In My Defenselessness My Safety Lies.
1. You who feel threatened by this ever-changing world, by its turns of fortune and its bitter ironies, by fleeting relationships and by all the “gifts” it lends only to take back again, pay close attention to this lesson.
²The world provides no safety.
³It is rooted in attack, and all its “gifts,” which seem to offer you security, are but deceptions.
⁴The world attacks relentlessly, again and again.
⁵There can be no peace of mind where danger lies so close.
2. The world makes you inevitably defensive.
²For to feel threatened leads to anger, and anger makes attack seem justified and reasonable in the name of self-defense.
³But a defensive posture carries a double threat.
⁴For it bears witness to your weakness and sets up a system of defenses that cannot work.
⁵Thus, the weak are made even weaker—betrayed without, and even more betrayed within.
⁶The mind becomes confused, no longer knowing where to turn to escape what it imagines.
3. It is as if the mind were trapped within a circle surrounding it, chained to another inside, and still another further in, until all hope of escape or release is lost.
²The mind’s hours and days go by in endless cycles of attack and defense, defense and attack, which press upon it like heavy bands of reinforced steel that yield only to begin again.
³There seems to be no pause nor end to the tightening grip that binds the mind.
4. The cost of defenses is the greatest price the ego demands.
²Madness hides within defenses in a darkness so deep that the hope of sanity appears to be a vain and impossible dream.
³The sense of threat the world promotes is so intense, and of such frenzy and depth, that you cannot even imagine the devastation it has wrought within your mind.
⁴You are its slave.
⁵You do not know what you do because of the fear you have of it. I
⁶You do not understand how great a sacrifice it has demanded of you to feel its iron grip upon your heart.
5. You do not see how deeply your defensive posture has sabotaged the holy Peace of God.
²For you are looking upon the very Son of God as victim to the attacks of fantasies, dreams, and illusions he himself has made.
³Yet he sees himself defenseless against them and must defend himself with still more dreams and illusions of safety to comfort him.
6. Defenselessness is strength. II
²Your defenselessness bears witness that you have recognized the Christ in you. III
³You may recall the Text of this Course teaches that you always choose between the strength of Christ and your own weakness when you see yourself as separate from Him. IV
⁴Defenselessness can never be attacked, because it recognizes a strength so great that attack is folly, or a childish game a tired child might play when he has fallen asleep and forgotten what he wants.
7. A defensive posture is a sign of weakness.
²It proclaims you have denied the Christ and are afraid of God’s just wrath.
³What can now save you from your delusions of an angry god, whose terrifying image you believe you see in all the evils of the world?
⁴And how can you defend yourself except with illusions, when it is but illusions that you fight?
8. Today we will not play such childish games, for our true purpose is to save the world, and we will not trade the infinite joy our function brings for foolishness.
²We will not lose our happiness because a fragment of a senseless dream crosses our mind and we confuse the figures in it with the Son of God, and that fleeting dream with eternity.
9. Today we look beyond all dreams and recognize we need no defense because we have been created invulnerable, with no thoughts, desires, or dreams in which attack can find a foothold.
²Now we cannot fear, for we have left behind all fearful thoughts.
³And in defenselessness we stand protected, with the quiet assurance that we are safe, certain of salvation, and fully confident that we will fulfill the purpose we have chosen, as our ministry extends its holy blessing over the world.
10. Be still a moment and contemplate how holy is your purpose, how secure you rest, invulnerable in the light of your defenselessness.
²The ministers of God have chosen that truth dwell with them. V
³Who could be holier than they?
⁴Who could be more certain that his happiness is fully guaranteed?
⁵And who could feel more powerfully protected?
⁶What defenses could they need now, who are among God’s chosen?
⁷For that was His Will, and now it is theirs as well. VI
11. The function of God’s ministers is to help their brothers make the same choice they have made.
²God has chosen all, but few recognize that His Will is also theirs. VII
³And until you teach what you have learned, salvation waits, and darkness keeps the world in its grim imprisonment.
⁴Nor will you recognize the light that has already come to you, or know that your release is fully accomplished.
⁵For you will not see the light until you offer it to all your brothers.
⁶When they receive it from your hands, you will recognize that it is your own.
12. Think of salvation as a game that happy children play.
²It was designed by One Who loves His Sons and wants to take away their fearful toys and give them joyful games instead, games that teach them the game of fear is over.
