Perfectly Free, Freely Perfect

It's All About Perspective?

2011-10-29T15:56:00.001-07:00

I just have to get this out and share it, because it has come to my thought lately.

Now, this is just me, but ...

I come across quite a few discussion threads about the Bible and Christianity, and I am always fascinated by how God gave his law - the only law - and Jesus lived by the law, yet it seems many Christians have very different understandings or comprehension of the law.

It has seemed to me that these different interpretations have brought out some inconsistency to the Bible. And I've always wondered about that, but in the last couple days something hit me.

What if we all read the Bible from God's perspective? After all, isn't the Bible written in human language so we could all "understand" it in our limited, mortal way? Some Christians seem to be getting deeper than the words - others seem to stay on the surface and treat the Bible literally and as a material law.

But God is Spirit, infinite, eternal and incorporeal. And since that is all He is and He made all there is, then doesn't it follow that God would only know all to be the same as Him? Isn't the Bible called the Word of God ... so really, in order to truly understand it, maybe we need to try to read the Word from God's perspective. That is, God is all, infinite, spiritual, good, perfect, eternal, Love, Life, Truth, Mind, Soul, Spirit, Principle (the seven Biblical synonyms for God), and he made all in "His image and likeness," as declared in Chapter 1 of Genesis. So everything about His Word is meant for His children, whom He created just like Him. He created us all the same (and continues to create, by the way) - we are all His children. The Bible isn't meant to be read or interpreted in a humanistic, material or literal way. We are clouded by the human language, which is the closest thing we have to the true spiritual language of God.

The next time we read the stories or the parables, maybe we should try think of how infinite, perfect, good, loving, sinless, active, prosperous God would tell his story to his infinite, perfect, good, loving, sinless, active, prosperous offspring. I think many of us would see the Bible in a whole new light.

Think of Jesus' parables told from that higher perspective. Maybe someday I'll be able to post some of my thoughts about these in the future, as I start to think of what God's Word should mean to us as spiritual beings.

A Choice of Biblical Proportions

2011-10-17T08:09:00.000-07:00

I was reading this week's Bible Lesson this morning, and I came across this verse, from Romans:

"Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience to righteousness?" (Romans 6:16)

Thinking of this immediately brought forth two other "decisions" that have stood out to me in my Bible study, contained in the same verse:

"No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon." (Luke 16:13)

In some of the more recent, contemporary versions of the Bible, this has been continually quoted as "You cannot serve God and wealth," like as a justification for the #Occupy demonstrations going on all over the country. But in my study of this verse and the one from Romans above, there is a deeper meaning that is being missed.

The choice comes down to God vs. matter or material things. Where does your thought rest?

God is spiritual and infinite. "Mammon" is matter, materiality, and is finite. They are opposites in character. And as Romans suggests, which will you choose to serve? If you choose finite matter, you are choosing the side that leads to sin, sickness, disease and DEATH. In other words, do you see yourself in this light - as a mortal, material, sinful, "fallen" being? If you choose God, infinite Spirit, you are choosing the side that defines purity, health, goodness, and eternal LIFE. In other words, do you see yourself in this light - as an immortal, spiritual, perfect, obedient being? You can't be both - it's impossible to be sinful and pure, sick and healthy, spiritual and mortal, alive and dead.

This choice is one one we can make every moment of our day. We can always decide where our thought will go - will it go to God and listening to how to express Him, or will it go to the material? Will we focus on God's demand for us - "Thy will," as in the Lord's Prayer - or will we focus on our own human will?

We ARE spiritual beings, made in the "image and likeness" of the infinite spiritual being, God (see Gen. 1:26-27). Therefore the decision should be automatic. But that talking serpent, the first lie, can be very subtle in tricking us to think otherwise. Let's be awake to the attempted hypnosis and recognize our divine nature, so when it comes to knowing who our Father and Mother is and thus who we should obey, let us know the answer every moment. God is our creator - we were not created from matter.

We all have the choice - life or death, good or evil, love or hate, sin or goodness, sickness or health, freedom or slavery (limitations).

We truly cannot serve two masters. Who will YOU serve?

#Occupy Love: Love is the Governor

2011-10-15T12:09:00.002-07:00

I really have resisted the temptation to make political statements on what has intended to be a spiritual, Christian blog. But with all of the "Christianity" being thrown around regarding the #Occupy demonstrations - those who claim Jesus was a "communist" and that "Jesus stands with the 99 percent," and "capitalism is inherently immoral," and some kind of justification of this event, I just have to say I believe Jesus and God would be completely against this "class warfare" thing, and would call out the 1 percent for their greed and the 99 percent for their envy.

I'll start with three words that are the foundation of this post, and of Jesus' teachings - "God is love." (I John 3).

God is infinite Love. There is an endless supply of love, and all of God's children (the 99 percent AND the 1 percent) have the ability (nee, the responsibility) to express that love to everyone. When we express love to everyone, our supply is never exhausted - we are given more Love, more blessings to share.

I believe, based on that, that many of these people are blaspheming and distorting what Jesus taught and lived.

Those who have claimed that Jesus was a communist have it completely wrong. He never forced anyone to give up their wealth or goods - and he never told his followers to give their goods to the government so it would "distribute the wealth" to those in need. He taught the simple premise of Love. When we, as children of God, express Love, we are showing compassion for everyone. God always encouraged us to "be fruitful and multiply" (Gen. 1), but never said "only to a point." God (and Jesus) made us all good - in His image and likeness as infinite good - see Gen. 1 - thus He expected us to be good and loving and express that love to our fellow man. Once we were fruitful and multiplied the blessings He gave us and we took care of ourselves and our families first, God then expected us, as infinitely good and loving children of His, to then WILLINGLY give our blessings to others who are in need.

Here is where the big difference is - God supplies with INFINITE blessings. So once we share our blessings with others who could use them, He blesses us further by giving us MORE blessings because we expressed His love. The supply is infinite, so there are no limits to the blessings we can receive. Those who are saying Jesus was a "communist" lose track of one thing - a man-made government (as opposed to the divine government of God, Love) is finite - it cannot provide more blessings. It can only take one's blessings by force and redistribute it; it does not create new ones out of the blue. Why? It's missing divine, infinite Love.

Jesus never forced anyone to give up their goods and follow him; he just stated that if one believed him and what he taught, and wanted to know about the kingdom of heaven, one would need to give up his goods. If he didn't, Jesus didn't go to the local government and demand that the person expressed love to others. He just went about his way. Some went with him, but not everyone believed him, or even understood him. He did not condemn any of them or say they were too excessive in their goods. He loved them, but stated that man cannot serve two masters (God or wealth, goods) and left the decision up to each person to decide. That is NOT communism. To believe Jesus would approve of forced "redistribution" would be to make Jesus a despotic king. He believed that everyone was inherently good (even his most ardent enemies) and would make the right decision ON HIS OR HER OWN. He believed and knew that every person was a loved and loving child of God and when given the opportunity, more often than not everyone would do the loving thing for themselves and for others. He knew the man was "self-governed" - that is, governed only by God, and thus did not need to answer to a man-made government for doing the right thing by others.

To impose the "right thing" through government would be putting man in shackles and making him a slave. But man was made free by God and only serves Him - not man.

By extension, then, capitalism is NOT immoral. Capitalism - at least in its purist form, assuming that all who participate are good, loving children of God - is a free market, which mirrors the freedom that man has to express God's goodness in infinite ways. We are asked - actually, commanded - to be fruitful and multiply (our blessings) - that is, to build spiritual capital. As we build up our stores of love and grace and goodness, we are asked not to store them for another day, but to share our blessings with others. Why? Because God, again, is infinite. We don't need to store up the blessings we have, because He will give us more. So capitalism gives us the freedom to express His goodness, knowing that we also have the ability to accumulate more spiritual capital. When we do His work - namely, express all of His qualities - we are rewarded continually.

Communism, on the other hand, limits our ability to receive blessings and our ability to express and share them because they are taken away by force. Communism is not love - and it is certainly not infinite. There isn't an infinite supply of money, so those who "share" aren't rewarded with more blessings to share later. Communism assumes a finite supply and tries to make everyone in the system equal in result. Capitalism, on the other hand, establishes equal OPPORTUNITIES to express goodness and blessings. As children of God, we ALL have access to the blessings and goodness - no one of us has any more opportunity than another. Our results are dependent on the choices we make with the opportunity we have. Jesus showed us the "straight and narrow way" in order to be prosperous; any choice we make that takes us off that path will lead us into darkness and will limit our prosperity (the belief that an individual's prosperity should be limited is one of those choices that is sinful and leads us off that path - that sin is envy, or covetousness).

