Overcoming fear and other self-debasing thoughts
And stones for inflammation
The way to overcome fear is to focus on God's unbelievable love for us! Know that you are held in God’s hand.
Listen to Lesson 41 Insights
Lesson 41 - A Course in Miracles
“God goes with me wherever I go.”
1. Today’s idea will eventually overcome completely the sense of loneliness and abandonment all the separated ones experience. ²Depression is an inevitable consequence of separation. ³So are anxiety, worry, a deep sense of helplessness, misery, suffering and intense fear of loss.
2. The separated ones have invented many “cures” for what they believe to be “the ills of the world.” ²But the one thing they do not do is to question the reality of the problem. ³Yet its effects cannot be cured because the problem is not real. ⁴The idea for today has the power to end all this foolishness forever. ⁵And foolishness it is, despite the serious and tragic forms it may take.
3. Deep within you is everything that is perfect, ready to radiate through you and out into the world. ²It will cure all sorrow and pain and fear and loss because it will heal the mind that thought these things were real, and suffered out of its allegiance to them.
4. You can never be deprived of your perfect holiness because its Source goes with you wherever you go. ²You can never suffer because the Source of all joy goes with you wherever you go. ³You can never be alone because the Source of all life goes with you wherever you go. ⁴Nothing can destroy your peace of mind because God goes with you wherever you go.
5. We understand that you do not believe all this. ²How could you, when the truth is hidden deep within, under a heavy cloud of insane thoughts, dense and obscuring, yet representing all you see? ³Today we will make our first real attempt to get past this dark and heavy cloud, and to go through it to the light beyond.
6. There will be only one long practice period today. ²In the morning, as soon as you get up if possible, sit quietly for some three to five minutes, with your eyes closed. ³At the beginning of the practice period, repeat today’s idea very slowly. ⁴Then make no effort to think of anything. ⁵Try, instead, to get a sense of turning inward, past all the idle thoughts of the world. ⁶Try to enter very deeply into your own mind, keeping it clear of any thoughts that might divert your attention.
7. From time to time, you may repeat the idea if you find it helpful. ²But most of all, try to sink down and inward, away from the world and all the foolish thoughts of the world. ³You are trying to reach past all these things. ⁴You are trying to leave appearances and approach reality.
8. It is quite possible to reach God. ²In fact it is very easy, because it is the most natural thing in the world. ³You might even say it is the only natural thing in the world. ⁴The way will open, if you believe that it is possible. ⁵This exercise can bring very startling results even the first time it is attempted, and sooner or later it is always successful. ⁶We will go into more detail about this kind of practice as we go along. ⁷But it will never fail completely, and instant success is possible.
9. Throughout the day use today’s idea often, repeating it very slowly, preferably with eyes closed. ²Think of what you are saying; what the words mean. ³Concentrate on the holiness that they imply about you; on the unfailing companionship that is yours; on the complete protection that surrounds you.
10. You can indeed afford to laugh at fear thoughts, remembering that God goes with you wherever you go.
Exercise & Mantras
Here’s a very powerful exercise learned on a spiritual retreat. Imagine your solar plexus (3rd chakra, upper abdomen area) filled with the element of your zodiac sign. (Fire signs image a flame in the solar plexus, earth signs imagine fertile earth, air signs imagine air, water signs imagine water.)
When I first tried it, I couldn’t do it. As a fire sign, it felt uncomfortable at first. I’m glad to say that by the end of the retreat, I got it. Don’t ask how, but somehow, this is a healing exercise for your center of power.
Repeat these mantras while imagining the element in your solar plexus:
“The peace of God is within me, ready to be found here and now.”
“The peace of God is my natural state.”
“God is with me wherever I go.”
You can imagine how irate the synagogue in Nazareth was when Jesus read from this passage in his hometown, Luke 4: 17-21, after which He said to them, ‘Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.’
“The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,[a]
2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor
and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty
instead of ashes,
the oil of joy
instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
a planting of the Lord
for the display of his splendor. -Isaiah 61:1
If you’ve never read the Bible all the way through, this is a spoiler worth knowing about. This is how this amazing story ends:
‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” -Revelation 21:4
