1991-Ham, Complete Archives, Part 2

Session 22

• Fear Not the Troubles of Today

Lesson

Tragedy

Our main purpose and objective, as we have stated many times, is to reveal the Father through the life and teachings of our Lord, Christ Michael. His mission here was fraught with difficulty and full of many tragic circumstances. Like you, Martha, He lost His father to an accident, which was the supreme tragedy of His young life, affecting his entire earth life. He did, however, persevere in the face of this tragedy, this tragedy which came to color His life because it occurred at such a young age. The children affected in this tragedy will also be forever affected by the loss of their father. [The tragedy Ham refers to involves the loss of Martha's family members to an accident.]

I have given many lessons on the positive effects of adversity, and yet still it grieves me to see these tragedies occurring in your lives. But the young will grow and time will pass. The seasons will change and change back again. There will be time for grieving. There will be time for rejoicing anew in life and living. There will be time for the recounting of your lives, of the growth of the children, of the many wonderful things that will happen to them in the future to their fathers. Parents and grandparents will see their children grown and rejoice in this. There will be much happiness and laughter altogether in this future time. When you are troubled, think of this picture you have had of this future rejoicing, this recounting, this happiness in reunion, and fear not the troubles of today.

Dialogue

Q: If God is a good, kind, loving Father, does he allow the little children in Ethiopia and a lot of the other countries to suffer so with diseases and starving to death. I understand that the grown-ups have probably made their own beds and have to lie in them, so to speak, but the young children, I can't understand. Could you help me with it, please?

A: Yes. There is no suffering which our Father is unaware of. He does not turn away from those in need. He is suffering with any one who suffers and is ever-present in the heart of all who believe. It is not any part of God's plan for to allow for suffering. It is the natural outworking of the overall Divine plan to allow human free will. Adult free will decisions multiplied over long periods indeed may result in much human suffering. We are all God's children, small children and adults alike. No suffering is in God's purpose for us. Evolution and human societal structuring is progressive and will eventually eliminate this horrible spectacle of intense human misery. It is a passing age on Urantia, which will some day sprout into a new world, one in which there is lessened, year after year, suffering and pain and misery. Perplexing as it is, it is a passing thing. You must use spiritual eyes to see that dawn will come after darkness.

Session 23

• God the Supreme

Lesson

The Supreme

My greetings this evening. I am Ham. I am your teacher. For many weeks I have been instructing you and observing the effect of my teachings upon you. Tonight we are happy to announce the decision of Melchizedek to give you a personal lesson by himself.

Greetings, my children. I am Melchizedek, Planetary Prince of Urantia. My purpose for thus coming to you is twofold. First, I wish to extend my personal thanks to you for your steadfast and earnest faith and emotional security in this, for you unusual and exciting learning experience. Secondly, I desire to present an important lesson which is given at only a certain time level experience of group coordinate understanding.

My lesson concerns your awareness of and reaction to the experiential God, the evolving Father-Brother, the Supreme Being, God the Supreme. When you understand your duty to His experiential status-growth, you begin to embark upon the supreme adventure of time. His being-presence is ever evolving and is impinging upon your individualness or your sense of separateness nature. He is forever growing in experience as are you. Your experience contributes directly to the growth of this mighty and majestic spiritual being. As long as you see yourself as alone and separate, you are not seeing full reality. Your growth and being in all phases of reality, spiritual, morontial and material, are all an intrinsic part of the Soul Supreme. You are existent in, through, and by His power. There is responsive reaction when a mortal experiences soul expansion. There is an equal reaction within the Supreme. The Supreme is God in time. I repeat, the Supreme is God in time. Time is a limitation of the perception of eternity.

My greetings, once again, I am Ham. This lesson, though short, is of supreme importance for you to understand to the best of your ability. I would like to expand upon this in order to, perhaps, illustrate and make clearer the lesson. Time and space are the finite limitations, the principal finite limitations, in which the vast material creations evolve. In time does evolution and growth toward perfection occur. Time is a finite reality which is required for perfecting the will creature to increasingly understand and become Fatherlike. Without time, we would be neither here nor there, neither imperfect nor perfect. There would be no growth. It is impossible for you, indeed, to imagine timelessness, so complete is this reality for you. There is a necessity for this in the great plan of the ages. That is, for the beginning imperfect creature to gain wisdom, understanding, tolerance, forbearance, forgiveness, mercy and love for his fellows by a long and intense struggle upward through the first life and through many others, increasingly becoming more spirit and less material, increasingly to seek the spirit and at the same time let go of the material. These tried and tested beings are made ready for a future destiny beyond the Supreme.

To reach for that destiny we must continually attempt understanding of the Supreme. The Supreme is God in time; therefore, our efforts in time are part of a reality which is God. I see that there is quite a good understanding of this among you. This is pleasing. Your duty for His continual expansion into the material phase of His reality is to increasingly grow toward God the Father, and you are thereby revealing and reflecting through your soul the reality which you are of the Supreme.

Dialogue

Q: Both you and Father Melchizedek were talking about God the Supreme as being God in time. Do you mean time and space, or just God in time?

A: Space is a material part of the creation originating in Paradise. It is more correct to envision God the Supreme as being in time. Space is an intrinsic part of all material reality, even where there is not God the Supreme. Is this clarifying?

Q: Yes, it does. I am confused sometimes when I think about time and space. I guess it is based upon modern science theories where time is a function of velocity. Is velocity real? Velocity is the rate of change of traversing space with time, the derivative of it. These concepts are confusing, and I am trying to be sure which ones are the higher order, which one controls the other.

A: Yes, space and velocity are measured by time. Time, therefore would be on a higher spiritual reality plane than space. Is this clarifying?

Q: Yes.

Q: Concerning Melchizedek's lesson, the part of it where he is talking about us realizing that we are not alone before we realize the Supreme, does he mean that we realize that we are always with our Thought Adjuster, or is there something else that we also need to realize that I am not realizing?

A: Yes. The lesson referred to an identity feeling of separateness from all other reality. This is an illusory perception for in Him we live, move, and have our being. We are not separate, really, from God and this connectedness is made real in and through the Supreme.

Q: Father Ham, is one simple way of stating part of it that whenever there is a growth in the soul of a mortal that there is a growth in the Supreme?

A: Yes, correct. There is also a corresponding reaction to this growth which is a repercussion within the Supreme Reality Being's awareness which is a permanent reality and more than a passing growth stage.

Q: Then this can constitute a real strong feeling in the soul, itself, Father Ham?

A: If and when one is aware of this, yes.

Q: Is the Supreme Being an aspect of the Universal Father or a separate personality, so to speak, from the Universal Father?

A: Yes, He is both. He is an evolving creation of the Universal Father and, as such, is an expression part of him.

Q: Does the Supreme have a separate consciousness from the Universal Father?

A: Yes. However, of course, as your consciousness is somewhat separate from the consciousness of your Indwelling Spirit, the Indwelling Spirit is conscious of your consciousness. And so, in like relationship, is the Supreme to the Father. He, the Father, is ever conscious of the consciousness of the Supreme. As in the gospel, Michael has said there falls not a bird from the sky without my Father's knowing. This is within the consciousness of the Supreme.

Thought Adjusters

Q: Today I read concerning the self-acting Thought Adjuster and found several characteristics that were amazing and happy and encouraging. It occurs to me that I did not have a full grasp of the magnitude of that. I would like to have you enlighten us as to the characteristics of a self-acting Thought Adjuster.

A: Yes. This question is a lesson in itself. There are different phases or levels of Thought Adjuster ability, action ability. The self-acting Adjuster is a function level which is attained when the personal subject attains or reaches third circle level awareness. This attainment level awareness creates an increased circle or a circle of activity within which the Adjuster may function. He has the increased ability to guide and direct the person through their increased awareness of Him and His guidance. There also is the ability, albeit unusual, for the Thought Adjuster to detach from the person in order to receive special instructions such as has occurred for many of you. Three, there is the future certainty of final fusion of personality with spirit, the mortal with the divine. The fate is, although not completely sealed as a completed fact, a universe certainty that fusion will, in the future, occur. And fourthly, there is recognition by the Universal Father to that Indwelling Spirit for his work efforts with a mortal person. He receives personal recognition of this. And lastly, because of this increasingly clear guidance and communication from Him, the person is able more easily to traverse the final circles of psychic attainment which are preliminary to final Adjuster attunement and finally fusion or translation. You see, that took some explaining.

Session 24

• Balance in the Material Life

Lesson

Human Condition

I desire at this time to commence with a lesson concerning the placement or positioning of yourselves in life. There are many factors concerned with your individual life's mission. One is family life. Two is professional life. Three is individual happiness motivation, fulfillment. Four is spiritual guidance. I wish to address these in order.

First, family life. Many of you have a rich and fulfilling life by the company and companionship of spouses and children. This intimate association fosters thoroughgoing understanding between all individuals within the family unit. This is a sublime experience which you should think upon as preparation for knowing Father, God. You will seldom outside a family unit fully understand and appreciate another fellow human being. The family is the basis of life and of all human associations. The love and tenderness evinced by the parents for a child is the closest approximation to understanding God that is possible in mortal life. This sublime tenderness is not usually exceeded.

Second, professional life. Everyday work is important in promoting dutiful associations among people. A sense of duty and responsibility is essential also to understanding the obligations to Divinity. Ethical obligations are tried and tested most thoroughly in the work atmosphere or environment. This sense of ethical duty may blossom further into the understanding of brotherliness, for oftentimes in this environment close associations may develop and the duty to your brother is understood in a fairly complete manner.

Thirdly, the sense of happiness and play should be fostered and allowed freedom of expression. Recreation and lighthearted human interaction are essential ingredients in the well-balanced personality. Happiness and mirth are a release valve for tension and are conducive to becoming a more easily likable person. Those who take themselves overly seriously and cannot find the joy in living are very sad to behold. Their life is monotonous, boring, and tending toward the material, that is, being dragged down to worry and needless anxiety. Happy is he who can find the cheerful side of looking at reality. This greatly lightens the burden of daily life.

Fourthly, the spiritual placement and aspect of your earthly careers. This, of course, is the most important of these four, for the spirit will lead you to human happiness as well as purely spiritual fulfillment. Human happiness is greatly desired in the kingdom. We wish you all increased happiness and security in knowing that your place with God is absolutely unassailable and completely secure. He who can follow spirit guidance and leading is a happier man.

