Lesson #137 says, “When I am healed, I am not healed alone.” It continues on, “Today's idea remains the central thought on which salvation rests. For healing is the opposite of all the world's ideas which dwell on sickness and on separate states. Sickness is a retreat from others, and a shutting off of joining. It becomes a door that closes on a separate self, and keeps it isolated and alone.”
The course is very meticulous in arguing for its claims. It starts by setting the foundation and then elaborating on the overarching message the course is teaching. At the root, any type of sickness is a form isolation or separation. We get sick because we separate from Source. That is the primary cause and it results in us being out of sync with our true selves which are, in contrast, indestructible, eternal, and perfect. The illusions of pain and suffering are a result of separation from Source, our true selves and our connection other people. In order to reverse sickness, therefore, we must reconnect to this network of united energy.
This is very different from the way the world thinks. Typically, the world thinks of each of us as isolated individuals: that we are on our own and what’s happening to one is not necessarily affecting another. However in this lesson, we are learning that in order for ourselves to be healthy, we need to help heal others as well. Healing is a collective activity. You can think of healing as forgiveness and sickness as a lack of forgiveness. You can replace the terminology in the title of the lesson to say, “When I forgive, I do not forgive alone.” So when you sow forgiveness and healing in the Universe and others, you reap the same and multiplied unto you. For you to be elevated and uplifted, you must be committed to the elevation of others.
A concept called, “The Butterfly Effect,” implies that if a butterfly flutters its wings in the Amazon forrest, it can hugely impact the weather on the opposite side of the planet. It’s the idea that seemingly small and localized actions can cause monumental effects elsewhere. Whether or not this is a scientific truth, it holds metaphoric truth in the way we live our lives and experience large results due to small actions. There is interconnectedness and synchronicities across the universe that makes it such that when we ask for healing, and aim to include other people, it affects the wellbeing of the entire cosmos.
Focusing on your own health with the intention of bringing others along with you on a path of health is contrary to the old mentality that virtue comes from sacrifice and pain and suffering. Consider the role of a mother: if she is running around all day, not getting enough sleep, and not feeding herself and her soul well, she cannot be the best mother she can to ensuring that her children are cared for effectively. She needs to be intentional to heal herself with the intention of healing her family and the surrounding world. Any CEO, business owner, or leader needs to prioritize the intention of healing as a unified force. Practicing forgiveness and healing on one’s own will inevitably elevate the people and systems they oversee. The unity that results will lead to greater overall wellbeing and fulfillment for everyone involved.
The lesson ends with a call-to-action to check in every hour to practice healing and send an intention to heal in conjunction with Source and everyone else. The lesson reads, “We will remember, as the hour strikes, our function is to let our minds be healed, that we may carry healing to the world, exchanging curse for blessing, pain for joy, and separation for the peace of God.” We must take a moment every hour to make sure that we remain on track toward our own healing and forgiveness practice so that the whole human enterprise can be healed, and as we do that, it comes back to us and accelerates our healing even further (the course says every hour, but just try to do it whenever you remember). Your journey of forgiveness is synonymous with unifying with the Source which created you, so make your way back to unification with your creator and your higher self today through forgiveness.
