This Thing called You, Chapter 15

This Thing called You, Chapter 15

The wisest man who ever lived said there is a truth which can set you free from fear, want, unhappiness and finally death itself. He said that this truth is already within you. Nothing could be more wonderful than this. It is what you have been looking for but hardly dared believe. Suppose you accept this spiritual wisdom, since the one who gave it was able to prove his claims. Don’t you think that this great and glorious person was telling you that the kingdom of your good is here today?

No matter what the negations of yesterday may have been, your affirmations of today may rise triumphant over them. This is the highest hope ever placed before the vision of man’s search for something that can make him whole. The evil of all your yesterdays can vanish into nothingness. If you can see beauty instead of ugliness, beauty will appear. Cease weeping over the mistakes of yesterday and steadfastly beholding the face of the great and divine Reality, walk in that Light wherein there is no darkness. Say:

I know that every negative condition of the past is swept aside.

I refuse to see it or to think about it.

Yesterday is no longer here, tomorrow has not yet arrived.

Today is God’s day.

God’s day is my day.

Today, bright with hope and filled with promise, is mine.

Today my heart is without fear.

I have implicit confidence in the good, the enduring and the true.

Today I shall guard my thought and speech; I shall keep my consciousness steadfast with the realization that there is a spiritual Power upon which I may rely.

I shall turn resolutely to that Divine Source which knows no confusion, to that spiritual Center which knows no fear.

The Spirit is not afraid of anything; the Divine has no enemies; the Spirit knows no opposites.

Consciously, I draw close to my Divine Center, the Source of all that is; I feel the warmth of Its presence.

I enter into a faith made perfect through love and confidence, an assurance made complete by the abandonment of myself to good.

Acknowledging good in all my ways, desiring only the good for others, I rest in calm assurance.

I open my consciousness to the realization that all the Power and Presence there is clothes me in Its eternal embrace; that the Spirit forever imparts Its life to me.

I believe in myself because I believe in God.

I believe in my destiny because I know that the Law of Good is operating through me.

I have confidence in the future and enthusiastic expectation of good things to come.

Therefore, I accept the fullness of life this moment.

“Ask and ye shall receive.” This is one of the most wonderful statements ever uttered. It implies that there is a Power which can and will honor your request. At the same time Jesus said that you should not ask amiss. However, these two sayings of Jesus are not contradictory. They merely mean that you should ask in the nature of the Divine Life which is love, truth, beauty, power, wisdom, goodness and peace.

Anything you ask in this nature you have a right to expect to receive. But it is only as you let go of the lesser that you can take hold of the greater, only as you drop confusion that you can entertain peace, only as you transcend doubt and fear that you can be lifted up to the hill tops of the inner Life. In asking, you must identify yourself with the greatness of the Spirit. This is the only way you can breathe this Almighty Power. Permit your consciousness, through faith, to rise to a greater and broader realization of that Divine Presence which is always delivering Itself to you.

Believing that the Divine Mind is ever present, that Divine Intelligence is ever available, open your consciousness to Its guidance. Keep your mind steadfast and loyal to the thought that you are governed by this Divine Intelligence. Feel that you are impelled to make right decisions, that you are compelled to act upon these decisions intelligently, and know that the Power that is with you cannot desert you. Say:

My knowledge that the great I Am is ever available gives me an increasing capacity to draw upon It and to become inwardly aware of the presence of Spirit.

Through the quiet contemplation of the omni-action of Spirit, I learn to look quietly and calmly upon every false condition, seeing through it to the other side of the invisible Reality which molds conditions and recreates all of my affairs after a more nearly Divine pattern.

With a penetrating spiritual vision I can dissipate the obstruction, remove the obstacle, dissolve the wrong condition.

Standing still, I can watch the sure salvation of the Law.

I now claim health instead of sickness, wealth instead of poverty, happiness instead of misery.

Every thought of fear or limitation is removed from my consciousness.

I know that my word transmutes every energy into constructive action, producing health, harmony, happiness and success.

I know there is something at the center of my being which is absolutely certain of itself.

