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"Prayer
is the contemplation of the facts of life from the highest point of
view. It is the soliloquy of a beholding and jubilant soul.
It is the spirit of God pronouncing his works good. But prayer as
a means to effect a private end is theft and meanness. It supposes
dualism and not unity in nature and consciousness. As soon as a
man is one with God, he will not beg." ... Ralph Waldo
Emerson, Self Reliance
This
week's message contains the power points of the 4th and final
Introductory Chapter of the Science of Mind, How To Use It. If you
missed the 1st, 2nd or 3rd Chapter's power points you can find then in
the 2006 Archives. These chapters
contain the essence of the Science of Mind philosophy. I strongly
urge you to read these chapters in full and study them until you are
satisfied with your understanding of the principles presented in them.
HOW TO USE IT
It has been proved that by thinking
correctly and by a conscious mental use of the law of Mind, we can cause
It to do definite things for us, through us. By conscious
thinking, we give conscious direction to It, and It, consciously or
unconsciously, responds to our advance along the line of our conscious,
or subjective, direction.
It must and will respond to everyone, because
It is Law and law is no respecter of persons. We are surrounded by
an intelligent force and substance, from which all things come - the
ultimate Essence, in the invisible and subjective world, of all visible
and objective forms and conditions. It is around us in its
original state, ready and willing to take form through the impulse of
our creative belief. It works for us by flowing through us.
This law we did not create; this law we cannot change. We can use
It correctly only as we understand and use It according to Its nature.
We should learn to control our thought
processes and bring them into line with Reality. Though should
tend more and more toward an affirmative attitude of mind that is
positive, stable, and - above all else - toward a real unity with Spirit
that is already complete and perfect.
We should be able to look a discordant fact
[illness, poverty] in the face and deny its reality, since we know its
seeming reality is borrowed from illusion, from "chaos and old
night." Our standard is one of perfection. "Be ye
therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is
perfect." (Matt. 5:48) We should be able to look at a wrong
condition with the knowledge that we can change it. The
realization that we have this ability must be gained by the application
of our knowledge.
The practice of the Science of Mind calls for a
positive understanding of the Spirit of Truth; a willingness to let this
inner Spirit guide us, with the conscious knowledge that "The law
of the Lord is perfect." (Psalms 19:7) And we must believe
this to be a fact. IN SO FAR AS OUR THOUGHT IS IN ACCORD WITH THIS
PERFECT LAW, IT WILL ACCOMPLISH AND NOTHING CAN HINDER IT.
"Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass
away," (Matt. 24:35) said the beautiful Jesus, as He strove to
teach His disciples the immutability of the Law of Righteousness.
Let us analyze this: One finds himself
impoverished. He [desires] to change this condition. He
knows that it is not in accord with Ultimate Reality; that the Spirit
imposes no limitations. Therefore, he know that his apparent
limited condition has no real law to support it; it is simply an
"experience of consciousness." He [desires] a definite
result in the opposite direction. First, he realizes that the Law
of Life is a Law of Liberty, of Freedom. He now states that this
Law of Liberty is flowing through him and into all his affairs.
But the image of his limitation persists. Here is a definite
contradiction of his statements of freedom.
Right here, he must stop and declare that these
images of limitation are neither person, place nor thing; that they have
no power, no personality nor presence and no real law to support them.
He does not believe in them and they cannot operate through him.
He is free from their influence, forever. He then begins to fill
his thought with the idea of faith, the expectancy of good and the
realization of plenty. He senses, and mentally sees, right action
in his life. He puts his whole trust in the Law of Good, and It
becomes very real to him as he definitely speaks It into being - into
his being and into the being of his affairs. He denies anything
and everything that contradicts his realization of this truth.
At this point of realization, he meets a friend
(?) who immediately begins a tale of woe about hard times, bad business
conditions, etc., and, should he listen to this "tale of the
serpent," he might reverse his previous affirmations and make
negative his former mental and spiritual concept! This does not
mean that he should refuse to hold conversation with people, for fear
they will neutralize the position which he has taken in his mind, but
that he should refuse mentally to accept the false position. Then
he can talk with anyone and not be disturbed. - Dr. Ernest Holmes
Continuing further with this chapter, you will
learn the benefits of Spiritual Mind Treatment. There is nothing
mysterious about treatment ... it is merely a method of convincing
ourselves that as we believe in the immutable Law of Good ... it
responds to our belief and returns to us the Good result that we desire.
God does not punish ... but the Law returns to us an automatic
consequence of our thought-action. I highly
suggest that you "study" the Science of Mind, beginning with
these four Introductory Chapters. And also read this page:
Effective Prayer. Meditate on the ideas that are presented by
Dr. Holmes. Contemplate how they apply to the conditions and
circumstances in your life. Once you begin realizing that you can
demonstrate the Law of Good through your very own consciousness ... you
will find your life filled with a greater and greater measure of
happiness, harmony, peace, success and prosperity. I know you can
do this ... for it is normal and natural that you do so.
And
So It Is!
Letting
Love Use Me In Its Own Good Way,
Rev.
Bates
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