Day 93: Light and joy and peace abide in me.

Light and joy and peace abide in me.

This is so, because this is what we are made of.  Light and Joy and Peace, of course, are synonymous with Love.

Today's lesson goes on to tell us that our "sinlessness is guaranteed by God."  This would appear to contradict so much of what we see in the world, not to mention what we have read in our history books.  Yet A Course in Miracles reassures us:

Why would you not be overjoyed to be assured that all the evil that you think you did was never done, that all your sins are nothing, that you are as pure and holy as you were created, and that light and joy and peace abide in you?  Your image of yourself cannot withstand the Will of God.  You think that this is death, but it is life.  You think you are destroyed, but you are saved.

Any so-called sin, the Course says, simply does not exist.  We can think we are sinners, and thus we will appear to sin.  But the Laws of God and Science are clear: Energy cannot be created nor destroyed – it simply changes form.  Any perceived sin and its subsequent “destruction,” then, is just a shift of energy.

We live in a world where stories of rape, murder, assault and otherwise horrific crimes dominate our news media.  We walk about on an earth where bloodshed stains the soil, where massacres and genocides pollute our histories, where war is the foundation of our nations.  We live in a global society where we continue to allow torture, poverty, hunger and slavery to exist.  We inhabit a planet where at any given moment nuclear bombs could detonate and wipe out our entire population.

Given the state of things, destruction seems inevitable, and sin ever-present.  Yet none of it is real.  The physical world, we must remember, is an illusion.  It is a dreamed-up construct by which we have the opportunity to experience our own Divinity.  Since we have free will, we can also choose to experience that which we are not, and we have done far too much of that on this planet.

Let us commit, then, to no longer viewing ourselves as sinners.  Let us recognize the Light and the Joy and the Peace abiding within all of us, and let us begin to live and experience those divine qualities out loud.  Let us remove the pollution of our planet and replace those idle illusions with the images that reflect our True nature - the Love and Light of God.

And so it is.  Thank you, and Amen.

Until tomorrow,
Journeyman

Day 92: Miracles are seen in light, and light and strength are one.

Miracles are seen in light, and light and strength are one.

A Course in Miracles asks us in today's meditation to take twenty minutes to "meet with" our inner-Light, our inner-Strength, which is the Son of God within us.  We are to do this once in the morning and once in the evening.

In my meditations today - my appointments with my Higher Self - I sat in stillness as I let the quiet Strength of God's Son come over me.  Our human eyes are blind to the Light of God, but we can reach it by going deep within ourselves.  The Strength of this Light is not one of aggression.  It does not carry with it a forcefulness, but something far more powerful - a sure and steady resolve.  As the Course says in today's lesson, "The light of strength is not the light you see.  It does not change and flicker and go out.  It does not shift from night to day, and back to darkness till the morning comes again."  The Light of Strength is invisible to the physical world, but if we close our eyes to look within, we can learn to recognize it.

Imagine, if you will, turning on a lamp in your bedroom.  As the light bulb grows brighter, it casts away the shadows effortlessly.  What once may have seemed like an endless expanse of darkness is revealed to be a small room, with a bed in one corner and a dresser in the other.  Perhaps small objects sit on the nightstand, trinkets of familiar comfort.  If we brighten the light, we can even see specks of dust floating in the air.  Our vision yields greater and greater detail the more we allow the light to fill the room.

The Light of God works in the same way.  It is Strength, for it allows us to See.  And to truly See is to bring forth the miracles once hidden among the shadows.  The miracles will give us comfort.  They will show us that their is nothing to fear.  The more we are able to harness our inner-Strength and brighten the glow of our Light, the more miracles will come to our awareness.

Let us remember this simple lessen then whenever we encounter those shadows lingering in the dark.  We need not be afraid, for the Light is always with us.  The Light and Strength are one and the same, and with it we may cast away the darkness without effort.  We will see past the shadows, in whatever form they may take, by simply turning on the Light.

Are you ready to flip the switch and allow your bulb to glow brightly?  All you need is the willingness to try.

Until tomorrow,
Journeyman

Day 91: Miracles are seen in light.

Miracles are seen in light.

As I've mentioned in previous postings, all there is and all there ever will be is Light.  The challenge we have in living in the physical world is seeing that light.

Today's meditation lesson goes on to tell us the following:

The body's eyes do not perceive the light.
But I am not a body.  What am I?

We are given the task today to look beyond the images we perceive with our physical eyes so that we may recognize the light.  We are asked to feel the Strength of God within ourselves and allow it to replace our vision with a clearer picture, one which will make visible the miracles hidden within the holograms of the physical world.