As for God and Jesus standing with the 99 percent, I believe that is wrong too. God and Jesus loved everyone - and Jesus didn't see people as being against each other. He saw us all as brothers and sisters, children of God. He would not have stood with one group of people against another; he might have called out the demons that were present - greed, envy, etc. - but he would have called the 99 percent and the 1 percent together and would have preached on the mount about the virtues of loving one another - even perceived "enemies." He would call out the greed and envy that were obviously splitting up the population and would have exposed them for all to see, then he would have encouraged everyone to get in touch with that divine Love that we all possess, and to share it openly with each other so that everyone can be prepared to receive more.

Love is infinite. God is Love. Love is all, and we as children of God express that Love always. Let us remember as these protests go on, that the Christian approach is to love one another always and to encourage each other to take advantage of the opportunity to gain and express the blessings that God gives us.

And put the signs down. It's time to Love. Not 1 percent, not 99 percent, but 100 percent.

Let's 100 percent Love. Let us #Occupy Love.

Earache and Fever Gone in Mere Hours!

2011-09-07T11:20:00.001-07:00

Children really are innocent, are they not? The are so receptive to good and drawn to it, that any chance of evil to get a hold is almost non-existent - kids are Teflon, and I have a couple of healings to report that back this up.

A couple of weeks ago, my son was having a normally active day around the house. However, when he woke up from a nap, his body was hot, dry and sweaty. There was a belief in a full-body fever. He cried in our arms. Mommy tried to comfort him, and we called a Christian Science practitioner to help us. After he spoke with our son briefly on the phone, emphasizing how he's loved and protected always, my wife and I started our own work. We sat with him, sung some hymns to him, and he joined us. Later that night, I did my usual duty of putting our son to bed. We went over the Lord's Prayer and the Daily Prayer listed in the Manual of the Mother Church (I said the former, he said the latter). By the next morning, the fever broke and he was back to being his normal self.

Then, about a week ago, our son cried, holding his hand over his ear. "My ear hurts," he said. We hugged him and again called the practitioner to help us. He talked to our son briefly, re-affirming that he can hear God all the time and nothing can get in the way of that. After the practitioner hung up, my wife and I held him and read the weekly Bible Lesson to him out loud. He calmly laid on the bed and listened. Within an hour of hearing these truths, he got up and went about his day ... and he hasn't had any trouble since.

God is truly a "very present help in trouble." We are very grateful for that fact, and for our son's freedom to receive His messages of all-powerful good. Thank you God!

Online Business and the First Commandment

2011-06-28T13:40:00.000-07:00

It was interesting that this week's Christian Science Bible Lesson is about God, because I had an experience recently that brings home the differing perspectives of Christians regarding God, His power, and the First Commandment.

I was sent a package in the mail, upon request, for me to look into a home-based, online business. I put in the DVD and it was a glossy propaganda piece about a "proven marketing system" that ensures success for everyone who gets involved in this business - one that apparently is run by a "major company" (though the name of the company was not mentioned) and is looking for people to sell its "wellness products" (which, again, the video did not describe - other than a couple of testimonials that claimed that using a certain product caused them to lose weight, lower their cholesterol, etc.).

I finished watching it, turned the TV off, and realized that this was not going to be a good fit for me.

The really interesting part was, this company apparently bought air time and endorsements from some of the country's top conservative radio talk-show hosts (those with apparently high percentages of so-called "Christian conservatives"). Anyway, the time came for me to speak on the phone with one of the business "coaches" that this company put forth. I calmly explained to her that this concept was not going to work for me, and she asked why.

"Because whatever you are selling directly competes with what I do," I said. She asked what I did, and I said, "I use prayer to help people achieve wellness." She tuned me out, and said, "Well, the Lord has blessed me and my family with this concept - you have your opinions and I have mine." With that, she abruptly hung up.

Yes, I do have my opinion, and it's this - I'm amazed that some Christians are OK with marketing to people with the underlying purpose of violating the First Commandment, in the name of achieving financial freedom.

In this week's Bible Lesson, it says in Isaiah, "I am the Lord, there is none else; there is no god beside me." (Chap. 45). And in Exodus, the First Commandment is, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." (Ex. 20:3). This is simply that God is the only power in the universe, and to believe in anything other than God to have power is erroneous and sinful.

This company is using Christians, who supposedly try to live a Christian life, which includes abiding by the First Commandment, to market products and give off the belief that they have the power to make people well. But the First Commandment says God, a spiritual entity, has all the power in the universe - so where does the power come from that is contained in these "products" which are not spiritual, but material?

The answer: Human belief. This company is playing the role of serpent in Eden, and it has apparently found a collection of Adams and Eves to beguile.

This could have been a big money-maker for my family, but I was not going to eat the fruit of the tree. God has said that He is the only power - I should only trust Him and believe in Him to provide my wellness constantly, perfectly, eternally. And I should not attempt to beguile others into believing something else, because that would make me a hypocrite.

That serpent, erroneous mental belief, certainly can be "more subtil than any beast of the field." We all have to be watchful of the propaganda we hear and see. Anytime there is a belief in a power other than God, we should dismiss it and rebuke it.

That is living by the First Commandment.

The Comforter Speaks

2011-06-28T07:55:00.001-07:00

How did I come up with title of this site? Well, I was on a plane, returning from my Association meeting. I was reviewing the Association address from earlier in the day, when a thought came to me: "Perfectly Free, Freely Perfect." Based on what the Association address was about, this didn't seem to make much sense. I listened a little more, and heard it again - perfectly free, freely perfect. At that moment a thought of one of my neighbors came to mind - she is someone who has been dealing with health issues for a long time, and she has the belief of being constrained in her diet and having all kinds of different ailments. I began to pray, with the thought that we, as children of God, are made perfectly free and freely perfect.

A short time later, the plane landed and I turned on my cell phone. There was a text message from my wife, saying that our young son "feels warm and is coughing" and was asking me to work for him, as she was already doing. That text came at about the time the idea, "perfectly free, freely perfect," came to my thought. I immediately replied to her with that statement. I heard the next morning that our son had improved dramatically.

Once I got home, I decided to research a little more. Perfectly free sounded great, but freely perfect? I was a bit fuzzy, so I went to an online dictionary and looked up definitions of "freely." I saw this: "abundantly; gratuitously." Well, I liked the concept of us being abundantly perfect, but I dug further, looking up "gratuitously." The result? "bestowed; given without cost or obligation." This was an A-ha! moment for me.

We, as children and expressions of the one infinite God, are perfectly free (our freedom is complete, without any fetters by finite human perception) and freely perfect (our perfection is given to us by God, without any cost or condition, a quality bestowed by our Father-Mother).

What an idea, eh?

The Only Words that Matter ...

2011-01-10T08:41:00.002-07:00

OK, I have to do this.

In the wake of the tragic shooting in my backyard January 8th - the one that took the life of a federal judge, a 9-year-old girl, four others and critically wounded a U.S. Congresswoman and injuring more than a dozen others - I've been reading about some people's beliefs that the current political "rhetoric" thrown around in some way contributed to the shooting.

I read a recent blog post by a former high-school friend of mine - who is heavily involved in Christian youth ministry - that read "Words Matter." Then, not more than a day later, our county sheriff said in his own way the same thing, blaming hateful rhetoric ("words") on driving this young gunman to shoot innocent people. This drove me to think of Jesus, the original Christian. In the spirit of What Would Jesus Do, I began pondering what is the Christian approach to "rhetoric"?

Well, it's documented that Jesus was very much hated and persecuted - he was arguably the most persecuted man ever to set foot on Earth. (Yes, even more than George W. Bush.) Why? Simply because he preached and demonstrated the Truth of God and it was not understandable to those living by ritualistic religious teachings of the time. He brought healing of sickness and sin; raised the dead; cleansed lepers; and loved everyone - yes, even his enemies, who voiced such vitriolic "rhetoric" at him and behind his back.

Did words matter? In one sense, yes, because they led people to accuse Jesus and crucify him. But did they matter to Jesus' work and life? No; he ignored all of it and just continued about his "Father's business," loving and healing everyone with whom he came into contact, and teaching his disciples how to do their "Father's business" as well. He even healed the right ear of one of his persecutors when one of his disciples raised a sword in defense of him upon Judas' betrayal (see Luke 22:47-54). In effect, he kept his wits about him.

For Jesus, mortal words didn't matter, especially words of hate and violence. The only words that mattered to Jesus - the original Christian - were the Word of God. The Word of God expressed love, eternal life, perfection, the powerlessness of death and sin and sickness. That was all that mattered. And those of us who claim to follow Christ could learn a mighty lesson from Jesus.

Words only matter if we let them have power. But the only words with real power are those that come from the only true power in the universe - God. Any words (and thoughts!) that don't express love for all, forgiveness, peace, harmony, health, etc. (all good), are words that have no power behind them - unless our mortal minds give them power. But that is a sin, because it would mean a belief in a power other than God, which breaks the First Commandment, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me ("before" meaning "besides" or "except")" (Exodus 20:3).

