Will You Be Weak or Strong?

Early this morning, as I lay sleeping, a quiet voice came to me, “Romans 14, 1-12”.  It repeated, “Remember Romans 14: 1-12” over and over until I understood that I should claim it to memory. I have come to know this voice as an important guide, Holy Spirit finding a way to get through to me, using me as a vessel and a messenger at times.  I repeated the message over and over in my foggy sleep state so that I could recall it later in the day. It is immensely appropriate to some of the events of the world and how we, as spiritually-minded individuals, can find some bit of peace when all seems to be in disharmony, and find our strength in what may seem like weakness to others.

Romans 14: 1-12

1Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. 2 One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. 3 The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. 4 Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.

5 One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. 6 Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7 For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. 8 If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. 9 For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.

10 You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.

11 It is written:

12 So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.

After reading, I cross-referenced this idea to A Course In Miracles. I believe it is a work in which the Christ-light came through to reiterate His central message and clarify many things that have been mis-interpreted or met with confusion.

ACIM T:3:VI:3,5 tells us:

You have no idea of the tremendous release and deep peace that comes from meeting yourself and your brothers [sisters] totally without judgment. When you recognize what you are and what your brothers are, you will realize that judging them in any way is without meaning. In fact, their meaning is lost to you precisely BECAUSE you are judging them. All uncertainty comes from the belief that you are under the coercion of judgment. You do not need judgment to organize your life, and you certainly do not need it to organize yourself. In the presence of knowledge all judgment is automatically suspended, and this is the process that enables recognition to replace perception.

…(5:6,7) The strain of constant judgment is virtually intolerable. It is curious that an ability so debilitating would be so deeply cherished. Yet if you wish to be the author of reality, you will insist on holding on to judgment. 

A state of constant judgment makes us weak. We feel exhausted from it. It causes stress on our bodies and leads to disease. It robs us of our peace and joy, which is where miracles come through to us and to others through our illuminated hearts.  Yet judgment is such a cherished pastime in the world we have created, seemingly more so with each passing day. We have a world that is quick to label, to assume, and to admonish – not just about a few things, but rather, in an almost constant state of criticism. While all around, in the midst of the heinous and unloving acts, we have so many gentle and loving gestures, people who not only long for peace but have the courage to be peace, and make the choice to hold that energy of love even in the darkness and chaos. We think that argument and condemnation is our strength, but the deepest strength is in our quiet love for one another. Whatever is happening in the world, you can love…even love those who seem like they may not deserve it much – because that is where the greatest transformation lies.

When the Bible says we will give an account of ourselves to God, I believe it means that we will explore what we have learned here, and whether or not we were able to overcome the temptation in the world to condemn others as a means of making ourselves feel better or more worthy. God will see us only with love, because love it what God is.  We fear judgment from God, but instead, we should see it as a means of assessing our level of strength, how much we have worked the muscles of loving in an often unloving world.

Live today as if it is an opportunity to strengthen your love and peace muscles. It is your path to a rejuvenated spirit that can contribute deeply to your own healing and the healing of those who are hurting, by merely being there and shining a brighter light.