"Mark Twain & Mary Baker Eddy" a film by Val Kilmer

This weekend, I heard about this new project by Val Kilmer. Interesting.

Cast your cares on the Lord

for he careth for you...

The Bible:
Prov 12:25
Ps 37:1,3,4,7,11
Ps 55:22
Ps 94:19
Isa 58:4 ye shall,5 (to 2nd ?),6,8,9,11
Ps 46:10 (to :)
Matt 4:23
Matt 5:1,2
Matt 6:25-34
Matt 7:7,8
Matt 11:28-30
John 14:1
Matt 14:14-22
Matt 8:23-27
Matt 17:24-27
Luke 10:38-42
I Cor 7:32 I (to .)
Phil 4:4,6,7
I Pet 5:6,7

Science and Health:
96:12-30
170:22
234:3
444:10
62:13-16,20
487:27-6
510:2
495:16
548:9-15
238:19
567:3-6,7-8
66:6
2:23-2
12:27
248:3-5,8
322:26-12
323:24
236:17
506:10-12


Christian Science Hymnal:
Hymn 154:1-3
Hymn 57:1-3
Hymn 253:1-7

Getting our motives right

The Bible:
Ps 10:3-8,11-15,17
Ps 15:1-5
Ps 16:8-11
Heb 4:12
I Kings 3:5-22,24-28
Ps 17:3
Ps 26:1-12
Mark 1:14 Jesus,15,21-26 and straightway,28,40-42
John 7:12,16-18
John 5:30
John 6:38
Rom 12:1-3
I Pet 2:1-3
Col 1:9-12

Science and Health:
239:23
188:8
404:9-15
105:11 Can you
104:29
405:2-18
453:18-20
58:7-12
51:28-8
51:19
490:6 Christian
446:11-20
365:15-2
151:8
454:17-21
326:16
1:10-11
15:7
4:12-22


Christian Science Hymnal:
Hymn 423
Hymn 161
Hymn 324

Church-State divide - interesting interview

I was just reading today's post in Laura Matthew's blog about politics and religion and remembered a friend sent me a link to this NPR interview with Garry Wills, emeritus professor of history at Northwestern University and auther of a number of books including his latest Head and Heart: American Christianities. The focus of the interview was on the constitutional separation of church and state - the topic of this new book. I found the interview very interesting and learned a lot about the background of this basic principle of US government. There's an excerpt from the book along with a link for the 20 minute interview. Hope it stays up so you can check it out. Good food for thought during another election season.

Plants under God's care

The weather has been unusually warm this week here in northern Illinois. As I’ve sat in my chair near the window and gazed outside, it seems strange to see spring-like green tinges in the lawn in early January. It starts my thought wandering to summer gardening – looking forward to planting new flowers and seeing them bloom and grow. Ah, but it will be a few months yet before anything really can be done in that way around here!

But as I’ve been reading and contemplating that first chapter of Genesis over the last couple weeks, I realized there is a perfect idea there in verses 11 and 12 to help with gardening. Here are those verses (from NIV):

11 Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so. 12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

To the regular gardener, it would seem like there are a couple of crucial things missing for plants to spring forth and bear seed: water (in the form of rain or irrigation) and sunshine. But, before God creates the sun, before rain has watered the face of the ground, there are plants – plants that grow and reproduce. All of them – in their infinite variety – growing at God’s command. And all with seed so there will be new growth continuing.

I think I’m going to enjoy pondering these verses more when I’m able to get the trowel out this spring and get some things planted.

Right now, though, I’m also feeling so grateful for a special “find” yesterday. About a month ago our homeowners’ association (we live in a townhouse complex) had work done on the drainage system around our house – essentially digging out all of the old and putting in new. This meant lots of digging and a lot of mess, and some surprisingly into the garden areas around the house (not much communication on details before the work began, unfortunately).

After the workers were done and we’d had an opportunity to scope out what was really done, I was feeling particularly sad because there was a clump iris plants near the front corner of the house that had been just gorgeous last year. The best blooms of any the irises around the yard. But it was right where they needed to dig for part of the new system. And so the irises were gone.