Mary Baker Eddy, the discoverer and founder of Christian Science, explains Jesus' approach (and how all Christians should be in regards to "rhetoric" or erroneous thoughts) this way:

"We should remember that the world is wide; that there are a thousand million different human wills, opinions, ambitions, tastes, and loves; that each person has a different history, constitution, culture, character, from all the rest; that human life is the work, the play, the ceaseless action and reaction upon each other of these different atoms. Then, we should go forth into life with the smallest expectations, but with the largest patience; with a keen relish for and appreciation of everything beautiful, great, and good, but with a temper so genial that the friction of the world shall not wear upon our sensibilities; with an equanimity so settled that no passing breath nor accidental disturbance shall agitate or ruffle it; with a charity broad enough to cover the whole world's evil, and sweet enough to neutralize what is bitter in it, — determined not to be offended when no wrong is meant, nor even when it is, unless the offense be against God. Nothing short of our own errors should offend us. He who can wilfully attempt to injure another, is an object of pity rather than of resentment; ... (Miscellaneous Writings 1883-1896, p. 224)"

So really, "words" by themselves don't matter. Vitriol and hate is irrelevant, as long as we follow Jesus' example of living in the Christ.

God Supports Me Always! Back Pain Healed

2010-07-19T13:44:00.001-07:00

Yes, I've always known that Christian Science works - from the first few days that I attended a Christian Science church and heard story after story of how scientific prayer healed. And I know that I have seen and experienced healings of others - and I have experienced some transformations in my character as well.

But today, I'd like to yell from the rooftops that I have experienced my first "significant" physical healing. Praise and glory be to God, and thank Him for my freedom!

Nearly two weeks ago, I woke up and could barely move without experiencing sharp pains in my back. It seemed that every muscle tightened into one giant knot! I surely couldn't stand up straight and it seemed that I could barely stand at all without feeling painful spasms all over my back. I was confined to bed.

This isn't right, I thought. Where in the world did this come from? I writhed in pain for a little while, but I managed to get into a reasonably comfortable position and started reading the Bible Lesson and some articles out of the Anthology of Classic Articles, just to begin drinking in Truth. As I read, the thought came to me to think of my back. Matter is the counterfeit of spiritual Truth - I learned that in Christian Science. So I stopped and thought, what is the spiritual truth that the mortal back represents? The thought zipped to mind - the back is the main support system, the foundation for the mortal body.

That's it! Somehow I lost sight of my spiritual foundation. The next thought was, "All good supports me at all times." I knew that "all good" means God. God is all good, infinitely so. He is all-power, all-presence. I know that I can always lean on God, because He is always there - no matter what. The Psalmist serves a great reminder: "If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me." (Ps. 138:8-10) In other words, there is no place, no situation, no circumstance, in my life where God isn't there to help, guide, guard and govern me.

I realized that I had been expressing some apprehension about starting a new endeavor - I had a lot of questions and concerns, and I kept ruminating about risks and whether our family could afford risk, etc. All of this wondering was a form of doubt, which I learned is a belief in the absence of God.

That snapped me back (so to speak) into the spiritual, actual reality of things. I kept reading while the thought "All good supports me at all times" ran through my head constantly. All of the ruminating disappeared while I absorbed the Truth that God, all good, is supporting me at all times - every time, all the time, everywhere.

I felt a little better, but still in plenty of pain. After several hours, I resolved to go to Wednesday church that evening, so I leaned on "all good supports me at all times" as I got out of bed, got dressed and went to church. I sat up very straight in the pew and didn't move much. However my discomfort was obvious, as my father-in-law came to me afterward and said, "Has your wife been kicking you today?" We both laughed, but he quickly added, "I know you have the answer."

I went home and immediately continued working. I then called a practitioner to help me through the night, and she advised me to "know God's allness." That was exactly what we worked on for the next day - continuing to work on "all good is supporting me at all times." The sharp pains quickly receded the next morning, and the aches left shortly after that. The next thing I knew, even the tightness was gone and I had complete freedom of movement with not an ounce of discomfort at all.

I am so grateful to God for this experience, and I apologize to Him for ever expressing any doubt in Him. God, all good, is everywhere, infinitely, for all-time and in all circumstances. He is our rock, our foundation because He is the only cause and creator of the universe. There is nothing else, no other "god" - so there can never be an absence of God.

What a wonderful experience ... thank you Father-Mother, for this very important reminder!

Thoughts about Liberty

2010-07-03T12:36:00.000-07:00

The Bible, King James Version

And I will walk at liberty: for I seek thy precepts. - Psalm 119:45

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; - Isaiah 61:1

This is the word that came unto Jeremiah from the Lord, after that the king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people which were at Jerusalem, to proclaim liberty unto them; That every man should let his manservant, and every man his maidservant, being an Hebrew or an Hebrewess, go free; that none should serve himself of them to wit, of a Jew his brother. - Jeremiah 34:7, 8

And ye were now turned, and had done right in my sight, in proclaiming liberty every man to his neighbour; and ye had made a covenant before me in the house which is called by my name: - Jeremiah 34:15

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, - Luke 4:17

Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. - I Corinthians 3:15

Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy

Citizens of the world, accept the "glorious liberty of the children of God," and be free! This is your divine right. - p. 227:24-26

Truth brings the elements of liberty. On its banner is the Soul-inspired motto, "Slavery is abolished." The power of God brings deliverance to the captive. - p. 224:28-31

Other Writings by Mrs. Eddy

Is he wonderful? His works thus prove him. He giveth power, peace, and holiness; he exalteth the lowly; he giveth liberty to the captive, health to the sick, salvation from sin to the sinner — and overcometh the world!
- Miscellaneous Writings, p. 161:27-2

The great theme so deeply and solemnly expounded by the preacher, has been exemplified in all ages, but chiefly in the great crises of nations or of the human race. It is then that supreme devotion to Principle has especially been called for and manifested. It is then that we learn a little more of the nothingness of evil, and more of the divine energies of good, and strive valiantly for the liberty of the sons of God. The day we celebrate reminds us of the heroes and heroines who counted not their own lives dear to them, when they sought the New England shores, not as the flying nor as conquerors, but, steadfast in faith and love, to build upon the rock of Christ, the true idea of God — the supremacy of Spirit and the nothingness of matter. - ibid. p. 176:4-19

Predicting danger does not dignify life, whereas forecasting liberty and joy does; for these are strong promoters of health and happiness. All education should contribute to moral and physical strength and freedom. - ibid. p. 240:9-12

To-day we commemorate not only our nation's civil and religious freedom, but a greater even, the liberty of the sons of God, the inalienable rights and radiant reality of Christianity, whereof our Master said: "The works that I do shall he do;" and, "The kingdom of God cometh not with observation" (with knowledge obtained from the senses), but "the kingdom of God is within you," — within the present possibilities of mankind. - ibid. p. 251:12-19

Happy Anniversary!

2010-06-30T09:35:00.000-07:00

Well, here we are ... this humble little site has been up for a year (as of yesterday). I have no cards, no flowers, I'm not going out to dinner or what-have-you ... but I have reflected a bit on the progress of this site, and my spiritual journey in the public practice of Christian Science. I have to tell you, I have learned an awful lot and there are still many more things to learn going forward. I'm humbled by what I've done to this point and I'm excited about working on the inspirations that are already here and coming.

So to celebrate, and in the spirit of celebrating America's independence and freedom this coming weekend, I thought I'd repost what I wrote a year ago, describing how I came to title this humble little corner of the blogosphere. Enjoy!

29 June 2009

The Comforter Speaks

How did I come up with title of this site? Well, it came just the other night. I was on a plane, returning from my Association meeting. I was reviewing the Association address from earlier in the day, when a thought came to me: "Perfectly Free, Freely Perfect." Based on what the Association address was about, this didn't seem to make much sense. I listened a little more, and heard it again - perfectly free, freely perfect. At that moment a thought of one of my neighbors came to mind - she is someone who has been dealing with health issues for a long time, and she has the belief of being constrained in her diet and having all kinds of different ailments. I began to pray for her, as well as for myself, with the thought that we, as children of God, are made perfectly free and freely perfect.

A short time later, the plane landed and I turned on my cell phone. There was a text message from my wife, saying that our young son "feels warm and is coughing" and was asking me to work for him, as she was already doing. That text came at about the time the idea, "perfectly free, freely perfect," came to my thought. I immediately replied to her with that statement. I heard the next morning that our son had improved dramatically.

Once I got home, I decided to research a little more. Perfectly free sounded great, but freely perfect? I was a bit fuzzy, so I went to an online dictionary Web site and looked up definitions of "freely." I saw this: "abundantly; gratuitously." Well, I liked the concept of us being abundantly perfect, but I dug further, looking up "gratuitously." The result? "bestowed; given without cost or obligation." This was an A-ha! moment for me.

We, as children and expressions of the one infinite God, are perfectly free (our freedom is complete, without any fetters by finite human perception) and freely perfect (our perfection is given to us by God, without any cost or condition, a quality bestowed by our Father-Mother).

What an idea, eh?

Pick a Side - Black or White?

