After many days I come again to stand before you and to share an hour with you. There have been three Sundays during this interval of my absence—this time, from the standpoint of my own experience and that of others who were present, could be described as a period of intercession.
Amongst other roles, we have that of the intercessor to play. We might pause again to consider what that means. In the dictionary an intercessor is one who pleads for another. I don’t think we are particularly in the business of pleading for anyone, or to anyone. From the religious standpoint this pleading is usually related to God, a pleading to an intransigent deity on behalf of a miserable sinner. No such plea is necessary. Whatever is meant by the word “God” is not intransigent, but characterized rather by love and consequently mercy. To plead to God for something would indicate that one imagined that He had not already made the provision but it was necessary for a human being to cajole Him into action of some kind. It is all rather ridiculous when one stops to think about it.
From our standpoint intercession is not that. It might be said to be the means by which a connection is provided between small human affairs and the larger creative cycles established by the pulsations of the spirit of love and truth, throughout the whole universe. These pulsations have been ignored by and large by human beings, so that there has been very little connection between human affairs and cosmic affairs. Yet there has constantly been this creative movement of spirit at work throughout all that is. Nothing is gained by ignoring it, or by trying to substitute other ways of function in the human sense. This of course has been done. The result is quite apparent—quite apparent in the small individual sense and also in the larger affairs of mankind. There is evidently the need for intercession, to provide a facility for reconnecting the affairs of men with the affairs of God, the affairs of earth with the affairs of heaven.
We have some consciousness of responsibility in this regard, that once again the natural rhythms of life may be known in human experience and be reestablished in all the realms for which human beings carry right responsibility. These realms are sometimes described as nature. Nature is usually looked upon as being a pretty savage state. If one stands back from it far enough there is a great deal of beauty of course, but when closer examination is made with respect to what goes on in the field of nature it seems like there is a great deal of savagery. This may be a seeming fact; however much of it may be a wrong interpretation on the part of human minds of what is actually occurring, or it also may be a reflection of the savagery that is present in human minds and hearts. Of course usually nature is blamed for the condition of human beings, in the sense that we are supposed to have evolved out of that savage state. Therefore, having so done, we brought along a good deal of savagery with us. We are all aware that this is somehow backwards. If there is such savagery in nature, it may be largely a reflection of what is in human beings, rather than the cause of what is in human beings.
Because there has been a failure to provide the essential connection in the field of human responsibility, between the creative spirit and that field of human responsibility, then the results which have appeared are consequent upon that failure in human beings. It certainly may be very interesting to discover what might happen if instead of failure there was victory in the reexperience of the true state in human beings. What effect would that have upon nature? We have some sensing perhaps of what that might be, in a very small way, to the extent that we have assumed responsibility for some of the aspects of nature that are up against us, things with which we may deal, day by day, in our living.
I have been noticing the Unit grounds and observing the care with which these things are being taken care of. This is something very small and is really based in a rather low level of handling, shall we say; not that this may not need to be done, at least with things the way they are—we can pick up a shovel, and a rake, or push a mowing machine—but really there are other ways of handling what needs to be handled. In fact we only do pick up our shovels and push our mowing machines because of something that has happened within ourselves; otherwise we would hardly be bothered.
So whatever action is taken, in the physical sense, does originate, increasingly, in the realm of spirit. The realm of spirit however has other connections, than merely physical, with the world around us. The mental connection is included—we have to think a little bit occasionally about what should be done—and there are emotional connections too. But primarily all these areas of connection should reflect what is happening in spirit. We know this. The spirit is that of love and truth, which may easily and rightly and naturally be revealed in living; then things begin to be transformed; the reconnection is made between heaven and earth, between the invisible and the visible, between spirit and form. When there is a true connection in this regard, then the form of things can change very rapidly. It is not so much our concern that the form of things should change rapidly but that the connection should be made with spirit. Then let happen whatever rightly happens, because only when there is that connection established, provided by the intercessor, can the earth be restored to the experience of heaven.
During this period of time over the last four weeks there was considerable concern on the part of all to allow this intercessory connection to be reestablished more firmly. I don’t think the word intercession was used, but this is what it is. This is what we are individually responsible for—and it is primarily an individual matter. We can’t sit on our backsides and expect anything to happen collectively, of any value that is. It would then be mostly disintegration, wouldn’t it? So there is something to be done. “Not by great numbers of people, not certainly by political manipulation, not by force of arms, not by technology, not by money; but by My Spirit in radiance, through My Body, is My Will done,” sayeth the Supreme One who I Am. “Therefore I raise up My Body by the action of My Spirit in the lives of those who are My Servants and My Friends.” Here is a succinct statement, of the truth, as it now may be known and experienced.
