The beauty and simplicity of A TRAINING COURSE in Miracles (ACIM) really shines through one of its major principles: REGULATIONS of Cause and Effect. This is different from regulations of Attraction, a subject which so much has been discussed these last couple of years. ACIM answers not merely why things are the way they are with the mind, but also how to implement these mind corrections had a need to change your daily life. What it ultimately comes down to is the choice to improve beliefs while residing in this world, or the choice to correct the mind and return home.
Affirmations are not section of A TRAINING COURSE in Miracles because they are not essential and here’s why: You will find a “wrong” ego mind, and a “right” ego mind, both which are still area of the same ego side of the split mind. Within the ego mind (error), the wrong side is all the negative judgments; and the right side is all the negative judgments attempting to convince you how wonderful it really is to live within this negative world. Neither may be the truth of one’s nature nor where you are trying to return your mind, according to ACIM.
The Law of Cause and Effect is this: Based on the actually use as cause, you will notice the corresponding effect. Ideas do not leave their source: You.
Let’s utilize this example:
Someone is feeling the effects of being “poor,” or lack, nowadays and wants to change their beliefs to now have “rich” (abundance, prosperity, money) show up. Both “poor” and “rich” are judgments of the ego deploying it as cause which can only produce ego effect. Ego being an unstable thought system, everything you choose as “rich” will eventually go and you end up back with “poor.” It’s only a question of “when.”
The ego’s choice system is: (1) one or another: (2) poor or rich; and, (3) ego or God. It asks one to choose between two things within the ego illusion and not to choose from the illusion.
This is in contrast to choosing correction of the mind (forgiveness) where both “poor” and “rich” do not exist. A choice for correction of the mind allows the Holy Spirit Right Mind to be your cause which affects the you in this world; however, it generally does not have the consequences you imagine since the ego cannot relate. It returns a portion of your brain to peace and ends senseless worry over rich and poor. It also produces effects that you experienced here but you must choose correction to see them.
Let’s look at how ACIM breaks this all into a simple set of principles based on Cause and Effect. It only includes a few components so when understood and used, they could be “mind” correcting!
The Metaphysics:
Remember, according to ACIM, the mind is split by the ego’s judgment that we could be separate, often known as the “tiny mad idea,” or the error that never occurred. This part of the mind is simply hidden in darkness because it banished itself from Knowledge (Heaven and Oneness) whenever we forgot to laugh off what could not be true. It didn’t, however, separate.
So in ACIM it isn’t about affirmations or changing beliefs, as the mind never left God but still resides at home with Him. There are no “belief” judgments in Love, Oneness, Heaven and Knowledge as everything may be the same, all one, and nothing to believe or judge between.
Instead, it is about changing your internal Teacher or rather, who you’re hearing for interpretation of events in this world. The only change is in the choice between your split mind (error) of the ego or the Holy Spirit Right Mind (correction) as that internal Teacher.
This is where the simplicity is evident in ACIM because there’s no convincing the ego wrong and right mind of another thought process. You simply quit what you no more want. We take action on a regular basis with ego stuff; and now we just take action with the ego beliefs themselves.
Forgiveness:
This says it all: Forgiveness is correction of your brain. In ACIM, you’ll find nothing to forgive because no error has happened, i.e., no separation happened. What you are really doing is simply returning your brain to God, where it never left, and to its natural state of peace. To do that is simply a choice of which side of the split mind to listen to for interpretation of events and turning over the judgments you no longer desire to the Holy Spirit Right Mind for correction (forgiveness).
The Holy Spirit may be the treatment for the separation put into the mind by God and every answer will there be looking forward to you. Atonement, forgiveness, salvation and True Perception are other words which are synonymous. You need to be willing to utilize the Holy Spirit Right Mind for interpretation of events and do the actual work of giving judgments (beliefs) to this side of your brain, via your decision maker, because you no longer want them.
It really is that easy and only confusing as a result of belief that the only choice is between ego judgments of “poor” and “rich,” to use the earlier example, and not understanding concerning this third option being available. The choice for True Perception would be to choose neither ego judgment and relinquish both for correction of the mind. This is what is takes to return your brain to God.
Decision Maker:
ACIM is aimed at the decision maker in your brain. The complete point is that you’ve got a selection of which side of the mind to listen to and use for interpretation. That’s all that ever happened in the first place. It was a choice to pay attention, believe and choose judgments of the ego that separation happened and the ensuing sin, guilt and fear. Judgments could be dismissed as easily as you dismiss anything else you don’t want because they’re not real.
Two things stop you from relinquishing judgments: (1) your attachment in their mind to be true and real; and, (2) not acknowledging the method that you feel keeps them hidden and that means you don’t realize they are judgments.
You do not “feel” in Heaven, Knowledge and Oneness. It really is an experience shared by One.
The decision maker may be the mechanism between your two sides of the split mind. It really is neutral, an observer and is something you will need to employ to watch the mind and the judgments being created by the ego. When you realize you have used something from the ego error of the wrong or right mind, just be willing to hand them to the perfect solution is, or the correction, of the Holy Spirit Right Mind. It takes care of the others as the Atonement or solution is already there. No affirmations are necessary. You are simply giving up that which you no longer want. It really is, and certainly can, be so easy.
Form and Content:
The last component to know from A Course in Miracles is form and content. Form is this world and everything in it. In ACIM, form does not matter and is portion of the “beliefs” to be turned over. However, you use everything in form, combined with the judgments in your mind, because the curriculum of what things to start for correction (forgiveness).
What does matter is content and in ACIM, content may be the mind. acim The mind you’re using for interpretation (perception) of individuals, places, and things, etc., counts for everything. You can only have one master: (1) the Holy Spirit Right Mind (correction); or, (2) the ego wrong mind (error) and which includes both interpretations of the ego mind.
In conclusion, think about the simplicity of ACIM that is a Course in training your mind how to perceive properly. You need to return your brain to peace because the Kingdom of God is peace and you also cannot start to see the doorway from judgment. You merely see peace in peace even though sharing peace with everyone.
All ACIM says is you have the willingness to learn how to do this, study the ideas and then put it into practice. The assist you to need will arrive; but you, my pal, must do the work of the inward journey back to the mind.
REGULATIONS of Cause and Effect may be the form, or mind, you’re using for interpretation will be your effect in this world. It will affect you in different ways by returning your mind back to back again to peace where you eventually start to see the illusion of preference, because no separation occurred, and elect to give it up forever.