Day 31

Today's Lesson:

I am not the victim of the world I see.

Today we are asked to think about whatever we see in the outer world, but also whatever we see in the inner world, while applying the lesson. We will escape from both together, for the inner is the cause of the outer. We are to notice any thought that comes into our minds throughout the day and repeat today's idea to ourselves as often as we care to, but with no sense of hurry.

This is the beginning of our practice of declaration of release. We are reminded that this is a declaration of independence in the name of our own freedom. In our freedom lies the freedom of the world. The lesson says that today's thought is particularly useful to use as a response to any form of temptation that may arise. It is a declaration that I will not yield to it, and put myself in bondage.

Miracles I'm noticing:

I'm reminded of a statistic I've heard several times and in several places that we have 60,000 random thoughts going through our heads in any given day. And if we really notice those thoughts instead of letting them be so random, we will notice that they have two distinct voices: the voice of the victim and the voice of the villain. Today's lesson gives us a declaration to combat the voice of the victim.

In the class I'm teaching this week, we actually take 30 seconds and listen to the voice in our heads, which is probably the first time many of these people have taken the time to do that. In fact, there are some who, when I ask after the 30 seconds if they heard something in their heads, will say no, until I say - as Ben Zander does in the training video "The Art of Possibility" - "if you were thinking to yourself, 'what voice? I don't know what she's talking about, voice in the head': that's the one I mean."

If we're not even aware that we do have voices other than our own going through our minds, it would probably be easy to really believe we are the victim or the villain. Today's lesson is a great reminder that we are not the victims of the world we see.

I'm still thinking about what I learned about myself at last night's gathering (see the last part of yesterday's post for a update). There was a time in my life when I used to think of myself as a victim of my upbringing. I remember watching TV shows that depicted the life I wish I'd had and wondering how I'd gotten so unlucky to have been born where and when I'd been born (and how I'd gotten so unlucky to have the jobs I'd had and the friends I'd had, etc. etc.). Realizing that I am not a victim of the world I see really allows me to alter that thought process. I really do see how this allows freedom for me, and, consequently, for the world.

What do you notice when you practice today's lesson? How does it feel to get rid of the victim mentality? What is opening up for you?

Day 30

Today's Lesson:

God is in everything I see because God is in my mind.

Today we are trying to see in the world what is in our minds, and what we want to recognize is there. We are trying to join with what we see, rather than keeping it apart from us. That is the fundamental difference between vision and the way we see.

Real vision is not only unlimited by space and distance, but it does not depend upon the body's eyes at all. The mind is its only source. So as we're thinking about and practicing today's lesson, we are to think of things beyond our present range as well as those we can actually see.

Miracles I'm noticing:

I met with my business partner last night and we had an amazing dialogue over dinner. He is not studying this Course, but we were able to discuss everything I'm learning here in a way that I think he was able to comprehend. I felt very comfortable telling him how I'm interpreting what I'm learning, and it was a great opportunity for me to articulate the distinctions the Course is teaching.

We also talked about the future for our business, and he challenged me to get focused on writing the business plan, which I've known I need to do for several months now. I'm kind of excited to work on the plan next Tuesday and Wednesday and get the ideas down so we can start looking for funding for our marketing materials and new website. I understand more how I need to talk about my ideas first before I can get them on paper (or in the computer). The process works best for me when I can share my ideas and get feedback. The miracle for me continues to be the people in my life who appear just when I seem to need a jumpstart and provide just what I need, even though I don't realize it.

I'm truly blessed and grateful to have all the support I have in my life - and to recognize how they appear - physically - in my space just when I need them! It is truly a reinforcement of today's lesson because I am seeing how the world is opening up before me and I'm beginning to see in it what I have never seen before.

UPDATE:

I've just come from my ACIM group and a lot of things appeared as miracles for me there. Today's lesson became especially real to me as I shared with the group a situation with my mom which has troubled me for some time. I'll try to keep this brief, but I'd love feedback from anyone who reads this and might have some ideas for me.

I was raised in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS) and have felt an adversarial relationship with church and religion as far back as I can remember. I haven't been able to articulate what this uneasiness has been until the past few years. My mother is a woman of very strong and rigid faith, and this has caused more than a little consternation for each of us over the years. This past week she sent me a packet of information from the LCMS explaining their views on topics like The Gospel, Death, Communion, and the differences between the LCMS and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) which is the denomination I converted to several years ago. When I received this package in the mail this past week, I automatically reverted to the child who felt she needed to stop asking questions because it meant she didn't really have faith in God. I guess I was put out because my mother is still trying to get me to believe the way she believes and that's just not me.

I brought this up to my group tonight, and we talked about it a little - they helped me see that this is really not about my mother at all - it's about me. What is she showing me that I haven't forgiven in myself? So as we started reading today's lesson together, it occurred to me that if God is in everything I see because God is in my mind, then God must be in these brochures I received as well. God isn't limited to only the way I see Him or the way my mother sees Him - He is much bigger than either of our ideas. This was validation to me that my limited vision in the past has been about my ego, and not about Spirit.

So we went on to read the text for today and it was as if it had been written specifically for me. Here is just a taste of what it said:

"A good teacher clarifies his own ideas and strengthens them by teaching them. Teacher and pupil are alike in the learning process. They are in the same order of learning, and unless they share their lessons, conviction will be lacking. A good teacher must believe in the ideas he teaches, but he must meet another condition; he must believe in the students to whom he offers the ideas.

"Many stand guard over their ideas because they want to protect their thought systems as they are, and learning means change. Change is always fearful to the separated, because they cannot conceive of it as a move towards healing the separation. They always perceive it as a move toward further separation, because the separation was their first experience of change."

Wow. That gave me a whole new perspective on the way my mother probably sees her faith, but also gave me validation on the way I see my own faith.

Here's another part of the text:

"Egos can clash in any situation, but spirit cannot clash at all. If you perceive a teacher as merely 'a larger ego' you will be afraid, because to enlarge an ego would be to increase anxiety about separation."

So I see this as a miracle - a shift in perception from fear to love - for my understanding of my mom's actions toward me. When I allow myself to fall into the fear trap - the former belief that I'm not good enough and I don't trust my own Knowing enough - I recognize that as fear. But beginning to understand that in her own perception, she is simply showing her love and concern for my well-being, helps me shift to love and appreciation.

I'm very grateful to Michael, Susan, Gina, Ross, Sharon, Sheri, Jodie, Darcy, Carolyn, Jonathan, and Jennifer for their support in this conversation tonight!

Day 29

Today's Lesson:

God is in everything I see.

Today's idea is the whole basis for vision. It explains why nothing is separate, and why nothing I see means everything. It may seem silly, senseless, funny and even objectionable. It may be difficult to grasp that God could possibly be in a table, for example; however in yesterday's lesson we learned that a table shares the purpose of the universe. And what shares the purpose of the universe share the purpose of the Creator.

Today's lesson will help us see how to look on everything with love, appreciation, and open-mindedness. If I don't see these things now, how could I know what is in them? Nothing is as I see it now - its holy purpose is beyond my sight. But as I begin to see God in everything, today's lesson tells me that I will not understand how I could ever have found this difficult.

Miracles I'm noticing:

As I look around the room I'm in this morning, I begin to see my cats, the cereal box, the oranges on the counter and even the dishes drying in the sink differently. If God is in everything I see, how can my judgment about those things be accurate or justified?

I'm on my way to another week of training in Minnesota, so I'm sure I'll have many more opportunities to practice the lessons, and report back on what I'm noticing. Watch for an update later!

Day 28

Today's Lesson:

Above all else I want to see things differently.

When I really think about today's lesson, it is very profound. As the lesson tells us, this may be a difficult commitment to make over time. But we are reminded that we are just at the beginning of this journey in mind re-training.

We may wonder why it is important to look at objects around us and say, for example, "Above all else I want to see this table differently." As the lesson goes on to say, "In itself it is not important at all. Yet what is by itself? And what does 'in itself' really mean? You see a lot of separate things about you, which really means you are not seeing at all. You either see or not. When you have seen one thing differently, you will see all things differently. The light you will see in any one of them is the same light you will see in them all."

What that really means is that I am willing to see beyond my own preconceptions about whatever it is I want to see differently. I begin not to define it in past terms, but asking it what it is instead of telling it what it is.

If I am really committed to seeing everything differently, I will begin to notice things I never noticed before.

