MIRACLES FOR YOU Sondra Ray & Markus Ray on A Course in Miracles

Love is shared. We love God through loving our Brothers and Sisters. In order to receive God's love requires we are willing to give love. Giving is the proof that we have it. I give to receive and to be aware I have received. We receive the love through giving it. We are not people who run off to the Himalayas and meditate in a cave, but we are very engaged with people. Our mission involves humanity. The rest of the world is not in a state of Peace and Joy. Our job, our mission in life is to uplift humanity to another dimension of Divine Reality, one soul at a time. There are people we are meant to reach. They are already in our lives, most likely, to whom we can give our care, our insight, our complete acceptance and forgiveness. We can be still and "quietly do nothing" but invite in the Holy Spirit to set all things right. The Holy Spirit is the Power that does all the work.

God is our Father, and He loves all of His children, His Creations, with an unending, steady and benevolent Love. We can look toward the gift of Heaven that God gives to us to be our only Reality. Today, on the day of a solar eclipse, we ask to experience our True Identity as Sons and Daughters of God, God the Father and God the Divine Mother. God is Love, and His/Her Will for us is perfect happiness. God, being Love, is also happiness. We are all Sons and Daughters of a Divine Creator. And that Will of our Creator is only Joy for us. And we have miracles of forgiveness to undo anything that is not our True Identity. Today let this be the day we STOP pretending to be our "false self" (the ego) and BE AWARE of our True Self (the Love of God) whom God created happy and whole. Love, M & S

We have no LIFE except the one God gave us. We think that we made up a life, but this spark of Creation that we ARE, did not originate from us. It originated from a Power that is in us, but not of us. We were Created in the LOVING SPIRIT of the Cosmos, and we never left this SOURCE of Creation. This Lesson, #223, acknowledges this SOURCE, and also gets us looking in the right direction toward a Life Free of all problems and mistakes. "Let us see the face of Christ instead of our mistakes, for we who are you Holy Son are sinless." What a most powerful line in ACIM. Can we bring this into application? It is given to us today to apply and even to realize. Blessings to you. MARKUS & SONDRA

We start PART II of the Workbook of A Course in Miracles today. It is an Auspicious day! It is the beginning of God's step toward us. PART I of the Workbook dealt with the undoing of the "ego's thought system" of fear, guilt, anger, judgments, attack thoughts, grievances, — basically all the thoughts we think in "separation" from our Source of Love. PART II begins the "revelations" that God wants to give to us. We begin with a deeper meaning of FORGIVENESS ➞ "What you thought your brother did to you never occurred." This is Forgiveness at a whole new level. No more "undoing" of what did not occur, but the Vision that it is non-existent. What is not there needs no more "undoing." It is simply not "seen" anymore. This is the beginning of a Mind that "thinks only the Thoughts of God." Peace is the first gift. PEACE TO MY MIND (let all my [ego] thoughts be still). Wouldn't that be nice. We can finally, actually, really, "Rest in God." (Lesson #109)

"There is no Peace except the Peace of God." This is the last Lesson in Part I of the Workbook of ACIM. Think of the phrase, "Looking for Love in all the wrong places.” This Lesson implies we have been seeking peace but pursuing war. We have been saying we want Love but feeding the fires of conflict. Thought itself is a conflict Manufacturer—albeit in the name of "peace." There is no surrender to the Peace of God in a mind that thinks it "knows" what it is. We do not know what only God can Know unless we stop pursuing our notions of "what we think it is." War will end when we forgive ourselves for perpetuating war, and drop it. This unequivocal Lesson says peace does not exist outside the Mind of God. So let us today, with deep humility and grace, ask that our "pursuits" and "attempts" to establish "peace" come to and end, and that we can receive even a glimpse of this Truth, the real Peace of God. 

Can we connect with our True Identity that is not limited by our body in this dimension of physicality, and in the "memory bank" of our dualistic mind of "this versus that?" We have no limitations and edges of the finite version of ourselves. We keep ourself bound and limited by our own volition, by decisions we have made to put ourselves in the jailhouse of the body. The body is not inherently "good" or "bad," according to opinions we form about it. It is a "neutral thing," a "communication tool or device" that we use to communicate Truth, Love, Peace and Joy to our brothers and sisters. What can we use our mind to extend in this world that has forgotten its basis is Love? Love created me like itself, and God, being Love is also Happiness. Can we be Happy beyond belief. This is a Divine function of Being Spirit.

