A Course In Miracles Workbook Lesson #45 - God is the mind with which I think.

Lesson #45

God is the mind with which I think.

Leonard Cohen’s great lyric is “The crack is how the light gets in.” We are so occupied with the chatter of the monkey mind that we rarely see the light behind what Christians call the “veil of tears.” We resonate with Plato’s story of the care and realize that what we think is reality is the shadows dancing on the wall.

In Alcoholics Anonymous and other twelve step programs we work on step eleven which is to seek through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understand Him, praying for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out. The shorter version of this step might be today’s lesson, “God is the mind with which I think.”

In Unitarian Universalism we covenant together to affirm and promote seven principles among which  is the free and responsible search for truth and meaning which leads us to the awareness that God is the mind in which I think.

We are asked today to take five minutes three times and settle down and clear our minds of the monkey chatter and relaxing say to ourselves “God is the mind in which I think.” God’s mind is that from which we have come and that to which we are going. What has happened here on earth is the opportunity to make this being one with God conscious.

As so we laughingly set all ego thoughts aside realizing the insanity the ego world creates and remind ourselves that God is the mind with which I think.

Good news for 09/18/20 - Food pantries and food resources in New York State

 

One of the greatest concerns of this pandemic is making sure all New Yorkers have access to food. No New Yorker should go to bed hungry. To find a food pantry that services your county, visit NYS food pantries. 

 

A Course In Miracles Workbook Lesson #44 - God is the light in which I see.

Lesson #44

God is the light in which I see.

Unitarian Universalists covenant together to affirm and promote the free and responsible search for truth and meaning, and that search takes one within to the world of Spirit and not without to the world of the ego.

In Alcoholics Anonymous and other twelve step programs we are taught that step three is to make the decision to turn our will and lives over to the care of God as we understand Him.

In today's lesson we are encouraged to meditate for 3 - 5 minutes at least three times during the day and more if we can and desire. Meditation is the quieting of the mind and sinking past the thoughts and cares of the ego and entering into the light below which is our Divine inheritance. As the lesson points out this requires “mind training.” 

The Buddhists call our usual experience of our thoughts, “monkey mind” because of the incessant chatter which batters our awareness. We seem to not be able to control this and as if it were a radio we look sometimes for the knob to turn it off. Psychologists call it “rumination” which is the tendency to overthink things and we experience ourselves as, what some people call,  being a “worry wart.” Sometimes health care providers will diagnose these symptoms as an indication of depression or an anxiety disorder or as OCD, obsessive compulsive disorder.

Another way of thinking about these experiences is that they are not so much a matter of psychology but rather a matter of spirituality, because bottom line it is helpful to decide that God is the light in which I see. Sinking below the chatter of the ego world, this light is imbued with peace, and comfort, and bliss.

Good news for 09/17/20 - Moms of Portland are standing up for democracy

 

Unitarian Universalists covenant together to affirm and promote the right of conscience and the us of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.

Unitarian Universalists often live their faith in counter cultural ways creating what John Lewis called "good trouble."

A Course In Miracles Workbook Lesson #43 - God is my Source. I cannot see apart from Him.

Lesson #43

God is my Source. I cannot see apart from Him.

In Alcoholics Anonymous and other Twelve Step programs the second step is to come to believe that there is a power greater than ourselves which can restore us to sanity. This is a huge step. This is to recognize and acknowledge that God, as I understand my Higher Power to be, is my Source, and coming to realize this I become aware that I cannot see apart from Him if I am on the right wavelength.

At Christmas time a church had a sidewalk sign which said, “You too can hear the Angel’s song if you tune into the right channel.”

Getting on the right channel is the prime activity of salvation. Salvation is realizing that the world of the ego is an illusion which makes us crazy. If we would restore ourselves to sanity we need to choose again - the world of the Spirit instead of the world of the ego.

In Unitarian Universalism we covenant together to affirm and promote the free and responsible search for truth and meaning and this search is based on the understanding that God is our source, and that I cannot see apart from Him.

The search is not successful if we are not looking in the right place. The song says, “Looking for love in all the wrong places.” If we give up searching in the world of the ego and turn to the world of the Spirit we remember than God is our Source and that if I employ correct vision I cannot see apart from Him.

Good news for 09/16/20 - Tattoo removal for a new life.

Loretta Kent, RN,  helps people remove unwanted tattoos from faces, necks, and other body parts keeping them from entering the workforce.

Unitarian Universalists covenant together to affirm and promote the acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations and in society at large.

Good news quiz for week of 09/09 - 09/15/20