2010-05-27T14:43:00.001-07:00

Sometimes, there seems to be gray areas in life - no decision is "just black and white." Lots of variables come into play when making decisions. But do they have to?

This post comes to mind as I have been reading this week's Bible Lesson, which denounces "mesmerism and hypnotism," also known as mortal mind or error - beliefs in powers other than infinite God, good.

I realize that I am guilty of finding the gray area sometimes - I would do this, but for this condition ... I would not do that, unless this happens too ... et cetera. But from a spiritual perspective, there is no true gray area - when one is thinking about spirituality, there are two options - infinity (all) or nothing.

For example, God is all, infinite. If He is All, then everything not of God is nothing. If God is infinite - that is, everywhere, all the time - there is no space for anything un-God-like. If God is good, there is no room for evil. And so on. In spiritual terms, there are two sides to the scale, and we must choose one side.

God or Devil? Infinity or nothing? Spirit or matter? Life or death? Truth or lies? Health or disease? Love or hate? Good or evil?

On the one side are all the "God qualities" - infinity, Spirit, Life, Truth, health, Love, good. On the other side are the un-God-like qualities - devil, nothing, matter, death, lies, disease, hate, evil. These aren't in separate scales, where we can pick a side in certain situations - everything is piled on one scale simultaneously. If you're for God in one instance, you should be for him in all instances. Why? Because God is infinite. He is everywhere, all the time, in all situations. Spirit, Life, Truth and Love are all Biblical synonyms for God, so if you choose Spirit over matter, then this should be always.

There are beliefs that say that certain things don't exist after a certain amount of time - for example, Life is here until we turn 105, or we get hit by a car ... the life no longer exists, and we are dead. There is a belief that good is "struggling" against evil in the world - that evil exists. We can love our friends and family, but there are those we "hate" with every fiber of our being.

Spiritually speaking, these are all impossible. Life is God, and because Life is God (and our lives were created by God), Life is infinite and eternal (which means "no time," not "forever" like is commonly used). When it's infinite, it's everywhere always, so death can never appear (though our mortal bodies may "appear" to die - matter, however, has no inherent life because it is the opposite of Spirit, God). If God is good and is always infinite, then evil cannot possibly exist and "struggle" against good for supremacy. Love is God, and our love (for ourselves and others) is equally infinite and unconditional as God's love is for us (His children). So if Love is infinite and unconditional and universal, then there is no place to hate.

Like a player on a basketball team can't change teams from game to game or season to season just because he wants to be on the winning team, we all have to pick a side (team) and stick it out in every game, in every situation.

But if you pick one side in particular, you will always (infinitely) win.

Choose your side today. And if you get stuck, e-mail me and I'll be happy to help you decide.

Soul: The Body of Our Being

2010-05-21T12:22:00.001-07:00

I have been reading the Christian Science Bible Lesson this week, with the title of "Soul and Body." The relation between the words featured this week involved an adversarial approach - looking to the spiritual (signified by Soul) rather than the material (Body) to overcome any negativity or evil (like sin, disease or death).

However, the thought came to me, one that puts the words in an alliance: Soul is the Body of our being.

I stopped for a second. Then I looked up a couple definitions, and the "A ha!" moment came.

Soul really is the Body of our being. Let me explain one piece at a time.

Soul is one of seven Biblical synonyms for God (along with Principle, Spirit, Life, Love, Truth and Mind). And in the first chapter of Genesis, God created all of us in His image and likeness - that is, as spiritual beings.

The body - in this case, since we're all spiritual beings, I'm not referring to our mortal, material body. This is not of God, not one of His creations. I think of "body" in this context as the following definition of "body" - "consistency or density; richness; substance." Wow. Our body, the spiritual creations of God, is consistent, rich and substantial. And with God's infinitude, He made us in the same infinitude - we're infinitely consistent, infinitely rich, infinitely substantial (NOT decaying, wearing down, aging, getting diseased).

"Our being" is our existence, our life-experience. The Truth (divine, from God) about us is Soul (God, Spirit) is the body (the consistent, rich substance) of our being (spiritual).

The "A ha!" is now a "no duh!" moment. Soul really is the Body of our Being.

What a great thought.

The Unreality of Un-God-ness

2010-03-31T09:50:00.000-07:00

This week's Christian Science Bible Lesson, for some, will look a bit controversial. The topic this week is "Unreality," and the Lesson describes things that are unreal - including things we all perceive with our material, mortal senses.

If you are one who accept the creation as described in the first chapter of Genesis (you know, the one that was finished BEFORE Adam and Eve come into the picture), you accept a spiritual creation by God, which created all in "His image and likeness," and everything was declared "very good" by God. So, God is infinite, is All, is spiritual, and made everything just like Him. All very good, too - which can be interpreted as "perfect."

Spirit is something we don't necessarily see, do we? We don't actually "see" God - but we perceive Him in our lives. How? We "see" good - the sunshine, smiles, handshakes, hugs, a pay raise, food in our pantries, flowers, music, our children. However, based on the spiritual creation by God, Spirit is everywhere and is infinite - in other words, EVERYWHERE, ALL THE TIME.

Material things - those things that are not spiritual - are not created in "His image and likeness." Things that are not spiritual are material. And if they're material, they were not created by God (they were not mentioned ANYWHERE in the first chapter of Genesis). And if they're not created by God, they're not infinite, not good.

If you believe that God and his creation are real, then by extension everything of that creation - infinite, spiritual, good - is considered real. Anything NOT of God and His creation - everything limited, material, not good - is the opposite of real, or UNREAL. And when something is unreal, it is nothing - the opposite of God, All.

We are spiritual beings - we are good by nature, because God created us this way. Therefore, if we act or think un-good, we are thinking or acting un-God-like. But the un-good is just a BELIEF. We've already established that anything that is un-good is unreal - nothing. So any un-good is just a belief in our minds that un-good exists. That un-God exists. But in the Bible, "He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." (I John 3:8) Notice the son of God is not destroying the devil himself, but his works. The Christ knows the unreality - the nothingness - of the devil, so it works to destroy the works - the beliefs - of the devil.

Anything we think or act that is outside of God - anything evil, limiting, selfish, including a belief in material things - is a "work of the devil." But if we know that the devil isn't real, then we can understand that the belief is also unreal.

We can understand - and in fact, it's inherent in us already - that there is unreality in un-God-ness.

Response to Natalie's Question

2010-03-25T08:03:00.001-07:00

A visitor to this blog, Natalie, who didn't leave any contact information, posted a comment on my Feb. 22 post, "A (Meta) Physics Lesson," asking this ... "Just curious...What is your explanation for Adam and Eve's disobedience and the fall, as Christians call it? Adam and Eve were created perfect in God's image as was the serpent that lied to Adam and Eve to get them to disobey God. What is your explanation for the evil (which is HUGE considering they disobeyed the Almighty God!) that occurred?"

And here, for Natalie, and others, is my stab at an answer ...

Thanks Natalie ... You know, I had this question too, until a Christian Scientist showed me the book of Genesis. Adam and Eve were part of a mortal creation ... chapter 2 in Genesis. Did you know there are actually TWO creations in Genesis?

In chapter 1, verses 26-27 it says "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: ... So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them." God's own image. God is not a mortal, finite, limited, sinful being. He is infinite, spiritual, unlimited, pure and innocent. One who is infinite makes male and female infinite and spiritual - His own likeness..

In chapter 2, Adam and Eve were created. One out of the dust, the other out of a rib. But the creation was already finished (Gen 2:1-3) and it was declared "good" by God before Adam and Eve. There was no mention of Adam and Eve in chapter 1. Or any serpent that TALKED. Serpents don't talk now, do they? Don't you think if God created a serpent with the ability to talk, He would have made EVERY serpent able to talk?

Chapter 2 mentions "Lord God" creating things. In Jewish tradition, the Lord God is Jehovah. Notice how in chapter 1 he created everything (including male and female in His likeness), but in 2:5 the Lord God says the ground needs tilling and "there was not a man ...". But there was - in chapter 1. Ah, a MORTAL man! And this mortal man was created out of the dust, NOT in God's image and likeness.

Bible scholars pretty much agree on this point - "God" in chapter 1 and "Lord God" in chapter 2 is not accidental ... they really are referring to two different versions of God. Chapter 1 comes from the Elohistic version, where God is Elohim - a spiritual being. Chapter 2 creation comes from Jehovah, which is more of a mortal, fallible deity. You notice in Chapters 2 and 3 that Jehovah asks man (Adam) to name all the beasts, and does what man asks or says he needs. This version of God makes man superior to God and God serves him.

But in chapter 1, man serves God, and God is all-power and infinite.

I see chapter 2 as an alternate view of creation ... like a warning. If you see man as a creator or superior to God, this is what you find. A mortal, limited creation where intelligence or knowledge is limited, and when good is limited and finite, there is room for evil. Man who sees himself as a creative power is going to be one who makes mistakes and sees only limited possibilities.

