Mission Coach Newsletter
February 2006 (Vol. 14) ISSN 1746-1332

Welcome to the February 2006 Mission Coach newsletter.

This month is part 5, the final part of our exploration of the Ego in which we take a look at how our mind interprets information received through our senses.

There will be no edition of the March 2006 Mission Coach newsletter. Please see “Things are about to change at Mission Coach” and the “What’s New” sections for an explanation.

Now, hold onto your stomach we are in for a hell of a ride . . .

 This Month's Article
Ego - Who (on Earth) Do You Think You Are?
(Part 5 Ver 1.0)
It Makes You Sick - Doesn't It?

Outcomes for this Article

• recap on the ego so far
  
• We discover how the information coming through our senses is subject to “interpretation” by our mind
  
• We discover what we do with our life experiences when we leave the Realm of the Relative
  

Recap on The Ego So Far
Our exploration of the ego started with understanding that the ego is the “chief tool” used to create the illusion of planet earth and everything else we are convinced is “real” – this reality we call the Realm of the Relative.
In part 2 we discovered the purpose of this illusion is for us to experience “Who We Really Are” – individuations of an unconditionally loving God and that the essential components of “experience” are “change” and “time”.
In part 3 we tackled the question: “if we are all individuations of God – why are some people evil?”. Another way of asking the same question is “why does God let bad things happen to good people?”. Part 3 explains why this question, although often asked, is built on a misunderstanding of who we really are and the true meaning of the word “experience”.
In part 4 we looked at the role of the body and how it is packed with equipment designed to sense the illusion of the Realm of the Relative and make it appear real.
This month we will look at how we interpret this sensory input to create the human experience.

What is the brain? What is the mind?
This quote from Conversations with God Book 3 is helpful (God is speaking):

What you call mind is really an energy. It is thought. And thought is an energy, not an object. Your brain is an object. It is a physical, biochemical mechanism – the largest, most sophisticated, but not the only mechanism in the human body, with which the body translates, or converts, the energy which is your thought into physical impulses. Your brain is a transformer. So is your whole body.

Please try this: bring to mind an image of NASA’s Mission Control room. See the large screens on the walls, the banks of monitors. Billions of bits of information are pouring into Mission Control from a thousand different places. .
     now remove all the people.
It is the people (the mind) that make decisions based on information received by a complex network of sensory equipment being fed into Mission Control (the brain). Based on that information the people (the mind) through the Mission Control network (the brain) issue instructions.
The brain is the control centre – the mind is the controller.
The brain is the command centre – the mind is the commander.

Leaving aside the idea of a “6th Sense”, every single bit of information we perceive from the “outside world” must come through our sensory network: our sense of sight, sound, smell, taste or touch.

It's all a matter of interpretation
The sequence goes something like this [1]:

1. we receive a combination of sensory data, let’s call it “input X”
   
2. the brain searches its neural networks for “input X” or similar data recorded before
   
3. the mind evaluates “input X” against recorded data and interprets “input X” as: “meaning Y”
   
4. the mind instructs the brain to send instructions to the glands and other parts of the body to release a cocktail of biochemicals, let’s call them “cocktail Z” into the blood stream
   
5. when receptor cells around the body receive the various components of “cocktail Z” they react, (they are stimulated or suppressed) and we experience a feeling we call happy, sad, joy, fear, love and a myriad of emotions in between.
   
6. the brain creates new neural pathways to record any new sensory input, and the mind’s interpretation of it, against which future sensory input will be compared. Or, the brain reinforces the neural pathway of an existing, similar experience [2].

Let’s go through an example of receiving and interpreting sensory input . . .

I don't feel very well!
Last month I admitted to not liking Rollercoasters unlike my daughter Stephanie who loves them. Let’s put Steph and myself, side-by-side, in a Rollercoaster carriage as it starts to climb up before being released around the track. This is a hypothetical example for reasons you will see in a moment.

