From my friend, Michael Z, [www.thewisdomoftherooms.com]: "If only my mind would leave me
alone," I often think. I have what I call a "digging mind." Like
a dog at the beach, it digs and digs and digs in a problem, a worry, or in some
other imagined potential problem area or scenario often without my approval or
awareness. It loves to uncover negative thoughts, feelings and fears, and then
rehearse ugly scenarios, or rehash old problems.
My
digging mind is not only relentless, but it is consistently negative as well. I
never find it digging in a positive or hopeful place. I can't recall it
dwelling on or digging in the hole of getting that great job, or relationship,
or winning the lotto, or of having things work out. No, driven by a hundred
forms of self-centered fear, it searches the beaches of disappointment and failure,
and digs away.
ACIM
addresses this same phenomena throughout – consistently reminding us that the
Course, essentially, is a course in mind training. How do I train my mind? Do I relinquish all my possessions and move
to some mountain cave and live like a hermit? The Manual for Teachers (Part III
of the Course) addresses this in Chapter 9, Are Changes Required In The Life Situation Of God's Teachers?
1 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. There are those
who are called upon to change their life situation almost immediately, but
these are generally special cases. By far the majority are given a
slowly-evolving training program, in which as many previous mistakes as
possible are corrected. Relationships in particular must be properly perceived,
and all dark cornerstones of unforgiveness removed. Otherwise the old thought
system still has a basis for return.
2 As the teacher of God advances in his
training, he learns one lesson with increasing thoroughness. He does not make
his own decisions; he asks his Teacher for His answer, and it is this he
follows as his guide for action. This becomes easier and easier, as the teacher
of God learns to give up his own judgment. The giving up of judgment, the
obvious prerequisite for hearing God's Voice, is usually a fairly slow process,
not because it is difficult, but because it is apt to be perceived as
personally insulting. The world's training is directed toward achieving a goal
in direct opposition to that of our curriculum. The world trains for reliance
on one's judgment as the criterion for maturity and strength. Our curriculum
trains for the relinquishment of judgment as the necessary condition of
salvation.[or peace or joy]“ [M-9:1-2]
Judgment
is attack. Innocuous judgment is still attack. Any form of attack is a
reiteration of my belief in my separateness. Attack thoughts come from me and at me. They are, however, one and the same. If I can get even, then
someone else can get even with me. Anger,
Getting Even, Rationalization, Uneasiness, Vulnerability, Apprehension and
Worry are all attack thoughts. These are all components of Fear. They are
all fear-based ideas grounded in my belief of my separateness and vulnerability.
Attacks coming at me are simply my thought of attack bouncing back at me. As an
example: I can feel an immediate uneasiness when a highway patrol car cruises
by. This is an indication (attack in the form of guilt/fear) that I am speeding
or have speeded in the past and "gotten away with it.” Now, I may get
caught.
Changing
my mind is the only way out of fear that will ever succeed. Nothing else will
work; everything else is meaningless. I have to always remember that the world
I see has nothing to do with reality. However, if my “mind” is sick with fear-based
thoughts, how can I expect to “think” myself into another state of mind? AA
old-timers taught me that “I don’t think
myself into a new way of living; I live myself into a new way of thinking. In short, I have to do something to counter the fear-based
thoughts of Felix (my ego). I cannot think myself into a way to think
differently. I can, however, learn to do something differently that will eventually
impact my thinking.
So, when
I am like Michael Z’s dog digging in the sand for negative thoughts, feelings
or fears, I try to do the following:
I say to
myself: "I am <angry, worried,
disappointed, etc.> at/because <name,
situation> but I am only reacting to a world whose meaning I created
from a selective memory of my past. I am determined to really see! I am neither
the victim nor the victor. I do not know what anything, including this
situation, means, so I do not know how to respond to it. And I will not use my own past learning as the
light to guide me.” So, I ask – “I really no longer want this; Help me to see
another way of looking at this situation." Then I still my mind and listen
for the message of my Spirit Guide!
Although these messages are
mostly for me, thanks for listening. As always – feel free to forward this
message to your friends, family, and those accompanying you on your spiritual
journey.
For those
of you who have asked me for guidance on how to change, I hope this helps.
Don
#1 Apr
2016
Copyright
2016
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