[tmtranscripts] Elyon/Tomas Group

[Rick P. Giles]

Coeur d'Alene Teaching Mission Group
Topics: Fence Post Metaphor
Teachers: Elyon, Malvantra, Tomas, Michael, Lester
May 28, 2000

*	Elyon (Jonathan TR):  Greetings, this is Elyon.  Happy am I to be among
you, as always.  This day, as you collectively as a nation honor the bravery of
those who have stood for your country's ideals, I would like to address the
topic
of steadfast faith.  Naturally I am touched by your expressions today, your
willingness to reach out to your fellows, your successes and frustrations in so
doing and likewise your sensitivity to one another, the desire to be support for
each other's personal trials.
	Courage can be seen as a dynamic trait, for you know that progressive
spiritual living requires the ability to change, to give up what you have
held to
in order to rise to another level, and it takes courage to let go, to make the
jump.  But I would like to look at static courage, that courage which holds fast
and firm to ideals, to values you deem to be of divine origin and never would be
cast aside.  This is  the courage like a fence post dug down below frostline
that
will not heave when the currents of change come about, will not topple over when
the ground goes soft but will stand firm and hold the values and hold those
truths taut in spite of all change about.  This quality is supported by your
interchange, your camaraderie.  By your sharing you each help to drive your
fence
post deeper into solid ground.  You become a network, a fence line, of  strong,
brave, and courageous spiritual livers.
	It is a great deal of labor to properly set a post so that it is stable. 
Be not tempted to set your post shallow through encountering difficulty at
digging, through the pain of driving deeper.  Pursue, be courageous, be strong,
for, though the intensity and tribulation require some endurance, the length of
time that follows when your fence post is set is far greater, and you will
appreciate far longer how strong it stands, how strong you will stand for truth
and goodness in spite of the conflicts that come your way.  So, as your
character
unfolds and you are perhaps feeling faint or weak, take hold of this notion and
pursue.  Grab tightly to this understanding that if you take it all this way you
will be richly rewarded and longlastingly pleased with the results.
	I have quite a troupe here today, and I am going to turn the attention over
to another.

*	Malvantra (Mark):  This is Malvantra.  I would enter the classroom here
with you on this occasion and would offer a little more discussion on the wisdom
of a long term approach, as Elyon has suggested.
	Maturity and wisdom work together to provide you with an enlarged
perspective in which you draw from your experience and stand firm in your
commitment to the best overall job.  This is different from an immature approach
of seeing a task before you simply desiring to be finished with it in as short a
time as possible, not realizing that your incomplete efforts yield
unsatisfactory
results in the long term.  Yes, planting your posts shallow may mean that
you can
quickly see the results of your work and may stand back proudly for a few
moments
or a few months and look at your work with satisfaction, but your experience
shows you that a job hastened through will not hold up against the onset of
time,
and indeed your fence posts may lean or even topple when not satisfactorily
planted.  To the immature individual the two fences may look the same upon
initial survey, but having the experience and the accompanying wisdom, you are
more able to discern that the one job set deep, mortared in, and plumbed
straight
will prove far more satisfactory in the long run than the hastily
constructed job
finished in a short time.
	We are, as Melchizedeks, only interested in the long term results of our
efforts and of yours.  We desire to spend all necessary time and effort in
undertaking our tasks with all the proper steps that our wisdom affords us.  We
are well aware that to do the job to the greatest benefit requires the maximum
effort.  We are accustomed to taking on large projects such as this with you and
realizing that there will be great periods initially when we wish that we might
see more of the fence completed, but we console ourselves with the knowledge
that
the posts that are in place are permanently installed.  You, each one, are these
posts.
	We seek to make adequate provision in space, in concrete-ing your
stability, in checking once, twice, repeatedly, the positioning of the post
before satisfying ourselves with its installation.  We are more than willing to
take any time necessary to work with you as individuals to be sure that the
basics of your positioning are as accurate and as well placed as possible.
	We are not concerned with speed in this process.  It does not distress us
that this process takes a lengthy time.  We are far more concerned with the
long-term results and looking back down our row of posts at a straight line with
secure footings.  When you engage yourselves in the processes between yourselves
and others, we encourage you to attempt to adopt a long range perspective, a
long-term view of the destination, of the end of the journey, that it need
not be
rushed toward.  Many aspects seem laborious, tedious, even unnecessary,
while you
are engaged in them.  You must rely on your experience and your wisdom to steady
your course and pursue your goals regardless of the apparent length of the
process, because, when all is finished and you have completed your role, the
most
that you can hope to accomplish is to have steadily and laboriously planted each
post correctly.  It may not even be yours to see the entire fence completed. 
That may be for others to pick up where you have left off.  But be certain that
the posts you have planted are correctly positioned and that you have not
slighted any one along the row, for the one you slight will be obvious in  a
short period of time.  It will be the one leaning, sagging, and drooping in your
line.  Do not hurry through this process.  This fence is under construction
beyond your existence here and requires of you that you simply be a steadfast
laborer for the project.
	It is a pleasure to address you on this occasion.  I always look forward to
popping into class and keeping my personality before you.  I withdraw to allow
for others.

