Lesson 54

W-pI.54.1. (16) I have no neutral thoughts.

2 Neutral thoughts are impossible because all thoughts have power. 3 They will either make a false world or lead me to the real one. 4 But thoughts cannot be without effects. 5 As the world I see arises from my thinking errors, so will the real world rise before my eyes as I let my errors be corrected. 6 My thoughts cannot be neither true nor false. 7 They must be one or the other. 8 What I see shows me which they are. 

This is an essential idea. All thoughts have power and they will either contribute to the false world or lead me to the real one. Where have our thoughts been leading us? We can tell the answer to that by what we see. As a whole, we have been experiencing the effects of divisive thoughts and punishing thoughts as witnessed in the political situation of the last few years and in the pandemic. 

Individually, we also make up what we think of as our personal world. In the last few years, it has been a mixed bag for me. Throughout the political upheaval, I have had warring thoughts. I was angry and frustrated. I watched these thoughts and let them be healed. Conflict is painful, but eventually, I got through it and to the other side where there was peace and love. While I was angry and frustrated, the world was a frightening and upsetting place. When my mind was healed the world was a happy and peaceful place. The only thing that changed was my mind. 

I have not been afraid of the pandemic but it offered its own challenges. At first, I got caught up in all the rules and I noticed that when I did, it started to feel real to me and I began to judge how others were complying. I had slipped into the story that imagination had made. The world was a frustrating place filled with ‘enemies’ who didn’t seem to care about others or who were foolish.  

I kept looking at these thoughts with the Holy Spirit until I had released them. I became relaxed around the whole thing as I detached from the story of the pandemic, aware that it was the experience the world was having, but that does not make it real. I stopped judging what I saw and now barely notice when someone is complying or failing to comply. The world I experience now is much more peaceful and happier since I don’t have enemies. 

W-pI.54.2. (17) I see no neutral things. 

2 What I see witnesses to what I think. 3 If I did not think I would not exist, because life is thought. 4 Let me look on the world I see as the representation of my own state of mind. 5 I know that my state of mind can change. 6 And so I also know the world I see can change as well. 

4 Let me look on the world I see as the representation of my own state of mind. 

This is the most important statement in this paragraph as far as I’m concerned. I have learned to look at the world in that way; it is a perfect reflection of my thoughts. I may or may not be able to change something in the world, but I can always change how I interpret it and when I do, my experience of it is different. My interpretation will come from the split mind (ego) or from my holy mind (Holy Spirit) and how I feel tells me which I chose to join with. 

This sentence: 3 If I did not think I would not exist, because life is thought. This is interesting to me because it states explicitly that life is thought. This is where A Course in Miracles is very different than a lot of other non-dual paths. Many of them dismiss thought and go for no-thought. However, Jesus tells us that all thought produces form at some level. He says that true thought is creative. Here he is telling us that life is thought and without it, we could not exist. What I do know is that the ego chatter is just as powerful but in a very negative way and that is the kind of thought that I want to undo. I notice that as my mind heals more and more, there is less of the mind chatter than there used to be. 

W-pI.54.3. (18) I am not alone in experiencing the effects of my seeing. 

2 If I have no private thoughts, I cannot see a private world. 3 Even the mad idea of separation had to be shared before it could form the basis of the world I see. 4 Yet that sharing was a sharing of nothing. 5 I can also call upon my real thoughts, which share everything with everyone. 6 As my thoughts of separation call to the separation thoughts of others, so my real thoughts awaken the real thoughts in them. 7 And the world my real thoughts show me will dawn on their sight as well as mine. 

I remind myself that my private thoughts are thoughts that are not shared with everyone. Here are a couple of examples. My thoughts about politics are shared by some people and even that is not a full sharing as some of those thoughts are particular to my own experiences. My thoughts about my children are private thoughts because no one else has exactly those thoughts. 

Separation thoughts like these are responsible for the world we see. But there are other thoughts in my mind that are shared with everyone. Thoughts of unconditional love are an example. The thought that we are all one and therefore are not separate from each other or from God is a shared thought. All thoughts that reflect the Truth are shared thoughts. Many people may not be aware of these thoughts but they are in the mind when they are ready for them. 

These shared thoughts are given words by me for the sake of clarity, but really, oneness, union, love, peace, happiness, and other shared thoughts must be experienced to be known. Once known, there are not words to truly describe the experience so that it becomes someone else’s experience, but we keep trying. ~smile~ My private thoughts are what makes me feel separate from others. My shared thoughts are what make me know I am the same. When we have only true thoughts, we will know each other completely and this is a way of saying we are one. As my mind heals completely, my healing is shared by all and everyone feels some shift, apparent or not. 

W-pI.54.4. (19) I am not alone in experiencing the effects of my thoughts. 

2 I am alone in nothing. 3 Everything I think or say or do teaches all the universe. 4 A Son of God cannot think or speak or act in vain. 5 He cannot be alone in anything. 6 It is therefore in my power to change every mind along with mine, for mine is the power of God. 

Wow! What an incredible truth that is! And also, what a responsibility it is. I have learned to be vigilant for my thoughts, first because I wanted to wake up and I knew that was the path to get me there. Now, I want to be vigilant for my thoughts because they have an effect not only on me but on everyone. It is in my power to change every mind because mine is the power of God.  

I used to think I had wasted so much of my life, time I could have been using to heal the mind. But now I realize that the first part of my life was essential to the last part. I had to have the experiences I had in order to heal the beliefs I came here to heal. My part now is to share that healing in words, actions, and thoughts. 

W-pI.54.5. (20) I am determined to see. 

2 Recognizing the shared nature of my thoughts, I am determined to see. 3 I would look upon the witnesses that show me the thinking of the world has been changed. 4 I would behold the proof that what has been done through me has enabled love to replace fear, laughter to replace tears, and abundance to replace loss. 5 I would look upon the real world, and let it teach me that my will and the Will of God are one. 

I really am determined to see. That determination takes the form of vigilance, watching my thoughts carefully with the desire for a healed mind. I am dedicated to this purpose and nothing else comes before it. Not that this way of living is difficult or without joy. In fact, it has brought me great joy and I can’t imagine living any other way or for any other purpose. As my mind heals, the world seems a different place to me and that teaches me that my will and the Will of God are one.