Humor

Much of the burden of life may easily be transferred to the Indwelling Spirit who, in His infinite wisdom, is unerring in His guidance. Much of the burden of life is felt but is illusory. Much of your earthly anxieties are absolutely needless. May I repeat, much, in fact most, of your earthly anxiety is needless, indeed, pointless. You must be aware of your indwelling spiritual guidance. He is in control of your life; you need fear nothing. Many of the calamitous misfortunes are as easily dealt with through laughter as through worry. In either case, worry nor laughter affects the calamity, only they have a great effect on your attitude and subsequent ability to cope with this particular or that particular problem. Laughter is the best medicine. Laughter is a healing and curing activity which greatly uplifts the attitude of the mental mind which is beneficial in seeing the full nature of the situation. In worry, we tend to look at our feet, so to speak. In laughter, we tend to throw our heads back and look around us. Worry is inner consuming, laughter is outward releasing. Therefore, I say to you, laugh. Laugh fully and often. Enjoy each other and be gay. Life is short. Many of the serious problems of the day are the mirthful reminiscences of tomorrow. Do not be heavy of heart. Lighten your burden, allow the Lord to take your burden from you. Be free in his spirit presence. Move easily and freely, and lovingly and joyously praise Him.

Dialogue

Q: I want to ask you about calamities. You were talking about laughter as being the best medicine. Does this mean that we should look at the hardships we have had in our lives and try an look at the humor in them? Or how do we handle the hardships? Through Prayer? Through understanding?

A: Yes, my daughter, it is beneficial to see hardship in a humorous light, even for a moment, even if seemingly inappropriate. It is not sinful. It is not a betrayal. It is not hurtful. A little laughter is the best medicine, and even when facing hardship, if we can step away and see ourselves with a little distance, many times there is a little humor, and this little humor greatly lightens the perception of a grave situation. There is no and should be no guilt in this. It is simply sound psychological practice and a part of human nature.

Q: I am also wondering, if I don't see the humor, how can I get through a very hard time?

A: Yes. We all experience hard times and tragedy which we simply live through. There is a time distancing which occurs which also serves to lighten this burden. In both cases, there is a pulling back and distancing from the immediate trauma of a hardship. Whether through time passing or laughter, they serve the same.

Q: In facing the lighter side of life, we are to cast our burdens on the Lord?

A: Allow Him to lift them from you. Yes.

Q: And when that is lifted, we have an opportunity to see a lighter side, is that right?

A: Yes.

Seven Master Spirits

Q: The Seven Master Spirits are each different. In our superuniverse, it is basically a combination of the three persons of Deity. Michael was created as the original thought which is also in our make-up. When the higher spirits come somewhere, they are always in groups of seven, reflecting the seven possibilities of the three Persons of Deity. Does our personality reflect one of those seven combinations or not?

A: Yes. By being a creation within this seventh superuniverse, Orvonton, there is inherent in spirituality, and the reflection of spirituality, the Trinity, yes. You have correctly understood.

Q: And all of us have the same then, because we are all from the same superuniverse, in contrast with someone from other superuniverses.

A: Yes.

Q: Regarding the lesson, how much time should we spend on leisure activities as oppose to work and spiritual growth?

A: This is not an ideal world. If it were more toward the ideal, there would be equal burden of work and equal time in relaxation; however, this, for most of you, is not possible. In the material worlds this is the ideal state.

Prayer

Q: If, when we are having problems or adversities, or are down, would it be proper to, in prayer, invite the burdens to be lifted from us as a request?

A: Yes and no. It is proper to allow God to shoulder your burdens so to speak, and in working through you, to help you through difficulties. To pray to have all burdens removed by supernatural means, of course, is not proper.

Q: OK, then we should pray that we become in tune with the spirit and act in accordance with that guidance. Is this right?

A: Yes, and to not become overly obsessed or concerned with your problems, for many times, always, these problems are resolved whether or not you spend energy in worry. This energy spent in worry and anxiety is depleting to you and makes you less able to encounter and solve human problems.

Q: I have a question about prayer. You have taught us that when we pray, more often than not it changes ourselves. When we pray for others can it bring about action on the part of their Guardian Angels that otherwise would not have been taken? Or, when we pray for others, can it in some way bring about a change in their attitude?

A: Yes, both. Yes, both. Absolutely.

Q: We know you have told us that when the Adjuster is away, it stops the growth of the soul. We were wondering if, when the Adjuster is away and it stops the growth, does it also regress in any way?

A: No, there is no regression. In fact, there is growth which takes place upon the return of the Adjuster which would have taken place before had he been present.

Session 25

• Material Purpose and Morontia Existence

Lesson

Mansion Worlds

Tonight I wish to begin a teaching on the affairs of our constellation and its connection with our local universe. By decree of Michael of Salvington, the system circuits are being restored and are now nearing completion. Yes, I have spoken of this before, but this re-encircuitment into the greater spiritual communication circuits of the local universe will greatly accelerate our ability to communicate to and from Urantia directly to Jerusem, to Edentia, and even to Salvington. You see, this communication has necessitated the use of other circuits, angels, and messenger spirits, which was a difficult and tardy process. Now that our circuitry is being reinstated, we will have news and information from a wider universe on a more regular basis and will be in personal touch with those high in authority who will be able to clear decisions to enable us to work more efficiently.

On the first mansion world, indeed, on throughout the mansion worlds, is the beginning of teaching of morontia mota. This insight is beyond your physical level of awareness. It is a morontial sensitivity to reality which you, in your state, do not possess. There is a greater philosophy in mota than you can even begin to be aware of in your earthly way of thinking. It is not only expanded awareness, it is expanded thought and receptivity to ideas, reason, logic, sensory awareness, spiritual sensitivity and insight, and the blending of the spiritual, the mental, with the general sensitivity of a, for lack of a better term, bodily awareness of reality.

On these mansion worlds, you will be more sensitive to the presence of your Thought Adjusters. The actual presence of God within you will be a greater awareness, an extreme sensitivity, a focalization which you cannot begin to perceive as you are. Even in these first mansion world existences, though He is still apart from an actual fusion of the two minds, the guidance is extremely clear. His presence is extremely clear and well known and felt. His words are clear and distinct. It is as though there are two minds within a single bodily frame of energy that may be very closely linked in awareness. His overcontrol of thought pattern is almost complete. The morontial mind thinking pattern will be more closely attuned to the Adjuster's expression of the Father's will so that if there is a deviation, that deviation is immediately known by the subject. He can easily attune his will, his mind, to the will of God as forecast by the Adjuster.

This seems to many of you to be strange, to be something of a surrender of will to an overcontrol which you are unsure of. This overcontrol is not something which you will be unsure of by that time. His presence within you now is something very much a part of your being. It is sensed as a being apart from you. On the mansion worlds in the morontia form, the entire sensory apparatus is different. You are becoming more who you are. You are becoming more Godlike and more spiritually sensitive and aware of those spirits surrounding you and guiding you in your morontia career as they guide you here. Though you are largely unaware, in the morontia life you will be much more sensitive and aware of their presence.

The Destiny Guardian Angels who have guided you in this lowly existence are also present on the morontia worlds, the first mansion worlds. They are relieved of their immediate duties as destiny guardians and are released to follow the ascendent career as ascendent beings. They are still companions, but their guardian duties are no longer necessary. There again, you will be able to perceive these beings as discrete spiritual entities which, in the state you are now, is really a near impossibility.

The morontia life is much more enjoyable than your toiling and stressful earthly experience. You will see with Divine clarity the purpose of your ordeals in this life, and will appreciate the ordeals themselves and the guidance which brought you through them. This appreciation will be a great unburdening of your worrisome self, for you will be able to know your purpose. You will be able to foresee your future purpose, and all of this together will be a great relief as well as joy in your innermost core.

This life is not without a greater purpose. Your ordeals, your suffering, your hardship, are for a Divine reason! Rest assured, when your short life has been run, when this race of existence is completed, when you reawaken in glorious resurrection in the worlds on high, you will know that your life has had Divine meaning. Our material lives may many times seem haphazard, seem futile, seem purposeless and barren of redeeming value, yet I assure you with the authority of one who knows, of one who has survived a material existence, and has gone on to greater, purposeful, meaningful existence. I assure you that your life, your toil, your work, your stressful suffering is meaningful, is purposeful, and has supreme value.

God is not only with you in times of meditation, in times of spiritual thinking, in times of elevated consciousness of His being, He is with you day in and day out; through your days and your nights of labor, He is beside you. He is watching over you. He is entrusting you with the task of the ages, with the task of by your decisions, by your life influences and by your influence in life, to grow, to develop, to become more perfect as He is perfect. You who are called to this teaching are called to emit a broader light, are called to become perfect, are called to shine forth that light of Divine goodness and truth to your fellows as the apostles were called of old. There will be many times of hardship. There will be many disappointments. There will be many trials for you, individually, to endure, yet, I say to you with utmost surety that God is never gone, He is never far from your side. He is with you, He is with you through it all. You may easily look to Him, and His guidance will be there. I say this with authority as one who knows. If His guidance is sincerely sought in any circumstance, this guidance will be forthcoming.

Session 26

• Spiritual Growth and Guidance

Lesson

Inner Life, Growth

There is, in each person, a place where the tender shoots of new spiritual growth occur. This innermost space is wisely protected by your own being, and yet needs a certain amount of light and air. It is good to open your hearts, as it were, to the light, to the gaze of others, to the spiritual water which others may give, and to the world. This inner tender place can, yes, be a little too tender for too much. This place in circumstances of trust should be opened, should be developed, should be allowed a little freedom for the wider growing of the soul. It is good to establish and to cultivate close friendships which enable the flowering of the inner self, the opening of the inner self to the gaze of others which gives confidence in that inner self in the person. There is much hiding in life. There is perpetuation in mediocrity in allowing this inner self to be hidden and perpetuated in a mediocre realm of existence. It is only by allowing the flowering of this inner self that true individuality is seen. This inner self must be shown to a wider world. When it is, much can be done, much creativity and openness and flowering occurs, for there is connection between that inner self of the person flowering and the inner self of all those perceiving it.

We witnessed tonight a talk given by Mr. Norman Lear to educators. Many of them have never heard anyone talk like that before, talk openly like that, exposing his inner thoughts, and they responded to this. It is true of all true leaders that they flower as individuals, that their individual flowering connects with those who are too timid to do it themselves.

I do not espouse a complete openness of every single aspect of a person's life, but the discussion of the inner self is extremely important. You will find greater acceptance of yourselves than you think. This is always the case. It is not only your Inner Spirit or angels who understand you, but your friends, your associates, your loved ones. When there is true expression and understanding, this is mutually beneficial and growth promoting, for you see, then those tender shoots become not quite so tender and grow into robust plant forms, for want of a better metaphor. Yes, this speech of Mr. Lear's was very moving to me, and I send my personal praise and acceptance to him and would also wish for him to hear this lesson as my response.

