[acimlessons_list] Review I, Lesson 57 - February 26

[Sue Roth]

Review I, Lesson 57 - February 26

Review of Lessons 31 to 35

"I am not the victim of the world I see."

"I have invented the world I see."

"There is another way of looking at the world."

"I could see peace instead of this."

"My mind is part of God's. I am very holy."

PRACTICE SUMMARY 

Purpose: to review the lessons and therefore let them sink in a notch
deeper. Also, to see how they interrelated they are and how cohesive the
thought system is that they are leading you to.

Exercise: as often as possible (suggestion: every hour on the hour), for at
least 2 minutes

*	Alone in a quiet place, read one of the five lessons and the related
comments. Notice that the comments are written as if they are your own
thoughts about the idea. Try to imagine that they are. It will help if you
frequently insert your name. This will set you up for the next phase, in
which you generate similar thoughts of your own.

*	Close your eyes and think about the idea and the comments. Think
particularly about the central point of the commentary paragraph. Reflect on
it. Let related thoughts come (utilizing the training you've received in
that practice). If your mind wanders, repeat the idea and then get back to
your reflection. This is the same basic exercise as in Lesson 50, in which
you actively think about ideas in order to let them sink more deeply into
your mind.

Remarks: 

*	At the beginning and end of the day read all five lessons. 
*	Thereafter, cover one lesson per practice period, in no particular
order. 
*	Cover each lesson at least once.
*	Beyond that, concentrate on a particular lesson if it appeals to you
most.

COMMENTARY

The review today echoes with the word "freedom."

"My chains are loosened. I can drop them off merely by desiring to do so.
THE PRISON DOOR IS OPEN. I can leave simply by walking out" (1:3-5).

"I made up the prison in which I see myself. All I need do is recognize this
and I AM FREE" (2:2-3).

"The Son of God must be FOREVER FREE" (2:6).

"I see the world as a prison for God's Son. It must be, then, that THE WORLD
IS REALLY A PLACE WHERE HE CAN BE SET FREE. I would look upon the world as
it is, and see it as a place where the Son of God finds his FREEDOM"
(3:4-6).

"When I SEE THE WORLD AS A PLACE OF FREEDOM, I realize that it reflects the
laws of God instead of the rules I made up for it to obey" (4:2).

The beauty of acknowledging that I have invented the world I see is that it
affirms my freedom to see it differently. Recognize that I have made up my
prison, and I am free. And I am <already> free; all of us are free, now, in
our own minds. The prison is an illusion. I can choose my thoughts, and that
is the ultimate freedom. I can choose to look upon the world as a place
where I can be set free, and where you can be set free. I can choose to see
the world as a prison, or as a classroom. How I see it is my choice--<my
choice>! I am <free> to make that choice.

I can see peace any time I choose to. I am free to do that. These moments I
spend in quiet each day, practicing these lessons, are showing me that. I
can create peace in my mind any time I choose to do so. To choose peace of
mind is the ultimate freedom, and depends on nothing outside of me at all.

I begin to understand, as I share this peace with my brothers, that the
peace is not coming from outside, but "from deep within myself" (5:2). As my
mind changes, the way I see the world changes with it. It witnesses peace
back to me. And so "I begin to understand the holiness of all living things,
including myself, and their oneness with me" (5:5).

Years ago, when I had only begun to study the Course, I sat down one day and
tried to answer a question: "What have I learned about life? What am I
reasonably sure of?" And the answer that came to me was very simple:
"Happiness is a choice I make." I had begun to realize the freedom of my
mind to choose. I had begun to realize that my mind was truly autonomous in
this choice. It needed nothing from outside to make happiness possible; it
was purely a choice. And nothing outside could impede that choice.

I am still learning that lesson, building on it, solidifying it within my
experience. That is what this review is telling us. We are free to choose.
We <really are> free, right now. Our minds are all-powerful in this choice.
They lack nothing to make it, and there is nothing that can stop us from
making it. What is more, God wills that we make it because His Will for us
is perfect happiness.

Today, let me remember that I want to be happy, and I can choose, in every
moment, to be happy. I want to be at peace, and I can choose, in every
moment, to be at peace. Happiness <is> peace, for how could I be happy if I
am in conflict? Today, I will make this choice!