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A Course in Miracles and Internal Family Systems
Two paths to inner peace that unexpectedly speak the same language When people first hear A Course in Miracles (ACIM) and Internal Family Systems (IFS) mentioned in the same sentence, they often blink. One sounds mystical and devotional, the other clinical and psychological. One asks us to remember that the world is an illusion; the other invites us to dialogue with our very real inner parts. At first glance they seem like opposites. And yet, beneath the difference in langu
3 min read
When Parts Hate the Workbook: Using IFS for Resistance on an ACIM Path
Every Course student knows the moment. You sit down to do the lesson, open to a page of shining truth, and something inside rolls its eyes. Another part groans that you’ve already failed at being spiritual today. Another reaches for your phone. Then comes the guilt—how can I believe in Love itself and still not want to read about it? This is where Internal Family Systems becomes a quiet miracle. Meeting the Resistant Parts When we approach our spiritual practice, the ego does
2 min read
Self and Holy Spirit: Translating the Language of IFS into A Course in Miracles
Some people move easily between therapy language and spiritual language; others feel like they’re standing between two dictionaries. Internal Family Systems talks about parts and Self. A Course in Miracles talks about ego, Holy Spirit, and the decision maker. Different words, same desire—to understand the mind and return it to peace. This piece is for those who love clarity and want to see how the two maps line up without forcing them to be the same. Mapping the Terrain In I
3 min read
Making the Illusion Safe to Release: IFS Trauma Work for Students of A Course in Miracles
For many who come to A Course in Miracles, the message feels like home until the body starts to tremble. The Course says the world is an illusion, but the nervous system doesn’t believe that when old terror, grief, or shame floods through. For trauma survivors, mind-training can feel impossible when the body keeps shouting its history. This is where Internal Family Systems becomes a bridge between mystical truth and human safety. When Mind-Training Meets the Body ACIM speaks
3 min read
Forgiveness from the Inside Out: An IFS Guided Approach to ACIM Forgiveness
Forgiveness is the beating heart of A Course in Miracles. But for many students, it feels more like a command than a comfort. “Forgive” can sound like “pretend it didn’t hurt,” and that misunderstanding turns a doorway to peace into another spiritual pressure. Internal Family Systems offers a way to make ACIM’s forgiveness real—moment by moment, from the inside out. What the Course Really Means by Forgiveness In plain language, ACIM forgiveness isn’t about overlooking harm
2 min read
For Therapists and Spiritual Guides: Integrating A Course in Miracles with IFS in Session
Therapists and spiritual guides who love both Internal Family Systems and A Course in Miracles often face a delicate challenge: how to bring the wisdom of ACIM into the therapy room without turning it into doctrine, pressure, or bypass. This integration asks for deep humility, ethical sensitivity, and a lot of patience—with clients and with ourselves. Ethical Ground First No belief system, however luminous, belongs inside a client’s system without consent. Even when a therap
3 min read
Tao Te Ching — Chapter 9
The Verse Fill a cup to the brim —and it spills. Sharpen a blade too fine —and it breaks. Amass treasure, invite theft.Cling to praise, court collapse. Complete something…and it begins to rot. This is the way of the world.Step back before the fall.Retire before the flame gutters. This is the Tao. Essence — What Laozi Is Actually Saying Laozi isn’t warning you.He’s holding you —just before the edge. He’s not moralizing.He’s murmuring a truthyou already know in your bones: Too
Tao Te Ching – Chapter 5
The Verse Heaven and Earth are not kind.They treat the ten thousand things like straw dogs. The sage is not kind.He treats the people like straw dogs. Between Heaven and Earth,is not the space like a bellows? Empty—yet never exhausted.The more it moves, the more it yields. Too many words lead to silence.Hold to the center. Essence — What Laozi Is Actually Saying This chapter is not cold.It ’s not cruel.But it is cutting. Laozi is naming a reality most of us spend our lives t
In Dreamland Zen Story VERSION 1
Today we enter… In Dreamland. This story doesn’t shout.It wanders.Between sleep and waking.Between illusion… and the soft ache of truth. Let’s walk inside the dream together. Let the Story Unfold A monk once came to the Zen master Gasan and said,“Last night I dreamed I was a butterfly.” Gasan looked at him and asked, “Were you a man dreaming of being a butterfly…or are you now a butterfly dreaming you are a man?” Sit With the Meaning It’s a question with no answer.Not becaus
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