A universal assembly for true discernment
Honesty is acceptance
of the present moment as it is.
The thought that is here is here.
The emotion that is felt is felt.
The perception that is perceived is perceived.
This is honest.
One who is honest can also question
a thought, an emotion and perception
with awareness to see if it is true.
One who is not honest cannot question with awareness,
because that one has hidden from himself
that which must be questioned.
~From our Holy Spirit
By Karen Worth
Find a place where you will be undisturbed. If it is comfortable, put on headsets or earbuds. Relax, and enjoy this meditation.
Thoughts of Awakening Quote 34
Honesty is acceptance
of the present moment as it is.
The thought that is here is here.
The emotion that is felt is felt.
The perception that is perceived is perceived.
This is honest.
One who is honest can also question
a thought, an emotion and perception
with awareness to see if it is true.
One who is not honest cannot question with awareness,
because that one has hidden from himself
that which must be questioned.
~From our Holy Spirit
There are two primary points shared through the stories told in today’s reading.
The first point is related to a quote I shared recently from Nisargadatta Maharaj. Here is that quote again:
All you need is to listen, remember, ponder.
It is like taking food.
All you can do is to bite off, chew and swallow.
All else is unconscious and automatic.
When the apostles asked Jesus to describe the kingdom of Heaven, he shared two parables. Both were about seeds growing into plants. At another time, Jesus describes the kingdom of Heaven as being like yeast put in dough.
Jesus’ parables point to this:
Truth realization dawns upon the one who is willing to take time for contemplation and meditation. The one who rushes through life, always doing but never contemplating, misses the truth that is everywhere waiting to be seen. It’s like living locked within one’s skull, instead of opening up to existence and seeing, “I am that.”
We need time alone—quiet, contemplative time. If we allow ample room for that in our lives, realization will occur naturally, “unconscious and automatic.” But if we are too busy to slow down, “bite off, chew and swallow,” the seed is not planted, and it is not watered, and so it cannot grow.
The second point from today’s reading addresses confusion about what we are.
In today’s story, Jesus and the apostles are in the middle of the Sea of Galilee when a storm comes and frightens the apostles. They are afraid of losing their lives. The apostles do not see themselves as anything more than body-personalities.
In the story, Jesus is aware that:
Just as sure as the storm began, it will end.
This is a metaphor that points to truth. Let’s look at the metaphor more carefully.
Here is a story that I call The Journey of Water:
In the hot summer sun, some water evaporates from a lake known as the Sea of Galilee. The evaporated water forms a cloud. The cloud journeys through the air and drops rain in another location. The rainwater flows on the downward slope of the land and joins a creek. The creek flows southeast and merges with the Jordan River. The Jordan River flows south and dumps into the Dead Sea, where some of the water evaporates in the hot desert sun and becomes part of a small cloud. The cloud drifts northward and is drawn into a powerful storm system. The passing storm tosses a small convoy of boats on the Sea of Galilee, and raindrops fall to merge with the lake.
In this fictional story, we see that the water is ongoing and the storm is a temporary manifestation.
When Jesus refers to the “Son of God” in today’s reading, he is not referring to a single temporary body-personality. He is referring to what we are, the Great Ongoingness, of which the body-personality is a temporary manifestation, just like the storm is a temporary manifestation.
We are the Great Ongoingness—ongoing like the water in The Journey of Water. Transcending everything in form, ongoingness has nothing to fear.
Kathy Smith explores the quotes from Experience Your Perfect Soul and shares from her contemplation of them.
Listen to the audio
Topic: “Teach Us To Pray”
Description: Rev. Jacquelyn Eckert shared her plans to investigate how Holy Spirit’s direction regarding prayer reveals key components of spiritual unfoldment.
Reading: Rev. Jay McCormick read selected excerpts from The Holy Spirit’s Interpretation of The New Testament. (see below for a copy of the excerpts)
1 Your prayers of the Heart encourage you.
2 They pull you into the state of awakening.
3 They are a power that echoes the desire of the Heart, so desire may reverberate and bring itself back to you. 4Spend time in prayer, and you practice the practice of awakening. 5Spend time in prayer, and you jostle yourself unto your own state of awakening. (Heb 5 v 7-10, 1-5)
(v 5 – 8)1Your time with your Father is precious and holy, so seek for this time in quiet.