³His game instructs in happiness because in it no one loses.
⁴All who play will win, and what they win is shared with everyone who played.
⁵The children gladly drop the game of fear when they perceive the benefits salvation brings.
13. You who have played at losing all hope, at being abandoned by your Father, and at believing He has left you alone and terrified in a fearful world, crazed by sin and guilt, rejoice now.
²That game is over.
³A time of quiet has now come, in which we lay aside the toys of guilt and put away forever the quaint and childish thoughts of sin from the pure and holy minds of Heaven’s children and the Son of God.
14. We pause but for a moment more to play our final happy game upon this earth.
²And then we go to take our rightful place where truth abides, and games are meaningless.
³And so the story ends.
⁴Let this day bring nearer the final chapter in the world’s long tale, that all may learn the tales they read of a terrifying destiny, of broken hopes, of pitiful defenses against a vengeance they cannot escape, are but their own deluded fantasies.
⁵The ministers of God have come to waken them from the dark dreams this story has evoked in their confused, bewildered memory of that distorted tale.
⁶At last, the Son of God can smile, realizing it was not true.
15. Today we practice in a form we will maintain for quite some time. VIII
²We begin each day by giving our attention to the thought for the day as long as possible.
³Five minutes is the least we give to prepare ourselves for a day in which salvation is our only goal.
⁴Ten would be better, and fifteen better still.
⁵As distractions cease to hold our interest, a half hour will seem too short a time to spend with God.
⁶And we will be grateful and filled with joy each evening that we gave Him more, rather than thinking we gave too little.
16. Our peace increases with each hourly remembrance of the Will we share with God.
²Sometimes only a minute, or even less, will be the most we can afford when the hour comes.
³At other times we may forget.
⁴And still other times the business of the world will close upon us, and we will be unable to withdraw our minds from worldly things to turn to God.
17. Yet whenever we can, we will remember our commitment as ministers of God
2And we will quietly sit and wait for Him and listen to His Voice, and hear what He would have us do the hour that follows, while we give thanks for all the gifts He gave us in the one before.
18. With time and practice, you will never cease to think of Him, and hear His loving Voice guide your footsteps on quiet paths where you will walk in true defenselessness, knowing Heaven goes with you.
²You will not let your mind depart from God even for an instant, though time is spent in offering salvation to the world.
³Do you believe He will not make this possible for you, who chose to carry out His plan for the salvation of the world and yours?
19. Our theme today is our defenselessness.
²We clothe ourselves in it as we prepare to face the day.
³We rise up strong in Christ, and let our weakness disappear as we remember that His Strength abides in us. IX
⁴Throughout the day we will remind ourselves that He remains beside us, and that His Strength upholds our weakness always.
⁵And we will call on it whenever we feel the temptation to defend ourselves is undermining our certainty of purpose.
⁶Then we will pause a moment and hear Him say: “I am here.”
20. Your practicing will now begin to take the fervor of Love, to help you turn your mind away from distraction.
²Do not be afraid or hesitant. X
³There is no doubt you will attain your final goal.
⁴The ministers of God can never fail, because the Love, the strength, and peace that shine from them to all their brothers come from Him.
⁵These are His Gifts to you.
⁶All He asks in return is your defenselessness.
⁷Just lay aside what never was real, so you may behold the Christ in you and see His sinlessness.
I Luke 23:34 “Then Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.’”
II There is no force more powerful in the universe than that which comes from peace, and every sense of weakness arises from fear. Cease to fear and you will be strong.
Do you know anyone stronger than Jesus, whose strength was omnipotent? Do you know anyone more peaceful than he? His life is the testimony that the words you are reading are true. His defenselessness changed the world and drew multitudes who multiplied over time, proclaiming his message: “The Kingdom of God is within you, and the Son of God is innocent.” It was a new idea in a world suffering from fear and guilt, breaking through the history of mankind’s dream. Would you not like to take part in that work? It is easy: believe in him, follow his teachings, and you will acquire his very attributes. He is your brother, he is like you, and then as now he does nothing but remind you of this. Jesus is the epitome of defenselessness, the living proof that meekness is but another word for strength.
