Live in the Now

“As you look upon yourself and judge what you do honestly, you may be tempted to wonder how you can be guiltless.  Yet consider this:  You are not guiltless in time, but in eternity.  You have ‘sinned’ in the past, but there is no past.  Always has no direction.”  (A Course in Miracles, FIP ed., T-13.I.3)

This is Jesus’s explanation of how everything happening is outside time, is always in the “now.”  In time, we see sequences of things going on, past to present to future.  But everything is actually simultaneous, for time is part of the illusion in which we find ourselves.

We have “sinned,” which is put in quotation marks, because a tenet of A Course in Miracles is actually that there is no sin, that we have simply made mistakes, correctable mistakes.  The idea of sin is represented as having an attracting quality, something irresistible that we want to keep repeating.  Mistakes don’t feel the same to us; we want to make amends, to correct what we have done wrong, to seek forgiveness if necessary.

Time proceeds from past to present to future, but when we concentrate on the moment we are in right now, we are truly living.  And this “now” moment is often seen as a precursor to Awakening.  When we learn to live more and more of our moments without reference to time, we are coming closer to the ideal to which Jesus is leading us:  Awakening.

We have done things wrong in the past; we have made mistakes.  And we will want to seek forgiveness, from ourselves as well as others, for those mistakes.  We do not have to beg forgiveness of God, according to A Course in Miracles, for God has never condemned us; He has simply seen us as his innocent children.  But the primary thrust of ACIM is the matter of forgiveness, and we would do well to consider the primacy of forgiveness early on in our journey without distance.

Make amends.  Seek to right wrongs.  And then know that the forgiveness that you seek for yourself, you must also offer to others.  This is the way of A Course in Miracles.  This is our way home.  We must learn to see the innocence of our brothers as they confront us.  Everyone is truly doing the best that he can, given his degree of understanding.  And we are all mad in this world to one extent or another.  We should not, therefore, underestimate the extent of our brother’s insanity. 

Stepping into Our Tomorrows

“The use of time determines, at all levels, what you will experience in your tomorrows. . . .[L]ong after the body dies, you will indeed be continually stepping into your tomorrows.”  (“The Way of Transformation,” WOM, Chapter 14, Page 172)

This quotation is a poignant reminder of our eternal life, “stepping into your tomorrows.”  We need to know that we are preparing for the future always, even as we try with all our might to live in the Now (as Tolle says).  If we stay close to God, we will know how to make the best use of all of the Now times.  We will thereby be doing all that we can to ensure a good future.

We must not live in the past.  It is true that we can learn from the past, but we don’t want to get “stuck” in it.  The best preparation for the future is today well lived.  I read that a long time ago, too long to give a footnote.  It is something that we need as a constant reminder of what we are doing and where we are heading.

We don’t often think of the “use” of time.  We may rue our present, and that is not the way to live well.  Time is an illusion, it is true, but it seems real enough for us in our present environment.  So we can’t just ignore it.

Make today count.  Make all our days count.

The life well lived starts with today.

Eternally Extend Perfect Love

Note: After this post, I am going to take a brief break from posting. Thank you for your views.

“Everything has been created for the same purpose:  to eternally extend perfect love.”  Choose Only Love:  Let Yourself Be Loved (COL bk.2, 15:I)

Everything is an extension of God, and God is perfect Love.  So, when we are living right, we are extending love.  If we don’t do this, we will be falling down on the job.  We simply need to reassess and decide that God’s way is the way that we want to go.  That is all.  It will be enough.

But this is “perfect” love, and not many of us feel that we live up to that.  At least not often and not in every situation.  Pray today to live a more perfect love.  That too will be enough.

We are eternal beings, never to lose life at all.  We move into and out of form in this world, and possibly others as well.  The only evidence of eternity in our world is the “now,” and so it would be very good to live in the present on a constant basis.

So:  What are we about, but to love and be loved, living with our focus in the here and now?  This should be easy enough.  Why, oh why, do we make it so hard?  God would not have it so.  His way is easy and non-conflicted.  Let us ask to walk His way now and every day.

Make the Decision to Be Alive

“Surrender, then, is the process in which you finally relent; you give up resisting the fact of your very existence. You stop whining about it. You stop lamenting it. You stop worrying about it. You make the decision to get on with being alive! And what is alive about you is going to be alive forever. There is no place to hide and nowhere to go.” (“The Way of the Heart,” WOM, Lesson 8, Page 99)

We need to drop the past, with its laments, and march steadfastly into the future, pausing in moment-to-moment awareness of what “is.” This will get us where we want to go, which is deep in the heart of God. Our surrender to Him makes all the difference. It is the mechanism of healing. It is the way home.