What if all injury was unreal? What if it was impossible to attack and be attacked? What if the fears we have are based on nothing in truth? This lesson, #198, says all "condemnation" (or attack) on my part also injures me. By attacking another, one cannot avoid feeling attacked himself. This reinforces the principle that what I put out I will receive back. Can we shift this whole perspective. The purpose of anything in our world that feels uncomfortable, including "attacks" from external causes, is to lead us to the practice of forgiveness. "I will forgive and see this differently; I will forgive and this will disappear." These are the statements we endeavor to bring into application as students of A Course in Miracles. In our mastery of true forgiveness, there is no attack or condemnation—either given out by us, or received by us from forces "outside ourself."

Can we receive the gifts we give in the moment, as we receive them simultaneously in the giving? "All that I give is given to myself." This is Lesson #126. The review Lesson today is #197, "It can be but my gratitude I earn." It means that we receive the gratitude of the gift at the moment we give it—not to be "paid back" with some "return on our investment" in the future. Nothing is "owed." Gratitude is earned in the moment—not in the future. There is a correction we can make easily when we acknowledge ourselves as the recipient of all the gifts we give. I earn the gratitude in the moment by my own pure giving. I expect "nothing back later." The Joy of Service is giving to another in the moment, and in the "giving" is the "gratitude." Can we heal our expectations and discontent that we are not being adequately "rewarded" for our giving? We RECEIVE the GRATITUDE through the GIVING in the PRESENT, right now! There in no future action of acknowledgement needed when the giving is pure. In the giving is our gratitude received instantly. Bole Baba Ki Jai!

We crucify ourselves with our "attack thoughts." First we have them toward ourselves, which are self-harming, then we "blame" the hurt on someone or something outside of ourselves. And if we can't find a particular "villian" to which we can blame our hurt, we blame God in the end. God is giving me this horrible situation. I must be guilty. I must be deserving of this "punishment." Guilt is an attack on ourselves, and this is the point of this lesson—it is but ourselves we crucify. We can just as easily forgive ourselves for whatever it is, and see our inherent innocence. We were mistaken, yes, but not guilty. The thread out of this labyrinth of our self-destructive tendency is forgiveness—total and unequivocal—of ourself first, and then of everyone and everything else. Forgiveness will heal us and dissolve all self-harm.

Do we walk the world feeling connected to every living thing? And then, do we see Life in every atom of creation throughtout the entire cosmos? The rocks are alive. A particle of dust is alive. What we generally consider an "inanimate thing" is alive with some Energy of having been created. Therefore, EVERYTHING is alive, and we are connected to it. What we do with one iota of a "thing" affects how we relate to the whole. Can we behave as though the Life in all things matters? Especially our brothers and sisters, our fellow humans. Love would connect us to them. And Gratitude and Love walk together. We can connect with Everything and Everyone if we want to. We simply need to see things differently. What is the advantage of this universal connection? We have the opportunity to end the separation and restore our awareness back to the Heavenly state of Pure Joy.

Who are we? We are either the "ego" that we made up, or we are the unlimited Being that God Created whole and complete. This is a fundamental question we must ask ourself to be aligned with A Course in Miracles. "I am the Holy Son of God Himself" (or Herself). To the ego in organized "Christianity" this would be the epitome of arrogance. ACIM would maintain that actually it is "arrogance" to deny our Identity as the Son (Daughter) of God Himself. We are familiar with this denial that casues us pain and suffering. The state of affairs requires a big shift in our perspective on our true Identity. If we deny our own Identity, we will go mad as we get sick, age, and die. This Lesson is the antidote for the "Denial of our true Identity." We posit the truth within our mind and whole being. "I am the holy Son of God Himself." This is a statement of a fact. Humble in its acceptance of the Simple Truth.

Could we accept the fact that we determine if we enter into a Heavenly state of mind or stay in a self imposed "hell" that we have made up for ourselves? This Lesson is a Declaration of Independence from the pain and suffering of our past experiences. We are talking about a state of Being that is outside the realm of "experience." This can rise above and transcend our past in this physical dimension. This dimesion we are seeking is beyond physicality. This is a realm outside of the physicality of the body. We direct our mind toward a dimension that is above the "battleground" of pain. Physical experience is not the "ultimate reality." Some Idea in the Mind of God, which is Love, Peace and Joy, is the Thought we need to choose and think. Then we can say, Heaven is the decision I must make and do make. We choose between illusions of the ego our the Truth of our Christ Self.

