It's a required course.
I recently had the opportunity to hear spiritual teacher, Marianne Williamson speak at the Marble Collegiate Church in NYC and have to tell you, it was the most powerful lecture I've ever heard. As a follower and fan of hers (her book A Return to Love changed my life) I couldn't wait to see her live. Her teachings inspire many in hopes that those listening will begin to make a shift in order to create a ripple effect in the world. Here's the scoop. It's important.
A few years back, Philosophy skincare introduced me to their brand ambassador and spiritual teacher, Gabby Bernstein over lunch. That afternoon changed my perspective on life and made me a more spiritual being. After reading all of Gabby's books and attending several of her lectures, I found Marianne. They both teach the lessons of A Course in Miracles (ACIM), which I also study. The Course, is a text (thick with super thin pages like a Bible), written by psychologists from the Foundation for Inner Peace in 1975.
“The course does not aim at teaching the meaning of love, for that is beyond what can be taught. It does aim, however, at removing the blocks to the awareness of love’s presence, which is your natural inheritance. The opposite of love is fear, but what is all-encompassing can have no opposite.”
Marianne preached that while the world may be complicated, the truth is simple. We are one. ACIM states that our lives don't start at birth and end at death, but instead continue. We are souls made up of energy who are living a human experience and all energy is one. While our physical bodies separate us, we are all one in the same in the grander scheme of God's/The Universe's/Whoever's plan. During our time on Earth, our only purpose is to serve.
When I first gained this perspective on life, I was immediately intrigued, because it's not what I was ever thought, but is now all I believe. ACIM doesn't preach religion, but it talks of a higher power, one we can all relate to if we believe in something.
It's our ego, which is our own mental power that's used against us. In this case, the ego is fear based and our purpose on Earth is the complete opposite of fear, love. Keeping the ego in check is one of our biggest challenges. In order to do so, we must train our minds the way we train our bodies. Through meditation and prayer, we can control it. Your thoughts dictate your feelings, which dictate your actions. If we make an effort to have thoughts of love, compassion and oneness, our lifestyles will reflect them and we'll be doing what were on this Earth to do – serve for the greater good of mankind.
