The essence of this blog post is encapsulated in an essential question that might rock your world and radically shift your experience of yourself, others, your life, and God.
So please… please take a moment before reading any further.
Go somewhere where it is quiet and commit to some alone time.
Take a few long, deep breaths.
With each exhalation, let go of all that has come before this moment and thoughts about all that might transpire later.
Use the breath to come into the Present.
When you are ready — allow your eyes to take in the question that lies beneath this sentence:
“What would your life be like if you thought that your Highest idea about yourself, about life and about God was True?”
— Neale Donald Walsch (New Beginnings Global Conference, Keynote Address)
Allow this question to permeate every cell of your Being.
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Did you take this question in? Deeply? Completely?
Good. Because now I want to invite you to more deeply explore this question and to grapple with the profound essence of what it is asking us to consider.
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So… what if the Highest idea you could hold about yourself, others, life and God was true?
What would change for you?
If the highest idea you held about yourself, others, life and God was true, how might you be released from your suffering?
What sort of freedom might you experience?
Now — consider this:
If you believed — truly believed that the highest idea you could think about yourself, others, life and God was true — how might you be released from the prison of fear and the bondage of Ego?
How might you come to live fully from pure Love?
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Neale Donald Walsh, world renown spiritual teacher, most well known for his book, Conversations with God: An Uncommon Dialogue raised this question during his Keynote Address at the virtual, “New Beginnings Global Conference” ... Although there were many profound moments during Neale’s presentation, the one question that shook me to my core is the question at the heart of this blog. In fact, when he asked this question, I wept.
Not prone to weeping, my tears were those that accompany abrupt awakenings that can startle us. Such moments are epiphanies. When we experience the awakening that an epiphany inspires, we are indelibly changed and “going back to sleep” is nearly impossible. Although Neale raised this question rather humbly and subtly, it created an awakening in me that continues to have impact weeks later. As a result, I contemplate this question in various ways many times per day and felt inspired to create a set of practices around it that I want to share with you. I invite you into these practices and as such, I invite you to “stay in Love.”
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The Practices
We can work productively with Neale’s question in ways that create enduring change by breaking it down.
Let’s begin with you and the Truth of you.
Ask yourself:
“What if the highest idea I can hold about myself is true?”
Practice One
Take a pen and pad and write this question at the top of the page. Beneath it, I invite you to write 3-5 “high” ideas or thoughts that you can authentically hold about yourself.
Let’s not mess around here. This is no time to be shy or uncertain. Nor is this time to go into deep analysis about what it means to hold a “high” idea about yourself. You are a student of A Course in Miracles. Call upon what you know but tend to forget!
Be truthful. This is a time to live fully from the principals of A Course in Miracles. If the Course were to answer this question — what would it say? Consider this, but ultimately answer this question in your own words. Please note that your list will look different from mine. And that is okay.
As an example, here is what I came up with:
“Three of The Highest Thoughts I Can Hold About Myself...”
1) I am a spark of Divine Light — of and from God. As such, I can never be separated from Source.
2) I am a Teacher of God. My only function is to be a living, breathing, walking, and talking expression of Christ consciousness.
3) My work in the world is simple: I am here to help others remember who they really are. As such, my guiding principal is crystal clear. How do I navigate every interaction in ways that nudge others into their own “remembering?”
Whoa! What if all of the above is true? What if I live as if this is all true? Can you imagine the sort of transformation that might occur?
This, my friends, is the stuff of miracles!
Next, commit to living these thoughts for one full day. Each time you find yourself with thoughts that run counter to any of those you listed or thoughts that you would not consider “high,” take a pause and self-correct. If necessary, carry your list around with you!
Notice how differently your day unfolds. Notice how differently you feel when you crawl into bed after a day of holding only the highest thoughts and ideas about yourself.
If you found peace as the outcome of this little exercise, do it again tomorrow. And the next day… and then the next…
Note: should any part of you consider such an exercise selfish or self-centered, remember — as you heal your own thoughts through such powerful “correction,” you heal the entire Sonship.
Of this — you can be certain.
Practice Two
Let’s turn our focus now onto others and let’s work with the second part of the greater question Neale raised.
“What if the highest idea you could hold about others is true?”
Repeat the exercise above, but instead make a list of 3-5 things that are true — absolutely true about others.
Commit to moving through your day believing that the “highest” ideas you are holding about others are true!
As an example, here is what I came up with:
“Three of The Highest Thoughts I Can Hold About Others”
1) I am you, you are me, and we are of the One Sonship. There is no separation.
2) If we have come together in relationship, no matter the quality of the relationship, you are one of my greatest teachers.
3) Relationships are the giant classroom within which all that needs to be healed within us comes up for review. When our peace is disturbed, the school bell is ringing and we are in session.
Whoa!
Notice how you “see” others differently. Notice how you relate differently to those around you. Notice how living from your list and believing your list — even just for one day — causes you to soften toward others and leads you to feeling more deeply connected to them.
This part of the inquiry and the list you created will fast track you into the mindset of Love, which is so essential to the Course. The call to love is so simple and natural, yet so difficult for many of us to achieve and to maintain.
