The idea for today is a beginning step in dispelling the belief that your thoughts have no effect. Everything you perceive is the result of your thoughts. There is no exception to this fact. Thoughts are not big or little, powerful or weak. They are merely true or false. Those that are true create their own likeness. Those that are false make theirs.

There is no more self-contradictory concept than that of “idle thoughts.” What gives rise to the perception of an entire world can hardly be called idle. Every thought you have contributes either to Truth or to illusion. It either extends the Truth to others or it multiplies illusions. In this regard you can indeed seem to multiply nothing, since that is what illusions are, but you will not extend nothing by this appearance of multiplying it.

Awakening requires that you recognize that there are no idle thoughts, that every thought you have brings either Peace or conflict, either Love or fear. A neutral result is impossible because a neutral thought is impossible. The temptation to dismiss fear thoughts or unloving thoughts as unimportant, trivial, and not worth bothering about makes it essential that you recognize them all as equally destructive to your awareness of Reality though equally unreal. We will practice this idea in many forms to help you really understand it.

In applying the idea for today, first repeat the idea, and then with eyes closed search your mind for a minute or so for the thoughts of which you are aware. Actively seek not to overlook any “little” thought that tends to elude the search. This is quite difficult until you get used to it. You will find that it is still hard for you not to make artificial distinctions. Every thought that occurs to you, regardless of the quality that you assign to it, is a suitable subject for applying today’s idea. As each thought crosses your mind, hold it in awareness while you tell yourself:

“This thought about _____ is either a real or an unreal thought.”

Four or five practice periods are recommended if you find them relatively effortless. If strain is experienced, three will be enough. The length of the exercise period should also be reduced if there is discomfort.

As usual, use today’s idea whenever you are aware of a particular thought during the day which arouses uneasiness or upset. The following form is suggested for this purpose:

“This thought about _____ is not a neutral thought, because I have only real or unreal thoughts.”