Greetings All -
ON THREE SEPARATE OCCASIONS TODAY, practice listening to another. Listen without evaluation and without judgment. Listen without your mind being distracted by anything else. Simply listen. Practice with three different individuals today. Practice listening. Be still when you listen. Attempt to hear beyond their words. Attempt to look beyond their appearance. Do not project images upon them. Just listen.
PRACTICE TODAY LISTENING TO ANOTHER. Do not become engaged with what they are saying. You need not respond inappropriately to them, if they are speaking directly to you, in order to practice with them. You will be engaging your whole mind in your conversation. Take time, then, to practice listening without speaking. Allow others to express themselves to you. You will find that they have a greater communication for you than you might at first have anticipated. You do not need to figure this out. Simply practice listening today so that you may hear the presence of Knowledge.
PRACTICE 64: Three practice periods.
Listening, yes, it can be learned.
Yesterday: Step 63 - Review
From the Journal: My review was six pages, much of which is excerpts from the text of the Steps. Writing things out long hand is a memory technique from school. A few excerpts:
Step 58 - Knowledge mst be felt/experienced. Monday, the day of this exercise ws productive - have I sensed Knowledge/did I/do I? - I have - but that aspect of spirit - I just don't know it by that name. I do Know Spirit and have experienced it deeply.
Step 59 - "Think of your life in terms of long-term development, not in terms of immediate sensation & gain." I was to "become objective" about my abilities & circumstances. Patience for me is and has been a continuing lesson - I have my own guide for this in SNP.
Step 60 - Not judging the world is an ACIM lesson. It still needs repetition. S2K text is more clear on the difference between discernment/judgement as opposed to judgement/judgement.
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[A thought that came up at that time of this review.]
Mythology is better than science because it is stories that have a beginning, a middle and an end. Science however is always the most current batch of theories, all of which will be replaced in the futuree. At best a scientific theory is in the middle and solid enough that design criteria can be based on it. Even when a theory is bypassed, designs based on it will continue to work - since action is independent of thought.
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Step 60 - a different perspective is given on judgement. Knowledge represents a greater judgement, but it is very different from your own, for it is not born of fear."
The narrative says, "The world does not need blame. It needs service. It needs truth. And above all, it needs Knowledge." For me, I responded to this description by seeing the world as a hurt child.
Step 61 "If you are present to love, then you will be present to the world And love will speak through you."
Step 62 - If I am present to the world, to life, to God, to myself, I will be able to hear the world, life, God and myself. Lots of listening to be done. It is done to develop "a faculty of mind that will be necessary for you to be able to give and to receive the greatness of Knowledge."
I am greater than my emotions. The world is a place to cultivate Knowledge. Knowledge comes from relationships - my relationship with my self is a Knowledge feeling.
5:10 p.m. End of review - I remain a student who wishes to learn.
Note
that on this page I wrote: "For lo, I am with you always." My memory
from what is Matthew 28:20 (KJ21) "...teaching them to observe all
things whatsoever I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always,
even unto the end of the world.” Amen.
There
is a good correlation between the thoughts in the New and Old
Testaments, and Steps to Knowledge/The New Message from God. For me this
provides confirmation.
NNC
