Miracles?

Do you remember that to develop a personal relationship, I would listen for the name of a book? I told God that I did not know how to hear yet, so he would have to show me some books that might help me. If I heard the name of a book three times, I would buy it and read it. And I did just that as I looked for the answer within each book. I marked down every time someone talked about “A Course in Miracles.” Hearing people mention this book sixteen times, I still just kept trying to ignore it. I glanced at it once in Barnes and Noble, decided it was too thick. I also had other books that I was invested in at that moment, so I laid it down without even thumbing through it.

Then one weekend, Susan telephoned and asked me if I could help her move out of her house. She and her husband had finalized their divorce. Susan was moving into an apartment. The next day I went to work with her, and the move from her large home began. While I was putting books in a box, one fell off the shelf and hit my foot. It hurt.

Susan, hearing me wince loudly, asked, “What happened?” I responded, “Your ‘Course in Miracles’ just jumped out of the top shelf and landed on my foot!” Susan said, “That is a sign. I have wanted to read that. What does the sign say to you?” “Well, I have had it mentioned to me sixteen times so far and have tried to ignore it. I think my sign is, “It is time I purchase it and read it. I think I must be procrastinating on this one sign.” Susan laughed as she agreed that I was a little slow and said, “Let’s do it!”

We neither one had any idea what this book was about, but the cover said that this book was produced by the Foundation For Inner Peace. We knew that we both needed peace in our lives. Someone had handed it to her saying that she needed to read it. I just kept hearing different people mentioning it. We began meeting Sunday afternoons through Sunday evenings. We would climb onto her bed in her apartment, pop a big bowl of popcorn, open this book, as well as our Bibles, and our adventure in life continued. We assigned ourselves pages to read during the week, agreeing to mark what we wanted to go back to discuss in our next meeting. Sometimes we came to sections we questioned. That is when we would go to the Bible to see if we agreed with the Course or not.

The way Susan and I studied this together, we understood the Course and loved it! It is a self-study about our oneness with God and Love. There are many topics about removing fear, expanding love, letting go of ego, forgiving, and healing. It provides a way to release pain, transform thought, and bring peace within. Since this book is 622 pages and has so many lines that I underlined to discuss, I certainly cannot do it justice here. The Course in Miracles is the book that caused Marianne Williamson to write “A Return to Love,” which sold millions of copies. Upon finishing this fantastic study, we could not believe that we neither one had waited so long to read “A Course In Miracles.” However, we remembered that life happens in divine order.

What did I get from “A Course In Miracles?” This Course helped me forgive past mistakes and brought more love and joy within. So many days, I felt like there was love in every cell in my body. I had completed the twelve steps in Al-Anon before I began this, and the Course confirmed many of my new truths and understandings while also bringing additional answers! The Course made me think about my ego, how to set it aside or get rid of it, or at least make it a much healthier ego if there is such a thing. I became more conscious of my responses. Was the response I gave one of love or my ego? The course says, “Nothing real can be threatened. Nothing unreal exists. Herein lies the peace of God.”

While writing this, I called Susan and asked her to send me a statement about what she received from “A Course In Miracles.” Susan is now a Ph.D. Clinical Psychologist and has helped many people through the years. Here is exactly what she said: “What comes to mind for me is atonement (atonement) and the freedom from shame over anything in the past and forgiveness.”

Always loving people and interested in another person, I gained the joy of meeting a person in a new way. All of my life, I had been pretty nonjudgmental. (My parents had lots to do with this development of my character.) Still, this Course opened me up and helped me feel even more comfortable when meeting a person and dealing with him or her while releasing all judgment—and listening in a new way made a difference in relationships. This energy helped people feel safe when sharing with me as it brought forth the truth with them having no fear. The course says when someone attacks, it is usually a call for help. As Susan and I moved through this study, I gained more and more peace, and I lost some fears that limited me. Sometimes I slip back, but I remember!!! There is no place where God is absent even when someone attacks and thinks they are doing right by doing so. There is nothing to be feared. I do believe this study brought me to a place where I could check my beliefs and learn more truths about myself.

LESSON: With love and peace in every step we take, we help bring both peace and more loving-kindness to this earth as we all move upon the earth!

GIFT: This was a major stepping stone to the next miracles that happened in my life. I am forever grateful for this study and for all Susan and I did together as it became a college course on love for both of us.