ACIM Chapter 7.VII. The Totality of the Kingdom, P 4

ACIM Chapter 7.VII. The Totality of the Kingdom, P 4. Illusions are investments. They will last as long as you value them.

4 VII. The Totality of the Kingdom, P 4

⁴ Illusions are investments. They will last as long as you value them. Values are relative, but they are powerful because they are mental judgments. The only way to dispel illusions is to withdraw all investment from them, and they will have no life for you because you will have put them out of your mind. While you include them in it, you are giving life to them. Except there is nothing there to receive your gift.

The following is something that Jesus helped me to understand. At the time, I could become confused about what I was actually healing. Sometimes, I thought that the illusion had to change if there was healing, and if it did not, it meant something was wrong. I also had trouble distinguishing between life and death. The following is how I was patiently guided to a new way to understand these things.

Here is what came to me in my writing meditation.

Jesus, I think I understand this, but it would help if you could clarify it for me. I do notice that you said mental judgments are powerful, and I had never thought of that. I tend to think of judgment in terms of something I shouldn’t be doing, but I had not thought of them as powerful. But I guess anything that keeps me in the illusion and that holds the illusion in place is powerful.

Jesus: Yes, your mental judgments are powerful even when you are using your ego mind. And when you turn from ego judgments and ask the Holy Spirit to judge for you, you are agreeing to join your self with your Self, which is powerful beyond anything you experience with your separate small will.

As far as your investment in your illusions, you often hide that from yourself. You hide it behind the images that you call real. Think of your sister-in-law, who you keep saying is dying. Why are you so invested in her body being sick and dying? Death is an illusion. Where have you invested your trust? Is it in the power of God, or is it in the illusion of death?

You hide that you are investing in death behind the illusion of a very sick body.

In this way, you can say that there is no hope for that body, and you can make up stories about why it is better that she let it go, and there is a reason for death in this case, and that somehow either the illusion is stronger than the Will of God, or the Will of God is that suffering and death be real. I assure you neither is true, but you keep it in place as long as you continue to find value in the illusion of death.

Me: Yes, at first, I simply accepted the inevitability of her death. I followed the illusion blindly, not questioning its reality or considering its value to me. Now, when I think of Brinda, instead of imagining her death, I imagine that she and I join our will to the Will of God, which is always Life.

But now I have a different fear. What if she dies anyway (something the ego mind insists will happen)? Then I will feel afraid because it will mean the truth is not true. It seems when I write this out that I would rather sacrifice Brinda than prove to myself that the truth is not true. The alternate fear is that she will die anyway, and I will have failed to believe enough and let her die in the wake of my weak will.

Jesus: The only thing you are letting die is your investment in the illusion of death.

You do that for both yourself and for Brinda. You do it for the entire Sonship. When you stop feeding it with your fear, you let it die. You do it when you release your false beliefs to the Holy Spirit and allow Him to heal your mind. You withdraw the value you have placed in this illusion when you ask for and accept the Atonement in this situation. 

It is easy for you to see the illusion as the problem and something to be fixed. I would ask that you look at your thoughts and beliefs and allow them to be fixed for you. I would ask you to give up this iron grip you have on the fear of death and accept that death is only an illusion. No one dies.

You don’t realize it yet, but you fear both, and they are the same fear. And the fear of death is the same as the fear that you cannot do this and the fear that you will succeed. The fear of death is the same thing as the fear I am lying to you and the fear that maybe this whole path is a lie. You are fiercely invested in the belief in death, which encompasses all those ideas.

Me: I see that this is true. 

All of those fear thoughts have been racing through my mind. It is hard to believe that I am afraid of success in this, but that I cling to all the fear thoughts must mean that I would rather look at death than look at the possibility of its dissolution in my mind. Would I be willing to let go of the illusion of death completely and for all time? I cannot even imagine what that would mean, but could I? How about just this one time? Could I let go of my investment in Brinda’s death?

Jesus: You are doing this now. You have already begun to look away from the images of death, even though you will be tempted to look at the illusion and believe what you see must be true. Do not be concerned about that, and just remember that the illusion is an image of a false belief, not proof the false is true. When tempted to believe in the image, turn to me and give me your doubts and uncertainties. I know what to do with them.

Let this be your part; place your trust in Life rather than in death. You see how strong your trust is; now simply shift it from the illusion to the truth. This is very simple to do. Use the same practice that is familiar to you. When you notice that you are placing your belief in death, ask the Holy Spirit to correct your thinking. Accept and receive this correction. That is all I ask of you at this time. You have done this many times and know you can do it now. Here is the reminder I would like you to use: “There is no death. There is only God.”

And now.

Jesus helped me in several ways with this explanation. I am no longer afraid of death, nor do I believe in it. Nor am I confused about how to pray for someone. I am also certain that what I see with my eyes is a projection of my beliefs, what I give power to through investing in my mental judgments. I am very grateful to my Brother for his help.

This is what jumps out at me now. The only way to dispel illusions is to withdraw all investment from them… I do this in various ways, but what they all have in common is the desire to be free of illusions. The other day, I read in one of the lessons that we should call on the name of God, so when I was concerned about something, that is what I did.

I set aside my investment in my judgment, and then I closed my eyes and said, “God, I call upon Your Name. I am confused and uncertain about this issue. So, I give it to You.” Then I repeated the call to the Name of God, and in the pause, before I spoke again, I knew I was being healed. Then I said whatever was given me to say. For instance, I followed it with gratitude that I am never alone. The next time, it was gratitude that I am spirit. The next time I followed it with gratitude that I am above the battleground. I continued the process until I felt complete. I felt so peaceful afterward.

How to Ask Holy Spirit (Inner Wisdom) A Question ~ Regina Dawn Akers, The Early Teachings. CLICK HERE.