Now — brace yourself. While living from your list in your dealings with others, notice how things start to shift between you and those with whom you have difficulties.
Yes — you heard me right.
Watch the transformation that can occur when you decide to spend your day choosing to believe that the highest thoughts you can hold about that one person with whom you struggle are true!
My friends, this has been a real game changer for me. A few months ago, I wrote a deeply personal blog titled: “When Life Brings Us a Big Curriculum: A Course in Miracles in Practice.” In this blog, I explore how the principals of A Course in Miracles can help us to navigate difficult situations such as divorce.
Socially, legally and relationally, divorce is inherently about “separation,” and thus, can keep us in the mindset of fear. In that blog, I explore ways to navigate the relational complexities of divorce from Love. As my own divorce journey continues, Neale’s question has inspired me to hold only the highest thoughts about my husband especially when things related to divorcing feel legally sticky, arouse fear, and entice me into a mindset of defense.
One such practice that Neale’s question inspired for me is what I have come to call: “Soul-to-Soul Dialogue.” I created this as a way to practice a deeply loving, non-violent, non-defensive and very open internal “posture” toward my husband or anyone else with whom I have difficulties. I have been practicing “Soul-to-Soul Dialogue” daily and its impact is profound. Here is a glimpse into this powerful practice. (Please note that the name used below was randomly chosen for illustration purposes only).
Soul-to-Soul Dialogue
Step One: Begin by getting settled and quiet.
Step Two: Go deep into the quiet. Go beyond all that you think you are and touch into that nameless, changeless, ageless Essence of who you are. Invite the Holy Spirit in for mentoring and guidance if needed.
Say: “The Soul of who I am wishes to talk with the Soul of Michael.”
Ask for the intervention of the Holy Spirit to call forth the Soul of the one with whom you struggle. Imagine you are convening a “soul to soul meeting.”
Step Three: If your Soul — who is only capable of communicating from Love, were to communicate with the Soul of the one with whom you struggle — what would your Soul want to share?
Engage in a dialogue — Soul to Soul.
Stay in this quiet space and watch and listen as this entire exchange unfolds.
Do not end this dialogue until it feels complete. This is a sacred experience. Don’t rush it.
Step Four: When you feel that the dialogue is complete, grab a pen and pad and record any insights. Also, make some notes about how the soul-to-soul dialogue made you feel.
I do not know what this experience will by like for you. I can only tell you that after doing this for days now, I am only capable of having deeply loving and caring thoughts about my husband and our parting. Each time I get triggered into fear based thinking about him or anyone else, a nearly immediate “interruption” now occurs. The interruption sounds something like this:
“Ah… Christine, your Soul and his Soul had a dialogue earlier today that was the purest expression of Love and as such, it was True.
But you’ve moved into fear now as you’ve ceased holding the Highest thought of him. This is your cue to make a shift.
This is your cue to remember the Truth of who you both are.
One Soul.
Of one God.
Of one Sonship.
Pure love.”
My dear friends, only peace can come from such an “interruption.”
Of this, I am certain.
Practice Three
“What if the highest idea you could hold about life is true?”
What are the highest ideas and thoughts you can hold about life? Please make your list. Live as if everything on the list is true about life.
As an example, here is what I came up with:
“Three of The Highest Thoughts I Can Hold About Life”
1) All of life is a giant classroom. Life happens for me, not “to” me.
2) Life is inherently benevolent, abundant and kind.
3) When I stay awake, I can see the Presence of God in all situations. Even when things feel murky, chaotic, and fearful — I need only make this request: “God, please reveal your Presence in this situation.” When I make this request, peace is restored.
Whoa! Buckle in! When you live from this list — watch for the miracles expressing themselves all around you.
Practice Four
“What if the highest idea you could hold about God is true?”
What are the highest ideas and thoughts you can hold about God? Please make your list. Most of us find it easy to muster “high” ideas about God. But do we believe what we think? This is an important consideration. Make your list and then live as if everything on your list about God is true.
As an example, here is what I came up with:
“Three of The Highest Thoughts I Can Hold About God”
1) I am continually in the Presence of the Holy.
2) God only wants from me to express through me. I need only say “yes.”
3) I am loved and adored, protected and guided, and in constant communication with God.
Whoa! When I choose to believe these “high” ideas about God, I cease feeling alone. I am steadily reminded of my sole function, and most of all, I feel completely wrapped up in the benevolent, loving, and protective energy of God.
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In the midst of a global pandemic and social unrest, it is easy to get swept up in the turbulent waters of negativity, doubt, uncertainty, anxiety and fear. As such, there is so much social and cultural support for a mindset of separation. This only elevates the Ego’s position and as a result, we might find ourselves imprisoned by our own false ideas and thoughts.
For those of us who choose to walk the path of Truth, Love and Miracles, our practices matter now more than ever. I hope that my breakdown of Neale’s question paired with the practices offered here, inspire you toward your own transformation, elevation, and remembrance of the Truth of who you truly are. As such, may miracles abound!
I invite you to weave these four practices into your daily lives and to continually revisit the game-changing question upon which this blog rests.
Over time, you will find that you are no longer just asking but “living” this question.
Live this question to stay in Love.
