“There is no difference in his state at different times and different places, because they are all one to God. This is his safety. And he has no need for more than this. (M-16.7)”
Affirmation: “I am safe.”
Reflections:
1 – Inaccurate Definitions of the Ego
God is with us, closer than our breath, because we are part of God. We have made a separate part that believes (inaccurately) that this tiny part has actually separated from God, but this would be an impossibility, because God is the All. This part that we only “think” separated is the ego, and we do not need this particular definition of the ego to maneuver our way about our world. This definition of the ego comes close to Freud’s, but is not equal to it. This ego is a part of our belief about ourselves (a Text tenet), and believing in its viability makes a lot of turmoil for us. We are better to live egoism out of the picture. This definition is also not exactly “egotistical.” Certainly the egotistical come into play, but this ACIM definition of the ego is more basic. We do not have to afraid of it, but this seemingly separated part of ourselves is mightily afraid of our real Self, knowing that we will withdraw all allegiance to it when we have experienced the joy of God as a sustainable state of mind and heart.
2 – No Egoistic Attractions
We are safe when we do not attract egoistic things into our lives. We can even enjoy the material without feeling guilty, as long as we knowingly give God His place in our lives. We do not even have to be religious in the usual sense. Teachers of God (a Manual tenet) come from all religions, and from no religion.
3 – God with Us
God is here for us when we need Him. He is also here for us when we don’t recognize that need. But what joy when we do recognize and acknowledge His place in our lives. There is no better way to live.
4 – Foxhole Religion
Safety is a big concern to many of us, particularly if we have been physically or emotionally vulnerable at some point in our lives. If we have hit bottom, so to speak, we may have become quite open to religion. But this religion of the desperate is not the best that we can hope to have. The foxhole religion falls away when out of the foxhole. It is far better to live a quiet life, even one as busy as we desire, but one that acknowledges that we can’t do everything on our own. We actually know this, whether or not we have acknowledged God’s place in our lives or not. There is no way for has not seen that life could be lived a better way.
5 – ACIM and ACOL
A Course in Miracles and A Course of Love come to us to show us a better way. There are thousands of other courses (a Manual tenet), but ACIM (and, perhaps, ACOL) are our way. So why should we seek further? There will always be apparent reason for more seeking, because we are so used to doing it. But A Course of Love says that there comes an end of seeking and an end of learning. Let us be glad that we know enough to welcome God into our lives. And may we know His joy in everyday life. This is a quite attainable goal.
Prayer:
Dear Father/Mother,
I thank You that I do know, in the depths of my being, that I am safe today. I know it for I feel Your Presence, in my better moments.
Help me to intuit the real meaning of the ego, as described in A Course in Miracles. I know that it is part of myself, but I do not have a handle on how to describe this, except in terms of what it is not. Help us all today to reflect a bit on the ego and to have the certainty that, even though we can’t pin it down, we do know what Jesus is talking about. And we would let that part of our belief about ourselves just wither away. We would not struggle to end the ego, for resistance makes the ego strong. We would just turn aside from the ego and all that it means. And, in so doing, we are turning our hell into Heaven.
May I study and derive a great deal from my reading. And may I commune with You on an almost constant basis. That is truly the way home.
Amen
MIRACLES EACH DAY 