Will You Be Weak or Strong?
- At June 24, 2015
- By Sherri Lane
- In Miracles
1
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:
“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord,
‘every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will acknowledge God.’”
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.
Parasite or Pearl
- At June 12, 2015
- By Sherri Lane
- In Miracles
- 0
When we go through hardships in life, it is easy to feel broken or battered. Sometimes it is difficult to see any possible benefit from the hardship, especially when struggles seem to follow one after the other. But our difficulties help us create pearls from our lives – pearls of both wisdom and beauty.
Consider how a pearl is formed in an oyster or mollusk. It is from a parasite that presents itself within the oyster – an irritant that the oyster must protect itself from. By protecting itself from the parasite or irritant, by forming a barrier around it, the pearl is made…beauty comes from within the oyster, and from what was previously just a parasite.
If we apply this to our lives, we can more easily understand and appreciate our own hardships. We are the oyster. We are given irritants in order to bring out our gifts of beauty to the world. Our hardships allow us to create magnificent works of art from our lives. Without the parasite, the oyster would still leave a lovely, even if more ordinary, shell behind; but with the irritant, it produces a rare and wonderful jewel for the world. Our irritants help us produce pearls that enhance the beauty of the world.
One thing that stands out to me, beyond the usual pearl analogy, is that the oyster must protect itself from the parasite. It cannot just live with it as is and produce a pearl, but must form a barrier to protect itself from the harm that might be done by the irritant. In forming that protective barrier of calcium carbonate, the oyster produces the beautiful pearl. If it had not protected itself, it would become diseased and die.
We sometimes feel guilty for shutting out the parasites or irritants that surround us, those situations or persons that attach to us and hold us back, causing us dis-ease. But each such obstacle allows us to produce a work of art if we protect ourselves from it, and essentially shut it out from harming us. We should not feel guilt for creating barriers of protection in our lives. Our purpose is to create beauty through love and through finding our gifts and using them. If irritants attach themselves, it is also our responsibility to shield ourselves from their harm. When another has introduced friction or situations that can hurt us, we must protect in love, not attack. Like the oyster, if we simply isolate the parasite in such a way that it can no longer harm us, we are forming pearls in our lives, we are using the abilities and gifts that God gave us in a way that brings beauty. We are not only helping our own situation, but we are turning a parasite, an irritant, into a work of art. We help ourselves, and we transform another to a state of beauty.
Find ways to peacefully and lovingly address the irritants in your life, things that you might only have seen as parasites or difficulties that you were burdened with. Consider that each is an opportunity to build a pearl, if you will only see it as such and quietly, peacefully shield yourself from its harm. Create the pearl through embracing your hardships, through seeing them as gifts, as foundation for your unique work of art that will contribute breathtaking beauty in the world. By seeing in this way, you can release yourself from being a victim and understand that you have everything you need within you. You can be grateful for your hardships, realizing that they are gifts – and that realization is the greatest gift of all, if you choose to be like the oyster and turn them into pearls, or accept that opportunity.
Hold this thought close in your heart when you encounter the struggles that life brings. You already have what you need to transform them into pearls.