It has complete assurance and it gives me complete assurance that all is well.

I maintain my position as a Divine Being here and now.

I know that in this consciousness of Reality is the supply for my every need—physical, mental or spiritual—and I accept that supply in deepest gratitude.

I am thankful that this is the way Life fulfills my needs, through the doorway of my inner self, and I am thankful that I know how to use this perfect Law.

I come to this great Fountain of Supply, in the very center of my being, to absorb that for which I have need, mentally and physically, and I am filled with the sense of the Reality of that which I desire.

As I am filled with Reality I permit It to flow into my world of thought and action, knowing that It brings peace, harmony and order all around me.

There arises within me limitless faith in the unconquerable Presence, the perfect Law, and Divine Action.

Good is at the root of everything, regardless of its seeming absence. But this good must be recognized. Since there is but one Spirit and this Spirit is in you and in everything, then everywhere you go you will meet this Spirit. You meet this Spirit in people, in places and in things. There is a Divine Essence permeating everything, flowing through everything, becoming all things. This one Spirit, which manifests Itself in and through all, including yourself, automatically adjusts parts to the whole. Therefore, you may accept with positive certainty that the Spirit within you does go before you and prepares your way.

This is no idle conclusion, no empty dream, no forlorn hope. Your faith is placed in something positive, certain as the laws of life, exact as the principle of mathematics, ever present, like the ethers of space, ever operating like the laws of nature. Say:

I know that the Spirit within me goes before me, making perfect, plain, straight, easy and happy the pathway of my experience.

There is nothing in me that can obstruct the divine circuits of Life, of Love, of Beauty and Truth.

My word dissolves every negative thought or impulse that would throw a shadow of unbelief across the threshold of my expectation.

Today I have faith that my word shall not return unto me void.

I surrender myself completely to this faith.

My prayer, then, is one of affirmation and acceptance.

I lift my cup of acceptance, knowing that the Divine outpouring will fill it to the brim.

Today I consciously identify myself with everything that belongs to goodness, truth and beauty.

I identify myself with abundance and success.

I identify myself with the Living Spirit—with all the power, all the presence and all the life there is.

Realizing that all action starts in and is a result of consciousness, prepare your mind to receive the best that life has to offer. Become increasingly aware of the one Presence, the one Life and the one Spirit, which is God. Try to drop all sense of lack or limitation from your thought.

Knowing that your word of truth is the Law of God in you, and believing that this Law is perfect, you must become consciously aware that It is operating in your affairs. The Spirit works for you through your belief. All things are possible to this Spirit, therefore, everything is possible to you in such degree as you can believe in and accept the operation of Spirit in your life.

There is something within you which is completely aware of its oneness with power, of its unity with life. Loose all thoughts of discord and fear, and permit the true pattern to come to the surface. Remember that thought patterns are acquired, therefore, the mind that accepted them can reject them.

No doubt most of these patterns are unconsciously taken into the mind. This makes no difference at all. What is there you can consciously loose, drop it out of your thought, refuse to think about it, refuse to feed it with the fire of imagination and feeling. Having nothing to live on, it will shrivel up and disappear. It is only the thought that is nourished that grows. The weeds are no longer there when they are pulled up, and the place where they were forgets that they ever have been. Say:

I allow the Divine Wholeness to flow through me in ever-widening circles of activity.

Every good I have experienced is now increased.

Every joy that has come into my life is now multiplied.

There is a new influx of inspiration into my thought.

I see more clearly than ever before that my divine birthright is freedom, joy and eternal goodness.

I realize that this same birthright is bequeathed to all people.

I rejoice that everyone has this common good.

The Divine Presence interprets Itself to me through love and friendship, through peace and harmony.

Knowing that life gives according to my faith, I lift my mind, I elevate my faith, I listen deeply to the song of my being.

You have been told that all things are possible to him who believes. Accepting this as a principle of your being and analyzing it to its logical conclusion, you have come to understand that faith is not a nebulous something, it is an actual idea, a definite mental attitude, a positive acceptance—not positive from the standpoint of will power or compelling things to happen, not positive from the standpoint of influencing people or things, not positive from the standpoint of holding thoughts with ever tightening grip. Your faith is positive when that which your intellect announces is no longer denied by the accumulated patterns of thought held in the subconscious part of your mind.

