"Nothing real can be threatened. Nothing unreal exists.
Herein Lies the peace of God."
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A
Course in Miracles
TEXT
CHAPTER 7
The Consistency of the Kingdom
VI. Healing and the Changelessness of Mind
39
The body is nothing more than a framework for developing abilities. It is therefore a means for developing
potentials
, which is quite apart from what the potential is used
for
.
That
is a
decision
. The effects of the ego's decision in this matter are so apparent that they need no elaboration here, but the Holy Spirit's decision to use the body
only
for communication has such a direct connection with healing that it
does
need clarification. The unhealed healer
obviously
does not understand his own vocation.
40
Only
minds communicate. Since the ego
cannot
obliterate the impulse to communicate because it is also the impulse to create, the ego can only teach you that the
body
can both communicate
and
create and therefore does not
need
the mind. The ego thus tries to teach you that the body can
act
like the mind and is therefore self-sufficient. Yet we have learned that behavior is
not
the level for either teaching
or
learning. This must be so, since you
can
act in accordance with what you do
not
believe. To do this, however, will weaken you as teachers
and
learners because, as has been repeatedly emphasized, you teach what you
do
believe. An inconsistent lesson will be poorly taught
and poorly learned
. If you teach both sickness
and
healing, you are both a poor teacher
and
a poor learner.
41
Healing is the one ability which everyone can develop and
must
develop if he is to be healed. Healing is the Holy Spirit's form of communication and the
only
one He knows. He recognizes no other, because He does not accept the ego's confusion of mind and body. Minds can communicate, but they
cannot
hurt. The body in the service of the ego can hurt other
bodies
, but this cannot occur unless the body has
already
been confused with the mind. This fact, too, can be used either for healing or for magic, but you must remember that magic is
always
the belief that healing is
harmful
. This is its totally insane premise, and so it proceeds accordingly.
42
Healing only
strengthens
. Magic
always
tries to weaken. Healing perceives
nothing
in the healer that everyone else does not
share
with him. Magic
always
sees something "special" in the healer which he believes he can offer as a gift to someone who does
not
have it. He may believe that the gift comes
from
God to Him, but it is quite evident that he does not understand God if he thinks he has something that others
lack
. You might well ask, then, why some healing
can
result from this kind of thinking, and there is a reason for this.
43
However misguided the "magical healer" may be, he is
also
trying to help. He is conflicted and unstable, but
at times
he is offering something to the Sonship, and the only thing the Sonship can
accept
is healing. When the so-called "healing" works, then, the impulse to help and to
be
helped have coincided. This is coincidental because the healer may
not
be experiencing himself as truly helpful at the time, but the belief that he
is
, in the mind of another, helps
him
.
44
The Holy Spirit does
not
work by chance, and healing that is of Him
always
works. Unless the healer
always
heals by Him, the results
will
vary. Yet healing itself
is
consistence since
only
consistence is conflict-free, and only the conflict-free
are
whole. By accepting exceptions and acknowledging that he can sometimes heal and sometimes not, the healer is
obviously
accepting inconsistency. He is therefore
in
conflict and
teaching
conflict. Can anything of God
not
be for all and for always?
45
Love is incapable of
any
exceptions. Only if there is fear does the
idea
of exceptions seem to be meaningful. Exceptions are fearful because they are made
by
fear. The "fearful healer" is a contradiction in terms and is therefore a concept which
only
a conflicted mind could possibly perceive as meaningful. Fear does
not
gladden. Healing
does
. Fear
always
makes exceptions. Healing
never
does. Fear produces dissociation because it induces
separation
. Healing
always
produces harmony because it proceeds from integration.
46
Healing is predictable because it can be counted on.
Everything
that is of God can be counted on because everything of God is wholly
real
. Healing can be counted on
because
it is inspired by His Voice and is in accord with His laws. Yet if healing
is
consistence, it cannot be inconsistently understood. Understanding
means
consistence because God means consistence. Since that is
His
meaning, it is also
yours
. Your meaning cannot
be
out of accord with His because your whole meaning, and your
only
meaning, comes
from
His and is
like
His. God cannot be out of accord with
Himself
, and
you
cannot be out of accord with Him. You cannot separate your
self
from your Creator, Who created you by sharing
His
being
with
you
.
47
The unhealed healer wants gratitude
from
his brothers, but he is not grateful
to
them. This is because he thinks he is
giving
something
to
them and is
not
receiving something equally desirable in return. His
teaching
is limited because he is
learning
so little. His healing lesson is limited by his own ingratitude, which is a lesson in
sickness
. Learning is constant and so vital in its power for change that a Son of God can recognize his power in one instant and change the world in the next. That is because by changing
his
mind he has changed the most powerful device that was ever created
for
change.
