Working through the Workbook of “A Course in Miracles”

It’s all about the daily practice.

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Anyone who has endeavored to explore A Course in Miracles has likely noticed that the Course is not made up of one sole book. Instead, A Course in Miracles consists of three primary books. The text, the workbook, and a manual for teachers are often published as one combined volume. Each of these books serves a specific function in the understanding and application of the Course principles. 

Usually, folks may begin with the text, as this is often the first book included in the combined volume. The text provides the conceptual, theoretical, and metaphysical framework of the Course. The text explains the function of miracles, our function as the Son of God, and the numerous concepts that the Course employs and as well as the perspectives it offers.

 God, the Holy Spirit, Jesus, the Christ, the Holy Instant, the Last Judgment, the Atonement, the ego, the Holy Relationship, forgiveness, and the miracle all constitute substantive and powerful notions. These guide and inform not only a spiritual outlook towards our experiences on this earth, but also the ways in which we understand ourselves and how we interact with one another.

The manual, which is usually the third book in the combined volume, offers a concise and direct articulation of the major themes and questions raised by the Course. It can serve as a productive reference, and sheds light on some of the issues and topics that students of the Course may encounter.   

 Each book in the Course is invaluable. Each supports, amplifies, and reifies what the others express. The workbook though, which is usually the second book in the combined volume, provides a conceptual understanding of the Course principles. However, it is largely concerned with the application of these principles in one’s daily experiences. While some students of the Course might begin with reading the text and then proceeding to the workbook, others (such as myself) have found that reading the text concurrent with the workbook helps in understanding and applying the Course in one’s experiences. 

The workbook consists of 365 exercises, each of which are meant to be completed one day at a time. Thus, the workbook provides for a year’s worth of mantras and reflections with the aim of undoing a thought system rooted in fear, and the promotion of a thought system grounded in love. 

Perhaps this seems overwhelming. The notion of “needing” to complete an exercise everyday for a year might lead to a sense of insecurity, or a feeling of, “Can I really do this?”

Yet the Course offers guidance in working through the workbook and consistently reassures us that gentleness, and being gentle and kind to ourselves and to our practice, are integral components throughout this process.

Doing the workbook is not meant to arouse a sense of fear or guilt. 

Doing the workbook is meant to direct our attention to how the experience of love is being blocked from our awareness and to then undo, or dismantle, these blocks.  

There may be periods of time when we are able to complete one lesson every day. There may be periods of time where we dwell on a lesson for a couple of days. There may be days that we miss our lesson. There may be days that we do not fully understand the lesson. And there may be times when we simply do not want to engage with the daily lesson. 

All of these are common experiences. In fact, throughout the workbook, it speaks of and acknowledges times when our practice has not been perfect.  

The Course would suggest that the ego seeks to use the aforementioned experiences as evidence of our inability to achieve what the Course aims to promote, or as an indication that the Course itself is flawed and the peace of mind of which it speaks is unattainable.

Not doing the workbook perfectly is okay. 

It’s not about not falling off the horse.

 It’s about how many times we get back up and onto the horse. 

Certainly, neither the workbook nor the full Course itself is for everyone. It is one articulation of spiritual truths that have been conveyed in multiple ways in diverse religions, thought systems, and philosophies around the world. For those for whom the Course does resonate and thus provides powerful and efficacious tools for living in this world, giving up on the workbook may be the ego’s attempt at preserving itself and the blocks to the awareness of love. 

 The first time I attempted to complete the workbook, I gave up and stopped, perhaps around lesson 100. At the time, I found some benefit in the daily mantras and lessons, but did not yet fully understand what I was reading, and was resistant to some of the lessons. My resistance to what was being conveyed hindered my ability to continue forward. I would not return to the Course nor to the workbook for a number of years. 

When I did return to the Course, I did so with an open mind and an open heart. I recognized and reflected upon the directions in the workbook more fully, and was motivated by the experience that the Course and the workbook lessons could offer, even if I had previously been resistant to some of what I had read. 

We do not do the workbook with the aim to be perfect. We do the workbook with the aim to develop an appreciation and capacity to integrate the principles and lessons to be happier, to recognize the truth about ourselves and each other, and to experience inner-peace and harmony. 

Doing the workbook is not about who we will be at the end of the 365 exercises. It is about who we are now, and what we experience in the present moment with the daily exercise we are working with. The focus is not upon some future sense of self or being, but rather in the immediate context of where we are, in the here and now, and in the application of the exercise to our lives and our circumstances. 

Doing the workbook is about daily practice. Each day we work to the best of our abilities to practice what we read and what we understand.

Are we going to make mistakes throughout this process? Yes. 

But neither the workbook nor the Course prohibits us from making mistakes. Instead, it calls on us to recognize our mistakes, to give them up and surrender them (i.e., the atonement) to God, and to do better. 

So, we turn to the workbook and to the lesson of the day. We do the best we can with it. We apply it as much as possible. We seek to follow the instructions and practice as directed. When we do it right, that’s great. When we don’t, we work to improve and to do better. 

It’s all about living the best we can, one day at a time. 

What have been your experiences in working through the workbook of A Course in Miracles? Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below. Make sure to share this post via your social media networks. 

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Be well everyone and have a great week.