Steps to Knowledge: My Practice

Step 104. God Knows More About Me Than I Do. God does know more about you than you do. That must be obvious if you have considered yourself honestly. And yet, consider the implications of this. If God knows more about you than you do, then would not God’s evaluation be something that you would want to learn to investigate? Of course it would. And would not your evaluations of yourself be necessarily in error? In this alone you have sinned, for sin is only error. Error calls for correction, not condemnation. You would condemn yourself and think that God would then follow your example and render to you a greater condemnation. That is why people have made God in their image, and that is why you must unlearn what you have made, so that you may find what you know and so that your creations in this world may be for good and have lasting value. God knows more about you than you do. Do not pretend you can create yourself, for you have already been created and that which has been genu...

Step 103. I Am Honored By God. You are honored by God, and yet this statement can inflame your sense of uncertainty, arouse your sense of guilt, confuse your sense of pride and stimulate all manner of conflict that actually exists within you now. In the past you have attempted to be something unreal, and it has failed you. Now you are afraid to be anything for fear that failure will pursue you once again. Thus, greatness appears to be littleness and littleness appears to be greatness, and all things are seen backwards or reversed from their true meaning. You are honored by God whether you can accept this or not. It is true regardless of human evaluation, for only things that are beyond evaluation are true. We are taking you to that which is beyond evaluation, which will be the greatest discovery possible in this life or in any life. Upon the hour repeat this statement and consider it seriously. In your two practice periods, allow your mind once again to be still and recepti...

Unlearning is Hard to Do Step 102. There Is Much I Must Unlearn. Your life is full of your own necessities and ideas, full of your own requirements and ambitions, full of your own fears and full of your own complications. Thus, your vehicle for giving is burdened and cluttered, and your energy is largely misappropriated. That is why it is God’s first step to unburden you. Until this happens you will simply attempt to resolve your situation without knowing what to do, without understanding your predicament and without accepting the assistance that you will surely need in time. Therefore, accept your unlearning, for it will unburden you and give you reassurance that a greater life is possible and inevitable for you who have come here to give. Upon the hour repeat this statement and consider it. View its reality in terms of your perception of the world. In your two longer practice periods, once again practice mental stillness in silence, where nothing is attempted and where no...

"Wonder what the World has in store for us Sam?..."  Step 101. The World Needs Me, But I Will Wait. Why wait when the world needs you? Does this not seem inconsistent with the teaching that we are presenting? It is actually not inconsistent at all, if you understand its meaning. Since the world needs you, waiting would seem to be an injustice and an irresponsibility. Is this not inconsistent with what we are teaching? No, it is not inconsistent if you understand its meaning. If you have seriously considered what we have given you thus far in your preparation, you will realize that on its own, Knowledge within you will respond to the world, and you will feel moved to give in certain places and not moved to give in others. This great response within you will not be born of personal weakness, personal insecurity or the need for acceptance or recognition. It will not be a form of avoidance or guilt. In fact, it will have nothing to do with you at all. That is why it i...

Step 100. Today I Am A Beginning Student Of Knowledge. You are a beginning student of Knowledge. Accept this starting place. Do not claim more for yourself, for you do not understand the road to Knowledge. On the road to greater assumptions you may have garnered great rewards for yourself, but that leads in another direction from the road to Knowledge, where all things that are unreal are relinquished and all things that are genuine are embraced. The road to Knowledge is not a road that people have imagined for themselves, for it is not born of imagination. Therefore, be a beginning student of Knowledge. Upon the hour repeat this statement and give it serious consideration. Regardless of your view of yourself, whether it is exalted or diminished, no matter what you have done before, no matter what you consider your accomplishments to be, you are a beginning student of Knowledge. As a beginning student you will want to learn everything that can be learned, and you will not hav...

Angel wings over Uzhgorod, Ukraine. A sign that the heavens wish peace for this war-torn country? Step 99. I Will Not Blame The World Today. Today practice not blaming the world, not judging its obvious errors and not claiming or giving responsibility to others for these errors as well. Look on the world silently. Allow your mind to be still. Practice this upon the hour and view the world with your eyes open. In your two longer practice periods, also practice with eyes open looking upon the world. It does not matter what you look at, for it is all the same. Your concentration today will be to look without judgment, for this will develop your real faculties of mind. Therefore, in your practice periods, practice looking with your eyes open, looking without judging. Look about your immediate environment. Look only upon things that are actually there. Do not engage in imagination. Do not let your thoughts wander to the past or to the future. Witness only what is there. As thou...

The Primacy of Humility Step 98. Review In your review once again review all of the instructions of the lessons and everything that you have experienced thus far in the past week of practice. Honestly evaluate your engagement with these lessons and recognize what they have yielded for you in terms of understanding. Try to be very fair in your assessment. Remember that you are a student. Do not claim that you have realized more than you have actually experienced. The simplicity of this approach may seem obvious, but for many people it is very difficult to achieve, for they are so used to thinking that they have more than they have or less than they have that it is very difficult for them to assess their actual circumstances even though their circumstances are quite obvious. In your one long practice period, then, review your lessons and consider each one in depth, recalling your activity with them on the day that they were given and your understanding of them at this momen...

Step 97. I Do Not Know What Fulfillment Is. Is this statement an admission of weakness? Is it a resignation to hopelessness? No, it is not. It is the beginning of true honesty. When you realize how little you understand and yet realize at the same time the great offer of Knowledge that is available to you, only then will you seize upon this opportunity with great encouragement and dedication. You can only imagine fulfillment, but within you the Knowledge of fulfillment lives and burns. This is a fire that you cannot put out. This is a fire that exists within you now. This represents your greater yearning for fulfillment, for union and for contribution. Far beneath all of your hopes and fears, beneath your plans and ambitions, this fire is burning now. Relinquish, then, your ideas concerning fulfillment, but do not be hopeless, for you are placing yourself in a position to receive the gifts that are intended for you. You have brought these gifts with you into the world. They are...