But yesterday, as I left the house to go do some errands, I noticed it – a clump of plants – long greenish leaves rising up – tucked in behind the lilac bush near the corner of the house. It was those irises I thought had been lost to the shovels! I just felt this wash of gratitude – one of the workers had very thoughtfully and carefully dug out those irises and tucked them in a safe place. I don’t know why I hadn’t noticed them before. I’d been by a few times. But there they were! The sight made me feel so happy. And I’m going to trust the truth in those verses from Genesis that indicate God as the impulsion for growth in all plant life, and that the kindness of the worker who took the time to safeguard those plants will ensure new blooms and sturdy growth for those irises this year and in the future.

Much joy!

Putting it in God's hands

I love the story about Hannah in I Samuel! She's one of those Bible characters I really feel for. Here she is, one of two wives to Elkanah. The other wife has given birth to many children. Hannah hasn't had one child. Bad enough in that culture where a woman's worth was primarily her ability to bear children, but on top of it, the other wife taunts her for her bareness! Hannah's solution? Pray to God - ask Him for a child. Not too unusual, especially in a Bible story. But what does she do in her prayer for a child? She promises that child to God in a lifetime of service. How incredibly selfless! Ask for your heart's desire, and then willingly give it back to God in gratitude to God for answered prayer. It's quite something to shoot for in our own prayers.

But even more than this, Hannah gives another wonderful insight into prayer. One day a few years ago when I reread this story, something lept out at me I hadn't noticed before. After Hannah prays and Eli the priest gives her a blessing, she leaves "and her countenance was no more sad." Wow! Her prayer hadn't even been answered, but she had such trust in God that He would answer the prayer she offered, that, instead of crying and not eating as had been the case until she got pregnant, she was happy immediately. This deep trust that brings a sense of peace and calm despite the trouble at hand is what these readings are covering.

And that's why the first hymn (Hymn 124), with words by Philip Doddridge, was selected. It ends with this verse:

His goodness stands approved,
Unchanged from day to day:
I drop my burden at His feet,
And bear a song away.

Unfortunately, I think the only way to view the whole hymn, as well as the others, is through Concord or if you have a Christian Science Hymnal accessible. The Bible and Science and Health citations can be individually viewed by clicking each link or by copying into the citation pane of the Concord program.

Peace!

The Bible:
Ps 4:1,3 the Lord will,4 (to .),5-7
Ps 5:1-3,7 I will,11 let all,12
Ps 42:11
I Sam 1:1-12,17-20,24-28
I Sam 2:1,2,11
Ps 31:1,2 (to ;),19,21,23 (to :),24
Ps 34:22
Ps 145:1-5,14,16-19
Ps 46:10 (to :)
Mark 11:22 Have,24 What
Mark 4:39 Peace (to .)
Rom 5:1-5 being
Rom 15:13

Science and Health:
1:10-23 np (to ?)
2:26-2 Shall
11:27
13:10-24
506:18
4:12
446:15-18,20
206:10-18
8:3-6
531:8
95:30-32
298:13-20
495:16
444:10
41:8-10
99:23
506:11-12

Christian Science Hymnal:
Hymn 124
Hymn 410
Hymn 75

The creating is in the saying

Okay, I am still thinking about the first chapter of Genesis. But there’s so much in these 31 verses! Probably a lifetime of learning that can be gathered from this chapter.

Here’s some of what I’ve been pondering the last few days.

1) “And God said.” Each step of spiritual creation detailed in this chapter begins with this phrase. As creation began and expanded, God declare more and more about Himself; revealed more of His infinite self in other forms of creation – light first, then heaven, earth, seas, vegetation, stars, sea creatures, birds, land animals and finally man – higher and higher. Of course, this statement might make you think of the first line of the Gospel of John, “In the beginning was the Word.” “In the beginning” was God expressing Himself, divine Love knowing Himself and expressing that knowledge. And for much of creation, this statement, “and God said …” takes care of the creating. God says, and it happens. Sometimes this is reinforced or the creation is detailed by the addition of “God made” or “God created.”

