How I Used Truth - Lesson 10 - Annotation 10
Why is it necessary that we "realize" omnipresence?
10. It is necessary that we "realize" omnipresence (the presence of God within and without), because in no other way can we bring forth or manifest the good that is ours by divine inheritance. Omnipresence means God as the one and only Presence of absolute good, and this good comprises all of the divine ideas that are our inheritance.
The text states:
"Practice thinking and realizing omnipresence, that is, practice realizing that all good that you desire is here now, all-present; it is not apart from you and its coming to you does not require time" (How I Used Truth 103).
This is saying in effect that we are to realize that God is the only presence of life, of love, of abundance, of harmony, of peace, and so forth. Until we do realize this, we are likely to think that any limitation—such as sickness, inharmony, or failure -- has reality.
"Omnipresence -- God is Mind. The one Mind contains all, and all ideas exist in the one Mind. God is everywhere present. There is no place where God is not. He is in all, through all, and around all" (The Revealing Word 142).
In the very simplest acts of everyday living we find that we need to realize oneness (identify) with what we are doing, otherwise we become disorganized and do not accomplish. The musician needs to have a sense of oneness with music; the mathematician must have unity in his mind with the principles of mathematics he may be working with. By realizing that we are one with God's nature of life, love, power, strength, faith, peace, and so on, we are making conscious identification with the Source of the good we wish to see manifest in mind, body, and affairs. When we accept the truth that God's nature is omnipresent, we no longer see any false belief or appearance as having power enough to prevent God's good coming into manifestation.
"For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have abundance" (Matt. 13:12).
Dr. Emmet Fox made popular among Truth students the phrase "the mental equivalent." In the pamphlet of that title (pages 5 and 19) he says:
"I want to say that for anything that you want in your life -- a healthy body, a satisfactory vocation, friends, opportunities, and above all the understanding of God -- you must furnish a mental equivalent. Supply yourself with a mental equivalent, and the thing must come to you, without a mental equivalent it cannot come. . . .
"The doctrine of the mental equivalent is the essence of the metaphysical teaching; the doctrine that you will get whatever you provide the mental equivalent for."
One of the meanings of the word realize is "To conceive vividly as real." What we conceive we build into a "mental equivalent" through both thinking and feeling. Are we conceiving God as separated from His creation? Do we think of Him as a Being withdrawn from men and women and children? If so, we are holding a "mental equivalent" of separation. Though we may speak of God's omnipresence, we are denying it by belief in His separateness from us. However, once we do realize (by thinking plus feeling) that God is "everywhere evenly present" (Practical Christianity for You 23) we have built a "mental equivalent" of Him as the one Presence and one Power within and about us.
There is a still deeper reason for building the right consciousness of God, and our relation to Him. The true reason is the expression and manifestation of God's nature. We are to express love, life, abundance, and all of the divine attributes because, as sons of God, it is our mission to be channels through which God may come into manifestation.
"The scientific metaphysician fixes his attention powerfully on the consummation of a certain idea until he has a realization, which means that the idea has nucleated a certain amount of thought substance. . . .
"To a metaphysician realization is the conviction that a person gets when he has persistently concentrated his attention upon an ideal until he feels assured of the fulfillment of that ideal" (Jesus Christ Heals 45).
The title of the chapter from which the above quotation was taken is "Realization Precedes Manifestation." This is exactly what occurs in our life, and it is the reason for our realizing the omnipresence of God.
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Preceding Entry: Why do we say that it is the "spoken" Truth that makes manifest?
Following Entry: What is true prayer as brought out in this lesson?
