Ministry

Ministry: 

after years of feeling it would be presumptuous of me to even consider the word, I've grown to love the of a ministry, embracing it not as a mere concept, but an actual lived experience of life. It's an energy really, a daily tasked performed for the loving benefits of others - quietly so. 

my ministry is simply showing up everyday.

extending love.

forgiving.

and not a single word need be spoken.

Now has our ministry begun at last, to carry round the world the joyous news that truth has no illusions, and the peace of God, through us, belongs to everyone. (ACIM, W-151.17:3)

~

I love you, Eric 

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A Peaceful Mind

A peaceful mind: 

it's those lessons that interrupt thought patterns that are so important to me, vital in arresting those downward spirals into judgement and resentments. A Course in Miracles has become a mind-reference for me, while decades of practice hasn't rid me of every grievance, there's a quicker return to peace now, with a quiet mind more natural than the chaos of  the ego's every demand. And it's so often those early lessons that come easiest to mind, especially the reminder that I am never upset for the reason I think being an abrupt full-stop, almost urgent in it's arrival - and my ego's almost instantly in check, a readiness prevails, and the Holy Spirit then speaks gently through my mind. So after decades of practice it all comes down to this....just a little willingness to forgive. 

and everything else seems to happen on it's own.

natural,

easily. 

a peaceful mind abides.

~

I love you, Eric

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Within a Single Prayer

Within a single prayer:

it's all revealed within a single prayer, the entire essence of A Course in Miracles is offered in an early chapter, it's a formula really, and it's given as a practice. This is a prayer of reversal, right from the beginning I'm told that I must have chosen wrong for the simple reason that I'm not at peace. I'm only asked to recognize how I feel, mindfully so, and then examine the thought system that brought this feeling to fruition. If I am not at peace I must have decided wrongly, making every decision that led to this point completely on my own. 

I forgot to ask the Holy Spirit to guide me. 

so how I'm feeling right now is a mindful moment, a pivot point that allows the shift from fear to love, from unease to peace, replacing a thought system based entirely on ego towards one that relies only on the Holy Spirit's grace. 

the decision is mine to make.  

whichever one I choose will produce my experience of the moment.

so here's a wisdom prayer that undoes all guilt, resolves every misguided thought that brought me to this point of sorrow, and provides the ultimate comfort of God's peace. 

⁷I must have decided wrongly, because I am not at peace.
⁸I made the decision myself, but I can also decide otherwise.
⁹I want to decide otherwise, because I want to be at peace.
¹⁰I do not feel guilty, because the Holy Spirit will undo all the consequences of my wrong decision if I will let Him.
¹¹I choose to let Him, by allowing Him to decide for God for me. (ACIM, T-5.VII.6:7-11) 

it's a prayer of practice, 

a meditation.

and the basis of forgiveness. 

~

I love you, Eric

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And So the Mantra Plays

And so the mantra plays: 

it's a mantra, perhaps really my only one, and whatever words or phrase used is secondary to its recognition. Forgiveness truly plays through my life as a mantra now, ceaseless in repetition, a soft reply to every encounter. The words are less important than the intent to see, deeply so, a wish to peer further than my personal sight allows and actually experience the light of God within another. So the mantra itself is just a silent nod and any word that follows is simply a confirmation that it's done. 

I let forgiveness rest upon all things (ACIM, W-342)

and so the mantra plays.

~

I love you, Eric

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A Sacred Pause

A sacred pause: 

perhaps what we most need right now is a return to sabbath, maybe not even a whole day, but just a sacred moment shared between us. We are desperate for rest and don't even realize it. Not only are we deprived of sleep, something deeper too is missing, what A Course in Miracles would call the Holy Instant, a stillness so profound that nothing exist outside this restful moment. 

we're in need of a sacred pause.

this is available to us, always, and it's not just found on a mediation cushion, or an hour's service once a week. The Holy Instant is right now and we only have to extend it as a thought towards another. Anyone, regardless of creed or political party, family or stranger - it's available now, always now, and it's simply a matter of recognizing the essence of Christ that's shared between us. It's restful because that vast amount of energy used to maintain the entire thought system of the ego is momentarily suspended and the inherent love of our existence is allowed to shine through. We drop any pretense of being anything other than our truest, most loving selves. 

an eternity shared for just an instant.

our deepest rest.

available right now, 

only now...

and it begins here as I offer it to you. 

