by Beverly McNeff

“Only what you have not given can be lacking in any situation.” (T-17.VII.4) What???? If we are confused, broke, or sick, what can we give? With this quote, A Course in Miracles is challenging us to realign our thinking with the truth. The last thing we think of when we are experiencing a crisis in our lives is that we need to give something, yet it’s exactly what we need.

When challenges occur, we often have a knee-jerk reaction of fear, anger, or hopelessness. We don’t seem to be the answer we think we need, and in some ways that’s true … and false. Our ego self, which feels powerless and lost (and which we have become comfortable identifying with), may not be the answer, but our true Self is. Our true Self is the self that can never change, no matter what distortions we project onto it. Much like a fun house mirror you find at a carnival that distorts your image by giving you an oblong head and squatty body, the reality of your appearance is not changed by the image you see. But if you decide to identify with the image, your reality will be lost to you, even though it is still there.

We must correct our gaze, but we cannot do it alone. Of ourselves, we can do nothing because we have gotten so used to the illusions about ourselves, others, and the world. But, with the power of God (which is our true Self), our minds can be corrected; we can realize that it is possible to heal and transcend these illusions. So we step back and let Him lead the way, but we have to follow. We are needed in this world right now. As one of the early private messages received by the scribe of A Course in Miracles, Helen Schucman, said, “Teachers of God are needed now more than ever before.” And, as much as we may not believe it, it’s talking about us!

All you have to do is look around our country to see that the established norms of kindness, decency, and accountability are not prevailing, but we may be reaching a critical mass for change.

The recent deadly ICE shootings in Minneapolis have caused many to stand up and say no more. Voices are being raised for unity from brave people all across the country who have been and continue to peacefully protest in freezing weather. Both sides of the political spectrum are coming together for an end to the retribution of US citizens and hard-working immigrants who are being harassed and killed by destructive ICE tactics. And it is persistence that will overcome what seems like insurmountable obstacles.

As Nelson Mandela said, “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” From the abolition of slavery to the pursuit of civil rights, the persistence and consistent effort of the human spirit for unity and justice for all have and will overcome the fear-based, chaotic actions of those who believe in separation. And this is the same for our consciousness. After all, the world is an outward expression of our thoughts. As the Course says,

“Projection makes perception. The world you see is what you gave it, nothing more than that. But though it is no more than that, it is not less. Therefore, to you it is important. It is the witness to your state of mind, the outside picture of an inward condition. As a man thinketh, so does he perceive. Therefore, seek not to change the world, but choose to change your mind about the world. Perception is a result and not a cause. And that is why order of difficulty in miracles is meaningless. Everything looked upon with vision is healed and holy. Nothing perceived without it means anything. And where there is no meaning, there is chaos.” (T-21.in.1)

Our seeming free fall down the powerless rabbit hole of hate in this world may finally have hit bottom. It is time we all start being the solution. We can no longer point our fingers and say, “Let someone else take care of it!” We have something to give. We can be teachers of God, miracle workers who are needed now more than ever before, as we focus on the goal the Course gives us:

“The peace of God is everything I want. The peace of God is my one goal; the aim of all my living here, the end I seek, my purpose and my function and my life, while I abide where I am not at home.” (W-205)

The peace we foster within our minds and our willingness to be God’s instrument of peace will be the ripples that are needed in this world. As the Course tells us,

“This world will change through you. No other means can save it…” (W-125.2)

Our hopelessness will accomplish nothing, but our awareness of the power of God’s love and peace to heal our lives will show us the miracles that are here now.

Here is an email I received on Monday from a reader in North Carolina…

It is time we become the mighty miracle workers that we truly are. We have been asleep to our power of peace and healing in a world of insanity. But at any moment, we can awaken. It only takes an instant…a holy instant.

When I was about six years old, my parents gave me a necklace with a mustard seed encased in a little glass vial. I can see that image so clearly in my mind even today. Of course, the reminder was that with the faith of a mustard seed, we could move mountains. It was the metaphor Jesus used to explain to his disciples how little is needed for the healing of our lives.

In the Course our mustard seed is our “little willingness.” I know we think we give a little willingness at times, but we often take it back just as quickly. We get discouraged, frustrated, or depressed. The Course reminds us that our sighs betray us and the world. Our awakening is not just for ourselves but for the world. It is time to stop running from our function in this world and realize that our faith, not our faithlessness, our faith, placed in the truth, can move mountains.

We must “be vigilant only for God and His Kingdom.” (T-6.V-C.2) We must start watching when we dwell in those unproductive, powerless, useless thoughts — and ask the Holy Spirit to help us realign our thinking with the truth. Will we fail? Yes, but then we will try again. Will we forget? Yes, but then we will remember and try again. Will we get discouraged? Yes, but we will have each other and our joint experiences to help us remember, and we will try again.

I once read that success is not about never falling down, but about getting up one more time than you fall down. The Course reminds us that teachers of God…

“They are not perfect, or they would not be here. Yet it is their mission to become perfect here, and so they teach perfection over and over, in many, many ways, until they have learned it.” (M-in.5)

We each have an important role to play in salvation, as the Course assures us that each and every one of us is essential for God’s plan for salvation. As lesson 100, “My part is essential to God’s plan for salvation,” there is always something we can do, and we need to do, to effect healing because we do not do it alone.

“Just as God’s Son completes his Father, so your part in it completes your Father’s plan. Salvation must reverse the mad belief in separate thoughts and separate bodies, which lead separate lives and go their separate ways. One function shared by separate minds unites them in one purpose, for each one of them is equally essential to them all…

You are indeed essential to God’s plan. Just as your light increases every light that shines in Heaven, so your joy on earth calls to all minds to let their sorrows go, and take their place beside you in God’s plan. God’s messengers are joyous, and their joy heals sorrow and despair. They are the proof that God wills perfect happiness for all who will accept their Father’s gifts as theirs.”

We can always give, even when we feel we have nothing to give — there is no limitation on a loving thought. I have shared with you many times that when our son was starting school, I gave him this lesson from the Course as a prayer for him every morning.

“I will arise in glory,
and allow the light in me
to shine upon the world
throughout the day.” (W-237)

As this powerful lesson reminds us, it is time I (we) “accept the truth about myself [ourselves].” We are not powerless in the face of the world; we are here to break through the dream of fear, hopelessness, and doubt, and remember the seed of power (like a mustard seed) that will awaken our true Self. It is time we all arise in glory every day and let that truth, that light shine forth throughout our day. It is not about the so-called “successes” of life, but about the happiness and joy we experience when we realize how important we are to the salvation of our lives and this world.

“You are part of reality, which stands unchanged beyond the reach of your ego but within easy reach of spirit. When you are afraid, be still and know that God is real, and you are His beloved Son in whom He is well pleased. Do not let your ego dispute this, because the ego cannot know what is as far beyond its reach as you are.” (T-4.I.8)

No doubt, you definitely have something wonderful to give!

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