ACIM Mentor

Sometimes I write about topics that are not mentioned in A Course in Miracles but which come out of my experiences with the Holy Spirit (Awareness of Truth in my mind). Sometimes this prompts emails from readers who want to know where they can read about that topic in ACIM. Some seem to be genuinely interested in reading ACIM’s take on the topic. Others seem to imply that because it is not mentioned in ACIM it is not really appropriate for me to write about as part of spiritual practice. For example, I write a lot about setting boundaries in relationships. I find that boundaries are a very common need among ACIM students. Many seem to feel that being spiritual means taking inappropriate responsibility for others and/or being a doormat.  They think that if they just forgive enough another’s inappropriate or dysfunctional behavior will change. Or they feel that if they had truly forgiven they would no longer see the other’s behavior as inappropriate or dysfunctional. Undoing th...

“I live - by choice - in a very quiet rural area. Every summer the house next to mine is used by a family of brothers from New York City… I can always tell when the youngest brother is around by the level of noise coming from the house - yelling, non-stop talking, and extremely loud music… For four summers now I have experienced an intense emotional charge in reaction to this "barbarian" intrusion…I have essentially demonized these people in my mind, making them bad, wrong etc. My anger knows no bounds when I think about them. Whenever I think about talking to them about the situation however, I dissuade myself… The other day their music was so loud and lasted so long (hours) that I suddenly found myself transported to what I can only describe as The Land of Matter-of-Fact. All anger and fear vanished along with any sense of self-righteous importance…So when I arrived home one afternoon and the music was blasting, I simply parked in front of their house and with my new-found...

“ The other day was for me one of those high energy days where I found myself engaged in one project after another, mostly home improvement and maintenance type things. I felt no resistance and at the end of the day I experienced what is typically referred to as "the satisfaction of accomplishment" - a type of high that most people regard as oh so healthy. While there is nothing wrong in taking care of business, being creative etc., there can be a negative flip side if, on those languid days when we feel no motivation or energy, we feel guilt as though "We've let someone down". (Who?) Being busy as a way of earning peace is a trap because it is only a facsimile of peace. It is no different than the Buddhist concept of "earning merits" for this or another life or any form of "righteous behavior" called for by other religions, or ideologies. They all perpetuate and reinforce guilt.” – ES Yes, temporary satisfaction, for whatever reason, i...

“I was wondering if you could open up or shed some light and clarity on the following statement Jesus makes . . . . ‘When you correct a brother, you are telling him that he is wrong. He may be making no sense at the time, and it is certain that, if he is speaking from the ego, he will not be making sense. But your task is still to tell him he is right.’ ( A Course in Miracles, T-9.III.2) I'm not sure what he means when he says ‘But your task is still to tell him he is right’ and how this would sort of look in a practical way.” – Anonymous You increase fear in others when you make them wrong. So instead just let them know that they are understood. For example, a friend has what you consider really wacked-out political views. Instead of arguing with them look at where they are coming from. Usually it's fear. So just say things like, "You seem really afraid." Or, "I'm sorry that you are so afraid." Something that validates what underlies their st...

You Don’t Have to Go It Alone When I was a new student of A Course in Miracle s going through the long and uncomfortable (sometimes downright painful) “period of sorting out” it would have been so nice to speak every now and then with someone who had been through what I was going through and who had actually attained the inner peace I wanted. But there was no one around then who offered a professional relationship like that. So I muddled through in more discomfort and pain than was necessary. And, eventually, when I was ready I became a mentor for others so that they could have an easier time than I did as they made their way to inner peace. Obviously I do have clients so some people have taken me up on this offer.  But it is frustrating for me to hear of others who are still trying to go it alone. Clients tell me of friends who have questions or blocks to peace that they need help working out. They tell them, “Call Liz!” But they rarely do. Sometimes I can tell from comme...

One of the things I help my clients sort out is what is the neutral personality of the self and what is the ego (personal thought system). They are confused because the ego is the thought system in their mind that tells them that the self is their reality and that they need to measure themselves by the self. So it’s hard for them to see that the self – the body and personality – is neutral and that it is the ego that is not neutral. For example, clients will say something like, “I know it’s ego but…” “…I like mountain biking…” “…I want to study medicine…” “…I enjoy horror stories…” “…I prefer to be alone…” Etc. First, you can see by the “but” that what they mean is, “I want this even though I know it’s bad.” They judge the ego as “bad” so what they see as expressions of ego are therefore “bad”. But actually the ego is not wrong or bad. It is nothing. Second, all of those traits that come after the “but” are just neutral expressions of a neutral personality. They ha...

When I was a young child sometimes when I played alone I would experience a reassuring, comforting Presence with me. I felt in those experiences that everything would always be okay. These experiences were very rare. I had a happy, secure childhood and I had no conscious need to seek reassurance. But of course I was still having the human experience of everyday lack and insecurity. I was unconsciously open to Truth at those times. These experiences seemed very natural so I didn’t question them. Nor did I think of them beyond their occurrences. As a teenager I would in times of desperate adolescent angst turn to what I thought of as my “inner Therapist”. These were very rare occurrences, too. But you can see how a shift had unconsciously occurred for me: The Presence was no longer with me; It was within me. It was still Other, but I knew It was in my own mind. I thought of It as my “inner adult” the way as adults people speak of their “inner child” left-over from their childhood....