Let’s assume that my senses and Steph’s are evenly matched: my eye-sight is as good as hers, as is my hearing and all my other senses, let’s also assume we have equal body weight (I wish!).
Apart from the slight difference in our physical location in the carriage, with our senses evenly matched, we both have the same sensory input available to us. We can both feel the pressure against our back as the carriage climbs to the top before being released, we can both see the ground below dropping away which means we are climbing.

To Steph, this sensory input means:
“This is great, if we climb this high this ride must be fast - fast rides are fun”.
Why does she think this way?
Because this sensory input maps to parts of her brain that trigger the recollection of the fun images, fun sounds and fun feelings she had on previous similar experiences.
Her mind is interpreting incoming data, evaluating it against the recollections of previous experiences and giving this experience the “thumbs up”. Her mind instructs the brain to instruct the biochemical factory in her body to start producing a cocktail of biochemicals, neuropeptides and endorphins, to let the cells in her body know – “hey this experience is good, we are having some fun!”.

To me, this sensory input means:
“Oh sh*t, it’s gonna go fast around that loop, I will be up-side-down, I shouldn’t have had that pancake for breakfast. I am going to be sick and people will either laugh at me or get mad, depending on how close they are when it happens. This is horrible, I’m scared and I want to get off!”
Why am I thinking this way?
Because the sensory input from the climbing Rollercoaster carriage is mapped to parts of my brain that triggers ghastly images, sounds and feelings of me being sick and all that entails.
My mind is interpreting incoming data, evaluating it against the recollections of previous experiences and giving the experience the “thumbs down”, red lights are flashing, sirens are wailing.
My mind instructs my brain to instruct the biochemical factory in my body to start producing a cocktail of biochemicals, adrenalin and a load of other stuff, to let the cells in my body know – “this situation is dangerous, protect yourself or get away from here as quickly as you can”.

At this point Steph’s body is being enriched with biochemicals that boost her immune system and will help to keep her healthy. The biochemicals being produced by my body were designed to enable me to kill the inventor of the Rollercoaster or at least run away from their invention – fight or flight. If I endured this experience often enough the effects of the biochemicals on my body would be far from healthy.

Now here’s the interesting thing about my experience; although I have not been on many Rollercoasters, on those I have been on I have never actually been sick – but I have always imagined that I would be! What this means is that the images being triggered in my brain are not based on any real, previous, similar experience. The images being triggered are those I strongly imagined on previous, similar experiences.

Who is having the more real experience - Stephanie or me? Biochemical tests on her body and mine would clearly show she was having a joyful experience and I was having a stressful one – both bodies are under-going very real experiences. However Stephanie’s interpretation of the sensory input is more accurate than mine because hers is based on previous “real-life” experiences. My interpretation, and the consequent experience of the emotion of fear, has been created my belief about what could happen - but never has.

A belief is nothing more than the degree of certainty we have that our mind’s interpretation of sensory input is “true”. As we can see in the example of me and Rollercoasters, a belief does not need to have any foundation in truth or personal experience for it to create a very real biochemical reaction in our body and therefore a very real physical experience.

Now, I fully realise that you never do what I have just described. I am sure all your interpretations of sensory input are based on a logical, rational, evaluation of previous life experiences - if you are a man, if you are a woman you are likely to be more honest!

Our values (what we know to be important) and our beliefs (what we believe to be true) impact every aspect of our lives more significantly than any other facet of thought. Values and beliefs determine who we think we are, and what we think we can do, they determine every decision we make and will be the subject of a series of articles in the new format newsletter (see the “What’s New” section).

What do we do with all this experience when we die?
You may recall in part 3 of this article (December 2005) we discovered that if “We Are All One” and God is “Unconditionally Loving” then the “system” we live by must be fair and just. If that is so, then an entity (Spirit), an individuation of God taking human form into, for example, a child who dies on the streets at the age of 3, must have chosen this particular life experience as one of hundreds, maybe thousands of life experiences. This leads to some interesting questions . . .

