The primary theme in today’s reading is this:
Our thinking is not who we are;
therefore, it cannot lead us to know what we are.
We have learned to trust our thinking, which is one of the most foolish lessons we’ve ever learned. In fact, the three most foolish lessons we have ever learned are:
- I am a self
- I am this self (body-mind-personality)
- I am a bad/lacking self
When you look at those three lessons, you see everything that we need to unlearn.
Of course, the self that believes these ideas cannot heal us of these ideas. That is why we need to learn to trust the guidance that comes from within, which may sometimes seem contrary to our will. What we perceive as ‘our will’ is based primarily on the last two lessons in the list above. What we perceive as ‘our will’ is a defense against the belief that we are bad or lacking, and it upholds the idea that we are a specific body-mind-personality. What we perceive as ‘our will’ is the obstacle to realizing our truth.
That’s why today’s reading says, “Do not ask for what you want. Ask Me what it is that you need, and I shall lead you to it.”
When we ask for specific things or circumstances that we want, those specific things are based on the fears and desires of the specific bad or lacking self that we think we are. Therefore, believing we need or want those things reinforces the idea that we are that self. By letting go of what we think we want, and by asking in trust for whatever it is that we need, we loosen our grip on who we think we are.
Today’s reading says, “Do not be confused. Your will is not the same as God’s, but when you lay your will aside and walk with God, you will know that you are one with Him.”
A common confusion is this idea: I am one with God, so what I want for myself is also what God wants for me. However, that confusion ignores the fact that you are confused about what you are. God is not confused about what you are. God’s Will is that you know your truth. That’s why you have been called from within to awaken. That’s why you are on this spiritual path. However, most of what you think you want still comes from mistaken ideas about who you are.
You are one with God. That is what God wants you to know—that is what awakening is—but that is not learned by reinforcing that you are the person you think you are. God’s Will is different from your will. Your will is based on mistaken ideas about who you are, and your will reinforces those ideas. God’s Will is the truth of what you are.
The reading asks us to let go of “old habits and old ways of thinking.” We can start by doing these two things:
- Practice letting go of judgments as taught in yesterday’s tip.
- Ask for what we need instead of asking for what we want. We can practice with the daily thought. When we contemplate the thought we can ask, “What would You have me see or realize from today’s thought,” and then see what unfolds from asking that question.
