We have aligned with the the ego thought system of sin, guilt and fear. As a result, we have become unaware of who we are. With this choice for the ego, we have crossed the bridge from Oneness into the body and the world. The body and the world are illusions, but to us they seems so very real because we have no recollection of how we got here. Our experience here in the world will continue to feel very real until we have the experience of the holy instant, where we have a glimpse of the eternal. The bridge built by the ego has been detonated with denial and repression so we have no memory of the decision made by the mind to run away from our reality, as divine beings of light and love. Now we think of our reality as a body, which is limited and vulnerable.

Our decision to listen to the lies of the ego has resulted in tremendous guilt. The ego has convinced us we have stolen our identity from God and now we fear He will come after us. It is not a conscious thought, but that is the origin of the guilt we hold in our wrong minds. However, the ego knows we will not continue to choose it if it means being overwhelmed with guilt, so it has devised a plan for us to project the guilt and see it in others and blame them for our condition. Thus, we judge others for their guilt and now claim innocence for ourselves. When we condemn and blame others, we only experience more guilt, which hurts us. That is the part the ego has kept hidden from us, which is why Jesus goes to great lengths to unveil its whole operation. Once we see it clearly, we will readily dismiss it. Jesus shows us that when we condemn our brothers, instead of getting rid of our guilt, we keep ourselves guilty. That is precisely the ego's game.

There are many ways we condemn, through blame, attack, unsolicited advice, analyzing the motives of others, holding grievances and resentments, focusing on the mistakes of others or even our own, using others to meet our needs through our special relationships, holding onto past hurts, getting vengeance on others through our suffering, compensating for our negative beliefs by trying to be nice and kind, through substance abuse and other self-indulgent behaviors and much more.

These are examples of some of the ways that the ego operates in the world. It is always self-serving, always giving to get, and always seeing differences. Even a feeling of discomfort or anxiety around someone is a self-attack based on self-judgment and self-hatred. Our discomforts are never about anyone else. When we take responsibility and see it is all a projection of our own unhealed thoughts, we can begin the process of choosing against the ego and releasing our wrong-minded thoughts to the Holy Spirit. This requires we look at them first and recognize them as our own projections. The ego will always focus outward. That keeps the ego thought system intact and not available for healing. By denying, projecting and repressing our thoughts, they are kept apart from healing.

So what do we do? Our responsibility is to accept the Atonement for ourselves. What does this mean? It means we have to take responsibility for our thoughts and recognize that what we have come to believe about ourselves is not the truth. We need to do the work of forgiveness so we can take the steps necessary to return to sanity until we can finally accept our true reality as created by God. How do we do that? We do it by forgiving our thoughts. We do that by taking responsibility for them and bringing them into awareness. We do it by being willing to do the work of looking at our blocks to love, by seeing everything and everyone in our lives as an opportunity to heal ourselves, and by seeing everything that happens as helpful. With everything that comes up in my life, I have a decision to make. Do I use my past learning, my own judgments to apply to my situation, or do I turn the whole situation over to the Holy Spirit for a miracle? Do I choose God or the ego? How do I know which choice I have made? I will know if I still feel guilt, fear and a lack of peace that I have chosen the ego. I know, if I am chewing on some issue, I am still in my ego mind. I know, if I have a story around the situation I am unwilling to release, I am still in my ego. And I know I have chosen the right mind when I am at peace. Yes, it is a process of undoing the ego, but we can commit to staying vigilant in this process, constantly watching our beliefs, thoughts, feelings, and opinions, which will point to the decision we have made. We will not feel guilty about this, but will only be the observer and notice where the mind is focused.

What is my purpose here? It is always to remember who I am. To do that, I need to look honestly at everything in my life and bring it to the Holy Spirit. My usual way of figuring things out will not heal anything. We need to release our personal self from being the one in charge. Yes, we learn and study the course, but only for one purpose---to heal the mind by applying what we learn. In order to do that, it is important that we look at everything and keep nothing hidden from the light of Truth. This means we need to stop and look at what is going on in the mind. Defenses will not allow us to look, so we must be willing to let them down to the extent possible. This takes great courage and great honesty.

The important question is always to ask, "what is this for?" in everything we do. It is all about purpose. The ego's purpose is to keep us invested in the illusion. The Holy Spirit's purpose is to wake us up to who we really are. Everything made by the ego can now be used by the Holy Spirit for healing. The form does not change. We can still have our special relationships, although now the content is no longer to serve our needs, but for the purpose of healing. The body, which was made to get, can now be used for a holy purpose of giving and extending. And as we move away from the identification with the body, which we have been doing for many days as part of this review, we declare our freedom from the body as our identity.

Whatever situations you face today, use each of them as opportunities for healing rather than for self-condemnation. This means we don't judge what comes up. Murderous and hateful thoughts are only thoughts. Judging them is a way to condemn yourself instead of looking at these thoughts honestly and being willing to release them to the Holy Spirit. He will do the rest. That is what makes forgiveness easy. It is not done by us. Our part is only to look at the blocks to love. As the mind awakens to the truth, we become clear channels so the love that is in us can extend through us. No amount of charity work, no amount of service, no amount of good deeds, or of being nice, which comes from compensating for ego darkness and self-serving ego motives, will ever offer the extension of love in the world that can be demonstrated when we make space for the Holy Spirit to extend through our minds for His purposes.

It is our choice as to which operating system we run today, that of the ego or of the Holy Spirit. One brings only condemnation, while the other opens the way for us to behold our glory and be glad. What a choice! And of course we can only accomplish this with mind training, and that means doing the practices so we over-learn the Lessons and they become our habitual response to every situation where we find ourselves out of peace. Thus, we affirm, "This thought I do not want. I choose instead___," (W.RVI.IN.6.2-3) to behold my brother's glory and my own, so I can know my innocence and his. Only when we offer forgiveness can we behold the truth, or as Jesus says, "behold this glory and be glad." (W.218.1.3) Ultimately, this is how we learn the central Lesson we have been practicing every day, which is " I am not a body. I am free. For I am still as God created me." We don't learn this Lesson by shouting down the ego with affirmations. We learn it by looking at how we are defending ourselves against this truth.

Remind yourself frequently of the truth today as you apply the Lesson to all the events and situations you encounter today. When you lapse, remember it is a mistake. Don't give power to your mistake, by judging yourself for it and feeling guilty. Simply correct it and resolve to keep going with your daily practice.