Miracles I'm noticing:

I'm reminded right now of the song "Colors of the Wind" from the Disney movie Pocahontas. Here are the lyrics of two of the sections:

You think you own whatever land you land on
The Earth is just a dead thing you can claim
But I know every rock and tree and creature
Has a life, has a spirit, has a name

You think the only people who are people
Are the people who look and think like you
But if you walk the footsteps of a stranger
You'll learn things you never knew you never knew

Ever since I really listened to the lyrics of that song, I realize that I have a judgment about everything I see. Only when I commit to seeing things differently can I realize that there are many, many things I never knew I never knew. And that's where I can have the most opportunity for growth.

There are so many examples of this new seeing that I could probably just start listing everything I see. But the key here, I think, is to notice that judgment. As the lesson reminds us, we are still at the beginning of this new practice, so I think it's important not to beat ourselves up. In fact, if we are going to work on noticing judgment, we can also include ourselves in that noticing. I'm probably my own worst enemy when it comes to judging myself. I don't think people spend nearly as much time as I think they must in judging me - they're too busy judging themselves.

I'm interested to hear what you notice when you commit to seeing things differently. Is the sky bluer? Is the snow whiter? Are people friendlier? What do you see when you let others' purposes be revealed to you instead of putting your own judgment upon them?

Day 27

Today's Lesson:

Above all else I want to see.

I remember the first time I did this lesson a couple of years ago and feeling that I wasn't sure this is what I really wanted above all else. The lesson says that it doesn't matter if you don't really mean this. You are just coming closer to the time when you do have vision among your priorities.

I think the reason we hesitate to declare something for our lives - especially when it comes to what we want - is because we think we might have to give something up. Or maybe we have a fear of having to be accountable. If that comes up when doing this lesson, we're supposed to add:

Vision has no cost to anyone.

And if fear still persists, we are to add further:

It can only bless.

As with all the previous lessons, to achieve maximum benefit, it is a process to be thought about throughout the day. Today's lesson is recommended to be repeated at least every half hour. Although it is an interruption in the way we have been thinking, it is still possible to repeat one short sentence to ourselves without disturbing anything.

It comes down to how badly we want today's idea to be true. That will be the indication that we have found it less difficult to remember the lesson throughout the day.

Miracles I've noticed:

I worked with a client all day yesterday, facilitating their annual retreat. I'm very blessed and grateful that one of my fellow Course members is part of that group. I've worked with this company for four years now facilitating their annual retreat - and this year I sensed a shift in the collective consciousness. We are focusing in 2007 on their strengths - both individually and as a team. With my friend and me both in this Course and having done similar studies previously, I sensed the shift to a more sincere and authentic conversation. He even said there have been ideas he has wanted to bring up in previous retreats, but he has been afraid to. He brought them up this year and the space we created was safe. It was also great that the owners of the company agreed to have quarterly half-day meetings to reinforce our plan throughout the year. Each person will have an assignment, whether a team or individual assignment - to think about until we meet in April. Then we will move forward toward our new goals.

Another really neat aspect of this event was that instead of taking a fee for this year's work with this client, I am banking the cost with them and they will be providing some services for my new expanded business. This is something I may not have been able to declare if I wasn't committed to today's lesson: "Above all else I want to see."

Day 26

Today's Lesson:

My attack thoughts are attacking my invulnerability.

I know today's lesson makes sense, because this Course is nothing if it's not logical. But sometimes it's difficult for me to grasp the logic. So I'll take a try at unraveling today's lesson here. If I believe attack is possible, then I am vulnerable. That is because I really believe I am capable of attacking someone else. But what would affect someone else must also have effects on me. So instead of using this principle against what would be in my own best interest, I need to focus on how I can use this law for my own best interest.

If attack thoughts must mean that I am vulnerable, the effect of those thoughts is to weaken me in my own eyes. They will have attacked my perception of myself. If this is the case, I must believe in my attack thoughts instead of in myself. So every effect - vulnerability, attack, everything - is the result of my own thoughts.

Realizing that any distressing or upsetting thought that comes into my mind is actually an attack upon myself is the key to today's lesson. Spending time thinking about any attack thought and the possible outcomes of those upsetting thoughts will allow me to separate my thoughts from the attack. Nothing but my own thoughts can attack me. Nothing but my thoughts can make me think I am vulnerable. And nothing but my thoughts can prove to me this is not so.

Miracles I'm noticing:

Yesterday I was working on preparations for a retreat I'm going to be facilitating today. But I also had two meetings scheduled in the afternoon with other people. I went to a coffee shop about an hour before my first scheduled meeting. I had taken my computer so I could work on the slides for today's presentation. About a half hour before my meeting was scheduled, I thought to myself that I wished I had an extra hour before the meeting because I had about an hour more work than I anticipated. I knew I would just have to stop in the middle of my slides while I had this meeting and the next one, and pick it up afterwards and finish the presentation.

About 10 minutes later an e-mail popped up from the person I was scheduled to meet with in 20 minutes telling me she would need to reschedule our meeting. I found myself with an extra hour before my next meeting. Coincidence? Miracle? I choose to believe so. This Course says there is no order of difficulty in miracles. The Secret says our own beliefs about the power of the Law of Attraction sometimes limit the miracles that appear to be available to us. The Secret suggests we start small - like with a cup of coffee, or a parking space, or by thinking about someone we haven't thought about for a while. If you really focus your thoughts, the Law of Attraction says that there is science behind the effects, which will show up as someone buying you a cup of coffee, getting a close parking spot, or hearing that person's name come up in seemingly random fashion.

What used to happen to me was that I would want to believe in something, but there would always be this little voice of cynicism and doubt in my mind saying "this will never work" and - so be it - it wouldn't work. I'd get to be right every time. What didn't occur to me at that time was that I could be right about believing it would work, too. It just appeared easier to default to the negative.

Now I find that defaulting to the positive is much more automatic for me. I don't have as many attack thoughts - and if I do, I notice them much more quickly (thank goodness for the Law of Gestation which gives me that time delay before the thoughts manifest!).

I just noticed that I refer to The Secret and also this Course a lot in my conversations. It's not unlike my references to The Landmark Forum. For me those have been really significant signposts in my own life. Landmark was my first exposure to a lot of this new way of thinking, so for me that was my wake-up call and I compare a lot of my thinking to Landmark simply because it was my first reference. The same is true of both A Course in Miracles and The Secret - each represents a quantum jumping off point for me in old thought patterns. I just want to give credit where it is due in my own life and am in no way suggesting or even implying that anyone else need follow the same path.

What are you noticing in your own life? Where are all those coincidences? Just noticing them might shed some light on what isn't and also what is working in your life.

Day 25

Today's Lesson:

I do not know what anything is for.

This lesson builds on yesterday's lesson. If I don't perceive my own best interests, it is because I perceive everything through the eyes of my ego and my ego is not me. Because I think my ego is me, I can't understand what anything is for. The goals I perceive are concerned with my own "personal" interests. Since I (the me that is not my ego) have no personal interests, my goals are really based on nothing - and I really have no goals at all. So I (the me that is not my ego) do not know what anything is for.

The lesson takes this one step deeper. It says that on the most superficial level I do understand purpose. The example it uses is a telephone. I do know that a telephone is for the purpose of talking to someone who is not physically present with me. But what I do not understand is what I want to reach him for. And this is what makes contact with him meaningful or not.

This lessons helps reinforce the belief that nothing means anything - there is no "good" or "bad" or "right" or "wrong." Again, it helps me recognize the judgments that naturally occur when I don't pay attention to my thoughts.

Miracles I'm noticing:

Dave and I met for dinner last night and had a wonderful conversation about a book he's working on. Dave is the kind of friend who - although we don't see each other all that often because he lives in Kentucky - when we do get together we can just pick up where we left off. There is very little superficial small talk with us and it's such a breath of fresh air to spend time with him. Although Dave isn't studying A Course in Miracles, we can still talk about many of the concepts on a level that most people don't just pick up and talk. We talked quite a bit about ego and spirit and other Course themes and it's so great to know there are people out there who want to engage in bigger small talk!

In addition, yesterday Jen and I met for coffee and had a great conversation about some of these concepts (Jen is in my Course study group). It's so wonderful to be able to share authentic communication without fear (or at least being able to identify the fear and not keep it hidden). Jen and I created a very meaningful dialogue because we are both studying messages like today's - noticing when ego gets in the way and noticing when fear holds us back. We are both able to do that for each other, and each of us grows in the process. This is another indication to me that both my personal mission (Inviting Bigger Small Talk) and my 2007 intention (Listen and Allow) are at work in my life!

