Miracles are involuntary and they cannot be controlled. This is how a joyful life is lived, by letting go and letting God; by not trying to control the world, and not trying to plan for the future. It’s okay to let go, you will not die by letting go of control, you will actually live!
Trust
The Gift of Happiness
The way to receive the gift of happiness is to make a habit of living a Spirit-guided life. To do this we must recognize that the mind, not the body, is the decision maker. Our current perception shows us a fragmented world of fear and rage. So when confronted with a decision it is helpful for us to step back and ask “What is it for?” Then we can choose the Spirit’s purpose of forgiveness or undoing. We can choose to serve something bigger than our self. David and Frances continue on to tell enlightening parables about: opening to love, our one responsibility, Siddhartha and the movie, “Sully.”
In Enlightenment Does One Still Feel Pain, Fear, or Sadness?
This is a commonly asked question by non-dual students on the topic of enlightenment. David’s answer is direct—that is a misperception; he says that there is no pain or suffering of any kind in Oneness. It is the deceived mind (the ego) that seems to experience emotions. If you perceive a world of separate images and seem to feel fluctuating emotions, that is the indicator that you want to ask for Help. It is the opportunity to question and enquire within; to forgive the very possibility of emotions, pain, and suffering, to use the language of “A Course in Miracles”. “Help me to see,” then an openness and humility can come in and you can choose again; to choose the joy of reality, of truth, of God instead of a false idea of pain.
Heal the Sick and Raise the Dead
Part of the spiritual journey is to heal the beliefs in sickness, pain and death. These beliefs can feel very ingrained to a mind that’s identified with the body. It can seem frightening to take a closer look at these thoughts when we’d rather avoid them. When faced with thoughts of death it can seem intensely fearful, our instant reaction can be to distract away from the fear, but these can be used as mind expanding experiences. In handing all of our thoughts over around sickness and death we can let the Holy Spirit interpret and heal our perception around these beliefs to free our mind from suffering.
Family Life and the Spiritual Journey
Nothing can go wrong when we follow the Spirit’s guidance. When we begin the spiritual journey, we may seem to get negative reflections from our family at first; but they are really just calls for love. Keep extending love in these moments and just trust in the great plan for awakening and in the Holy Spirit. Everything always works out in the end. And remember that all things work together for good, you can’t mess this up!
Plan Bs or Present Trust?
Jesus will guide us so our journey is smooth and joyful. We only feel pain and sacrifice when we resist. Plan Bs are resistance, used to support the self-concept rather than the Christ Self. Yet the Holy Spirit and Jesus show us that trust is justified. Are we willing to trust so much that we let go of our plan Bs? Our problem is that first we decide what we want, and then we ask for guidance. The asking needs to come first. When we are identified with a self-concept we don’t know our best interests; we are completely lost and need the help of the Holy Spirit. Thankfully, that help is available to us anytime we ask for it
Give up Your Plan B
A plan B is anything we have in mind for our future happiness while ignoring the present moment. We are fighting ourselves with these distractive plan Bs. To be happy we need to trust the present Love of God, to trust it so much that we give up the plan Bs. In no situation do we know our own best interests. Yet we think we do. We tend to first decide what we want and then ask Spirit for direction. Instead, by deciding not to decide, we can open ourselves to let Spirit decide for us. In this way we come to experience that all real pleasure comes from doing God’s will.
Trust the Holy Spirit’s Voice
The Course goes far beyond an intellectual endeavor. It is a course in relinquishing every concept that we have ever held and opening to a deep trust that Spirit will guide and lead us. We can’t trust our past learning, our opinions, or our past experience, for these were made by the ego. Nor can we trust Newtonian empirical research, which is also an egoic projection based on the belief in an external world. Yet we can trust the Holy Spirit, Who will lovingly unwind our mind from every self-concept and limiting belief we ever held. By choosing to hear and follow His Voice alone, we will gradually awaken to Love’s Presence and be happy.
I Gave It the Meaning It Had for Me
Every situation that we experience in the world is an opportunity to let go of the idea that we know what things mean. When we recognize that we have given everything we see the meaning it has for us, we can choose differently. Becoming still and receptive to the Holy Spirit’s way of seeing, rather than interpretations based on the belief in past learning, opens us to guidance in a very practical way.
From CEO to Mystic
David Hoffmeister has a revealing conversation with two former Chief Executive Officers who left their careers to devote their lives to God. CEOs cannot become enlightened. Holding any role as an identity—mother, father, butcher, baker—keeps you in illusion. You can’t spiritualize a business. You can’t bring the truth to the illusion; you must bring the illusion to the truth.