48
This in no way contradicts the changelessness of mind as
God
created it, but you think that you
have
changed it as long as you learn through the ego. This
does
place you in a position of needing to learn a lesson which seems contradictory—you must learn to change your mind
about
your mind. Only by this can you learn that it
is
changeless. When you heal that is exactly what you
are
learning. You are recognizing the changeless mind in your brother by realizing that he
could
not have changed his mind. That is how you perceive the Holy Spirit in him. It is
only
the Holy Spirit in him that never changes His mind. He himself must think he
can
, or he would not perceive himself as sick. He therefore does not know what his self
is
.
49
If
you
see only the changeless in him, you have not really changed him at all. By changing
your
mind about his
for
him, you help him
undo
the change his ego thinks it has made in him. As you can hear two voices, so you can see in two ways. One way shows you an image, or better, an idol which you may worship out of fear but which you will never love. The other shows you only truth, which you will love because you will
understand
it. Understanding is
appreciation
because what you understand you can
identify
with, and by making it part of
you
, you have accepted it with love.
50
That is how God Himself created
you
—in understanding, in appreciation, and in love. The ego is totally unable to understand this, because it does
not
understand what it makes; it does
not
appreciate it; and it does
not
love it. It incorporates to
take away.
It literally believes that every time it deprives someone of something,
it
has increased. We have spoken often of the increase of the Kingdom by
your
creations, which can only be created as
you
were. The whole glory and perfect joy that
is
the Kingdom lies in you to give. Do you not
want
to give it?
51
You
cannot
forget the Father because I am with you, and
I
cannot forget Him. To forget
me
is to forget yourself and Him Who created you. Our brothers
are
forgetful. That is why they need your remembrance of me and Him who created me. Through this remembrance, you can change their minds about
themselves
, as I can change
yours.
Your minds are so powerful a light that you can look into theirs and enlighten them, as I can enlighten yours. I do not want to share my
body
in communion, because that is to share nothing. [Would I try to share an illusion with the most holy children of a most holy Father?] Yet I do want to share my
mind
with you because we
are
of One Mind and that
Mind
is
ours.
52
See
only
this
Mind
everywhere because only this
is
everywhere and in everything. It
is
everything because it encompasses all things within
itself
. Blessed are you who perceive only this, because you perceive only what is true. Come therefore unto me and learn of the truth in
you
. The Mind we share is shared by all our brothers, and as we see them truly, they
will
be healed. Let
your
mind shine with mine upon their minds, and by our gratitude to them make them aware of the light in
them
.
53
This light will shine back upon
you
and on the whole Sonship because this is your proper gift to God. He will accept it and give it to the Sonship because it is acceptable to Him and therefore to His Sons. This is the true communion of the Spirit, Who sees the altar of God in everyone and, by bringing it to
your
appreciation, calls upon you to love God
and
His creations. You can appreciate the Sonship
only
as one. This is part of the Law of Creation and therefore governs
all
thought.
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A Course in Miracles
WORKBOOK
Lesson 80
Let me recognize my problems have been solved.
1
If you are willing to recognize your problems, you will recognize that you have no problems. Your one central problem has been answered, and you have no other. Therefore you must be at peace. Salvation does depend on recognizing this one problem and understanding that it has been solved. One problem—one solution. Salvation is accomplished. Freedom from conflict has been given you. Accept that fact, and you are ready to take your rightful place in God's plan for salvation.
2
Your only problem has been solved! Repeat this over and over to yourself today with gratitude and conviction. You have recognized your only problem, opening the way for the Holy Spirit to give you God's answer. You have laid deception aside and seen the light of truth. You have accepted salvation for yourself by bringing the problem to the answer. And you can recognize the answer because the problem has been identified.
3
You are entitled to peace today. A problem that has been resolved cannot trouble you. Only be certain you do not forget that all problems are the same. Their many forms will not deceive you while you remember this. One problem—one solution. Accept the peace this simple statement brings.
4
In our longer practice periods today, we will claim the peace that must be ours when the problem and the answer have been brought together. The problem must be gone because God's answer cannot fail. Having recognized one, you have recognized the other. The solution is inherent in the problem. You are answered and have accepted the answer. You are saved.
5
Now let the peace that your acceptance brings be given you. Close your eyes and receive your reward. Recognize that your problems have been solved. Recognize that you are out of conflict, free, and at peace. Above all, remember that you have one problem and that the problem has one solution. It is in this that the simplicity of salvation lies. It is because of this that it is guaranteed to work.
