11 Feb 2022 Comments Off on Lesson 42 – God is my strength. Vision is His gift.
Lesson 42 – God is my strength. Vision is His gift.
Commentary (full lesson beneath commentary)
Ideas that stand out for me in this lesson are:
“Your passage through time and space is not random. You cannot but be in the right place at the right time. Such is the strength of God. Such are His gifts.” It brings to mind Section 9 of the Manual for Teachers, “Changes are required in the minds of God’s teachers. This may or may not involve changes in the external situation. Remember that no one is where he is by accident, and chance plays no part in God’s plan. It is most unlikely that changes in attitudes would not be the first step in the newly made teacher of God’s training. There is, however, no set pattern, since training is always highly individualized.”
“You may, in fact, be astonished at the amount of course-related understanding some of your thoughts contain.” I have had the experience of being astonished by words that have spilled out of my mouth, clearly God-given, and in saying them I was forced to hear them and receive the same Guidance I was giving … with this lesson my thoughts are simple and pure. In addition to “Vision is His gift,” I kept thinking, “His Voice is His gift.” The Voice for God is His gift. The Holy Spirit is His gift. Impeccable Guidance is His gift. Total Love is His Gift. Safety and Protection is His gift (as long as I believe I need safety and protection because obviously they are unnecessary in the Mind of God). God is my strength. I do not have to rely on my own strength, or lack thereof. God is my strength and it feels delicious to be invited to lean on Him.
“You may … reach a point where no thoughts at all seem to come to mind. If such interference[s] occur, open your eyes and repeat the thought once more while looking slowly about; close your eyes, repeat the idea once more, and then continue to look for related thoughts in your mind.” It’s interesting that Jesus refers to “no thoughts” as “interference.” Other spiritual paths often seem to make “no thought” a goal. Strikes me as funny — that can go on the “related thoughts” list, ha ha.
LESSON 42
God is my strength. Vision is His gift.
The idea for today combines two very powerful thoughts, both of major importance. It also sets forth a cause and effect relationship that explains why you cannot fail in your efforts to achieve the goal of this course. You will see because it is the Will of God. It is His strength, not your own, that gives you power. And it is His gift, rather than your own, that offers vision to you.
God is indeed your strength, and what He gives is truly given. This means that you can receive it any time and anywhere, wherever you are, and in whatever circumstance you find yourself. Your passage through time and space is not at random. You cannot but be in the right place at the right time. Such is the strength of God. Such are His gifts.
We will have two three-to-five-minute practice periods today, one as soon as possible after you wake, and another as close as possible to the time you go to sleep. It is better, however, to wait until you can sit quietly by yourself, at a time when you feel ready, than it is to be concerned with the time as such.
Begin these practice periods by repeating the idea for today slowly, with your eyes open, looking about you. Then close your eyes and repeat the idea again, even slower than before. After this, try to think of nothing except thoughts that occur to you in relation to the idea for the day. You might think, for example:
Vision must be possible. God gives truly.
or:
God’s gifts to me must be truly mine, because He gave them to me.
Any thought that is clearly related to the idea for today is suitable. You may, in fact, be astonished at the amount of course-related understanding some of your thoughts contain. Let them come without censoring unless you find your mind is merely wandering, and you have let obviously irrelevant thoughts intrude. You may also reach a point where no thoughts at all seem to come to mind. If such interferences occur, open your eyes and repeat the thought once more while looking slowly about; close your eyes, repeat the idea once more, and then continue to look for related thoughts in your mind.
Remember, however, that active searching for relevant thoughts is not appropriate for today’s exercises. Try merely to step back and let the thoughts come. If you find this difficult, it is better to spend the practice period alternating between slow repetitions of the idea with eyes open, then with eyes closed, than it is to strain to find suitable thoughts.
There is no limit on the number of short practice periods that would be beneficial today. The idea for the day is a beginning step in bringing thoughts together, and teaching you that you are studying a unified thought system in which nothing is lacking that is needed, and nothing is included that is contradictory or irrelevant.
The more often you repeat the idea during the day, the more often you will be reminding yourself that the goal of the course is important to you, and that you have not forgotten it.
Let’s practice together! Watch and listen to Amy reading each ACIM Lesson on Youtube. Also, check out Workin’ the Workbook, Amy’s online class which supports the ACIM Workbook practice.
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