What is the impact on our being of true words? Do they affect us? Do they "get into our psyche?" Do they help us to "drop the old" that did not serve our highest Good? Today's Lesson #189 has the potential to liberate us from the memories of failed attempts we have made to make contact with Pure Joy and to maintain this constant state of our Divine Being. We do not know the way to God's Love, but we have called and He/She has answered us. Can we trust that God knows the way to us, but we do not know the way to Him/Her, and that is all OK?  We ave called and God, the Divine Father/Mother/Child as One is answering us now. Can we trust in that Love to come to us, irrespective of any efforts we might make to facilitate this contact?

Can we connect with our reality? This light of Creation is in us. Can we allow it to shine through us? We can give our personal lies credence, or we can look past this darkness toward the light. The peace of God, which emanates from this light, is "shining in us now" whether we acknowledge it or not. It is there, but we have been distracted in our vision of a darkened self of the ego. Forgiving ourself for this error is essential to restore our vision of the light again. The Peace of God is all encompassing, and it is more powerful than the mistakes we have made. Admitting the falseness of our perception begins to invoke the help of the Christ to restore our vision back to truth, back to a "forgiven world" in which we accept the inner correction given us through the Peace of God.

We bless the world by blessing ourselves. Sacrifice is over. It does not gain us, or anyone else, anything. “Giving is proof of having." And when we give something true, we gain in the giving. Giving will increase what we possess. Also, through what we give away, we increase the storehouse of goodness in ourselves. I bless myself by blessing the world, and vice versa. By our giving an idea away, we strengthen it. If we give our joy away, everyone benefits. It we give our anger away, everyone retracts and feels bad. “Protect all things of value by the act of giving them away." We give the Gifts of God away and therefore, we increase them in ourselves. The content is what we are giving away. The "form" may change, but the Love underneath the form is always a blessing to ourselves and to the world.

Do we really believe we can make a difference? Do we have certainty of our Holy Function here on earth? Do we want to be part of true strength, wisdom, and holiness that is our divine inheritance... or would we rather stay in our personal goals and doubts of our ego's predominance? This is a statement of my Divine Function. "Salvation of the world depends on me." This is true humility. We are given the directions to rise to meet our true function here on earth. It is our function to join our will with the Will of God, and to gladly bring the vibrations of Heaven to these earthly planes. This is a new and joyous responsibility. But we must first let go of our own "personal polite hell" in our self. Then we must ask, "Where would You have me go; What would you have me do; What would You have me say and to whom?"

There is an awareness of Peace that is Absolute, according to this Lesson. It rises above all other desires, so we have to let go of lesser goals and "wanting" that the Lesson calls "dreams." When we share this reality with others, it is increased in everyone, most of all ourselves. But are we willing to relinquish other goals that have not given us this total peace and satisfaction? We have made compromises, and yet more compromises to acquire things we think we really want, only to witness them falling short of satisfaction, and ending up in the ephemera of dreams. This Lesson gives us the one place that is Eternal and constant—The Peace of God. It is the first "Gift of God" —Peace. Do we want it above all else? Only you can answer that in yourself.

What is this "Name of God" to which we make a call, and invocation? We seek to know our true Self as God Created us to be. Self Identity is our main concern here in Life. This Name unites us in the Oneness of Reality, of our Self, of our Creator. It is beyound our thinking. It is the Emptiness of a non physical Reality. A true contact with the Spirit is held out today for us to realize. We call upon God's Name. What is the Gift, the Benefit from this call? Most people are not in touch with this Higer Reality. We live in a level of awareness that keeps us in a "survival of the body" mode. But this call to our True Identity is a conscious action today. Let's follow it through to the full realization of our Higher God Created Self.

Where is our real home? Obviously not in this world when we consider the eternity of a Higher Reality. Let's just say you live to be 100 Years in this lifetime, which is quite good for humans this day and age. What is that 100 Years compared to the 4 BIllion Years of the "life" of Planet Earth? And where were you before the Earth's creation? Is that your home? Perhaps even something more vast than chronological time is the "holder of our home?" We will ask this question of Love today. We can be still an instant and be led by the Child of our innocence. This podcast addresses this divine connection.

