You Have Never Left Heaven

1 – Help?

“There is no need for help to enter Heaven for you have never left. But there is need for help beyond yourself as you are circumscribed by false beliefs of your Identity, Which God alone established in reality. Helpers are given you in many forms, although upon the altar they are one. (M87)”

2 – Believable?

This is a lovely passage, but one that may be hard to believe. Have we really never left Heaven? It certainly seems that we have.

3 – The Self

The passage refers to the larger Self of which we are a part; this Self has indeed never left Heaven. The “false beliefs of your Identity” refer to the falling into the egoic state of mind, from which we would escape. We can escape by turning to the Helpers given us–the Holy Spirit (of primary importance), Jesus, other brothers and sisters, the Course itself, and the like. We are not alone in this world, and we would do well to reach out for help back Home.

4 – Release and Joy

It is a very loving thought to realize that we have never left Heaven. If we keep this one point in mind, it will lead us to the “limitless release” and “pure joy” that the Course speaks about elsewhere.

5 – Face of Christ

“The name of Jesus is the name of one who was a man but saw the face of Christ in all his brothers and remembered God. So he became identified with Christ, a man no longer, but at one with God. (M87)”

6 – Elder Brother

This passage explains the true role of Jesus as the Christ. Elsewhere, repeatedly, Jesus in the Course refers to himself as our brother, our elder brother, who has walked the whole pathway, and who stands at the end to help us when we fail to walk the whole pathway. He will assist us. We do not have to feel alone.

7 – Christ-Consciousness

All of us are eventually to reach Christ consciousness (an interpretation, not spelled out in the Course). Then we will surely understand what Jesus has been trying to tell us.

8 – Face of Christ

When we see the face of Christ in all our brothers and sisters, we will know that we have made much progress. Seeing the face of Christ in our brothers and sisters is a prerequisite to finding our way Home.

9 – Along with You. . .

“Is he the Christ? O yes, along with you. His little life on earth was not enough to teach the mighty lesson that he learned for all of you. He will remain with you to lead you from the hell you made to God. And when you join your will with his, your sight will be his vision, for the eyes of Christ are shared. Walking with him is just as natural as walking with a brother whom you knew since you were born, for such indeed he is. (M88)”

10 – Comforting

A quite comforting passage, this indicates that Jesus has nothing that we too are not meant to have. He has just reached Home sooner, and therefore is in a better position to help us do the same.

11 – Part of the Christhood

We too are part of the Christhood. We have not assumed our place yet (at least most of us have not), but the time is at hand when we will. Studying the Course is our way Home. Other pathways are valid also, but we have chosen the Course, and it has been meant for us.

12 – Walking with Jesus

This passage indicates that we have walked with Jesus since we were born; we just have not been aware of this blessing. Let us now be aware of this blessing.

Prayer:

Dear Father/Mother,

May I realize the beauty of the fact that my Self has never left Heaven. Thank You for this reassurance. May I know where to turn and what to do to realize Heaven.

I appreciate the reassurance that You offer me continually. Help me to live through this day and to make of it a good day.

Amen.

Glass in which the Ego Sees its Face Is Dark Indeed

“If you cannot hear the Voice for God, it is because you do not choose to listen. That you do listen to the voice of your ego is demonstrated by your attitudes, your feelings and your behavior. Yet this is what you want. This is what you are fighting to keep, and what you are vigilant to save. Your mind is filled with schemes to save the face of your ego, and you do not seek the face of Christ. The glass in which the ego seeks to see its face is dark indeed. (T-4.IV.1)”

Affirmation: “I would hear the Voice for God today.”

Reflections:

1 – Holy Spirit

A Course in Miracles is written for the time of the Holy Spirit, the Voice for God, the Universal Inspiration. A Course of Love is written for the time of the second coming of Christ, though in this trilogy no predictions are ever made about a physical second coming of Jesus. Now that we are taking a look, again, at part of ACIM, we need to realize that there is great importance in listening for the Voice. Do we actually hear anything? Probably not. If we did hear something, we probably would fear for our sanity.

2 – Guidance

But the guidance of the Holy Spirit comes in promptings, feelings, intuition. The guidance comes in a chance word overheard from friends or even strangers. The guidance from a word written in a book that we are reading. And there are innumerable other ways that the Holy Spirit speaks. (“The Gift of Guidance,” available in this blog as a lengthy article, identifies ten common ways that the Holy Spirit speaks to us. Click on “Articles and Book Reviews” in the bar at the top of the screen.)

3 – The Voice

At this point in reading ACIM we are still listening to our ego. We don’t know anything else to do. The idea that there is a Voice that can accurately tell us what next to do is foreign to us. It means relinquishing our own judgment, and we find this difficult, because the world has focused on educating our judgment to try to make sound decisions in this world. ACIM takes the opposite tack.

