by Beverly McNeff
If you have ever read the section in A Course in Miracles entitled “Above the Battleground,” you quickly realize that the battleground it speaks of is not a place. It is the everyday experiences of our lives in which we see ourselves as separate and at odds with each other. Day by day, we arm ourselves for war, so to speak, with our defenses, grievances, and judgments. We do not see ourselves as one with our brother or one with our Father.
A perception of unity can often be seen as naive or perhaps hoped for in some future experience when we have all “evolved.” We don’t see, according to the Course, that we have made a choice for “murder” instead of “miracles.” We have murdered the awareness of the Son of God (who we truly are) and settled for the pain and suffering of the world. But, at any moment, we can choose again for the healing miracle God is holding out to us.
The Course tells us that we don’t even know we have done all this. We are not even aware of what we have “sacrificed” for this world of pain. All we know is pain and suffering, and this world of misery has become a habit, the “norm,” and what we expect. From the perspective of the battleground of the world, it is what we deserve.
So how do we “win” this “war?” Well, not by fighting or attacking, but by transcending. We are to allow ourselves to be lifted above the battleground to a higher place where we can look at the situations we are experiencing from a new perspective. As the Course tells us…
“Here in the midst of it [the struggle and battles of life], it does seem real. Here you have chosen to be part of it. Here murder is your choice. Yet from above, the choice is miracles instead of murder. And the perspective coming from this choice shows you the battle is not real, and easily escaped.” (T-23.IV.5)
A Course in Miracles often tells us that choosing with God is simple, easy, and always available to us. From our “battleground” perspective, it doesn’t feel easy or simple. As the Course says…
“Simplicity is very difficult for twisted minds. Consider all the distortions you have made of nothing; all the strange forms and feelings and actions and reactions that you have woven out of it. Nothing is so alien to you as the simple truth, and nothing are you less inclined to listen to.” (T-14.II.2)
So, we may be “less inclined to listen to” the simple truth God is holding out to us, but it is not impossible. As a matter of fact, God is the only possibility available to us; the rest is not even there. That is why the world is called an illusion. Not that you do not believe in it, on the contrary, it is there for you to behold because you do believe in it. This belief, however, does not make it true; it simply makes it your belief. If you are willing to invite in the Answer God has given you in the Holy Spirit (His Voice in this world), He will gladly lead you past the battleground to the miracle that stands “in shining silence next to every dream of pain and suffering, of sin and guilt.” (T-28.II.12)
I have often asked readers to send me their favorite quotes from the Course and tell me why. I remember receiving this explanation from a subscriber to our weekly livestream in Ft Lauderdale, Florida. She shares a powerful quote and a transformational story about an experience we can all relate to: physical sickness. Her story highlights how we can rise above any battleground of life. She wrote…
“I had lunch with The Holy Encounter today and decided to write and let you know my favorite quote from the Course. How could I possibly have just one? Here goes… ‘Sickness is a defense against the truth.’ (W-136)“It took me a long time to really come to terms with that lesson. Every time I was feeling sick, I would pick up the Course and read that passage. One day, when my ego was not getting in the way and I had stepped out of my fear, Holy Spirit really had me understand that sickness is a choice I make. The lesson says that we choose sickness and then forget that we do, but on this particular day, I could actually see, like a stack of dominoes falling backward, what past decision had brought me to this point of suffering. In that instant (yes, a Holy one), I was able to ‘choose peace instead of this.’
“My illness didn’t go away, but the suffering that usually comes with it did. To this day, I still get sick, and yet I’m sick in a whole new way. I don’t dread it, and I’m not frightened by it; I merely recognize that I am defending against God. That somewhere in my past few hours, days, or weeks, I made a choice to listen to fear instead of love, and then I make a conscious decision to choose love again. The illness may disappear, or not, but my suffering does. My attitude becomes one of acceptance, and I am at peace with the illness, not fighting it or figuring out what I’ve done wrong to get myself in this situation (I recognize analyzing is a function of the ego and stop). I let go and let God, and once again I am at rest in His arms.”