Chapter 2 is a belief. God is all good, because he created everything good in Chapter 1, that is, in his own image and likeness. He is infinite - he created ALL, and all is good. If all is good, then there is no room for anything else. So anything that is not of God, good, is a BELIEF in evil - which is really the opposite of all, or NOTHING..

The serpent was a symbol of a mortal belief, or suggestion. The serpent is that little voice inside us that tries to tempt us into doing something bad. It is the first liar. God is all good and the only power. This serpent tried to convince Adam and Eve that God doesn't know everything and doesn't have that much power. It's OK, you can do this; don't listen to God.

Man is not fallen. He is upright and perfect always; he might BELIEVE he's fallen because he's listening to a TALKING SERPENT. That alone is a lie.

Oh, and I found this interesting: in Chapter 2, God caused Adam to go into a deep sleep so He could perform "surgery" on Adam and create Eve out of his rib. Have you noticed that while the Bible mentioned God putting Adam to sleep, it never mentions God waking Adam up? Think of that. Maybe the serpent was part of a dream? An unreal scenario?

The reality is God, and there is no alternate reality because God is all, everywhere, infinite.

Kind of a long explanation, but that's from where it all comes. It this sinful Chapter 2 creation that mainstream Christianity seems to follow. But a good study of chapter 1 of Genesis will help one understand that God made all good and made everything like him - perfect, complete, innocent, infinite.

I'm hopeful this helps - or brings about more curiosity questions. Thanks for asking!

Our Perfect Ability

2010-03-24T09:12:00.001-07:00

I've been reading this week's Christian Science Bible Lesson about "Reality," and one phrase from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures has really stuck out. It comes in the final citation - ""In this divinely united spiritual consciousness, there is no impediment to eternal bliss, -- to the perfectibility of God's creation."

Perfectibility. That word stuck out to me. To me this means one is capable of being perfect. Nice, but "God's creation" isn't just capable of being perfect - it is perfect. To be capable means there is some relativity there - one may improve to it (like there is room to be less than perfect). But we can establish from the first chapter of Genesis in the Bible that the creation is already perfect - it didn't attain to it, it just was.

So I've been working with the word "perfectibility" from Mrs. Eddy as actually meaning two words - perfect ability. What is perfect ability "in God's creation"? This has taken me a while, but here is an idea that has come to me.

Let's look at how "ability" is defined. To have "ability" is to be capable or to have the power or capacity to do something. Ability is power. God - and his creation - have all-power, thus all-ability. And this ability, or power, is all good - again, as established in the first chapter of Genesis, where everything God had created was declared "very good."

So perfect ability equals perfect power. Perfect means "pure." Pure power. How is power pure? When we know that God is good, and is all-power, then pure, infinite power is pure, infinite good. There is no evil, no negativity, no "bad" power.

So the perfectibility of God's creation actually refers to the "perfect ability" - pure power - of God's creation. To understand God as our Father-Mother - the "divinely united spiritual consciousness" mentioned in the Bible Lesson citation, which refers to the masculine and feminine qualities, or natures, of God and his creation united in one identity - allows us the freedom to understand and to experience the pure ability, the pure, infinite power of good contained in us - the children of God, His creation.

Bye-bye Bad Stuff!

2010-02-24T11:09:00.000-07:00

My 18-month-old son, Daniel, is quite a fan of a friendly wave. He also shakes hands, gives hugs and gives high-fives. In recent weeks I've noticed however, his wonderful ability to wave good-bye - to things we no longer want around our house. And I think it's his natural inclination, bestowed by God, to do this and we can all learn from him in terms of our consciousness.

We may take out the trash; Daniel stands and waves good-bye to the bag. We clean the crumbs and food off his tray; he waves good-bye as the food leaves and goes into the trash. We flush the toilet; there he is, waving wildly at the bad stuff that leaves.

We all have the ability to wave good-bye to the negativity - the bad stuff - in our thought. The 1st Psalm is very good at advising us not to walk among the "ungodly" or have un-God-ly thoughts. We should not allow any negative thinking, criticism, selfishness, etc., come in. If we spot it, we can close the door on it, turn it around and wave good-bye as it leaves - saying we won't see it again. Just like Daniel does to all that bad stuff that leaves our house. He waves good-bye because he's not going to see it again.

Mary Baker Eddy advises us to "(s)tand porter at the door of thought. Admitting only such conclusions as you wish realized in bodily results, you will control yourself harmoniously. When the condition is present which you say induces disease, whether it be air, exercise, heredity, contagion, or accident, then perform your office as porter and shut out these unhealthy thoughts and fears. Exclude from mortal mind the offending errors; then the body cannot suffer from them. The issues of pain or pleasure must come through mind, and like a watchman forsaking his post, we admit the intruding belief, forgetting that through divine help we can forbid this entrance (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 392)."

We can wave good-bye to the "bad stuff" - the un-God-like thoughts and fears in our consciousness - and bid them farewell forever. They are the opposite of God, good, All, so they are nothing. It should be easy, then, to wave good-bye and flush those thoughts right out of our thought ... allowing ample space for the Christ - the divine, perfect expression of God - to shine through in our personal experience.

Who says we can't learn from children?

Savior - Jesus or the Christ?

2010-02-23T11:31:00.001-07:00

I would suggest that before you dive into this entry, you check out my post from yesterday. It sort of leads into this one, which I know has been an issue of debate among world Christians since the first Council of Nicaea 17 centuries ago.The reason I suggest looking at a previous post first will make sense as I go, but understand that yesterday's post talked about a spiritual cause to the universe, not a material (mortal) one.

That debate has colored Christianity ever since, and in effect, has diminished at least some part of Jesus' and his apostles' work. The debate swirled around whether Jesus was God. For full disclosure, I was raised in the Lutheran church, which is one of the "mainstream" Christian churches which believe that Jesus was God incarnate on this earth, and is worshipped as such. This belief in the man Jesus being a deity has been problematic. Why? Two reasons: (1) Because Jesus stated in the Bible that his followers do what he did - "Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: (Matthew 10:8)" - and "preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15)." If Jesus was a deity, it wouldn't make sense that an "infinite" Jesus would command "finite" mortals to do the God-like things he did; (2) It is logically impossible in the first place for an infinite being to be inside a finite form and remain infinite. Therefore, to consider Jesus as God would be making God a finite, mortal being (which in one way is consistent with the God in the second chapter of Genesis) - one that is born on this earth, lives on the earth, then dies after a certain period of time.

Because followers (outside of the disciples) believed themselves to be mortal, limited beings, they have virtually ignored the healing work and focused only on "preaching the gospel." And I believe it's because they've been confused about their Savior. They believe the Savior to be Jesus the man. If Jesus the man is the Savior, and he is the only one with the power to do the healing and the cleansing and the casting out, then all of that ended when he ascended. Right?

Then what about the book The Acts of the Apostles, which documents works by Jesus' followers AFTER he ascended? If Jesus the man is the only source of this healing power, and he took it with him into heaven, then where did the apostles get the same power? And what about some prophets in the Old Testament - before Jesus' arrival - like Elijah, Jacob, Abraham and Elisha? The stories about them healing and raising the dead? Jesus hadn't arrived on the earth yet, but these seers were doing similar "miracles." How can this be?

And let's extend this further. If Jesus the man is our Savior today, that would be a bit problematic for us too, since Jesus the man is not on this earth to "save" us. How does Christianity survive so long?

To me, in my study, I have found logical conclusions in that those who look to Jesus the man are creating another God, another power in the universe. But there is only one power, God - which created everything in the universe (see Genesis 1). There is no other power, and should not be in our thinking.

Let's take a look at the other side of Jesus Christ - the Christ. In this week's Christian Science Bible Lesson, the subject is Christ Jesus. One of the Bible passages features Jesus asking his disciples, "Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?" (see Matthew 16:13-18) The disciples gave him different answers, saying that some thought he was "John the Baptist; others, Elias ... Jeremias, or one of the prophets." Jesus re-stated his inquiry: "But whom say ye (the disciples) that I am?" The disciples had been trained and educated in Jesus' ways and works; they knew he was a spiritual being, created by God. Simon Peter spoke up and said, "Thou are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

Interesting that Simon called Jesus "the Christ," the one and only, and not Jesus. That is because he had learned that Jesus is the most perfect human expression of the infinite spiritual God, whose immortal idea is the Christ. When Jesus used "I" or "I am," he was not referring to his human self, he was referring to his spiritual self. Why? Because he knew that he and everyone else were created spiritually, as the "image and likeness" of God (see Genesis 1:27) - a spiritual, immortal (not in body) being. To Jesus, the mortal (material) man was not our being, nor his. He denied a mortal existence and focused only on the spiritual.

