LESSON 21. I am determined to see things differently.

As the lesson says, it is obviously a continuation and an extension of Lesson 20. What is new here is the discussion of upset as attack.

Attack thoughts are those thoughts that go unquestioned by you that speak both of justification for your attack and justification for continuing the war between you and your brothers. With every thought you make either war or peace. It is not up to you to decide how to be in relation to your brothers. That is preordained. You, along with your brothers, comprise the body of Christ—the one mind or indivisible consciousness.

Attack thoughts are very simply a way of maintaining your belief in yourself as a separate individual. For who here would curse his foot for making him trip and fall? You would not, as you recognize your foot is is one with you. Anger is merely a way of drawing boundaries around yourself. These are of course imaginary boundaries as you could never actually be separate from your brothers. The lesson asks simply that you not attempt to project your responsibility for the wish to remain separate on your brother. If you do so, you are particularly unlikely to perceive your believing attention as the actual source of your upset.

We choose that which we wish to experience. If you choose to continue to experience a world wherein there are attackers and victims, the justified and the un-justified, justice and vengeance, you continue to ask for this type of conflict by focusing on the “wrongs” that have been perpetrated upon you by seeming others. If we recognize our true desire–to know oneness as the truth of our being–it becomes obvious that anger is a step in the wrong direction. The lesson would have us focus on the anger thoughts in our minds, no matter how slight, so that we can see how we continue to play out an old wish—to see something other than truth. Again, this lesson is an opportunity to see old habits as just that and to let them go that we may begin to consciously pursue our true desire.

Lesson 20, I am determined to see.

In this lesson,  Jesus tells us “Your decision to see is all that is required” to see.  We know that a decision is a thought in the mind that we have determined is worth giving our attention to.  Regina calls this casting attention.  So with today’s workbook lesson, we are taking beginning steps towards casting our attention differently.  Today we practice every half an hour casting our attention on the thought, “I am determined to see.”

Jesus goes on to tell us in this lesson “What you desire to see you will. Such is the real law of cause and effect as it operates in the world.”  If you read Jacquelyn’s tip from yesterday it said, “The truth is that the entirety of what IS conspires to give us the experience we would have.  It could not be otherwise.”

Regina makes the same point with idea of casting attention, “We always receive what we cast attention upon.  Casting attention is wanting and we always get what we want because getting what we want is the nature of what we are.”

Jesus tells us it is a decision and what you desire you will see, but one may ask, “Why should I be determined to see?  Why is it important?  And what is it that I am I determined to see?”  NTI Ephansians tells us that seeing is true desire. “Know your happiness by realizing your truth and operating in it according to true desire.”  The whole is awakening to the true desire of the mind and that desire is to know Thyself.

So being determined to see means becoming consciously aware of the desire to know ourselves and awaken.  Alan Watts tells us that “We are here to discover that current awakeness that each of us has, but we are not aware of because we live on the surface.” (The Spiritual Journey as the Self). So let’s dive deep; let’s be determined to see and know ourselves.