As this insightful Course student allowed herself to be lifted above the battleground, she permitted the healing process to begin. She did not have to struggle to figure out what she had “done” — that was not the issue. She just wanted to experience healing – a healing of the mind. She joined her will with the Holy Spirit, accepted her responsibility for her choice for pain and not peace, and chose again. The result was a miracle (a holy instant) that healed her mind.
We are asked to accept responsibility for our choices, not guilt for our choices. Accepting responsibility allows the Holy Spirit to lift us above the battleground. Feeling guilty for the situations or experiences we find ourselves in “murders” the awareness of peace in our lives. Therefore, we have chosen attack. Attack of ourselves, our brothers, and God. We feel separate, and our experience of guilt reinforces that choice.
Accepting a miracle instead of murderous thoughts and allowing the Holy Spirit to lift us above the battleground lets us experience, right now, a world of peace that is God’s Will for us. It does not mean that anything in the “form” of the world changes, but the way we experience that “form” has been transformed. We have no idea, from our limited perspective, how to make that transformation, but then that is not our concern. Our focus is on looking at the clouds of confusion and separation that the world so often shows us and that we have given so much power to, and on allowing a new perception to come to us. This perception and insight will lift us above the battleground, so that we might experience the world of clarity that God has promised us.
When our son Jeff was little, he would sometimes get so worked up when he was overtired. Nothing would satisfy him, not even his favorite toys or activities. He would become so confused that he would “attack” everything. He wouldn’t even want his favorite blanket. He didn’t want to go to sleep, and yet he really did. It is how we all get when we are caught in the confusion of this exhausting world. When we try to figure anything out on our own, whether it be personal challenges or global concerns, attack fills our minds. We judge ourselves, and the people and world we see. In that moment, we need to stop. We need to rest from our perceptions. We need to be lifted above the battleground of our minds to a place of peace and understanding.
Having the awareness that God’s Help is ever available is a start. Knowing that there is another choice we can make with this Help is critical. But we must also recognize the signs of the ego’s plan to keep us in our murderous thoughts of separation, and dependent on guilt, fear, and attack for our salvation. The ego survives if we are not vigilant for its signs and choose for God instead. As the Course counsels…
“When the temptation to attack rises to make your mind darkened and murderous, remember you can see the battle from above. Even in forms you do not recognize, the signs you know. There is a stab of pain, a twinge of guilt, and above all, a loss of peace. This you know well. When they occur leave not your place on high, but quickly choose a miracle instead of murder. And God Himself and all the lights of Heaven will gently lean to you, and hold you up. For you have chosen to remain where He would have you, and no illusion can attack the peace of God together with His Son.” (T-23.IV.6)
“A stab of pain, a twinge of guilt, and above all, a loss of peace,” all of these are warning signs that we are being tempted to leave the world of peace that God is holding out to us in favor of the painful, suffering world of the ego. Let us not “leave our place on high, but quickly choose a miracle instead of murder.” And we are told that this choice will be supported by God Himself. Is there really a better support or help?
It is time we committed ourselves to living together in peace and harmony and making the choice to be lifted above the battleground of hate, attack, name-calling, and violent threats. We must become aware of the temptation to assault love by cherishing attack and grievances, and consciously make the choice to rise above it all and choose miracles instead of our murderous assault on peace and healing. Perhaps this will be the year when we finally believe what the Course has been telling us, that we are entitled to miracles. And, we will rise above the battleground to a place of healing and peace.
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If you are ready to rise above the world of chaos and attain a state of peace where God is remembered, this seminar is for you. Appearances by guests: Judith Skutch Whitson, Diane Cirincione-Jampolsky, Lee Jampolsky, and A Course in Miracles students from around the country share the tools they have learned in rising above the daily battlegrounds we often find ourselves in. So, take your rightful place in the salvation of the world by making the commitment and joining us above the battleground!