2 Search your heart for what you would say to Him or for what you would ask.
3 Be not afraid of what you find there.
4 Your Father knows your Heart, my Son, and He leads you according to your Heart.
5 But you may not know your own Heart, so it is useful to seek there in quiet as you pray.
6 For if you do not know the prayers of your Heart, you may not recognize that they are answered.
7 But when you seek out your prayers in quiet and ask of the Father based on what you find, you will see that your prayers are answered quickly.
8 For the Father does not delay in answering the prayers of his Son’s Heart. 9 The Father knows that it is the Heart that leads His Son to Him.
(v 9 – 13) 1 Pray like this according to what you find in your Heart:
2 “Father, let me know You.
3 Let your kingdom dawn upon my mind, that I may be led by Your Will and become as one with it.
4 Let me hear Your Word within my mind.
5 Let my lessons be given me, that I may be closer to You through the actions of my day.
6 Let me forgive myself, as I know You have.
7 Let me see my brothers as innocent, as they truly are.
8 Let us watch our minds for evil thoughts that would trick and blind us to the Light within. 9And let us let those thoughts go, so they may not cloud our minds from knowing the truth. 10Amen.” (Matthew 6)
(v 7, 8)1Seek out the prayers of your Heart.
2 Ask your Father to make it whole again, for your Father knows that your heart seeks to be made whole, and he awaits only your willingness to give what you ask. (v 9 – 11)1Trust your Father to give as you ask truly, but know it is the healthy Heart He listens to.
2 If your heart is sick and it asks the Father to grant it its sickness, the Father does not listen.
3 He waits until His Son asks that he be healed, and then the Father reveals His gifts, that they may be used for the purpose they were intended.
4 For the Father will not assist the son in maintaining his sickness, but the Father will point the willing son in the direction of his health, that he may be made whole through his own willingness. (Matthew 7)
(v 1 – 13)1How shall you pray?
2 Prayer is the unceasing act of thought.
3 With every thought, you pray for everything or for nothing at all.
4 How, then, shall you think?
5 I have already asked you to think with Me by accepting My thoughts and laying your own thoughts aside.
6 My thoughts are these:
7 They are thoughts of forgiveness, love, acceptance, gratitude and rejoicing. 8 Whenever you are not listening to My thoughts, you will know, because you will not be at peace and you will not be happy.
9This is not a time to chastise yourself, for chastisement is not among the thoughts that I give.
10If you are tempted to chastise yourself for forgetting Me, you must again be listening to your own thoughts and praying for nothing.
11This is the time that you should ask for your daily bread.
12This is a time of forgiving your own thoughts by laying them aside and again opening your heart to Me.
13Ask and it will be given you.
14Seek and you will find.
15Knock and the door will be opened to you.
16For everyone who asks receives, he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. (Luke 11).
(v 12 – 14)1When you approach Me within the current moment and share your prayers, do not pray about the problems you perceive within the world expecting Me to provide answers to you. 2 Instead, think about your reactions to the problems you have perceived. 3 What thoughts did you notice in your mind? 4What judgments are you making? 5 Think of prayer as an opportunity to empty your mind of guilt, fear, distractions, resistance and judgment by bringing them to Me. 6 Think of prayer as an opportunity to renew your willingness and revitalize your faith. 7 Then when this has been done, and without specific expectations, ask Me what you are to do. 8 You will be rewarded with the guidance that is perfect for your healing in that moment. 9 But know that My reward is not given because you have prayed as I asked. 10 Instead, because you have prayed as I asked, you have readied yourself to receive the reward that I have been waiting to give. (Luke 14).
