THE GIFTS OF GOD — Sondra Ray and Markus Ray on A Course in Miracles

This is a key section. The decision for the Heaven of our Real Self or the hell of our ego. If we are not in Heaven now, we are in hell.

This Podcast completes Section I in Chapter 22, The message of the Holy Relationship. Our communication in this newly realized Holy Relationship, transformed from the unholy one, is like a baby's. But we are enveloped in this Holiness even though we have not mastered the language. That comes in time, and we are learning our native tongue in miracles. The rebirth of this new Holy Relationship has to be given patience. It has its source in the Self we are, that is very ancient and has always been with us. We wake it up in a Holy Relationship. This new awareness is like a Child reborn. The rebirth of the Self is most effectively awakened in the Holy Relationship. This is the Holy Christ Himself reborn into us, who truly joins in Holiness with our brothers as our Self.

A Holy Relationship is perfectly understandable to our true vision of our own holiness. Free of fear and doubt, anger and separation, the Holy Relationship is focused on healing, and brings love and understanding to our vision. Yet, if we slip into judging another who "offends" us, and do not see his misdemeanors as a "call for help," we are not aligned with our Creator's Will. That Will overlooks all mistakes, does not judge, and has compassion equally for all that is created, regardless of any errors. It's hard to imagine the ego speaks a language of grievances, judgment, and attack thoughts that break all communication with our Divine Self. The message of the Holy Relationship is our Oneness with our "enemies," because our "enemy" is our own Self. When that "sameness" is seen, we have no more enemies.

Salvation and the Holy Relationship is the new Chapter 22 we start today. The Introduction points out how much we have enslaved ourselves to the belief in "sin." We feel limited and guilty within ourselves, but project it onto others through blame and condemnation to try to "get rid of it." All the thoughts of the ego are the same. Though "sin" is the same mistake in everyone, everyone makes up his own "version" of it to make it "real." It is the Holy Relationship that is introduced here. An unholy relationship is based on differences and lack. Each person in the relationship thinks the "other" has something that he has not. Each person feels a lack in himself that another would complete, because he thinks he is not whole, and someone else can complete him. The holy Relationship is the answer. Two people Happy and Whole come together to share their light. There is no lack. God created us whole and complete already.

Have you ever asked for "constant joy?" This would be a state of happiness that never diminishes. It never reverts to sorrow. If God grants us all our desires, even our desire to conform the the ego's thought system that is based on inconstancy. We settle for crumbs. Little bits of happiness wedged between the blocks of sorrow and disappointment used to build our world of unexpected shifts of fortune. We do not have a constant joy because we have an addiction to pain and sorrow. We did not ask for constant happiness. We doubted that we could achieve it. We ask for happiness but do not think we can maintain it constantly. The results of former misdirected desires that ended in disaster are looming in our memory. We have to step beyond these memories that are harkening to something not even here. The truth is Constant Joy. Do we want to see this Constant Joy? We need but ask and with true humility claim the gifts God is giving us here.

Powerlessness and littleness are the defenses that the ego uses to deny your Identity. We are either for the Son of God, or against him. We maintain helplessness to deny our God Created Self. By staying stuck in our separated ego self, not looking beyond it, we do not see. But we can turn it around and give up all enemies. I do want to see what I denied because it is the truth. The truth is that God's Strength works through us.

Reason will always see that there is no "sin." Reason will see our errors and give us the means for correcting them. There is no guilt in correction. But the active choice to keep our errors would maintain our "guilt" that makes us feel "damned." Reason wants our correction to offer us the means for liberation from madness. Madness wants our disorders to continue. We are the sole perpetrator of all the unhappy situations and results we make to prove separation and meaningless existence is "real." Thankfully they are not real. We use reason to see that minds are joined and they can be re-directed to bring order to our life, representing the Holy Spirit's purpose. Corrections can take place. Reason leads us to total healing, and the end of separation is at hand.

What is the function of reason? Reason is a way of determining if our perception is aligned with the Holy Spirit or with the ego. Thought precedes perception, so reason also examines the mind that determines the perception. What is in this mind? And who do we think we are? Our "self view" plays a role in what we witness in the world. Awareness of Reality would show us the possibilities of the Holy Spirit's thought system. Awareness is not "thinking." Awareness roots out our "personal lies" and changes them. We forgive ourselves for misbelieving and misperceiving. We accept our Self as God created us, we are aware of our Truth that sees miracles as natural. All "calls for help" are answered. We join our mind with the Mind of God and we are healed. Our true healing will positively affect all those around us.

What the ego would like us to believe is that "sin" is real. It has faith in "sin.” Sin is accompanied with guilt, and guilt demands punishment, therefore the ego fears this punishment. But the real fear is that we would look within and find there is no sin. This is the ego's real and paramount fear. Embracing our spiritual truth we would look within and see who we are as God created us. This would be sane. The Holy Spirit's purpose is to be certain of our holiness. Grace, Peace, and Happiness are the result. We join our brother in this inner sanctum of freedom to experience the reality of Heaven within us. We have a desire to join with our brother and see our sinlessness. We are free of the ego’s madness because we see it is not real and has no consequences.

To what do we apply our Faith, Belief, and Vision? We can apply them to the body, to sin, to the guilt that the belief in sin fosters. But this is the ego's use of very powerful forces to make illusions seem "real." It is time to change our mind in the use of these forces. Changing the purpose from "sin" to one of holiness invokes the Holy Spirit to move mountains that lift us to the heights of our happiness and well-being. Why would we not want to do that? It is impossible that we lack Faith, but to what do we give it? Faith in our holiness leads us to certainty. And it is with certainty that we can look upon our brother with equanimity and compassion. We use Faith to show us it is possible to believe in our goodness as God created us. And with this Belief firmly planted, we have a Vision of our holiness.