[tmtranscripts] Ham on counting the cost

[David Schlundt, Ph.D.]

4-26-05

 

Greetings children I am 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. Yea, 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?

 

A message for me please?

 

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.

 

Thank you so much.

 

You are welcome.

 

Questions?

 

Can I please have a message and can I have a private session please?

 

Yes, Tuesday at three p.m

 

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.

 

Thank you very much.

 

You are welcome.

 

Questions?

 

Have you anything for Rebecca?

 

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.

 

Do you have anything for Frankie?

 

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?

 

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 realised, let it be a 
comfort, farewell.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
-- 
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David G. Schlundt, PH.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Psychology
301 Wilson Hall
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN  37203

Phone: (615) 322-7800
E-mail: David.Schlundt at Vanderbilt.Edu

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Belief has attained the level of faith when it motivates life and shapes 
the mode of living. The acceptance of a teaching as true is not faith; 
that is mere belief. Neither is certainty nor conviction faith. A state 
of mind attains to faith levels only when it actually dominates the mode 
of living.... Faith does not shackle the creative imagination, neither 
does it maintain an unreasoning prejudice toward the discoveries of 
scientific investigation. Faith vitalizes religion and constrains the 
religionist heroically to live the golden rule. The zeal of faith is 
according to knowledge, and its strivings are the preludes to sublime 
peace. ---The Urantia Book, Page 43
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