GATHERING #8 10/25/11

Gathering #8   10/26/11

Final lines of the Zen poem the Hsin-hsin Ming:

“Words!

The Way is beyond language, for in it there is no yesterday, no tomorrow, no today.”

“Those who know, do not speak. Those who speak, do not know.”

                                                                       -Lao Tzu

So here I am chattering away!

Quick review: NTI and ACIM will focus on some major themes again and again.

I feel it is important to keep these in mind, as it is easy to get lost in thoughts, speculations, “trying” to discover the meaning of things, and even being right!

Continually being aware of the Truth being expressed can help keep me on track.

ONENESS--we are One with God, always.

There is no separation, never was. Any thought of separation is untrue.

From Mt. 7 (1-5) 1Judgment is like a knife that cuts the Son of God into pieces, for what you judge as separate from you is seen as separate, and so it cannot be seen as one.

The emphasis here is on NON-JUDGMENT, letting go of judgment.

Because we still might fall into judgment, the Holy Spirit created the correction  of FORGIVENESS, including SELF-FORGIVENESS

SURRENDER, although the process is expressed in many ways, it is essentially letting God be God in you and with you.

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Chapter 13

MATTHEW CHAPTER 13 IS VERY JUICY. WE COULD PROBABLY SPEND A FEW MONTHS ON THIS CHAPTER ALONE.

I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO MARK IT OFF AND READ IT OVER SEVERAL TIMES. PERHAPS READ IT ONCE A WEEK AND NOTICE WHAT DIFFERENT THINGS YOU PICK AND STAND OUT FOR YOU.

I call your attention to a few key verses towards the end of Chapter 13.

(36-43) 1-2 I could not help but have the image of the Prodigal Son here with the realization that he never left home. His seeming journey into selfishness, addiction, poverty was a dream. He never left the Father’s Home; he never left the Father’s love. He could not. He just believed the impossible could be true for a while until “he came back to his senses” and came back home (came back to the Truth that never changes).

7-12 We choose, God cannot choose for us, but once the choice is made in favor of Truth, then Truth, the Holy Spirit takes over. (Again, let us realize the HS is the truth of who we are).

And even more consoling (47-50) 4-6 and (53-58) 6The HS will even help us make the choice if we are willing.

ACIM put is this way: “If you are willing to renounce the guardianship of your thought system and open it to ME, I will correct it and gently lead you home.”

Chapter 14

This chapter begins to introduce the idea that fear is what keeps us from “joining with God.”

We are reminded again, “it is you who must overcome it”(your fear).

What I get here is that the Holy Spirit recognizes we have fear, but cannot take it away from us because it is an illusion. So it is up to us to recognize fear as illusion so that we can let it go.

The catch is that by focusing on fear, I seem to give it more substance.

So what do we do? 

We have a choice of what we focus on. I can focus on the strength, wisdom, love of the Holy Spirit that is always with me or I can focus on fear.

By focusing on the spirit, I give less and less energy to fear (to illusions).

As my awareness of my Oneness with Spirit increases my fear of “joining with God” becomes less and less and less and less important, until I realize fear was a big joke to begin with. 

For next gathering read over Chap. 15--explore the concept “it is not what you do but why you do it that’s important.” How does that apply to your life?