LESSON 27
Above all else I want to see.
Today's idea expresses something stronger than mere determination. It gives vision priority among your desires. You may feel hesitant about using the idea, on the grounds that you are not sure you really mean it. This does not matter. The purpose of today's exercises is to bring the time when the idea will be wholly true a little nearer.
There may be a great temptation to believe that some sort of sacrifice is being asked of you when you say you want to see above all else. If you become uneasy about the lack of reservation involved, add:
Vision has no cost to anyone.
If fear of loss still persists, add further:
It can only bless.
The idea for today needs many repetitions for maximum benefit. It should be used at least every half hour, and more if possible. You might try for every fifteen or twenty minutes. It is recommended that you set a definite time interval for using the idea when you wake or shortly afterwards, and attempt to adhere to it throughout the day. It will not be difficult to do this, even if you are engaged in conversation, or otherwise occupied at the time. You can still repeat one short sentence to yourself without disturbing anything.
The real question is, how often will you remember? How much do you want today's idea to be true? Answer one of these questions, and you have answered the other. You will probably miss several applications, and perhaps quite a number. Do not be disturbed by this, but do try to keep on your schedule from then on. If only once during the day you feel that you were perfectly sincere while you were repeating today's idea, you can be sure that you have saved yourself many years of effort.
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Lesson 27
“Above all else I want to see.”
Seeing with Christ’s vision means seeing the real world. It means seeing through the eyes of Christ. It means seeing past bodies to the one Light and Love of God. It means overlooking the barriers to Love and recognizing that only Love is real. Seeing with Christ’s vision brings infinite happiness and joy. It brings healing to myself and everyone around me. When I remember this, why wouldn’t I want to make seeing with Christ’s vision my very highest priority?
Jesus tells us often in the Course that we see what we want to see. This lesson is encouraging us to want to see with Christ’s vision. As we make it our top priority, we will see with Christ’s vision. What an opportunity we all have today to give ourselves the constant suggestion that “above all else I want to see.” I want to see with Christ’s vision above all else.
This makes today a very exciting day. A day of great strides toward what is the most important thing there can be. There is nothing more important than my return to seeing with Christ’s vision. There is nothing more important to my happiness than this. There is nothing more important to my awakening than this. This is my one true function, seeing with Christ’s vision.
Through Christ’s vision I heal and am healed. I feel inspired to follow the instructions at least every half hour. I see that the benefits are huge. Seeing with Christ’s vision is really my one goal. It brings me the peace of God. It brings me deep happiness and fulfillment. It helps me see my invulnerability and everyone’s invulnerability. It helps me see past illusions to the truth. What could be more important than this? What an opportunity I have today! There is nothing more important than this.
This lesson acknowledges that right now, we may not be wholehearted in affirming that above all else we want to see. It even gives us an antidote to the fear that might come up that we might lose something we value if we make seeing through Christ vision our top priority. And it tells us that we need this affirmation to help us move toward the time when we can say it wholeheartedly, without reservation.
It is helpful to remember this supportive and understanding view that the Course holds of our process of awakening. There are many times in later Workbook lessons when it appears that the Course is expecting us to be at a level of clarity and certainty that we do not yet feel. This lesson is making it clear that Jesus is holding a view of us as we truly are, even though we may not hold that view of ourselves as yet. That is his gift to us, by seeing past our false self-images and not accepting them as true, he makes it easier for us to let them go. We do the same for our brothers when we are able to forgive and see their innocence, even when they do not see it themselves.
This lesson is very inspiring. It not only offers us a tool to set a new priority for ourselves, it supports us with gentle compassion in letting go of our fears. It holds a view of us as a holy Son of God in spite of the false images we have built in our minds and believed to be true.
It gives me a feeling of comfort and rest as I am held in the gentle, loving arms of God. I have a Friend Who sees the truth in me and Whose only function is to support me in seeing the truth in myself. “Above all else I want to see.”
This morning I woke up slightly depressed, the way I sometimes do for no particular reason. When I read today's lesson, I almost cried with plea to my Heavenly Father "yes, above all else I want to see. Please help me!"
I get so tired of being depressed, I get tired of holding resentments over petty issues, I get tired of seeing the world that I made. I can't understand why I resist giving myself entirely to what the Course is trying to tell me. Today I surrender myself and my life to my Father and ask the Holy Spirit to guide me.
I wrote today's lesson on my hand with black permanent marker because I am determined to repeat the lesson as often as I can today to remind myself that above all else I want to see.
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