And since God has been, is and always will be infinite and eternal, he always creates and is the eternal power and only cause in the universe. The Christ, as His spiritual idea - the "only begotten Son" mentioned in John 3:16 - is also eternal and infinite because it is made of the same substance as God. And it is this Christ which has been through history healing the sick, raising the dead, casting out devils and cleansing lepers. Elijah, Elisha, Abraham and others all were in touch with it; Jesus, and all of his disciples. And today, every single person (Christian or not) has the ability to access this Christ-power for themselves and others. We all have the ability to "be saved" by our Savior - as long as we see it as the Christ.

When Simon Peter answered Jesus' question, Mary Baker Eddy wrote of it in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures (p. 138): "It was now evident to Peter that divine Life, Truth, and Love, and not a human personality, was the healer of the sick and a rock, a firm foundation in the realm of harmony." When men said that Jesus was "one of the prophets," they considered him another human with the ability to heal - something that not every human had. But Peter recognized through following Jesus and his teachings, that it was the spiritual Christ, not the human Jesus, which healed, and that this was available to all who were open to receiving it.

Think about who the Savior is in your life - is it Jesus, or the Christ? One is consistent with the idea of a single cause (God, spiritual, infinite, constant) and single effect (good, spiritual, infinity, constancy) in the universe. The other tends to differ from the first chapter of Genesis and tends to lead us into inconsistency, finiteness, limits and materiality. One lives forever and is available always; the other has already left the earth and is not returning to "save" anyone else.

As Mrs. Eddy writes in Science and Health: "By interpreting God as a corporeal Saviour but not as the saving Principle, or divine Love, we shall continue to seek salvation through pardon and not through reform, and resort to matter instead of Spirit for the cure of the sick." (p. 285)

Just something to ponder.

A (Meta) Physics Lesson

2010-02-22T10:29:00.000-07:00

The theme of my work today revolves around the physics principle of cause and effect. For every cause, there is an effect.

It's come up in my thought today because we all get caught up in many different causes in life - Eating a lot of food causes me to get fat, not getting enough sleep causes me to be tired during the day, her incompetence causes me to get upset, getting a bonus in my paycheck causes me to be happy, etc. First off, these things are not true because they work from a false premise.

Let's look at the first chapter of Genesis. God is the creator of all (everything ... and I mean everything) and he declared all "very good." So everything in the universe was created (caused, if you will) by God, and the result (or effect) of the creation (causation) was good (no evil or negativity). God created and creates everything and made and makes it all good. So for every effect (creation), they lead back to just one cause (creator), God.

The false premise previously mentioned is that something other than God has the power to create or cause an effect on something else. In the first chapter of Genesis, it clearly states and infers that there is only one cause in the universe, and it's spiritual - not material. So if God creates all and is All, then anything not of God or created by God is nothing. As is stated in the Bible, "All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made." (John 1:3) Nothing was made without God, and nothing evil was made by God because He declared everything he had made "very good." And He created all in his image and likeness - that is, spiritual not material or mortal.

God is the only cause in the universe, and His only effect is good everywhere. Let's make sure we check our thought the next time we think something other than God can create or cause an effect on us or something else. It can't. That is assumed by the infinitude of God and His creation of ev-ery-thing in the universe, including man.

Keep watch on your cause-and-effect thought today. Recognize that the law of physics - the law of cause and effect - is scientific and can be practiced every day. Just know THE cause (God) and THE effect (good).

God is Light ... So Be the Window!

2010-02-04T10:37:00.000-07:00

It is said several times in the Bible that God is light, or a light ... For example: "This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all." (I John 1:5) There are many other references just to light, which apply to God and His Word. I have been working recently about God as Light and our relationship to that light.

Recently I have had some job interviews, and one piece of advice my wife would give me is "Let your light shine!" While a wonderful thought, it has occurred to me that the only true Light comes from God. So in reality, I'm not letting MY light shine, I should be letting THE light shine. And how does one let the light shine so others can see it? Well, when there is a light in a house (of consciousness, in this case), do we draw the blinds or close the door to enable others to see the light? No! We open the blinds and make sure the window is clean, so the light shines brightly for all to see and acknowledge.

This is how we can think of ourselves - if God is the Light, and we are made in His image and likeness - e.g., as his expression - then we project, live and express the qualities of God. So for God's light to shine, it's up to us to be the window through which God's light shines brightly for all to see.

Doing good, thinking good, expressing all the good that God possesses (which is infinite), are ways that we are the window for the divine Light. And where that Light shines, there "is no darkness at all." The Light is infinite; it is our duty to clear out all the darkness in our thought and consciousness - envy, hate, lust, self-will, criticism, self-condemnation, egotism, etc. - so that we are a clear window for that Light, so the Light can be infinitely expressed.

Every morning, make sure to let THE Light shine ... in you! It is the only thing your Father-Mother, God, asks of you.

Symptoms of Good

2010-01-14T11:49:00.000-07:00

The last couple of days, my family and I have been working on different challenges. But rather than give them names or labels, we have chosen to look for good in everything. Which is a Truth of all things - God, good, created ALL, is ALL, and thus all (everything) is good. (Read the first chapter of Genesis.)

The thought came to me recently that we didn't have to twist things around to see the good; it is already there. Like the belief in a disease, there are symptoms to the disease as there are symptoms of good. What is a symptom? The definition is "a sign or indication of something." The word 'symptom' seemed to have taken on a negative or unhealthy connotation in today's language - "He has flu-like symptoms," "His financial troubles are a symptom of a larger issue," etc. But think again about the word.

We don't have to look very far to find symptoms (signs or indications) of good. Are you breathing? Is the sun out? Are birds chirping? Are you safe? Do you have people around you who love you? Do you smile? Any "yes" answer is a sign or indication of good. Good can be found everywhere, because God made everything and "behold, it was very good." (Genesis) And when God is all, and good, there is no room or reason to believe in anything not good, or evil. Good is All, and the opposite of good, evil, then, is the opposite of all, which is nothing.

My family and I are working to see through any negativiity by locating, thinking, believing in all the symptoms of good. And one symptom is simply to be joyful ... and smile.

Let's Have Communion about Communion!

2010-01-08T11:55:00.001-07:00

I have been thinking a lot this week about "communion," which many Christian denominations take every week and others take only a few times a year. It has been generally tied to the symbolism of the bread and wine which Jesus gave to his disciples the night before his crucifixion. I've always known the word "communion" to have a higher meaning than just the symbols of bread for body and wine for blood.

I have been thinking about communion as symbolic in general, and not something confined to Sunday Mass or a special once-a-month (or less frequent) service; true spiritual communion (which everyone claims to locate for themselves) can be achieved whenever we want.

Paul writes in II Corinthians: "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all." (13:11) The Holy Ghost is a spiritual concept - divine Science, or the Comforter, of which Jesus promised to us when he ascended. We, as mortal beings, cannot have a communion with a spiritual concept. But this blessing indicates that the Holy Ghost is present with us, here and now and always. It is not contained in a church building or within the time frame of a Sunday church service.

But how do we have communion? A couple of definitions of "communion" are "association; fellowship;" and "an interchange of sharing thoughts or emotions; intimate communication." In this statement from Paul, he is addressing the Corinthians' "association" with the Holy Ghost. How do we associate, and then intimate communicate, with a purely spiritual idea? We pray. We pray to know that we, as children of the infinitely spiritual God, are spiritual beings and can "commune" - associate with, and share our thoughts with - the Holy Ghost (also known as the Christ), simply by praying.

We can have communion every day, every hour, every moment. Every instance in which we express God, good, in our lives, we are communing with God and the Christ - we are associating with Him. And really, we have no choice BUT to associate with Him, because he made us in His image and likeness (see Gen. 1:27) and there is no other power but God, so there is no power available to change us from being his expression ("spittin' image," as the saying goes).

You don't need bread or wine. Just a desire to express God's goodness. And every expression is a moment of communion with God, your Father-Mother Creator.

Joy is Our Default Setting

2010-01-07T13:31:00.001-07:00

My son reminds me daily that joy is the most natural, innate emotion we possess ... anything else is too much work! Why? Because joy comes directly from God - who created all of us.

My little one loves to laugh and giggle and have a lot of fun with his toys, stuffed animals and books (and even watching Daddy's model train go around the track!). He practically pulls my hands toward him when he's being tickled because he can't get enough - and of course, Mommy and I oblige him because he has such a cute laugh!

The bottom line is, this joy and happiness is his "default" setting - and because he is a child of God just like his parents, that "default" setting is in all of us. To change the setting takes a lot of steps and means fighting against God's will. God's will is constancy - we are created to be joyful and because God is ever-present, ever-creating and constant - and we are all made in God's image and likeness (see Gen. 1:27), we are just as constant as God (or should be). If we're not constantly joyful, then we're giving in to a belief in another power equal to God that "imposes" a different emotion. But if God is infinite, then where does this other power come from?

So remember to check yourself - are you joyful? If not, then maybe you're working too hard, because you're working against God and His will. Why work uphill? Life is easier when you're doing what comes naturally ... so smile! Be joyful! Laugh! Enjoy every minute. It's what God created you to do.