6
Assure yourself often today that your problems have been solved. Repeat the idea with deep conviction as frequently as possible. And be particularly sure to remember to apply the idea for today to any specific problem that may arise. Say quickly:
7
Let me recognize this problem has been solved.
8
Let us be determined not to collect grievances today. Let us be determined to be free of problems that do not exist. The means is simple honesty. Do not deceive yourself about what the problem is, and you must recognize it has been solved.
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ACIM Edmonton
Sarah's Reflections
Lesson 80
Let me recognize my problems have been solved.
This is clearly a follow-up to the Lesson yesterday. While we seem to have many problems, we only have one, and it is already solved. The story is over.
"If you are willing to recognize your problems, you will recognize that you have no problems
.
"
(W.80.1.1) It is because we are just dreaming this existence with all its seeming problems. Once we wake up, we will realize all the problems we are trying to solve were never even real.
When Jesus starts off with this explicit statement, that we have no problems, we may wonder, how can that be? In our experience, we have many problems, and they show up daily. Yet, if separation is the one central problem and it has been solved, all problems are already answered. We don't experience this because we are deceived by the ego mind that has convinced us that reality is what we experience in the body and the world.
The truth is that the Holy Spirit, a symbol of truth in our right minds, holds the answer to every problem, regardless of its form or seeming complexity. We experience our problems as unsolved when we focus on them rather than identifying the real problem to which the answer has already been given. In other words, the answer is given to every problem we perceive.
"Accept that fact, and you are ready to take your
rightful place in God's plan for salvation."
(W.80.1.8) Our rightful place is acceptance of our function as a teacher of God and savior in the world. We can only do that when we forgive our faulty perceptions and accept the healing of the guilt in our minds.
How does this look in our experience? On a practical level, what do we do? Today, I paid attention to what I was calling a problem. First, someone said something that created a reaction in me where I felt a loss of peace. I was angry at this person, whom I felt had treated me unfairly. When I took responsibility for my own self-attack, I realized that I was choosing to throw away my peace by giving power to what had been said. My reaction had nothing to do with the other person but was about the guilt in my own mind that I saw in my brother. The answer (peace) had already been given and was awaiting my acceptance. With my willingness to take responsibility for how I was seeing this situation and giving it power, I recognized that I had a choice. I could choose to turn to the Holy Spirit for His interpretation so I could see the innocence in myself and in my brother. This was already available in my mind when I was ready to accept it. Thus, the grievance I was holding was simply blocking the answer to my seeming problem.
Later in the day, I was trying to merge onto the freeway and another driver refused to let me into the lane. Again, the ego mind defined it as a problem. In fact, stepping back, I recognized once again that the problem only endured as long as I was willing to hold a grievance in my mind. Then, I felt the pressure of doing my taxes and encountered "problems" in getting my documents together to meet the deadlines. I realized again that it was my wrong mind giving meaning to this situation and defining it as a problem. The only problem was the interpretation I was giving to a neutral event. Later, I was baking muffins and one of the eggs on the counter rolled onto the floor. I laughed at the idea that this too could be turned into something to ruin my day. Every problem is some kind of grievance, and when I am willing to take my grievance to the Holy Spirit, He always shows me another way to see it and reminds me that nothing is ever wrong, since the answer is already available.
Whatever the issue is, when we become aware that it cannot separate us from peace unless we give it the power to do so, we will know that another choice is always available to us. It is simple because we only have two choices. We can either continue to listen to the way the ego tells us to see it, or we can turn to the Holy Spirit for His interpretation. It is up to us. If we hold onto our upsets, they can’t be healed. We do this when we want to prove that the way we see the problem is correct, and Jesus is wrong in his teaching.
We stubbornly resist the healing, being unwilling to release how and why we set up the problem and why we want to see it as we do. It is, of course, always about our desire to maintain the separation---our separate, individual, and special self. When we willingly bring our misperceptions to the Holy Spirit, He undoes our way of seeing. Hanging onto our perspectives always brings pain.
The miracle is always behind our wrong-minded thoughts, ready to shine forth when we do our part. We simply cannot be separated from God's Love. We can only be unaware of it by blocking it with our misperceptions. I just need to forgive myself for worrying about a situation that is already solved. In fact, I can be grateful that whatever happens, I don't need to be pulled out of peace by this or any other event. It is truly up to me. I don't say this is always easy for us, but it can be as easy or difficult as we make it. Jesus understands, we have a lot of resistance. That is why he reminds us, we can at least start to question how we currently see our problems. There are many times I have been wakeful during the night, trying to figure my way through a problem. Even though I know worry is a decision I have made to listen to the ego, my mind starts to spin obsessively. If I find I can't rest my mind, I engage in self-talk, reassuring myself that all things work together for good and invite peace to my mind to still my thoughts. I am thankful that with mind training the ego no longer has prominence.