4 – No Harm

It is important to know that guidance, the Voice, the Holy Spirit, will never counsel us to say or do anything that is harmful to ourselves or to others. So we need to test our this guidance until the guidance becomes a reliable guide for us. The ego is wily, and we can sometimes interpret the voice of the ego for the Voice of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is quiet; the ego is raucous. The Holy Spirit is gentle; the ego is insistent. We will not be forced in any way by the Holy Spirit. It is always our decision to follow Him.

5 – Pathway

And the decision to follow becomes easier as we see how much more smoothly our pathway becomes.

Prayer:

Dear Father/Mother,

May I listen to guidance today. I say this to You a lot, and I do mean it. I find that my life flows much more smoothly with the helps that You give me. Thank You.

May my brothers and sisters have a good day today. And may I as well. The day is starting off brightly, and I have hope. Thank You for that hope.

Amen.

Glimpse the Face of Christ

“Does one whose vision has already glimpsed the face of Christ look back with longing on a slaughter house?  No one who has escaped the world and all its ills looks back on it with condemnation.  (M-13.4)”

Affirmation:  “I would see Christ today.”

Reflections:

1 – Vivid Language

With particular vivid language, this passage shows some of the negative view of our world as we live it.  But not with condemnation.  Jesus is compassionate always, and here he is expressing concern but not negativism.  He is telling it like it is.

2 – Awakening

We will escape the world when we have experienced Awakening, even though we may still be living in this world.  When material things no longer beckon us, as the ego wishes, we will be a long way toward home in God.

3 – Meaning of Glimpsing the Face of Christ

We need to understand glimpsing the “face of Christ.”  It is said elsewhere in ACIM that Jesus saw the face of Christ in all his brothers (and sisters, because the word “brother” includes women and is coming from the sixties, when ACIM was channeled) and remembered God.  We may find this miracle happening sooner rather than later, but only, perhaps, as a glimpse.  The insight will not last, for miracles are perceptual, and therefore do not last (a Text tenet).  When we experience this miracle more often and for longer periods of time, I would believe that we are inching closer to Awakening (Enlightenment).

4 – See This World with Clear Eyes

We do live in a “slaughter house.”  But we do not often realize this, for we have become accustomed to the maiming and killing.  We need, perhaps, to see the world with clear eyes so that we will be ever more motivated to leave–not through death, but through a higher vision.

Prayer:

Dear Father/Mother,

I would choose to look on all my brothers and sisters today while seeking to glimpse the face of Christ in them.  I remember a friend once saying to me that we are meant to see the fact of Christ in everyone.  Certainly Jesus has this view as well.  May I too come to have this view, this understanding.

Be with me as I go through the day.  Help me not to take offense at anything that might happen.  Help me to live Your way.

Be with my brothers and sisters, especially those who are struggling today.  The struggle is temporary, for A Course in Miracles notes that the solution is always with the problem.  But we don’t have see this, and so the solution eludes us.  May the solution of any thorny problems that others and I have today appear right away.  I do know that this is Your way.

Thank You for bringing me this far through this world.  And may I give something back to everyone with whom I form a bond of any nature.

Amen.

Finding Our Way to God

ACIM Workbook Lesson 315 – for Friday, November 11, 2011

Affirmation:  “All gifts my brothers give belong to me.”

“And everyone who finds the way to God becomes my savior, pointing out the way to me, and giving me his certainty that what he learned is surely mine as well.  (WB458)”

Reflections:

1 – Our Brothers and Sisters Play a Part in Our Salvation

This passage points the way for us, as well as the way we ought to interact with our brothers and sisters who have become our saviors by finding God.  It is a two-way street.  While we may realize that there is much more for to learn, and that others are ahead of us, it is true that only time separates all of us, and time does not really exist (ACIM tenets).  Once started on the pathway, the ending to our home in God is sure.  We learn from the individuals who have walked farther along the pathway than we have, and this applies most precisely to Jesus as our elder brother.

2 – Glimpses of Awakening

All along the way, though, we catch glimpses of Awakening, and at such times we are likely to have epiphanies that help us to know what our next step is to be.  At such times, we easily relax into the guidance of the Holy Spirit to tell us how to interact with others, our brothers and sisters.  We do not force “our” way upon them; there is a course for each teacher of God (a Manual tenet).  As I have said before in this blog, some are ready only for a smile.  Proselytizing frequently does the reverse of its intention.