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We discover that there are indeed unique aspects of this One Spirit, to be given expression individually. To the extent that we have experienced this we discover that we are in harmony with, resonating with, all those who likewise are allowing the unique differentiation of this One Spirit to occur. We always have a gauge as to how effective we are in letting this happen, by the quality of our relationships one with another. If there is friction, contention, conflict, whatever, then obviously this One Spirit is not being very effectively differentiated; something else is being superimposed, and we get into our hassles on that basis. I am sure that most of us have become rather bored with that sort of experience but have a yearning for the unified truth of this One Great Spirit in expression. But the only way it can find expression is by reason of our own individual minds and hearts and bodies.
So if it is excluded from experience at any time, who would be responsible? We recognize that it is not the other fellow, it is not the so-called enemy; who is he? It is one’s own choice, mentally and emotionally. There is One Spirit, so vast that far more than the puny numbers of the human population on earth are required to differentiate it. It is to be differentiated throughout the whole universe. Where is the problem with five billion human beings? It is nothing. Where is the problem with the few human beings who are present here in this room? Each of us is in position, rightly, to differentiate a particular unique expression of that One Spirit, when that is our total concern. If we are concerned with doing other things, of course very little of that differentiation is experienced. And because it is very little, there is much apparently to complain about. But who did it? One was responsible oneself for whatever the state of affairs is.
We have, for a long time, been seeking to take the attitude of responsibility, but all too often we don’t really accept it. We don’t really think it is valid, at least not totally so. There is somebody else somewhere who is producing our troubles, if any. What troubles do we have? What are troubles? That is an interpretation of the human mind and heart, isn’t it? It must be a false interpretation if heaven is the natural state; we wouldn’t impose troubles upon heaven. We might be aware that there is a creative process and that we are concerned with allowing proper integration to occur. We allow this to occur as we ourselves differentiate the One Spirit. Then it is all integrated. That is the way it is integrated. We don’t have to go around trying to integrate things, merely allow this One Spirit to be differentiated in our own experience, moment by moment. As we do this, then there is the power of integration—the fact of integration being made evident. The fact of integration, insofar as human beings are concerned, has been obscured; it has been hidden. By whom? Well, by us. But it is a fact which may be as easily revealed as hidden. It seems rather foolish to hide it, because then we have what we call troubles. If we reveal the fact of it, then nothing that occurs could be defined as trouble. It is all part of the process by which the fact of integration emerges into increased form.
So we stop interpreting things as troubles, just as we stop interpreting the idea of savagery in nature. There is a creative process. We recognize that there is disintegration as well as integration. But disintegration is all right too. Because of human behavior, the necessity for disintegration has come to be out of balance; therefore it appears to be a painful business. If there is an intercessor on hand, there is the facility by which integration more easily occurs, or is brought into form—the fact of it revealed. There is also an ease in the matter of disintegration. There is nothing bad about disintegration; it is a part of the creative process. It has become seemingly bad because human beings have not been on hand to provide the connection with the true creative process.
Disintegration can be an easy experience, and rightly is, when the intercessor is on hand. We all are aware that there are things within our own makeup that rightly should be dissolved; they don’t belong. They are obscuring the fact of integration, the fact of oneness, the fact of love, the fact of beauty. So there is nothing wrong with dissolving these things, or letting them be dissolved. Are we going to make that dissolution tough in our own experience, or are we going to let it be easy? If we let it be easy, then the door is open for it to be easy with other people. If no one lets it be easy, then it is tough for everybody. But once there is the assumption of responsibility on the part of individual people to unveil the truth of oneness, then all that stands in the way of revealing that truth easily dissolves. It is no longer a tough experience.
So let us see this as it relates to our own personal responsibility in handling our affairs. Our concern is with integration, that all things should come together. That happens as the truth is unveiled in our own expression, the beauty of spirit differentiated in our own living. That carries a certain quality, doesn’t it? The quality of character, we might call it. We find ourselves as substantial people, because we have this quality and weight of character. Because of that, because of our very presence, the influence is exerted upon others—an invitation extended—to share this. You will find that as this quality is really there others are quite willing to share it, at least those who come around. We are aware that those who do come around are the ones who presumably should come around. All this is working because of this creative process. It certainly isn’t necessary to go around beating the bushes, so to speak, trying to flush out people. That only seems to be necessary if the integrative factor is not present in our own living. Then it seems that nothing is happening, so we had better get out there and do something. But when the integrative factor is present in our own living, integration occurs. And part of the creative process in this bringing together attracts those who should be participating in the process—presumably everybody eventually. We also recognize disintegration occurs as well. But, for the moment, integration: to make it easy for others to become aware of the fact that their mode of existence heretofore has been hiding the truth, so that they do not know what that is.