What does your Spiritual Practice Look like? Sondra and Markus give their simple 5-POINT PRAYER PROCESS. 1) Read something high and inspirational 2) Forgive everything 3) Express Gratitude 4) Petition for the Highest Things 5) Read a Lesson in the Workbook of A Course in Miracles. They do this every morning before they start their "to do list." It "sets the frequency" of the whole day. Today they read from the Text of ACIM about the obstacles to Peace—the fear of God and our attraction to death. They end with the Review #VI in the Workbook. "I am not a body. I am free. for I am still as God created me." and also a review of the Lesson—"I trust my brothers who are one with me."

We are Spirit having an experience in this physical dimension. We manifested a "body" to be our vehicle in this expression of our presence in these dimensions. Our body is not our Self. Our Self Identity is transcendent of the Physical Dimension. My Self Identity is Spirit. Spirit manifests as Mind; Mind manifests a Body. Our Source is our Identity, and our Spirit is our Source. Our right Mindedness "identifies" with the Spirit. It looks toward its Source which is Love. The body is merely a "tool" in this realization and our expression. "I am not a body," means that we give up all illusions so we can use our bodies to serve the Mind which in trun serves the Spirit. We would love our brothers and sisters now, because we see their true Identity in them, that is our own.

I have the Gifts of God in my awareness whne I give them away. If I have God's Peace and Happiness, and i do not share these openly, I withold myself from the gratitude I would feel when I block the the flow of giving them. Or ... I may give sometimes these gifts, but retract them at other times, and thus fall short of having their constant joy and gratitude. We have to surrender, somehow, by dropping our thoughts and tendencies that keep us in low energy, and devoid of feeling the gratitude for all we have receieved. The Gifts Of God are constantly given to us; can we not constantly give them to our brothers and sisters--and to every atom of creation? This would bring us supreme delight. Then when we give this joy consistently, "It can be but my gratitude I earn."

Are we in touch with the Absolute? This would be a total suspension of the ego's thought system and seeing with the Absolute Love of the Christ. This elevated awareness is possible for us to awaken, but we have to put aside our attachment to thought (opinions.) We put aside all comparisons and judgments. Have we done that? Do we have Gratitude for every living thing? That would be every atom of creation. This is a doorway into our Awakening. "Love is the way we walk in gratitude." When our forgiveness is complete, then we will have total gratitude. The past is in us to forgive it, and other people's past that is manifesting in their situations. We can let forgiveness rest upon all of it. Then we can "walk in gratitude" and get closer to Love.

What if we could forgive our past completely? What if we could have no concerns whatsoever about our future? And what if we could heal any symptom in our body that is putting us in pain and imbalance? Then we would be totally in this Holy Instant, abiding in the lawns just before heaven's Gate, awaiting the final and certain step of God to bring us through the Door to Everything. This Podcast can make this clear and give you an Action to be in your Holy Instant. This is the Glorious Moment of NOW that offers us a taste of the Heavenly State of Being, that is God's Will for us. Perfect Happiness is our Divine Right. How long will we dilly dally in the hell we made up when our release is offered to us right now in this Holy Instant?

All things we do not like are Lessons God would have us learn in forgiveness. In any situation that causes us consternation, we need to apply forgiveness to it. We are never a victim of problems and undesirable consequences—rather, we bring these results upon ourselves. "I will forgive and see this differently. I will forgive and this will disappear." These are the directions this Lesson gives to us to transform any situation to peace. We are asked to "clean up" each hour with these statements before proceeding to the next hour, to anything that is upsetting. This is our daily work to do.

What is our function here on earth? Did you ever think about why you are here with the people you are here with? You have a function to forgive—and this will release you from all the bondage of problems, frictions, defeats, disappointments, and sorrows of the world that are acted out in your relationships. This lesson makes it clear that God did not leave us comfortless, and the means for restoring us to the awareness of our divine right to Heaven is given to us—this is forgiveness, which is the key to happiness. We have a function to return to the heavenly state that God created in which for us to live. Will we accept this function is the question, or remain in the hell we made up?

Who am I? Am I want I made of myself in this lifetime? Am I an eternal being created by an Eternal Life Force to be eternal as well? This Lesson, "I am the holy Son of God himself," is a statement of a fact. It is not a belief that we made up. It is a God created truth. Can we accept this truth about ourself? This is a leap in our awareness to our True Identity. I am this Christ in essence, yet I have made up a self in the world that must be totally undone and forgiven in order to make contact with my true Self. The world will hold us in the "jail" of the ego. This Lesson is the key to unlocking the door to my jail cell. But I must let go of the thoughts that made up my false self.