*	Tomas (Gerdean):  What a joy to be among those who are aligned in the army
of the Lord, standing tall like soldiers or fence posts.  I am going to continue
the theme.  The tendency toward stream of consciousness is a part of your social
skills, and we learn from you as you learn from us, for ultimately a clear and
clean consciousness will come around to an appreciation of God our Creator who
has given us all these things.  When we are empty it is to Him we return for
fulfillment.  I am Tomas, your brother and neighbor, uncle and friend.
	I am reminded of a poem in your culture.  Robert Frost indeed addresses
fences, stating that good fences make good neighbors.  One might wonder,
"Why all
this talk about a fence?"  A fence is a device which creates a barrier which
provides for separation, which disallows free roaming hither and yon.  There are
advantages to fences, making good neighbors being one of them.  But it is
also an
opportunity for those of you who stand in alignment to establish your side
of the
fence as being one worth protecting and providing for.  The idea of caring for
what is yours, be it your family, your property, or your values, is a practice
which requires steadfast faith and courage and tenacity, but the value of the
result is well worth the effort and the time involved, for you have found great
security and beauty and order in your work.
	I am aware of a movement in your culture today that testifies that there
are only two sins: one is to stand in the way of your own spiritual growth, and
the other is to stand in the way of your brother's.  When you have yourself
firmly planted, you alleviate the risk that you will fall over, lean
asunder, and
create a strain and a burden to your brother who stands beside you.  If you keep
picking each other up all the time it becomes a problematic fence. and the
trespassers may come and go, and wild animals and looters are able to set upon
your pearls of great price.
	One would think that we are becoming real estate agents here in this
configuration today, but the value lessons are imparted through visualizations
that you can focus on and allow your creative mind to embellish the truth
through
your own Indwelling Adjuster.  So, be not taken aback by all this discussion of
fence posts, for it is but a springboard to the concepts that harken to your
minds and souls.
	We are indeed many here this afternoon.  Your group is abundant, and there
will be those who clearly recognize that in your stately yard you grow character
and value.  You will be deemed a trusted and reliable neighbor.  We are happy
with you to be a part of the cosmic neighborhood that allows us to have
access to
each other once again.  Thank you.

*	Michael (Jonathan):  Behold, I am the gate.  I address you today; this is
Michael.
	You are within the family of Nebadon, and I am wishing to convey to you
that we are an extensive unit of spirit led individuals who are expanding the
fence line of the kingdom of the Father.   I, the gate of this spiritual
collective, swing inward to allow all who will to enter, and I swing outward to
encourage all my fellows to go forth and to preach the gospel.  I will close to
protect those in the fold from danger, but I am never locked.  I have apostles
who stand as corner posts.  I have disciples who are the posts intervening, and
the connecting rails of service and worship uphold all my children who are
planks
that make up our family.  Collectively we seek to extend our fence of fellowship
to encompass all of Nebadon, that all personalities stand within our arena of
spiritual children beneath the Father of all.
	I am with you always and will remain silent at this time but present within
each of you.

	Mark:  May we each be with you as you are with us.  That is our desire.

*	Elyon:  Dear friends, this is Elyon.  I would encourage you to request from
us what you may desire to dialogue.  There are teachers present to be of
assistance.

	Harold:  Several of us have friends and parents dealing with the problems
of old age.  Is there a purpose to the process of getting old and less
capable of
taking care of yourself?  Is that a necessary part of our growth?
*	Tomas (Gerdean):  It is necessary given the circumstances of your
existence, yes, my friend.  If you were a healthier species you would find
nobler
ways to die, and if you were more advanced you would fuse as a people more
frequently.  Under the circumstances of your current existence it is indeed a
cultural phase of growth.  Just as little ones go through growth, and teenagers
have their own unique difficulties, as do parents, thus do retirees and the
elderly.  The problems of transition from this world to the next are greatly
exacerbated by fear of the unknown, and physical health is dramatized by the
mental attitude of the one growing older, which, by the way, is not limited to
the elderly.  It is happening to everyone.  As there are certain passages of
awareness and accomplishment and goals and dreams in your lives, so is the
process of maturation a natural process which need not be as difficult as it is
here and which we also hope to be able to correct in time.  Those who have
faith,
whose fence post is firmly planted, know that they are upheld by the Gatekeeper,
that Jesus will indeed go through this experience with them, thus it is not such
a fearful and traumatic event as those who resist the realization of their own
destiny.  This is one of those unfortunate byproducts of the planet Urantia.
But
the fact that you are becoming an army of aware individuals who will be able to
stand by each other in your own processes of translating from this world to the
next will throw great light on the subject for future generations.  The heroic
aspects of mortality will renew themselves with your steadfast faith, when
you do
not fear what is to come but walk courageously through the experience, even
encouraging and comforting those who do not understand your faith and
confidence.
	There is a very heavy downdraft/inclination/pull toward having you believe
that you are becoming less as you become older.  This is a cultural conditioning
that thousands, even millions, of people subscribe to.  They are washed up, they
think, finished, useless, and thus they languish to the point of illness and
premature termination.  Again, the spiritual solution is at hand, for if and
when
individuals are treasured and regarded for their experience and their
contribution to the gift of life, they begin to flourish and recognize their
strengths.  So we see the value of a firm spiritual foundation.
	The fear of death is an unfortunate miscarriage, but it is also a remnant
of the primitive mind.  The outspoken advocates for faith and an afterlife are
emissaries of hope to those who have not the vision to realize such a
concept for
themselves.
	Have I addressed your concern?
	Harold:  Yes.  Is there a point of diminishing returns in this existence,
and if so how much lee-way are we given to decide when it is more appropriate to
go on?