People have mind-sets. They function in certain ways according to the particular field of their operations. We might say that scientists think in a certain way; politicians think in another way; and all the various classifications of people think, according to their classifications, in certain ways. Most of us have various classifications, and we think in a certain way with respect to this aspect and in another way with respect to that aspect. There is a good deal of mix-up, and it is not surprising that people find themselves confused at times. We are concerned with letting all that dissolve. That is part of the disintegrative process. If one has a certain mind-set, one is wedded to a certain way of looking at things, and it is suggested that perhaps it might be wise to relax one’s grip, the individual may be inclined to grip even more strongly, partly because of fear. This is one of the things that causes a person to have a sense of security: his mind is set; he thinks he knows. It is a habit for human beings to think they know what should be done. That is a resistant element insofar as the unveiling of the process of integration is concerned. And the stronger one’s grip, the more painful it is to have whatever it is one is gripping taken away. It will be taken away. But if you have a grip on it—it is passing away; it is part of the disintegration then—you will go with it.
So we help people to relax. It is one of the factors, isn’t it? It may be that in our associations with people we cannot say things directly. But on the other hand, in these days it is a lot easier to say things directly, and the old fears in this regard can dissolve a little. I think one of the hesitancies in this field has been the idea that one was trying to convert somebody to something and we don’t want to appear to do that. Well we need not appear to do that. What we have to say is just simply sensible in the situation as it is; and the things that human beings have been doing are not very sensible.
One has to be a little careful in approaching something in which a person has had faith for many years—a certain expectation that by working at it one will find the answer. If a person is very much wedded to the process of finding an answer that way there will be a certain reluctance to relinquish it. Very often a person will say, having described what his mind-set is, “What would you do if you were in this situation?” The answer to that is, “I am not in that situation,” and probably, “I would not put myself in that situation! because I know that following out those mind-sets there isn’t any answer. But look at this. Consider.”
We need to be in position to provide, in a context of whatever it is that we are considering with that person, what is necessary to allow participation in the creative process—in other words there is something moving already. We had better be aligned with that. If we are not aligned with that, there is no answer. Ultimately that is the point. One has to approach it delicately. But it doesn’t mean selling some sort of a doctrine. It is just awakening people to a little intelligence. It is a matter of what is sometimes called common sense. It is a practical thing that relates to every sphere of human function. There is no area where we cannot go and provide what is necessary. Did you ever consider that? There is lots of expertise around, but expertise, no matter what it is, will never find an answer. Oh yes, to the little field in which the expertise is being applied, perhaps some so-called problem can seemingly be solved. But the human dilemma remains.
Not by technology, not by money, not by political manipulation, not by numbers of people, not by force of arms… Well you can add to that list considerably if you want to. Whatever it is that comes up—not by that, but by My Spirit, by that awareness of how things work. I think many of those who have had such an awareness, without fully realizing how much, have been reluctant to have faith in it. Faith has customarily been given to the field of human manipulation: We can manipulate ourselves into an improved condition, a better state. But everybody has been consistently manipulating themselves into the grave. That is what actually happens. Oh, this is part of the savagery of nature. Is it really? Or is it a self-imposed death sentence? We have an awareness of these things, of the truth. Let us accept assurance in it, so we don’t have so much faith in the various forms of manipulation. These will wreck us in the end. “The truth is true and all is well, unconquerable life prevails.” That rolls off the tongue rather nicely and easily, doesn’t it? But what is the fact of our own experience?
So we share the opportunity, now in this moment, as in every moment, to participate in the creative process which is at work. It is at work, separating the sheep from the goats, as they say, unveiling what is true, disintegrating what isn’t. It is all coming to point. It is all coming to point because there is a point, because there are those who are letting it come to point individually in their own experience—you amongst them. But it is an individual matter. Only when it is that does it become a collective matter. It is our individual quality and weight of character that counts. Here is substance, the substance which then is revealed as being the substance of something larger than the individual, the substance of a Body. And the creative action that occurs through that Body is then a forceful factor in bringing to pass the integration and the disintegration that enable mankind, and all for which mankind is responsible, to be restored into the ongoing creative process which characterizes the whole universe.
There is no greater delight or joy or satisfaction than to let this happen in one’s own experience, and part of letting it happen is the invitation to others to share in it. We don’t go to others and say, “Well you must share in this.” No, nothing so brash. We just provide what it is that the individual may share in. And we will find that those who are open to share in it will come and share in it. That is all. And we must provide the space; otherwise it won’t happen. But it happens easily that way. Surely we are most thankful for the patient and understanding training that we have all had to allow this to be so. Let us not fail to acknowledge the truth of this in our own living. So may, indeed, all things most easily be made new.
