Courage

True willingness is true courage.

Asking What to Do (from Essay)

Stop asking what you should do next; the answer will come from unworthy sources.

Instead ask what you should see next and the answer to what you should do next will authentically present itself.

The Path

The sleeping man who calls himself spiritual gauges how far along the path he might now be.

The Awakened man walks the path ever aware of where it might begin.

Problems

All problems are really one problem.

Being passive- not acting (journal entry)

It is easy to think that if I remain passive, if I stop acting, that nothing will get done or nothing will happen. This is quite untrue, in fact all of the right things will then happen and I won’t be in a state of mind do the wrong thing.

Working Hard (joural entry)

The hard work must not cease, because there is so much to learn and the lessons will simply pass me by if I am not looking at them correctly.

Prayer (frm Meeting 12/02/08)

Awareness itself is your prayer.

What greater tribute could you pay to any of God's creations than to see it exactly as it was intended?

Action (journal entry)

If I am not changing my thinking, testing my courage in spiritual matters or intentionally resisting routine actions, I am not growing. I have to be ever so careful not to believe that pondering these things replaces doing them.

New Freedom

When you can love Truth more than you love yourself, then you are free.

The Origin of all Things (19th Century Philosopher)

In that deep force, the last fact, behind which analysis cannot go, all things find their common origin.

The Higher Road (journal entry)

The higher road is often not the higher road at all. In fact, the moment that I think that I am taking the higher road, I am making a judgment that I am the better person and I have made no progress at all.

I need to remember that “being good” happens much higher than that, above the petty world of comparison.

Light at the End of the Tunnel (frm Meeting 11/26)

There is no light at the end of the tunnel. The light is here right now.

The only thing blocking it is you and your ideas about it.

A Lower Plane (journal enry)

Whenever I find myself balking at life, citing my rights and demanding fairness, I know I have been dragged down to a lower plane of being. The only reason to become incensed by anything is that I think I deserve more than I have. That also indicates that I have given false value to what ever it is that I want more of.

While above all of that I can see that I have been given everything I would ever need to achieve True Happiness. How ridiculous it would be to demand more of that.

Wanting to Know the Truth (journal entry)

Wanting to know the Truth is a prerequisite to searching for it. It is not something I can first seek out and later decide whether or not I will live it. In that frame of mind, I cannot even see it.

Knowing the Truth (journal entry)

Knowing the truth is always a good thing; it is never a bad thing. It only appears bad to me when it compares unfavorably to my personal preference, which is only an image or illusion.

I can do nothing with an illusion, because it is not real and doesn’t actually exist. With the truth however I can do anything, because it is real and lasting.

Provoking the World (Essay)

The world never attacks your True Self; it only attacks your Ego.

This is because your Ego is constantly provoking the world. Your True Self, on the other hand, has no interest in the world, much less in provoking it.

Doing (part of essay)

You no longer need to do in order to be.

Outer Knowledge (journal entry)

I must continue to remind myself that nothing spiritual is learned from outer sources- not books or lectures or discussions. Every bit of real learning comes through my own awareness and true understanding of what I see.

The outer sources can only serve to produce a jolt to my unconsciousness that leads me to the inner source of all Real Knowledge.

Forgiveness

True forgiveness happpens without words.

The Ego is Defenseless (from Meeting 11/4/08)

The Ego is defenseless against the awareness of the moment. It can only survive in the unconscious states of recalling the past or imagining the future.

What to do

Where all practical matters are concerned, the advice should be to do if you choose to do or do NOT if you choose not, but don't concern yourself with it after that. These things do not matter to your True Essence in any way.

Instead concern yourself with seeing these these things as they happen, that is where real progress is made.

False Truths

If you believe something to be true that is not true- it doesn't become true in reality. It remains very true in your mind however. Still, it is an illusion. And even though it seems very real to you, you can do nothing with it- even though you will try. Any act based upon it will be wasted.

A Promise

Making a promise is just another vain attempt by me to control the world.

Bother (from meeting 10/21/08)

Your bother is your teacher.

Responsibility (from meeting 10/21/08)

The subject of responsibility was discussed and it was pointed out that we use this word to complain more than anything. We see it as a required chain upon or lives. But this is never true.

If we look at our responsibilities as privileges or human expressions to be watched and learned from, they change immediately.

Also, we can uncover our real motives in feeling responsible by asking ourselves in every case -
What if the party I am responsible TO suddenly relieved me of that responsibility? Now, how do I see that responsibility?

Q & A

Q: What or who am I if none of these things I think I am?

A: What does it matter?

Impossible? Yes I'm afraid it is...

At our 9/30/08 meeting one member spoke up to say they believed that attaining what we were discussing was impossible. That person was right. As we are, it is impossible. And we have proven that fact.

But if we change how we are, then what claims can we make about the impossible?

Q & A

Q: Why can I not stop judging others?

A: Because you see with eyes that belong to an entity that judges- see with new eyes

Q: Why am I so easily offended?

A: Because you hear with ears that belong to an entity that is easily offended- hear with new ears

Q: Why do I make assumptions and jump to conclusions?

A: Because you think with a mind that belongs to an entity that is arrogant- think with a new mind

A New Outlook

Maybe it would be best to stop looking for what it is that you look for.

Instead, look for something you know nothing about, that is where real progress can be made.

Daring (journal entry)

I am in this life to do daring things. To simply love those close to me is not daring at all. What I was meant to do were things most others cannot, such as to love with out aim. That is the essence of myself connecting with the True Spirit.

When the impossible comes before me, I must not dismiss it as impossible, rather ask myself, “What is it about this feat that I am not seeing?” Truth rewards the daring.

God Working Through Us (from meeting 9/30/08)

Another excellent idea came up while discussing the idea of God working through us, one member pointed out that when we consider that idea, we are in essence imagining God as a third entity instead of already being part of us.

Standing up for What's Right (from meeting 9/30/08)

A member of the group made a wonderful point while discussing our duty to stand up for what is right when things in the world seem wrong. Some felt that doing good in that particular way was necessary, but in conflict with the new way of living we were discussing. This member pointed out that if everyone followed this path, the trouble would not be in the first place.

We can do much better work by concentrating on correcting first our own contribution to the worlds problems.

Q & A

Q: Where am I going?

A: You cannot know

Q: Then why would I go there?

A: To escape from where you are

All too often we interrupt our discovery of the answer with noisy questions.

Asking God for Help (part of essay)

Don’t do that. Don’t ask God for help, God has already given you all you need and more. Asking God for help is like going through the lunch line, walking over to the garbage, throwing it all out and then going back for seconds. Eat what is on your plate; I assure you that what you seek is there.

I once watched a Doctor, who was about to stitch the eye of a fellow church member, pray with the man that the procedure would go well and that God give him what he needed to be successful in the surgery. My thought was fixed on what might happen to both men’s faith had something incidental gone wrong.

Instead of asking for particular help in a situation, why not consult that light and wisdom which has already been imparted to all of us. How? Stop thinking about anything else and shake yourself back to the moment. Focus on the task at hand. God’s wisdom will tell you exactly what to do next, or maybe just what not to do. Your challenge is not to interfere with the answer at the beckoning of your Ego.