Copyright Nouk Sanchez 2016
From The End of Death, Volume Two
I want to share a recent lesson of mine. It came in an uncomfortable form but I feel that it has clarified and precipitated yet another level of trust for me.
The moment I feel fear, pain or concern for myself or anyone else, I have abandoned my Holy Self where all peace and healing lay. The moment I believe the seeming adversity that my five physical senses report, I have unknowingly joined with adversity and made the problem real.
Recently, I had the experience of a beautiful bird that had accidently got stuck in our fireplace. I didn’t know it was there and startled it which caused it to fly headlong into a window. I heard the sickening thud. And my heart sank as I saw its twisted form struggling for its life.
My peace had so suddenly and thoroughly evaporated like a single drop of water on red hot coals. In that moment I saw and felt the full volume of pain and death – again. Deep emotions of utter helplessness and hopelessness reigned as my body’s eyes appeared to witness the terrible distress this little bird experienced.
Where was I in all of this? I had fallen under the spell of fear disguised as a destructive “appearance”; a hypnotic and bewitching trance that shrouded my perception like a heavy fog. I struggled to look past these appearances but just could not. There is nothing so blinding as the perception of form!
I remembered to ask, “What is this for?” But the answer came from that same lurking darkness that I saw: death. In spite of this temptation I did recall one thing, one thread of sanity. If this situation pointed to the reality of destruction and death then it certainly was not from God. But how do I overlook (forgive) such convincing physical evidence of pain and death? Especially when the seeming threat is so immediate?
And this is what I learned:
If I am fearful it is always because I have made an unrecognized judgment. This singular judgment is always the same in content regardless of the specific form of upset: 1) I perceive I am separate from God as Love, so if I am not Love then I must be fear, 2) I am guilty, and 3) I am therefore deserving of punishment.
Subsequently, the body’s senses are then employed to report back to me these false beliefs which are judgments that I call upon to myself. These physical senses see what is not there. Only God’s Will can be seen while fear in any form cannot be witnessed except by imagination.
Both what I seem to witness (sickness, pain, deprivation, conflict or death) along with my fearful responses to them arise from this one un-surrendered judgment. If I didn’t believe this false and unrecognized judgment, I could not be triggered by these appearances of adversity. What I seem to see always arises from my own uncorrected (unforgiven) self-judgment which is projected outward.
When Jesus healed the sick and raised the dead He did so by first relinquishing any temptation to cast judgment on the situation. Whatever the form of ailment He blessed it first sanctifying it; by declaring that only God’s Love, healing and perfection exist.
Any investment in the reality of the illusion of adversity must come from our prior and uncorrected judgment. We can only see and feel what our unhealed judgment projects. This is what all pain, disease and death are; simply unforgiven judgments. This is why we really cannot afford to believe what our body’s senses convey. They are there to mirror our own distorted belief that we are separate, helpless and powerless.
Take this from me…
Jesus gave us an exceptionally powerful prayer in the Course, to be used whenever we are tempted to believe in an opposite to God’s uninterrupted Love and healing. I do believe this is a necessary purification required for all miracles to transpire:
“Take this from me and look upon it, judging it for me.
Let me not see it as a sign of sin and death, nor use it for destruction.
Teach me how not to make of it an obstacle to peace, but let You use it for me, to facilitate its coming.” T-19.IV.C.11:8-10
Whenever I feel the temptation to believe in attack in any form I use this to help me open my heart to the miracle. This is so profound and helpful and it can be applied silently in my mind and on behalf of anyone who may need healing. I have adapted this prayer for myself here, keeping the content but changing the form slightly:
“Take this appearance from me and look upon it, judging it with your infinite Love for me.
Let me not see it as evidence that I am guilty and deserving of death, nor use it for destruction.
Teach me how not to make it a block to the awareness of my incorruptible innocence and peace, but use it for me, to quicken their coming.”
If I see my body, another’s body or an animal’s body as sick then that sickness is in MY OWN MIND. And I join them in their sickness. This is why all healing begins within my own perception. As I ask Spirit to “take this appearance from me”, I am asking Him to undo the error in my mind by judging it for me, through Love. Love is Light and casts out all fear and darkness. Only the mind can harbor the illusion of darkness. The body cannot because it is simply a neutral image in the mind (not the brain).
I can only see adversity because I have judged against myself first. My self-judgment precedes and therefore, projects the adversity I see. This is why, when I am triggered, I must ask Spirit to “take this from me and judge it for me.” He purifies and heals the singular cause of suffering which is the self-judgment that I am separate, guilty and deserving of punishment. This is the miracle which heals both the cause and its appearance (effects).
Once this self-judgment is surrendered then healing of the effects of my wrong-minded judgment are free to disappear. This can include revealing the presence of God’s unchanging Will as spontaneous healing if I am willing. To the degree that I am willing to accept His judgment or correction will be the extent to which I will witness Jesus’ number one miracle principle: there is no order of difficulty in miracles.
The miracle can heal every appearance because it removes its cause (guilt and fear). It takes no time. In fact the miracle collapses time. When we refuse to believe the untrue (through the body’s eyes) spontaneous healing is possible because the miracle lifts the illusory veil of symptoms of separation to reveal Love’s reality.
In the absence of fear we can behold God’s unchanging Will and see that no contrary appearance ever threatened it for it is unchanging. Thus the Real World is revealed through our Christ Vision. As Jesus tells us:
“The real world can actually be perceived. All that is necessary is a willingness to perceive nothing else. For if you perceive both good and evil, you are accepting both the false and the true and making no distinction between them.” T-11.VII.2:6-8
Literally then, what I see arises directly from my own self-judgment. I judge first and then I see the effects of that judgment in the body, others and the world. As I look within so I will see outside. Jesus looked within and accepted His incorruptible innocence. His judgment was purified and arose from unopposed Love. Therefore, what he looked upon in others and the world reflected His own healed perception. Thus with those who consented to heal the single cause of fear, spontaneous and miraculous healings occurred.
A prerequisite for all True healing is described simply by Jesus here:
“The world you see must be denied, for sight of it is costing you a different kind of vision. [You cannot see both worlds,] for each of them involves a different kind of seeing, and depends on what you cherish. The sight of one is possible because you have denied the other.” T-13.VII.2:1-3
NOTE: For the forgiveness/Atonement process click here
“THE END OF DEATH” TOPIC INDEX – A VALUABLE & FREE RESOURCE, click here