I invite anyone reading this blog to share the miracles you are seeing in your own lives. When we talk about miracles here we mean "a shift in perception from fear to love." What are you noticing in your life?

Day 24

Today's Lesson:

I do not perceive my own best interests.

This lesson points out that nearly every thought I have involves some judgment. In any situation that calls my attention, there is some level of expectation or desired outcome. What I do to achieve the outcomes I think I desire is based on my perception of the situation, and we've learned in earlier lessons that my perception is wrong. So it would follow that I would not serve my own best interests.

This lesson takes a lot of practice, because I've been programmed throughout my life to do whatever I can to be right. As a young person I wouldn't try anything new if it meant that I might not be good at it. I would fight tooth and nail to prove that my perception was correct, so I would never have been open to believing that I wouldn't perceive my own best interests. But today's lesson tells us that if we are closed to the possibility that we might not know what's best for us, we have no opportunity to learn. As I see how closed my mind has been, it allows me to alter that perception and allow room for learning.

Miracles I'm noticing:

Just being able to admit that I do not know my own best interests and to be open to new possibilities is a big step for me, and one I've been practicing for almost four years now. In March of 2003 I completed the Landmark Forum, which really gave me openings to new possibilities, and since then I've been practicing. I began studying this Course regularly in January of 2005, so this, too is another opening for a new process. Each week our group gets together, I witness so many more miracles that are happening in each of our lives as we start opening up to the lessons. I'm hoping the other members of our study group will share some of their stories here. We've heard about smoother relationships at home, insights with work situations, new access to relationships of all kinds, past and present, and it's obvious that as we open ourselves to what we're practicing in today's lesson, the miracles come rushing in.

I invite anyone who reads this blog today to share what they're noticing - whether through studying the Course or just waking up in their own understanding - to share what they're seeing in their own lives. What seems to be a coincidence? What can you see that just sort of "fell into place?" Think back to what you were thinking when you noticed that miracle and you'll begin to see that retraining your mind is altering the cause. The effects just naturally follow.

Day 23

Today's Lesson:

I can escape from the world I see by giving up attack thoughts.

Since everything I see starts with my thoughts, it would make sense that I will want to work with my thoughts to change the perception of the world.

As the lesson says, "if the cause of the world I see is attack thoughts, you must learn that it is these thoughts which you do not want." There really is no point in wishing the world would be different. There really is no point in trying to change the world. The world as I see it is merely an effect of my thoughts. As I change the cause, I change the effects.

Today's lesson only asks us to realize that we are not trapped in the world we see. We just need to realize that our thoughts are the causing the way we see the world, and then let those thoughts go. The rest will take care of itself. It's also important to remember that we need to let go not only of our thoughts of attacking, but also of being attacked. When we learn that thoughts of attack and of being attacked are not different, we will be ready to let the cause go.

Miracles I'm noticing:

I see so many parallels in the things I've been thinking and speaking about and today's lesson.

1) This quote comes to mind: "There are two ways of spreading light: To be the candle or the mirror that reflects it." - Edith Wharton

2) Part of my current training program includes an opportunity for participants to take 30 seconds and listen to the voice in our heads. We probably don't even realize that we have 60,000 random thoughts going through our heads in any given day. And most of those thoughts are the same as the ones we had the day before. And, if we really think about it, we can probably trace most of those thoughts to two distinct voices: the victim and the villain. This is similar to the thoughts of being attacked (victim) and attacking (villain). Just noticing these different voices can be the start of recognizing them as the cause of the way we see the world.

3) My business, Bock's Office Transformational Consulting, is expanding and we're going to be focusing more intently on the movie/theater metaphor in our dialogue with clients. One way we've been talking about what we want to do as we create lasting training and development opportunities is to talk about training as the beginning of a process compared to training as an event. In one case it is like watching a movie where we are so focused on what is happening on the screen that we try to change the outcome by yelling at the people in the movie or even trying to redraw what we see on the screen. Yet sometimes that is what we do in our companies by just shooting from the hip with our training. We try to put a band-aid on the problems (the effects) but don't look at where we can really make a difference: by changing the movie in the projector. The projector simply projects whatever it has loaded into it. We can change the script and the movie that is our way of seeing the world, but we have to go to the root cause.

I'm doing a speech in February for our local chapter of the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) and just this morning I wrote a detailed description of the topic I'll be presenting. Here is some of what I wrote this morning (no coincidence):

“UNLEASHING YOUR GENIUS: Ideas for Planning Unique and Memorable Training Experiences”

“Genius” might be defined as that core essence, that guiding star, that drive that makes you you. When your genius is unleashed, you can be free to design and deliver training that sticks because you can look at training not as an event, but as an experience.

An essential step in planning and designing training and development opportunities that go beyond mere "events" is to know the desired outcomes of the audience.

One way to determine those outcomes is to ask: but a way to go beyond the mere asking is for the person or team doing the planning and design to know more about themselves.

In a way, I was writing about getting to the cause - our own perception of the training as trainers - and then rewriting the course based on our own strengths (which would imply getting rid of attack thoughts).

Waking up is really all we need to do to recognize the miracles around us every day!

Day 22

Today's Lesson:

What I see is a form of vengeance.

Today's idea accurately describes the way anyone who holds attack thoughts in his mind must see the world. If a person's nature is such that he projects his own anger onto the world, he would be naturally defensive and would perceive his attack as self defense. As the lesson says, this becomes a vicious cycle until he is willing to change how he sees.

Until I can see that there may be a better way - and I am committed to that better way by changing something in myself - I will always be on the defensive and will be looking for ways to sabotage my happiness by protecting my need to be right.

We've already learned here that our thoughts are not real anyway. Anything we fear does not exist. If I see anything that causes the least bit of uneasiness or unhappiness or discomfort, it may be enough to recognize that I may be seeing a form of vengeance. When I can ask myself "is this the world I really want to see," the lesson says the answer is surely obvious.

It's difficult to admit that may be the way I see things and people and situations in my life. Anytime something makes me upset, frustrated, or uneasy, I can be sure it's because I haven't been remembering what I've learned from this Course.

Miracles I'm noticing:

Miracles appear in many forms for me - but mostly in the faces of the friends I have around the U.S. My friend Dave from Kentucky was in Minnesota last week doing some consulting and so was I, so we met for dinner and shared each of our plans for future books. Dave is so creative and is on a similar spiritual path as I am, so we had lots to talk about. Although Dave lives in Kentucky, he does quite a bit of work in Minnesota, and more often than not, when he happens to be working in Minnesota, so do I. No coincidence there. We are able to connect quite frequently, and each of us can support the other in our journeys.

I had lunch on Saturday with one of my mentors, Bob Ash, and it is so wonderful to realize that, no matter how much time goes by between our visits (he lives in Indianapolis, so we don't see each other too often), we can just pick up where we left off. We have so many ideas in common, and he is one person who really leads the way in the knowledge that our thoughts create the way we see the world. Anytime I see him I'm reminded of the importance of awareness and its effects in the world. Bob speaks to groups all over the U.S. and it's no accident that he gets tons of repeat business.

Each of these encounters pointed out to me that miracles appear every day in so many forms - but sometimes they show up in person. It isn't too often anymore that circumstances don't seem to miraculously work out so my mentors and friends from out of state are here when I am available to connect with them.

Day 21

Today's Lesson:

I am determined to see things differently.

Again, today's lesson builds on the previous ones and asks us to start being even more specific in our thinking. The instructions today ask us to think carefully about situations past, present, or anticipated in the future that arouse anger in us. We are to think of any situations, "big" or "small" which might cause that reaction in us. As we think of situations as more or less frustrating or irritating to us, we might see that we believe some forms of attack are more justified than others. We've already learned that nothing we believe about this connection means anything anyway.

Miracles I've noticed:

Just thinking about today's lesson I realize that there are far fewer things in my life that really make me angry. I've thought about politics, religion and other "hot topics" that used to really rile me up and I'm noticing that I don't have the same reaction anymore. I notice when talk radio and TV personalities like Bill O'Reilly try to stir up controversy, but I'm just not as affected as I used to be. Of course, the lesson today reminds me that "a slight twinge of annoyance is nothing but a veil drawn over intense fury." I'm starting to understand that as I keep up the practice of the Course and its lessons, I will begin to retrain my mind out of my old habits. I'm looking forward to the day when I won't have to think so much and work on retraining but I will have crossed that bridge where that's just the way it is. Until then, I'll keep practicing and keep noticing.