Faith is most certainly a mental attitude. When a certain man came to Jesus and said, “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief,” he was but showing how human we all are, how human you are, how human everyone is. From the inspiration of his hope and the enthusiasm of the occasion, standing in the light of one whose wick of life was ever kept trimmed and burning, feeling the warmth and color of its eternal glow, he exclaimed, “I believe!” This was a simple, sincere and enthusiastic response to the consciousness of one who had faith. But no sooner had he exclaimed, “I believe!” out of the enthusiasm of his will to believe, than old thought patterns arose to block his faith and he said, “Help thou mine unbelief.”

Now, this man was not a weak character. He was just a human being on the same quest in which all humanity is engaged. He was but showing that faith is more than an objective statement, that perfect faith cannot exist while there are subjective contradictions that deny the affirmation of the lips.

It is only when the intellect is no longer obstructed by negative emotional reactions, arising out of the experiences of doubt and fear, that the word of the mouth can immediately bear fruit. There is nothing in this thought to be discouraged about, for the very fact that thoughts are things also carries with it this divine connotation that the thinker can change his thoughts, that he really is the master of his fate.

You are the thinker. You are the creator of thought patterns. You are the master of your fate. But you must exercise this mastership. Say:

I believe with a deep, inward calm that my word of faith is the execution of spiritual Law in my life.

I know that my word penetrates any and every unbelief in my thought; it casts out fear, removes doubts, and permits that which is enduring, perfect and true to enter into my consciousness.

I have complete conviction that my thoughts are not only true, but that they will be carried out in my experience with mathematical certainty.

I have absolute reliance upon the Law of Good.

I know that the Spirit, which is Life, is present everywhere.

Like the air I breathe, It presses against me; on the mountain top, in the valley, the desert and on the ocean, It is ever present.

I accept this Presence with complete confidence.

I believe that the Law of Good will bring everything desirable into my experience.

Today I proclaim my divine inheritance.

I am rich with the richness of God.

I am strong with the power of God.

I am guided by the wisdom of God.

I am held in the goodness of God, today.

The Spirit of God is an undivided and indivisible Wholeness. It fills all time with Its presence and peoples space with the activity of Its thought. It is, of course, difficult for the human mind to understand the meaning of such an all-encompassing Presence. However, perhaps the greatest difficulty is that we try to make it too abstract.

You already know that you live. You know that your life is peopled with events, persons coming and going, happenings that take place in your everyday experience, the thoughts in your own mind, the activities of your own affairs, the circulation of blood in your body. Don’t you think this is the place to begin? You already understand the presence of life. It is not difficult, after all.

Your endeavor, then, is not so much to find God as it is to realize His Presence and to understand that this Presence is always with you. Nothing can be nearer to you than that which is the very essence of your being. Your outward search for God culminates in the greatest of all possible discoveries—the finding of Him at the center of your own being. Life flows up from within you. Say:

I know that my search is over.

I am consciously aware of the Presence of the Spirit.

I have discovered the great Reality.

I am awake to the realization of this Presence.

There is but one Life.

Today I see It reflected in every form, back of every countenance, moving through every act.

Knowing that the Divine Presence is in everyone I meet, the Spirit in all people, I salute the good in everything.

I recognize the God Life responding to me from every person I meet, in every event that transpires, in every circumstance in my experience.

I feel the warmth and color of this Divine Presence forevermore pressing against me, forevermore welling up from within me—the well-spring of eternal being present yesterday, today, tomorrow, and always.

Did you ever stop to realize that peace must actually exist at the center of everything? And if you ask yourself, Why? answer your own question, because in the long run you will have to do this anyway. No one can answer your questions for you but yourself. Your very nature has willed it so. Peace must exist at the center of everything or the universe itself would be a chaos. You already know this and believe it, now you are going to act upon it.

