Embrace the Bardo
Pema Chödrön, beloved author of more than 20 books, explores constant transition in her latest, ...
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Are you feeling calm and at peace? Or are you stressed, worried, and living in a state of fear? One of the tools that has helped me stay so calm throughout the tough times is my faith. I’ve returned to A Course in Miracles for my daily practice, and its guidance has uplifted my mind, body, and soul.
A Course in Miracles (also known ACIM or simply the course) is a self-guided curriculum for spiritual advancement. Written by Columbia University psychologist Helen Schucman and published in 1976, the book is now in its third edition and is distributed worldwide. It works by helping you to shift your mindset from fear into love.
As the ACIM says, “The whole purpose of the course is to teach you that the ego is unbelievable and will forever be unbelievable.” It is a very loving text and teaches us how to be, see, and feel love in an often dark world. The underlying premise is that the greatest miracle is the act of simply gaining a full awareness of love’s presence in our own life.
We can use the messages and affirmations from A Course in Miracles to transform our fear into faith. I’ve rounded up nine top lessons from the text to help ease anxiety and worry and help to clear your fear.
As the course shares, there is no point in trying to change the world, but there is a point in changing your thoughts about the world. It’s often been said that our thoughts create our outcome. If this is the case, we must ask ourselves what we’re thinking and projecting about the current situations. If something is causing you dis-ease, go inward to your mind and see what your thoughts are about that situation. Chances are you are trapped in fear or blame. You can escape this pain by giving up all thoughts that are derived from attack, blame, or shame. We are never trapped in the world we live in because as soon as we shift our thoughts, we can change our experiences.
We always have a choice. And thinking we don’t have a choice is indeed a choice. We can choose peace, but it must start in our minds. Our ego will try to convince us that the outside world needs to become calmer and only then can we find peace, but our true self, the spiritual self, knows that once we find peace, everything outside of us will be in harmony as well. “It is from your peace of mind that a peaceful perception of the world arises,” (Lesson 34.1.4) not the other way around.
Fear
can be a showstopper, holding us back from seeing the truth. Ask yourself: Where in my life is fear taking over? We can feel so locked down and trapped by our fears that if we aren’t careful, they control our every move. It feels better to make our choices from a place of love, hope, and compassion versus fear. And we can do this by reminding ourselves that there is nothing to fear.
Love is around you always and available to help. Source energy, God’s love, is in all things, and there is no source but this divine love. We can remember that God created us and all things, for everything we see is part of God. This is love in action. Furthermore, the course itself can be summed up in a very simple way:
Nothing real can be threatened
Nothing unreal exists.
Herein lies the peace of God. (1.2-4)
When the world seems to be turned upside down and nothing makes sense, it can be so easy to fall into judgment and blame. With so much angst there can be a lot of separation. I see it on social media and in conversations with people: everyone seems to be right and if you have a different belief, or disagree with them, they will cancel, delete, or unfriend you. But if we can adopt a mentality of compassion and kindness
by practicing nonjudgment, we can all feel more at ease. Today, practice nonjudgment with everything you see. As you live in a more neutral state, watch how things start to feel better. It is a process that works.
A lot of the anxiety we feel right now is tied to not knowing what the outcome will be. Anxiety is a fear of the future, and the unknown is one of the greatest fears. But when we put our faith in God, we trust the unfolding and see that all is well. If you are feeling worried and unsure about the outcome, turn your fear over to the universe and remember that joy is your birthright and cannot be denied to you. You can be at peace and all is well when you trust and put your faith in the hands of God.
Know that only joy is the final outcome for everything. Yet it is up to us when this can be reached. We can surrender our fear now, and trust the unfolding. We can put our faith into action and take steps to uplift and support one another. We can come together in our humanity and help support one another with love. We can move past separation and know that a happy outcome is our destiny.
Other than unconditional love, gratitude is one of the highest vibrational resonances we can align with. When we make gratitude a daily practice, we move into our true alignment, one connected to source energy and love. We see beyond the illusions of separation, fear, doubt, blame, and shame, and we step into wonder and awe. Peace is possible when we align with appreciation. We can become an example of what is possible when you walk in a path of light and love with grace and gratitude.
Miracles are our birthrights. A Course in Miracles defines a miracle as “A shift in perception, from fear to love,” and they “Occur naturally as expressions of love.” When miracles aren’t happening, it is said something has gone wrong. We have leaned into fear and blocked ourselves from the healing love and light of source energy. Return to your true self by embracing the love within you. This is a miracle to see yourself as the light you truly are. Embrace a life full of miracles because you are entitled to them.
I hope these bring you comfort and help you to remember where your true power lies.
Embrace daily your daily courage: “5 Ways to Be Brave Today.”
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