2005-04-26-Counting the Cost
Nashville #222
Contents
• 1 Heading
o 1.1 Topic: Counting the Cost
o 1.2 Group: Nashville TeaM
• 2 Facilitators
o 2.1 Teacher: Ham
o 2.2 TR: Rebecca
• 3 Session
o 3.1 Opening
o 3.2 Lesson
o 3.3 Dialogue
o 3.4 Closing
Topic: Counting the Cost
Group: Nashville TeaM
Facilitators
Teacher: Ham
TR: Rebecca
Session
Opening
HAM: Greetings children I am Ham.
Lesson
HAM: Let us discuss counting the cost. It is for each person to understand and respond to the Master’s calling. You cannot do it as a group, you cannot do it in the abstract, you cannot do it in the mind alone: you must also follow in the Master’s steps. It is not something you can do without actualizing your commitments in your life and this actualization will cost you.
It may cost you everything you have and indeed everything you think you are so far in this life. Yeah, it may even cost you your life itself but you must also understand that without paying the price you cannot advance in the Kingdom. You must follow the master into all kinds of hardship that might be required. You might even from time to time follow him into the hatred of the world for he says: happy are you when you are hated for my sake. Happy are you in the face of all manner of hardship, vilification, financial loss, what have you, none of these things can touch your inner spirit so long as you’re strong and fully connected with every ounce of your being to the Master’s spirit and to the spirit of God living within you.
The Master said, the Kingdom of Heaven is like the pearl of great price. It is worth it to sell all you have and all will ever have in this life to possess it. It is worth it to give all you have and to give our Father your will completely without thought of what should happen and where you should go or what you should do in this life. In the realm of spiritual growth you must each lay down your lives from time to time and each time you do so you will take it up again in renewed strength and spirit, with him rather than with your own desires or unwieldy possession of various sorts that can oppress you without you even being aware of it.
The freedom of walking with the Master’s spirit is true freedom for you are not limited by your fears, for you already counted the costs and decided to pay. If you have not already counted the cost, when the test arrives you may draw back in fear thus missing an important foothold, an important turn in the road for fear of loss. Truly it is said to the God knowing kingdom believer, what does it matter if all things earthly crash. The way of the spirit involves a progressive leaving behind of the things of this world, the things of the flesh, the comforts, the security, for these things are false comfort and false security. All thing earthly return to dust, even the body returns to the dust from whence it came. But your souls will abide with your true treasures, the true value attainment of the soul.
The Father says to his children, come to me, give me what you have–that is your will, and I will make you more than you are. Come, let us reason together and though your sins may be as scarlet they will be made white as snow. It is up to you than to count the cost. Each of you is dedicated to finding God and to becoming progressively spirit identified so that your personality reflects and becomes and enters into the Father’s spirit. To love Him is to know Him and to know Him is to be like Him. Again, my friends, you must count the cost. What will it cost you to walk in the spirit? What must you let go of that may be holding you–that may be causing recurring lessons–a place you can’t move forward from.
What must you barter for progress of the soul? Intellectual pride? Spiritual pride? Is there some part of you that wants to hang on to old sadness, old views of self that are less than what you are today? Is there some secret sin that pulls you into disaster? Each of you knows that price of the next step. Let the Master explain how you can pay. How you can place it on the table to purchase that pearl of great price, that next level of personality function and wisdom, the ability to bear spiritual fruit. Yes, this is all incumbent on the steps of the spirit, the moving forward of the soul, the progress that is undeniable in your lives.
Many humans, in fact, one should say most humans, move to a certain point in their spiritual progress and fear to move any farther. They look around and see others who are also content with a fairly superficial spirituality and so they content themselves there. But in reality, fears gather, for you must grow or there becomes a spiritual stagnation and fears are attracted to this. Each forward step in the spiritual journey and your growth in the spirit is another layer of fear abandon, another freeing of the soul from the clutches of fear in its various guises. Fear is what prevents counting the cost much less paying the cost. It is fear that tells humans there is no cost.
Know, my friends, progressing in the spirit, increasing happiness and peace of mind require a constant letting go of fear. And to let go of fear you must mentally and spiritually place your fear of loss or your fear of whatever it is before you on the table. You must be willing to lose what you are afraid of losing. You must be willing to follow into the thrilling partnership with the Master. As you relinquish your fears you will find that you go deeper into the psychological realms where old fears lurk in order to release them.
