NTI Luke has taken us “into the desert” for purification. Today’s reading focuses on purifying the “I am bad” belief, which may show up as:

• guilt
• unworthiness
• self-hatred
• shame
• feeling like a fake
• seeing one’s self as less than others
• etcetera

It’s helpful to make note of NTI Luke 8, so you can return to it for guidance when any of these ideas take hold in you. NTI Luke 8 coaches the reader into a healing posture.

Some key points from today’s reading are:

1. Remember to trust that you are worthy, regardless of what you believe or feel about yourself.

 

2. Remember that this feeling/belief must rise to the surface to be healed. Be grateful for this as an opportunity to heal.

 

3. Practice rest-accept-trust during times of strong emotion.

 

4. The “rest” in rest-accept-trust means rest away from believing the stories in the mind. Relax the mind and focus on gratitude for healing instead of focusing on stories about what is happening in the world.

 

5. The “I am bad” belief is based on judgment. Look to find the judgment you made against yourself. Are you willing to see that you are the one making the judgment? Are you willing to accept that you could be wrong? Are you willing to let go of that judgment?

 

6. The “I am bad” belief is strongly believed. It has been believed repeatedly. That might make it seem true to you, but that does not mean that it is true. In fact, it isn’t true. The belief comes from the mind. It is a mental interpretation about the body-personality. As we have already seen, the mind interprets; it does not know.
    
   In addition, you are not the body-personality. You are the awareness that is aware of the body-personality and mind. As you rest-accept-trust, notice that you are aware of the storm in the mind. As you rest, be aware of yourself as awareness. Noticing yourself as awareness is looking beyond the storm to the blue sky.

Note: I recommend printing this tip for future reference.

Today’s reading interprets the story of the Centurion. Here’s that story:

When Jesus had finished saying all this to the people who were listening, he entered Capernaum. There a centurion’s servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die. The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to him, asking him to come and heal his servant. When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with him, “This man deserves to have you do this, because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue.” So Jesus went with them.

He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him: “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. [ At the time, Jews believed they would be made unclean if they entered the house of a Gentile.] That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.” Then the men who had been sent returned to the house and found the servant well.

Today’s reading emphasizes faith, clarity regarding the goal, and surrender.

Faith

Jesus said the Centurion had “great faith.” The Centurion knew that his request would be fulfilled. He said, “… say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

Previously, I described faith as (1) trusting the healing process, (2) having confidence in a benevolent power beyond what your senses or mind can know and (3) accepting that all is well, regardless of the appearance. I’d like to add a fourth aspect to faith. Faith includes having confidence that you will awaken. Consider this quote:

Desire and confidence must go together. The stronger your desire, the easier comes the help. … If your desire and confidence are strong, they will operate and take you to your goal, for you will not cause delay by hesitation and compromise. ~ Nisargadatta Maharaj

Let’s look at how the creative principle works. That which we believe is fed into the creative principal and results in manifestation. With that said, if I believe I am unworthy to awaken, what is likely to be the result?

Catch thoughts of unworthiness in your mind, and let them go in faith.

Clarity Regarding the Goal

Yesterday we learned that the ego-mind does not know; it interprets. When we imagine what we think truth is, we are interpreting with a mental-mechanism that does not know. We are creating a fantasy.

If we have a mental fantasy about truth, and we desire our fantasy, we are not truth-seekers; we are illusion-seekers.

What do you imagine truth to be? Are you willing to let that go and find out what truth is?

Surrender

Today’s reading asks, “Did you really expect to find the peace of God in your  way?”

That leads to another question:

What is the ‘I’ that says “my way,” and can it lead to truth?

Contemplate how critical surrender is if your purpose is awakening.

Today’s reading is very important. One who genuinely practices today’s reading will advance very quickly. As we have already seen, if we continue to live by our old habits, nothing changes.

Today’s reading makes two primary points:

Everything that you see and experience, you see and experience through the filter of your mind.

That means your mind at your current vibrational level. As you rise in vibration, you still see through the filter of your mind, but how you see changes because the mind is different at a higher vibration. Remember, mind is simply thought. So as thoughts change, perception changes. However, even the highest thought—the highest vibration—is still not reality. Perception is never reality, so perception isn’t knowledge.

Knowledge is peace.

Knowledge isn’t “the right perception.” Perception is always interpretation—always seen through the filter of mind. Knowledge is peace.

Peace isn’t perception. Peace is difficult to describe, because it isn’t an object. It isn’t a thought or emotion. It is the absence of object—the absence of thought and the absence of emotion. It is undisturbed, clear, open awareness. That is knowledge.

If we are honest with ourselves, we know when we are caught up in our interpretation and when we are acting with knowledge.

How do we know?

Because peace is either present or it is not.

We can lie to ourselves and claim to be at peace when we are not, but if our desire for truth is strong, we won’t lie to ourselves. From the stance of self-honesty, it is very easy to tell if we are at peace in the moment or if there is a disturbance present.

Today’s reading recommends that we avoid speaking or acting from interpretation, which is not knowledge. It also suggests that we avoid “correcting” others whenever there is a disturbance in our mind. Instead, if we notice a disturbance in ourselves, regardless of how small that disturbance is, we do well to seek healing and clarity in quiet.

When we are at peace—meaning there is no disturbance present—we can trust what we feel to say and do. We are moved by knowledge. In fact, one who is moved by knowledge knows she is moved by knowledge, because she does not have her own interpretative reasons for what she is saying, doing or not doing. She does it because she feels moved to do it, and that is all. There is no other reason, because there isn’t an interpretation.

Review today’s reading carefully, contemplatively and repeatedly. After that, I recommend practicing it conscientiously. There is great benefit in putting today’s reading into practice starting immediately.