Principle 8 Miracles are healing because they supply a lack; they are performed by those who temporarily have more for those who temporarily have less.
8 Miracles are healing because they supply a lack; they are performed by those who temporarily have more for those who temporarily have less.
Miracles Principles 8
8 Miracles are healing because they supply a lack; they are performed by those who temporarily have more for those who temporarily have less.
In reality, we lack nothing. God gave all of Himself to us in our creation. So, how could we ever lack? But in the world of time, in this dream of separation, there is a belief in lack. And it is this belief that the miracle heals. If I think I need more money or better health, or special love, I need a miracle. It is not the miracle of more money, better health, or a special love. It is the miracle of a mind healed of insane thoughts of lack. The gift He would give us is a healed mind, but He would have His answer be understood so it will come in a form that is most helpful to us at the level we find ourselves.
Asking for Help
I remember one time years ago, my daughter suddenly got very sick. She got a fever, and it shot up high. She was hallucinating, and I was scared to death. I didn’t know about the Holy Spirit or about healing the mind. What I did know was that my daughter was in danger and that I could call on God for help, which is what I did.
I felt very alone, and because I was alone in this, I was more frightened. So, I called the prayer line at Unity. A very calm and soothing voice on the other end of the line promised me a miracle, and I believed her. The fever faded away very quickly, and my darling daughter slept peacefully. When she woke, she was completely healed. These days, I am part of two prayer groups.
The Miracle Is a Healed Mind; the Form
⁷The form of the answer, if given by God, will suit your need as you see it. (ACIM, S-1.I.2:7) The miracle seemed to be the healing of my daughter that I prayed for, but it was more than that. What I learned from that situation was that I could trust God, that the world’s laws could be superseded by God’s laws, and that if I joined in prayer with someone else, the prayer was strong, and I felt better.
My mind was healed to the extent that I was willing to accept the healing and in a way that made the healing understandable to me. The person who answered the prayer line represented the one who temporarily had more. In form, she was my Holy Spirit. She saw that I believed I had a need, and she responded to that need without believing that what I believed was true.
Revisiting the Hurricane Scare
Yesterday, I talked about the tropical storm that was headed to New Orleans those years ago. I was afraid it would turn into a hurricane, and it did, but fortunately, it wasn’t a very strong one. However, there was a lot of rain, and there were reports of people being rescued from the flooding. My son and his fiancé were in their little apartment in New Orleans, and as my friend told me all this, I could feel my heart start racing. So, I sat still and watched my mind.
This is a very helpful process. It allows me to be in touch with my feelings, and to watch my thoughts while still being detached from them to the degree I am able. It helps me to remember that I am not the story but the watcher of the story. The more personal I make the story, the harder it is to remember the truth. When I cannot fully disengage from what seems to be happening, it is helpful to ask someone certain of themselves to remember my certainty for me. If they temporarily have more certainty, they can support me while I temporarily have less.
Remembering the Truth
The truth is that my son and I are infinite beings and are never in any danger. We are experiencing a dream, a story with elements of danger and excitement, but we are doing so from a safe distance, you might say. It is such a compelling story that we get completely lost and forget it’s not real. When that happens, the scary parts get really scary, and it’s helpful to have someone tap me on the shoulder (through words or simply through prayer) to call me back to reality. Later, I may do the same for them when our roles are reversed.
Remembering the truth is a miracle. Remembering who I am is a miracle. In the world, if you get cancer, you suffer and maybe die. In the world if you lose your job and your savings, you suffer poverty unless you can regain your status. And in the world, if someone you love dies, they are gone, and you suffer that loss. A miracle corrects the belief in suffering and in death.
The Laws of God Take Precedence
The miracle sets aside the laws of the world and puts the law of God back into place. As the story’s beliefs are undone, the truth becomes obvious, and your true identity is uncovered. That is the true miracle, the miracle we are ultimately receiving even when it seems to take physical form. The truth behind the physical healing, or the financial relief or relationship correction, is the miracle of awakening.
We help each other as we wake up. When my mind is clear and my intent is strong, you call on me to know the truth for you. When I am confused, afraid, and unable to remember the truth, I call on you. I ask you to pray for me and you remember the truth for me. Whoever is strong in the truth is the one offering the miracle.
This is not because they are holier or more advanced or in any way different than the other one. Rather it is because they are not different or separate, and right this moment, they know it. ³Help in prayer does not mean that another mediates between you and God. ⁴But it does mean that another stands beside you and helps to raise you up to Him. (ACIM, S-1.I.6:3-4) Later, I will be the one who knows it until one day, we all join in this knowing and it is so strong and clear in our mind that we laugh at that the thought we could ever forget who we are.
To enjoy the Pathways of Light Insights on ACIM Insights on the Principles of Miracles, click here.