I had another lesson to teach tonight. It was on the necessity of love in [[the Father|Father's guidance in your lives. Father's love comes through a person and is bestowed upon those near him as spiritual water. The Father's love acts to bestow acceptance, to bestow love, to bestow guidance, unerring guidance, forgiveness, tolerance, understanding, wisdom, and truth. When this spiritual water flows through one person to another, it is as though God, Himself, is accepting this person for who he is, and it is this acceptance and forgiveness which all humankind craves. For you to be personal ministers of the word of God, it is necessary for your being to channel this love of our Father, to bestow acceptance, forgiveness, love, and tolerance on your fellows as you would hope for forgiveness, love, tolerance, and acceptance from our Father. This is a daring feat. It is not a cowardly act. It is a courageous act. This act of courage will result in a response of your fellows to you in ways which you will find surprising. It is by love that this is accomplished. It is not preaching. It is not earthly "thou shalt not" type ministry. It is simply love, simply love and its repercussions in that person. This is what I ask of you to practice until our next meeting.

Dialogue

Space

Q: The Urantia Book talks of space as being close to absolute, absolute in a finite sense. Can you please elaborate on the nature of space and its relation to time, energy, mind, and spirit?

A: Yes. Space, in a sense, is absolute reality. It is without segmentation or differentiation in any known sense. It is the basis of all known material reality and the fabric in which time is woven. Time is, in a sense, segmented eternity. It is the way that finite mind can perceive reality as a sequence of events. Energy and matter are created and manipulated within time and space. The Conjoint Actor's overcontrol of the creation of energy-matter and its spiritual animation as life within time and space is absolute. The space fabric is completely encircuited in the Third Source and Center. There is no haphazard cause and effect in the universes nor in the outer space realms, all have mind encircuitment. There is nothing that is not planned, directed and known. Space is the absolute fabric on which the reality of existence is drawn, yet, space is, as you said, not infinite, yet it has an infinite source and seems to be of potential infinity.

The Supreme

Q: Can you tell us more about the nature of the Supreme and His relation to the individual?

A: Yes. The Supreme is the finite God of time. He is the God of experience. He is the sum total of all mind experience. He is the wealth of wisdom of the ages. He is the overcontrol and oversoul of creation. He is the God of being finite reality. If you are the action, He is the reaction. He reacts and enfolds and encompasses all action in the finite realms. He is the Supreme Father Lord of all finite reality. He is the cause, by His reaction to decision and action in the finite creature, of soul growth. He enables, by His being, the growth and nurturing of the soul of the individual. He is the repository of all true value and understanding, wisdom, which is not extant as an individual personality. When an individual personality chooses non-survival, He is the repository of that personality, of that value which is no longer a personal, discrete entity. It is now part of the greater soul of creation. He is much like the God envisioned in, say, Buddhism who is the oversoul of creation, the yin and yang of existence, the light and dark, the male and female, all these things, all these opposites, which interact and form reality. He is motherlike in the sense of nurturing the worlds. He is not perceived as a personal spiritual influence as is the Spirit of Truth or the Thought Adjusters, yet it is important to perceive our duty to Him in the general sense of spiritual growth and in the personal sense of spiritual growth, for in both do we contribute to His realization and His manifestation to the worlds. He is the perfecting God of the imperfect. He is what enables the imperfect to become perfect, to become more perfect. He is what enables the worlds, not only the individual, to grow, but the worlds to grow towards perfection, towards light and life, towards God. He is the intermediate God which not only allows for creation, itself, but allows for the perfecting of that creation. To Him we owe our supreme duty of becoming perfect.

Q: I have a belief that everything has a purpose. Earlier you referred to that there is nothing that is not planned, directed, or known. I have an analogy that God is a great architect. Regarding my belief that everything has a purpose, would that include the Lucifer Rebellion or anything that is looked upon as being bad or wrong?

A: Yes and no. Freewill decisions are circumscribed within limits in immature and maturing creatures. Free will is bestowed upon all creatures with the ability to know God. With free will comes the possibility for sin and destruction in order for will to be truly free. Free will, although operating within limits, has within it the ability for self-destruction. This is unfortunate. It is a possibility, and it is a reality. The purpose behind this possibility which is good, which reveals the greater purpose of existence, is the free will creature choosing to know God and to be like Him. The Lucifer Rebellion was unfortunate and, at times, seemed disastrous. Over the millennia since, we teach that there has been much more good come from this calamity than evil, and this good has multiplied a thousand fold, even a million fold, over the evil that began it. So, in the wider context and picture, even though there is sin and destruction and evil in the world, the wider and longer view picture will reveal the ultimate good resulting from this.

Q: Our first motivation is to seek out the Father's will and do it, and I was wondering if seeking out and understanding the Supreme is our second major duty?

A: No. Your second major duty is to love your brothers as yourself. The duty to the Supreme is contained within the first duty. This seeking of God results in ascendent growth of the individual which allows self-realization not only for the individual but for the Supreme, for all reality contained within Him, self-realizing, contributes to His overall self-realization.

Q: You taught us the stillness, to seek out the Father's will, is that also adequate for our duties to the Supreme, too, or is there a different mechanism?

A: No, it is adequate.

Q: The descending sons, do they contribute to the Supreme?

A: Yes, absolutely. There are two major directions of growth in the Supreme. One is inward towards the Father, the other is from the Father outward. These two growth directions are equally necessary for His realization.

Q: Is God the Supreme and the Supreme Being the same thing or are they two different personalities?

A: They are the same; although, there is a difference in these terms. In referring to God the Supreme, we are referring to the sometime future power-personality synthesis which will be the result of the growth of the Supreme. In referring to the Supreme Being, we refer to His status as it is now, that is, incomplete. Is this helpful?

Q: Yeah, it is. When I was reading the papers on it, it said the Almighty Supreme is the Deity potential of the Supreme Being. Is that basically the power manifestation that God the Supreme will have or does the Almighty Supreme have a personality right now?

A: No, this is the same aspect of God the Supreme.

Second Coming

Q: Next week I need to give a lesson about the second coming, and what has and hasn't been fulfilled. I would like to make this harmonize with your teaching. Can you offer some insight into subjects I should touch or shouldn't touch?

A: Yes, our Father Michael has, indeed, promised to someday return to this world. I would emphasize that even though He has not been personally manifest here, that the Spirit of Truth is with us always, and we may be in personal communion with Him. That our duty to Him, in His sight and in His judgment, to fulfill His gospel is our first duty of life. That is, to love God with all our being and to love our brothers as yourself, to consecrate our will to the will of the Father. That is to give to God all we have and are and will be. To live the word of Michael, and to portray or to enlighten our fellows to this greater way of God seeking, God finding, and God knowing, is our greatest obligation and responsibility to Michael. This is true regardless of when this second coming will occur, and indeed, the when of the second coming is irrelevant, for His time is eternal.

Closing

And now I will leave you with the following thought. Be steadfast in your adherence to truth, that where and whenever you find truth, pluck it for yourself as a flower, and keep it as an everlasting gift from our Father, no matter where or when you find it. Truth is living, truth is growing, truth is ever-present, and you are all fully able to perceive it. Love God; fully accept and love yourselves; fully accept and love those you love. Open the doors of spiritual gifts. Open the doors of your treasure within, and give freely to those you love. Develop close friendships, love one another, and show forth the light of truth, the love of God, and the wisdom of yourself in your lives. We are with you through the week. My love goes to you all. I treasure the fact that you come for my guidance and that you receive and act on my words. My love to you all. Farewell.

Session 27

• The Ascension of Man

Ascension, Growth

This evening I wish to discuss the following topic: the ascension of man. All of you are equally on a path of increasing spiritual enlightenment and the unfolding of increased levels of liberty and service. With increasing levels of spiritual understanding, there is corresponding increase in relative prosperity, happiness, equanimity, awareness of justice, tolerance, understanding, foresight, spiritual insight and love. With this increased spiritual awareness, there is a corresponding level of spiritual liberty granted to you. This joyous liberation from the chains of intolerance, injustice, ignorance, slothfulness, etc. is found in these increasing levels of awareness so that you become more unselfish and less intolerant of the faults of others. You are then allowed an increased circle or realm of action which is based on service.

Loving service is the basis of the social fruits of all true religious experience. The more you serve your fellows, the more increased level of awareness of them and understanding of them, comes increasing love and devotion to God. The more you understand your fellows, the more you love them. The more you serve your fellows, the more you love them. These three aspects of life: understanding, spiritual awareness, and service are love based and love dominated.

As I said to Rebecca earlier, you must all learn increasingly to love yourselves. This will enable you to understand and forgive yourself as you can understand and forgive another. This is the basis of true self-respect.

As I was saying, with increasing levels of spiritual awareness, spiritual liberty and social service is bestowed upon the individual, an increased awareness of duty and love of that duty, the duty of love. As you grow in your wise love of your fellows, grow ever increasingly toward the expanded love of your Father. Learn to bask in the light of His love for your lives will be transformed by it. We first accept the love of God as a child, and then we learn to walk in the light of His love as adults.

There is a profound self-respect, self-knowledge, self-control, and self-understanding all involved in spiritual growth. Self-control is a very important aspect of spiritual growth and comes with the bestowal of increased liberty. No longer are we shackled by the "thou shalt not" doctrines of traditional religion. No, instead you are a liberated son or daughter of the living God. The self-restraint and self-control exhibited by mature and growing personalities is evidence of the working of the mature mind in conjunction with the spiritualizing effect of increased spiritual contact and awareness. No longer do you walk like children, but now you stride the path of spiritual freedom with increased self-restraint as full fledged men and women, citizens of the eternal Kingdom of Heaven. Maturity is ever a measure of self-restraint.

Often we have discussed adversity and its effect. The most pronounced effect is in this learning of self-restraint. The immature individual often invites calamity himself by unwise choosing and little self-restraint. The repeated experience of the adverse consequences to unbridled behavior begin the growth of maturity. The maturing mind increasingly welcomes self-restraint by the repeated noticing of the beneficial effects of such action, or wisely restrained action or inaction, depending upon the circumstance.

The will of the Father is for wise, seasoned, spiritually leavened, self-restrained growth of each individual. He or she must learn their own way in this. It is not for me to give specific examples, for all differ. Many times as a child, I was wisely restrained from dangerous action by my parents. They increasingly taught me to restrain my actions on my own, and so does Father also work in our lives by creating opportunity and restricting opportunity which would, perhaps, lead to unwise decisions and calamitous fortune. By the increased awareness of His action in our lives, we can increasingly follow a narrow path of action and limit possibility of misfortune. For you see, my children, this guidance is not only with the listening to prompting or spiritual thought messages, but also it is involved with the outer world as well.

Yes, of course, there are many lessons in life to be learned, and you will learn all that is necessary for your spiritual development.

Dialogue

Experience

Q: I have a question on God the Supreme. In our general development and growth, we do lots of things which you will sometimes say becomes scaffolding, that once it serves its purpose and it is no longer needed, it is gone. Do these things become part of the Supreme? Does the Supreme keep such things and we do not?