1. where do these experiences “go” when we “leave” the illusion of the Realm of the Relative? i.e. when we die
   
2. can previous life experiences be “carried forward” to later life-times? Is this the same as Karma?

Here’s the answer to question 1, this comes from Friendship with God (this is God speaking):

The opportunity for atonement comes to you automatically at what you call death.
You must realise that "atonement" is just that - it is "at-one-ment."  It is the awareness that you and all others are One.  It is the understanding that you are One with everything - including me.
This experience, you will have - you will remember this - immediately after death, after you depart from your body.
All souls experience their at-one-ment in a most interesting way.  They are allowed to move through, once again, every moment of the life they have just completed - and experience it, not only from their viewpoint, but from the viewpoint of everyone else who was affected by that moment.  They get to rethink every thought, resay every word, redo every deed, and experience its effect on every person it affected, as if they were that other person - which they are.
They get to know that they are, experientially.
At this moment, the statement.  "We Are All One"  will no longer be a concept, it will be an experience . . .
. . . And during your “life review” as some have called it, you will not be judged by anyone but simply allowed to experience what the Whole of You experienced rather than the localised version of You that resides with your present body experienced at each moment of life.

No judgement day, no St. Peter at the Gates of Heaven, no hell and eternal damnation. The idea of a “life review” of all our experiences from the perspective of all the entities (other individuations of God) involved, without judgment, is totally consistent with the concepts of an Unconditionally Loving God and “We Are All One”.

Now question 2 which concerns Karma:
I once read that if we enter this life-time carrying the consequences of previous life-time’s misdeeds (which is one interpretation of Karma), it would be like being stopped by the police, given a ticket and never knowing the reason why. This idea is inconsistent with an Unconditionally Loving God because such a God would not, could not, pass judgement on any deed (action) as being either good or bad. To an Unconditionally Loving God there is no such thing as a “misdeed” nor could there be any punishment or “Karmic Debt”.

What is possible is that and entity my choose to enter a life-experience carrying the energy (“negative” or “positive” from the human perspective) of the consequences of a previous life-time’s deeds if it serves the entities Purpose for this life-time to do so. This could be the true definition of reincarnation: the entity “represents” itself to experience another life-time while holding on to the experience of a previous life-time. From the perspective of the Spirit, this could be the “plot” for a very interesting life experience.

Conclusion to our Exploration of the Ego
We have covered a lot of ground over the past 5 months, here are a few bullet points I would like to offer as a conclusion:

• We exist in two Realms, the Realm of the Absolute and the Realm of the Relative.
  
• The Realm of the Absolute is the Ultimate and Only Reality.
  
• The Realm of the Absolute exists as a Singularity, in a Singularity time does not exist.
  
• If time does not exist then space cannot exist either. If space does not exist then separation between Beings is impossible.
  
• If separation between Beings is impossible there can only be One Ultimate Being: God / Allah / Krishna / Whatevah.
  
• What is not impossible is to create the illusion of separation by the One Ultimate God individuating into the illusion of You, me, and 6 billion other entities we call Human Beings. Every plant, animal, mountain, grain of sand, the Earth, the sun, the whole Universe must also be individuations of One Ultimate Unconditionally Loving God.
  
• If we are all individuations of One Unconditionally Loving God then the illusion of “You” and the illusion of “Me” are, in reality, God – You and I are God Being.
  
• If we are all individuations of One Unconditionally Loving God that excludes no one, and includes everyone, from the saint to the most evil, sadistic human being that ever walked the planet – all must be God Being.
  
• An entity, an individuation of an Unconditionally Loving God, can, of its own Free Will, after hundreds, maybe thousands of life experiences, choose to play the role of “victim” in just the same way an actor may accept a challenging role.
  