~

I love you, Eric 

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Caregivers

Caregivers:

I was asked to be a caregiver, first in helping my father care for my mom through her long struggle with Alzheimer's, and then on to his own declining health in his last few years. After his passing, grieving his loss as well as what felt like a lost purpose I had held for any years, I was given a clear directive after deep meditation and praying for direction - my role as a caregiver was to continue. But now, absent of an individual figure, my care was to be all encompassing, it was simple...

offer love to everyone I encounter.

to the best that I'm able.

at the time, this meant continue with the aspects of yoga that were most meaningful for me, the tools that carried me though those long, difficult years of tending to my parents. For me, meditation and breathwork were invaluable for the gifts of patience and clarity that they offered. I would not have been able to be survive those years, let alone be an effective caregiver, without them. So I wished to extend those gifts to others and became a certified teacher in both modalities. I've taught many over the last 4 years since my father's death and it's brought me great joy and satisfaction. Yet it wasn't quite the directive that I was given, useful tools, yes, but they're limited to those who seek them out or are drawn to explore them for reasons of their own. Inexplicably, I found myself teaching freely on YouTube, breathwork, meditation, and more....offering insights gained through decades of A Course in Miracles practice. Here's my directive, this place I've somehow stumbled upon - demonstrate peace in every possible moment. Give love to those who find themselves here. 

be a caregiver.

in these troubled times, more so then any other that I remember...

my only role is to care.

and perhaps lead others through my own imperfect example that we are to care for each other, no exceptions made, practicing infinite patience and kindness to neighbor, friend, and seeming foe. We are caretakers for each other, and firstly, this means tending to our own wounded hearts as well. No one is neglected, ignored, nor cast out of our hearts. Including ourselves. 

no exceptions. 

and we can do this, we have to...

it's imperative to heal.

starting now.

let's be caregivers for each other. 

~

I love you, Eric

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Triggers

Triggers: 

early in A Course in Miracles, just 5 days into the workbook lessons, and already the key to a peaceful mind is presented to us - I am never upset for the reason I think. Of course this takes time to truly understand, even longer for it to unfold through an actual practice in our lives. Decades into the Course and I can still convince myself that I know exactly why I am upset and someone else is directly involved in this issue of distress. But I know better now, I don't take my own accusations towards people or events quite so seriously any longer, and more easily let them go in order to deeper into exploring the matter that's really at hand. The world is acting as my trigger, every small instance irritation all the way to a great surge of anger exposes the ego's agenda of keeping me small, separate, and alone. It's my fear being shown to me, my perception of another revealed as a projection. 

and now I get to heal.

no lesson from the Course is more important than another. Each one is vital to a complete understanding and builds to a comprehensive practice. My life is a testament to this, with triggers still present and moments where blame, guilt, and loneliness are still involved. But not as much and never for very long, as these lessons come so quickly and easily to mind. At this point it's all pretty seamless now, just a little pressure on the trigger and the opportunity to ease this tension instantly makes itself known. What an incredible opportunity -

I get to choose peace.

and seamlessly, almost always...

I do.

~

I love you, Eric

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My Goal

My goal: 

at this point in life, all I wish is to be very clear in my goal, singular in my wish for peace. This is a different way to view the world, seeing that everything has the purpose for awakening. So there's two thought systems in place here, and what I value reflects this keenly. Ego will always place an emphasis on the things that inflate its sense of specialness, ensuring it's continued belief in separation from others as well as God. Because the ego is a dream figure, no more than a construct within the mind, what it values is always temporary, never truly delivering on whatever's been promised - there is no peace to be found here. And then there is the Holy Spirit, a thought system that only recognized what's truly valuable. These are the thoughts, subtle by nature, that urge forgiveness, asking me to look past illusions, beyond any hurt or anger and see the value of Christ within another. 

my goal is very clear now.

forgiveness.

and I only value what it offers.