All too often we do “whine,” as Jesus says. We regret that we don’t always feel chipper; we have our aches and pains that take us from thankfulness for the lives that we have been given.

But there is a way out, and this quotation gives it. We just get on with being alive; we just get on with living! We deemphasize the parts of our lives that we find undesirable, and we walk into the sunshine of a new day with emphasis on what is right.

That is all. We have the panacea for all life’s ills, here in this one quotation. We do live eternally, and the best place to start our eternal life is always and only Now.

Wholly Give Up Attack

1 – Teacher = Holy Spirit

“But the Teacher Who knows the truth has not forgotten it. His decisions bring benefit to all, being wholly devoid of attack. And therefore incapable of arousing guilt. (M71)”

2 – Answers

Here is a reason that the Holy Spirit, the “Teacher,” does so well in guiding us. His answers are totally devoid of attack. Our judgments, even when we are at our best, may have an edge of attack, often very subtle. Our judgments can even be passive-aggressive, in which we do not directly confront another, but we attack then subtly by kind words that are not really kind.

3 – Benefit

Note that the Teacher’s truth brings benefit to all. And that includes us as well. So we are not wrong to see a selfish motive to following this guidance. It helps us as well as our brothers and sisters.

4 – Ego

We cannot stress too often the need to give up attack in all its forms. Until we do, we are caught in the ego, for only the ego will attack. May we pray to be free of the machinations of the ego, and to turn to our Teacher in as many times as would be practical. Jesus does say elsewhere that we are not bade to ask the Holy Spirit’s advice constantly, as this is not practical. We are bade to ask for guidance in the mornings and again at night, and to turn to the Holy Spirit at other times that are propitious. Then our thoughts and actions will be well-placed.

5 – Inheritance

“To ask the Holy Spirit to decide for you is simply to accept your true inheritance. Does this mean that you cannot say anything without consulting Him? No, indeed! That would hardly be practical, and it is the practical with which this course is most concerned.”

6 – Be Practical

Here is another entreaty to ask the Holy Spirit for guidance. Moreover, we are given specific guidelines: Be practical, which means that we do not ask on a continual basis because that is not practical.

7 – Guidance

Our true inheritance is to submit to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. An inheritance is a gift, a mighty gift. We are encouraged to realize the blessing that God has bestowed on us by giving us such a Helper.

8 – Often Turn

The more often we turn to the Holy Spirit, with a willing mind and heart, the more He can do for us. This does not negate the practical, but turning to Him as a matter of course becomes habitual the farther along the pathway of the Course we go.

9 – Wisdom

“If you have made it a habit to ask for help when and where you can, you can be confident that wisdom will be given you when you need it. Prepare for this each morning, remember God when you can throughout the day, ask the Holy Spirit’s help when it is feasible to do so, and thank Him for His guidance at night. And your confidence will be well founded indeed. (M71)”

10 – Ask

This passage outlines the way in which Jesus would have us respond to the Holy Spirit. Ask in the morning, turn to God during the day, and thank Him at night for His guidance. We will then know the truth of these important words.

11 – More Egotistical

If we become more egotistical, which will happen from time to time, we can gauge our state of mind by how willing we are to be flexible about following the Holy Spirit’s guidance. We will need to be flexible, because sometimes the guidance comes at the immediate point that we have begun to do something different.

12 – Happiness

Following guidance is the way to happiness in this world. And it is also our way Home.

13 – Heart Requests

“Never forget that the Holy Spirit does not depend on your words. He understands the requests of your heart, and answers them. Does this mean that, while attack remains attractive to you, He will respond with evil? Hardly! For God has given Him the power to translate your prayers of the heart into His language. He understands that an attack is a call for help. And He responds with help accordingly. (M71)”

14 – Reassuring

A very reassuring passage (as are so many in the Course), these words assure us that the better “thoughts” of our heart will be what the Holy Spirit listens and responds to. We may ask for what may hurt us, but God will protect us from such false dreams. The Holy Spirit knows what the Self really wants, and this Self is the larger life that we have beyond this world.

15 – Attack = Call for Help

This passage repeats the oft-given truth that an attack is a call for help. This explains what we may already realize from other passages: that our brothers and sisters are only asking for help when they attack. The same holds true for ourselves as well. Attack is never what it seems. Attack asks that we rush to the side of the offending party, and give whatever sort of help seems called for. Once we take this truth to heart, we will never view our brothers and sisters the same. We have no reason to become angry when we are the brunt of an attack. Our brothers and sisters always just want our help, however disguised the request comes to us.

