A Course in Miracles Lesson 104 offers us a simple but profound reminder: we are entitled to joy and peace. Not as a reward for good behavior. Not as something we earn after exhausting ourselves. Not as the thing we finally touch on vacation or in the rare quiet moments between tasks. Joy and peace are our inheritance. They belong to us in truth.
The Course also gives us an honest assessment of why we so often fail to experience these gifts. It tells us that while divine gifts are always being offered, we aren’t always available to receive them. Our minds—our inner “psychic space”—are often filled with what the Course calls self-made gifts. These are the things we pursue believing they will make us whole: status, control, image, achievement, even the relentless drive to “earn” our worth.
This isn’t about shame. It’s about clarity.
We can begin to discern the difference between God-given gifts and self-created substitutes by noticing the way each one feels. Divine gifts arrive without struggle. They don’t demand that we sacrifice our health, our well-being, or our sanity. They do not pull us into hustling for our value. They simply flow when we make room for them.
Self-made gifts, on the other hand, often require strain. They leave us stressed, depleted, and feeling as though we must “prove” ourselves. We operate like we’re telling the Divine: Don’t worry—I’ve got this. Hold my drink. And inevitably, things unravel.
Lesson 104 invites us to put the self-made gifts aside—if only for a few minutes each hour—and to rest in the place where joy and peace already exist within us. The practice is beautifully simple:
“I seek but what belongs to me in truth.
Joy and peace are my inheritance.”
With each repetition, we soften the grip of the world’s illusions and open wider to what is truly ours.
How This Lesson Meets the Headlines
One of the most powerful ways to anchor Course teachings is to bring them directly into what we see in the world around us—especially the news, where fear, polarization, and scarcity tend to dominate.
The Government Shutdown & SNAP Benefits
Recent headlines about the ongoing government shutdown—and the ripple effects on everything from food assistance to air travel—invite us to reflect deeply on the idea of entitlement. Many families suddenly faced uncertainty around their most basic needs, not because resources don’t exist, but because our systems broke down. It’s heartbreaking to watch people fear for food on their table while political battles unfold above them.
Lesson 104 reframes “entitlement” not as a political debate, but as a spiritual truth: food, safety, dignity, stability—these are not luxuries. They are foundational states we were meant to experience. When systems fail and people suffer, we are reminded of how far our collective mindset has drifted from recognizing the inherent worth in every human being.
Election Tensions and Polarization
The recent Mandani election stirred intense emotions and accusations from every angle. Depending on where we stand politically, we might feel encouraged, alarmed, hopeful, or fearful. The ego thrives on conflict—it wants us to cling to our side, defend our identity, and interpret the world as us-vs-them.
Lesson 104 challenges us to pause. To breathe. To remember that peace belongs to us—even when the world appears chaotic. We can still stay informed, stay engaged, and care deeply. But from a grounded place rather than a reactive one.
The Shutdown’s Real-World Impact: A Story From the Sky
Hearing from travelers and pilots affected by the shutdown brings the headlines down to a human scale. When flights are delayed or grounded because staffing has become impossible, we see the fragility of our systems—and the quiet courage of ordinary people showing patience, humility, and mutual support.
These moments remind us that even in collective uncertainty, miracles show up in small human exchanges: encouragement to a stressed pilot, kindness between strangers, or a last-minute resolution that gets everyone safely home. Peace isn’t abstract. It shows up through us.
The Larger Question Beneath It All
Across issues from the housing crisis to rising costs of living to debates about universal income or access to food, we see a deeper longing: Can we create a society aligned with the truth that everyone deserves stability, dignity, and the ability to breathe easily?
Lesson 104 does not dictate policies. But it does challenge the mindset behind them. It asks us to examine where we cling to fear-based thinking and where we withhold from ourselves or others the peace that is everyone’s birthright.
A Call to Action: Breathe Like Peace Belongs to Us
Imagine if we held joy and peace the way we hold our breath—something we would never withhold from ourselves, never force ourselves to “earn,” never postpone until we deserve it.
Breathing reminds us of what divine gifts feel like: effortless, constant, freely given.
This week, let’s practice receiving what already belongs to us.
Suggested Practice (From the Course):
Each hour, for five minutes, repeat:
“I seek but what belongs to me in truth.
Joy and peace are my inheritance.”
Then gently set aside the conflicts of the world—the goals or fears that push us into striving—and return to the quiet space within where joy and peace already live.
Let this practice reshape how we interact with the news, with our tasks, with our ambitions, and with one another. When we remember our inheritance, we make room for a more compassionate world, one grounded not in scarcity, but in truth.
May we breathe deeply. May we welcome peace.
And may we finally receive peace as a birthright that has always been ours.