~

I love you, Eric

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This Need Not Be

This need not be: 

it's not to be mistaken for bypassing - A Course in Miracles gives us a declaration of choice, either the chaos of ego or the peace offered by the Holy Spirit, yet this doesn't bypass the issue at hand. What we're given is the means to respond to any thought or situation with the tool of grace, a reinterpretation from the ego;s initial reaction to the more loving response of spirit. Out tool is reminding ourselves with just four words - this need not be. This is applied to any thought that doesn't bring us a peace, it's a mindful approach, a gentle notice of where we are right now, and then an easy prayer of letting go. 

this need not be.

we don't deny what's present, 

only recognizing that beneath our chaotic thoughts...

a quiet mind awaits.

~

I love you, Eric

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Right At the Beginning

Right at the beginning: 

right to the beginning, that's where I find myself after another year devoted to the workbook lessons of a Course in miracles. I have gone through these lessons several times in my long practice of the Course, and this time has been, perhaps, the most fruitful. And yet, as is often the case, I'm drawn back to those magical words of the introduction that have captivated me since first glance -

Nothing real can be threatened.

Nothing unreal exists.

Therein lies the peace of God. 

this secret is given away right at the beginning, and if truly understood can then become the basis for the entire life that follows. I smile at all the times I've forgotten this, even now and I'm in my third decade of practice. Truly, truly, truly, nothing real can be threatened, but I often overlook the real for favor of the temporary, still seeming to prefer the illusion of peace that an outer world offers rather than the internal presences of God's love that is always available should I deem to notice. Right now my own problems have become very real to me, issues of the world pressing down on me. 

and yet,

Nothing real can be threatened.

and those words are still magical to me, they're my return to reality, my promise of peace in this very troubled moment. I found myself smiling this morning, unexpectedly, at ease as everything unreal is now forgiven and seen only as my interpretation of events. 

I'm smiling because nothing unreal exists...

and herein lies the peace of God.

right here all along.

~

I love you, Eric 

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Conflict

Conflict: 

it's a time of conflict, inevitably so, and sadly, and entirely due to the divisive thoughts we offer to the world. We are all responsible for this, each harbored idea of warfare, against ourselves as well as others, has trapped us in a very fearful world of our own design. This conflict is of our making, a projection of an internal war that's been going on. There's a beautiful line from the teachers manual in A Course in Miracles that tells us that war is inevitable to those who look on war. And that always seems our first response, immediately, that our every conflict is solved with even greater warfare. It's not surprising, as we seldom feel safe within our own minds let alone the outer world. 

but it's time to heal.

right now.

and again, peace, just like war, is a condition of the mind. More so, and much easier to realize, it's our natural state, a restful awareness of our true innocence, completely free of conflict. Yes, this sounds impossible, and that's why it's handled by continuously requesting a miracle. From the perspective of A Course in Miracles, this is our birthright, and it's simply a determination that we can, indeed, see the world differently, and to due so only requires a shift of mind. That's the miracle, just another thought that offers peace instead of war, a cultivated inner landscape that recognizes love as it's only true condition. It's really not so hard, and more of a return to an already present state of mind. We only have to practice, and first, we need to see that the stakes are very high. 

the world depends on us.

you.

me.

and the peaceful thoughts we offer.

~

I love you, Eric

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Deeper Innocence

Deeper innocence: 

these days I have little interest in debate, no wish to discuss metaphysics, nor much use for anything other than my own quite practice of forgiveness. I'm more settled now, there's no frantic search for enlightenment, and little need for life's answers. Slowly, I've eased into a truth that works for me, a promise from lesson 122 of A Course in Miracles stating that forgiveness really does offer everything I need. This is a forgiveness of the selective remembering of holiness, looking past my every perceived wound to the deeper innocence found in every moment. 

this forgiveness brings me great peace of  mind.

and that's enough for me right now.