Day 20

Today's Lesson:

I am determined to see.

Before we can see things differently, we have to come to the realization that the way we currently see things may not be the most effective. But this Course is very deliberate in its efforts to not be coercive. As we know from our own experience as employees, parents, friends, co-workers, it just doesn't work to "make" anyone do anything. Today's lesson shows us that the only thing that is required for seeing the world the way we want to see it (seeing happiness and peace instead of sadness and upset) is our decision to see.

Today we are asked to think of the lesson at least twice an hour and apply the lesson to any situation, person or event that upsets us. It is possible to see them differently, and we will. What we desire we will see. The lesson tells us that this is the law of cause and effect as it operates in the world.

Miracles I've noticed:

Today's lesson really reinforces some of the coaching I've been using during my training session the past two weeks. One of our "assignments" is to fight the 2 D's (defensiveness and debating) with the 2 L's (listening and learning). We start to realize that anything that causes us to be defensive or want to debate is just a signal to us that if we listen differently we surely will learn something. That's why we have the physical reaction to the upset.

Another part of the training is defining our objective when we want to solve a problem. We need to be very clear about our intention and to also be committed to solving the problem. Sometimes it's as simple as realizing that what we have been doing hasn't given us the results we'd like - hasn't helped us achieve our objective. We've all heard the definition of insanity: to do the same thing over and over and expect different results. Now is the time to stop the insanity.

It is no coincidence that today's lesson reinforces the points from this week's training. And I think that's probably true for everyone who reads this blog. I'm pretty sure if we all recognize in our own lives the way we are determined to see, we will notice how the lessons reinforce whatever we're dealing with in our own lives.

Here's another miracle: Lisa Haneberg called me yesterday to interview me for her Fireside Chat podcast. She asked me questions about my book, The 100% Factor, and one of the topics of dialogue was the whole notion of there being no coincidences. She said she's kind of on the fence about that. I don't think it is a coincidence that she would pick that topic to talk about. And it's also no coincidence that Lisa's first interview for 2007 was Curt Rosengren, a North Dakota native and writer for Motto Magazine; and Lisa's second interview is Kevin Salwen, editor of Motto Magazine. Her third interview is me, a North Dakota native who has made an intention for 2007 to write for Motto Magazine. I know Lisa didn't know that when she set up these interviews, so what could it be except a miracle?

As I am determined to see, the results of my seeing - both "positive" and "negative" - become very clear to me.

Day 19

Today's Lesson:

I am not alone in experiencing the effects of my thoughts.

So it's not only the effects of my seeing, but also the effects of my thoughts that I share with everyone else. It really doesn't matter whether the thought comes first or the seeing comes first because thinking and the results of the thinking (the seeing) are never separate. Cause and effect go together.

This lesson reminds me of the part of The Secret where they talk about monitoring your thoughts. Joe Vitale says that it will seem difficult at first, but that's where the fun comes in. It may seem impossible or maybe even unfair that each of us has to be responsible for our thoughts because they affect more than just the one thinking them. But it helps to remember that we are all connected. When I remember that the other members of my study group are also working on the same lesson today, I almost feel a sense of relief because there is an unspoken accountability partnership in place. As I understand the effects of my thoughts on not just me but each of them as well, I see a little more clearly how each of us is part of the healing of the universe.

Miracles I'm noticing:

The text for today emphasizes the need to free ourselves from fear quickly, "because you must emerge from the conflict if you are to bring peace to other minds." This shows again how I am not alone in experiencing the effects of my thoughts.

I had dinner with my friend Dave a couple of nights ago and we were talking about how nothing exists in a vacuum. Whenever there is a void of information, for example, our minds will automatically fill it in with fear because we're so conditioned to expect the worst. Yesterday's TUT message said "The one who prepares for adversity, Jodee, builds not a bridge of retreat, but one upon which adversity advances." Why should we be surprised about the state of affairs in our world these days? I read an article somewhere yesterday about worry and the effects of worry on health. Worry is almost exclusively present only in the mind. Think of how much stress we could alleviate in the world if we just concentrated on filling in the gaps with positive energy instead of the automatic negative energy we allow to seep in.

And speaking of miracles, here is today's TUT message:

The reason most people don't recognize the miracles that are performed on their behalf, Jodee, is because there's just so blomin' many of them.

Like this very moment...

And this one...

And this one...

The Universe

One of those things that makes you go "hmmmmmm......"

Day 18

Today's Lesson:

I am not alone in experiencing the effects of my seeing.

I'm thinking this morning about how I see things. If I concentrate on noticing what is wrong in the world, then I will see everything as I think it should be instead of how it really is, which is neutral. If I am wanting to prove that I'm right about the way I think of something, I will always be looking for justification instead of just noticing what is. There is something both comforting and also kind of disturbing about knowing that I am not the only one who sees the world this way. When I realize that we are all connected, it becomes more effective for me to create dialogue with others using myself as an example for what I'm noticing, which brings more unity and support to my waking up process. If I try to teach what I'm learning by pointing out ways people are doing things "wrong," I don't build rapport - I end up pushing against something and, by pushing against what's "wrong," I actually give it validation.

As the text for today says, "to concentrate on error is only a further error."

Miracles I'm noticing:

This fits very well with the manufacturing training I'm conducting this week. The premise of the training is to show the attendees a 4-step method for solving problems with people they supervise. The upside down thinking we've been conditioned to see would point out problems - things that aren't working - and have us "solve" them. Part of the challenge is the context we've given to the word "problem." We've traditionally believed that "problem" = "bad" and so some of us avoid shedding light on that problem. Our more comfortable action is to avoid the problem. But the class defines problem as "anything the supervisor needs to take action on," which really doesn't have a context built in.

Today's text goes on to say "the initial corrective procedure is to recognize temporarily that there is a problem, but only as an indication that immediate correction is needed."

As we all learn this distinction - as well as all the distinctions we are learning through this Course and even the training I'm conducting this week - all of us expand in our thinking. Each of us is an integral part in the whole of humankind. That goes back to today's lesson - "I am not alone in experiencing the effects of my seeing." It's the effects of my seeing - and effects come after the root cause is understood.

We are talking a lot this week in class about the root cause, which is a manufacturing term in the quality assurance realm, but really applies to everything this course is teaching as well. When I'm awake to what I'm noticing, the lessons apply to everything in my life. In fact, as I read the text for today, I notice that everything I talk about every day has some relationship to what I've studied that morning. As I go to class this morning, I will be teaching the attendees that this new way of seeing the problems they have with people they supervise will be a new process and will take practice to perfect. It's a skill they can develop over time with consistency and commitment. That's no different than what I'm learning in this course, which is a new way to notice the effects of my thinking.

The text says "readiness is only the prerequisite for accomplishment....As soon as a state of readiness occurs, there is usually some degree of desire to accomplish, but it is by no means necessarily undivided. The state does not imply more than a potential for a change of mind. Confidence cannot develop fully until mastery has been accomplished." I'm noticing in my class that as I tell stories about myself and how I can relate to their "problems," they are much more open to hearing suggestions for themselves. After all, we are all connected anyway.

Day 17

Today's Lesson:

I see no neutral things.

As before, this lesson follows the previous format. It makes sense logically, because if I have no neutral thoughts, I would see no neutral things. I think the things I see cause the thoughts I have, but it is really the other way around. We typically think we will believe it when we see it because we need proof - we need the world to show us the way we think. It's really like a Wayne Dyer book I've seen "You'll See It When You Believe It."

This is just another way to show us that we've got it all backwards in the way we've typically been thinking. This is true of things we would call "pleasant" in addition to things we would call "unpleasant."

Miracles I'm noticing:

As I look around me in my hotel room, I notice the TV, the lamp, the mirror (which holds my reflection, with my hair sticking up all over) and I tell myself "I do not see a neutral TV, lamp, mirror or reflection of myself because my thoughts about TVs, lamps, mirrors and myself are not neutral." Especially as I think about my own reflection I realize that I really do not have neutral thoughts about myself. I notice that I do have some judgment about everything. Just noticing that the thought precedes the thing is pretty amazing. This means that logically I really have no reason to be upset or crabby or even joyous - because those thoughts do not need reasons. As I can unlearn and undo those beliefs that have been running on autopilot for all these years, I can begin to see that I actually could see neutral things if I could retrain my mind to have neutral thoughts, which would allow me to get rid of all the conditioning and judgment that seems to automatically show up for me.