Handling dread

2010-01-04T12:13:00.000-07:00

Several days ago, someone said to me, "I have an appointment with the dentist, and I'm dreading it."

Ahh, yes, the dentist. One of the people who seem to make us uncomfortable, if not fearful, just by the mention of the word or name. Sort of like He Who Shall Not Be Named in the Harry Potter books!

The thought of the word "dread" came to mind as we discussed this appointment. She has always "hated" going to the dentist, so we talked about some truths with an appointment going harmoniously and that God is always holding us in His Love and because of that, we cannot feel any pain or discomfort, or even fear. All works for good and when good is the only result and expectation, we have nothing to fear.

As we were finishing this discussion, the thought occurred to me - the word dread, contains the letter d followed by the word "read". I thought then, "well, in order to counter dread - Duh, read!" I smiled to myself, and went to read - contained in the Bible are many citations dealing with being fearless - "And the Lord said unto Joshua, Fear not, neither be thou dismayed:" (Joshua 8:1); "And the Lord said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die." (Judges 6:23); "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." (Isaiah 41:10) ... among many others.

The Bible has the truth about fear. It is not real, because God is always here, providing good. And with good everywhere, there is no need to fear. It's like looking down from a high-wire and seeing a huge pillow under you - you know you'll be caught and have a safe landing, so there's no reason to fear being on the high wire!

So next time you feel fearful or have a sense of dread - duh, read!!! :-)

Happy New "Year"

2010-01-02T15:55:00.001-07:00

This is a time for regeneration. When the calendar changes over to a new year, it seems that individuals use this time as an opportunity to "take stock" in themselves - review the previous year, and make "resolutions" to improve themselves for the coming year. I'm no different (for full disclosure).

But I have been thinking the last couple of days, while working on resolutions (a couple of which deal with improving this site and my part-time practice of Christian healing), about the word "year" and what it means in a spiritual sense.

When talking about God, His Allness and eternity, one can recognize that our calendar year is based on the revolution of the Earth around the sun. God has no concept of years or even of days, because He operates in "eternity" - a concept of no time whatsoever.

It is written in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy that the spiritual interpretation of the word "year" in the Bible is "space for repentance." (p. 598) Just think about that for a moment - in the Old Testament there are accounts of people (Enoch, for example) who "walked with God" and live several hundred years. How is that possible??!! Nowadays, living 100 years on this Earth is considered a major achievement of longevity. Enoch supposedly lived more than 350 years, and others lived 500 or more.

If you apply the spiritual use of the word "year," these "ages" might make more logical sense. If a "year" is considered "space for repentance," then one could read that Enoch, having "walked with God" his entire life, was given more than 350 "spaces" or opportunities to repent - to change his thought.

Essentially, I read this as every single instant - every moment - that we change our thought from un-Godlike to Godlike and every time we put ourselves back on the "straight and narrow way" of Truth, Life and Love, we are living a "year."

So as you move forward in 2010, think about the feeling you have with the New Year - a feeling of relief, regeneration, renewed energy and passion. And think that with every new opportunity to correct your thought, you should "celebrate" this new year and rejoice and express the same feelings of regeneration and renewal.

Your clock can strike midnight - and you can turn a new spiritual calendar - in any moment of any day. Just understand if your thought is not from God, good, and change it. There. Auld Lang Syne to you, whether it be in January, February or July.

Happy New "Year" everyone!

"Temperature is mental"

2009-11-12T21:42:00.001-07:00

Tonight I am working on my son - his head has felt hot and he lost his appetite for solid food today, and has had a tough time sleeping the last couple nights (keeping Daddy up in the process), so I'm working to know this is a temporary belief and not fact. As my son is hot, the thought came to look up "temperature" in a concordance. Only a couple references showed up, but one was concise - a marginal heading in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures which said "Temperature is mental" (p. 374).

While I was putting my son to bed earlier tonight, I began praying earnestly for him. As he laid in my arms drinking some cold milk, the thought occurred that he, like all of us, is constant. We are all perfect and good, have been, are and always will be. God created us this way, and nothing has the power to move us astray.

We are constant - there is no deviation, increase or decrease in our goodness or perfection or innocence. We have an infinite supply of all, and it never changes. My son wasn't created with a fever, so thre is no reason to believe that he should ever have one.

Understanding that temperature is mental gets me to thinking about my thought regarding my son. He doesn't know he doesn't feel good; he doesn't understand what a fever is. His mom and I don't tell him. His activity has been normal, so we've been working to understand that he is a happy boy and has been - and that is no reason for us to think anything should be different with him, temperature or otherwise.

Our thought of him as perfect, innocent, joyful and intelligent should not have changed recently; and if it has, we have to get back to that constancy - the steady drumbeat of declaring our son as innocent and not subject to erroneous beliefs.

The work continues, but there is a starting-point. Constant understanding of him as the perfect, unblemished, innocent and CONSTANT child of God.

Why did Jesus write on the ground?

2009-10-29T19:14:00.004-07:00

An interesting thought came up today as I was browsing around some spiritual sites - one of which was a group site for my Association. One of the members was reading the Bible Lesson for this week, and the story of the adulterous woman is featured (see John 8:3-11).

The question posed was why did Jesus write on the ground? Here is my take on this.

He knew that those who asked him "what sayest thou," were the Pharisees and scribes who were looking to accuse Jesus of wrongdoing - they already had the thought in their heads. When they said the law dictated that the woman should be stoned to death, that was the thought they already had.

Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground. I took this to be a metaphor for the treatment of mortal mind he was giving to everyone present. He wrote the Christ into the ground, which represents the mortal, carnal mind (remember "ashes to ashes, dust to dust" signifying where mortal man - Adam - came from), that which sins. Then, he stands up and says, "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her." That writing of the Christ on mortal mind unveiled the sins and brought everyone face to face with their past errors, and every one was then "convicted by their own conscience," and left without stoning the woman, leaving her with Jesus alone.

Jesus once again "wrote" a masterpiece.

A Thought about John 3:16

2009-10-27T20:18:00.002-07:00

I was working through a Bible Lesson recently, and the citation from John 3:16 came up ... "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

This seems to be the most common quoted verse ... the one that Christians seem to use as their statement of faith. But in my study of Christianity, I've been thinking a lot about God's "only begotten Son ..." It's always been believed in many circles that the only begotten Son of God was Jesus. But it dawned on me - it didn't make sense.

If we, as humans, are God's ideas, then aren't we all children of God? And being male and female, that makes us all sons or daughters of God. But this verse mentions only one "begotten" Son, not everyone of His sons. So the thought occurred to me - the "only" Son referred to here is the Christ, the Comforter, or the Holy Ghost. This one Christ is the only one - every one of His sons and daughters have access to it and express it when they reflect God's qualities of good and of love.

So really, the concept of everlasting life mentioned in this verse - the reward for those "who believeth in him" - is bestowed upon those who believe in the Christ. Believing in Jesus the man does not grant everlasting life - it's the belief in the Christ, the divine expression of God and His goodness. We all possess this Christ - it's a matter of us embracing it, understanding its power and understanding our relation to God, our Father-Mother.

This idea is backed up by Mary Baker Eddy, with her definition of "Son" in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures: "The Son of God, the Messiah or Christ." (p. 584).

This seems to bring forth a fresher perspective on a long-quoted Christian statement of faith. Just imagine substituting "Christ" for "Jesus" in your thought as you read John 3:16, and even verse 17 as well, and you tell me if you don't see your faith a little differently.

Sore Throat Healed

2009-07-09T16:42:00.001-07:00

David -

I am so grateful for your prayers last week when I was feeling like I was "coming down with something". I was struck first by your compassion and love on the phone which immediately made me feel at ease. You calmly stated the truth about me as a child and reflection of God and uncovered the error in my thinking. You pointed out that disease can be thought of as a lack of ease. This made me realize that it wasn't the physcial symptoms I needed to combat or allieviate, but the lack of ease in my thought. This thought was an immediate relief for me. You went further to reason that disease or dis-ease could not exist if God is all and all powerful. You helped me see that there is no friction in God's kingdom. You helped me see that the only thing I could truly come down with was good because that is all there is. These thoughts lifted my spirits and helped me sleep soundly through the night. The next morning, however, as I prepared to get up to teach summer school I realized that I was having difficulty talking and that I was experiencing difficulty with my throat. Being early in the morning, I went to email you and found an encouraging email from you already in my mailbox, left after we talked the night before. This gave me the inspiration to go to work. About half way through my first summer school class, I started to feel a wonderful joy and love for the students and the class. This hadn't always been the case as this summer job had been much more strenuous and stressful than I had anticipated. I really felt grateful for working with them and witnessing their unique expressions. It was at that moment that I realized my throat no longer hurt and that I could speak easily. After my two other classes ended, I checked my email to find that you had emailed me back at the exact time that I felt Love's presence in the classroom. Your words talked of the throat as the instrument to praising God. It was wonderful to realize that although I had not read the email at the time it was sent, its angel message was communicated to me as I was rejoicing and expressing gratitude towards my class and God. What a neat experience. Thank you for your caring and loving support.