~

I love you, Eric

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I'll Meet You There

I'll meet you there; 

it's a troubled world by all accounts, maybe more so than ever, or at least more sophisticated in it's means of connecting us to a sense of global problems. Many of these issues are ancient hatreds that have just continued in new and different forms, having never been truly resolved within our hearts. And of course that's the real issue at hand, not the world at all, but our own unresolved belief in isolation, believing that we are small and insignificant bodies navigating a vast and senseless realm. 

yet if we only knew how deeply we are actually connected.

A Course in Miracles suggests that nothing will be solved at the level of the problem itself. We're not talking bypassing here, yes, we should definitely help others, feed the hungry and shelter the most vulnerable among us. Vote, be politically active if that's what your heart calls for. But never thing that any of this will ever really address our deepest issues. 

they never have before.

here's another thought from A Course in Miracles, that "the holiest place on earth is where an ancient hatred has become a present love." And there's the answer to our every trouble - we've forgotten how to truly love. It's never taught, not even in our most traditional institutes of religious learning. We've only learned beliefs systems that keep us rooted in the problem. 

we need to learn to love again.

an entirely new level.

a beautiful quote from Rumi -

"out beyond the ideas of right and wring doing there is a field. I'll meet you there".

and that is we're the problem is solved.

a field of love present within us all.

indeed, 

I'll meet you there. 

~

I love you.

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Threatened

Threatened: 

that nothing real can be threatened, there's my safety as well as my awakening in a single line offered in the introduction of A Course in Miracles. I often feel that if I went no further in the Course than this that it would be enough for my entire life's practice. The reminder is, if in anyway I'm experiencing a threat as real, than only my beliefs in an external world of chaos has made it so. The second line yells me that nothing unreal exist. Meaning my thoughts have given this world all the reality it has, causing my perception of its chaotic nature.

and that through my remembrance of love

, a presence found here,

right now,

I will be lead to the safety of my true home. 

and therein lies the peace of God.

~

I love you, Eric

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Opportunities

Opportunities: 

the world is our awakening, full of opportunities to extend ourselves in peace - and forgiveness is vital as our practice. Here, we see that both forgiveness and peace are different than previously imagined. These are qualities we now posses, already at hand, yet blocked from our awareness. Our great opportunities are all the things that point directly to their absence.

and through this...

we forgive our way to peace. 

~

I love you, Eric

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5 and 34

5 and 34: 

lessons 5 and 34 of A Course in Miracles give us a complete practice, an entire path laid clear with just these two simple passages. This came to my attention through Course teacher Kenneth Wapnick, how he would continuously return to these lessons in many of his talks and writing and stress the importance to truly understand them. Although there's 29 lessons between them, and neither are placed with more emphasis than any other, if fully taken to heart -

they are enough to set us free. 

I am never upset for the reason I think, lesson 5 urges us to examine our every fear: from smallest upset to largest distress, we're asked to seem them all as opportunities for miracles. A miracles here, as offered by the Course, is a shift of perception, that through inquiring into the nature of whatever upsets us, we come to see how our projections fill each present moment with thoughts placed firmly from the past. Our freedom lies in seeing this, and then, we lesson 34 in mind -

a shift is asked for:

I could see peace instead of this.

this is the miracles of any situation, a prayer for an internal exchange of past distress for the innocence of the present moment. We could see peace right now, regardless of what's presented to us, if only we let go of thoughts that bind us to memories of the past. 

our freedom is always right now.

it's a continuous choice.

each moment....

we're asking for a miracle. 

and lessons 5 and 34 remind us...

it's just a mind-shift away. 