One of the mantras I have been saying in my regular daily meditations is, "I am not my body.  I am greater than my body.  I extend into all things, seen and unseen."  From both a scientific and a spiritual perspective, we are all connected.  If we break down our bodies to the tiniest atomic particle, we see that even in the physical world, all matter is joined together by virtue of energy.  This energy, from a spiritual perspective, is the Holy Spirit, joining all things together and keeping them connected to our One Source - God.

Each one of us is a ray of Light, connected like a stream to a river that flows into the ocean.  Our world is the river, and God is the ocean.  The fluidity of our Light can flow in either direction - extending outward from our Source or returning to it.

I am not a body, but I know for certain that I am a channel of Light.  I know for certain that, if I let it, the ocean of God's Light can magnify the strength of my own inner light so that I may See the miracles otherwise hidden in our physical world.

So let us see ourselves today for what we really are.  Let us allow the waves of the ocean to wash over all that we perceive so they may reveal the Beauty and Magnificence of the Light beyond.  We can find the miracles that lay beneath the surface.  All we must do is have a willingness to See.

Until tomorrow,
Journeyman

Day 90: Review - Lessons 79 & 80

Today's the last review for a little while!  Below are the links to my previous postings:

Day 79: Let me recognize the problem so it can be solved.

Day 80: Let me recognize my problems have been solved.

A Course in Miracles tells us that, in spite of all the varying problems we perceive in the world, we only have but one problem: separation.

In fact, we are not separate from one another at all, yet our egos would have us believe this is so.

From the Vision I have been seeing regularly in my meditations (see Day 86), I know that we are all connected to each another through God's Light.  However, in a physical world where we all have our own physical bodies, it would appear that we are separate.  But if energy were visible to the human eye, if we could see that invisible Light of God, we would never believe that we were disconnected.

A belief in separation yields a feeling of competition.  This produces varying levels of status.  Conflict and war are inevitable.  Attack thoughts and aggressive actions are the driving force in such a world.  Grievances rule the day.  Yet it would all go away if we eliminated the central problem and recognize that we are not separate at all, nor have we ever been.

The Course tells us that in the presence of every grievance there is a miracle.  And so it is.  In the second lesson we are reviewing today - Let me recognize my problems have been solved - here is what A Course in Miracles says:

I seem to have problems only because I am misusing time.  I believe that the problem comes first, and time must elapse before it can be worked out.  I do not see the problem and the answer as simultaneous in their occurrence.  That is because I do not yet realize that God has placed the answer together with the problem, so that they cannot be separated by time.  The Holy Spirit will teach me this, if I will let him.  And I will understand it is impossible that I could have a problem which has not been solved already.

What this tells us is that as often as our egos present situations that seem to confirm our separateness (thus resulting in a grievance), the Holy Spirit simultaneously provides us with a miracle, a chance to shift our perception from fear to Love.  All we must do then is look beyond what we initially may perceive as a threat.  There is a miracle hidden within every fearful situation.

Recently, as I have been progressing through the Course, I have begun to look at every person I encounter as a reflection of myself (for that is, in actuality, what we all are - reflections of one another).  It has been a wonderful experience, and one which makes looking past any potential grievances much easier.  For instance, I will see an older woman with beady eyes and over-sized neon green glasses speaking nonsensical phrases to her cat and think to myself, "That's an interesting choice I made in that life.  I'm sure my cat thinks I look pretty."  Or I'll be watching the news and see videos from Taliban members while I shake my head and say, "Wow, I was really mistaken in my beliefs as that person.  I hope I learn that inflicting so much fear upon others will only hurt myself."  Sure, this may seem like an odd concept at first, but give it a try.  The more you do it, the more you'll begin to see that hidden force connecting us all.  The more we reach past the fear-based illusions of our egos to see the Light in each other, the closer we will come to healing our world.

So let us give praise that things are not what they seem, nor need they ever be.  In every person, in every circumstance, there is an opportunity for us to perform a miracle.  All that consists of is seeing ourselves in one another - in realizing that we are not apart, but forever connected to the Source of Light that brought us into existence.  Let us be grateful that this is so.

Until tomorrow,
Journeyman

Day 89: Review - Lessons 77 & 78

Here are the links to my previous blog postings for the lessons we are reviewing today:

Day 77: I am entitled to miracles.

Day 78: Let miracles replace all grievances.

This is the message I received during today's meditation:

You are entitled to miracles because you are a miracle.  You - a Pure Creation of Love - were born into a fear-dominated world.  Yet this does not have to be so.  Everything you see in your world can be perceived as miraculous, if only you will lay down your grievances.  See the world differently, see the potential for miracles in every fearful situation, and you will bring Light unto the world.  This is your salvation.  Miracles are your stepping stones along the path of Atonement.  Be open, so that you may recognize them.  Remember that nothing of this world can harm you, for you are a Divine Child of God.  Everything you perceive as a potential threat to your peace of mind can be transformed into a miracle, if you let it.