I'm also getting that even the judgment I notice around the things I see actually means nothing, so I don't have to beat myself up by attaching meaning to judgment. Just working on seeing things neutrally could allow me a breakthrough in everything - even the way I see myself.

Online Support for Manifesting Miracles

I just came across this website and thought readers here might be interested.

It's called Intention Engine and it gives lots of tools for manifesting miracles in your life. It's got an online vision board feature and affirmations specific to whatever you want to create in your life.

I'm not done filling out my intentions and manifestations - it's a bit of a process! - but stop back and visit the icon on the right side of this blog for updates to my page on Intention Engine!

Day 16

Today's Lesson:

I have no neutral thoughts.

This lesson shows that there is no such thing as an idle thought. My thoughts either produce love or they produce fear - if it's not one, it's the other. There is no in between because there are no neutral thoughts. This really shows the importance of recognizing when thoughts are fearful and when they are loving. All today's lesson is asking me to do is to notice and practice recognizing that any thought that comes into my mind is either fearful or loving - nothing is neutral.

Miracles I've noticed:

Just recognizing that any thought I have is either true or false - loving thoughts are true and fearful thoughts are false - reminds me that thoughts about people are not neutral either. I really notice my automatic judgments when I allow myself to just notice. The good thing about this practice is that my thoughts really don't mean anything - I've created all the meaning that occurs to me. I can see how if there is only love or fear and neither means anything anyway, the introduction to the Course makes more sense logically. The introduction says:

This is a course in miracles. It is a required course. Only the time you take it is voluntary. Free will does not mean that you can establish the curriculum. It means only that you can elect what you want to take at a given time. The course does not aim at teaching the meaning of love, for that is beyond what can be taught. It does aim, however, at removing the blocks to the awareness of love's presence, which is your natural inheritance. The opposite of love is fear, but what is all-encompassing can have no opposite.

This course can therefore be summed up very simply in this way:

Nothing real can be threatened.
Nothing unreal exists.

Herein lies the peace of God.

I'm just going to notice today where my thoughts are either positive or negative - either true or false - either loving or fearful. I'll write more after our Course study tonight update the miracles I've noticed.

UPDATE: The Course gathering tonight was pretty powerful. The space we created tonight allowed some pretty powerful sharing, which really was a miracle as people opened up and practiced really communicating. It occurred to me that there are very few opportunities in "real life" where people get a chance to let their guards down and get real with their feelings and thoughts. We talked last night about how much all of us worry about what other people think about us, which always forces us to monitor our actions and also forces us to continue this upside-down thinking. We realized last night during several conversations that we really are much more alike than we are different, and if one person had something to say - a question to ask or a comment to share - it was because we all needed to hear it at some level. It was very powerful. Another thing I realized is how grateful I am that I get many more chances to live in that space of open communication when I facilitate or train. What I'm learning in this Course shows up all over my life as I learn to integrate my training into my everyday life. I'm much braver about sharing what I'm learning in ways that aren't threatening to everyday audiences and I'm much more aware of the effects of my coaching and teaching by watching the reactions of the attendees. I realize that as I work to live what I'm learning, it automatically invites others to join me in practicing open communication.

Day 15

Today's Lesson:

My thoughts are images that I have made.

If vision is created by thoughts - as TUT says "thoughts become things," then it would stand to reason that I think in images, not in thoughts. After all, a thought itself really is nothing but whatever image it creates in my imagination. As this lesson says, "this is how your 'seeing' was made. This is the function you have given your body's eyes. It is not seeing. It is image making."

Again, not easy concepts to comprehend. In fact, the lesson cautions us that "this introductory idea to the process of image making that you call seeing will not have much meaning for you." It does say that it will begin to make more sense when we start to see little edges of light around the same familiar objects we see now. This is the beginning of real vision.

I must admit, that I have done this Course for three years and I have yet to see light around any objects. But I do believe that my thoughts have created the images I see, whether it's a lamp or a phone or a book. Getting away from concrete objects and carrying this over to concepts like politics or religion, I see even more how I have made those images.

Miracles I've noticed:

I'll have to update this post at the end of the day because I haven't had much opportunity yet this morning to really notice anything. I am reminded of the "light episodes" this lesson talks about and how Gary Renard in The Disappearance of the Universe has noticed those in his own vision. I'll watch today for how my thoughts show themselves as images I have made - and let you know if I have any light episodes to report.

UPDATE: Well, I didn't see any light episodes, but the image that has come to mind at least 5 times today is the image of a Carnival Cruise ... I was looking at various vacation options last night, and by just clicking on a Carnival cruise line site, I triggered an e-mail response and, later this afternoon, a call from a Carnival rep. Tonight while I was having dinner in a restaurant, the couple behind me met a friend there who was telling them about her recent cruise - on Carnival, of course. I stopped at Target on the way back to my hotel and I met a woman in the aisle there talking on her cell phone - the only thing I heard as I passed was "well, maybe next time you can take a cruise." I got back to my hotel room and turned on the TV and of course there was a Carnival Cruise commercial on. Is this a sign??

Day 14

Today's Lesson:

God did not create a meaningless world.

This idea is a little more difficult for me to grasp, but the logic that surrounds it is pretty indisputable. What God did not create does not exist. And everything that does exist exists as He created it. The world I see has nothing to do with reality. It is of my own making, and it does not exist.

For example, I went to the movie Children of Men last night and there were times I really found myself affected by the movie. It was grim and depressing and, at times, difficult for me to watch. The movie is set in 2027, and the world has fallen into anarchy, battle and hopelessness. Global infertility means a slow march to an inevitable end -- there have been no human births in 19 years. England is the only country that has survived, if you can call it survival - by putting all refugees into camps and deporting them. London is torn apart by violence and warring nationalistic sects. Disillusioned bureaucrat Theo becomes an unlikely champion of Earth's survival as he is forced to face his own demons and protect the planet's last remaining hope: a lone pregnant woman named Kee.

If God did not create a meaningless world, then the world of this movie could not exist. God does not create wars or famines or sicknesses. And what God did not create can only be in my own mind separate from His.

As I said earlier in this post, this could be tough to understand. But, as the Course continues to stress - "you do not have to believe the ideas, you need not accept them, and you need not even welcome them. Some of them you may actively resist. None of this will matter, or decrease their efficacy. But do not allow yourself to make exceptions in applying the ideas" from the lessons.

Now, in my third year of study, I understand much more about these lessons, but at first blush it's not as easy to grasp.

Miracles I've noticed:

Even my perception of the movie last night was different because of what I'm studying. I'm a person who needs to see complex movies more than once because it just takes me a while to get all the connections. But this one had moments for me when things really made a lot of sense. There was a point in the movie when the last baby is born and the wars stop and there is peace - for the briefest moment. I believe all of us have in us the capacity to change the world one person at a time by the way we think about it, and that's what I'm learning from this Course. Our cynicism and resignation may rear their heads, but if we know they are there and are awake to what is happening, we have the power to change it. For me, it's needing to be right. Whenever I sense a "yeah, but..." in my mind, I can trace it to my lack of openness to what another person is saying. I don't have to agree with someone else, but it doesn't mean they have to be wrong so I can be right. I can see the world not in black and white, and not even in gray ... but, as Tom Peters says, in Technicolor.

Day 13

Today's Lesson:

A meaningless world engenders fear.

We're so conditioned to fill in gaps with something - whether that gap is a gap of sound, of time, or of activity. Our first response to hearing silence on the other end of the phone is to fill it with talking. When we find ourselves with a few spare minutes, our tendency is to fill it with tasks. Similarly, if there is a chance that we complete an activity (like painting a picture), many of us will tweak and tweak, striving to make it perfect.

So we shouldn't be surprised that our mind fills in gaps with fearful thoughts. When you were little and were called to the principal's office, the gap is immediately filled with fearful thoughts like "What did I do wrong?" When we're adults and we're called into the boss's office, those same fears fill the gap between the call and the long walk to that office.