~

Love, Eric 

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Invitation

Invitation; 

the question posed in chapter 11 of A Course in Miracles is whether we wish to be hostage to ego or host to God, and that it's simply a matter of invitation. It's reassuring to consider that we could simply invite the Holy Spirit to respond for us in any given situation, that the default voice of ego is truly an option and doesn't have to be our sole choice of reason.

yet it seems we've entirely forgotten there's an alternative.

or that the Holy Spirit is even present within.

but the Holy Spirit is always our better option, truly our only one, as ego holds us hostage to a false identity, a collection of stories that will only rehash the past and limit us to the most familiar choices. It should be clarified here that the Course describes the Holy Spirit as the healing source of our misperception of the separation from the eternal peace of God. It's our present presence that's always available to guide us home. 

it only waits for our invitation.

so in each moment, with every opportunity...

hostage,

or host?

the choice is ours.

~

Love, Eric 

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Prayer of Saint Francis

Prayer of Saint Francis: 

the overall prayer, these compassionate words for Saint Francis, become a transformative experience when taken to heart. They are meant to be mediated upon, absorbed slowly through the mind and all the way to spirit. My own first exposure to this prayer was offered by the scholar and meditation teacher Eknath Easwaran whose book Passage Meditation helped cement my love of these words as well as the spiritual direction my life would take. It's drawing close to 40 years now, and although my meditation path has taken different turns, I always return to this prayer and the heart-felt message from both Saint Francis as well as the contemplative path as outlined by Easwaran. 

it's been a beautiful way of life.

what's important is to take these words to heart, literally so, practicing the selfless service that's offered here. And indeed, it truly is a practice, not meant to be perfected with a few readings, but made into a lifestyle of serving God through the guise of others. It's the most important work we do, most especially in these times where God and compassion might seem so far from where we are. But this is a prayer of the heart, always and truly present within us all. 

trust it.

meditate.

we're planting seeds of compassion with every read.

our lives then become a fertile ground.

we are made...

an instrument of peace.

~

Love, Eric 

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A Hard-line Drawn

A hard-lined drawn: 

there's a hard-line drawn, and forever I seemed afraid to cross it - it's always been my option to choose peace in any moment, my responsibility even, and yet I most often failed to take this on, and so suffered for my choices. 

peace is always mine.

but it's up to me to claim it.

always.

my ego, a false identity indeed, simply does what's needed to keep its special status. To choose peace is counter to its every goal. It's so much easier, for the ego at least, to see attack thoughts everywhere and then counter them all with its own. 

and so my world remains in chaos.

no true peace is found.

until I come up to that hard-line and finally step across, finally choosing peace instead of an unremitting war against myself. The hard-line is this: 

it's my own attack thoughts that give cause to a war-filled world, it never arises without me, and totally up to me if I choose to heal. I'm constantly on the edge of that hard-line, recreating a world that's filled with conflict through almost every thought I hold. 

until I don't. 

now, and it's never not right now...

I choose peace.

a hard-line drawn, 

and a brand new world created.

~

Peace, Eric 

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Wilderness Still

Wilderness still: 

I am reminded each morning as I walk through the suburban landscape of my neighborhood, that once this too was wilderness, it's ancient land, still holy just beneath it's modern surface. It's a beautiful, area and in the softest early light I can imagine it's appearance as it once was - wild and forested, wetlands teeming with life, and perhaps humans accustomed to living on these lands. 

in my mind, these early morning walks...

it's wilderness still.

it's here that imagination is so important, being able to transcend a city-scape and return it to a wilder state, sinking beneath those modern sounds that split the air with their harsh disturbance, each footstep treading a memory of what this land once was - and now invoke its presence back to mind. My neighborhood is still a wilderness, my feet bring this memory back alive to me, every step stirs my imagination to see this patient reality, that the land is only waiting out my brief appearance and will then once again resume it's wild and beautiful ways.  I like to think that my footsteps and imagination serve as a type of prayer, offering themselves to the very depth of this hidden wilderness...

remembering, 

it's still and always

here. 

Peace, Eric 

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