Well there you have it.  I think that pretty much sums up today's lesson.  What more could I add to a message from the Divine?  Better to wrap up and keep things short and sweet.

Until tomorrow,
Journeyman

Day 88: Review - Lessons 75 & 76

Day 75: The light has come.

Day 76: I am under no laws but God's.

The light has come, indeed.  There always has been and always will be nothing but Light.

Today during my meditation, I didn't - rather, I couldn't - pull myself outside out of the All Encompassing Light to behold the Vision of God I described in Day 86.  Instead, I saw the Universe from His perspective.

From my own light within, I felt as though I were traveling backward.  I watched the light extend into my thought particles, into my atoms and my cells, as they all receded into the background of my vision.  I saw my body, also glowing now from the light within, as it continued to brighten outward.  I looked upon the world and the illuminated life-forms all around.  I traveled further backward, watching our brightly-lit planet fade into the backdrop, and further still, watching our sun, our solar system, and our galaxy become smaller and smaller in the field of my vision.

At last, I came to a standstill.  I resided in God's space, and marveled at what I saw.  In every direction I looked, heavenly bodies stretched outward to Infinity.  I felt the invisible thread of the path that lead me to this place - the path that connected me to the Source, the Center of it All, where I was at that moment.  I could feel the connection to all the other living beings of the Universe.  And it was in that moment I realized that Light is Life.

If all there is is Light, and Light is Life, then Life is everywhere, in everything.  Anything that defies that is an illusion.  It simply cannot be.

Life is Creation.  It is ever-expanding.  In the presence of creation, destruction is not possible.  What may appear as destruction is simply a transfer of energy.

Energy can neither be made nor destroyed - it simply is, always has been, and always will be.  Energy can change form, and this is what we call Creation.

These are the Laws of God, which as today's review reminds us is all there is.  Ultimately, God only has One Law, and that law is Love.  God's Law is Love.  Only Love can join souls together while also setting them free.  Only Love can expand unto Eternity.  Only Love can shine away the darkness we perceive.

Let us rejoice then, today, that we are Light, we are Life, and we are the conduits of Creation - for we are under only One Law, God's Law.  He gave us the capacity to Love one another, for He loves us so dearly.  Let us return that gift by recognizing the Love, the Light and the Life in others, and we will surely create miraculous things.

Until tomorrow,
Journeyman

Day 87: Review - Lessons 73 & 74

Day 73: I will there be light.

Day 74: There is no will but God’s.

“I will there be light.”  These were the first words expressed by God.  Though the Bible says, “Let there be light,” this phrase is much too passive to have come from our Creator.  “I will there be light” is an assertion of God’s power, His choice to bring Light unto existence.

Of course, there really was no Beginning.  Nor will there be an End.  These would defy the laws of Infinity.  God is always and forever expressing His Will that there Be Light, for God is Eternal.  Time is a concept only of the physical world – a context through which we are able to grow and experience our individuated Aspects of Divinity (see Day 86 for more clarification on this).

Scientists theorize that the Big Bang occurred approximately 13.75 billion years ago.  This is the supposed “beginning” of our universe’s creation.  Yet new evidence suggests that the universe, as we know it, is one of many.

What this implies is that our universe was created by an even Greater Force, a larger Field of Energy.  Who’s to say that this Force doesn’t continue on and on and on, giving birth to universes upon universes, which then give form to galaxies, which produce stars, then planets, then Life…?  Even within our physical bodies, there is an infinite degree of composition – from our organs to our tissues to our cells to our molecules to our atoms and beyond, until all there is is Energy.  This is the same Energy, the same Force, causing the expansion of our own universe.  Yes, God is indeed Infinite.  Creation is forever extending outward and forever drawing inward.  What we call “The Universe” is actually just another one of God’s creations, a manifestation of His Light.

As God and His Universes are Infinite in number, then all there is – all there was, and all there ever will be – is Light.  Such is God’s will.  It can be our own as well.

We can make the choice to see the Light, or we can choose to turn our backs on it.  Doing so doesn’t eliminate its existence, but it does blind us to Reality.  Light is Reality.  Darkness is illusion.  As such, the only True Will is that of God’s.  As His Divine Creations, we have been given free will.  We are reflections of God, and as God’s Will is free, so is ours.  Thus, we can choose to blind ourselves by continuing to face the dark, or we can accept God’s Will as All There Really Is and live our lives in Light.  Our free will will remain, for the creations of God’s Light are Infinite – as the ever-expanding universes outside us and within us confirm.

God wills there be light so that we may See.  To See is to experience.  And to experience our individuated Aspects of Divinity is nothing short of Joyous, as long as we do not forget the presence of that Light in all of us, in everything and everywhere.

Until tomorrow,
Journeyman