Comments on: Current Lesson

By: Andrew

Andrew — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 13:34:25 +0000

“he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.”RR Hits home with me too. I came to Plainfield looking for something more substantial – knew that life as I had experienced was neither fair, nor reliable, and I carried with me significant underlying fear, despite my good Christian upbringing. No more! This independent Christian Science has provided the Rock I had been looking for from the Gospels.

By: Dale W.

Dale W. — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 16:04:47 +0000

Thank you for this Lesson on SUBSTANCE. I love the verse in the Responsive Reading, referring to Abraham, “For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Heb.11:10). Abraham was faithful and obedient to God; he trusted and followed — isn’t that what we must do? We must take a stand, and what better foundation to stand upon than that of Spirit, the only thing that is substantial and eternal. Faith that is of God gives us peace, so that we may praise Him! Mrs. Eddy tells us (S&H cit. 1, vii:1-2), “To those leaning on the sustaining infinite, to-day is big with blessings.” Years ago, when I was facing a very daunting challenge, I picked up Mrs. Eddy’s First Edition of Science and Health. The sentence just quoted, in that First Edition, included the words “loving trust” — “Leaning on the sustaining Infinite with loving trust…” Reading those words really helped me to let go of the problem and let God take care of it, and He did completely! With such a promise of assured blessings, why would we want to lean on anything else!

By: Mary

Mary — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 15:27:30 +0000

In response to Andrew’s comment, Mrs. Eddy states on page 382 of Science and Health “If HALF the attention given to hygiene were given to the study of Christian Science and to the spiritualization of thought, this alone would usher in the millenium.” She makes a similar remark on page 202 “If men would bring to bear upon the study of the Science of Mind HALF the faith they bestow upon the so-called pains and pleasures of the material sense, they would not go from bad to worse until disciplined by the prison and scaffold; but the whole human family would be redeemed through the merits of Christ….” These statements have always made a big impression on me as they are both encouraging and sobering!! To bring in the millenium is certainly the most worthwhile of endeavors!!!How much time am I spending on this great and God-given Cause?! And where and how can I do better?!

By: Andrew

Andrew — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 14:41:42 +0000

In my previous entry, I did not mean exercising and manicures, etc, should be avoided, but the point to watch out for is the priority in thought – if I miss my exercise, or if I skip prayerful preparation for the day – which is more harmful to my being? Psalm describes it perfectly: “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.” This recognized dependence on God keeps us safe, gives unction to our prayers, sets us up upon a Rock!

By: Gary

Gary — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 01:20:47 +0000

It’s a sobering question, “What do I have faith in?” What do I really believe has substance? Is it Spirit, God, which I can’t see, feel, taste, touch, or smell? Or is it something human or material – a relative, boss, drug, business or government agency? It certainly can’t be both. The Pharisees and Sadducees asked Jesus for a sign in order to justify their faith. This he sharply rebuked, calling them hypocrites – “A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign.” Am I looking for signs to justify my faith? Do I look for physical improvement to justify my reliance on Christian Science? If so, then I am no better than the hypocritical Pharisees. The Centurion, however, had an appreciation for the source of Jesus’ healing ability. The Centurion had plenty of human authority, but he knew it was worthless compared to the authority Jesus had. Hence his faith, which was greater than any Jesus had seen in all of Israel. Until I have complete and total faith in God and in nothing else, I have a lot of work to do. Great lesson.

By: Mary

Mary — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 16:20:22 +0000

This is such a great lesson! It does indeed take a “leap of faith” to go with the idea our substance is spiritual – in and of Spirit. In fact, Spirit is ALL and there is no matter! But once that logical conclusion is reached unlimited good, from God, becomes ours…”The revelations of Christian Science unlock the treasures of Truth.”(SH2) The treasures of Truth! This is certainly the pearl of great price, and well worth working for, well worth investing the time and energy and anything else is takes in order to obtain the understanding that reveals the Allness of God and therefore the nothingness of a material existence apart from Him. But we must be willing to take that first step of faith! Thank you for such an inspired lesson!

By: Dale

Dale — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 16:19:37 +0000

To me this lesson is all about FAITH. I’m working on a demonstration right now and it occurred to me that FAITH was lacking with me at the moment and so this lesson is just perfect. I especially love the story about the Centurion and his servant. Thank you

By: Andrew

Andrew — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 15:52:03 +0000

“Which ought to be substance to us, — the erring, changing, and dying, the mutable and mortal, or the unerring, immutable, and immortal?”SH9 The answer is obvious… and yet… who am I more eager to please/obey? Those around me, or the Father? Which do I more value? Taking care of my body (exercising, eating the right things, wearing the right things, manicures, etc.) or lifting my mentality (“Hold thought steadfastly to the enduring, the good, and the true…”). All of us can use some self-examination, and improvement on this point – Mrs. Eddy presents the question so that the right answer is unmistakable – we need to do the same for ourselves, and stop being absorbed into “the ghastly farce of mortal existence.”SH

By: John

John — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 15:09:13 +0000

Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. And later, “Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” We can extend that warning today to beware the leaven of the materialism that tries to thrust itself on our thinking every day: all the ads for and general talk about drugs, trying to mesmerize us into believing in sickness and difficulties; all the “life-extension” ads and fads trying to make us believe in material man, etc. “Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” – peace, dominion, joy, confidence in good, etc. As Mrs. Eddy says, “Suffer no claim to grow upon the thought,” where claim could be likened to the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. So our leaven, our faith, is to “look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” Thank you, once again, for an inspiring lesson.

By: Shahidat

Shahidat — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 13:57:58 +0000

First off I want to say thank you for the uplifting song on the homepage of the website – It spoke directly to my heart.

Of the lesson, I’m recognizing more and more that the great faith that Jesus noted in the story of the Centurion is not a belief in the man of Nazareth himself but is rather an understanding that the Christ has dominion over sin, sickness and death. In my daily walk with Christian Science my challenge is in understanding that I too today in 2010 also have dominion over sin, sickness and death as both Jesus and Mary Baker Eddy demonstrated. This lesson is a great reminder to not be mesmerized by the things that are seen but instead hold fast to the Truth which cannot be beheld by the material senses.

By: Verna

Verna — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 00:34:54 +0000

Andrew, I can identify with what you said about conscious mind speaking to you, warning you not to go on the trip! I also was scheduled to go back to my hometown in Missouri last month, and had actually booked the flight. The closer the time to go, the more uneasy I felt and finally just talked myself out of it and cancelled the reservations. The very week that happened a contract came in on one of my listings and I needed to be here to take care of it! I plan on trying again later this month, but will not hesitate to cancel again if I don’t feel peace about it. I wish however, I had exercised a little more of this kind of thinking various times in the past, when something came up that was appealing to me, and even though I felt a little uneasy,ignored that feeling to my regret. That was, indeed, a case of my willfulness overruling.