This post will make sense to anyone repulsed by the idea of smoking of cigarettes.
If you like to smoke, you’re welcome to read it too! But it might not resonate with you the same.
If a stranger walked up to you with a pack of cigarettes and insisted, “Here, smoke one of these!” Would you oblige him? Would you honor his request in order to be polite? Probably not… Why? Because you are sickened by the idea of smoking a cigarette, you want nothing to do with them, and besides all that, they are unhealthy and deadly to indulge, and you know it.
Okay…so be it.
I like to point out to budding metaphysicians, that mortal mind attempts to get us “smoking cigarettes” all the time, but we often don’t recognize the offer for the evil it represents.
For instance, when a contagious disease sweeps through town and the press argues that people are susceptible to catching it, do you believe it? Mortal mind is offering you a “cigarette.” You either reject or accept.
If another person violates your sense of right and angry impulse argues that you should get raging mad and tell off the other person, do you bite the bait? Mortal mind is offering you a “cigarette.”
If thought whispers, “I might have a disease.” Do you believe it? Mortal mind is offering you a “cigarette.”
If foggy thinking suggests, “I’m depressed. Life is miserable. I’m hopeless.” Do you believe it? Mortal mind is offering you a “cigarette” to smoke.
When we correctly identify mortal mind’s suggestions as evil, no matter how subtle or necessary they first appear, and see them for the lies they are, they become self-evidently repulsive. We don’t consider their offers for even a millisecond. We are instantly turned off and not susceptible to being used and abused by their wickedness.
So, don’t smoke the cigarette! Stand guard. See evil as evil, and stay free of its malicious intent.
That is so good, and so true. The problem with some of these suggestions is that once you take one, you oh so easily take another, and another. While the first cigarette sometimes is easy to refuse, after you smoke one it can quickly become a habit. Just so with accepting these other suggestions. I learned when I was still very young that what started out as an exciting adventure makes it easier to accept a “second offering”, and pretty soon you can become a “chain smoker” taking in every suggestion. Thanks for the alert that other suggestions like illness, anger, condemnation and the like are just cigarettes in different wrappers. .
OOOh. Got offered a “whole pack” this morning when I turned on the TV and saw that a US Ambassador had been killed with some of his staff in a Middle Eastern Country. Your blog really resonates with me as someone who was healed of smoking by CS treatment. The temptation to anger, or even fury was strong and you are helping me to see that it is nothing more than that, a suggestion. I love CS.
Another helpful analogy. Thanks, Evan!
A note to commenter “Sue:”
I am a “Sue” too. I don’t always sign with this name,
but other Spiritview readers may think your comments are mine. No biggie, but perhaps if you add a last name initial, it would be helpful. (You could make one up!) Thanks for considering.
I love CS too!
:<))
“Don’t smoke the cigarette,” reminds me, that today when I think of it, it makes me laugh. At a very early age my father gave me a cigarette and told me to puff it in. I blacked out, and went to a hospital. He did the same with liqueur, this time it was straight Vodka. Same thing happened as before, I blacked out. My mother was furious with him, and if he did this today, my father would have gone to jail for child abuse.
But like he said to my mother, “That kid will never smoke or drink.” He was right, for not only did I never smoke or drink, I am able to say no to other temptations such as doing something wrong in order to belong to a group. In later years my father and I laughed over it. DON’T DO WHAT MY FATHER DID. It was wrong.
I am a Sue, too, say Sue Y! I think this sharing gave me a sense of the impact young people feel now when offered drugs of many varieties, instead of the cigarettes we of another generation were offered and liberally supplied with ‘free samples’. People we may label as hypochondriacs seem to have an ‘addiction’ to taking in suggestions of illness — ‘addiction’ in another form– and just as much to be seen for the turning away from God and his government as the previously mentioned addictions are. Thanks for your spiritually inspired topics and the light they cast on our thinking! Sue Y
love the reminder to stand guard always! what confuses me is “they are unhealthy & deadly to indulge, and you know it” If I know they are deadly do I need to fear them? It makes me wonder if I need to fear the deadly disease surging into town as well. I don’t mean to be conflicting, its just confusing to me that I need to be concerned about the dangers of what appears??
Thanks Evan – very timely as some school kids are coughing for whatever reason – we as parents do not need to slide into the comfort zone that “cigarettes” say they will take us to. Be alert to say no to all childhood diseases!
I agree with the last comment from Anonymous that its just confusing to me that I need to be concerned about the dangers of what appears??
Mrs Eddy never said smoking was dangerous, it’s just has an unpleasant/obnoxious odor. I suppose if you look at it that way then we don’t have subject ourselves to any obnoxious odors anywhere, whatever they may be.
Thank you for your posts…
Nicotine is an addictive drug. It (claims) to take over your dominion, and become a habit that is difficult to get free of. It is healed when we see the claim as unreal in light of our freedom and perfection as God’s idea.
Sickness we don’t willfully invite, and involves some fear, and eagerness to deny it as an error, having no reality, because we have our God-given dominion and perfection.
Sickness, contagion, disease, lack … And the list goes on. So often when a seemingly big challenge presents itself, we want to get to work on it later, possibly when we have more time to devote to study.
But once again, you remind us of a simple powerful way to put nothingness into perspective and see it for its worthless and lame suggestion – laughable (as it should be!).
I am putting this into practice today – thank you Evan!
Great analogy, Evan! I can’t imagine accepting a cigarette, but I have at times accepted self-pity, sadness, the suggestion of contagion or fatigue. Remembering this will make it easier for me to refuse the next “cigarette”.