Each time I read A Course in Miracles different concepts stood out for me. Concepts would sink in, I’d move past them, and I was ready to learn new ones. The last time I read ACIM for myself was as I translated it into plain language. Then one lesson was driven home to me over and over again: This whole process to peace was between me and me. My sense of conflict was not between me and a world outside of me. It was not between me and a god outside of me. All of my conflict was occurring only within me. All of the reconciliation I needed was between a part of my mind (the split-mind) that was alienated from the Totality of my mind (Truth). There was nothing else and no one else involved. Each time this realization hit me with the force of a thunder clap. I was already aware that I made my own world by projecting meaning onto a meaningless universe of form. I was used to bringing my conflicts with the world or the concept of a god back to what I was doing in my own mind. But actuall...

“I just finished reading over your 3/23/16 blog ( http://acimmentor.blogspot.com/2016/03/love-peace-and-joy-as-effects.html ) in which you mentioned having a terrifying experience of the ‘fear of not existing’. I was recently thinking about a former friend who had created a persona which expressed itself as an obnoxious role he was compelled to play in all his interactions with others. I thought that he was so invested in this fake identity that if he was prevented from playing it, he would not know ‘who he was’ and would be terrified of not existing (not consciously of course). Is this what you were talking about? I have experienced a horrible foreboding of impending doom a few times when I traced back some fear, through guilt etc. I also experience pre-dawn anxiety every day which always seems to be about various trivial things in my life. Do you think that the ‘fear of not existing’ is actually the ‘mother of all fears’? And most important of all - what to do, especially while it...

“Dreams are perceptual temper tantrums, in which you literally scream, "I want it thus!" And thus it seems to be. And yet the dream cannot escape its origin. Anger and fear pervade it, and in an instant the illusion of satisfaction is invaded by the illusion of terror. For the dream of your ability to control reality by substituting a world that you prefer is terrifying. Your attempts to blot out reality are very fearful, but this you are not willing to accept. And so you substitute the fantasy that reality is fearful, not what you would do to it. And thus is guilt made real.” (T-18.II.4) A Course in Miracles likens the experience of the universe of form to a dream that is a temper tantrum against Reality (Truth/God). The dreamer is the “Son of God” (split-mind) and the self with which you identify is a figure in the dream, one of billions of projections of the Son of God. (To be clear: This dream is only a meaningless idea of the opposite-of-God that has no intention...

A reoccurring theme with many serious students of A Course in Miracles is how they have felt different all of their lives. Some are okay with this; others still want to be accepted and to fit in. The difference can show up as having been more perceptive than the average person; having a psychological orientation; never accepting what the religion of their family of origin taught; being more sensitive and intuitive; always sensing that there was something more than the world had to offer, etc. The question they often have is, are they different because they were always headed toward a spiritual path (or really already on one)? Or did their being different lead them to seek relief in a spiritual path? The answer is both. Because you are on a spiritual path you were always headed toward one. But in the unfolding story how you end up on a spiritual path could show up as looking for relief from the pain of being different. In any case, the spiritual path resonates or you would not rem...

Apparently my last article ( http://acimmentor.blogspot.com/2016/05/your-itch-to-share-is-your-own-desire.html ) was not clear because I received several questions and comments about it. So I will attempt to clarify and answer some questions here. The point of the article was that one’s urgency, or “itch”, to share what they learn while studying A Course in Miracles is their own desire to “get” what they are studying. You read something in ACIM that you get at a shallow intellectual level and you find yourself with a strong urge for others to get it, too. What occurs is that you, as the split-mind (decision-maker), want the lesson to go deeper for yourself. But the ego (personal though system) in your mind projects this desire outward and sees the lack in others. They need this; you already have it. The ego pushes away your desire for the lesson to go deeper by seeing it “out there”. It does not want you to get the idea more deeply. But doesn’t ACIM teach “what you give you ...

When I began as a student of A Course in Miracles over 3 decades ago I was itching to share what I learned with everyone. I didn’t, though, because I knew how much I hated it when others proselytized. Even if I didn’t mean to convert anyone I knew that’s how my sharing would be perceived. I also knew that if I shared what ACIM really teaches others would think I was nuts. I knew how radical it was and I only trusted it myself because I’d experienced Revelation and miracles early on. In fact once in my excitement I took a chance and shared with some acquaintances something I heard from the Holy Spirit and one of them, a nurse, asked, “Was this Voice inside your mind or outside of you?” I reassured her that I was not psychotic; the Voice was in my mind. The experienced reinforced for me how it was best to keep my new experiences private. I only discussed some of them with other ACIM students. I also suspected, correctly, that my itch to share was not from the Holy Spirit. The feeli...