2) “And God saw ...” Regularly, there’s this statement. It’s like periodically God takes a step back and looks over what has been done, what He’s revealed of Himself. It struck me that this look had to have been filled with love, because God is Love (I John 4). Love was expressing Him/Herself in creation. He could only behold it with love because He is Love and because the reflection of Himself, creation, is made of Love, is expressing Love. God loves all of creation because it is an expression of Himself, an expression of Love that reflects back that infinite Love that created it.

3) “… that it was good.” Each time God sees His creation, He declares it good. Covered this some here, so I don’t think I’ll do more on this aspect today.

So God knew, and then He saw. The “Glossary” definition of God in Science and Health by Mary Baker Eddy begins: “The great I AM; the all-knowing, all-seeing, all-acting, all-wise, all-loving, and eternal;” (587:5-6) A friend once shared that it meant a lot to her one time when she was praying for healing of a broken leg that the knowing came before the seeing. That comment struck me as interesting and has stuck with me. I think we see it here – “God said” and then “God saw.” His knowing is a revealing that He and all of His creation can see. It’s kind of comforting to think of God’s knowing something first, forming it in His thought – because that formation must be perfect because God is perfect. And as He knows, He sees – sees the perfection of this idea. And we can see it, too!

This all reminds me of MBE’s statement giving spiritual insight to Gen 1:5:

(SH 504:6)
All questions as to the divine creation being both spiritual and material are answered in this passage, for though solar beams are not yet included in the record of creation, still there is light. This light is not from the sun nor from volcanic flames, but it is the revelation of Truth and of spiritual ideas. This also shows that there is no place where God's light is not seen, since Truth, Life, and Love fill immensity and are ever-present. Was not this a revelation instead of a creation?

So, perhaps no great final answers, mostly just some thoughts I’m pondering. But a good reminder to be looking to see more clearly and hopefully more consistently, as God enables me to see, the revelation of Himself, what He knows about me and the entire universe. This creation is there all around us, and it is good!

What do you think about these ideas? Would love to hear what your prayers and ponderings of this chapter have revealed to you!

Tradition broken - Healing found

The readings from this last Wednesday’s testimony meeting at the branch church of Christ, Scientist that I attend remind me of a healing I had a few years ago that give a small example of how traditions can creep in and become a constraint, and how healing can be found when releasing them.


This happened almost ten years ago, and about this time of year (January). I was on a commuter train heading for a volunteer activity and was reading the Christian Science Bible Lesson. The topic was Sacrament. Suddenly, there was a sharp pain in my lower back. I jumped a bit and looked behind me. No, nothing sticking out of the seat cushion that poked me. But my back was no extremely uncomfortable. I shifted around in my seat for the rest of the train ride, trying to find comfortable positions, but didn’t find any. I kept pursuing my read of the Bible Lesson, just knowing that there would be something in it that would help relieve this discomfort.

But my back was still painful when I got downtown and remained so for the rest of the day and into the next couple of days. In addition, I developed some flu-like symptoms. I soldiered on with activities that needed to happen, praying as I went and asking God what I needed to learn that would bring relief.

A couple of evenings later, I was lying on our couch and picked up the Bible Lesson to read again. I really reached out to God to show me something that I needed to learn. The lesson that week contained a number of encounters between Jesus and the Pharisees and other religious leaders, all where he reprimanded them for their hardness of heart in holding for various traditions – mostly created over the years by the religious ruling bodies and not truly found in the writings of Moses – over the spirit of the Law and heart of worshipping God.

And that’s when it struck me – I’d been setting up my own little traditions in regards to my spiritual study. And, by these traditions, I’d actually been limiting my study and opportunity to grow and practice what I was or could be learning about God and my relationship with Him. One key example was the study of the Bible Lesson.