There is a Self God Created. We are that Self. But it is covered over by the "ego self" we have been conditioned to believe is us. This Lesson is designed to release us from the self we made up, and to accept the Self God created us to be. Are we willing to do this? Inherent in this decision of acceptance is also the realization of our own immortality. There is no death. This is a theme we have explored before. There is no death (Lesson #163). We are in essence the Christ as well as Jesus. Jesus is our Master Teacher Who leads us to this realization, but it is we who must accept this truth of who we are as God created us. Can we take this step into the realms of our salvation.

This is the fifth review in the workbook. GOD is but Love and therefore so am I. Love is our true Self. Fear is a symptom of the imagined separation of our ego. Will we identify with the Christ and be His eyes, His hands, His voice, and thus communicate Love to our brothers and sisters? We give the miracles of Love and overcome fear. Fear is a stranger in the Self of our Love. These Podcasts are a continuation of our review and will be for the next few days.

"God is but love, and therefore so am I." This is the statement which brackets the two "Thoughts of the Day " that we review for the next ten days in this FIFTH REVIEW of Lessons #151 through #170. This review asks us to be more attentive to the Conversation we have with our Creator. Do we have the space to listen? It is interesting how we distract ourselves into a lot of meaningless things that waste our time and distract us from our Divine Connection. When we connect with Love, we also connect with God's Perfect Happiness. This is our Self-Identity. So we are realizing our higher Self. We can be free of the ego whne we realize this statement: "God is but love, and therefore so am I." I am the God in me. This is a true statement that we can and must realize.

The ego has everything upside down. The ego thinks that attack is justified and "love" is our enemy. Fear is accepted as real, and our defenses are necessary to keep us safe. Love does not justify the defenses we make. Love is safe, and we never need to attack. The idol that we call "love" is merely fear and attack that is never justified. When we see the illusion of this justification then we can remove the cruelty from our own hearts. Love is never threatened, therefore never in need of defense. Can we love ourselves and our brothers as One? In this there would be no more attack and anger and cruelty.

The Grace accessible to us now is concerned with the work of inner correction, with miracles, with the acceptance and the dissemination of FORGIVENESS. We are dedicated to Forgiveness as the means to clear our minds and prepare the table of our "inner altar" to receive God's final step of Grace. The Grace is already with us, and it has accompanied us our whole life, even when we were not aware of it. Forgiveness brings miracles, and miracles bring our awareness closer to the Grace. And when this is strong enough, and complete enough, God will take the final step to complete the Grace given to us in Absolute terms.

The Grace of God is always here, but we have made ourselves "absent" through our attack thoughts, fears, guilts, insecurities, grievances, and negative emotions. These break our communication with our Creator. But we can restore this communication channel through complete forgiveness. Forgiveness is a simple admission of our mistake, and an invocation to our Creator to "transmute" our errors to total "neutrality." (We have no judgments or guilt about our mistakes.) In this empty space, God can communicate again with His / Her Creation. We can receive the Grace that God has in store us. We prepare ourselves with complete forgiveness—accepting the Atonement for ourselves—and our Creator will restore our channel of communication with Him / Her.

DO we deny HEAVEN? It seems like Heaven evades us. Why? If Heaven is here NOW, and it has already been given to us by our Creator, then it is by our own choice and "denial" of it that we do not experience Heaven. This is the theme of this Lesson #165 today. Our acceptance of the Heaven already given to us is all that is required on our part. We do not first need to have "an experience of Heaven" before we accept it. This is what the ego does to justify it's "denial." It says, "Because I do not feel that Heaven is here now, it must not be here (denial)." We count on God, and not upon ourselves to give us the certainty of the experience of Heaven. But first we must stop denying that Heaven exists for us. We must accept Heaven (the Thought of God) as our rightful inheritance.

Do we connect with our Source on a daily basis? We have a function to know who we are as God created us. "Now are we ONE with Him who is our Source." The Christ will receive this connection to God for us, being in constant Communion with His Father, therefore, we listen to the Christ to make this contact with our Source. We are now as God Created us. We can be aware of this today, and all sorrow can be over. Suffering can come to an end. We are given Christ's Vision today, ONE with our Source, seeing our Divine Reality. We can be free of the ego's overlay that fogs our true vision. God is in everything I see. God is in my mind which is the Mind of God through which Christ's visions sees.