Our mind automatically perceives there to be an "enemy" who is "wrong" (whether that's the principal or the boss) because we naturally need something to fight against. Our ego needs to be "right" - and the easiest way to do that is to make someone or something else "wrong."

The reality is that there is no meaning in that gap, except the meaning we put there. There is really no fear in something that is meaningless. Our ego runs our lives and our ego is conditioned to fill those gaps with fearful thoughts, but if we remember that the opposite of fear is love, we really have nothing to fear in the gap.

Miracles I've noticed:

Just writing this blog brings up a lot of miracle-mindedness for me. Each morning as I write the lesson for the day, it reminds me to look for what the lesson is pointing out. In my first year of study, I think I looked more for ways to prove that the lesson was "wrong" so I could be "right," but now in my third year, it seems much more natural to find "proof" that the lesson isn't right or wrong, but that the lesson points out what works in my life.

In working with my client all week, I saw many examples of miracles like today's lesson points out. I was challenged by one person in the class whose ego was really fighting to be right. I told him that I'm a recovering perfectionist, and gave the class examples of times I fought against things and situations to be right. He could really relate to my stories. So he asked me whether there were times I still knew I was right in certain situations. I told him that I didn't believe in "right" and "wrong" anymore, but merely "what works" and "what doesn't work." He said, "so if you and I were in a car and I wanted to turn left and you wanted to turn right, you wouldn't fight me to turn the direction you wanted to? What if you knew that if I turned left, we'd drive off a cliff?" I told him I would jump out of the car before the car went off the cliff before I'd make him do it my way. And he said, "even if it meant I'd drive off the cliff? Wouldn't you be saying 'I told you so' on my way down?" And I said it would simply mean he made a different choice and had a different outcome. He was responsible for his actions.

Of course, this is a hypothetical situation and we were just using it as a dialogue topic, but I'd like to believe that is how I would act in a situation that could turn into an argument. The funny thing is - those situations just don't show up in my life anymore. I very rarely find myself in a discussion anymore because in my mind I can see that we are arguing about "right" and "wrong" and I don't have the need to be right as much. I can see it for what it really is and let it go. It has taken me 3 years of study to get here. But I do think that people can just decide instantly to see the world differently if they want to. I fought my ego for a long time until it just hit me that there must be a better way.

I'm grateful to the people in my class this past week for giving me many opportunities to use what I'm learning here in real-life situations. I'm confident that my acting beyond my ego whenever I could allowed the Spirit of love to take over. It's not as fearful as I once thought because love is the net that catches me.

Nick Smith has posted an amazing essay on Life 2.0 today called "So You Want To Be A Genius, Huh?" which will give readers a chance to think more about the stillness that either is or isn't a part of their lives - a chance to re-examine what fills in the gaps in their lives. Nick starts the post with a quote from Eckhart Tolle:

"To meet everyone and everything through stillness instead of mental noise is the greatest gift you can give to the Universe. I call it stillness, but it is a jewel with many facets: that stillness is also joy, and it is love."

It's a lengthy post, but well worth the time it takes to read and digest it.

Where do you notice the gaps? With what are you filling those gaps (or allowing them to be filled)?

Day 12

Today's Lesson:

I am upset because I see a meaningless world.

What is meaningless is neither good nor bad. So if the world is meaningless, this shouldn't upset me. But the point is that I've attached meaning to the word "meaningless," and that is what upsets me. It's so elementary when you really break it down. But we've been blaming things outside ourselves for so long, that even this might make us upset. It makes sense that we would really want to take time and practice unlearning what we've learned and have continued for so many years. I was going to say that it has taken us all our lives to get entrenched in the way we have been thinking (that the way I see the world is what upsets me) so we shouldn't expect to switch that thinking overnight. But it occurs to me that the insight we can gain by understanding this in a new way really can happen in an instant, I think. The process of unlearning and staying in the new way of seeing is what will take some time. Inertia and habit will keep us stuck, so it's the process of remembering that may take practice, not the instant awakening.

Miracles I've noticed:

I attended a Women's Business Exchange event last night where the theme was the Second Agreement: "Don't Take Anything Personally." During the exercises we did in our small groups, today's lesson - and yesterday's lesson - were really evident. I take things personally because I attach meaning to what other people say or do. That way I can remove myself from taking responsibility for my view of the world. Again - no coincidence that the topic would be so appropriate for exactly what I'm studying here.

It also occurs to me that my talk in the past has had a lot more to do with gossip than with a higher purpose. This occurred to me last night because we talked in our groups about the past, and the way we have seen things compared to the way we see things now. Again, in retrospect it's much easier to see how far I've come in my thinking since I first started studying this course three years ago. Although I don't want to live my life in the past, sometimes it's nice to be reminded of the progress I'm making!

Day 11

Today's Lesson:

My meaningless thoughts are showing me a meaningless world.

This is, of course, a continuation of all the previous lessons. As I think about the words in today's lesson, I can see how it might be easy to get caught up in the meaning I have given to these words - even the meaning I attach to the word "meaningless." If I accept that nothing in itself has any meaning except the meaning I've attached to it, it becomes easier to see that my judgments and my past experience are always the reason I have a reaction to things I observe. The way this statement is worded shows me that it is MY thoughts that show me the way the world is, not the other way around.

As I think more about the way I've always thought about the world, that the way the world is (insert my judgment here: good, bad, scary, difficult, wonderful), I'm aware that my judgment automatically determines my thoughts. This way of thinking allows me to be a victim and to be justified in my thought process. It really allows me to be right.

But a simple shift from the world creating my reality to my reality creating the world doesn't shift my ability to be right. If I now see that I've had it backwards this whole time, I now am in charge of the way the world occurs to me - and I STILL get to be right about it! I don't have to give up anything and I gain EVERYTHING!

This understanding really is the key to forgiveness, and that starts with forgiving myself for my past judgments and upside down thinking. That simple shift allows me to be free to start clean every single day - every single hour - every single minute.

Miracles I've noticed:

What I'm noticing, in my third year of this Course, is that as I shift from "out there" to "in here," there is really no need to "start over" - because this has become my preferred way of seeing the world. Of course, for many of us, hindsight is still clearer than foresight or present sight (is that even a term?). We can see better what we should have done than what will come naturally for a while. But practice and commitment are key. It's amazing to get reminders - like this - that this way of seeing the world is much preferred to the way I used to see it!

I know it's no accident that today's TUT message says:

Do you know what people who amass wealth, friends, and laughter have in common with those who don't?

Very often, Jodee, both look around at their lives and say, "Yeah, this is who I am. It must have been meant to be."

Must be a trick of the light.

The Universe

Rarely, Jodee, do they notice that their thoughts preceded their condition, because nothing is meant to be.

I'm also noticing, when I take a step away from my present thoughts, that seeing everything through the eyes of personal accountability is allowing situations around me to shift as well. The clients I work with, the telephone conversations I have, the interactions with the clerk at the gas station - really every encounter - is just what it is. As I realize that I just am what I am, too, I see that there are no accidents or coincidences. It's no accident that clerks are always friendly to me or clients are always engaged or phone conversations are always uplifting. If that is ever NOT the case, it's because my thoughts caused them to be that way. Then I can just shift into forgiveness and the whole thing is nothing more than a lesson - or a validation.

Are you noticing anything like that in your daily interactions? I'd love to hear about them!

Day 10

Today's Lesson:

My thoughts do not mean anything.

This is just slightly different from a previous lesson which said "these" thoughts do not mean anything. As I was practicing that idea by looking at objects and people around me, now I'm working on personalizing the lesson with any random thoughts that come into my mind.

What I've found really interesting about this re-training of my mind is the awareness that it brings to what would have been random "stuff" in my head before. I use a similar idea in some of the training I conduct, including the training I'm doing this week. We take 20 seconds and just listen to the voice in our heads - just to start noticing those 60,000 random thoughts. That's the first step to being able to do something with those thoughts - noticing them. Again I'm reminded of The Four Agreements by don Miguel Ruiz where he talks about "domestication" and how we almost mindlessly agree with the programming from our childhood, and about how the thoughts in our heads have either a "victim" or a "villain" voice to them. Just noticing which voice is usually speaking is like turning on a light in a dark room. As I can start to realize that my thoughts really mean nothing when I can be objective about them, I can then create new opportunities free from those past judgments and agreements.

