|
JOURNEY BEYOND
WORDS
A companion to the Workbook of The Course Written by Brent Haskell ILLNESS (Part A) Greetings again. I am Jeshua. I have come this day To further, with you, my discussion of A Course in Miracles. Last time we talked about valuing, And how it is that when you value something You see it as a needed part of your existence. Therefore, you ultimately see it as a part of what you are. And therefore, you see its absence as, in part, your own death. So your valuing of ANYTHING of this earth, Of anything at all in any universe, Is a desire that you die. For all of space and time shall pass away. And you must see its passage as your own death. One of the primary examples of valuing To be found in this world of illusion Is your own illness. The lesson said, "Sickness is a defense against the truth." (L 136) Indeed, that is exactly so. As I have told you, time and again, You are Spirit, You are free, You are exactly as God created you, Which is unencumbered, unconfined, Totally free to be whatever you can imagine. It always seems, does it not, That sickness is a thing which happens TO you. But I have told you that nothing happens to you Without it being your choice, Without it being an _expression_ of that which you wish, And what you desire. It can seem frustrating, indeed, To have someone tell you, almost glibly, That your illness, your pain, your struggle, Is something which you have chosen, And which you desire. It especially seems frustrating when, within your thoughts, Your illness is something which you despise and do not want, Above all when it brings you pain and limitation. So how is it that illness arises? First, when you think thoughts Other than the truth about what you are, You generate conflict. Also, you cannot see illusion Without that you value what it is you think you see. When you see your body, and deem it real, It MUST BE that you have valued it. For the lesson said, perception is absolutely consistent. Perception reflects your thinking; And your thinking reflects only what you value. You cannot see a world you have not accorded value. (L 130) And that is true. Be aware that it is entirely possible to walk this earth, Seeming to have the form of a body, But without valuing it in any way whatsoever. In that state, you are free. In that state you will not experience sickness. For you, in the absence of your valuing, Will not defend yourself. And in not defending, there can be no attack. Not defending involves many things, Including, as I said in the lesson, Not even planning what you will do one hour, Or one minute from now. (L 135) This seems somewhat absolute To those of you steeped in this illusion. Indeed, it seems very difficult. But truly, it is not so difficult as you think, When once you adjust your perception, And head in the direction of truth itself. So ultimately your illness MUST BE A statement from within that you have valued your body. When you perceive that your body is, Totally, or in some measure, WHAT YOU ARE, Then you have identified the body as yourself. To have done that, you MUST have valued it, And MUST BE creating conflict. The conflict arises because you ARE One Self. Your One Self knows you are NOT a body. This puts your thinking mind at odds With the truth of what you are. And this produces the conflict, Stemming from your one problem, Which, you recall, is separation. When you perceive that your body is in any sense real, Then you are valuing it, And you will fear its absence, or its change. When you fear, You create all manner of havoc in your universe. For as you fear that your body might leave you, Or that it might change, That IT might do something different from what YOU desire, You begin to sense that you are a victim of that body. And in that valuing, in that fear, YOU CREATE YOUR OWN DEATH. For death is always the result, in one form or another, Of your separation, and your fear. So you have, out of your own creative power, Structured a world in which There SEEM to be bodies walking around, But which are merely shadows of separation. You seem to have structured a world In which these bodies are born, live a while, age, and then die. And you think that the cycle through which the body goes Is the cycle through which YOU go. That is not true. For you are the Son of God. You are Spirit. And you, like God, are unchanging, are forever, And are invulnerable. Perhaps it seems to you like so many hollow words. I am sure it can seem like preaching When I seem glibly to say, All of your illness is but your choosing. All of your illness is but your fear. Give up your fear, and you will be fine. I know how frustrating that can be, When it seems that you want to give up your fear, And somehow it does not go away. So I have come, in love, to speak with you this day. I have come to share with you How you might more peacefully approach your own illness, Your own body, and even its death, If you choose that to happen. And most likely you will. Very few of you choose not to die physically. Remember, the world you see is a reflection, only a reflection, Of that which is within. The external and internal worlds are not in complete correlation. Furthermore, the correlation does not function In both directions. It is true that what you see in your external world, Including your body, Is a reflection of your world within. But it is only a reflection. Because the physical world cannot possibly represent That which you are in Spirit, which is the Son of God. Any time you seem to experience grief, or pain, Or loss, or tiredness, or illness, or death, It but reflects that which is within, And that which is really just your thinking. However, it does not follow That when you seem to have no illness, Your mind is free of conflict. Some of you have chosen to come here And not experience illness, Simply to live a life free of physical pain, until you die. And even your dying can be without pain. And that is simply your choice. Some of you have come here and chosen a life of illness, And struggle with seemingly persistent pain. That too, is nothing more than your choice. Neither is good. Neither is bad. Nor is one better or worse than the other. So if you are ill, do not think yourself wrong. Just realize that it is what you have chosen. Your illness commonly does reflect a poison within. But your health does not reflect a goodness. And your health does not reflect An absence of that same poison within. Hear me well. When you, in your desire not to be ill, Value your body and its absence of symptoms As something good, as a desirable goal, You are not focusing on what you actually ARE. For your focus is still on the body. And that body remains the source of your conflict. Your separation, and your pain. (to be
continued)
The inner light can answer any of this world's queries and resolve any of its problems. Beyond all of these concerns, the inner light will show you who you are and your relationship to all...and bring you an understanding of love and peace that transcends ordinary human thought processes. Discover what it truly means to "love one another" and to "see peace."
Yahoo! Groups Links
|