What is the most firm belief that we do not bring to question? "Death is inevitable." This thought forms the conerstone of our "temple built to death." It is the basis for all sorrow in the world. It brings about pain, sickness, old age, and the eventual demise of the body. It is the ego's main premise, and from this thought all fear springs. This is the thought that the Christ is here to question and to heal. Can we, will we, do we ever question and change this thought? And would we put our WHOLE BEING into the truth of this Lesson? As Students of ACIM we are being asked to do so. Is this the day you will "give up the belief in death?" We are as God created us as Spirit, and we have a function God would have us fill here in a Body. It is our Job to fulfill it, should that take more years than we thought. There is no Death. The Son of God is Free.

Our Home is Love, and in this Home there is no fear. Fear is a Stranger to Love. Why would we not abide in the truth of the Love that we are? Why would we not give up our justifications for anger, fear, and insecurity? Fear is a "stranger" to Love which is our Home. Love is a stranger to fear. The two are mutually exclusive. Yet, Love does not "battle" with fear. It sees it as Sourceless, and therefore, unreal and non-existent to Truth. Fear is a aberration of sorts, a "departure" from the Happiness this is Love's true gift to us.

Have we received Christ's Vision of our innocence? Do we maintain our Life free of problems? Or... are we giving reality to our imposed limitations? No One can give what he has not received, but what bloks us from receiving God's Infinite Love and Supply? We can be receiving and giving simultaneously. The more Peace we receive the more we give it away. The more Healing we receive the more Wholeness and Grace we give to others. Giving and eceiving are one in truth. Christ's Vision pictures Heaven. What God created perfect can be reflected in our world in that "Heavenly State of Being." We receive this Vision and then Give it. Our Sinlessness is guaranteed by Christ's Vision.

What is it that we have to give? Can we receive Christ's Vision in order to give it? What would that be? Can we see that we are as God created us, and that our Innocence is totally intact, no matter what mistakes we have made in our life? This would be Christ's Vision. The Knowledge of our Real Self as God Created us is far beyond what can be taught, but awareness of this Self is Christ's Vision. We can give this to others when we have received it for ourselves. The time it takes to realize this is up to us. Realizing this truth is determined, and our moment of awakening is set. We will wake up to discover the Knowledge of Who we Are as God Created us as LOVE, PEACE and JOY. Christ's Vision can show us the real possibility of the end of separation.

What would it mean to "Enter into Christ's Presence?" Can we accept the fact that Christ's Presence is a very real frequency of awareness that we can receive? Would we want this Presence in our energy field? Can we receive this Presence? This is a serious invocation for total transformation in our life. It is not a small thing to enter into the Energy Field of the Christ. The awareness of our true Self must be given us when we actually ask for it. We have a ministry that relies upon our reception of this sacred awareness. We are sanctified by this action of receiving Christ's Presence. In this reception, we have a holy purpose to realize this Christ Self. THANK YOU!

Who walks with you? Do you walk with your Source? Are you aware that the Christ is your Guide? As students of ACIM we are asked to make contact with the Christ Consciousness within ourselves. Are we doing that? This Lesson, "I walk with God in perfect holiness." is a statement of a fact. Can we receive this Truth and make a difference? This Lesson is our Answer.

Do we accept that we are among the "ministers of God" as students of A Course in Miracles? And then, as "ministers of God," Who is leading us? The ministers of God deliver messages they did not write, to people whom they did not pick out. Yet, the first recipent of their message is themselves. The messenger must first receive the message for himself before he can give it away. And... he knows he has received the message whne he gives it away. Sharing is necessary. Then, it is the Christ who speaks the Truth who leads the way. We step back and allow the Christ, the Voice for God, to lead the way. These are clear directives. Can we pick them up and follow them? This is our challenge and our action to follow.

What keeps us truly safe? Defenses attract attack. We make defenses because we feel threatened. Why? Are these threats real to our true Self? If "I AM SPIRIT" is our truth, and Spirit is that which cannot ever be destroyed, what is it that needs defense? It is illusion that can be "threatened." Therefore, it is illusion that demands defenses. The Real cannot be threatened, therefore it does not need defenses. When we embrace our Reality as Spirit, then defenselessness is our Safety.