Miracles I've noticed:

Last night's Course study group was amazing as we gathered to share what we've observed over our first week of collective study. In talking with individuals both before and after our study, I was delighted to be able to share my observations, but even more delighted to hear how this new way of looking at the world is affecting not only those of us in the study group, but our families and those around each of us through our work. People mentioned that they have had fewer disputes or arguments with spouses and co-workers, how they are noticing what is coming up for them much more than they might have before, including the ease or difficulty they are having with reading the lessons and the text. When we can remind each other that our thoughts mean nothing - and own that for ourselves - we join this brotherhood and sisterhood of support and love that is truly remarkable.

We also talked last night about the distinctions some of us are feeling compared to the feelings we have had around our traditional religious upbringing. This dialogue and study just feels so right and for many of us that's very different from the feelings of guilt and shame many of us felt as Sunday school children growing up. And that in itself might produce guilt based on our past way of seeing. "If it feels good, it must be bad" seems to be the way many of us were raised, so this seems more like a chance to unlearn first. This is why the Course seems to make so much sense to us. It truly is a "re-membering" opportunity - or a chance to see how much we can create when we come together rather than separate as our traditional religious upbringing may have taught us.

I am also much more present to the dialogue in the classes I'm facilitating this week as I become more and more awake to the lessons each day. In each class I'm seeing how the energy with which we create our dialogue affects each member of the class and, even though there are some rather dire circumstances and realities to address with the class participants, we are able, together, to keep the spirit positive. I think that has everything to do with the energy I bring because of what I'm learning and remembering from the Course. It is truly a catalyst by which I'm able to shift my thoughts from fear to love, and the awareness these lessons provide is having amazing effects all around me. Thanks for being part of the dialogue!

Day 9

Today's Lesson:

I see nothing as it is now.

Obviously this follows the previous lessons. If I see nothing as it is now, it would stand to reason that there is more to everything I see than whatever I might think. This calls for a much more open mind than I might have previously brought to any situation.

I love that it says in today's lesson that, although "you may be able to accept this information intellectually, it is unlikely that it will mean anything to you as yet. However, understanding is not necessary at this point. In fact, the recognition that you do not understand is a prerequisite for undoing your false ideas. These exercises are concerned with practice, not with understanding. You do not need to practice what you already understand."

I'm thinking about how this applies to the supervisory training I'm providing this week. We practice a new technique for solving problems with people, and although they may not understand why there is so much repetition, it makes sense if we consider that they don't need to practice what they already understand.

One "assignment" I gave to yesterday's class participants was to "notice what they notice" - in other words, just be aware of what draws your attention. It will be interesting to see what they noticed - and to ask myself the same question this week.

I'll post more tomorrow morning after tonight's second week of our Course study.

Day 8

Today's Lesson:

My mind is preoccupied with past thoughts.

As I think more about this lesson, it becomes more clear to me that the previous lessons make so much sense (if you are just reading today for the first time, you may want to go back and start from Day 1 to get the full effect). If my mind is cluttered with thoughts that have everything to do with past events and past judgments, it's no wonder I have a tough time being objective. If I can remember that my mind, in the best case, is blank, that opens the way for true vision and openness.

It's pretty profound to consider that any thought I have about any person, place, thing, or experience is because I have a preconception about it based on what I already know about it from the past. Just acknowledging that this is true opens up huge space for creation.

Miracles I've noticed:

Since it's only 5:53 a.m. as I write this today, I haven't noticed too many miracles yet. But thinking about today's lesson, I'm really going to notice when past thoughts cloud the present for me. I'm training out of town today and singing with my chorus in Minneapolis tonight, so I'm sure I'll have plenty of opportunities to notice the miracles. I'll update this post when I write tomorrow morning, so stay tuned!

UPDATE:

The training went amazingly well. We talked there about some of these concepts, even though this is not what the training is about. In one section we spend 20 seconds listening to the voice in our heads to show that humans have 60,000 random thoughts during any given day and if we're listening to that voice, we're not present (in the present) with people we should be communicating with. This added dimension I'm able to provide because I'm consciously being present and working not to be preoccupied with past thoughts gives them a different experience in the training, which was very evident by the feedback they provided on the spot. I'll look forward to being awake to the possibilities of the present during the rest of the training!

Day 7

Today's Lesson:

I see only the past.

This is actually a pretty profound statement. It is why nothing I see means anything, why I have given everything I see the meaning it has for me. It really is the reason for all the previous lessons. If you really think about it, everything brings with it our experiences with that article, that object, that person - and it's not very often that we really look at the world objectively. I think it has something to do with our seemingly innate need to be right.

Miracles I've noticed:

I had a great conversation yesterday with a friend of mine whose husband is very unhappy in his job. She says it's difficult for her because she wants to make it better for him because it's hard to be happy when he comes home from work - she knows he's going to be upset, so she always feels she's got to walk on eggshells. We talked about whether or not he really wants things to be different. I think when people get to the point in their lives when they really want things to be different they will do something about it. Sometimes it's just easier to complain about it. And often we complain most to those we love the most which hardly seems fair.

We talked about what it might mean if people were able to give up their need to be right. If we can blame a bad boss, a bad spouse, a bad son or daughter, we don't have to take any responsibility. Actually, blame is never going to be effective for getting beyond where we are, so we have to give up blaming ourselves, too. And sometimes that means we might not be "right." If I can say I have a bad boss and you agree with me, then I'm right ... but if it's not the boss - it's my PERCEPTION of the boss (probably based on something from my past), and that might not be "right."

As we talked, she said she'd love to have me talk to her employer about this - so, for me, this was my chance to kick around some of what I've been thinking but haven't really talked about. And maybe this is my chance to re-create my business in a way that ties together my work with A Course in Miracles and my passion for business.

That's surely a shift in perception - as I've had some fear about that. Looking at it through the eyes of love and the context that there's nothing wrong, it shifts the entire conversation!

Day 6

Today's Lesson:

I am upset because I see something that is not there.

This is such a great reminder that I add all the meaning to anything that upsets me. It also reminds me of the fear that seems to take hold of many people. We usually are in fear of things that either will never happen or of things that have no bearing on the present, which is when we are in fear. By that I mean that if we are remembering an unpleasant or painful incident from the past, we may be keeping ourselves from participating in our lives because we might recreate that experience. If we are thinking about the possibility of something being unpleasant in the future, even though it's never happened to us before, we are doing the same thing. We are creating our experience, even though there is no present stimulus to cause that except what's in our minds.

Miracles I've noticed:

I got up very early this morning and watched the Larry King episode from November 2 that he called "Positive Thinkers." It was an interview with four of the people from "The Secret" and also JZ Knight, who was one of the interviewees in "What the Bleep Do We Know." Although I'd seen this episode when it aired live, watching it the second time, I learned so much more.

One of the reminders this morning was from Michael Beckwith who said humans are always growing - it is our natural state. And the growing he was talking about was mental and spiritual growth. He said this means simply that we eliminate the filters that we've put up throughout our lives. This type of growth is not about adding anything to us - it's eliminating everything that hinders our growth. I also remember John Assaraf saying that 50% of what we are is from our genetics and the other 50% is environment, but we are raised by the people who gave us our genetics. So we're conditioned to behave and believe a certain way over time - we won't break that cycle overnight. It's a process.

That's why I'm grateful for this study. It's a process in which I can come back to my natural state of openness and love. When I'm upset, it's because of something that isn't even there ... it's something I've put there. This was a great reminder!

Day 5

Today's lesson:

I am never upset for the reason I think.

This is such a great reminder that anything that frustrates or upsets us is really a great lesson seemingly in disguise. Our natural tendency would be to blame some outside stimulus for "making" us feel a certain way but, as Eleanor Roosevelt said, "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent."

I'm thinking of the Emotional Guidance System in the book Ask And It Is Given by Esther and Jerry Hicks, and also in the first edition of The Secret.

Jacin Steele talks about this concept on his blog:

Thoughts cause feelings. Feelings let you know what you are attracting. There are only two feelings. One feels good and one feels bad. Although there are many degrees of good and bad feelings, there are only these two primary feelings.

Whatever you are feeling is a perfect reflection of what is in the process of becoming. What you think and what you feel always matches what manifests. Your emotions are an absolutely accurate indicator of what you are attracting to your life.

Pay attention to your emotions. Always ask yourself how you are feeling. If you are feeling bad, make a conscious decision to feel good. Feel love, feel health, or feel connection. Even if it is not there, the Universe will respond and attract to you that which you are feeling. If you feel healthy, you will become more healthy. If you feel loved, you will attract more love.

