Today: CT Step 6 - My mind is here to serve Knowledge. (MP3)
 |
| My mind is here to serve Knowledge. CT Step 6 |
Today's lesson reinforces much of what you have learned
already, and this reinforcement is necessary because the mind without a true
ruler will try to rule itself, and it makes a very poor guide in this respect.
Indeed, it becomes more of a tyrant, and it is abusive, arrogant and self-
deprecating all at the same time. True harmony within yourself means that your
mind is serving your Spirit and your body is serving your mind. Here the true
value of the mind and the body are recognized. With this, all self-abuse is
forgotten. And abusive relationships are left behind.
In learning The Greater Community Way of Knowledge,
the mind is highly valued. It is not cast away. It is not belittled. Instead,
it is given its true place in the greater hierarchy within you. If you can
enter into this understanding, you will have a true appreciation of the
presence and the grace of the Creator in your life. For the answer is so clear
and so close at hand. That which seemed inexplicable and so difficult to obtain
is ever present with you, waiting for you to experience it.
Therefore, today value your mind, but recognize
that it must serve a Greater Power not a power in the world, not a power that
assigns itself to you, not a power that you give yourself to without true
consideration, but an inner power. Knowledge will direct you to those people
that you are to serve and who can serve you. Here, if Knowledge is your guide,
your relationships will be established on a true foundation and will have true
promise as a result.
Today in your practice in stillness, allow your
mind to serve Knowledge by yielding to Knowledge and by becoming still like
Knowledge is still. Let the mind come to its temple and bow down and say,
"Today I give myself to you, the Great Spirit that lives within me and
beyond me and throughout the universe." This is a yielding, and this
yielding is an act of surrender and grace.
Upon the hour remember this as you learn to apply
Knowledge in the world. As you contemplate today’s lesson, remember that your
mind is here to serve Knowledge and Knowledge can only serve the world.
Practice 6: One
30-minute stillness practice.
Contemplation
practice.
Hourly
practice.
Picture: Dickey Ridge Trail, Shenandoah
National Park – May 12, 2015. A place for meditation along an old stone
wall, made by early settlers, whose lands were acquired by the Commonwealth of
Virginia for the Park which opened in 1935. I’ve used “The Wall” as a
meditation place for decades, long before I became a Steps student.
Wednesday,
August 29, 2001
12:10
p.m. Where are my true relationships? Once again I'm feeling un-strong. Is it
just the fact that I'm recovering from an infection, or my way in the world?
I am
tired of the conflict, but there is no end in sight.
12:57
p.m. Lunch spent on the Internet. Three years today of S2K. Have I wasted my
time? Spirit says NO. Where is my strength? In being patient. What have been my
strong relationships?
6
p.m. Contemplation – My schedule – 6:30 a.m. Meditation, 6 p.m. Contemplation
This
has been a tough time. Years of tough times. Problems with no solution – David,
then Sarah, the continuation of Mary Ellen, entry of Cindy – all the bumps at
work. It seems I've had no relationship skills at all. Then there's money – that
has gone nowhere. I think my work accomplishments have been significant, but
now they've all disappeared from view.
Where
are my greater companions? I don't lose sight/sense of the spirit guides too
often. My reminder is the constant flow of insights which I record here. Even
in the worst of depression – something pops out.
"…
finding those who are destined to share your greater work in the world".
At the PDC – some people have come to me, but no one fully gets it. Ed D… and I
were a good team. Perhaps Steve and I will be a team.
When
I came home I felt I now have the time and the money. I could begin the PhD. I
will need that credential?
This
morning the thought was to organize NGOs by region – and human services – to
match regional councils.
Being
strong is a big focus. What kind of leader have I been? Not like Jim Longerbeam
– an ex-military guy who is used to having people follow him.
Having
an open – ended service mission – to plan and assist in planning, that is a
challenge. I tried things – some were winners and some losers.
My
most true relationship has been to the Shenandoah Valley. I came here and
stayed for almost no good reason. It is not out of comfort that I stay. Another
true relationship is to the world. A third is to humanity for my regional
community cooperation is a tool for all. Among people, I've already worked with
many cooperators on regional projects. There – there has been a greater
purpose.
Rotary
– service above self as a greater purpose.
Is
there greater purpose in every relationship?
M.E.
& I – was there a greater purpose? Having a family was not enough for M.E.
11/9/01 – I believe M.E. left because she thought I would control her
inheritance from Mauritz. She did a fine job by herself – wasting 2
inheritances.
Cindy
& I – my purpose was to not be alone. She had no buy-in to my
social/planning agenda. One purpose was individual growth and freedom. I had to
use that. There was no agreement on finances – no goal to build wealth. That
was a disappointment. I didn't ask. That was my own error. It takes too long to
talk about my work, there's no history. It is energy saved.
Cindy
has become a companion, a bridge to some other relationships. Freedom and true
self-expression are possible. This is good… I now realize.
So…in
human relationships the goal is to have a greater purpose.
C-SPAN
Writers Series – Thoreau & Emerson
→George Perkins
Marsh – 1860s – wrote a book saying man could damage nature. Henry
David Thoreau proposed first the idea of National Parks.
I
remember first reading Emerson and Thoreau and knowing they spoke to me – spoke
my language. I’d find it again and Walt Whitman who they influenced. The author
Robert Richardson who wrote the bio "Emerson: Mind on Fire" described
Emerson's belief and feeling as though he was talking about the Flame of
Knowledge – an early direct transmission of GC Wisdom.
Cindy
came home from her talk with Christen. It looks like M.E. ends up with the baby
in six months, though three would be better for Sarah. She may be released from
the state hospital tomorrow.
A
sense of progress, even as life remains challenging. As a student, having been
with Steps this long, you are having your own improvements. Younger students
should realize it is a benefit to encounter this early in life, as it can save
you from some situations that later need correcting. It seems all failure can’t
be avoided, for it is disappointment that causes us to seek. Crazy experimental
planet! We continue.
NNC
Note: If you’ve some interest, but this is the
first time you’ve seen Steps, you should go to the beginning blog post. From here you will learn about Steps to Knowledge
and can begin it on the day that makes sense; then progress as needed. Begin at
the beginning.
If you do know about Steps, but have not done Steps
twice completely, read the related materials, and have a sense of the direction
of this study, you won’t get the experience. The Introduction begins:
“This is the Steps
to Knowledge Continuation Training. It is designed to build upon the Steps
that were learned in Steps to Knowledge to
enable you to experience the grace, the power and the direction of Knowledge in
your life and to become an expression of Knowledge in everything that you do.
If you have completed the book, Steps to
Knowledge, twice through and have followed the instructions as they were
given without altering the curriculum in any way, then you are now ready to
begin this more advanced study”.
If you are an independent student, that is
certainly an option. Posts here provide a trail that may let you have a virtual
companion when and if you want one. One may have to study alone, as I did in
the beginning. There are other Steps students blogging their experience and you
might find a person more like you as a companion, or use a number of such Steps
journeys. There are options as well through the Free School of the New Message.
No comments:
Post a Comment