2000-11-06-Barnard's Platoon & The Teaching Mission
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Topic: Barnard's Platoon & The Teaching Mission
Group: Pocatello TeaM
Facilitators
Teacher: Abraham
TR: Bill K.
Session
Opening
Abraham (Bill): Good evening, my friends. I am Abraham. I am pleased to be amongst you this evening and even though you do not regularly hear from me I always feel at home in your midst.
Lesson
Reserve Corps
Your discussions tonight regarding our stalwart companion and midwayer aficionado, George Barnard, has stimulated a great deal of interest not only among yourselves, but among the Teaching Mission staff as well. Indeed have you correctly assessed the larger picture of the planetary scope of our work which has been accelerated by the fusion of George Barnard's platoon emergency ministry and the spiritual growth emphasis of the Teaching Mission. This is not the say that your only service project will be an extension of George's work, but certainly it is clearly Michael's wish that this major facet of midwayer ministry be welded together with the mission as a whole. Daniel and Minearsia and other teachers have all stated clearly that the benefit from the visit on the part of George would be a mutuality enterprise, that you would benefit and that he would benefit. Indeed we have seen this pattern ever since George began his contact with this Teaching Mission. His need for family among mortals of flesh and blood you have greatly fulfilled. He has a sense of belonging to a larger scope than was his experience before, and you have discovered a man on fire with dedication and willingness to obey the leading of God within as that is communicated to him through his platoon connections. The most important thing that has occurred has been this welding of personality interaction which has both inspired you all and has inspired our friend, George.
Indeed are you all members of the Corps of Destiny Reservists. This is not new information. I have presented this concept long ago in Woods Cross and in other settings. To be a Destiny Reservist means that you have specific job to do which you have been trained for and which comes out of your dedication and/or interest in some particular area. With George it has been to work with midwayers in emergency and high-risk situations involving other mortals. He has been instructed and directed toward being a hypnotherapist when his background in business and psychology as well as extremely high visual ability was there to support him. Each of you has your background of interest and your background of training. You are not to become replicas of George Bernard, but your reservist job will have connections with your interest and your background of life experiences. More than you perhaps have realized is it true that you have been receiving instruction in the deep mind, which George calls the delta level. You do not remember the material from the deep mind until it is needed. The ability to see in an extraordinary way is in a sense no different than the ability to hear in an extraordinary way, and in many individuals these two talents are interwoven. I suggest that for those of you who are more auditory, as is this TR, it would be to your very best interest to apply the visualization techniques which George has shared with you. The tapes which are available are very well done and will provide you with the practice format. I suggest that you use them as George's has instructed you for you will find that it will accelerate your effectiveness.
Thought Adjusters, Attunement
My friends, when we first began this Teaching Mission as a result of the adjudication of the Lucifer Rebellion, we were not simply bringing you some phantasmal, imaginary and idle past time. We were announcing a major change in reality for this planet! This reality shift continues to accelerate. You are truly standing on the edge of the most momentous moment in the history of Urantia. The critical mass is being reached in spiritual transformation.
Finally, I wish to make certain that you do not lose sight of the most important thing. The most important thing is your personal transformation. As exciting as it is to think of working in fields that are ready for harvest, in all the needs of others lives, still the most important thing remains your own growth and circle attainment. For your goal ultimately is not merely to take orders from midwayers or listen to grand soliloquies from teachers, your final goal is to hear and to voluntarily obey that voice of God within.
This voice will not come to you as an austere voice. This voice which you all have heard, but will continue to hear more and more, will come to you with overwhelming, unconditional, eternal, and changeless love of such magnitude that your mind will be unable to conceive of it. This voice , which will talk in common sense terms at times, will always be gentle, will always be truthful, and will always have the flavor of divinity. Despite the difficulties of hearing from one's Thought Adjuster that are so completely spelled out in your text, nevertheless it is also clearly stated that this is your goal as a mortal, to continue to grow spiritually until your will and the will of your Divine Monitor are perfectly aligned. Closer and closer and closer you will come. But unless you pursue this alignment and pursue it first and foremost, the other things, the service for others, will acquire egoistic stains and your effectiveness and your love will be compromised and limited. Now my friends, I say these things not because you are in danger of losing this high priority, this first value, but because it can never be repeated too often. It is the single most important thing in your entire eternal life! It is the Pearl of Great Price which is so valuable that everything else can be sold in order to purchase it. George has helped you to enlarge your perspectives of your stillness practice, of your prayer life and of your service opportunities; and while he is uncomfortable in thinking of himself as spiritual, you are of course all correct that he is a spiritual man. He is indeed another David Zebedee. He is a most treasured brother.
I believe at this time that I have concluded my remarks. I have been given the opportunity tonight to field your questions or comments. Of course all your familiar and beloved teachers are here as well. I now open this up for the floor's interaction.
Dialogue
Teacher Contact
Ken: Abraham, you made the statement in talking about George's construct here that those who are auditory seek the visual within the construct, to work on that goal. I do not consider myself auditory in the respect that I believe you referred to. What should I seek for at that point in the construct?