• In order that an entity is able to have the experience of playing “victim”, another entity, an individuation of an Unconditionally Loving God, can, of their own Free Will, after hundreds, maybe thousands of life experiences, choose to play the role of “tyrant” in just the same way an actor may accept a challenging role.
  
• As an individuation of an Unconditionally Loving God, You and I have the Free Will to choose which role to play in the illusion of the Realm of the Relative: victim, tyrant or someone else.
  
• Our ego, which is who we “think” we are, is the “chief tool” used in creating the illusion of the Realm of the Relative and creating the illusion of the role we have chosen to play.

Footnotes for this Month’s Article
[1] although the sequence as given here may not be biologically accurate, my intention is that it serves as a useful model for understanding the process. This is a much simplified version of a complex process explained in the book “Molecules of Emotion” by Dr. Candice Pert. For a terrific illustration of this phenomena see the “Polish Wedding” scene from the film “What the Bleep do we Know?”.
[2]  this is how skills and habits are formed through repeatedly reinforcing existing neural pathways.

Things Are About to Change at Mission Coach!

Below is a short story about death of my father on February 12th and why this event has led me to makes some changes to Mission Coach.

Following a series of misdiagnoses my father was finally diagnosed, in early January, as having Pancreatic cancer with secondary lesions on the liver, it had also spread to his lungs. The lesions on his liver had been found just prior to Christmas. I am very proud of the way my father handled the whole situation with what I can best describe as a “calm dignity”.

Despite the efforts of an outstanding team including a homeopathic doctor and his own G.P. (who was superb), my dad died of complications (probably due to a blood thinning drug) on the afternoon of Sunday 12th February 2006 – barely 6 weeks after the diagnosis. With hindsight, we should have done things differently - but that’s a whole different story and not the reason for my sharing this with you at this time.

My reason is this: while it is useful to have an understanding of Spirtuality, I can honestly say every single thing I have ever said, written or believed about the human experience being an “illusion” was totally forgotten in the final hours and minutes of my father’s life, and his death, which I had the privilege to share with him. No amount of theorising, or belief about this or that “Realm” could have prepared me for such an experience – it was a very “human experience”.

However, in the days following his death an understanding of the human experience has helped me to see the perfection of his living, and his dying. I only wish I had been able to see it while he was still alive - it took his death to give me that insight. Right now I miss him.

My father’s death has brought home to me the fragility of life, and that time, illusion or not, with the ones we love and care about is short, too short. We are here: “to experience the Next Grandest Version of the Greatest Vision ever we held about Who We Really Are” - and not just theorise about it! To that end, some things about Mission Coach and the Mission Coach newsletter are set to change. Please see the “What’s New” section for more details.

I would like to make this newsletter shorter, more practical and less theoretical. To this end I need your help . . .

What suggestions do you have for the content of this newsletter? What would be really helpful to you in your day-to-day quest to discover and live your Purpose in Life? Please email me with your suggestions paul@mission-coach.co.uk or call me on +44 (0)1494 638827 – it would be great to hear from you.

The “Mission” in “Mission Coach” is Changing
With the launch of the “Start Living Your Life’s Purpose” coaching program (see below), I will be dropping the term “Mission”. This word confuses people, whereas the term “Life’s Purpose” is more widely accepted and understood. I am not sure at this stage what will happen to the Mission Coach web site.

New Life’s Purpose Coaching Program
In April I will be launching the “Start Living Your Life’s Purpose” coaching program. This program is designed for people seeking their Life’s Purpose and wanting to develop the confidence and courage that will enable them to discover it and live it. Discovering Life’s Purpose is simple, living it ain’t!

There will be a special discount on offer to you as a reader of this newsletter. Details of this discount and the referral reward program will follow in early April.

The coaching program consists of 3 one-to-one telephone coaching sessions with a total of 4 hours coaching and email support.  At the core of the program is the “Life’s Purpose Rediscovery Process” which was developed and refined with the help of readers of this newsletter.
The coaching program is exciting, it’s powerful and it should be fun!
More details to follow.

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