Miracles I've noticed:

Nick Smith's and Kammie Kobyleski's blog posts each seemed to be written for me as I read through them today. Considering today's lesson, I think about what Nick wrote about the problem with leadership and how he reframed that apparent upset to shine light on a different target. Kammie talked about anxiety, perfectionism and fear, which would also turn on its head if we shifted the focus from what we thought it meant.

Day 4

Today's Lesson:

These thoughts do not mean anything. They are like the things I see in this room [on this street, from this window, in this place].

Here begins the shift from focusing on things to focusing on thoughts. My thoughts are no different than the things I saw in the previous lessons. But from TUT I've learned that "thoughts become things" so if I shift my thoughts, which are inside, I can start to see that the meaningless is outside of me, and the meaningful in inside of me. It reminds me of what I've learned from Conversations With God - there is no "good" or "bad," "right" or "wrong," there is only "what works" and "what doesn't work." This helps me to suspend my own judgment.

Miracles I've noticed:

Today was my birthday and it was absolutely fantastic! I went to a coffee shop this morning to work on some business plans and catch up on some reading (Think And Grow Rich) and had lunch with two special friends, then came back to the coffee shop to meet another friend, then to a meeting, then to dinner with two other friends.

The miracles are everywhere when I consider the conversations I was a part of today. At one of my coffee shop visits today I ran into someone who used to work on the same floor as I in a previous job. She has recently left a job under circumstances which were very similar to the way I left my last job before I became an entrepreneur. She's bitter about the situation and I can so totally relate. But in our short conversation, it felt right for me to share my story of how as I held onto my own resentment regarding my former employer, it only hurt me. As I forgave myself for my own reactions and resentments, I began to gain a completely different perspective of gratitude for who he was for me because it allowed me to find out who I really was and do what I know I'm meant to do. If he hadn't shown up for me as someone who was difficult to work for, I may have been stuck in the same situation until I figured out it had nothing to do with him and everything to do with my mindset.

If a miracle is a shift in perception from fear to love, this surely was just one reminder of how that shift affected my life, and how, by sharing my story, I was able to give my friend a glimpse of what forgiveness might look like for her. The tears in her eyes as we talked showed me that she connected with what I shared. The thoughts that I had for my employer then, as well as any thoughts I've had today, only have the meaning I've given them and by giving up that they were "bad" frees me up to be more of who I know myself to be.

It's a very liberating feeling!

Day 3

Today's Lesson:

I do not understand anything I see in this room [on this street, from this window, in this place].

If I'm completely objective and non-judgmental, this must be true. Again, it goes back to The Four Agreements - and the second agreement, which is "Don't Take Anything Personally." If I believe everyone sees the world the same way I do, and get upset or take things personally when others project their own opinions upon me, I really am not being non-judgmental. I'm believing that I really do understand people and situations and even inanimate objects. It leads me into the third agreement, which is "Don't Make Assumptions," which naturally leads into more effective and frequent - and REAL communication.

Miracles I've noticed:

Situation #1: We met last night for our first new group Course in Miracles reading. Last year there were five of us in the reading group throughout the year and last night there were 16 people! I'm not sure all 16 will continue through the year, but that's three-fold increase in the number of people who are interested in our study! That's certainly a miracle. I also noticed that my genius ("Inviting Dialogue" - see this post for more information) was alive and well and I learned so much from the participants as we all asked questions and engaged in dialogue.

Situation #2: I went over to a friend's house after the study group and told her and her husband about my plans for 2007 for my business, Bock's Office. They were very interested and gave me great feedback about those plans. I learned for myself that I am quite committed to building this business using the distinctions I've learned from my Course study (especially the love-fear and the ego-Spirit distinctions) which means I may be doing things unconventionally. But as I can explain myself, the people I'm telling are engaged in the conversation and can see with me the future I will allow for myself and my business and it's very exciting!

Situation #3: I'm speaking today for the Rotary Club in Fargo and plan to give them some ideas for creating an abundant 2007 for themselves and their businesses, using some of what I've been learning here. The e-mail inviting me to speak came out of the blue about a week before Christmas, and I see it as a great opportunity to tell a rather substantial number of businesspeople about Bock's Office (and also to sell my book!).

Situation #4: I got an order yesterday for 9 books from Amazon.com. That may not seem like a lot, but Amazon is steadily ordering books, which means people are ordering the book from Amazon. I intend to make Amazon a bigger focus for selling books in 2007, and this was validation that that will work.

Situation #5: I got an e-mail from Kevin Salwen, editor of Motto Magazine today telling me how to proceed with submitting articles for the magazine. My, miracles work quickly!

What are you noticing in your own life? Where is your perception shifting from fear to love? Please share!

Miracles On Day 2!

Today's Lesson:

I have given everything I see in this room [on this street, from this window, in this place] all the meaning that it has for me.

This has been a very interesting lesson for me as I recognize how much meaning I attach to objects, concepts, and even people. By themselves, they really don't have any meaning apart from that which I've attached to them. If I can open my understanding to detach my own judgment, I will be able to see situations and people in a much different light - the light of love as opposed to fear.

Miracles I've noticed:

Situation #1. Last night I did some blogging, and visited a blog where Liz Strauss was writing about Extreme Leadership as written by Steve Farber, one of my favorite authors and one of the people who endorsed my book, The 100% Factor. I posted a comment on Liz's blog and about 5 minutes later I got an e-mail from her asking if she could call me. We ended up talking for about an hour about some ideas she has - because she's working with Steve Farber on his next book and she wanted to talk to me about my ideas. It turns out we have several mutual acquaintances, including Gerald Haman. She said when she was at the Thinkubator in Chicago a couple of months ago, Gerald actually showed Liz my book, because he might want to talk to her about helping him with a book. I know there are no coincidences - so consider all the signposts that were working miraculously in that connection! It occurs to me, as I consider yesterday's lesson (nothing I see means anything) that just observing this outside the ego which would want this all to mean something huge, it just becomes a "what you sow, you reap" kind of situation - outside of ego. It's just the way it is.

Situation #2: I noted on my other blog a couple of weeks ago that I wanted to write for Motto magazine sometime in 2007. I talked to my friend Phil last night and he said he had been e-mailing with Kevin Salwen, the editor of Motto, and mentioned my blog post to Kevin. Kevin said he would like me to let him know what I'd like to write about. And that happened within 1 day of it being 2007! Again, getting outside the ego, this is the way this is supposed to happen. It's not about me, but it's through me or around me that miracles are always happening. It's just that I need to notice!

Shifting Perceptions

A Course in Miracles provides a very different way of looking at the world than the way we have become used to seeing it. It reminds me of the way don Miguel Ruiz describes this concept in The Four Agreements. He says there that we have become "domesticated" - or trained to see the world a certain way and we have stopped questioning things that might not work for us anymore. If we want to get rid of some of the "agreements" we've made over our lives, we can replace those old ones with four new ones:

Agreement 1
Be impeccable with your word - Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.

Agreement 2
Don’t take anything personally - Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of needless suffering.

Agreement 3
Don’t make assumptions - Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.

Agreement 4
Always do your best - Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse and regret.

The first part of the workbook of A Course in Miracles is similar because it helps undo the way we see now. It helps train our minds in a systematic way to a different perception of everyone and everything in the world.

So each day I'll post the lesson for the day from the workbook, along with the miracles in my own life. The miracles are there every day - whether I notice them or not. By shifting my perception, it is my intention to notice at least one miracle a day - and to invite readers to share the miracles they notice in their own lives.

Today's Lesson:

Nothing I see in this room [on this street, from this window, in this place] means anything.

What I noticed today:
New Year's Day has typically been a day I've chosen to relax and contemplate my intentions for the new year. Another ritual I've taken on is watching the Festival of Roses parade on TV. This morning I discovered that Direct TV is having a problem with my local channels today and they have been off air all morning. I noticed that, since this doesn't mean anything, there is no need to get upset about this. This may seem small, but every time I can notice that something that used to upset me doesn't anymore, I consider that a miracle. I'm just glad I'm not a college football fanatic because those bowl games aren't on my TV today! That's something I can be grateful for!

Happy 2007!

UPDATE: I turned over to the local channels and, after being off-air all morning, just after I published this post, the channels came back. Coincidence? Or Miracle?