Look at the world around you. Wherever you see many flags, you will know there is much fear. Wrapping yourself in a flag is to proclaim that you are afraid because you do not know who you are and desperately need someone to lend you a false identity. Then, without a doubt, you will have many enemies whom you feel threaten you and from whom you must defend yourself. Fear and hatred are two sides of the same coin that will lead you steadily toward disaster.
Breathe; you are not that. Your fears are imaginings you entertain in your mind, with which you frighten yourself and make your dream still deeper. That is not the way; that is not the path to your awakening. Defenselessness is.
Do not be afraid; trust. It has already been clearly explained to you who you truly are and what your condition is. You dream that you are in time, but you are in the Heart of God in eternity. Still, as long as you believe in your perception, believe also that what serves you best is not to build defenses that only strengthen your fears.
Perhaps now you find yourself too afraid to embrace this idea wholeheartedly. Do not worry. Begin with simple things. Start by letting go of your smaller fears, and little by little you will learn to release your greater ones as well. In the world you can hold only beliefs; therefore, you will have to rely on them to strengthen your faith.
Trust is built through achievements, which will make evident that your beliefs are aligned with truth. It is only a matter of willingness and honesty in your practice. Always tell yourself the truth. Look with clear eyes at your mind, your heart, and your behavior.
Do not deceive yourself. This will be enough to make you realize that, when you practice the teachings of this Course well, your life in this world improves. And do not be afraid to see that you often make mistakes and fall back. That does not matter in the least. It only causes you to lose time, but perhaps it will help you rise again and walk your path with greater determination.
III You are very fortunate. Be aware of it. You have begun a journey hand in hand with the best teacher possible. Jesus walks beside you and asks that you not defend yourself. Listen to him, and you will find that not responding to the attacks you now perceive makes you stronger. Soon you will learn that, in truth, you are not being attacked; you are merely surrounded by frightened brothers who, in their terror, are desperately asking you for help in the only way they know. You are their only hope. Do not abandon them. When they see your strength, they will learn to relinquish their own fears and build theirs as well.
There is nothing a human being longs for more deeply than to know that he is accepted just as he is. Accept your brothers as they are, and have no doubt whatsoever that no one—absolutely no one—will be able to defend themselves against your acceptance and love. It is impossible to resist the irresistible power of feeling accepted and loved. All those whom you accept and love will follow you unconditionally. You will have a new student who will offer you the opportunity to learn for yourself all that you teach him.
The destiny that awaits you lies far beyond anything you can imagine. You need only your faith to set forth on the way. You are infinitely fortunate to be given the perfect key to escape the sinister labyrinth of the world, which ends in a fictitious death. Do not defend yourself, and turn often to inner silence to strengthen your resolve. You need do nothing more.
IV T-31.IX.2:3: “You always choose between your weakness and the strength of Christ in you.”
2 Corinthians 12:9 “And he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will most gladly boast in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
V The term “ministers of God” is used only in this lesson and the next, and there only in the idea for the day. The term “ministry” is also mentioned in Lessons 106, 151, and 157. This lesson emphasizes that the ministers of God have been entrusted with the mission of awakening their brothers, which they accomplish by extending to them “the love, the strength, and the peace” of God (20:4). The following lesson stresses that the ministers of God are the “messengers” of God, who first accept His messages for themselves, that they may then “give them everywhere they were intended to be given” (W-154.6:3).
VI Psalm 105:6 “O offspring of Abraham His servant, children of Jacob, His chosen ones!”
Luke 18:7 “And will not God vindicate His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day and night?”
VII Matthew 20:16 “So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few are chosen.”
T-3.VIII.18.2 “‘Many are called, but few are chosen.’ SHOULD be: ‘ALL are called, but few choose to listen.’”
VIII We will practice in this way for forty-eight lessons, until the beginning of the Sixth Review at Lesson 201. This form includes one long session in the morning, considering the idea for the day, and each hour a brief moment in which we remember the idea, thank God for His gifts in the past hour, and ask His guidance for the next. At night, we again consider the idea for the day or simply rest in God.
IX 1 John 3:24 “And he who keeps His commandment abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit which He has given us.”
Ephesians 6:10–11 “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” The Course gives its own turn to the image: instead of putting on armor, you are clothing yourself in defenselessness.
X John 6:20 “But He said to them, ‘It is I; do not be afraid.’”
Matthew 14:27 “But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Take heart; it is I; do not be afraid.’”