abundance that Spirit has supplied to each and every one of us.

Take a moment today. We stand in the light with our eyes tightly closed, convinced we are hidden in total darkness, searching desperately outside ourselves for light when all we need do is open our eyes and see we are already in the light and that it shines brightly from within us. In this moment stop searching and simply open your eyes. See the light within and around you and know the light is you.

December 20, 2011

“Seek not outside yourself.” We need not look outside ourselves. Is there anything unclear abut that statement? The Course has told us again and again that we have everything we need. It has told us we lack nothing we need. It tells us God has given us all and that we have all God has. We are truly created as God is and we are an extension of God. This Truth is so simple, yet we continue to fail to see and understand it.

Our bodies are symbols of our belief in separateness. We identify ourselves as our body and all the experiences we have had with our bodies. But as we have spent our life experiencing this world of form from our body’s perspective, we have missed a greater perspective. We have missed the experiences of our unity with God and each other. No person can put asunder what God has created, yet we inadvertently attempt to do so as we continuously perceive our experiences from a separated mind rather than the Mind of God.

Our mistake is that we think God is outside of us. We think the real world is outside of us. We think all is happening to us. And we fail to understand that all that is happening is within us. What we see is more about what we perceive about what we see than what actually occurred. Any experience is more about what we think about it and how we perceive it based on comparing it to everything we think about our past that the actual thing that happened. The world we see is the world we think we see and nothing more.

Instead of looking outside ourselves to what we have projected form our mistaken thoughts, we can stop, become still, and look within to that place within us that is Divine. That place where we find inspiration that comes from Spirit within that has never left us. The understanding of Truth and what is real is deep within us, ignored, as we continually search outside ourselves for what we find already within us. Take a moment. Sop. Be still. Listen for the Voice of Spirit within. That Voice calls to us every moment of every day and reminds us of who we really are. Let yourself hear that voice and recognize yourself in that voice. Peace, love, and joy radiated from that place within. Let that radiance shine from you, radiating that peace, love, and joy to all you encounter. This is what Christmas is about. Have a wonderful, blessed Christmas as you let the Christ Spirit shine from you.

December 13, 2011

Thee is a place deep within us where only what is real remains. It is a place where all illusion is forgotten. The world we see is simply not remembered and is not missed. That place within is a place where peace, love, and joy abide in abundance, and all else is vanished in the light of awareness and awakeness. The echoes of our Heavenly song touch our ears. We see the light shining from the innermost of all sources. And we rest in that place. For we know it is our home. And we know this dwelling so completely we know we are home.

Only the dreams we dream in our unawakened mind block our awareness of this wholeness within us. Let these dreams fall away and let Spirit bring the new dreams to our sleeping minds for the healing of our minds. We now dream of each other and the Oneness we share with each other. Spirit shows us the new picture of the one who is our savior and who we are savior of. We see each other in a new light, recognizing ourselves in each other and realizing that we cannot be anything but One. The realization of this place within is the healing of our mind. It is the awakening of our mind to the awareness of who we really are.

God created us changeless. And so we can never really be anything else. All the nightmares we dreamed were just nightmares. And each one was met by Spirit with a new dream to take its place. We began to see ourselves as whole, and see another as whole, forgiving them and ourselves for ever seeing otherwise. In this new site, in this new vision are we raised up and lifted into the light of truth and wholeness.

The changeless dwelling place within wells up with the awareness of who we really are, never having left at all. We rejoice in the reunion of that awareness, not because it is new, but because it has always been. The light, love, peace, and joy of Heaven have always been our home, just waiting for us to let the fog clear away and recognize ourselves. Lay down the misconceptions of our dreams. Let the fog of illusion float away on the breath of Truth. We are home in that changeless dwelling place that we have never really left but fell asleep in. Now is our time come to awaken to our true home.

December 6, 2011

We are the proof that God is and of God’s reality and perfection. Could God have created us less than God is? Would God have created less than perfection? No parent would create their child inferior. Every parent wants their child to be perfect and they know their child is perfection. It is only after years of convincing ourselves otherwise that we think less of our children. But God never left us. Our creation is certainly an extension of God, not a separation. And therefore we remain connected to God, to the Divine, to Source.

The light and love of God remains with us no matter how diligently we separate ourselves from our wholeness. Our belief that we are not whole can dominate our mind, but it cannot take away the light and love that are so lovingly extended from God as an element of our creation. No matter how diligently we may deny it, there remains a spark within us that reminds us of the divine essence within. That spark is a witness to the fact that we are One with God, that we are One with all of creation, and we can never be anything other than who we really are as God created us.

We recognize the spark in ourselves and we recognize it in another. Forgiveness is the recognition of the light of Spirit in each one and the recognition that we are one with that spirit. We recognize our savior in another and thus recognize our own salvation. Just as another recognizes their savior in us and thus recognizes their own salvation. No matter what the dream, no matter what the illusion, the light of Spirit will always shine through it and show us the truth of who we really are. Even our made up dreams lead us to our awakening if we will just let them. The gift of Divine light and love is just behind every dream and illusion shining around the edges and through the little gaps and cracks.

Allow the light and love to come to your eyes. God will never hide it from us no matter how hard we strive to hide it. The light and love of God is always extending and connecting us to divine Source. Be that Light. Be that Love. We are the witnesses to the reality of our Oneness. Release, let go, and be who you really are.