3 – Only Time Separates Others from Us

Since only time separates our brothers and sisters from ourselves, then their knowledge is ours as well.  We just may not yet recognize how what they have learned can apply to ourselves.  Let us ask for guidance in such cases.  Often we recognize that a friend has a peace about him or her that seems almost supernatural.  Once we have started on the pathway, this experience of seeing salvation, seeing Christ, in the faces of others will build.  Our foreheads will be serene, and we will smile more frequently (from ACIM).  There is a way of being in the world without quite being here.  Those who comprehend as we do will recognize how we have changed, but others will think that we are the same as always, like them.  (These are paraphrases from ACIM.)

4 – A Secret Society

Thus develops a kind of secret society among those who see Christ in their brothers and sisters.  But we are not to be exclusive or use this miracle as a egoic distraction.  The ego is wily, and it will use such thoughts to separate us from others if we let this happen.  And we must join with our brothers and sisters, not think we are in anyway different or better than they are.  Only time separates, and time is an illusion.  All will go home eventually.  Let us help to make that time sooner rather than later.

Prayer:

Dear Father/Mother,

I would ask to see the face of Christ in my brothers and sisters today.  I know that this is a necessary prelude to the experience of Awakening.  I ask to love unconditionally all others as I walk the path to You.  Help me to forgive myself and others for all ego-based thinking and action.  We need to cultivate forgiveness,. and from forgiveness to move to make all of our special relationships holy.  May I make progress in this endeavor today.

I would be careful not to let ego intrude on the intriguing concept of walking this world with others, and being recognized by some of them as being on the pathway to You.  Actually, all of us are on the pathway to You, because there is no other pathway.  But not everybody realizes this, and so time separates us.  May I live in eternity today, aware that time is only an illusion.

Be with me as I turn aside from any and all attack and anger.  May I recognize these actions as the calls for help that they really are.  Help me not to retaliate, and give me guidance about the way that I eliminate this egoic thinking from my mind.  May I enjoy the “secret society” totally without any investment in the ego, but completely with thanks to You for giving me a way to recognize others who have found their way to You.

Amen.

Everyone Shows Me the Face of Christ

ACIM Workbook Lesson  269 – for Monday, September 26, 2011

Affirmation:  “My sight goes forth to look upon Christ’s face.”

“I ask Your blessing on my sight today.  It is the means which You have chosen to become the way to show me my mistakes, and look beyond them.  It is given me to find a new perception through the Guide You gave to me, and through His lessons to surpass perception and return to truth.  I ask for the illusion which transcends all those I made.  Today I choose to see a world forgiven, in which everyone shows me the face of Christ, and teaches me that what I look upon belongs to me; that nothing is, except Your holy Son.  (WB430)”

Reflections:

1 – The Miracle of Seeing the Face of Christ

This prayer says directly that we are to see the face of Christ in all of our brothers and sisters:  “a world forgiven, in which everyone shows me the face of Christ.”  This is a miraculous occurrence, and because it is perceptual, it will not last (a Text tenet).  But the miracle can recur, and even if it does not, and we see the face of Christ only once or, at most, a few times, we will be blessed by the miracle.  Mother Teresa saw the face of Christ in the people whom she tended, “Christ in all his distressing disguises,” she said.

2 – A Personal Experience

I once did have this experience.  It did not last, and has not recurred, but it was a transformative experience of my early twenties.  A decade and more later on, a friend who was quite “religious,” but not a student of A Course in Miracles, told me that she thought we were meant to see the face of Christ in everyone.  By that time, I had discovered ACIM, and I had I found the same sentiment as expressed by Jesus.  Once we have experienced this miracle, we will not look upon others in quite the same way.  We will know that, even if we are not seeing Christ’s face currently, it is there for our cleansed eyes to see.  And we will be blessed by the memory of what we have once experienced.

3 – We Must Forgive to See Christ’s Face

Jesus says that our forgiveness is a prerequisite to seeing the face of Christ in others.  One of the faces of a friend, in which I perceived a Christ likeness, was one whom I had forgiven fully for past perceived injustices.  Others, at nearly the same time, were strangers to me.  But I certainly held no animosity toward them, and I believe that it might be said that I was in a state of total acceptance and forgiveness of them.  May we experience the face of Christ over and over, and may we be blessed by the miracle.

Prayer:

Dear Father/Mother,

I would see the face of Christ in everyone I see today.  I know that to do so, I must hold no unforgiveness in my heart.  Help me to love today, totally and completely.  Help me to pray for those who seem to be estranged from me.  I wish all well.  I do not know what may be prompting the estrangement, but I would pray for its healing.

May the face of Christ give me healing today, for I need it also.  Be with me, through thick and thin, and lead me back home to You.  Thank You.

Amen.