Enter Discussion without an Agenda to Attend to

“Through receptivity, what your mind finds difficult to accept, your heart accepts with ease. Now you are ready to question what you must. Now you are ready to hear the answer that arises in your own heart or from the voice of the man or woman sitting next to you. Now you are ready to hear all the voices around you without judgment, to enter discussion without an agenda to attend to, to not be so anxious to say what you are thinking that you forget to listen. Now you are ready to let understanding come without the aggressiveness of going out to get it.” (ACOL, A.13)

We are meant to be in a somewhat passive state when we take in the truths of A Course of Love. This quotation refers to times spent in a discussion group for ACOL. We enter the discussion “without an agenda to attend to,” “not anxious.” We know that all of us are equals in the sight of God, that seeing others as our equals is what will eliminate anxieties as we talk in a group.

The Dalai Lama has said much the same thing. He relates that previously (many years ago), he used to be anxious when speaking to a group, but that that bad reaction ceased when he saw himself as one with them, one of them.

If we think that we are either worse or better than another, we will be scared of that other. And this is no way to be. The best composure comes when we are relaxed, sure of our being in God’s sight.

If we listen with our heart, we will recognize that all individuals are equal to us. It is only our mind that seeks to be superior, and the mind is sometimes a poor learner. The heart knows without proof, and the heart feels God with a warmth that takes away all agitation.

Be gentle with ourselves today. Know that others have the same inhibitions that we have, that they do worry about making an impression. But we don’t have to consider this worry legitimate; it is not. Be accepting of our brothers and sisters, and love them with a generous sense of both heart and mind. The benefits are great, the drawbacks nothing at all.

Dear God,

I would realize that other people do care about me, that I don’t have to make an impression in any sense at all. They will be accepting of me when I am accepting of them.

Thank You for this insight. It came from Your heart to mine.

Amen.