In My Defenselessness My Safety Lies vs. Getting My Ass Kicked | ACIM Lesson 153

Lesson 153 in the Workbook of A Course in Miracles is,

“In my defenselessness my safety lies.”

W-pI.153

It is one of those ideas that is akin to throwing gasoline on the fire of the ego-mind’s already suspicious “logic” – causing reactions like, “So the Course is saying we should just let ourselves be attacked, hurt, maimed, abused, or killed in order to be good? Well f*ck that!”

Seriously, what kind of God would ask that of his beloved kids? 

Hmmmm… would that be the same God who would send his only Son into the world to be tortured, beaten, crucified and basically killed because He loves us and wants to save us from being guilty sinners?

That version of an angry, wrathful, vengeful, mean-ass god (with a small g) that would treat his creations in such an unloving way is not my God. Nor is it the God of A Course in Miracles. It is a projection made up by the mind of the ego – just as this illusory world is – to cause us to feel guilty and fearful so it can gain our allegiance and be the boss of us.

So, no. “In my defenselessness my safety lies” does not mean God wants you to get your ass kicked..

What this lesson is actually teaching is the same thing we know from the field of psychology – that attack and defense are two sides of the same coin. We feel guilty, and the discomfort of that causes us to project that guilt outward onto others in the form of attack. Then we feel guilty – consciously or unconsciously – for attacking, and we fear retaliation. This causes us to become defensive toward others, which invites attack.

We become trapped in a never-ending cycle of defense and attack that we perpetuate every time we judge a brother as being anything other than innocent. 

Defensiveness is itself an attack – both against our bros and ourselves. It’s an accusation and an excuse.

What does wearing armor, erecting walls, and having weapons at the ready really communicate? 

It accuses, “You are strong, and likely to hurt me. I have to protect and defend myself against you because I see you as guilty of being my attacker. Even if you’ve never attacked me – you might, just like other people have from my past.” 

The excuse conveys,

“I am vulnerable, frail, and can be hurt. I’m at risk of being victimized, and therefore justified in my defenses because I am weak.” 

Actually, in truth strength and weakness are reversed. A Course in Miracles teaches that defenselessness is strength, as it is aligned with the Christ within – our true being  – the Love of God that is the Source of all of our strength. 

Defensiveness is weakness, denying the Christ within and defining ourselves as bodies – frail, vulnerable, finite – and in need of protection against our enemies – which is virtually everyone in this world, eventually. In our minds, even those special peeps we love the most become those who can hurt us the most.

There are no defenses in Heaven – which isn’t a place but rather the awareness of our complete Oneness and Wholeness with all of our bros in God. There is no need to defend what is eternal and forever.

There is incredible power in adopting a stance of defenselessness as safety instead.

In My Defenselessness My Safety Lies vs. Getting My Ass Kicked | ACIM Lesson 153

 If we remembered the truth of ourselves and our brothers, we wouldn’t believe we could be harmed, we wouldn’t then fear attack, and we wouldn’t see our bros as capable of it anyway. The whole construct would just dissolve. 

As Jesus reassures us,

“Today our theme is our defenselessness. We clothe ourselves in it, as we prepare to meet the day. We rise up strong in Christ, and let our weakness disappear, as we remember that His strength abides in us. We will remind ourselves that He remains beside us through the day, and never leaves our weakness unsupported by His strength. We call upon His strength each time we feel the threat of our defenses undermine our certainty of purpose. We will pause a moment as He tells us, I am here.”

W – pI.153.20:1-6

I love you.

Kelly

Kelly Russell, The Rock Your Joy Coach

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