Abraham (Bill): Ken, my friend, I know how eagerly your pursue the goal of seeing and hearing your personal teacher. Therefore I think that in your case your goal should be two-fold. The visual goal I suggest that you continue with, and that for the desire to hear you make use of a technique which was suggested for your spouse. At the same time I will tell you something that you may not agree with initially, (I have been appraised that you have had this said to you before), so this is not 100% new this evening. You lack faith in your own hearing, my friend. That is to say, you have heard and you are similar to this TR who often doubts what he hears. I also would suggest that along the auditory lines that you attempt again to write on paper these things that enter your mind when you have dedicated your mind to the will of God. Try to suspend all judgement about what is being said as it is happening and do not read it with evaluation until you have finished a thought, a phrase, a sentence, a paragraph, etc. Then look at it afresh. Do these suggestions make sense to you?
Ken: Yes, they do, Abraham, and I do appreciate it very much and I thank you. My love to you.
Abraham (Bill): You are greatly loved, my son.
Ken: I hope so. (Laughter.)
Abraham (Bill): Indeed!
DNA, Eugenics
Virginia: Abraham, we know that from modern science that so many things are determined by the genes that we all have been born with. My question is, does George have unique genes that enable him to see and do so much more than those of us who were not born with these hereditary genes that he has had since childhood? Can we work to develop and can we work to improve where we are, or can we indeed attain what his ability seems to be?
Abraham (Bill): I am not at liberty to talk about George in the third person, but I can address your question in more general terms, and therefor hopefully satisfy its intention. Your science is indeed exploring this issue at every moment, and at the present time the evidence is mounting for what the Urantia text has declared: that there has to be the genetic foundation for a trait to be manifested. At the same time without the proper environment that trait may wither and fail to manifest in its fullness. This implies several things. Looking first at the genetic question since traits are based upon genetic foundations and traits can be rank ordered in terms of value, then it becomes conceivable that the least desirable traits could be genetically controlled in some manner or another. The traits of such things as mental illness, which has genetic determinants, antisocial personality distortions, for example, genetically caused cognitive deficits, for example, and the list could go on. As to how these lesser traits could be eliminated in the genetic structure of humanity is not something I am permitted to discuss. However we are hopeful that the genetic substructure of all traits is now beginning to be fully accepted by your scientists. The other side of the coin, the importance of environment has been a major concern of medicine, psychology, education and other related fields of human endeavor for many, many years. When it was believed that the human mind was a blank tablet upon which anything could be written, the hopes for changing the world though changing the environment were at their highest peak. It is now becoming clear that the genetic substructure must be dealt with as well.
Talent
Now as to your question as to developing a talent which you have in a certain amount, then the answer is rather obvious, is it not? If you have the substructure, the neuronal work, you have the cognitive foundation, so that practice of that particular talent will only improve its output. If you are totally lacking in a trait, then of course, there is no possibility of improvement; but most people have varying degrees of all the traits common to humanity. Some are geniuses in certain things, and a normal, average person cannot achieve genius by effort and desire only. At the same time I would hate to be heard as saying that you make an assessment of your ability and therefor decide that you should not make as effort because you do not have genius status. If you heard me say that you have totally misunderstood what I am saying. Some have ten talents; some have five; some have one, but the person who buries their talent in the ground is the loser. Every talent you possess needs to be developed; and the largest error that is being made at the present time is that people are not looking realistically at themselves and the magnitude of talents that they have. My dear Virginia, have I prodded around enough in this sensitive area to satisfy your question?
Virginia: I think that last parable said it very well. (Laughter.) I will try hard not to bury anything.
Abraham (Bill): Yes, that is exactly what I wish you to retain as it is a danger for the person who regards themselves as mediocre or average. They say, "There is little that I can do. Let the people with talent and money and influence change the world". That is great error, my friends, for in the first place you are not people of mediocre talent, and in the second place even if you were, everyone's efforts are amplified, unified and drawn together in the evolving Supreme. No one, however small they may imagine themselves to be, has no value, for you are all unique individuals. There are no duplicates in the universe of universes. Everyone's efforts, everyone's work is important.
Closing
And now, my friends, I believe that concludes that question. Are there any other pressing concerns? (Pause.) If not, then I would once again ask you to rise and hold your hands. Daniel, my friend, you have asked to lead in prayer. Please do so.
Daniel (Bill): I am Daniel. Greetings, my dear friends. Let us be in prayer.
Michael, Nebadonia, our parents, we thank you for life in your universe. We are grateful to spring from a creation so beautiful and so merciful. We thank you for the hard times as well as the easy, the downs as well as the ups because in those down times we are forced to go back to the Source that lives in each of us. We are taken back to the experience that you underwent as a mortal where you chose moment by moment to do God's will.
And so as these, my brothers and sisters, leave this meeting together, I send my blessing with them. I promise my industry to their spiritual growth. I commit my time with them to do always your will, as it is the same will as the Paradise Deities. May we all be filled with your peace and your triumphant Spirit guide us into all truth. Amen.