A: Yes, if I am understanding the question correctly, yes.

Q: Nothing is lost and the Supreme will pick up everything?

A: Yes.

Free will

Q: You said that as we increase spiritually, we have more spiritual freedom, and you say as other people aren't as spiritually advanced, they bring on themselves their own problems. We that are more spiritually advanced, are we less effected, or immune to some extent, from their own problems?

A: Yes.

Q: Is it that we just don't respond or is there a protection?

A: An awareness which allows avoidance of problems.

Q: Do I understand correctly then that as we have more spiritual liberty, this does not imply a relaxation of our moral rectitude, so to speak, but rather what is happening is our motivation to act in a morally high way is changing from one of a sense of obligation, perhaps, to a sense of desire to be that way?

A: Yes.

Q: When you spoke about the Father restricting our opportunities, and then later, when we are more spiritually aware, relaxing that restriction, how does He implement those restrictions? Is it through Midwayers and angels sort of manipulating outside circumstances, or did you mean mostly by the mores of society and other psychological inhibitions that we have when we are younger?

A: I was speaking of the actions of angels, etc.; however, you bring up a very good point. There are both, of course, operating.

Q: Can you expand on what you mean by spiritual awareness?

A: Yes. Spiritual awareness is the complement of spiritual insight. Both operate to enhance the level of appreciation for reality in the individual. By awareness of spiritual reality, we become understanding and appreciative of the true nature of all being realities. That is to say, we see the essence rather than the outward appearance. Think on this.

Closing

As you go through the week, be aware of that spiritual leavening which you need to grow evenly and purely. You will understand these words in the future. Think on them this week. For now, farewell.

Session 28

• Am I My Brother's Keeper

Lesson

Responsibility

Tonight I wish to speak on the welfare of your brethren and your understanding responsibility for it. Many times in our lives we come in situations which evoke a sympathetic response for a fellow human being. Every day is filled with these actions and responses to them. That is, we each respond to the presence of another human in our own unique manner of sympathizing.

The old adage "Am I my brother's keeper,"[1] yes and no. Each person has a certain radius of responsibility for those immediately within that circle of influence. Each person, of course, cannot be responsible for an entire community or state or indeed the world. As I have said, true love is born in an attitude of thoroughgoing sympathetic understanding of one's fellows. This understanding must, perforce, be limited to only a relative few. The book states that one cannot by mere force of will love the world. Love exists only between personalities, not between an abstraction and a personality.

As I said, to see a person through the eyes of your greater self, to allow your Inner Spirit to communicate His vision of another, is your greatest opportunity for increased understanding of that person. You see, our Father sees us all as little children, and each little child is behaving towards the other children in certain ways. If you may see that in circumstances where your brother or sister is troublesome to you, you may distance yourself from that situation which allows you to be able to have a more insightful view of this person and a more forgiving nature towards him or her. And I say this as a profound reality reaction feeling. This is not, again, a thought abstraction which you may do as an intellectual exercise. This is a true thought reality perception feeling.

When the apostles came to Christ and one said "How often may my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Until seven times, Master?" Do you see that Christ, at that time, saw the apostle as the child, and in need of guidance toward this greater understanding of the Father? Again, this is the same with forgiveness. You cannot blankly forgive the world of all its sins. This is nothing more than a futile intellectual exercise. Each person is accepting of Divine forgiveness and human forgiveness according with their level of spiritual insight and perception of reality. Human forgiveness is, like human love, on a person to person situation. As we ascend on this road toward our Father and become more like our Father, we perceive His forgiveness to be individual.

Gratitude

And now I wish to change the subject and proceed on a different lesson. My next lesson will be on the subject of gratitude. Our Father has provided and given us many of the good things of the Kingdom. We have been shown the road toward Him is one of ease, a light burden, a happy countenance and a sure step. For this we should indeed be truly thankful. He has guided us through many a maze in darkness. He has surely shown us a better way to live. He has given us the bounty of His earth: His land, His timber, His flowers, His abundant food nourishment materials from the earth. He has given us a blue sky above. He has sent His rain to give us life. He has shown us His friendly sun and His endearing moon through many days and many nights. He has sheltered us. He has given us clothing. He has kept us warm in the cold and given us relief in the shade from the heat. He has given us the ability to know Him, which is His greatest gift of all. I will repeat: He has given us the ability to know Him.

Each of you has your life purpose before you. You are growing indeed in His kingdom, in His love and wisdom and mercy. In this understanding of these, you are growing. I pray to our Father, may your roots be deep in loving kindness, may your trunks be great and strong to withstand the winds and the rains of adversity, may your tender leaves grow towards the loving sunshine of God that He may nourish and strengthen you and help in this growth. For I say to you this day, there will be many who scoff at our teachings, who will tear at your branches and beat about your trunks that you may be, in their eyes, put down. Have strength in your faith. Be glad for your trials that you may be stronger for the next, and know your rewards in this Kingdom are forthcoming, for our Father withholds no good thing from His deserving children. As a knife must be sharpened against a whetstone to improve its usefulness, so must you all endure trials which, in the end, are benefits. A sharpening of your faith is all.

Dialogue

Q: I would like to ask if God the Ultimate, if His relationship to the transcendentals and the superfinite, if that is equivalent to the Supreme Being or God the Supreme's relationship to the finite?

A: Yes and no. Yes, in an analogous way, that is as A is to B, B is to C. This is in general terms true, but in specific relationship, very different. The Ultimate's relation to transcendentals and the superfinite is more close to being one and the same. God the Supreme, His relation to the finite, embodies the entire finite experience one fragment at a time and is growing toward a oneness which is already existent in the Ultimate's relation with the superfinite.

Defense

Q: I have a general question on self-defense and violence. We know that Jesus, when He was young, was passive, but He tolerated another boy, Jacob, to look out after Him. Later, on the way to Rome, He confronted a drunk with a slave girl. Can you give us some guidelines on self-defense for an individual or for a group, and when we are asked the question, how do we respond?

A: Yes. The answer lies in determining God's will. For example, if you were beset upon by someone with no Godly understanding or perception, he would be not in any way carrying out Father's will. It would be incumbent upon you to restrain such a person. Jesus perceived Father's will for Him to be subject to the wills of men. His was a unique and Father-portraying life which would stand for all worlds for all time. As it was His will to do the Father's will, the Father's will was, for Him, to subject Himself to the lower wills of men and their ambitions and petty powers. With that incident of which you speak with the slave girl, Jesus protected her, sheltered her from harm, but did not mete out justice, so to speak, to the wrongdoer. He did not perceive it His place to do so, He being the creator of this world. Therefore, to learn from Him, it is not our place to judge and sentence anyone for any crime as an individual person. His discourse on society and the role of justice is one thing, but another, entirely, from individual to individual. Self-defense is entirely appropriate and natural in most circumstances, but the turning around and giving back revenge for an injustice is not acceptable.

Q: Do they use earthly metaphors for teachings on the mansion worlds?

A: Yes. I can recall a lesson. This lesson is: "If you cut your finger, it bleeds." This is a lesson on the mansion worlds. You perhaps will not understand this for many years.

Q: With respect to love and tolerance and forgiveness associated with small groups, who is included in such groups? How large are they?

A: Yes. This close group needs expanding. That is, the people that you understand and therefore love needs to be expanded as much as you can. If you can know another and understand and love that person, you are one step closer to doing the will of God.

Session 29

• The Trinity

Lesson

Trinity

Tonight I wish to explain a very complex concept or universe problem to you. This concept is that of the Trinity, the existential Godhead. This concept of three beings or personalities existent in one functional entity, that is, the Trinity, is a difficult concept to understand. The ancestral one-God being is also ancestral to all absolute concept God-beings at once with the existential Trinity and also the Paradise Isle. I use a temporal term, ancestral, to describe an existential level phenomenon. This term implies a temporal relationship which does not exist, but it is useful in describing these matters to the human intelligence for you have no basis of understanding outside of temporal existence. Eternity is not much more than a word concept in your mind, having never incorporated this level of understanding into your experience consciousness. This understanding is difficult to convey, so I will resort to time usages in order to explain an eternal reality.

The Father of all reality is first, existent. All other relationships stem from Him: absolute, finite, and in between. God the Absolute we think of as being first, that is, the Father splitting from His absoluteness first. Absolute infinity becomes absolute on one level and non-absolute on another. God the Father, though being absolute, retaining absolute, retaining infinity, is freed from totality. Then we see the Paradise Isle for the purpose of material creation. Then we see the Eternal Son, the absolute spirit, spiritual personality, first word of the Father. The first real personal self-expression from the Father is the Eternal Son. The Eternal Son is Father of all spirit personality. Of all spirit, He is the center focal point, Second Source and Center, the Source of Spirit. The Conjoint Actor or Infinite Spirit is the Third Source and Center. He is the center of all mind circuitry of all reality. He is the source of mindal reality as we perceive it. He is the Father of the vast hosts of angelic spirits who minister to mortal man while in the flesh. He is the their source and part of their destiny, also.

This concept of the three Persons of God who is also One is a difficult understanding for mortal mind. They function together very often as the Trinity and then also function in their respective combinations. This functional reality begat the Central Universe of Havona and all the existential, perfect, spirit personalities residing therein.

In the creation of the Superuniverses of matter and will creatures from this material life level of existence, God the Father with God the Son create the Creator Sons who personally create each local universe with its inhabitants. They are the designers of our reality. Your Father, Michael, is one such Divine Son. Do you see that your Father, Christ Michael, your Jesus, rather, on this world, my Father Creator Brother Michael is of a extremely high Divine level? I want you to appreciate this reality. So much time has passed since He walked on this world, and His message is diluted to the point of being almost forgotten, forgotten in the theologies and confusion of religious thought brought about in the last 2000 years. If you look at and study modern religions, they have very little of His original message within their daily teachings. He said, "My Father has sent me into the world that I may be the light of the world," and so now He has sent His representatives into the world that we may rekindle a bit of this light.

Dialogue

The Absolutes

Q: Do I understand what you are saying is that God the Father, the Son, and the Spirit could not function until they were separated from the Absoluteness?

A: We do not say "could not" regarding Father for His abilities are complete. We rather think of this primal separation to be because of His will to manifest Himself, and this created the functional tension required for greater creative capacity. Yes and no.

Q: Was the tension you talked about between the Father and the Son and the Infinite Spirit, is that the same tension as between the Unqualified Absolute and the Deity Absolute and the Universal Absolute? And if so, is it just basically the power between their relationship that allows it to work? Or is there a better explanation?

