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"Pure
faith is a spiritual conviction; it is the acquiescence of the mind, the
embodiment of an idea, the acceptance of a concept. If we believe
that the Spirit, incarnated in us, can demonstrate, shall we be
disturbed at what "appears" to contradict this? We shall
often need to "know" that the Truth which we announce is
superior to the condition we are to change. In other words, if we
are speaking from the standpoint of the Spirit, then there can be no
opposition to It! It is only when we let go of all human will, and
recognize the pure essence of the Spiritual Principle incarnated in us,
that thought rises above a belief in duality. We should constantly
vitalize our faith by the knowledge that the Eternal is incarnated in
us; that God Itself goes forth anew into creation through each one of
us; and that in such degree as we speak the Truth, the Almighty has
spoken!" - Dr. Ernest Holmes,
"The Science of Mind"
Let us be clear with this, our faith in our
prayers must be backed up with both a faith in our self and in God's
ability and willingness, through Law, to manifest that which we pray
for. There is no god that can work miracles in our lives without
working through our faith. Matthew 9:22 ..."be of good
comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole ..." the Master Mind Jesus
stated, knowing that God works through our faith, for God is Spirit and
God is Mind, and our mind is One with the Mind of God.
There are those who will say, "fake it until you
make it" ... but as we know that God-Mind in-dwells us, any attempt
to fake faith, is not wisdom. As we begin to develop our faith in
the Truth, we may lack confidence in our level of faith, but this is
normal and natural. If we were going to learn how to speak another
language, at first we may lack confidence in our ability to do so, but
with practice and persistence, we lose this lack of confidence.
Building our faith follows the same pattern. "Faking it"
... only divides our mentality. God does not require great faith
... only faith. "... the size of a mustard seed ..."
Jesus said, because he knew as we do in the Science of Mind, that this
mustard seed will increase with persistence.
In the Science of Mind we learn a methodology
to prayer, spiritual mind treatment, that is patterned after Jesus'
active prayer when healing Lazarus. First Jesus
"recognized" that God is All-Powerful ... with nothing to
oppose Its Power ... and then he "unified" with this Power in
his mind, knowing that It is the only Power there is. Recognizing
God as All-Power and knowing that he can "use" this Power
through faith in It, he "realized" that what he was called to
do, God desired for him to do ... and therefore his
"thanksgiving" was evidenced by his knowing that God always
responds to him ... "for you heareth me always" ... he
"released" these words without doubting ... and according to
scripture, Lazarus was healed. The methodology; recognition,
unification, realization, thanksgiving and release, were all contained
in the Master Mind Jesus' active prayer or treatment.
Most of us are familiar with Jesus healing
Lazarus. Some of us believe it actually happened, and others of
us, don't. But, the story has stood the test of time, and for
those who practice "spiritual mind treatment" ... we are
following this same methodology that Jesus used. And, when we
reflect on our successes using prayer, we will find that it is indeed
successful ... according to our faith in it. But, where most
people fall short, is in believing that their faith must be as great as
Jesus' faith. "May the mind be in me that was in Christ
Jesus," is an old affirmation used by students of metaphysics.
But ... this affirmation is inaccurate as it is supposing that Jesus'
mind is somehow separate and apart from our mind ... there is only One
Mind ... and we are using the same Mind that Jesus used ... that Buddha
used, Krishna used ... that anyone alive uses ... the Mind of God.
Our work is to just develop a greater faith in our ability to use this
Mind.
We are always acting in faith, but we are not
always maintaining faith in the right things. Often our faith is
in the negative. We find ourselves believing that "bad things
happen to good people" ... and so they do. I
have learned that whenever I feel "uncomfortable" about a
situation or condition, I can strengthen my faith in the Good, by simply
asking myself, "where is my faith right now?" ... always
knowing that I can choose what I have faith in ... sometimes a little
convincing is required. The question in itself, forces me to make
a decision to either believe in the Good or to believe in a
contradiction. And if I find my mind being drawn to
"appearances" ... I will ask myself the question again ... and
again, if necessary, until I establish in my mind that my only answer
can be is that God is Good and God is All. And so the question is
answered and the Truth is registered in my consciousness as faith ... a
living faith!
AND
SO IT IS!
Keep
the faith!
Rev.
Dr. Henry Lee Bates
Visit Rev. Bates BLOG: Living
the Science of Mind
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