[acimlessons_list] Lesson 353 - December 19

[Sue Roth]

Lesson 353 - December 19

"My eyes, my tongue, my hands, my feet today 
Have but one purpose; to be given Christ 
To use to bless the world with miracles."

PRACTICE INSTRUCTIONS 

See complete instructions in separate document. 
A short summary:

* Read the commentary paragraph slowly and personally.

* Pray the prayer, perhaps several times.

* Morning and evening: Repeat the idea and then spend time in Open Mind
Meditation.

* Hourly remembrance: Repeat the idea and then spend a quiet moment in
meditation.

* Frequent reminders: Repeat the idea often within each hour.

* Response to temptation: Repeat the idea whenever upset, to restore peace.

* Read the "What Is" section slowly and thoughtfully once during the day.

Practice suggestion: I enjoy going through the body parts listed in the
lesson one at a time, and then adding on some other things at the end:

	I give my <eyes> to Christ today, to use to bless the world with
miracles.
	I give my <tongue> to Christ today, to use to bless the world with
miracles.
	I give my <hands> to Christ today, to use to bless the world with
miracles.
	I give my <feet> to Christ today, to use to bless the world with
miracles.
	I give my <time> to Christ today, to use to bless the world with
miracles.
	I give my <money> to Christ today, to use to bless the world with
miracles.
	I give my <car> to Christ today, to use to bless the world with
miracles.

COMMENTARY

These last ten lessons (not counting the final one) represent the state of
mind to which the Course seeks to bring us. In this lesson we see the final
outworking of the Course’s thoughts about the body. Not that the body
becomes ignored, despised, or neglected, but rather that its every part be
used to bless the world with miracles. The body is not attacked or
belittled; rather, it is given a new purpose, shared with Christ.

	Father, I give all that is mine today to Christ, to use
	in any way that best will serve the purpose that I share
	with Him. Nothing is mine alone, for He and I have 
	joined in purpose.	(1:1-2)

In Heaven our function is creation, something that apparently we can’t quite
fully understand until our mind awakens to Heaven, but here our function is
the pure reflection of creation: the giving of miracles, the extension of
forgiveness. We might say our function here is recognizing creation, since
to forgive is to acknowledge our brother as God created him, and not as we
have made him through the projection of our own guilt.

Let me, then, with all the determination I can muster, this day join myself
with Christ’s purpose. Let me give my hands, my eyes, my tongue, my feet to
Him. Why not silently pray and, very specifically, do exactly that? "Father,
I give my hands to Christ today to be used only for the purpose I share with
Him: to bless the world with miracles." Then repeating the same thing for
other parts of my body. Remember this thought through the day and renew your
gift to Christ, calling your mind back to its true purpose every time you
can remember.

	Thus has learning come almost to its appointed end. A
	while I work with Him to serve His purpose. Then I lose
	myself in my Identity, and recognize that Christ is but
	my Self.	(1:3-5)

When we have reached the point where we truly have given everything we have
to Him to be used for His purpose, we have almost completed the curriculum.
All that is left is to stay a little while longer, serving His purpose,
sharing the light with minds that still are clouded. This is almost
descriptive of an avatar, an enlightened master who is on earth only to
serve those not so far along.

When that time of service is over, I will "lose myself in my Identity, and
recognize that Christ is but my Self." The ego self will dissolve and
disappear; the individual will cease as a separate thing--which it never was
in reality--and expand into the One Self of Christ. Nothing will be lost in
this process except our separateness.

My heart, do not despair if this seems far beyond you now. It is much nearer
than you dare believe. You are much more than you think you are. Simply, in
gladness, give yourself to this purpose. The Holy Spirit will provide the
means. Be willing simply to move in this direction, and do not judge how
near or far you are, how easy or how difficult you think the way. Simply be
willing for it to be. Be not anxious or restless if it seems to elude you;
restlessness is only a delaying tactic. Rest, my heart. Trust. Angels watch
with you, awaiting the birth of the Christ in you. Have no fear. Rejoice!

What Am I?

W-pII.14.2:1-3

Our use for words is almost over now.	(2:1)

Throughout the Workbook, words have been used to instruct and inspire us,
and we have used the words given to us in our practicing. When we are truly
ready to "graduate" from the Workbook and its level of training, we will be
ready to leave specific words behind. We will be ready to spend our days in
constant communication with the Holy Spirit, with no need for any special
saying to act as a trigger, to entrain our minds along the lines of the
Course, because, at that point, our minds will be fully trained. We will
habitually practice holy instants and spend time often each day renewing our
minds in God’s Presence.

Few, if any, of us are truly at that point. I know, regretfully, that I am
not. I have not followed the training program given to us faithfully, and so
I still need more training, in which the use of words is still essential. I
still need the crutch of words; or a better analogy than "crutch"--training
wheels. I will be repeating the Workbook again next year.** Not with
reluctance or with a sense of defeat, oh no! I have made a great deal of
progress in this last year, I think. The lessons stick with me during the
day much more than ever before, and my mind does remember to apply them in
response to "temptation." Not always, but more frequently.

	Yet in the final days of this one year we gave to God
	together, you and I, we found a single purpose that we
	shared.	(2:2) 

Surely this is one of the goals of the Workbook, that we would come to
realize that we share a common purpose with Jesus; we are saviors (see
paragraph 3). We have begun to remember, not only our own guiltlessness, but
our purpose, what we were created for: to extend love to others, as God
created us by extending His Love.

	And this, our gift, is therefore given us.	(2:3) 

<Because> we have learned that we are here to give blessing to the world,
blessing is given to us. Because we have learned to forgive, we receive our
own forgiveness. This is the law of love. This is the way love works.

When the training goal of the Workbook is fully achieved in us, we have not
only found our own individual salvation, we have found that our salvation
lies in bringing release to others. We are saved by saving others, forgiven
by forgiving others, healed by healing others. "I will be healed as I let
Him teach me to heal" (T-2.V(A).18:6).

** This refers to 1996, since the commentary was written in 1995.