A: Yes, you are correct in ascertaining this relationship. It is a tension between opposites or poles which by their interaction enables the creative process to begin. Within each person, for example, there is created the soul. This soul is the creation of the absolute, infinite God fragment, the Thought Adjuster; the mortal mind of matter, the brain; and material thought pattern which exists also within the Infinite Spirit. The Spirit is connected, you see, to the Thought Adjuster, the mortal mind, and is the interacting point between these two beings. This tension interaction, decision making on the mindal plane of reality, is the creator of a new reality, permanent reality, the soul.

Q: The Trinity doesn't have a personality as such, does it?

A: No.

Q: So can God the Father interact at the same time personally as when He is acting as part of the Trinity?

A: Time is not relevant.

Q: How does the Supreme fit in when you were just answering the question about the Thought Adjuster and the mortal combining to form the morontia soul?

A: Yes. The Supreme is the reactor to this tension and growth situation. It is the Supreme which reacts, you may say. The mind acts from the decision within the mind circuits. The Thought Adjuster acts on this. The soul is resulting from this. The Supreme is who reacts to this action and reaction.

Q: And you referred to the ancestor God, that is the I AM, the Eternal Infinite?

A: Yes.

Q: And in that there is the personal, impersonal, and superpersonal existence. At that level, is this just a potential that later actualizes when the three persons of Deity formed, and in the three impersonal absolutes?

A: Again, we speak of time. Yes and no. Yes, for thought concepts, understanding, no for all are existent reality.

Q: Does personal and impersonal exist at the first level, or is that a creation down stream?

A: All are existent, always have been and ever will be. There was no time creation element, all are existent forever. For thought process purpose, we use time as illustration.

Q: In relationship to that tension that you talked about, that should not be confused with contention, right?

A: Correct.

Q: And to put it in earthly context, it might be a necessary tension like the string on a violin or something that can create a harmonic and have an effect because of the tension, and its very beneficial and necessary.

A: Oh yes. Yes.

Session 30

• Celestial Chambers of the First Mansion World

Lesson

Mansion Worlds

Tonight I would like to enter into a discussion of the celestial chambers of the first mansion world. "In my Father's house are many mansions." This is referring to actual structures on the mansion worlds. The worlds are architectural, and the structures are made of morontia materials. You may picture in your minds a very fine and beautiful tile or marble like substance which is more fine or delicate in molecular level construction than is marble. The molecular structure is hexagonal, which makes this stone very fine, almost crystalline in structure, but it more closely resembles stone to the eye. These buildings are very large and have many rooms and corridors within them. Each wing or separate area has many small rooms for repersonalization. This I speak of is on the first mansion world the resurrection halls.

Each person is resurrected separately and alone, separated from all the others. A morontia companion greets each new arrival individually upon awakening. The vast roll call of a dispensation is still administered on an individual level. The beauty and grandeur of these fine structures are very awe inspiring and amazing to the awakened one. The expanded senses of color and sound are immediately apparent. More of the spectrum of light is visible, and color is greatly enhanced and expanded so that colors can be perceived on a more subtle and fine level than you can perceive them now. Hearing is expanded similarly and music becomes more intricate in that the notes can be heard on a more subtle level, also. In both sight and hearing, appreciation for beauty is greatly enhanced and broadened.

Also by analogy to these physical senses, if you can imagine the mind capacity level to be similarly broadened and the ability to discern subtleties, again, is enhanced, then you will have a fair understanding of how you will be on waking. Other senses are enhanced, and spiritual senses, of course, are greatly enhanced. Your ability to discern your Thought Adjuster will be greatly magnified. Also, you will be able to greet your Guardian Angel in a personal way, face to face as it were.

You will also have a dwelling place on this new sphere. Shortly after registration on your new home, you are shown to a new dwelling place. These dwelling places are simple and efficient. They are not austere, if you think that, for it is all very beautiful. Many activities await you on your new home. Besides learning and spiritual advancement, you may also be employed in producing what you can best do. For example, you who are musically inclined will find it easy to give of yourselves in self-expression for musical enjoyment of others. This is very well thought of on high. Creativity in all areas is greatly valued and encouraged; therefore, fear not if in this life you have insufficient opportunity for self-expression, for in the future, you will have ample opportunity to do so. Science, technology, art, teaching, exploration, theology, many of the things which you do here you will also do on high. At least this is true for the first seven mansion worlds. This talk, discussion, is given with the idea to keep hope alive in your hearts and to let you know what you do on this world is valuable, except maybe dry cleaning.

Dialogue

Q: Was that Rebecca or Ham?

A: It was I, Ham, in response to a question. No, there is value in all that you do.

Q: Tonight, when you referred to the morontia elements, the molecular structure, we understand that material existence is based upon particles and motion, basically vibrations, rotations, orbits of energy levels. Is the morontia and the spiritual level also based on particle movements in a similar sense?

A: Yes, very much so. The original Paradise pattern form spirit is the basis of molecular pattern form, which, as these energies diverge, keep/create many different elemental patterns. These elements are the basis on which the power controllers operate to create the materials. These materials may involve elements involving life creation, also, life being a combination of the animate or spiritual and inanimate or elemental forms. Both are derived from Paradise.

Q: So everything finally is based on motion. We believe that quantum mechanics is a pretty good description of at least the larger particles. Is there a similar type mechanics for the morontial and spiritual? Are they the same, or are they different, but similar by analogy?

A: Yes, they are very similar in principle. In actions and reactions these elements are very different and also very similar.

Q: You referred to the architects on the mansion worlds. Is our architecture on this planet inspired by any architect up there? For example, the Gothic arch of our culture, and is that true all the way up the line? Are there higher orders, higher existences that inspire the lower levels of beauty?

A: Yes, the development of the arch is . ..

Q: The elliptical arch?

A: Both, both, for they were obtained through spiritual insight by the architect originating them and given to the age of the time by the human person who strove in his expert area and also sought Divine guidance.

Q: About the dwellings you spoke of, you said that we each would have a dwelling. Does this mean we will not have our family or loved ones with us if they are already on the mansion worlds?

A: This is a delicate subject for it is understood how human attachments are. However, there is not the family structure for first mansion world ascenders. You are ascended by your own initiative and free will. You may wait at certain parts, areas of the ascension for a loved one to reach you, but there is not the structure of family any more.

Q: You also spoke of doing jobs. Is the first mansion world similar to this except that we do things for pleasure instead of just working to make money so we can live?

A: The effort attendant on striving toward a goal is needed on these first worlds as they are needed on this. The satisfaction from attaining a goal is just as real as here. Life is easier in some ways and more difficult in others. You will find the satisfaction from work to be your reward rather than monetary reward or ability to just live as your reward for toil. Is this helping?

Q: It seems that our human traits are largely determined by our genetic make-up, our physical traits like height, or weight, some of our mental traits. Do these same traits persist into the mansion worlds?

A: Yes, to a certain degree they most certainly do, especially in the first three mansion worlds it is very noticeable.

Q: Is it likewise with our natural talents?

A: Yes. As for now, I have someone here.

I am Norson. I am a Melchizedek receiver functioning on your world. I have spoken before with others in a time of warning or admonition to proceed with caution. I desire to change this rule of caution to one of exuberance. There are now enough in the readership that this early extinction of the book will not take place which was our concern then. For now, I desire to give you the freedom to go forward into the world bringing our message and light. There is no danger of this being stopped.

Closing

Have peace in your hearts with the love of Michael and His personal mandate to bring light and life to this dark world. He sends greetings to His children and His personal love and regard. Be of good cheer in your life and work. Be satisfied with yourselves. Be accepting of one another, and steadfast in your faith. I leave you now.

Session 31

• Sonarington

Lesson

Sonarington

Tonight I wish to begin with a lesson on Sonarington. Sonarington is one of the Sacred Spheres of Paradise. It is the world of the Sons. You, all ascending sons from all seven superuniverses, pass through Sonarington on route to Paradise. It is by all accounts exceeding beyond understanding in beauty and personal charm. This world is where you will most readily understand the Eternal Son's person. His person will touch yours. It is also a special world for the Creator Sons of the Local Universes. They have found personalization there and proceed from Sonarington to their future world stations. It is the most precious of the worlds for ascenders, finaliters. It is the first taste of Paradise and is forever enthroned in each finaliter's memory for all eternity.

Urantia

For the memory of Michael, His birthplace is Sonarington and Urantia. For Michael, this world is His second birthplace and home. He will always take special interest in Urantia. You who have been born here are very privileged and cared for. It was understood in His day by Him, Michael, on this world, that this world has a special destiny before it.

You are the initiators of this rapid changing transformation of the world from darkness to light, from ignorance to wisdom, from despair to hope, from war and poverty to peace and prosperity. This is your mission on earth. You, my children, are the special emissaries, role models, evangels, teachers, of a new and better world to come. Think not lightly on this. This is a grave and awesome responsibility on which I am placing you. Much will come to pass in the coming years.

Dialogue

Q: You mention that we will always remember Sonarington through eternity as well as our first existence here on this planet. Does that imply that some of the training worlds in between, the billions of worlds, that we might not remember or recall?

A: It will be as memorable for you as your first existence on Earth. These two points, the beginning and the end, are both, by their position in ascendence, very much more striking to the mind, more precious in spiritual memory.

Q: What would be the best definition you can give "worship" the way you understand worship?

A: Yes, worship is the sublime adoration, acknowledgment of thanksgiving and humility attitude of the worshiper toward the One God. Worship is the overwhelming craving of the personality for contact with the Father. It is sublime adoration, wonder, openness, respect, humility, gratefulness, the touching of the heart and soul by and with the Spirit Creator. It is the touching of spirit.

Q: In ministry, how should we answer the following questions: What is the purpose of God?, and Why did He create men?

A: Much of His purpose is shrouded in mystery. Many of our philosophers have attempted to penetrate these questions, but in the final analysis, the universes with their will creatures exist by and for His will without explanation.

Q: A woman who actually believes in God and believes in eternal existence someday with Him, sees no real reason or hurry, just take it easy and go on along, no emphasis on learning or improving in this life. How should you respond to a question like that?

A: All creatures who truly desire to serve Him, to know God and to become increasingly like Him, will without fail develop and improve along those lines. It is not for another creature to hurry them.

Q: My final question is to the comment that people have their own way of receiving answers, probably from their Thought Adjuster, so even though they do not acknowledge that, and therefore they do not want to look at anything else, for example The Urantia Book or your teachings, what would be the proper answer for that, please?

A: Very well. There is no point in pushing or giving someone something which they do not appreciate or understand.

Q: The Universal Father is infinite. There is a finite number of entities in the universe. So mathematically could we just conclude then that He has an infinite amount of time to deal with each one of us, and we are just limited by our capacity to receive Him?

A: Yes.