Now, I should mention that, because of my husband’s job (he is on-call 24/7), there’s not much opportunity for routine in our days. We never know when he’ll be leaving or returning home – day of the week or time of day. So things happen as they happen, and I’ve learned over the years to be very flexible. Had to or I’d go nuts! J But somehow, in all of this “flexible” lifestyle, I’d gotten into a mindset that if I was going to studying the Bible Lesson, it had to be in the morning. And if it didn’t happen in the morning, most likely it didn’t happen all day, and sometimes this would happen for many days of the week. (Feeling unwell was an exception to this self-imposed “rule” – that’s why I was studying the Bible Lesson in the evening this day.)

And so there’d been many days lately where I hadn’t gotten at this aspect of my spiritual study, and I find it a pretty important tool in my spiritual study and growth. Well, I fully realized what I’d been doing and that there is not really any rule about when and how to study the Bible Lesson. Why had I gotten this narrow-minded about this activity? I don’t know, but I knew I could change it right then and there. And I did. I fully immersed myself in the study of the Lesson that evening, grateful for the time – whether evening or morning – to spend thinking about God, to learn more about His Word, and to gain a deeper glimpse of my relationship with divine Love.

By the next morning, all back pain and flu symptoms were totally gone. And I enjoyed studying the Bible Lesson at whatever was the right time of day for that day ever since. No more restrictions to my study – or to my back! A small thing to get in the way, but a good lesson learned. I try to stay on the outlook for other non-rules that might try to creep in and bind me to routine and tradition and so hamper growth Spirit-ward.

As Mary Baker Eddy wrote in Science and Health:

"God expresses in man the infinite idea forever developing itself, broadening and rising higher and higher from a boundless basis." (258:13-15)

Breaking the bonds of traditionalism

I'm struggling a bit with what to call this set of readings. I don't like to give them a negative title - the readings are supposed to be uplifting and it's nice if the title reflects that! So starting with this title, maybe it will change.

I've long been impressed with Jesus' response and interaction with the Pharisees as depicted in the Gospels. He was always on them to let go of the traditions that so limited their thought and actions, especially when these doctrines inhibited their and the community's natural response to others and expression of the heart of the Ten Commandments. Kept them tied to material forms of worship instead of lifting their thought higher to the spiritual intent, which in turn limited the population's ability to grow spiritually. So the citations below are a lot of these incidents and some thoughts to help lift us higher in how we approach worship. Nothing inherently wrong with traditions - they can be sweet and special! - but when they become the focus and not God, divine Love, and we forgo new experiences and opportunities to help others because of them, then traditions are a problem, IMHO.

As usual, you can click on the links to see the passage, or copy and paste the references below into the Citation Document pane in Concord to view through that program.

Much good!

The Bible:
Jer 50:2 (to :),4-6
Eccl 7:29
Ps 119:12-18,33-37
Mark 1:14 Jesus,15
Mark 2:13,23-28
Mark 3:1-6
Mark 7:1-16
Mark 13:37 what
Mark 16:15
Mark 12:28-34
Luke 10:25-37
Luke 12:1
Mark 9:33-42
Col 2:8,9
II Cor 3:4-6 such
Gal 5:1,5-7,13 (to ;),14
I Thess 5:11,16-19,21,28

Science and Health:
4:30
354:14-25
18:10
19:29-13
592:27
117:29-31
28:1-14
135:26-8
112:32
258:13-15
226:18
144:30
235:28-11
366:30
98:12-21
451:8-11,16
37:16-9
vii:13

Christian Science Hymnal:
Hymn 131
Hymn 333
Hymn 337

Very good

Still thinking about Genesis chapter 1 this morning, toady appreciating that statement at the end of most of the days of creation, "and God saw that it was good." (Gen. 1:12, 18, 21, 25) After each progressive step of creation, God pauses, looks at what He did, and confirms its goodness, its rightness, fitness, correctness, wholeness, etc.

And it struck me - hadn't really stood out to me before now - at the end of the six day, when all elements are done, God looks at the whole and declares that "it was very good." (Gen. 1:31) The whole is not just good, as He declared each stage, but exceedingly so. The whole is good to a high degree.