16 – Welcome the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit always helps us. He does not intrude, but once we have made Him welcome, He will be there for us. The most important aspect is our flexibility is following His guidance. He does not frequently give advice unsolicited or even too far in advance; that is why we must be ready and even eager to “turn on a dime.” When we follow guidance consistently, we open the way to a glorious world, the real world, that is far beyond anything that this prosaic world seems to offer us.

17 – Cruel?

“God would be cruel if He let your words replace His Own. A loving father does not let his child harm himself, or choose his own destruction. He may ask for injury, but his father will protect him still. And how much more than this does your Father love His Son? (M71)”

18 – No Answer?

This passage seems to suggest the real reason that we sometimes think that we do not receive answers to our prayers. The Course makes clear that we are always answered in our best interests, and our prayers may have asked for something that, in the long run, would be to our detriment.

19 – Friend

The Holy Spirit, just like Jesus, is our Friend. He will protect us in this sometimes chaotic world. We have only to offer Him the slightest nod in His direction, and He tells us where to step next.

20 – God

God is our Father/Mother. He, like an earthly father (normally), wants only the best for us, His children. He will protect us by sending the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, to help us make our way in this world. Then we will know the blessings that are truly intended for us. We must pray for solutions to our difficulties. We will not be disappointed, though God’s timetable in answering may not be our own.

21 – Immediately

“Ask all things of His Teacher, and all things are given you. Not in the future but immediately; now. (M71)”

22 – Helpful

This passage is incredibly helpful. We receive answers immediately to our questions and to our prayers. “Now” may not be recognized by us, though. We may not hear the Answer that we are expecting, leading us to believe that we are not heard at all. But we are.

23 – Go Within

When answers do not seem to come immediately, go within. Get calm and relaxed, or, as the Course says, “perfectly calm and quiet.” Ask why there seems to be a delay. And you will be told. The answer will present itself. If you are very upset, you may not be able to hear the response immediately. Pray diligently, and then quietly go about your life. When you are quiet within, the Answer will appear. This is an assurance that this passage gives.

24 – Frame of Mind

The fact that the answer is given “now” does not necessarily mean that we are in the frame of mind that can hear that answer. Be patient with yourself. We are not without limitations in this world (a Course concept). Know in your deepest heart that the Answer you are seeking has been given, and in time, usually soon, the Answer will appear spontaneously in your mind and heart.

Prayer:

Dear Father/Mother,

Help me to give up attack. If I cannot reach this ultimate good, may I reach for love as long as I possibly can. Only love is the way of the saved.

Be with me throughout the day today. I know that I feel better when I have loved rather than attacked. This is evidence that Your way is right for me.

Amen.

Akin to Eckhart Tolle

“In the sense of time described by the word present, there is no infinitude, but only a vague concept of now.  This is the key concept that I not only knew but demonstrated.  This is the legacy, the inheritance, I left to you.  (A Course of Love, 30.8)”

Affirmation:  “I would live in the Now today.”

Reflections:

1 – The Now

This passage from Jesus is well-described by Eckhart Tolle in his book, The Power of Now.  But our minds are like runaway puppies, eager to explore past and future, seemingly impossible to pin down to the present.  Yet the Now is Jesus’s legacy to us.  He lived in the Now, and he wants us also to do so.  It will not come to us by trying, but only by the grace of God.  And we will not lose anything thereby.  We can and should ask now for the experience of living in the present, the present that is eternity.  All moments that we experience are always Now.

2 – A Richness of Life

Why do many spiritual leaders stress living in the Now, if it is so difficult to do?  They do not choose to encourage us in such a practice because it is difficult, but because it works in our lives.  Living in the now allows a richness of life that nothing else can satisfy.

3 – People’s Choices

Many people choose daring adventures that force themselves in the Now.  They report that at such times of such peak experiences, they, for once, felt really alive.  And that is what living in the present will do for us.  It will make us feel truly alive, truly grateful for the opportunity of a life spent on earth.

4 – Just Stop

How do we slow down and stop enough to experience the Now?  The only way to stop is to stop.  Give a few moments to prayer, contemplation, meditation, and the like.  Let the mind become still.  Do not fret.  If we are especially fortunate, then the experience that we have at such moments of stillness will give us a hunger for more times like this.  We will be hooked on the Now.

Prayer:

Dear Father/Mother,

I would recognize eternity.  This is the idea that Jesus is truly getting across.  I would understand eternity by living in the Now.  And all will be well.

I can practice living in the Now by being mindful as I go about routine tasks during the day.  Help me to follow Your way as I go through this day.

Thank You for the revelations that You have given to Eckhart.  

Amen.