The great challenge to modern man is to achieve better communication with the divine Monitor that dwells within the human mind. (2097)

Better communication does not necessarily imply direct conversation. Two people who have a close personal relationship may have no need for verbal communication in order for one to sense the approval of the other for some action or decision they may take. The revelators appear to be somewhat pessimistic about the capacity of us Urantians to actually achieve direct two-way communication with our Thought Adjusters. This pessimism is related to the cumulative disadvantages accruing to us as a result of the Lucifer rebellion.

The revelators have informed us that the Thought Adjuster is an impersonal fragment of God that indwells the thinking centers of our minds in such a way as to be "a very part of the human mind." They tell us that the "only means of communion with the spiritual world is embraced in the spirit endowment of mankind, the indwelling spirit of the Father, together with the outpoured spirit of the Son and the omnipresent influence of the Infinite Spirit." (1680) It is the Universe Mother-Spirit who, through the ministries of the Spirits of Wisdom and Worship, initially prepares our minds for the indwelling of the Thought Adjuster.

As individuals, we "do not possess a segregated portion or entity of the spirit of the Creator Father-Son (Spirit of Truth), or the Creative Mother-Spirit. These ministries do not contact with, nor indwell, the thinking centers of our minds..." but do work in perfect harmony with the Thought Adjusters. (379). It is apparent from these statements that for virtually all contact made by superhuman sources with our minds, the final step takes place via the medium of the Thought Adjuster.

In view of the exhortation to achieve better communication with the divine Monitor, what should our realistic expectations be? We are told, "While the voice of the Adjuster is ever within you, most of you will hear it seldom during a lifetime. Human beings below the third and second circles of attainment rarely hear the Adjuster's direct voice except in moments of supreme desire, in a supreme situation, and consequent upon a supreme decision." (1241) Hearing that voice in a moment of supreme desire or in a supreme situation is consequent upon a supreme decision. So what is a supreme decision?

On p. 1242 we are informed that seraphim may be assigned to the association of a human soul who has realized one or more of three achievements. One of these three is to have "made a supreme decision to become Godlike." Hence the decision to seek to follow Jesus' injunction to his followers is one key to better communication with our Thought Adjuster. "And then Jesus went on to instruct his followers in the realization of the chief purpose of all human struggling -- perfection -- even divine attainment. Always he admonished them: 'Be you perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.'"

Even after having made such a supreme decision, it does not follow that we will have something resembling a telephonic communication with our Thought Adjuster. In the previous issue of Innerface, Ann Bendall suggested that "Jesus never really knew what God's will for him was, he simply did what he believed to be the best in any particular circumstance." Ann then cited some pretty strong evidence from The Urantia Book in support of her assertion. Describing Jesus agony at Gethsemane, the book says, "he endured great anguish and suffered untold sorrow, for the perspiration rolled off his face in great drops. He was at last convinced that the Father intended to allow natural events to take their course." (1969) Ann suggests that Jesus was finally convinced purely by the way things were developing, that he did not know for fact but by supposition.

Going back to an earlier stage in Jesus career--to the point where he was 29 years of age and had just completed the Mediterranean tour--the book tells us, "By the end of this tour Jesus virtually knew--with all human certainty--that he was a Son of God, a Creator Son of the Universal Father. The Adjuster more and more was able to bring up in the mind of the Son of Man shadowy memories of his Paradise experience in association with his divine Father ere he ever came to organize and administer this local universe of Nebadon. Thus did the Adjuster, little by little, bring to Jesus' human consciousness those necessary memories of his former and divine existence in the various epochs of the well-nigh eternal past." (1424) By this time, Jesus was a highly advanced Urantian--yet it appears that his Thought Adjuster did not communicate directly with Jesus but rather through bringing fleeting visions into his consciousness. Perhaps this is a reason why the book tells us that:

"Of all human knowledge, that which is of greatest value is to know the religious life of Jesus and how he lived it." (2090)

If we have a clear picture of Jesus' life firmly embedded in our memory, then, in any situation in which we find ourselves, it may be possible for our Thought Adjuster to bring an appropriate snapshot of an incident in Jesus' life, or in one or more of his teachings, to provide us with guidance upon what our decision, response, action, or attitude should be.

"Though the Spirit of Truth is poured out upon all flesh, this spirit of the Son is almost wholly limited in function and power by man's personal reception of that which constitutes the sum and substance of the mission of the bestowal Son." (379)

In other words, the effectiveness of the Spirit of Truth is dependent upon our knowledge of the life and teachings of Jesus--for Urantia Book readers, that means knowledge of Part 4 of the book.