(v 12 – 26) 1 The first step to listening within for the guidance of the Holy Spirit is prayer. 2 But to hear Him truly, you must pray in a way that opens to Him. 3 Prayer is not a time of asking for what you want. 4 Prayer is a time of putting aside that which you want and opening to any guidance that He would give. 5 Prayer is a time of gratitude for His love and wisdom. 6 Prayer is a time of surrender because you seek nothing less than His love, wisdom and guidance for you. 7 Therefore, pray in this way: 8 Father, I do not know what is best for me now, in this time and this place, that I may be led back to You. 9 Because I cannot see the path I am ready to walk, take my hand and send me your Voice to guide me. 10 I shall go where it asks me to go, and I shall do as it asks me to do in joy and peace and certainty.(Acts 1)
(v 23 – 33) 1 Pray then, for your own end. 2 Pray to your Father with willingness to let go of thy illusory self. 3 It is nothing to you, and it keeps you from the realization of your truth. 4 Do not fear the passing of this self you call home. 5 It is not your home. 6 And you do not belong there within your awareness. 7 Your awareness belongs with Me. 8 I see your true Self, and I am waiting here with you to share your Self with you. 9 Blessings in your prayers for willingness. 10 Do not take your prayers lightly. 11 They are your energy, which feeds your strength. 12 Through them, your truth shall be known. (Romans 15, v 23-33).
(v 1 – 7) 1 Pray for your Self. 2 Pray that you may know only truth and that all blinders and distractions may be lifted, so that the pure Light that you are may be all that you see. 3 This Light, which you are, extends beyond your physical sight and encompasses all that you may see, so that all that is is of this Light, and this Light is the only truth to all that is. (1 Timothy).
(v 17 – 19) 1 By faith in what is beyond perception, let go of the dreams that are perceived. 2 Do not ask in your heart for rewards given in perception. 3 Ask only that you may be led away from dreams. 4 And perception shall answer in a way that is helpful, so that you may welcome and realize an increase in faith. (Hebrews 11).
(v 18, 19) 1 Pray only that the knowledge of your truth may be restored to you. 2 Let all things within dreams be just as they may. (Hebrews 13).
Gratitude is a peace
that springs forth from within,
from your own awareness
of the truth of your being.
You are grateful for
the truth of your being,
and you need no other reason
to be grateful.
Gratitude is
the appreciation
of truth.
Celebrate gratitude today.
~From our Holy Spirit
By Karen Worth
Find a place where you will be undisturbed. If it is comfortable, put on headsets or earbuds. Relax, and enjoy this meditation.
Thoughts of Awakening Quote 33
Gratitude is a peace
that springs forth from within,
from your own awareness
of the truth of your being.
You are grateful for
the truth of your being,
and you need no other reason
to be grateful.
Gratitude is
the appreciation
of truth.
Celebrate gratitude today.
~From our Holy Spirit
In today’s story, people clamor after Jesus seeking physical healing, but Jesus doesn’t want to heal a never-ending crowd of ailing bodies. He wants to teach spiritual clarity, which he perceives as true healing.
Others may see Jesus of NTI as a master, but he sees himself as a student. He knows he is still awakening, and so he pays attention to himself. When he notices an error in his thinking, he corrects it.
Today’s reading says, “… it was the good news he yearned to share.” And then it goes on to say, “Jesus bowed his head to give the circumstance to the Holy Spirit.”
In other words, Jesus noticed this yearning to teach as self-will. “I” wanted to teach. Jesus knew “I” was ego, so he bowed his head to let go of self-will and to surrender.
When he surrendered, Jesus made sure that self-will was completely dissolved—dissolved to the point that he was willing to do anything he was guided to do. He was willing to go back into the crowd and heal bodies. He was willing to teach. And he was willing to leave without doing anything. Having no conditions on what he would or would not do, Jesus knew he was genuinely surrendered.
Surrender yourself to the universal
and you will be absorbed in the universal.
~ Ramana Maharshi
Be what you are
by remembering your truth.
Do not question it
or analyze it
or attempt to define it
in any way.
Rest and be it.
Let peace take you in.
Be peace.
Know your Self by being…
by asking nothing more,
and by asking for nothing specific
other than
to be.
~From our Holy Spirit