There is nothing forgiveness cannot do to reveal the miracle in every situation. As discussed yesterday, problems are the smokescreen that keeps us distracted from seeing the truth behind them all.
"You are entitled to peace today. A problem that has been resolved cannot trouble you."
(W.80.3.1-2) We are troubled only because of our unwillingness to accept that the answer is already in our minds. Why would we be troubled by a problem that does not even exist? Why would we be angry about nothing and then make up a story to justify our anger?
We can be grateful that this is all just a dream. Of course, we don't really believe it, or it would be all over. In each situation, when we stay open to the Holy Spirit, our attachment to the world and problems is loosened. When we bring our problems to the Holy Spirit,
"You have accepted salvation for yourself by bringing the problem to the Answer."
(W.80.2.5) We will know we have been successful when we feel peace instead of turmoil about any situation in which we are embroiled. We then won't be troubled by anything that seems to be happening to us.
"Only be certain you do not forget that all problems are the same."
(W.80.3.3) We just need to remind ourselves that no matter how we perceive the problem, there is no order of difficulty in the problems we perceive. One illusion is not bigger than another. They are all unreal. And we are also assured that there is no order of difficulty in miracles.
All the Lessons make a contribution to bringing peace to our minds when we feel besieged by problems. Also, the metaphysical teachings in the Text help to convince the mind that there is another way to see everything. One thing I try to do is to see myself removed from the conflict, to soar above it. I find the Section,
"Above the Battleground"
(ACIM OE "The Fear of Life") very helpful in this regard, where Jesus says,
"Be lifted up, and from a higher place look down upon it. From there will your perspective be quite different. Here in the midst of it, it does seem real. Here you have chosen to be part of it."
(T.23.IV.5.1-4) (ACIM OE T.23.V.51) When I was working and would travel to another country, I found that the issues I considered important and that were reported daily in the news in Alberta somehow lost their significance. From this vantage point, my work back home and the problems I encountered in my involvement in the political environment in which I worked seemed to lose their significance.
In the same way, if we can remove ourselves from any problem we seem to be experiencing by becoming observers rather than participants in the situation, we can also disengage our investment in the problem. When we can observe the situation without judgment, we are sitting with truth next to us and seeing the unreality of the situation. From this place, we can experience the freedom and peace that comes from simply observing without judgment. From this place, we can smile at the situation because we are looking through the eyes of love and seeing that nothing here is serious. In the illusion, there is much that appears tragic, but from above the battleground, it all loses significance.
It is also important to remember that behind every problem is a grievance. That is why we are reminded,
"Let us be determined not to collect grievances today."
(W.80.7.1) Releasing grievances frees us from problems that don't exist. Forgiveness is acceptance and letting go of what has never happened. Remember that, in the illusion, there are no real effects. We forgive our brother for what he did not do. Yes, the behavior may have happened, but how we see it is up to us. When we see it as a call for love, we recognize that within it is our own call for love. We are all on a path to remembering what we are. This world and all of its problems are not real. The world was over long ago.
"Both this world and the real world are illusions because right-mindedness merely overlooks, or forgives, what never happened."
(CLARIFICATION OF TERMS.1.6.2)
"We but undertake a journey that is over."
(W.158.3.6)
The answer is always forgiveness. To the Holy Spirit,
"They are the same to Him because each one, regardless of the form it seems to take, is a demand that someone suffer loss and make a sacrifice that you might gain. And when the situation is worked out so no one loses is the problem gone, because it was an error in perception that now has been corrected."
(T.26.II.2.2-3) (ACIM OE T.26.III.11)
Bring every problem to His Answer so it can be corrected in your mind.
"The problem must be gone, because God's answer cannot fail."
(W.80.4.2) Of course, we can prove God wrong, and we do so by demonstrating our unwillingness to bring our perceived problems to Him. This is how we keep the problem from His answer and choose to hold onto our misery. We do that whenever we want to prove that we are right about the way we see a situation. That is why Jesus is always asking us whether we want to be right (about the way we see things) or happy by choosing the answer available in our minds to every problem. By choosing the answer, the result is always peace.
Love and blessings, Sarah
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