Lesson 72: “Holding grievances is an attack on God’s plan for salvation.”

I. The Core Teaching

This lesson goes straight to the heart of the Course’s metaphysics: there are only two plans for your life.

1. The ego’s plan for salvation.

2. God’s plan for salvation.

Every moment, you are following one or the other. There is no middle ground.

What is the ego’s plan?

The ego’s plan is very simple, though it wears many disguises:

• You are a separate self in a vulnerable body.
• Other people and the world are the cause of your pain.
• If they changed, you would be safe and happy.
• Therefore, your “salvation” lies in:
• judging,
• defending,
• blaming,
• controlling,
• and holding grievances.

A grievance is any form of “I have been unfairly treated.” It may look like anger, resentment, disappointment, hurt, or subtle irritation. But metaphysically, all grievances say:

“Someone outside me has taken my peace, and I am right to be upset.”

This is the ego’s “salvation”: if you can prove you are right about being wronged, you protect your separate identity. You keep the story of “me vs. them” alive. The ego does not care if you are happy; it only cares that you remain separate.

What is God’s plan?

God’s plan for salvation is also simple:

• You are not a separate self; you are the holy Son of God, one with all life.
• Nothing real can be threatened.
• Your peace and joy are already given, already yours.
• Salvation is the recognition of what is already true.

God’s plan is carried out by the Holy Spirit in your mind. The Holy Spirit’s function is to reinterpret everything you see, so that:

• Where you see attack, He shows you a call for love.
• Where you see guilt, He shows you innocence.
• Where you see loss, He shows you that nothing real has been lost.

What is the ego trying to hide?

The ego is terrified that you will discover:

• You are not a victim.
• You are not guilty.
• You are not separate.
• You are, and always have been, loved and safe in God.

If you truly accepted this, the ego would dissolve. So it uses grievances to keep you focused outward, on “who did what to me,” so you never look inward and question the basic assumption: “Maybe I am not what I think I am.”

Grievances hide the light in you. They are like clouds that seem to block the sun. The sun never stops shining, but your awareness of it is dimmed. The ego wants you to believe the clouds are real, powerful, and justified.

What is the Holy Spirit revealing?

The Holy Spirit is gently revealing that:

• Your peace does not depend on anyone’s behavior.
• Your worth does not depend on your past.
• Your safety does not depend on the body or the world.
• Your true Self cannot be harmed.

When you release a grievance, even a little, you give the Holy Spirit permission to show you another way of seeing. You are not asked to deny your feelings, but to question their interpretation.

The Holy Spirit’s quiet message is:

“Your brother is not your enemy.

Your sister is not your jailer.

They are either extending love or calling for love.

And you are free to respond with love, because love is what you are.”

To accept God’s plan for salvation is to accept that your peace is already given—and that your only real “task” is to stop blocking it with grievances.

II. Applied to Daily Life

Let’s bring this into very ordinary situations.

1. Relationships

*Example:* Your partner forgets something important to you, or speaks sharply.

Ego’s plan:

• “They don’t care about me.”
• “I am not valued.”
• “I must protect myself by withdrawing, attacking, or keeping score.”

You hold a grievance: you replay the moment, justify your hurt, and build a case.

Holy Spirit’s reinterpretation:

• “This is not about my worth; my worth is given by God.”
• “My partner is either afraid, distracted, or in pain. This is a call for love, not a real attack on my Self.”
• “I can communicate clearly, but I do not have to sacrifice my peace.”

You might still talk about what happened, set boundaries, or ask for change—but you do it without making them your jailer or yourself their victim. Your peace is not on trial.

2. Work and career

*Example:* A coworker takes credit for your idea, or your boss criticizes you.

Ego’s plan:

• “My success and safety depend on this job and these people.”
• “If they don’t respect me, I am diminished.”
• “I must resent them, gossip, or silently stew.”

Holy Spirit’s plan:

• “My value is not determined by this job.”
• “This situation is an opportunity to learn trust, honesty, and inner strength.”
• “I can be guided about what to say or do, without sacrificing my peace.”

You may still take appropriate action—speak up, document your work, even leave the job eventually—but you are not using the situation to prove that you are a victim of the world you see.

3. Illness and the body

*Example:* You experience chronic pain, a diagnosis, or physical limitation.

Ego’s plan:

• “My body is me, and it is failing.”
• “I am unfairly treated by life, by genetics, by God.”
• “I will hold a grievance against my body, my past, or my fate.”

Holy Spirit’s plan:

• “I am not a body. I am still as God created me.”
• “This body is a classroom, not my identity.”
• “Even here, I can learn peace, trust, and compassion—for myself and others.”

You still seek appropriate medical care. The Course never asks you to deny symptoms. But you begin to loosen the belief that your Self is at the mercy of the body. You invite the Holy Spirit to use this situation to deepen your awareness of your eternal nature.

4. Anxiety and daily stress

*Example:* Money worries, traffic, deadlines, family demands.