*	Tomas:  I need to ask you, are you discussing or wanting to discuss: A)
Euthanasia and/or B) Suicide?

	Harold:  I think it's a personal perception, but when someone decides when
they have done as much as they can in this life, is there a penalty for ending
their life?

*	Tomas:  I would discuss your inquiry at length except the terse response
that would be given would not be adequate to paint the picture that is necessary
to be seen before such a response were delivered.  The fact of suicide is a
matter of health, whereas one aspect of the individual may thrive, another
may be
diseased.  Even though we are learning to approach life holistically, and there
are many healing realities coming to pass, there have certainly been instances
wherein one's emotional disturbance interfered with the placidity of human
existence or the clarity of their spiritual faith.  But there is no punishment
for such a deed as far as your background understanding of punishment is
concerned.  You do not have a vengeful Father.  But the acts of the mortals, the
ascending sons also, are acts which must be owned up to in terms of cause and
effect.  If one aborts his own destiny plan and yet has accrued great value in
his soul, it is not that he will be punished for his premature assignation with
death or his attempt to take a shortcut measure, but that he (or she) will feel
upon re-amalgamation that they had shortchanged themselves or disappointed their
own capabilities.  So that is a lesson that must be experienced and endured even
in the morontia realms.  This is an example of what I am responding to you with
in regard to your provocative question.  Is it helping?

	Harold:  Yes, very much.  Thanks.

*	Tomas:  Under no circumstances is a lover of life going to sanction a
giving up of life.  But as life is better understood and as circumstances of
life
are better understood and appreciated and, within a context, within a
perspective, of your planetary condition, you will find the subject of
translation from this world to the next will become more academically approached
in some cases, and with a great deal more faith in most circumstances.  So, I
urge all of those who have problems to the extent that they consider such a
radical act to consult seriously with their spirit guides, with our Father, with
the medical profession, with any and all resources that would provide mental,
emotional, physical, or spiritual relief for the mortal in his or her
experience. 
Life is not meant to be an extension of suffering, even though often
suffering is
a result of certain causes.  Often if you can get to the root cause you can
understand the experience, the need for the resolution of the configuration that
is existent.  Enlightenment is of course an answer; love is the answer.  So,
through all of these extremely difficult and sometimes fatal human experiences
the love of the universe reigns over all, and mercy will prevail.
	That is all.

*	Lester (Jonathan):  Hi guys, this is Lester.  I have been hiding in the
garden shed, and I wish to make some comments on these issues.  You know you are
human and that you are wooden fence posts and that over time you will witness
that you are decaying around the edges and that following such inevitable
consequences of time you will be left with nothing but what's left in the
ground. 
Had the Adamic mission on this planet been more successful, you would have been
pressure treated, and you would have lasted longer.  But -- and take this
seriously from one as myself who ignored the signals of time -- that this short
duration of time for reflective creatures as human beings is designed to cause
you to reflect upon the eternal consequences of actions.  I was fortunate enough
to have taken many a fence nail and many a woodpecker's hole and survive to
receive a morontia post, one more metallic that would not rust.
	But it is not you or I who digs up our posts and replaces them; it is the
Creator who bestows upon each of us our material form.  A fence post may outlast
its usefulness as a fence post only to be recreated as a weathered picture frame
or perhaps a seasoned jewelry box.  Know that frailty or usefulness do not
lessen
the value of a personality.  There are functions for your form beyond your
perceived usefulness.  Wait upon the will of the Father for what you may do in
the times ahead.  This I did not pay attention to in my human life and have
awakened to the significance of looking deep into the future.  The moment is the
focal point for comprehending eternity.  It is best to perceive the action of
today as a building block for tomorrow rather than a conclusion of the past.
	I thank you for allowing me to ride along with you this day, and I will
scurry off.