Lesson 128
The world I see holds nothing that I want.
Today’s lesson is why nothing has ever seemed to fill this void that resides within us. It is why peace by an outside means never lasted. It is why we are always driven to buy, learn, or explore the “next best thing.”
Everything outside ourselves lacks any true meaning. The world offers us only a momentary distraction, at best. It is why we first learned back in Lesson 1, “Nothing I see…means anything,” because what we see is empty of what we truly want.
“No one but must accept this thought as true, if he would leave the world behind and soar beyond its petty scope and little ways” (ACIM Lesson 128 1:3).
Remember that the world, however, does serve a purpose but it is not the means in which our purpose is fulfilled, that only comes from within. Today, we explore those little ways in which we still have a closed grip on the outcomes of the world. Typically these areas are were we find ourselves saying, “Once I get…, I will then be happy, peaceful, satisfied, etc.” Here is a list of possible options that I’m sure you can somehow relate to.
Once I get a new job, then I will be happy.
Once I get more money, then I will be at peace.
Once I lose weight, then I will love myself.
Once my partner changes to the way I desire, then I will be satisfied and stop giving him/her a hard time.
Once the government gets its crap together, then I will be happy.
Once I get a day off, then I will feel rested.
This is a never-ending, cat chasing its tail, carrot on a stick, dance that we could go on and on playing. Once you get that new watch, there will be a newer watch, and after that there will be the newest and most improved watch, ever! Just look at the advertising in today’s world, once you get the newest thing you will most likely have to get something else to power said new thing in some way, shape, or form. The world simply lures us into continuing the cycle of “get, get, get.” It is not the world’s, nor advertiser’s, responsibility to get you to slow down and stop the, “Once this, then that,” cycle. It is up to us to put the brakes on.
It is not that buying new things, traveling, educating yourself, or anything like that is bad. Nor should we just roll over and stop experiencing the world. Not at all. The world is here to be fully experienced and explored yet all the while it is our journey to reclaim our power and maintain our awareness. Recall from Lesson 32, “I have invented the world I see,” noting that the world’s purpose is not to fulfill our desires but rather, just like those in our lives, meant to be a tool that prompts us to awaken, by asking, “Are you awake yet? Have realized that you cannot fulfill yourself at the world’s gas station but rather only by the eternal gas station within?” This is where we can use the world as an awakening tool rather than a sleeping aid. This is where we shift from being a victim of the world to student and master of the world.
“For everything must serve the purpose you have given it, until you see a different purpose there. The only purpose worthy of your mind this world contains is that you pass it by, without delaying to perceive some hope where there is none. Be you deceived no more. The world you see holds nothing you want” (ACIM Lesson 128 2:2-5).
Such is the case and point with the Coconut Oil Shirt. The Coconut Oil Shirt is the thirty something dollar shirt that I purchased just a month or two ago. It is a polyester, sheer, bluish-gray shirt that is absolutely perfect for a hot summer day but yet when it gets cooler a long-sleeved top can be put underneath it, making it undeniably versatile for only thirty dollars. What a steal! Everything was grand until a little bit of coconut got on the shirt and right in the chest area. What once was a source of joy now brought stress and anxiety in the question of would this oil come out of the shirt? Would it be wearable again? Rest could not be had until this top was treated. Once successfully treated, happiness and peace was sure to return, right? Too bad the shirt didn’t come with a tag that said,
“This will not tempt me to delay myself.
The world I see holds nothing I want”
(ACIM Lesson 128 8:3-4).
The shirt was treated, semi-successfully, but still toiled over as many were asked, “Do you see the oil spot? What about in this light? What about if I do this? Can you see it now?” Luckily there was another Course student to give the reminder that, “It is just a shirt and not your source of happiness.” Can I get an AMEN?! Thus, was valued restored where it truly belonged, to Me instead of a thirty dollar piece of clothing.
“Nothing is here to cherish. Nothing here is worth one instant of delay and pain; one moment of uncertainty and doubt. The worthless offer nothing. Certainty of worth can not be found in worthlessness” (ACIM Lesson 128 4:2-5).
Whether it is a top to be worn or another human being, anything we attach our happiness to outside ourselves does not add to our existence, instead it limits it. It merely thickens the veil of our awareness and adds to what that which we will eventually have to surrender.
“All things you seek to make value greater in your sight limit you further, hide your worth from you, and add another bar across the door that leads to true awareness of your Self” (ACIM Lesson 128: 3:3).
Today, we restore value to its original owner, You. It is no coincidence that during the current rise in consciousness across the globe the new tagline is, “Small is the new big.” It is cool to be minimal. It is trendy to have less. It is stylish to possess only those things that share in your joy rather than clutter your life and mind. Such is the small step we take today that serves a huge shift in our worldly and inner experience.
“Your whole perspective on the world will shift by just a little, every time you lest your mind escape its chains” (ACIM Lesson 128 7:3).
It is with such sweet elegance that we are brought to this stage of surrender. We will never be jolted by having things stripped away from us before we are ready. Instead, we are peacefully met at the place of our readiness. We are merely asked to observe that which we place value on, such as the case of the Coconut Oil Shirt, to see that truly what we desire most, Oneness, is not found in our outer world but our inner. Namaste.
“Be still and rest” (ACIM Lesson 128 7:8).