Lyn Johnson and Bruce Rawles read and talk about FACIM FAQ #1222 which looks at a common ego “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” maladaptive victim strategy: by identifying with a dream figure that appears to be at the mercy of ‘outer’ circumstances, we appear to have only the options of masochism or sadism – being a doormat – or a retaliatory attacker. Yet this lose-lose perspective is based on the false assumption that we are limited by the personas and bodies we merely dream we inhabit. The real alternative that our Inner Kindness Teacher (a.k.a Holy Spirit) offers is one of mercy for our selves and everyone as One Self; we let everyone ‘off the hook’ when we see that we’re all in the same boat (or balloon) and respond with compassion for all. We also quoted from ACIM’s Manual for Teachers, about how this gradual identity shift requires diligent, gentle, consistent practice to generalize to ALL situations, individuals and aspects of spacetime, learning to see another’s interests as our own, and suspending investment in – and judgment of – ego’s dysfunctional identity by listening instead to the Voice for Inclusion:
The next stage is indeed “a period of unsettling.” Now must the teacher of God understand that he did not really know what was valuable and what was valueless. All that he really learned so far was that he did not want the valueless, and that he did want the valuable. Yet his own sorting out was meaningless in teaching him the difference. The idea of sacrifice, so central to his own thought system, had made it impossible for him to judge. He thought he learned willingness, but now he sees that he does not know what the willingness is for. And now he must attain a state that may remain impossible to reach for a long, long time. He must learn to lay all judgment aside, and ask only what he really wants in every circumstance. Were not each step in this direction so heavily reinforced, it would be hard indeed! – M.4.I.A.5
Listen the audio recording of this conversation about ACIM here.
If you haven’t already signed up for the 3rd annual virtual ACIM conference, check out: “Healing All Relationships: notes from my presentation for ACIM Virtual Conference #3: Oct. 21-23, 2016” which has details about this highly-recommended 3-day online event … which you can ‘attend’ regardless of your space or time specifics. :-)
