People are thoughts in the mind, they are not really people. People do not have their own private minds and private thoughts. And they cannot seem to exist outside of the One Mind. A Course in Miracles states that at no single instant does the body exist at all, it is always remembered or anticipated. It is the fiction of identity as a person that has to be forgiven, and that’s it. You can see as many thoughts as you want. You can watch those thoughts come by, come and go in your awareness. The ones that seem to be dead, the ones that seem to be living..there’s no difference. It’s artificial, birth and death. And responsibility, there’s only one that ACIM teaches us, and that’s to accept the Atonement.
Holy Instant
How to Become Enlightened?
What if you do entertain the notion of enlightenment? Some symbols and stories are about the possibility that you will become enlightened in a different Earth lifetime, and that it isn’t possible in this one. But deep down, there is a feeling that anything is possible. What if you entertain the notion of the Holy Instant as spoken about in “A Course in Miracles?”
All Those Shameful, Shameful Sexual Thoughts
Does it feel like you carry shameful sexual thoughts or guilty secrets? If you would know the holy instant, you have to have a willingness to hide nothing. Let’s get everything up and out and not have anything pushed down and repressed. This is for the whole universe! It’s important not to single out certain subjects and topics as better or more embarrassing or shameful than others. Anything that’s blocking the light needs to be released. Whether we talk about awkward thoughts or seemingly shameful thoughts, it’s the belief they are true where the guilt comes in.
What Is True Happiness? How Can I Find It?
You have been exerting a lot of mind energy trying to find love, freedom, happiness, and peace in the wrong direction: the world. Put all of your trust in the Spirit, and look closely and honestly at where your mind energy goes. What are you invested in? What are you putting your trust in? Nutrition, economics, being liked? A Course in Miracles teaches us, that to find lasting peace and happiness, we must start to withdraw our attention and focus from the thoughts of this world—the ego belief system—and start reinvesting our trust in that which will bring true fruition, true peace of mind. What is true happiness? It is not found in this world. You are entitled to peace, happiness, and joy; but you have forgotten who you are and are looking to the world for these things. The Holy Spirit is calling you out of this world and its belief system. This is the only worthy cause to put your mind energy into. It is one thing to say the words, “I trust you Holy Spirit and I want to hear you.” But most of the work with A Course in Miracles is taking a very close, honest look at the idea of, What have I invested in? It isn’t even a matter of having more trust. You can run a “guilt trip” on yourself even for that. For example, “I don’t have enough trust, I need to trust more.” It isn’t so much a more-or-less-thing, but it is withdrawing our belief and trust in the ego’s belief system and instead trusting in guidance.
Meditation and Holy Instant
Meditation is generally considered as an activity on the timeline, to still the mind. In reality it’s not an activity. Release time-related concepts such as preparation. Empty your mind. You can only desire the holy instant. Give yourself over to the desire for the peace of God.
Falsely Identifying with Illusion
As long as the mind is deceived about its identity, it’s in a very confused state; you can’t even judge your advances from your retreats. The mind taking on “A Course in Miracles” has to first admit that it hasn’t a clue about anything. That would be the most honest thing that it could admit. You have to come to such a pristine state of mind that you actually question all beliefs that there’s causation in the world. Jesus says in ACIM that God did not make linear time. We’re dealing with a sticky, messy, linear situation of the ego’s making and the only way we let it go, the only way we heal, is to see the absolute impossibility of it.
From Fear to Love
In this “A Course in Miracles” Toowoomba, Australia gathering, David and his friend Rob discuss the journey from a point of fear to love. Overcome the grips of fear and forgiving, and open to the experience of God’s Love. When we discover what it takes to let go of the ego, there is an intense amount of fear. We are completely unaware of this fact in our normal lives because we have endless places to project it onto. Yet just having the willingness to go through the fear and open up to love is enough. We don’t need to be concerned with conquering the ego because we will be given all we need to walk through our fear. We’re even given brothers to walk through the fear with.
Addressing “Separation Anxiety” in NYC
David Hoffmeister fields questions from Christine and Evelyn about separation anxiety in this 2004, New York City gathering.
A Fast Course in Forgiveness
Divine law is that giving and receiving are the same; what you give is what you get. You are love, simultaneously extending and receiving love. But in this world, there appears to be a time delay between giving and receiving. Nonetheless, it is you who are bringing what you think about into awareness, now. If you think an unhappy thought, you are holding that thought now. This is present cause. You manifest your present thoughts. You can release your mind by releasing your thoughts. You have been completely mistaken about everything. So surrender, forgive your false thoughts, and move toward the true meaning of love.
Practice Hearing the Holy Spirit
“A Course in Miracles” points to the truth. Practice hearing the Holy Spirit. The power of our joining is massive and we can’t mess it up, in spite of what the ego tries to tell us. The Holy Spirit is always giving us gentle guidance, moment to moment. Open to that and relax into it. The Holy Spirit is the Voice for God and as you deepen in your practice, the gifts of the Holy Spirit get more and more apparent. As we sink into our prayer to the Holy Spirit, which is our true desire, the fruits of the Holy Spirit can be reaped instantly.
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