You are not only going to believe in it, you are going to act as though it were true, because it is true. There is peace at the center of your being—a peace that can be felt throughout the day and in the cool of the evening when you have turned from your labor and the first star shines in the soft light of the sky. It broods over the earth quietly, tenderly, as a mother watches over her child. Say:

In this peace that holds me so gently I find strength and protection from all fear or anxiety.

It is the peace of God in which I feel the love of a Holy Presence.

I am so conscious of this love, this protection, that every sense of fear slips away from me as mist fades in the morning light.

I see good in everything, God personified in all people, Life manifest in every event.

Today you are to identify yourself with the more abundant life, to think on those things which make for peace, to dwell on the unity which underlies everything. As you consciously poise yourself in the realization that you live in pure Spirit, new power will be born within you. You will find yourself renewed by the Divine Life, led by Divine Intelligence and guarded by Divine Love. Focus your inward vision on this indwelling harmony, knowing that as you contemplate its perfection you will see it manifest in everything you do. Say:

Realizing that the Spirit within me is God, the Living Spirit Almighty, being fully conscious of this Divine Presence as the sustaining Principle of my life, I open my thought to Its influx.

I open my consciousness to Its outpouring.

I let that Mind be in me which was also in Christ Jesus.

This is the Mind of Truth, the Mind of God, carrying with It all the power of the Infinite.

I know and understand that Good alone is real.

I know that silently I am drawing into my experience today, and every day, an ever-increasing measure of truth and beauty, of goodness and harmony.

Everything I do, say and think is quickened into right action, into productive action, into increased action.

My invisible good already exists.

My faith, drawing upon this invisible good, causes that which was unseen, to become visible. All there is, is mine NOW; all there ever was or ever can be, is mine NOW.

This Thing called You, Chapter 15,

Ernest Holmes

This Thing called You, Chapter 14

This Thing called You, Chapter 14

Beloved, now are we the sons of God.” Your kingdom of God is at hand. You have already inherited everything that belongs to this kingdom. The riches, power, glory and might of this kingdom are yours today. You do not rob others by entering into the fullness of your kingdom of joy, your kingdom of abundance. You recognize that all people belong to the same kingdom. You are merely claiming for yourself what you would that the law of good should do unto all.

There is no law of human heredity imposed upon you. Evil has no history. Limitation has no past. That which is opposed to good has no future. The eternal now is forever filled with the presence of perfect life. You always have been, and forever will remain, a complete and perfect expression of the Eternal Mind, which is God, the living Spirit Almighty. Say:

Today I enter into the limitless variations of self-expression which the Divine Spirit projects into my experience.

Knowing that all experience is a play of Life upon Itself, the blossoming of love into self-expression, the coming forth of good into the joy of its own being, I enter into the game of living with joyful anticipation, with enthusiasm.

I play the game of life well and I enjoy it.

Today I enter into my Divine inheritance, shaking my thought clear from the belief that external conditions are imposed upon me.

I declare the freedom of my Divine sonship. I possess the Kingdom of God in all its fullness.

I look long, sincerely and simply, upon every object, every person.

I wait at the doorway of my expectation until my acceptance grants me the privilege of beholding His face forever more.

I shall not wait long, for today I expect to see His shining presence, I expect to don the “seamless robe” of Divine union.

Today is my day.

I let it live itself through me.

The disciple John tells us that God is Spirit and Job said that there is a spirit in man and an inspiration, the understanding of which gives him freedom. Jesus, in utmost simplicity, proclaimed in the ecstasy of his illumination, “I and the Father are one.” What do you suppose would happen if you believed this, not as a mere intellectual concept, but with deep inward feeling and an expanding sense of its meaning? Would you not sell all that you possess for this single pearl of utmost worth, this drop of water taken from the ocean of being, this mountain top of revelation? If the wisest man who ever lived proclaimed this truth, should not you accept it, simply, directly, sincerely?