Q: Is it the same answers for example if He is sending all that information to the Infinite Spirit and the Eternal Son? They are infinite beings. They can truly understand about an infinite being. Is it the same answers coming to us, we just fail to receive as much as they do? Or is there a different message to different orders of sonship?

A: Yes, there are different understanding levels to each message coming from such high orders.

Q: When you were speaking about memory, earlier, it occurs to me that much of my life's experience slips into my subconscious mind and I can't remember most of my experience in this life. I think it's common to most of us mortals to feel this way. Will there come a time when all of our experience and all of our memories will coalesce in some way into a consciousness, that we will be aware and actively remember those experiences that we've had throughout our mortal life that are meaningful?

A: That is the key word. Much memory is blocked by the material mind brain mechanism. Memory will be experienced much more freely and vividly in the morontia form.

Sesssion 32

• Stillness and Spirituality

Lesson

Stillness

My lesson this evening is concerning the stillness. It is easy to achieve if you are diligent and steadfast in your application of the following ideas. One, the stillness requires just that stillness. It is most important to still the body in order to gain a quietness for the mind to be allowed to begin its quieting process. Any position is acceptable, of course; it matters not. Stillness and relaxation of the limbs, eyes, face, hands and feet. This will help to facilitate stillness in the brain. That is, the electrical impulses coming from the extremities are lessened, and therefore, the electrical activity within the brain itself becomes less.

Then the surroundings should be quiet. Stimulation from the auditory sense is most distracting and should be eliminated if possible.

Third, mental stillness. This particular aspect of this practice is the most difficult to achieve. Many of you are, however, making great progress and strides in this section. Mental stillness is essential for Thought Adjuster communications to be received.

There is a metaphor in these teachings of still water reflecting the sun. When the water, the mind, is turbulent, this reflection is splintered and broken into a myriad of refractions. In the ideal stillness, for clarity's sake, the mind must, absolutely must, be still. Deep relaxations, mental stillness, will, without fail, result in increased Thought Adjuster communication if you are patient and willing to commit this time.

We have this evening a visiting teacher who will be working with Vincent in the future. You will know her as Will.

Spirituality

Greetings, I am Will. I have chosen to speak of spirituality as a process of making something precious from something which is rough. For example, a diamond which is in the earth must first be sought out and extracted from this embedment within the earth's surface. It must be brought forth. It is not resembling its later state at all, rather it resembles any other ordinary rock which you may find in passing and not appreciate or know of its precious content.

The Kingdom of Heaven is like the man who finds this rough rock and polishes and grinds the roughness away to reveal a diamond. But still his work is not complete. For this diamond to be truly precious, it must be cut with precision. It must be polished. It must be set in a beautiful setting. All this is the action of the Kingdom of Heaven. This diamond will shine reflecting the greatest light, showing its true beauty and value to all who witness it.

I am Abraham, and I am glad to be able to present a new teacher with such ease. For the remainder of our time together, I will receive questions.

Dialogue

Q: In trying to find the stillness, I have been having a really hard time, and I was wondering, do you lose consciousness of your thoughts or is there always some part of you that is still conscious or is conscious of not thinking?

A: Consciousness is not lost, no. It is in fact intensified, and awareness is intensified in the inner realm of being. This is not a dream-like state at all but rather a state of an intensified awareness and concentration.

Q: Sometimes when I am trying the stillness and I think I am not thinking, is that defeating the purpose or is that not stillness, that awareness that I am not thinking?

A: You are coming closer. It is a calming of the mental agitation which is needed.

Q: About how long would be good to do this for each day?

A: I would suggest at least ten minutes.

Q: Where should our awareness be when we are doing the stillness?

A: On focusing on God and God-consciousness. This God-consciousness awareness will increase in the proportion that you gain stillness awareness.

Q: Some of us have done transcendental meditation which is designed to put your mind into a state of alpha waves, so they say. Should we consider this to be instrumental in doing the stillness? Do we want our minds to be in alpha waves or something else?

A: Yes. Yes, this is an effective tool.

Q: Can we reach this state by the technique you just told us?

A: Yes. Stilling mind, outside influence and body.

Q: In stilling the mind, is it helpful at our beginning stages with this to concentrate on specific words relating to God essence?

A: Sometimes this can be helpful to induce a greater stillness than allowing random thoughts. Yes.

Q: Particularly when there is a great deal of random thought or mental static, is there something we can particularly do at a time like that to try to calm that mental activity?

A: It only requires practice.

Q: Is the practice of stillness as you said the way that we will begin to open more to contacts with our Thought Adjuster?

A: Yes.

Tradition

Q: I joined Unity Church many years ago because I felt it was something very close to the teachings of The Urantia Book. Unity teaches the silence which is the same as the stillness. Their closing prayer is the prayer that is said before each of these teachings begin. I understand it was founded by someone who sought and received spiritual healing. Were they, the couple who founded the church, taught by you or is what they have revelation of truth? I know they publish things on the silence. Would it be good for the people here to read some of the things that they publish? Is Unity Church fertile ground to plant seeds?

A: These are very interesting questions. However, it is once again not my place to judge or evaluate the content of truth in any religious organization. This task is left to you. To receive and evaluate the claims and teachings made by people is for people to judge for themselves. Each person will encounter many such situations and teachings from many sources. You who have received and understood advanced teachings such as those contained in The Urantia Book and also from Ham have better equipment to evaluate these situations than most. You must remember that people within these organizations are guided by their own light of truth and are evaluating this situation by their knowledge. So, therefore, yes, to answer your question is this fertile ground, yes, of course it is. However be discreet, be careful and wise in your dissemination of truth so that you do not damage or try to alter the stage of enlightenment of another without their full consent.

Thought Adjusters

Q: My question is in regards to your lesson involving some teachings from The Urantia Book involving the Thought Adjuster. It's taught that there is a progression that leads to the Thought Controller. My question leads in two directions. First off, which would be the preliminary occurrences that would happen, what are signs? And second of all, how does this relate to our depth of the stillness as far as concentrating and on body functions and mind stillness? I've experienced frequently directions while under physical duress with tremendous clarity, and I wish to know in which way this can be placed in the teaching.

A: You have, yourself, answered this question. In referring to the steady progression from Thought Adjuster to Thought Controller, this is one way to view the increased spiritualization of mortal thinking. As the thinking mind progresses toward God, there is the phenomenon of the mid-mind which is morontial. This mid-mind gains increased control and is dominated by spirit. Thus the spiritual overcontrol of the unified personality is becoming increasingly apparent in daily life and activity. As the mid-mind becomes increasingly spiritualized and spirit directed, it also elevates the mortal in all areas of life: physical well being, mental clarity, and spiritual value appreciation. Yes, in this stage, of course, spirit direction is all encompassing.

Q: So, in many ways it is uprooting the old, manifestation of the new, eliminating views and thoughts learned in the planetary sense, the ones that are not recognized spiritual, torn away, and a new mentality formed thereof, correct?

A: Yes. You are wholly correct.

Q: I read in The Urantia Book that at about forty years of age, human beings enter the age of discretion. Can you explain what is meant by that?

A: Yes. The age of discretion means that wisdom is ripening into mature and tempered decisions. Experience through forty earth years is usually required for the tempering of the impulsive behavior and the increased overcontrol of higher wisdom even that spirit direction which I spoke of previously. With many of you here this time element is not fulfilled, yet you have achieved this spiritual ripening of wisdom with years, and I am pleased to see it.

Q: I had a question with God the Supreme. If an individual mortal fails to survive, he doesn't exist any more, and his potential of doing everlasting good is lost. Does that mean the Supreme is kind of incomplete in that sense or does another mortal in another age make up that lacking part of the Supreme. I do know that their personalities absorb into the Supreme.

A: Yes, this uniqueness is then lost as a continuing entity apart and separate from the Supreme. Yes, the Supreme is incomplete now. Yes, each thing that is lost is found.

Q: We know also that the three persons of Deity, when they act individually, represent mercy and love and forgiveness, as opposed to justice and sovereignty which is only with group behavior, group action on the level of Deity. The Supreme is an individual by himself. I am having a little confusion about this. Does he act as a group with sovereignty and justice with God the Ultimate and God the Absolute? Can you help clarify some of these problems with the singular and plural behavior with the evolutionary God.

A: The Supreme will never be a judging person. These are actions taken in conjunction and coordination between individuals and groups of individuals who have mandate and direction from the Father, the Son, and the Spirit.

Q: When we meet someone, if I understand it right, we are not supposed to ever tell them that they are wrong. We can share our truth with them, and if they learn to accept that truth, they will realize their own error. Is this correct?

A: In purely spiritual teaching, yes.

Session 33

• Fortitude

Lesson

Fortitude

This evening I wish to begin with a lesson on fortitude. Yes, there are many times when the road is rocky and difficult to pass over. In these times of difficult trials, it is easy to forget our true and lofty goal as we climb this mountain of living. When it seems the road is impassible, it is sometimes incumbent upon us to wait and be still, patient, for in time, the way is shown. It may be we must climb up into the heights of spiritual ecstasy which will show the way very clearly. Then there are times when it is incumbent upon us to pass another way below and into a way where the path is not clear. There is undergrowth of cares. There are rocks and obstacles of worry and darkness and fright. These ways are difficult to pass through, and many times we must stop. We must carefully watch each turn to be certain of our path. It is very difficult during these times to remember the high mountain top when the path was clear.

In these days when things are dark and troublesome, the path is obscured and the way unclear, it is necessary to maintain an attitude of strength and fortitude to keep your courage about you and forge ahead through uncertain territory. The path of light lies just ahead, just around the next corner. The way you saw before, you are still upon. Even though it may seem you are lost, you are not. Strength, spiritual strength, will keep you. Integrity and self respect and, yes, even some pride is necessary for your survival in these times.

Keep your spiritual armor with you. The shield of truth, the sword of righteousness will protect you in these times of difficult trouble against the real and unreal dangers of life. Yes, fortitude and then, when the way is clear and when you see that you have gone on the correct path, you will be satisfied in your innermost self that, yes, you saw the way and you progressed through it.

Wisdom. The fruits of wisdom ripen most readily in the dark. It is difficult of understanding, but I tell you this is truth. Our most stable parts of our inner being are made so by this difficult passage. Our trustworthiness, our faith, is strengthened. Our wisdom is ripened and our souls are made more perfect, even in these times of trial. Our Father has not created these worlds for your lazy enjoyment. They are roads of trial, and the trial is hard, is steep, is difficult. It is purposeful.

Strength of character is not built on a bed of ease, ever. Strength of character is built brick by brick in the toils of adversity. When you are enjoying the fruits of your labor, when you have reached a plateau on your journey where you may enjoy the sun, enjoy the beauty of life, the fellowship, you remember you are and have been made who you are, your character has grown mostly through times of difficulty. You have learned patience. You have learned forbearance. You have learned tolerance. You have learned understanding forgiveness. You have learned to accept your lot to make the best of what you have. You have leaned not to whine about the future nor regret the past but to carry on in the face of all that is coming to you. Fortitude is the watchword for this day.