In considering our expectations about guidance from our Thought Adjusters and the form it may take, we need to remind ourselves that, "No other being, force, creator, or agency in all the wide universe of universes can interfere to any degree with the absolute sovereignty of the mortal free will, as it operates within the realms of choice regarding the eternal destiny of the personality of the choosing mortal." (71)

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This would appear to rule out the rather childish concept held by many Christians and, undoubtedly, some Urantia Book devotees, that divine guidance during our daily routine consists of a series of instructions from on high telling us exactly what we should do in each circumstance that confronts us. And if we think that we hear voices giving such instructions we should give consideration to this statement: "A human being would do better to err in rejecting an Adjuster's expression through believing it to be a purely human experience than to blunder into exalting a reaction of the mortal mind to the sphere of divine dignity. Remember, the influence of the Thought Adjuster is for the most part, though not wholly, a superconscious experience." (1208)

Having reviewed some of the negative aspects of Adjuster interaction, let's now consider means by which our communication may be enhanced. "The Spirit never drives, only leads. If you are a willing learner, if you want to attain spirit levels and reach divine heights, if you sincerely desire to reach the eternal goal, then the divine Spirit will gently and lovingly lead you along the pathway of sonship and spiritual progress. Every step you take must be one of willingness, intelligent and cheerful co-operation. The domination of the Spirit is never tainted with coercion nor compromised by compulsion." (381)

The book emphasizes that it is our thoughts and not our feelings or emotions that enhance contact with our Thought Adjuster (1104) "But," it says, "the mind that really discerns God, hears the indwelling Adjuster is the pure mind. 'Without holiness no man may see the Lord.'" We have to clean up our act before we can reasonably expect to make good progress.

Prayer is, for the main part, a phenomenon of man's intercourse with his own subconscious, yet there is a domain of prayer in which an individual does attain more or less contact with superconscious levels of the mind. (996) Meditation may also have a role for some, but the book states, "The contact of the mortal mind with its Indwelling Adjuster, while often favored by devoted meditation, is more frequently facilitated by wholehearted loving service ministry to one's fellow creatures." (1000)

Speaking about young children, the book says, "With the dawn of creative imagination they evince a tendency to converse with imaginary companions. In this way a budding ego seeks to hold communion with a fictitious alter ego." (996) During childhood, and much to the consternation of his parents, Jesus was apt to utilise this kind of technique to converse with his heavenly Father. The book discusses the effectiveness of prayer in facilitating contact with our Thought Adjuster in these words, "Enlightened prayer must recognize not only an external and personal God but also an internal and impersonal Divinity, the indwelling Adjuster. It is altogether fitting that man, when he prays, should strive to grasp the concept of the Universal Father on Paradise; but the more effective technique for most practical purposes will be to revert to the concept of a near-by alter ego, just as the primitive mind was wont to do, and then to recognize that the idea of this alter ego has evolved from a mere fiction to the truth of God's indwelling mortal man in the factual presence of the Adjuster so that man can talk face to face, as it were, with a real and genuine and divine alter ego that indwells him and is the very presence and essence of the living God, the Universal Father." (997)

For most of us, it is dubious whether there is any better technique to learn to converse with our Thought Adjuster than that used by the young Jesus--this "alter ego" method. By its use it can become habitual for us to share both our thoughts and our lives with our Thought Adjusters. But in doing so, we should not expect to actually hear the voice of the Adjuster. It is the closeness of the relationship that develops that is important, as it provides the opportunity for the Adjuster to work with us via our superconscious minds. This interaction is vastly enhanced when we are totally familiar with the life and teachings of Jesus as provided in Part 4 of The Urantia Book because it provides a memory bank of relevant information and incidents that our Thought Adjuster can bring to mind for our guidance. It also provides a means of checking that what we believe to be guidance is indeed such--for in no circumstances will there be a clash between what we do and what we conscientiously believe to be the nature of God as revealed to us in The Urantia Book and in and through the life of Jesus--and we will feel truly comfortable with our decisions.

Are there indicators to show that we are living at one with our spirit guides? "The proof of fraternity with the divine Adjuster consists wholly in the nature and extent of the fruits of the spirit which are yielded in the life experience of the individual believer. 'By their fruits you shall know them.'" (64) And what are those fruits? "Loving service, unselfish devotion, courageous loyalty, sincere fairness, enlightened honesty, undying hope, confiding trust, merciful ministry, unfailing goodness, forgiving tolerance, and enduring peace." (2054)

What follows this quotation from p.2054 is probably the most severe and uncompromising in The Urantia Book and requires personal reflection by all serious readers. We should know it is there:

"If professed believers bear not these fruits of the divine spirit in their lives, they are dead; the Spirit of Truth is not in them; they are useless branches on the living vine, and they soon will be taken away. My Father requires of the children of faith that they bear much spirit fruit. If, therefore, you are not fruitful, he will dig about your roots and cut away your unfruitful branches. Increasingly, must you yield the fruits of the spirit as you progress heavenward in the kingdom of God. You may enter the kingdom as a child, but the Father requires that you grow up, by grace, to the full stature of spiritual adulthood. And when you go abroad to tell all nations the good news of this gospel, I will go before you, and my Spirit of Truth shall abide in your hearts. My peace I leave with you."