- From Sarah in Illinois

A Friendly Reminder ...

2009-07-06T14:58:00.004-07:00

Today I decided to open the King James Bible randomly - I had several things on my mind, a 'to-do' list, if you will, on which to work. What came up was a nice little pep talk called the 1st Psalm.

It begins with "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful." I read "ungodly" as those thoughts (advice, counsel) which come from mortal mind, and thus are not from the good of divine Mind.

To me, "blessed" doesn't mean favored. We are all favorites of God, because we are all His children, equally loved by divine Love. This is not a judgment on us for our actions. One definition of "bless" is "to protect or guard from evil." Those who ignore evil or resist evil will be protected by divine Love.

This psalm goes on: "But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper." In other words, listen to the divine Mind which gives only good ideas, be obedient to those ideas and you will prosper like the tree that is along the banks of a river; you will never suffer and never die ("leaf shall not wither") because divine, infinite Mind leads to infinite Life.

Verses 4 and 5 state "The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous." The ungodly, or un-good-ly, thoughts are those which have no power when the wind of divine Spirit enters our consciousness and fills it with all good. Anything opposite of good does not stick around.

The psalm concludes: "For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish." The way of the ungodly is the mortal, temporary way- it is the way that is opposite of good, opposite of God, opposite of infinite All. The opposite of all is nothing, so those which are "ungodly" have no ultimate power, or no life.

This is a pep talk for me. I have things to work out and haven't healed them yet; I need to be patient. If it is not of God, it cannot last. I should keep working, keep lifting myself above the evil and I will be blessed - protected from that evil, step by step, until that evil no longer exists.

I have the choice. Evil doesn't force itself on us - this reminds me that I can actively choose for myself whether to take the righteous or the ungodly path - and I can do it one step at a time, and know that if I find myself stepping on the ungodly path, at any time I can reverse course and step righteously. It only takes one step, no matter how small it may seem.

Liberty

2009-07-03T16:40:00.002-07:00

"... the herald of this new crusade sounded the keynote of universal freedom, asking a fuller acknowledgment of the rights of man as a Son of God, demanding that the fetters of sin, sickness, and death be stricken from the human mind and that its freedom be won, not through human warfare, not with bayonet and blood, but through Christ's divine Science."

- Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 224

Our True Independence

2009-07-03T13:32:00.003-07:00

On this holiday weekend which is so important to Americans throughout the world, I am reminded about independence and freedom. As a nation, the United States shed its fetters from a tyrannical regime in Britain 233 years ago this weekend. While this weekend is so important for Americans, this can also be a time for everyone in the world to celebrate freedom - the innate freedom from sin, disease and death bestowed upon us by God.

It is written in the Declaration of Independence that we as Americans were endowed "with certain unalienable rights by our Creator - of these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." While we in the United States take great pride and humility from those words, those can certainly apply outside of our borders. Our "Creator" did grant all of us - in the entire world, His divine Kingdom - with eternal life, and liberty, which of course means freedom.

As we are children of God, expressions of God like a mirror image, God has freedom and dominion over all, because he is All. We are ALL expressions, perfect expressions made "in His image and likeness" (Gen. 1), thus we enjoy the same dominion and freedom. We were created free, and only mortal mind restricts our growth, development and progress spiritually.

I submit that this can be a time for all of us to spend time communing with God and presenting our own declaration of independence - declare ourselves innocent and free from tyrannical holds from mortal mind. We know that God is the source and creator of everything, and that everything is "very good" because God, good, created all and is All. He did not create man to be subservient; He declared man and woman to have dominion over all the earth - and all the earth means everything. We are free because we were created that way, and the limited and finite mortal mind keeps trying to limit us and confine us into our corporeal existences, which are temporary.

Like Life, God, we are eternal, and our freedom and liberty are eternal as well, governed, guided and guarded by divine Love. And if we declare our independence from mortal mind and declare God as our only god, we declare war on sin, disease and death which try to hold us down.

And one with God makes a majority. We will win this war, just like our forefathers did all those years ago. The put their mortal lives on the line fighting for a divine Principle. We, now, today, with the help of the Christ, shall and must declare our own independence and our own divine rights, endowed by our Creator.

Happy Independence Day to all!

Praise the Lord our God ...

2009-06-30T15:17:00.002-07:00

Today I have been listening, and I have been working on the concept of praising God - for His goodness and all that He created. I have been working on what praise means. I noticed in a concordance that there are 216 different citations in the Bible of the word "praise." Sounds like a lot of singing ... is the Bible a Broadway musical? :)

But I've been thinking and looking more into it, and I realize that to praise God doesn't have to involve the use of singing voices, or even just our vocal chords. In the Biblical sense, I get the idea that to praise God is to express Him - His goodness. And we, as perfect expressions of God, who created us in "His image and likeness" (from Gen. 1), we have the duty to express Him all the time, because we are never separated from God, good. I'm working to understand all the ways I can "praise" him - both by words and by works. Such a simple word, yet such amazing possibilities.

Coming Down With ...

2009-06-29T20:57:00.006-07:00

This isn't a new concept for me, but rather a reminder ...

I was called this evening by someone wanting me to pray. The person on the line claimed a belief in "coming down with something." A belief in disease.

I understood "disease" to mean a "lack of ease." I looked deeper, checking out a similar word to disease, "sick", which has a definition of "distemper." Temper is a shortened form of temperate, which comes from the Middle English word temperat, which means "control." Therefore, the thought comes that this could be more about a perceived lack of control in life.

But you know what? Control comes from God, and God is infinite in all His good gifts to us. He is in control, so there is no lack of control. God governs everything, and any feeling of a lack of control can be handled by knowing that God is in control, and we, as His expression, demonstrate that control - which also means order. And God is orderly and harmonious.

And with God being All and good and in control, this person cannot possibly come down with "something," unless that something is good. In this case, it isn't good. It's the opposite of good, so it opposes All, or God. The opposite of All is - nothing.

Therefore, this person is REALLY coming down with ... nothing at all.

About the Madoff Case

2009-06-29T17:17:00.002-07:00

I have been hearing today about the sentencing of Bernie Madoff, the infamous architect of a "Ponzi scheme" that apparently defrauded thousands of investors out of billions of dollars. A TV reporter I heard used the phrase "destituted these people (the "victims)." I want to share my spiritual take on this.

God is All - All-power. There is no room for any other power than God, since God is all, infinite and good. He supplies all. No one can "destitute" anyone else, because we all have everything we need, and we have access to everything we need. We never lack, and humans do not have the power to take away what God has bestowed on us. I am praying to know that everyone in this situation will understand their infinite supply of good and their wholeness and perfection has not been compromised in any way. Even Mr. Madoff is a perfect expression of God, and I pray to know that he understands right from wrong, understands the purpose of justice. Mr. Madoff was created to be benevolent, not greedy; creative, not crafty; humble, not prideful.

I pray that he sees the error in his ways, repents and becomes the glorious expression of God once again. Greed, craftiness and pride are errors with no foundation; they do disappear when one recognizes the Truth in how he's created and who he TRULY is.

I'm not saying I have sympathy for Mr. Madoff; I pray to have compassion for him in the same way Jesus did when he healed the adulterous woman and said, "Go, and sin no more." I pray to love him as well as the "victims" and that Mr. Madoff will repent and become "like a little child" - the complete, perfect, innocent, child of God that we all are.

Vision of Knowledge

2009-06-29T13:57:00.003-07:00

I have been dealing with a vision challenge for a very long time now, and have found myself in the past getting discouraged, but I might have found some insight to at least continue my forward progress.

In a recent Bible Lesson, there was a citation in Science and Health that referred to a "mount of vision." I decided I needed to look up the origins of the word "vision." So I found a note of etymology for the word "vision" and what did I find? Not only vision pertains to sight, which I already knew, but one of the origins of the word is from the Old English word witan, "to know." So vision can be based on knowledge. So that gets me on a path to where I learn and KNOW more about my spiritual identity, I can know that I see PERFECTLY - because everything about me is perfect because it comes from God. My vision is not from the eye or the body; it comes from knowing and understanding God.

For some of you this may not be earth-shaking, but it definitely turned on a light bulb for me in my study. What a breath of fresh air! :)

Taking Wing

2009-06-29T13:36:00.002-07:00

Well, here it is .. my first post as a public Christian Science practitioner. Pretty cool, huh? It has been quite a journey to get to the point to deciding to do this. It's only part-time to start with, but I look forward to this becoming a transformational experience for me, those of you who read this, and all those who ask me for help. God has been preparing me, healing my thought and moving me in this direction, where I really feel I should be helping people, giving out the Word of God, the Truth, to all those who are thirsty. I am humbled and excited about this new opportunity.