Lesson 237: “What is salvation?”  “Now would I be as God created me.”

This lesson says, “I behold the world that Christ would have me see, aware it ends the bitter dream of death; aware that it is my Father’s call to me.”  

This word “behold” is a perfect descriptor for the relationship with the world that God wills for us.

To behold means “to observe a thing or person, especially an impressive one.”  

The Course teaches how to see the world with wonder. 

We usually see the ego’s enslaved masses on the earth and we consistently discover all the hassles these people see.  We make the world a place we are imprisoned because the ego shackles us.

We always observe suffering in the world because the ego floods us constantly with sharp blades that get thrust into our consciousness.  We suffer because the ego thrives on vengeance.

The world never seems to be a place we like when we listen to the ego, nor do we want to be there.

The ego has this unstable personality- of being both really attached to the world and upset over what happens there as well as also avoiding the world because of being anxious about what we will find there.

The ego is always trying to get out of what it finds as the insane experience of itself in the world. 

The ego is always trying to self sabotage because it is too confused to function otherwise.  We never relax and sit back and look forward to the world.

The Course is teaching us how to see the world totally differently.

We want to face the world with a heart of forgiveness. 

We want to start our days in the world with a forgiving mind.  Then we can bring this with us to each and every stop in our days.  Forgiveness is what allows us to get the ego out of this place of top notch controller in our minds.

The ego is always trying to make war with what we see in the world and therefore, we can never embrace it and then end up with a happy dream. 

What we must do is forgive everything we don’t understand and forgive anything we resist.  

The ego tries to force us to behave in certain ways as responses because we are angry and miserable.  The ego always causes us to make the world our enemies because the ego likes to wage war.  The Course says the world is something we can do with God.

We must do the world with God if we are to be happy and at peace there. 

The world is a confusing place and full of pitfalls when the ego is on board.

When we choose God, then the world becomes a place with rainbows and happy endings and laughing children and quiet restful days with peaceful hearts.

The Course reminds us that the world actually changes when we approach living in the world with God. 

This can seem like such a far fetched fantasy that we have trouble even grasping this possibility.  The Course teaches us that our minds are the creators of what we see.  We project out our thinking and reflect there what is in our minds.  This is why when we allow God to be our guide and source, then we create a totally new world with the energy of God within us and without us.

The amazing thing is that the world becomes God’s playground. 

Everything becomes a joy and an inspiration to encounter.  We start to feel satisfied all the time and grateful even when we are not sure what may be unknown outcomes.

Everything becomes an incredible gift as it is God’s purpose that we extend and exude.

The Course reminds us that the world actually becomes this incredible ground of transformation because our minds are elevated knowing God provides us with this wonderful arena we have to learn to be a God-centered person.  

The world becomes the place where peace comes easily because God wills it and we share it.

Then we start to truly manifest the happy dream because we allow our minds to see the world through the energy of God.