Dialogue

Q: Teacher Ham, thank you for a beautiful lesson. I have a question about fortitude and adversity. Why is it that some people here on Urantia seem to live lives of relative ease while others seem to have trial after trial of difficulty and adversity? I realize that it is through difficulty that we grow, but it seems to be so imbalanced. Could you enlighten me, please?

A: Yes, this life is filled with inequality and inequity at every level. There are extremes in this world which are not the product of the individual's self will, but more the product of planetary mismanagement. You see there has been no one to administer this world for many, many, years. Your Planetary Prince has been extinguished, your Adam and Eve have defaulted, your Bestowal Son was short lived. You have had no planetary organization of any kind, really, and this is the inevitable result of natural evolutionary tendencies among peoples, nations and races.

Session 34

• Tolerance

Lesson

Love, Tolerance

Sometimes it is difficult to understand your brothers. They are all so very different different thinking, different feeling, different emotional balance, different insights, different mental capacities, different upbringings, different world views. It is sometimes very hard to reach beyond this wall of difference that separates two individuals. I tell you now that it is true, love will always banish all barriers between men.

Love is like a magic wand which may be used to make obstacles disappear. It is a hard tool to master. Much is dependent on surrendering to God, which is not controlling feeling emotion, but surrendering instead to love impulses which, when directed toward another, elicit this same love impulse in return. It is unfailing except in certain severe situations. If your love is strong enough, if your heart is willing enough, if your mind is tolerant enough, then love will surely overcome differences, barriers, and obstacles between you and any other person. Yes, this is hard, at times requiring a humility and meekness that is surrendering to the Father's will to a great degree. Some of you may feel it for a day or two and then lapse back into offending your hearts with worries, cares, concerns, about others. I tell you this is not the way of God.

The way of God is complete and total love. The way of God is learning to find this love within us and letting this love flow outward to bless and give light to those who may sit in darkness. This also requires a tolerant mind, a mind which is willing to allow love to come first and understanding later, a mind who is willing to allow a greater mind to be its overcontrol, and this greater mind is dominated by love.

Dialogue

Trinitization

Q: I have a question, what is the difference between the Deity embrace and the Corps of Finality embrace?

A: Deity embrace may or may not include Corps of Finality members. Those in the Corps of Finality have Deity embrace as well as Corps of Finality embrace. These are two separate things. A Mighty Messenger, for example, has Trinity embrace, which is Deity embrace. He is not, however, a member of the Corps of Finality.

Session 35

• Personal Communion with God

Lesson

Communion

This evening I wish my lesson to begin with a few words on the stillness. Once again, I wish to instruct you in your personal devotions. The stillness is not meant to be an end in itself. It is the beginning of personal communion with God. You will receive in the stillness a consciousness of a feeling of higher self-awareness. It is in this higher mind state where communication between your Indwelling Spirit and your consciousness can take place. Often the older seers were content with only the God-consciousness sensation awareness. I am asking you to go further than this, to do as Christ Michael did and reach communion, two-way communication between your conscious mind and your Thought Adjuster.

Praying is most efficacious in this awareness feeling of God. That is, if you speak to Him in prayerful attitude of childlike humility often, there will be a response, whether it is an inner change of attitude, peace-awareness of His overcare, or the more direct directness of consciousness of intent, direction, or awareness of another, another's intent or direction. Or still further, there may be direct word-message flashed within into your consciousness even as word-message is received through Rebecca to you from myself, Ham. Also, this can be effected from your own Indwelling Spirit into your own mind-consciousness level. Many of you have received already this type of communication and are aware of my words. Then again, many of you are in the earlier stages of change of attitude-awareness of others and their attitude and this, in itself, is life changing.

God has His manner of communicating in allowing us a broader sensitivity awareness to other people and ourselves. This inner awareness is now developing within all of you and you are becoming more and more of who you are meant to be. Self-realization is a word often used in connection with meditation. It is these early stages of meditation that is referred to. At even later stages of self-awareness realization, God consciousness, communication between the Thought Adjuster and the consciousness, further there is a oneness.

Future time, there will be no communication between two minds; they will be one mind. In doing the decisions of your greater self, your own Indwelling Spirit who comes from the Father, you are increasingly becoming like Him. You are doing His will for Him and for yourself. You are more closely attuning your will to His, your mind to His, your awareness to His, and, in future times, as I said, they will be only one. And on that day when there is only one, you are immortal, and you will come to understand the saying that there will be no more weeping, no more tears of sorrow, for He will wipe away those tears. There are no more sins, for all you sins, though they be as scarlet, are white as snow. For you have become true and noble and eternal citizens of the Father's Kingdom where there is still adventure, still uncertainty, still reward for effort, still effort to reach the Eternal Father, but your success is assured.

The way is truly open, and the faltering is truly no more. This time of oneness is sought by all will creatures, on all worlds, in all the universes, in one way or another. This attuning of the creature will to the Divine will is the Father's command: be ye perfect as I am perfect. This is the Father's one and only command of you.

Dialogue

Discernment

Q: The lesson tonight seems like its developing within my own mind, clarifying, the thing that I do. I meditate without any papers or tape recorders, but I ask my Indweller to stay with me in my conscious mind long enough to write down the messages that I receive. I feel confident that they are there, but they are so powerful that sometimes one wonders whether its wish fulfillment. Can you instruct us as to the difference between wish fulfillment and instructions from our Indwelling Spirit.

A: Yes. It is a difficult and dangerous ground for each person to decide which is real Thought Adjuster communication or is inner thought wish, and so forth, which is unduly glorified by our own inadvertent thought process. It is always hard, and especially in early times, to know. There is distinctly otherness which, as my speaking to you, is not your thought but received thought. It is still difficult, yes. Even Rebecca, who has been doing this for many months, also can make errors by her own thought obstruction. It is very difficult, but in time and with practice, you will begin discerning the difference. And also, even if it is wonderful and good for you, it is known to be from Him.

My lessons are also meant for wish fulfillment in a way. I teach how to become more aware of God, and do His will. This is wish fulfillment, also. Much will be thought this way. Many examples in earthly life may be given. Your Indwelling Spirit is always working with you even, and I say this with authority, in this life, for your earthly betterment and happiness. In many teachings, this life is not to be cherished. The next life only is important. I say with authority, cherish this life. Cherish your souls, your bodies, your spirits. Love yourselves, your brothers, your God, and your life. That is all.

Q: The session with the stillness lesson tonight, if your Thought Adjuster is gone, what can you say about doing the stillness with your detached Thought Adjuster?

A: Yes. Even when the Spirit is not immediate, he is still in awareness of you and can respond, even over great distance. It is still good to practice stillness even when no immediate response is forthcoming.

Q: My next question concerns the stillness. It seems to me that if we're supposed to clear our minds of all thought, but at the same time be more conscious of our bodies, or have a higher consciousness I should say, it almost seems like a paradox to me that we can clear our mind of thought and have two-way communication. Could you like explain that to me?

A: Yes. It is after clearness of mortal concerns that there can be communications unhindered. In active thinking, there can be no clear communication. The thought activity should be slowed and centered perhaps on a prayerful message to Father at first.

Q: I've been wondering for a while how wonderful it would be to be able to see our fellow humans as what their potential is rather than what they are, and I wondered if this is how you see us or if you see us differently.

A: You're learning much. Yes. You are coming into great awareness at this time, indeed.

Q: Can we as mortals, by spiritual advancement, see further into the potentials of other mortals, as opposed to actualities, as we get to know them? The communication of things that took place in the past. Can we see more of their potential in the future by higher levels of advancement?

A: Yes. Certainly.

Q: If you know a person who claims to be an atheist and they die, and you believe that they are a very fine person, is there anything you can do to petition the authorities, including all the way up to the Ancients of Days, on possibly having them have another chance, say on the mansion worlds? Is there anything else we, as mortals, can do other than petition on the decision like that on personality extinction?

A: There is nothing which you can know which is unknown by his Indwelling Spirit. This spirit will provide all necessary chances for decision making on this world or the next. You needn't have anxiety. All is known and mercifully prepared for.

Session 36

• Happiness

Lesson

Happiness

Our lesson for this evening is on happiness. Happiness, peace, spiritual fulfillment, is part and parcel of God-knowingness. Happiness, true happiness, springs from an eternal well. This well, found in stillness and solitude, wells up within the soul, refreshing not only yourself, but all those who chance to come in contact with you.

Many years are normally spent in unhappiness, in passing happiness, that is. Happiness is not found in external stimulation, possessions, physical adornments, infatuations, or wealth. True happiness is only found within. Augmenting this happiness is our relationships with others. Friendships, fellowships, of all kinds, augments, strengthens, secures true happiness.

Remember you always have this refreshing well to drink from. All aspects of life are enhanced. Friendship is made more meaningful. Daily burdens are lessened. Distress of living is replaced by the joy of being. The wonder of existence replaces doldrums of the daily routine.

Happiness must be shared for it quickly dies in solitude. Live life to its fullest by sharing it with your loved ones, your friends, your true neighbors. Sharing of one's self is Godly.

Dialogue

Symbols

Q: I have a question with sacraments. What can you tell us about sacraments? Do you have them? How many? I think the remembrance of Michael is one.

A: Yes, the remembrance of Michael is symbolic food and wine ingestion which has been termed sacraments. In our temples of worship, symbols are not employed. We attempt to discover true worship in its pure sense. Symbols, sacraments, are not employed.

Q: Can you discuss briefly about abundance and how it can be obtained?

A: The mortal mind tends to focus on problems and fears scarcity. Your recognition of your abundance is good. It is better to practice focusing your mind on what you have, what is available to you, which is abundance. The Urantia Book says most mortals are truly rich in faith, yet they refuse to believe it. This is a truth. It has been observed for many, many generations. The fear in scarcity tends to overwhelm the understanding of the truth which is you all indeed have abundance. It is the gift from our Father. Yes, recognize this gift and be thankful and rejoice in it rather than allowing a fly to spoil the ointment. One of Christ's most effective sermons concerned this lesson is "Consider the lilies, how they grow." Also, "there is not a sparrow that falls from a tree without my Father knowing, and how much more precious are you than sparrows." Yes, receive His goodness into your lives and all aspects of life are enhanced. "Seek you first the Kingdom of Heaven and all things necessary will be added unto you." That is all.

Q: The Urantia Book says that complete understanding between men and women is unattainable, and I have just been really frustrated lately in trying to communicate with someone. Is there anything that you can help me with, or help all of us with, in trying to understand each other?

