ACIM IV. This Need Not Be, P 10, 11. The First Coming of Christ is merely another name for the creation, for Christ is the Son of God. The Second Coming of Christ means nothing more than the end of the ego’s rule and the healing of the mind.
ACIM Chapter 4, IV. This Need Not Be, 10,11
IV. This Need Not Be, P 10
10 The First Coming of Christ is merely another name for the creation, for Christ is the Son of God. The Second Coming of Christ means nothing more than the end of the ego’s rule and the healing of the mind. I was created like you in the First, and I have called you to join me in the Second. I am in charge of the Second Coming, and my judgment, which is used only for protection, cannot be wrong because it never attacks. Yours may be so distorted that you believe I was mistaken in choosing you. I assure you this is a mistake of your ego. Do not mistake it for humility. Your ego is trying to convince you that it is real and I am not, because if I am real, I am no more real than you are. That knowledge, and I assure you that it is knowledge, means that Christ has come into your mind and healed it.
The Ego’s Sermon
I cried when I read the last sentence. Christ has come into my mind and healed it. It is done, and I am healed. So, what am I waiting for? Why do I still listen to the ego when it tells me how small and weak, and vulnerable I am? The ego stands up and preaches fear and guilt, and I sit there in my wretchedness, saying, “Amen, brother!” But I am healed, and it is time to walk out on the ego’s sermon of misery.
I have, actually, walked out on the ego any number of times, but once in a while, I become mesmerized by its litany of judgments, and suddenly, I am right back there in its thrall until I again break free. All I have to do to be free is to want to be free, and the only thing keeping me bound to my ego is my fear of freedom. The ego spins some story or another, and for a while, I think that the answer to my problem is in the story, but eventually, I always remember that there is only one problem appearing as many, and there is only one answer. My problem is that I have forgotten who I am and the answer is the Holy Spirit in my mind.
Taking My Place as a Teacher of God
Jesus has not forgotten who I am, and he has called me forward to take my place among his teachers. The ego, of course, is having a hissy fit about this. It keeps trying to bring me back into its fold with reminders of my many sins and with dire warnings about lack of humility. Who am I to imagine I am a teacher for God? Who am I to imagine I stand side by side with Jesus? And yet, Jesus says he chose me and that he does not choose his helpers wrongly.
Just a very short time ago, I would have cowered under the ego’s attack. I would have been willing to continue my practices and to commit to “someday” being ready, and the ego would have been there smirking at me as it pretended to go along with the plan knowing that someday would never come. But those days are over. I still practice, but I do so with conviction and passion.
I know who I am even as I act as if I am still an ego. I may be removing my costume a layer at a time, but I am removing it. I am stepping up, and I am saying yes. Every morning now, I stop for a moment to renew my commitment by saying yes, and by spending a few moments allowing the Holy Spirit to work in me. I don’t know what He is doing as I sit there, but I trust it is an essential part of the Second Coming.
11 IV. This Need Not Be, P 11
11 I do not attack your ego. I do work with your higher mind, the home of the Holy Spirit, whether you are asleep or awake, just as your ego does with your lower mind, which is its home. I am your vigilance in this, because you are too confused to recognize your own hope. I am not mistaken. Your mind will elect to join with mine, and together we are invincible. You and your brother will yet come together in my name, and your sanity will be restored. I raised the dead by knowing that life is an eternal attribute of everything that the living God created. Why do you believe it is harder for me to inspire the dis-spirited or to stabilize the unstable? I do not believe that there is an order of difficulty in miracles; you do. I have called and you will answer. I understand that miracles are natural, because they are expressions of love. My calling you is as natural as your answer, and as inevitable.
A Discovery
Every morning I write in my journal. Sometimes it is something new, but before I do that, I read what I wrote before. As I read them, I often realize I want to use them with only a few updates as needed. What I discovered in doing this is that I am waking up.
It is a discovery I make every morning because during the day, I notice ego thoughts in my mind, and some of them grab my attention and pull me into that part of my mind. By the end of the day, I sometimes feel more identified with ego than with spirit. If the ego has had its way with me that day, by evening, I despair of ever waking up. Then I read my journal from the past, and I remember that not only will I wake up, but I am doing so now, right now, right this moment! I am learning not to mistake mastering my mind with somehow failing.
I Cannot Fail
And I cannot fail to wake up. Jesus holds my hand throughout this journey. He stands with me even when I think I am facing the ego alone. He upholds and uplifts me, and sometimes just helps me keep my head above water. And He is never confused about what I am, and he never despairs of me. If during the day I become dispirited, he is not fooled by this. He knows this feeling is meaningless and has no power over me. He comforts and soothes me and helps me find my feet again.
Recently, because I have seen this happen repeatedly, I have realized that my problem is that I have been taking my thoughts too seriously. The following is something that happened when I was still working. I like it as an example of how I realized that my experiences here did not prevent me from waking up. They helped me to wake up. What I learned at that time, and others like it brought me to where I am now. I still hear the ego thoughts and sometimes get distracted by them, but never do I stay distracted.
Everything Is For Me
I have this potential customer I am waiting to hear from, and every day I don’t get a call increases the fear that I have lost this sale. I feel bad about that like I have let my boss and fellow workers down.
As long as I have done this job, it seems I should be better at it. I feel ashamed I am not. I look back on the meeting with the potential client and see all sorts of mistakes I made, things I could have said, and things I should not have said. These kinds of thoughts keep popping up in my mind all day long. I become dispirited, and since I watch my feelings and thoughts, I see that I need help.
Jesus does not fight my ego for me. He simply reminds me of the truth, working with my higher mind, which is open to his help. I feel myself relax and let go of the fear and guilt. Now I remember my true purpose, which has nothing to do with selling chemicals. I think about this potential customer, and instead, I see my brother, and I love him and want the best for him, whatever that is.
Seeing It All Differently
I think about my company, and instead of seeing them as my judges, I see them as my brothers, and I feel close to them. Separation is the only problem, and the only solution is union. I join with Jesus as I accept the Atonement, and I join with my brothers, knowing that however the story of Myron and the sale of the chemical ends, each of us will have had the opportunity to join in some form. I choose to join for myself and on their behalf as well. This is success and the only success I am interested in.
These kinds of little battles go on all the time in my mind. What I see today is that I can feel like I am waking up all day if I watch my thoughts without battling them. There is a thought that I may be in danger of losing this sale, and I see that thought causes fear. I see that the idea of winning over someone else is not joining. I see that “me against them” is not an attitude I would find in God, so it cannot be real. So I ask for healing of my mind and let go of it. If it comes back, I ask again.
Thoughts Not Worthy of My Belief
If I don’t take these thoughts seriously and realize they are just the reflection of the ego mind and so not true and not worthy of my belief, then they are just something to place on the altar. They do not reflect my true self. I am not endangered by the thoughts. Why should I care about them? Certainly, they do not keep me from waking up.
Thank you for this paragraph, Jesus. And thank you, my brother, for being here for me and remembering the truth while I sometimes forget.
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