Section G

If you’ve been referred to this section of the Sourcebook from Step 4.5 of the BNL process, then you’ve now gone through at least one full experience of that process. It’s a process for making conscious and intentional life choices that is simple, complete, and deeply effective. It’s also a process that offers all the basic tools you need for making and sustaining any life change that you want or need to make.

You also know (from footnote 17 on the Step 4.4 worksheet) that this particular process of life change recommends you focus on one sin in your life at a time in blocks of six months to a year. If you take these recommendations to heart, it means that for the rest of your life you’ll always have one habit that you’re working on at a time using this process.

In addition, you now know (from Step 4.5 of the process) that any time a sin recurs, your response to it is ,“I do not want this (or alternatively, “I do not will this”) because it’s a sin against God.”

But in addition to the one sin you’re working on at a given moment in time, you may experience any number of additional evils that come knocking at the door of your heart and mind in a day’s time, and that try to worm their way into your life. The question is, what can you do to address these additional evils when they crop up? Obviously, you can’t utilize the full process for every single evil that presents itself to you in a day’s time.

Fortunately, there’s a quick, easy way to address any of these “additional” evils that come your way. It’s the same approach that’s described in Sourcebook Section C. It’s a kind of change that is easier than the full, four-step process, and which can help you see and acknowledge destructive thoughts and intentions early on—just as they’re entering your mind—and prevent them from making further inroads. This easy kind of change is described in the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg as follows:

When we are considering doing something evil, and are forming an intention to do it, we say to ourselves, “I am thinking about this, and I’m intending to do it, but because it’s a sin, I’m not going to do it”(True Christianity, paragraph no. 535).

Note: The BNL program suggests that evil is anything in conflict with God’s purpose, plan, and intention in creation. It’s anything that is truly harmful or destructive of what is good, wholesome, and true. Sin is evil specifically against your neighbor and God as summarized in the biblical Ten Commandments and also reflected in the broader Word of God/divine revelation. (For more on the concepts of evil and sin, see the Step 2.1 and Step 2.2 worksheets of the BNL process, footnotes 4-7.)

What Swedenborg is describing here is a quick, easy way to make a change any time a destructive thought pops into your mind and a harmful intention starts to form.

As mentioned in Sourcebook Section C, this easy kind of change can be especially helpful for people who are having difficulty either getting started on the full process or seeing it through. But it can have value for you as well—a person who is already working the full process. For you this easier kind of change can be a simple, effective tool for dealing with any evil that crops up in your mind additional to the one you’re focused on using the full process. Any time you’re considering doing something evil, and are forming an intention to do it, you can take a stand against it by saying to yourself, “I am thinking about this and I’m intending to do it, but because it’s a sin, I’m not going to do it.”

One of the remarkable things about this easier kind of change is the immediate, significant impact it can have on your mental, emotional, and/or spiritual state. Swedenborg writes:

Doing this [the above] counteracts the enticement that hell is injecting into us, and keeps it from making further inroads (True Christianity, paragraph no. 535).

People who use this easier kind of change against “additional” forms of evil are often surprised at the immediate, powerful effect it can have on their state of mind. Often it has the very effect Swedenborg describes: The enticement to do or say something harmful or destructive suddenly stops. In fact, some people say the shift can be so sudden and complete that, moments later, they don’t even remember what the enticement was about.

Having this easy approach to change means that any "additional" evils that present themselves to you in a day’s time won’t go unnoticed or unaddressed. At the same time, you won’t lose your focus on the one “front burner” issue you’re working on using the full process.

There are four points to make from all of this: 

1. First, each kind of change—the full process and the easier kind—is different from the other. Each one functions in a different way from the other and is used for a different purpose. 

2. Second, these two kinds of change are complementary in nature. They work side-by-side to provide a clear, simple, global defense against evil and sin. 

3. Third, the easier kind of change helps you avoid doing and saying things that are harmful and destructive, but it doesn’t heal you of sin on deeper levels—the levels of patterned thinking and intending. Only the full BNL process does that. 

4. And fourth, although the easier kind of change helps you avoid doing and saying things that are harmful and destructive, it isn’t designed to move you further—into a new, different, kind, and thoughtful life of goodwill to all. A fully new and better way of life (which includes wanting what’s best for others and treating them well) is what the full process is all about.

In summary, you’ve now experienced a full process of life change and spiritual transformation that can be used on one sin at a time in your life. It can help you heal from harmful and destructive behaviors and habits—from outside in, and inside out. You’ve also learned about an easier kind of change that allows you to see and deal with any additional forms of evil that crop up in a day’s time. These two kinds of change—the full process and the easier kind—are complementary in nature. They work together—side by side—to form a simple, complete, global defense against evil and sin. Together they help you move forward in your life in rich and deeply meaningful ways, as you co-operate with the Lord God toward positive, satisfying, joyful goals that He has in mind for you.