A former teacher of James Padgett’s, writes about his experience when he first arrived in the spirit world. The Gospel of God’s Love, on page 386.
“I want to first say, that no spirit by the mere fact of having made an advent into this world, has received much more knowledge of it than when they lived on earth. But as one continues to investigate these matters, they discover their capacity for learning increases. The spirit mind receives knowledge more readily than does the mortal mind. This is largely due to the fact that the physical brain is of a much inferior quality than the spirit brain.
“I am going through a course of study that will give me knowledge of these laws, so I might become a learned spirit. First of all I learned that humans continue to live in the spirit world without their flesh body. This great law, while you and others knew it as an established fact, to me was unknown as I never had any experience with spirit communication. I learned that it is one of God’s great truths, that it is fixed and never will change. Every person will survive so-called death. Another law I learned is that no person, by her own will power, can make her condition or location in the spirit world, just where she wants it to be.
“Spirits often think that all they have to do, to move from their current condition, is to exercise their will power to do so. But this is not true, the law governing this matter is exact and never has any exceptions. Mortal or spirit can in a way determine what their destiny may be, but once fixed by this great power of will, which God has conferred upon his beloved children, they cannot change that condition until the law of compensation has been satisfied.
“Even then, the change cannot be brought about by the exercise of their will, but only by the operations of the law releasing them from memories which hold them in that condition. They have the idea that if they so choose to exercise their vaunted will power, they could relieve themselves of their darkenned condition and get into a happier one. But strangely, they never try this, and the reason is apparent: They could not if they tried, and will not try because they cannot. This law is as fixed as are all laws in this great universe of God.” Amen