We have the Power to decide for Heaven or for Hell. But we must also see that the Hell we may choose is only a projection of our own misperceptions. We make a "hell" that is not really there. We give it shape and form, then site the demostration of our experiences as proof that "hell" is real. War is "hell" for sure. But the thoughts that produce war are illusions we maintain as "truth." Such is the "Power" of decision. The one real decision to make is Heaven, Peace and Joy. This would be consistent with Divine Reality. This would be the only Truth there is. All else would be a dream.

What is the "Voice for God" saying to us? Did we ever hear it? This Lesson says all things that we hear are echoes for the "Voice for God." Are we even hearing the echoes? Do we "hear” that, or are we listening to that, or to what the body's ears are telling us? This Lesson is about hearing the Voice for God speaking to us of the Christ that we are. The past is over, and todayis our resurrection day. Are you ready for receiving this?

"My mind holds only what I think with God." This is a statement that reveals the truth. We think with God's Thoughts, and all else are dreams. The meditation prepares us to receive the Lessons 121-140. Forgiveness is the means by which we can commune with the Christ in the two thoughts of the day. But the key is that we clear our minds to be free of any thoughts that are not Thoughts of God. Can we be this disciplined to “keep out" of our mind the illusions that are not God's Thoughts? The fact is our Real Thoughts are only those we think with God of Pure Peace and Joy.

The "cure" of our Self is not a remedy for bodily ills. The cure is a correction within the mind, in which our mind is now in communion with the Mind of God. Love's awareness is restored to our mind, and all limitations are overcome. We are "cured" because we are "saved" from the illusions of the ego, the conflicted self we made up. We have returned to Peace. Conflict is over, and our mInd holds only what we think with God, our Creator, Who created us whole and complete.

"What am I?" is the question the ego asks. We have lost the certainty of our Identity by accepting the "ego" as our Self. The "ego" is a false self that pretends to doubt itself. Only the ego does not "know" itself, therefore it asks the question, "What am I?" The Atonement is the Forgiveness of all our "wrong thinking." It is the end of the ego's rule. Fear, guilt, anger, judgments, attack thoughts, grievances are all part of our false self that needs forgiveness. Yet, having accepted Atonement, we see that “self” did not really exist. Our True Self walks the world rejoicing in the certainty of its God Created Being. Atonement gives us a "clean house" of our True Mind that has sovereignty over our life of Perfect Happiness.

What are we waiting for? Heaven is held out to us NOW, and by a decision we make in our holy mind, we can be fully immersed in it. Do we not trust this is true? Are we still attached to thinking the "hell" we made up is equally real? There is a lot of "evidence" out there we use to "prove" our self-projected hell is real. From the level of the body, this is almost impossible to avoid. Yet, can we stop projecting it? Can we just as easily be in Heaven? That is the "decision" this Lesson #138 is here to help us make. We MUST make it (sooner or later). Why not today. Heaven is here now, ready to greet us. Let us enter into it.

The TRUTH is that God's Peace and Joy are mine. When we defend "against this truth" we can identify with the body's pain and suffering and make up a "sickness." "Sickness" does not just "happen to us" without our "thoughts" that brought on these conditions. Sickness is a "defense" against the truth of God's Peace and Joy. When we hold Grievances, Attack Thoughts, Judgments, and Personal Lies, they gather forces to make us sick (pain and suffering in the body that started in the mind). These prayers are essential to correcting this dilemma: Sickness is a defense against the truth. I will accept the truth of what I am, and let my mind be wholly healed today. and...I have forgotten what I really am, for I mistook my body for myself. Sickness is a defense against the truth. But I am not a body. And my mind cannot attack. So I can not be sick."

What are the "plans" we make? What is the end to which these plans are applied? Are these goals of our plans designed to allay our fear of the future? And why do we fear the future? Mostly our plans are to "guard against death" (which we fear) of our life "as a body." The world is based on defense, and our plans are defenses against the "threat of death." Why? Who are we as God created us? We have a SELF that God created who has no need of defenses. It is the SELF that God created us to be—immortal in its nature. If we defend "the body" with our mind, there will be a fear that brings about "death." This Lesson liberates us from planning from the ego's perspective. God has a plan for us to "resurrect" into our Reality—