You who feel threatened by this changing world,
its twists of fortune and its bitter jests,
its brief relationships and all the gifts
it merely lends to take away again;
attend this lesson well. The world provides
no safety. It is rooted in attack,
and all its gifts of seeming safety are
illusory deceptions. It attacks
and then attacks again. No peace of mind
is possible where danger threatens thus.|
The world gives rise but to defensiveness.
For threat brings anger, anger makes attack
seem reasonable, honestly provoked,
and righteous in the name of self-defense.
Yet is defensiveness a double threat,
for it attests to weakness, and sets up
a system of defense which cannot work.
Now are the weak still further undermined,
for there is treachery without, and still
a greater treachery within. The mind
is now confused, and knows not where to turn
to find escape from its imaginings.|
It is as if a circle held it fast,
wherein another circle bound it, and
another in that one, until escape
no longer can be hoped for nor attained.
Attack, defense; defense, attack, become
the circles of the hours and the days
which bind the mind in heavy bands of steel
with iron overlaid, returning but
to start again. There seems to be no break
nor ending in the ever-tightening
grip of imprisonment upon the mind.|
Defenses are the costliest of all
the prices which the ego would exact.
In them lies madness in a form so grim
that hope of sanity but seems to be
an idle dream beyond the possible.
The sense of threat the world encourages
is so much deeper, and so far beyond
the frenzy and intensity of which
you can conceive that you have no idea
of all the devastation it has wrought.|
You are its slave. You know not what you do
in fear of it. You do not understand
how much you have been made to sacrifice,
who feel its iron grip upon your heart.
You do not realize what you have done
to sabotage the holy peace of God
by your defensiveness. For you behold
the Son of God as but a victim to
attack by fantasies, by dreams, and by
illusions he has made; yet helpless in
their presence, needful only of defense
by still more fantasies and dreams, by which
illusions of his safety comfort him.|
Defenselessness is strength. It testifies
to recognition of the Christ in you.
Perhaps you will recall the course maintains
that choice is always made between His strength
and your own weakness as apart from Him.
Defenselessness can never be attacked,
because it recognizes strength so great
attack is folly, or a silly game
a tired child might play when he becomes
too sleepy to remember what he wants.
Defensiveness is weakness. It proclaims
you have denied the Christ, and come to fear
His Father's anger. What can save you now
from your delusion of an angry god
whose fearful image you believe you see
at work in all the evils of the world?
What but illusions could defend you now,
when it is but illusions which you fight?
We will not play such childish games today.
For our true purpose is to save the world,
and we would not exchange for foolishness
the endless joy our function offers us.
We would not let our happiness slip by
because a senseless fragment of a dream
happened to cross our minds, and we mistook
the figures in it for the Son of God;
its tiny instant for eternity.
We look past dreams today, and recognize
that we need no defense because we are
created unassailable, without
all thought or wish or dream in which attack
has any meaning. Now we cannot fear.
For we have left all fearful thoughts behind.
And in defenselessness we stand secure,
serenely certain of our safety now,
sure of salvation; sure we will fulfill
our chosen purpose as our ministry
extends its holy blessing through the world.
Be still a moment, and in silence think
how holy is your purpose, how secure
you rest, untouchable within its light.
God's ministers have chosen that the truth
be with them. Who is holier than they?
Who could be surer that his happiness
is fully guaranteed? And who could be
more mightily protected? What defense
could possibly be needed by the ones
who are among the chosen ones of God
by His election and their own as well?
It is the function of God's ministers
to help their brothers choose as they have done.
God has elected all, but few have come
to realize His Will is but their own.
And while you fail to teach what you have learned
salvation waits, and darkness hides the world
in grim imprisonment. Nor will you see
that light has come to you, and your escape
has been accomplished. For you will not see
the light until you offer it to all
your brothers. As they take it from your hands,
so will you recognize it as your own.
Salvation can be thought of as a game
that happy children play. It was designed
by One Who loves His children, and Who would
replace their fearful toys with joyous games,
which teach them that the game of fear is gone.
His game instructs in happiness because
there is no loser. Everyone who plays
must win, and in his winning is the gain
of everyone ensured. The game of fear
is gladly laid aside when children come
to see the benefits salvation brings.|
You who have played that you were lost to hope,
abandoned by your Father, left alone
in terror in a fearful world made mad
by sin and guilt, be happy now. That game
is over. Now a quiet time has come
in which we put away the toys of guilt,
and lock our quaint and childish thoughts of sin
forever from the pure and holy minds
of Heaven's children and the Sons of God.|
We pause but for a moment more, to play
our final happy game upon this earth.
And then we go to take our rightful place
where truth abides and games are meaningless.
So is the story ended. Let this day
bring the last chapter closer to the world,
that everyone may learn the tales he reads
of terrifying destiny, defeat
of all his hopes, his pitiful defense
against a vengeance he can not escape,
were but his own deluded fantasy.
God's ministers have come to waken him
from the dark dreams this story has evoked
in his confused, bewildered memory
of this distorted tale. God's Son can smile
at last, on learning that it is not true.|
Today we practice in a form we will
maintain for quite a while. We will begin
each day by giving our attention to
the daily thought as long as possible.
Five minutes now becomes the least we give
to preparation for a day in which
salvation is the only goal we have.
Ten would be better; fifteen better still.
And as distraction ceases to arise
to turn us from our purpose, we will find
that half an hour is too short a time
to spend with God. Nor will we willingly
give less at night in gratitude and joy.|
Each hour adds to our increasing peace
as we remember to be faithful to
the Will we share with God. At times, perhaps
a minute, even less, will be the most
that we can offer as the hour strikes.
Sometimes we will forget. At other times
the business of the world will close on us,
and we will be unable to withdraw
a little while, and turn our thoughts to God.|
Yet when we can, we will observe our trust
as ministers of God in hourly
remembrance of our mission and His Love.
And we will quietly sit by and wait
on Him and listen to His Voice, and learn
what He would have us do the hour that
is yet to come, while thanking Him for all
the gifts He gave us in the one gone by.|
In time, with practice, you will never cease
to think of Him and hear His loving Voice
guiding your footsteps into quiet paths
where you will walk in true defenselessness,
for you will know that Heaven goes with you.
Nor would you keep your mind away from Him
a moment, even though your time is spent
in offering salvation to the world.
Think you He will not make this possible
for you who chose to carry out His plan
for the salvation of the world and yours?
Today our theme is our defenselessness.
We clothe ourselves in it as we prepare
to meet the day. We rise up strong in Christ,
and let our weakness disappear as we
remember that His strength abides in us.
We will remind ourselves that He remains
beside us through the day, and never leaves
our weakness unsupported by His strength.
We call upon His strength each time we feel
the threat of our defenses undermine
our certainty of purpose. We will pause
a moment as He tells us "I am here."
Our practicing will now begin to take
the earnestness of love to help you keep
your mind from wandering from its intent.
Be not afraid nor timid. There can be
no doubt that you will reach your final goal.
The ministers of God can never fail,
because the love and strength and peace that shine
from them to all their brothers come from Him.
These are His gifts to you. Defenselessness
is all you need to give Him in return.
You lay aside but what was never real,
to look on Christ and see His sinlessness.