Perhaps this seems too good to be true, and yet, all nature is a living example, a continuous reminder, that there is a Spirit animating everything, a Presence defused, a Law governing, a Unity sustaining, a coordinating Will binding all together, a unifying Principle holding everything in place. Say:

I cleanse the windows of my mind, that it may become a mirror reflecting inspiration from the most High.

I do this, not with strenuous effort, but through quiet contemplation, through gently reaching and affirming an inward recognition.

Today I walk in the pathway of inspiration. I know exactly what to do in every situation. There is an inspiration within me which governs every act, every thought, with certainty, with conviction and in peace.

The key that unlocks the treasures of the kingdom of good is in my hand.

I unlock the doorway of my consciousness and gently open it that the Divine Presence may flood my whole being with light, illumine my being with Its radiant glow, and direct my footsteps into the pathway of peace and joy.

Every part of your body is made of pure substance. There is a spiritual body which cannot deteriorate. This spiritual body is already within you. As much of it appears as is recognized. It is the mind that makes this recognition. It is the mind that blocks or permits the emanation of this spiritual body through the physical form. Jesus said: Destroy this body and I will build up another like unto it. He knew that the spiritual body is indestructible, eternal and perfect. Seeing this perfect body instead of a diseased form, he was able instantly to heal every manner of illness.

Spiritual perfection always responds to man’s consciousness but it can respond only in such degree as he becomes aware. This awareness is an inward feeling of conviction, and, in a sense, a mental digestion of its meaning. Your mind digests ideas just as your body digests food. Spiritual, mental and physical laws are identical. Each produces a similar action and reaction on its own plane of being.

You already have a spiritual body, but your mind is not aware of this. Therefore, the mind automatically becomes a mirror reflecting either the inward perfection or the outward, apparent imperfection. It is because this inward perfection is so insistent that you maintain a physical body, but because you are an individual with volition, you can, as it were, hang a curtain between your physical life and its spiritual cause.

Spiritual realization helps to withdraw this curtain. Every statement you make about your body, or belief you hold about it, with deep feeling which causes the mind to accept Spirit as the substance of the body, tends to heal. Say:

I realize that there is a Divine Presence at the center of my being.

I let this recognition flow through my entire consciousness.

I let it reach down into the very depths of my being.

I rejoice in this realization.

The perfect Life of God is in and through me, in every part of my being.

As the sun dissolves the mist, so my acceptance of Life dissolves all pain and discord.

I am free because the Spirit of Life in me is perfect.

It remolds and recreates my body after the likeness of the Divine pattern of body which exists in the Mind of God.

Even now the living Spirit is flowing through me.

I open wide the doorway of my consciousness to Its influx.

I permit this physical body to receive the living Spirit in every action, function, cell and organ.

I know that my whole being manifests the life, love, peace, harmony, strength and joy of the Spirit which indwells me, which is incarnated in me, which is my entire being.

I am now made vigorous and whole.

I possess the vitality of the Infinite.

I am strong and well.

The life of the Spirit is my life.

All of Its strength is my strength.

Its power is my power.

Its body is my body.

Every breath I draw is a breath of perfection, vitalizing, upbuilding and renewing every cell of my body.

I am born of the Spirit.

I am in the Spirit.

I am the Spirit made manifest.

Life fills all space and Spirit animates every form. It is this Spirit in you, as you, which is the true actor in everything you do, but since you are an individual, even the Spirit cannot make the gift of Life unless you accept it. Life may have given everything to you but only that which you accept is yours to use. Life makes things out of Itself through the simple and direct process of Itself becoming that which It makes. This is why it is written that the word of power, of life and action is in your own mouth—that is, in your thought.

Turning from every objective fact to the Divine which is within you, is turning from conditions to causes, to that realm of Absolute Being which, through self-knowingness, creates the forms which It projects and enters into the experience which It creates. Thus the Spirit comes to self-fulfillment in everything. Everything is alive with God, saturated with Divinity.

There are many who will doubt this. Only to those who have believed has the proof come. The highest hope and aspiration of humanity have been built around the lives of those few who have believed. You are one of these. You do believe. Nothing can dim your faith. Nothing can dampen your ardor. Nothing can cause you to doubt.

