"Extending" God's Love

What does A Course in Miracles mean by “extending”? Notice that this word is contrasted to “projecting”. It is the Law of Mind that mind always sees itself. The ego uses projection to deny this by making it seem as though what you are thinking is caused by something outside of you. For example, “Joe makes me angry” projects blame for the fearful thoughts you are having onto Joe. “Extending” is the true way the Law of Mind works. Your thoughts do not leave your mind. Think of extending your hand for someone to shake. Your arm does not leave your body and by extending your arm you are stretching yourself outward. When you extend God’s Love, you first feel it within, and then you stretch it out -- extend it -- in your awareness by looking at It instead of at the ego’s projections on the world.

God extends only God and in God you only extend God. This is another way of saying “God is One.” God’s Extension (you) is God’s “Creation” and your Extension of God is your “Creation”. Again, God is One and the Same throughout God. God is everywhere, always. In God, there is only God. And you are One with God.

Your mind is split between Oneness with God (Truth) and the world, bodies, and egos (illusion). The part that has been given to illusion is the part that needs to be healed by being returned to Truth. That’s the purpose of the miracle. When you extend God’s Love in place of whatever it is the body’s eyes are seeing and the ego is interpreting you are performing a miracle. You withdraw your projections of ego – separation – and choose to see God’s Love instead. What the body’s eyes are looking upon does not change, but your perception – interpretation, judgment, experience – changes. At first, what you are looking on is still very real to you but your perceptions become more positive and loving. Eventually, you begin to perceive that there is nothing there but your own thoughts. You begin to understand that the world you see is an illusion only in your mind and you are able to detach from it. But still, there will be some things that hold your attention and are very real to you. All of these must be released so that your whole mind can be returned to God because God’s Oneness is only God and you cannot have anything but God in your Mind to be One with God.

These are steps you can take to extend God’s Love in individual circumstances:

First, realize you are uncomfortable, unhappy, afraid, in pain, etc.

Second, accept this experience is coming from your own thoughts about the situation, not from the situation itself.

Third, realize you are making separation real to you and decide to extend God’s Love in place of these thoughts and feelings.

Fourth, touch God within yourself in whatever way works for you – a centering thought or an affirmation of God as Reality, for example – and then extend this awareness outward to replace the other feelings you were having.

Student’s report using different techniques for extending God’s Love. Some picture a light in, around, or over the person or situation that is disturbing their peace. This shifts their focus away from their interpretations of separation and focuses their mind on the Presence of the Holy Spirit. Some picture Jesus in place of the person or situation. Some don’t need images, but only the feeling of the Presence within, which they extend outward. The point is to find the thought, or image, or feeling that shifts your thoughts away from the ego’s projections of separation from God. This is how you heal your mind and return to Oneness.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Wow! Thank you for this article. I will be using these steps to extend God's Love instead of projection and avoidance. I love how I can apply this right away. Your writings have me atoning at full speed.
Tara Devi Kaur said…
Thank you so much for your devotion in writing this explanation. After years of studying this course, you have bought to life and made simple the idea of extending God in my awareness.
Thank you.

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