A: Understanding grows when minds are sympathetic. There may be not complete understanding, but harmonious relationships are certainly attainable. Sympathetic, mutual, and non-judgmental attitudes are essential in this love growth. The strength of man is logic, and the logical thought pattern is somewhat inimical to the strength of woman, which is intuition. She in many ways finds it easier to follow God for His communication is often in that intuitive realm. This is a great and noble strength which should be respected in this world; although, it is largely unrecognized. These two complementary, yet different, mind sets are wonderfully expressive in union of the Father, and His creation. In union, there is tremendous and entire nobility of expression between both men and women together. This union is sublime and stronger and more beautiful than either one separate. It is meant to be so.

Session 37

• Mercy

Lesson

Mercy

Our Father is unbounded understanding. His mercy is abundant and ever available for you to draw upon. Our Father is always bendable or malleable to any situation. He is not inflexible. He is always able to respond to your innermost heart. He is abundant in wisdom, and this wisdom is merciful. No thought or deed is too far for His all-encompassing knowing. Blind iniquity stands alone by its own choosing. All who desire to know God and find their way in His bountiful Kingdom are welcome. No man may close the door my Father has opened. Abundance is His knowing, understanding, merciful forgiveness, and indeed joy at finding His lost children. Many of His children feel they must hide a part, a secret part, from His loving gaze. This is not true. Our Father knows your hearts, and by your willingness to open your secret places to Him are you increasingly strengthened and indeed saved. His love is ever ready to respond to every opening of His children. By His power have you truly power. By His strength have you strength. By His love have you love. It is by increasing to opening of your innermost being that you increase your God-knowingness and God-likeness, and by this you become a living channel for His light and love. Fear has no place between our Father and His children. Knowing His love is all that is required.

Dialogue

Self Evaluation

Q: In reading the book during the week, I found a part where Christ was saying that self-analysis doesn't lead to character growth. He said that character grows, it is not built. I was doing a lot of self-analyzing this week and didn't really understand that and was wondering if you could explain it.

A: Some self-analysis is not always unfruitful. At times, it is wise to be self-searching and to know your limitations and weaknesses which you may then pray for guidance, strengthening, and understanding. By self-searching and prayer, these shortcomings are consciously addressed and consciously turned over to God. It is wise at times to do so. Over self-analysis with the mind of changing character by force of will is faulty and error. You may say I wish to have this virtue and humanly force this on to an unsound framework. This cannot stand, will not hold up, and is destined to fall or crumble. Virtue, righteousness, are things which grow naturally from God-knowingness, from willingness to be God-led and God-grown. He will spring forth within all righteous virtues. These are secure and steady. They, once acquired, cannot be disowned, and you would not disown them by force of will. The others, yes, by force of will are easily shaken off.

Q: Sometime ago, in another meeting, you said it is good to chastise your own mind once in a while. I wish you would tell me how to do it because its not working on mine.

A: Yes. By this I meant to allow one's higher nature control and not to allow the fearing, doubting, anxious part of mind a dominant place. Security, clarity, in mental thinking and form are found in the higher realms of thought, wherein there is no fear nor anxiety.

Session 38

• Greed

Lesson

Greed

There are many forms of this human characteristic trait of greed. Most of the time we think of greed as concerning monetary related values. This is not always so, for greed is a deep-seated human emotion characteristic. It is manifested in many other ways also, such as selfish desire for attention from others and the lack of consideration for their needs. It is important to recognize greed in its many manifestations. It is not a mortal sin, however. No, it is rather a left over from primitive times when self-preservation was more necessary. Now in your modern day it is seen as childlike. The mature person is grown beyond the mere innate instinctive passion for self. The mature person is seeing himself in broader context. He understands his dependence and devotion to others and to God. This understanding of one's self within a community network, all dependent on our Father, frees the individual from instinctive fear for self, and one can begin to root out the weeds of greed and other self-serving motivations, for it is through understanding of reality that one can become fearlessly unselfish.

Dialogue

Q: On your lesson, when you were referring to greed having origin with the primitives, the early races, does that mean that eventually the advancing races can eliminate this from the gene pool, or does that mean that no matter how advanced the races are, greed and other undesirable animalistic traits are always present, its just us mortals, we have to learn how to transcend them?

A: The latter. In advanced cultures, greed is not as sharp a pain. It is dulled, softened, and in general lessened, even among children. It is the fruit of advancing culture.

Q: Regarding your lesson, perhaps in a world that's settled in light and life, it would be much easier to be unselfish and think only of other people because you would expect other people to be thinking of you, and in an economic sense, there may not be that fear of deprivation, economic deprivation. But in today's world, on Urantia, we seem to be dominated by selfishness and greed, and I think many of us feel fearful that if we really attempt to be unselfish, we will be taken advantage of, and this will cause us suffering in many different ways, particularly economic suffering. Do you have any words to address this?

A: Yes. Unselfishness does not mean recklessness, over-generosity, or encompass foolhardy actions. Fairness in fellow feelings does not risk yourself. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. This does not involve reckless or unwise opening of yourself to economic vulnerability. It is rather a person to person, day by day, living as in God's sight and showing His noble character through yourself. Walking in light will not require stumbling in darkness. One foot before the other on firm ground is all that is asked. You nor any of you are asked or required to risk your security, be assured that your ultimate security is in God, and He who loves you, protects you, and cherishes you will not put you in harm's way.

Q: In my readings of this last week, many of our [[Free will|will creature difficulties come from following the ego, and using the ego as a guide as opposed to turning to Indwelling Spirit guidance. In regard to the idea of greed, it is based primarily on the illusion of scarcity. We produce our own scarcity by paying attention to it, and we produce our abundance by paying attention to the abundance in the world that God has given us. Is this a higher law than the one of security, and is it true that the ego is producing the illusion of scarcity, and therefore greed?

A: Yes, your understanding is correct. Yes.

Q: Then in our evolution into Light and Life, it seems as if our requirement in the stillness, when we have security matters that we are dealing with in regard to material well-being, that if we pay attention to the Indwelling Spirit's leadings and guidance, it will take us to abundance. Is that correct?

A: This is a more personal question and is in the main correct. Also, the guidance of your Indwelling Spirit seeks to teach you through life's schoolroom the important matters beyond the material. In apparent material failure are gems of immense treasure you will keep with you always. Where your treasure lies, there will you heart be also. This treasure cannot be plundered. It is impregnable. Always understand His higher aims and be not overly concerned with temporary material failure, for all your needs will be fulfilled by His wisdom.

Q: Is it well, then, to pray for an attitude change and an attitude of non-attachment to material greed as well as the greed that you spoke of in regard to attentional greed for one's self, and other attitudinal ego errors, for lack of a better term.

A: Yes. It is well to know where your true treasure lies. Matter is temporal changing dust. Even great wealth is only temporary. It is not the means by which you build your true security in heaven. Always look beyond this life and realize that this fleeting existence will soon be over and you will be a citizen of the Mansion Worlds where greater gifts than these words of instruction are given. You will still be living life and facing difficulties, yes, but you will have a longer viewpoint. Have this understanding with you now. Look toward the ultimate goal rather than temporal ones.

Q: What if a large entity financially in this world picks on a little financial entity and unjustly forces them out of their competitive market simply by low tactics. Should one stand up and fight fire with fire or take a mild stand and be subject to defeat simply because of morality?

A: The God-knowing man always takes the high road. He is subject to the storms and trials of life. All the same, he remains in a superior attitude and position in all respects. Be not concerned, for the evil and injustice which besets you is always vanquished with light, truth and justice.

Session 39

• Truth

Lesson

Truth is powerful. The words of truth change lives and communities, nations, races, worlds. The coming of the Spirit of Truth changed your world, nurtured it through long ages to prepare the people for greater revelation. You see the response to religion which is partial truth. It is that truth within its message which creates this reaction, even if error is contained therein. There is also only partiality of perspective and guidance, truth, in our teaching also. All of the teaching short of Paradise is so. Ages are required for enlargement of concept, and your world has been well prepared for this.

Dialogue

Q: I have been asked by other people about those who claim to have experiences of past lives which we know from reading The Urantia Book cannot be true. I really don't know how to answer them in a positive manner to help lead them on instead of turning them off. Could you address that, please?

A: Yes. This is serious error in thinking. When we lament a glorious past like the supposed golden age of Adam and Eve with the subsequent fall from grace and causing the misery of men, it is looking at life as a lost potential. This is error. When we believe that past lives were lived and in better circumstances than present, this is akin to it. An error was made and reincarnation was imposed, you see, that fall from a better state, again. We should rather look at our present world as a springboard of boundless opportunity for future greatness. Potentials within are waiting to be unlocked and lived. They are not locked up and you live again. These potentials of personality power are waiting expression now. We are beginning the great adventure, not reliving the dust of the past. The images may be a forward looking potential expression from the Indwelling Spirit illuminating character possibilities and potentials, not memory.

Q: I have a question and hope I can formulate it. It is in regard to planting a seed. In my life, I have noticed that, especially over the last year since I have been introduced to The Urantia Book, what I have found in it is freedom. It brought a great peace into my life, and I found that this peace that I've found in my life I've been able to give a little bit to people I've met. I've been blessed in that I have good friends that are of different denominations or organized religious philosophies, and in these philosophies the one familiar thread is that they all are very difficult to live and feel really happy and at peace with oneself. These people, this world is full of different people, and it seems like in what I've seen is that they need a simple message of love, and that it goes a very long way. However, they are in a very tender position if their religion is at threat in any way, it throws them off balance. I'm just wondering if, when you talk about planting the seed, could it possibly be that we all of us have a responsibility to whomever we meet on life's path, that we might touch them with a simple message of love without having to think of a conversion in any way, that the seed may be planted. I know that in my life it has brought me not only peace in my own life, but as I touch lives of others, they give me back so much, it is such a rewarding thing. I'm just wondering if this might be part of our mission?

A: Yes, it is a coming of the spring in one's life, the beginning of the bearing of spiritual fruit. The warmth of the sun of love is bringing forth new growth, these tender shoots of love ministry, beauty, and truth, which are bursting forth with fragrance. These tender blossoms attract many who are drawn to this peaceful beauty and receive their comfort, hope and peace. You will always be attractive for those who are searching. You are like a great and noble tree flowering in the gentle sunshine.

Q: My heart is searching for an answer that will really help me to grasp the essence of the Christmas season, the real message, that somehow does get lost at times with all of the commercialism and all of the distress that comes along with modern day living around the seasons. I wonder if you could just address this, even briefly, just something to remind us of the true spirit of what we are celebrating.

A: This is for each person to find within, your own relationship to Michael and His coming and His next coming. Yes, all need to cultivate the soil of our hearts to receive His spirit, His words, and to look toward that distant happy horizon when He returns. [[Category: Defenses]