Through the manifestation of the power that is within you, you can project any objective experience which you may legitimately desire. Be certain that you are accepting this, that you are living in joyous expectation of good, that you are accepting abundance. Be sure that you are animating your experience with the thought of plenty, that you are affirming that Divine Substance is forever flowing to you as supply. Did not the wise one say, “What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them”? Say:

Today I recognize the abundance of life.

I animate everything in my experience with this idea.

I remember only the good.

I accept only the good.

I expect only the good.

This is all I experience.

I give thanks that this good is flowing in ever-increasing volume.

I say to my mind, there is good enough to go around.

I do not withhold that good from myself or others, but proclaim that spiritual substance is forever flowing to each and to all as daily supply.

You should become accustomed to the thought that you are a divine being. Everything is a part of one great Whole. Everything in nature is an individualization of one co-ordinating Life, one Law of being, and one Presence. The mind has become so filled with that which contradicts this that even the Truth has to await our recognition. “Behold, I stand at the door and knock.” When you open this doorway, the Divine Guest will enter and sup with you.

You must learn to become consciously aware of the Divine Presence and the Divine Power, the wholeness of Truth, of Love, of Reason and of a sound mind. Instead of dwelling on negative thoughts, cause your mind to dwell on peace and joy. Know that the power of the invisible Spirit is working in and through you now, at this very moment. Lay hold of this realization with complete certainty. Say:

I know that I am a perfect being now, living under perfect conditions today.

Knowing that good alone is real, I know that there is one Power which acts and reacts in my experience, in my body and in my thought.

I know that good alone has power either to act or react.

Everything that I do, say or think today shall be done, said or thought from this spiritual viewpoint—that God, Who is Life, is in everything.

I know that this recognition establishes the law of harmony in my experience, the law of prosperity, a sense of happiness, peace, health and joy.

Today I hold communion with this invisible Presence which peoples the world with the manifestations of Its life, Its light and Its love.

I withdraw the veil which hides my real self, and draw close to the Spirit in everything and in everyone.

I accept everything that belongs to this Spirit.

I claim everything that partakes of Its nature.

It has been written that Christ is your redeemer; also, that Christ is in you. You have been told that your redemption is at hand. You have been told to awake that Christ may give you light—Christ in you, the hope of your glory. You have been told to renew your mind by putting off the old man and by putting on the new, the truth which is Christ in you. All of these mystical statements refer to your spiritual nature. They were written by people who had experienced the illumination of conscious sonship with the Infinite.

Of course, all people are sons of God, but only a few have completely recognized this. Only a few have prepared their minds to receive this truth with all its meaning; with all its power, majesty and might. Now you are one of these. You have decided to live as though this were true. A deep and abiding faith has come to you. Therefore, you are fortunate among men. Not that God has favored you above others; rather, you have chosen this path and you are going to walk in it.

Realizing that you may, in your ignorance, have been using the power of your mind negatively (not because you were evil but because of human ignorance, superstition and fear, which, to a certain degree, permeates every man’s thought) you are not going to condemn yourself nor anyone else because of this. If the light has come the thing to do is to use it, forgetting the darkness. When the day of enlightenment dawns the night of darkness disappears. The light did not contend against this darkness and the darkness could not contend against the light. “The light shineth in the darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not.” How can darkness have power over light? Say:

Today I realize that my good is at hand.

Today I know that my Redeemer liveth in me.

He is not outside that I need go in search of Him.

He is not in the mountain, nor even in the temple, holy as it may be.

He is within me, now, today, this very moment, in this breath I draw, in the eternal now and the everlasting here.

The Spirit within me refreshes me.

I am saturated with the essence of Life.

My body is a vehicle for Its expression, my mind an instrument for Its thought.

Today I shall consciously commune with this Spirit, which is my Spirit; with this Life, which is my Life;

with this Christ, which is my Christ.

I shall endeavor to feel this Presence as a living reality in my life.

I shall try to sense the same Spirit in everyone.

I shall see Him everywhere.

This Thing called You, Chapter 14,

Ernest Holmes