by Beverly McNeff

Workbook lesson 222 from A Course in Miracles is truly a release from the prison of guilt that our minds seem to hold us in. It is an affirmation of the fact that there is no time, place, or experience in our lives where God Answer is absent. He is a part of all our daily activities, our very being. As the lesson states, “He is my Source of life, the life within, the air I breathe, the food by which I am sustained, the water which renews and cleanses me. He is my home, wherein I live and move.”

The Course is helping us to see and experience a new purpose in everything we do. It asks us to be aware of God’s presence in even the most routine activities such as breathing, sleeping, and waking. It would also follow that He is with us even in actions such as smoking, overeating, drug use, and any other pursuits that we might observe as harmful. The Course is not making a judgment on any of these activities, but it is saying that God is with you. The moment we bring the awareness of God into all our experiences (whether routine, pleasant, or distasteful), we are choosing to release our guilt and pain and “live and move in Him.”

Some people think it is wrong to invite God into such destructive activities, but the truth is He is already there, for you are a part of Him. His only desire is for you to know this so that whatever your behavior, you may now be released from your guilty thoughts and allow His Spirit to direct your actions and offer you Its Thoughts that will guarantee your safety from all pain.

Change in behavior does not guarantee healing, but healing of mind does produce a change in your life and, thereby, your world. If your mind is healed from the guilt produced by a particular behavior, you will not keep doing the behavior. You will not stop because the behavior is seen as “bad,” but because you have now “grown up” and no longer see value in it or the guilt it produced. It is like a child who puts away childish toys when they have outgrown them. There is no denial of these behaviors, but neither is there a need for them to continue.

And so we grow up to the Will of God in our lives. “God covers [us] with kindness and with care…” Let us accept His care and presence in our lives. Let us remember Him in all our day-to-day activities. Let us know that there is no time or place where He is absent. And, let us rest in peace knowing, “God is with me. I live and move in Him.”

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