To me, this is saying that each element is needed and combines with the others to lift the whole to the highest sense of perfection and good. To the fullness of God's expression. Each element of God's creation is essential to support the others, to enable the others to fully express God in the way He created it to express Him. And to achieve this full expression of good, of harmony and perfection and health, we need that first element of creation - light - to shine on us all to help us see what God saw - harmony, order, good. We have to have light to see by and to reflect!

I'm praying with these ideas especially for all that is going on in the Middle East right now. Praying to know that each individual in this wonderful world of ours is essential, is needed to support and enrich the lives and experiences of others, and that the impact of each others lives can only bless one another because, as God's creation, we are good and upright. Affirming that each individual is so loved by divine Love, our infinite Creator and only experiences and expresses to all around him/her/it that infinite Love. I'm praying to realize that the ultimate seal of approval - that every thing that God had made was "very good" - ensures the harmony in our relationships, the moral excellence that we each express in our relationships with others, that everyone's actions are well-behaved and bless all those around us and that eveyrone can see and experience this spiritual fact now.

"Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice. ... And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. " (Phil 4:4, 7)

Prounced good

One of my favorite Bible verses is prominently in this week’s Christian Science Bible Lesson: “And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.” (Gen. 1:31) It feels like most of the time when I am praying about something, I end up at this verse at some point in my prayers. To me, it is one of those (probably very many!) key ideas in the Bible. Here we are. We’ve just finished reading the story of the first six days of spiritual creation, and we find this amazing statement. God took a look at what all He made, and pronounced it all good.

Have you ever looked up the word “good” in the dictionary? Certainly it is a word we use about every day and I always felt I had a good grasp on the meaning of the word until I looked it up a few years ago. I was amazed at the number of entries for this simple little word (in its adjective form)! In the dictionary I used, I found over 30 entries.

Some of these definitions weren’t surprising. As I read them, I thought, “Yeah, I know the word that way.” But for some, my response was more, “Oh, yeah, it means that, too!” I wrote many of these entries down and have referred to them off and on since. Here are some of what I have:

1) morally excellent; virtuous, righteous
2) satisfactory in quality, quantity or degree
3) of high quality; excellent
4) right, proper, fit
5) well-behaved
6) kind or friendly
7) honorable or worthy
8) educated and refined
9) financially sound or safe
10) genuine; not counterfeit
11) sound or valid
12) healthful, beneficial
13) in excellent condition; healthy
14) cheerful; amiable
15) free of distress or pain; comfortable
16) agreeable; enjoyable
17) attractive
18) smooth; free from blemish
19) sufficient or ample
20) competent or skillful; clever
21) full
22) fertile; rich
23) loyal

In the Hebrew lexicon in Strong’s Bible Concordance, the Hebrew word translated as “good” in the King James Version of the Bible has for its definition “good in the widest sense.” So that sure seems like it encompasses all of the above meanings of the word, and more. How cool is that? “God saw every thing that He had made, and, behold, it was very [excellent, virtuous, fit, well-behaved, friendly, safe, genuine, valid, healthy, cheerful, comfortable, blemish free, sufficient, competent, fertile, rich, loyal, etc.].” And that is true about every element of His creation, including all of us!

Recently, when I was helping someone through prayerful treatment, the words “sealed” and “stamped” popped into my thought. When I looked up definitions for these words, I found that to seal something “confirms it, makes it secure or determines irrevocably or indisputably.” When something is stamped, it is “provided with a distinctive character.” And then it struck me, our stamp or seal is God, Divine Life’s declaration in this verse from Genesis: “very good,” or very [insert ‘appropriate/needed definition of the word good’ here]. These concepts make me think of the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval, or the USDA stamps on various meats, and such things. People trust those and look to them for guidance in making purchase – that the products are of good quality, safe, can be trusted. What a much better seal and stamp we have – we have God’s seal “VERY GOOD” right there on us, permanently, irrevocably. And that’s a pretty distinctive character that can be counted on as our real self.

I can see a few of these definitions that I need to understand better for and about myself. So I’ll be looking at this verse with alternative definitions for good this week – trying to see more clearly what all this good is in my life. So many answers are given in this simple little sentence with its simple little word. Fun!