If we knew, and I mean really knew the truth about ourselves – I am as God created me – could we ever believe that we are guilty, unworthy, lacking, limited or any other of the myriad of beliefs we hold about other people and ourselves?
A fundamental law of the universe is, like attracts like. One reason why it is important to uncover false beliefs is because we attract and create experiences based on them. If I have a belief alive and well in lack and limitation, then I will continue to create experiences of lack and limitation. Even seeing lack and limitation in the world is based on my belief in it. These false beliefs are made up of habitual thought patterns we have thought for so long that we are unaware of them, and yet they drive our lives.
I rarely remember my nightly dreams, and so when I do, I figure that it carries a message for me. Recently I had a dream, and due to the elusive nature of dreams I won’t bore you with the details, but I woke up in the middle of the night pondering what it meant. I recalled a conversation I once had in regard to dream interpretation where it was suggested that when attempting to interpret a dream, bring awareness to the feeling that the dream provokes. Immediately I realized that my overall feeling in regard to the dream was that of feeling unlovable.
The day before I had read a passage in NTI that said something like, if you believe that you are unlovable, a world without love is the world you will see. It seemed to me that this dream came to reveal to me that on some level, I still carry this belief. I’ll bet I’m not the only one.
This morning my Inner Teacher took me through a class on looking deeper at these beliefs and how to let them go. You may have had the experience of pulling weeds from your yard only to have them promptly return. The false beliefs we hold onto are like weeds that come up again and again until we look for the source of the weeds.
The weeds: the belief in guilt, unworthiness, lack and limitation; the belief that any thing outside of us holds our safety, security or our destruction, all stem from the same source – the belief in separation.
As we look at the world through the lens of false beliefs, we see a world that is not really there. We see a world of separation, strife and differences, instead of a world embraced by Love. We have truly been blinded by our beliefs because through them, we cannot see the truth.
How do I let them go?
In the previous post on “Letting go of the belief in lack,” I shared a definition of the word belief: “a habit of mind in which trust and confidence is placed in a person, place or thing.”
Where have you placed your trust? We may think that if we are spiritual or religious that we have fully placed our trust in God or the universe, but many of us are fooling ourselves.
Call to mind the circumstances or situations that bring about a sense of frustration, worry or fear. Maybe it’s around a change you want to make, or about finances, creativity or health. The frustration you feel reveals that you have put your trust in something other than your true Self.
Look at your plans for the future such as, how you will be taken care of. The shake-up in the economy over the last few years has been an experiential lesson for many people to learn that a sense of security cannot be placed in jobs or retirement plans. This doesn’t mean that you cannot plan for the future, however, where does your trust lie? Being a small business owner I’ve long realized that my retirement plan must be: I place the future into the hands of God!
Another way to do this is to notice which groups of people you identify with, the news stories you respond to and the charities you resonate to? Why do I choose this over that? This is a great way to see the belief in separation and differences, and how it plays out in your mind.
The belief in separation (ego) is the voice in the mind that we think of as “my” thoughts. This voice chatters incessantly about everything we see, say or do. We usually don’t even hear this voice, and yet, we listen to it and believe everything it tells us even though most of what it tells us is all about how we are unworthy, lacking and not good enough. Or, it chatters about how other people are unworthy, lacking and not good enough!
Thankfully, there is another Voice to can listen to – the Voice for Love, which is within. Since this Voice for God is within my mind, obviously I cannot be separate from God. Can a sunbeam be separate from the sun? Yet this is the dilemma: I am a sunbeam thinking I am separate from the sun.
Of course the way to let go of false beliefs is to see them. Mind watching is the practice of freedom. Learning to watch the thoughts in the mind will reveal false beliefs, and with such awareness, I have an opportunity to choose again. A Course in Miracles is filled with references to the importance of watching our mind. In just two pages there are several references:
“Watch your mind for the temptations of the ego…
“The habit of engaging with God and his creations is easily made if you actively refuse to let your minds slip away.
“Side with Me consistently against this deception...
“Your mind and mine can unite in shining your ego away and releasing the strength of God into everything you think and will and do. Do not settle for anything less than this, and refuse to accept anything but this as your goal. Watch your minds carefully for any beliefs that hinder it’s accomplishment and step away from them.
“Love shines on you and must shine through you. Your ego cannot prevent Love from shining on you, but it can prevent you from letting Love shine through you.” (ACIM O. E. T-4 62-66)
To be healed is to focus on one goal. Mind watching involves looking at our thoughts so as to recognize which goal they are serving. Who I really am, and who God really is, is beyond belief. Holy Spirit can teach us to perceive beyond belief, but we must abide to the vine.
Spirit Speaks:
When you prefer love to conflict,
you will begin to listen to Me.
When you prefer oneness to separateness,
you will ask Me how to think.
When you are tired of loss, lack and suffering,
you will give yourself to Me to be made complete.
All this you can choose,
and in all this,
I am with you.
NTI, Matthew 24:32-35
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This audio was recorded to an internet audience on 1-18-11 and is 47 min.
Uncovering the Obstacles to Love
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