ACIM Manual for Teachers - Section 9
Changes are required in the minds of God's teachers. This may or may
not involve changes in the external situation. Remember that no one is
where he is by accident, and chance plays no part in God's plan. It is most
unlikely that changes in attitudes would not be the first step in the newly
made teacher of God's training. There is, however, no set pattern, since
training is always highly individualized. There are those who are called
upon to change their life situation almost immediately, but these are
generally special cases. By far the majority are given a slowly evolving
training program, in which as many previous mistakes as possible are
corrected. Relationships in particular must be properly perceived, and all
dark cornerstones of unforgiveness removed. Otherwise the old thought
system still has a basis for return.
As the teacher of God advances in his training, he learns one lesson with increasing thoroughness. He does not make his own decisions; he asks his Teacher for His answer, and it is this he follows as his guide for action. This becomes easier and easier, as the teacher of God learns to give up his own judgment. The giving up of judgment, the obvious prerequisite for hearing God's Voice, is usually a fairly slow process, not because it is difficult, but because it is apt to be perceived as personally insulting. The world's training is directed toward achieving a goal in direct opposition to that of our curriculum. The world trains for reliance on one's judgment as the criterion for maturity and strength. Our curriculum trains for the relinquishment of judgment as the necessary condition of salvation.