Sometimes this fear is a fear of seeing ourselves, a fear of acknowledging some human problem, a fear of simple self-discovery. Be at ease my friends. If you are short of the faith required, ask him for that faith. Pray for faith. Pray for the Master’s hand to lead you through the door of unknowing. Then you will find that knowing is not frightening at all–it was the not knowing.
Fear is like a great fraud, a great charlatan. Fear must be constantly banished. Fear must be weeded from your garden, pulled out by the roots, so to speak, and to do this sometimes opens up a psychological scar, a place of pain; but quickly this pain will pass and you will emerge much stronger and more balanced because you are more in full adjustment with reality. Reality is not frightening, it is fear that is entirely real. The reality is, you live in God’s universe and you are his children. You are beloved, cherished, and given everything needful for your happiness, health, and comfort. You are never abandoned in this universe and you are never alone.
These things are the true nature of reality. Fear is born of not knowing the truth and what’s real. Fear is born of confusion. Fear is born of faulty teaching and faulty religious teaching especially. But none of these things has any power, power always lies, but the truth of things, the simple reality, with things the way they are. These things cannot really hurt you in any way. Death cannot hurt you, death is simply the breaking out of the cocoon, it is your soul’s emergence from the chrysalis of the body. Do not be afraid of anything in the universe, the Master is with you personally and the Father’s spirit is becoming you and you are becoming Him, so as you identify with all that is real so do you feel at home with all that is. What then are your questions my friends?
Dialogue
Student: A message for me please?
HAM:Yes, my son of course, you are doing well. Do not fear the changing of the times the changing of your inner feelings. You are often convinced in the mind of something but then you have trouble following all the way through into real experience. To be an upholder of truth you must embrace truth and to do this you must release the old falsehoods of yesterday and the old patterns that no longer serve, the old attitudes that are beginning to strike you as not you any more.
To grow is to change and to turn toward change you do not necessarily know what it will be, you can not plot out exactly what change you will be experiencing for this can only come through the experience itself and you can not know the experience before you have had the experience. Release then the old, all things indeed will become new if you let them. Contemplate this for you are doing very well my son.
Student: Thank you so much.
HAM: You are welcome. Questions?
Student: Can I please have a message and can I have a private session please?
HAM: Yes, Tuesday at three p.m
HAM: My daughter you do well, you are indeed finding the better path day by day struggle by struggle. Do not worry everything needful will be added to you as you deepened your commitment to follow in the Master’s spirit. Truly my dear you are beloved by Him personally, person to person. Yes my daughter this is something you must come to experience for truly spiritual love is between persons, between the person head of God and your own personality, that is how true love is given and received directly person to person, and as you discover this love and discover the great value placed upon you personally then will you grow in your acceptances for the role He has for you and the steps He is requiring of you. Release your fears my daughter you are doing just fine.
Student: Thank you very much.
HAM: You are welcome. Questions?
Student: Have you anything for Rebecca?
HAM: Yes my daughter, you are doing very well, you are moving forward in your work and in your personal spiritual discovery. Truly my dear it is thrilling to discover ever what higher and more profound spiritual, moral and intellectual planes, yes, this discovery is what your work is concerning. Find then your balance in Him and Him alone, do not seek after the approval of men, rather seek after the father’s kingdom and his wisdom. Allow all else to crumble and to fall, in this way you will find the rewards of spiritual discovery and this will be all that is important to you. Rejoice then and be glad my daughter all is well.
Yes, my son you must also release the old as you embrace the new. You are indeed making great spiritual strides as you allow yourself to be ever more humble and small, for the way is not found in any other manner. Enjoying the freedom true humility will afford you is your next step. Humility is a key to your spiritual release, the freedom of your spirit. Use it. That is all.
Student: Do you have anything for Frankie?
HAM: Frankie. Of course my son you do well. Your way is also one of accepting the limitations of illness these temporary but profound changes are bringing great lessons in helplessness and in humility. Do not be concerned about time, let yourself be accepting of the time required for recovery and do not try to do anything that would push you too far. Little by little, step-by-step, this is your way now do not hurry rest in the spirit for all is well. That is all. Questions?
Closing
HAM: Very well, if there is nothing further my children, know in your hearts that my prayer and my love are strongly with you and also know that I personally take interest in each of you, in your struggles, in your life decisions and also know that I am available when you call me. Let not your hearts be troubled then and neither let them be afraid. You are surrounded by your angels, you are surrounded by more love that you can ever comprehend or imagine in this life, but know this, in those realms of faith where things are known but not yet realized, let it be a comfort, farewell.