Ego’s plan:

• “The world is dangerous and scarce.”
• “I must control everything or I will be destroyed.”
• “My tension is justified; it proves I am responsible.”

Holy Spirit’s plan:

• “I am always being carried by a Love that knows my needs.”
• “I can do what is in front of me calmly, and ask for guidance.”
• “My stress is not required; it is a habit of fear, not a law.”

You still pay your bills, plan, and act responsibly. But you begin to notice that fear is not helping you. You can pause, breathe, and say: “I will not use this situation to attack God’s plan for my peace.”

III. Overcoming Resistance

This lesson can feel threatening, because it challenges the ego’s favorite tool: the grievance.

You might notice thoughts like:

• “If I let go of my grievance, I’m letting them off the hook.”
• “If I don’t stay angry, I’ll be hurt again.”
• “My pain is too big; this can’t apply here.”
• “I want peace, but I also want to be right.”

The Course never asks you to say that hurtful behavior is okay. It asks you to question the meaning you have given it.

Letting go of a grievance does not mean:

• You approve of what happened.
• You must stay in a harmful situation.
• You deny your feelings.

It means:

• You stop using the event to prove that you are a victim and that separation is real.
• You allow the Holy Spirit to show you a way of seeing that does not cost you your peace.

Another form of resistance is fear of God. Part of the mind believes:

“If I accept God’s plan, I will lose myself, my individuality, my specialness.”

The Course gently reveals that what you lose is only fear, guilt, and loneliness. What remains is a Self so vast and loving that nothing real is sacrificed.

If resistance arises, you can simply say:

“Holy Spirit, I am afraid of this lesson.

I am willing to be shown gently.

I do not know what anything, including this, means.

Please reinterpret it for me.”

Your willingness, not your perfection, is what matters.

IV. Today’s Practice (Lesson 72)

Here is a simple way to practice this lesson today.

1. Morning quiet time (10–15 minutes)

1. Sit quietly, close your eyes, and breathe gently.

2. Say slowly, with intention:

“Holding grievances is an attack on God’s plan for salvation.

I want to accept His plan, not my own.”

3. Ask inwardly:

“Whose salvation am I attacking by my grievances?”

Let specific names or faces come to mind. Don’t force it; just notice.

4. For each person who appears in your mind, say:

“I am holding a grievance against you, and so I am attacking God’s plan for my salvation and yours.

I want to see you as the Holy Spirit sees you.

I choose God’s plan instead of the ego’s.”

5. Sit in silence a few moments after each one, allowing a softening, even if only a little.

2. Short practice periods throughout the day

Several times an hour, or whenever you feel tension, say quietly:

• “This grievance is an attack on God’s plan for my peace.”
• “I choose God’s plan for salvation instead of this.”

You don’t have to feel completely sincere. The words are like opening a window; the Holy Spirit brings the fresh air.

3. When upset or triggered

When you notice anger, hurt, or resentment:

1. Pause. Take a breath.

2. Acknowledge your feeling: “I feel angry / hurt / afraid.”

3. Then add:

“I am tempted to use this as a grievance.

That is the ego’s plan for my salvation.

I do not want this plan.

Holy Spirit, show me God’s plan here.”

4. Be willing to see the other person as either extending love or calling for love. You may not fully see it yet, but your willingness opens the door.

4. Evening reflection

Before sleep, review your day gently:

• Where did I choose the ego’s plan (grievances)?
• Where did I accept even a little of God’s plan (forgiveness, release)?

Offer the whole day to the Holy Spirit:

“I give You this day.

Correct my perception wherever I chose wrongly.

Teach me to choose again tomorrow.”

V. Comparable ACIM Lessons

Several lessons are closely related:

• **Lesson 68 – “Love holds no grievances.”**

Shows that grievances and love cannot coexist. Lesson 72 extends this by showing that grievances are not just unloving; they actively oppose God’s plan for your awakening.

• **Lesson 71 – “Only God’s plan for salvation will work.”**

Lesson 72 is its natural follow-up: if only God’s plan works, then grievances—being the ego’s plan—must fail and bring only more pain.

• **Lesson 78 – “Let miracles replace all grievances.”**

Where Lesson 72 exposes grievances as attacks on salvation, Lesson 78 shows the positive alternative: miracles of perception that reveal innocence instead of guilt.

• **Lesson 23 – “I can escape from the world I see by giving up attack thoughts.”**

Grievances are a form of attack thought. Lesson 72 makes this more specific: attack thoughts are not neutral; they are a refusal of the help already given you.

VI. Closing Thought

You are not being asked to do something harsh or demanding. You are being invited to stop hurting yourself with grievances that never brought you the peace you seek.

Today, you can simply say:

“I have tried the ego’s plan long enough.

I am willing to try God’s plan now.

I will not let grievances stand between me and the peace that is already mine.”

Even the smallest willingness opens a great door. The Holy Spirit will do the rest.