Once I was in conversation with a client and mentioned something about “being present to Truth”. Suddenly he exclaimed, “Ohhhhh. Present to Truth .” He explained that he had read over and over again in spiritual teachings about the importance of being mindful, or present to what he was doing, whatever it was, as a way to peace. He practiced this for years but he did not experience anything remarkable. It had never been explained to him that he needed to make the conscious effort to be open to Truth in the present. He thought that merely being present was supposed to be enough. And once he did practice being present to Truth his experience was transformed. This is another example of how cause and effect in spiritual practice are not always adequately explained (see last week’s article (http://acimmentor.blogspot.com/2016/04/theres-no-need-to-put-cart-behavior.html) . Someone has a moment of being present and they experience Truth (a transcendent experience of peace or joy, the awar...

If I was Queen of All Things Spiritual I would decree that no one could have access to spiritual teachings that were more advanced than they were ready to understand, practice, or accept. I say this because students (and this once included me) do so much harm to themselves reading things that they are not ready to understand or attempting practices that do not come naturally to them. In their guilt they judge themselves as failing because they do not measure up to what they study. And what they study they can only try to understand through the limitations of what they’ve already experienced and this leads to distortions. I spend a lot of time reassuring readers and clients that they are not failing because they have not yet attained in understanding or practice what someone more advanced has attained. They are in a process and judge against themselves for being in a process. I also spend a lot of time clarifying experiences that they have not yet had but that the ego has distorted or ...

A reoccurring theme in my work as a mentor is relationships and the need to set boundaries with others who are unhealthy. I came across this and thought it offered a useful guide for determining which relationships need boundaries: Everyone Can’t Be In The Front Row Life is a theater. Invite your audience carefully. Not everyone is healthy enough to have a front row seat in our lives. There are some people in your life that need to be loved from a distance. It is amazing what you can accomplish when you let go, or at least minimize, your time with draining, negative, incompatible, not-going-anywhere relationships/friendships. Observe the relationships around you. Pay attention. Which ones lift and which ones lean? Which ones encourage and which ones discourage? Which ones are on a path of growth uphill and which ones are going downhill? When you leave certain people, do you feel better or feel worse? Which ones always have drama, or don’t understand, know or ap...

Often I laugh with my students over how our inner work chews up time without any outward activity to show for it. There is a lot of vigilance and processing required on the path to peace! So we have a sense of being occupied but we can’t really explain this to others because the work is going on only in our minds. Whenever I hear about theoretical physicists and their “thought experiments” I can identify. They spend a lot of time just thinking about how the universe of form works. They may eventually jot down some formulas, but for much of the time they are conceptualizing. It is the same with this inner work for inner peace. We may eventually write what we learn in a journal but for much of the time we are busy with understanding the workings of our own mind. We are occupied observing, analyzing, and processing what we learn. The deeper you go into this process the more important busy-work for the body becomes to you. Those mundane, repetitive, every-day tasks like washing t...

This mind thought that all it had to do was stop believing in guilt and it would be at peace and any process would be over. Then it found peace, stopped believing in guilt, but found that it was still in a process. And that process is acclimating to peace. When a mind is used to conflict it does not immediately accept peace. A couple of weeks ago ( http://acimmentor.blogspot.com/2016/03/sorry-no-incantations-here.html ) I wrote about how a mind used to forms (thoughts, ideas, feelings, material forms) experiences the Formlessness of Truth as emptiness. The contrast between form and Formlessness is jarring at first. Form is boundaries and busyness and contrasts and conflicts. Formlessness is boundlessness and stillness and the same throughout. This is Absolute Peace! What else could be peace but emptiness? It seems so obvious once you experience It. But Absolute Peace is not the first peace to which you have to acclimatize. The first peace you have to get used to is the peace t...

Sometimes students tell me they want to reach a state of bliss or to be joyful all the time. What they do not understand is if they attained these states they would not experience them as bliss or joy because their new state would become the “new normal”. Bliss and joy are really only felt in contrast to unhappiness. Peace is only felt in contrast to conflict. Love, or wholeness, is only felt in contrast to lack. They are all personal experiences. And they are only the flipside of the experiences that they are set up to replace. I could say that Truth is the absence of all feelings and experiences. But really It is not even that. Truth is not defined by an absence of any kind. It cannot be understood in contrast to anything. Truth is beyond all comparisons or contrasts because It is beyond all duality. That which experiences pain and seeks to be out of pain are the same. So to seek to feel “good” is to seek for only the flip-side of feeling “bad”. They are the same coin and noth...

Despite its use of Christian symbols there are many ideas in A Course in Miracles that are radically different from Christianity. In fact, they undo what is traditionally taught in Christianity. It is important for students of ACIM to not only recognize this but to meditate on these differences. Doing so clarifies ACIM and how learning what it teaches can set you free. The betrayal of the Son of God lies only in illusions, and all his "sins" are but his own imagining. His reality is forever sinless. He need not be forgiven but awakened. (T-17.I.1) A major tenet in the ego's insane religion is that sin is not error but truth, and it is innocence that would deceive. Purity is seen as arrogance, and the acceptance of the self as sinful is perceived as holiness. And it is this doctrine that replaces the reality of the Son of God as his Father created him, and willed that he be forever. (T-19.II.4) In a nutshell, the fundamental and radical difference between A...