Tag Archives: True Self

Another Force Of Nature Speaks

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Another force of nature speaks at Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii, USA

I have listened to the forest, where God is full of life of every shape and size. I have listened to the mountain, where God is full of ancient strength. I have listened to the river, where God is restless in these swelling and ebbing currents. I have listened to the ocean, where God has said with the voice of many waters, “I have work to do.”

Another force of nature speaks

Step 75, “Today I will listen to my Self” of Steps to Knowledge, adds a force of nature for me to hear. Not the feverish little clod of grievances and ailments complaining that the world will not turn on a dime to make it happy. This is the first time the term “Greater Self” is used to describe Knowledge. This Greater Self is united with the Teachers who were introduced in Step 22, “I am surrounded by the Teachers of God.” The Teachers have been mentioned in a number of steps between Step 22 and Step 75. This is the first time the term “Spiritual Family” is mentioned. This Greater Self is united with my Spiritual Family. I am asked to listen to my True Self today.

The point of the Step is to practice listening to that True Self, not so that I can get an answer about this or that today, but to prepare myself for the moment when that True Self offers a thought, an impression, an inclination or a direction. I recall when doing this Step that my True Self was another force of nature, like the ocean or a mountain. I prepare for the day when another force of nature speaks.

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

What Could The Way To Knowledge Be Like?

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Since the name of the book is Steps to Knowledge, when I look at step 37 “There is a way to Knowledge,” I think to myself “There had darn well better be!”  It should be noted that Steps to Knowledge does not assert that it is the only way to Knowledge.

“There is a way to Knowledge. It requires skill and desire. Both will take time to develop. You must learn to value the true and not to value the false, and it takes time to learn to separate the two and to recognize them. It takes time to learn that the false does not satisfy you and that the true does satisfy you. This must be learned through trial and error and through contrast. As you approach Knowledge, your life becomes more full, more certain and more direct. As you go away from it, you reenter confusion, frustration and anger.”

Many voices claim to be that of my true self.  Are any of them right?  The practice for this step is to contemplate ways to get to Knowledge.  I wrote down about a page worth of possibilities when I did this step.  I would like to believe that some of the things I wrote down worked for someone at some time, but I don’t claim to know this.  How am I to attain to the mystery of my life?
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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

I Am The Self I Deserve (And Other Self-Esteem Issues)

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There is a grand total of 220 unique Google results for the exact phrase “I am worthy of God’s love,” which is step 24 in Steps to Knowledge.  It’s not one of those things I hear people say on a regular basis.

The top search result for this exact phrase is its presence in Steps to Knowledge.  What does this mean?  I think it means that whether this idea is true or false, whether this idea is right or wrong, Steps to Knowledge is a bold, loud and forthright proclaimer of this idea.

The first sentence of step 24 repeats the step, adding the word “indeed,” repeating the pattern of step 22.

And just when I think it’s safe to surmise that this is point of step 24, the very next sentence delivers an even more barbed point.  This point is repeated in the first paragraph.

You are indeed worthy of God’s love. In fact, you really are God’s love. Without pretense of any kind, at the very core of yourself, this is your True Self.  It is not the Self you yet experience, and until you do experience it, do not pretend that this is your experience. But hold in true awareness that this is your Self. You are a person, but you are greater than a person.  How can you be unworthy of God’s love if that is what you are? Your Teachers surround you and provide that which you are so that you may experience yourself and your true relationship with life.

This is not the first time the phrase “True Self” has appeared.  It first appeared in step 10 “What is Knowledge?” and appeared again in step 16 “Beyond my mind is Knowledge.”

The sentence “I am the self I deserve” could be punctuated in a number of ways at the end. But which way would make it the most truthful?  I am the self I deserve.  I am the self I deserve?  I believe the punctuation Steps to Knowledge offers is “I am the self I deserve!”

Google doesn’t show this exact sentence to have been written anywhere yet, but I believe it is a succinct way of saying the point of step 24:

Knowledge is the love of God, and my True Self.

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

The Unexpected Treasure

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Step 15 and Step 16 of Steps to Knowledge link to each other similar to the way Step 8 and Step 9 link to each other.  People doing Step 8 ask “Is this stillness thing important?” and Step 9 replies “Indeed yes, for in stillness all things can be known.”  People doing Step 15 ask “Is this inner listening thing important?”  Step 16 replies, “Absolutely, because beyond your mind, beyond the turbulent surface that most people identify as their minds, lies Knowledge.”

Step 16 declares that Knowledge, the great mystery of a person’s life, a person’s True Self, which is not apart from life, has things to communicate; thoughts, impressions, inclinations and direction.  As I think of this, I recall the words of King Solomon in the book of Proverbs regarding the benefits of receiving and striving after wisdom:

Then you will understand what is right and just
and fair—every good path.
For wisdom will enter your heart,
and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.
Discretion will protect you,
and understanding will guard you. (Proverbs 2:9-11, New International Version)

Near the end of what is known as the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told his disciples, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.” (Matthew 13:44, New International Version)

Many people fail to find the treasure because they are deceived by the ordinary appearance of the field in which the treasure is buried.  People wonder, “Can there be anything of value in that cacophony of restless, wandering thoughts which is my mind?”  The answer of Steps to Knowledge at this point is “Yes, but it’s going to take some practice to be able to sort it out.”

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

Thrashing And Flailing On The Turbulent Surface

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Step 2 of Steps to Knowledge is “Knowledge is with me.  Where am I?”

When I was a child, I had a world globe.  I recall the ocean portions of the globe having many small red arrows on them, describing the major ocean currents.  Between then and now, our ability to observe ocean currents has advanced significantly, as this video demonstrates.

The movement of the ocean is an analogy for the activity of the mind in the New Message from God.  At the surface of the ocean, water is moving about in every direction.  An observer at the surface would be hard pressed to prove that the water is following any specific direction.  But in the depths of the ocean, the ocean currents are much more consistent, so much so that scientists use the phrase “global conveyor belt” to describe the phenomena.

This step drops more hints as to the nature of Knowledge:

“Knowledge represents your True Self, your True Mind and your true relationships in the universe. It also possesses your greater calling in the world and a perfect utilization of your nature, all of your inherent abilities and skills, even your limitations—all to be given for good in the world.”

I take great comfort in this, as I haven’t done a very good job so far of utilizing my nature, in my opinion.  I take great comfort in this, as my limitations have been a hindrance so far in my contributing to the world, in my opinion.

The practice is to spend three 10-minute periods thinking about where I am, not just physically or geographically, but where you are in terms of my awareness of myself in the world.  My answer to the question “Knowledge is with me.  Where am I?” was “Thrashing and flailing on the surface of my mind.”

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.