Lesson 141: “Review:  “My mind holds only what I think with God.”  “Forgiveness is the key to happiness.”  “Forgiveness offers everything I want.”

Forgiveness is the key to happiness and we need to start with forgiveness first.

Happiness may seem like an easy task because it seems like one we would have enthusiasm for reaching it, as it is a desirable state.

However, we must absolutely clear the board within our minds.  

If we have a list of grievances in our minds, there will be a full list and no room for anything else but the anger and resentment. 

The grievances are all blocking the flow of energy as well as they are blocks to love’s presence and to God. 

Therefore, we absolutely must begin with forgiveness.

We will simply have no luck at all being happy when our minds are filled to the max with conflict and attack thoughts.  

This is where we totally have to stop in our tracks and not try to move forward until we are clear within.

Our minds being full of grievances is exactly the culprit in the lack of progression forward to our peace of minds when we let that part of our minds rant and rave. 

We are asked to listen if we feel like we need to be heard.

There are occasions when it helps to be a witness to whatever we are feeling.

But when we do, try to come with a neutral heart and just listen. 

Then, we let ourselves embrace that essential voice, this helps us come to greater resolution about whatever we we feel.

However, a good many other times, we may want to face the grievances with a simple letting them go quickly and not stewing over them. 

The ego likes to regurgitate the pain and this is why sometimes the ego runs full speed ahead when it comes to wanting to replay grievances- to feel every nuance so we can just stay fixed in the pain that doesn’t move.

We are invited to get to the initial step of forgiveness or we will likely never get to happiness.

We must keep a part of our minds still always carrying on our forgiveness practice constantly because there are constantly ego upsets about whatever we see. 

Therefore, we can count on the ego’s presence.

The Course reminds us that when we allow our first thought to be forgiveness and part of every thought after that, then we will get to that sweet place of arriving at love. 

When we give all of our grievances to God’s altar with a sweet sendoff of utter serenity, then we can actually get to the place of our happiest wildest dreams because we feel so good. 

Forgiveness opens the door to God’s love and allows us to fill ourselves up with God’s perfect presence, which, then, we feel as the lightest happiness because there is now nothing holding us down with the heavy weight of grievances. 

Then, we then have the freedom to smile indeed.