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CedarS Application Ideas for the Christian Science Bible Lesson on
“Matter” for September 16, 2012
by Dan Carnesciali, CS
of St. Louis, MO
314.374.5616   dancarne@gmail.com
 
[These application ideas from a past CedarS Camps' Resident Christian Science Practitioner are provided primarily to help CedarS campers and staff (as well as friends) see and demonstrate the great value of study and application of the Christian Science Bible lessons daily throughout the year, not just at camp! You can sign up to have them emailed to you free — by Monday each week in English; or by each Wednesday you can get a FREE TRANSLATION: in French, thanks to Pascal & Marie-Helene; in German, thanks to Helga and Manfred; or in Spanish, thanks to a team of Ana, Erick, Claudia and Patricio. YOU CAN ALSO SIGN UP for weekly emails from past CedarS staff of fun approaches & possible ways to teach lesson ideas to older and to younger Sunday School classes at www.cedarscamps.org/newsletters  Enjoy! Warren Huff, CedarS Director & editor of these notes with bracketed additions.]
 
Change is all around us. So we shouldn't resist it, we should embrace it. For example, vacation time is over. School has started back up.  The heat of summer is yielding to fall. It wouldn't make any sense to resist these changes, would it? This week let's be willing to adopt change by letting go of our preconceptions. Let's let Christ, the divine influence in human consciousness, change us as much as needed. Examine how Mind is seeing the world, including you. Ask yourself, “Am I seeing myself the way God is seeing me? Am I seeing the world the way God is seeing it?” If not, pause and be willing to change your thinking to be like God's.
This weekend there was a wonderful Bible conference at CedarS Camps. One of the things featured at the Bible Conference [as well as at the College Summit at CedarS the weekend before] was TMCYouth's ecumenical project, Radical Acts. Because Radical Acts is so cool, I am going to quote what John Biggs' met from July said about it. “Based on exploring and really, really living some of Christ Jesus' most radical teachings, this online gathering point offers a space to share stories of our living, our struggles and triumphs, as we dive in. It also offers original music which goes along with one or more Radical Acts, podcasts from folks living in outrageously loving ways, and book and movie reviews that illustrate just how broad the tent of Love is. Go ahead and give it a look – and share with your friends. You're already living these, I bet – this is just an opportunity to really consciously dive a little deeper. The beautiful pictures and quotes now available from the TMCYouth's new free app, GoVerse, are like individualized angel messages that you can carry in your pocket all day long.”
 
Golden Text:
“Steer clear of all these stupid Godless fictions. Take time and trouble to keep yourself spiritually fit.” (J.B. Phillips Translation) Speaking of keeping yourself spiritually fit, before you start an important activity, take five minutes to be get in a right frame of mind. Let's call this “Take 5”. Take 5 means to take five minutes to have no agenda except to be present with God.  During these five minutes, just be still physically and mentally. Try not to consciously think anything. Just keep an open mind, not thinking about the past or the future. Don't get busy praying. Just be present with God.  As you practice Take 5 it will give you space to hear God, to feel God. As a result you will be able to commit to that activity feeling focused and relaxed. Wouldn't that be cool?
 
Responsive Reading:
“Sing to the Lord a new song, and His praise from the end of the earth! You who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, the islands and coastal regions and the inhabitants of them [sing a song such as has never been heard in the heathen world]!” (Amplified Bible) Sing a new song is a theme that occurs several times in the Old Testament. Psalms 96:1 says, “Sing a new song to the LORD! Let the whole earth sing to the LORD!” (New Living Translation) Since new can mean “fresh”, are your prayers to God, are the songs of your heart to God, fresh or are they warmed-up leftovers? Another definition of new is “original.”  A new song can be a prayer or song that is so heartfelt, so vibrant, so you – that it could only come from you. “I'll take the hand of those who don't know the way, who can't see where they're going. I'll be a personal guide to them, directing them through unknown country. I'll be right there to show them what roads to take, make sure they don't fall into the ditch. These are the things I'll be doing for them-sticking with them, not leaving them for a minute.” (The Message)
 
Section 1 – Spirit Never Created Matter
We're going to begin our exploration of matter with the word limits. Matter is limited. Limited shelf life. Limited lifespan. Limited attention. Limits, limits, limits.  Let's see what limits God has. God doesn't have a limited attention span, for God is Mind, infinite intelligence and wisdom. God doesn't have a limited life, because God is Life, infinite, eternal Life. God knows love because God is Love. God knows and experiences adventure because God is Spirit. God is the creative Creator. God is never fooled, because God is Truth and Intelligence.
Mary Baker Eddy rejected matter as the basis of life because she saw that God is entirely Spirit and that matter is a misconception of God's creation. Her understanding of what Jesus taught us, what the Bible communicates to us, is that God really is omnipotent and all; and that this all is not limited. God is not finite in any way. She wrote, “Sin was, and is, the lying supposition that life, substance, and intelligence are both material and spiritual, and yet are separate from God. The first iniquitous manifestation of sin was a finity. The finite was self-arrayed against the infinite, the mortal against immortality, and a sinner was the antipode of God.” The lying opinion that matter is substance, life, and intelligence is material and separate from God, Eddy declares to be sin. She says that the first wicked manifestation of this sin was finity. Finity means limits. Eddy was saying that our concept of God cannot be infinite if it includes matter. Limits, finiteness, separateness are hostile opposites to an infinite being. This is why she says God did not create and does not include matter. 
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (B-1)  The word translated as “Word” comes from the word Logos in Greek, which means “personal wisdom and power in union with God, his minister in creation and government of the universe.” (Strong's Concordance) So, Word is Christ. It is the creative power and wisdom of God.  It is the divine influence in consciousness that urges us to be free from limits. 
 
Section 2 – Beauty without Limits
“Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined.” (B-3)  God knows beauty and experiences all the beauty there ever has been and ever will be because God is Soul. I like to observe what God is seeing when looking at us. I ask myself if I am seeing the same things God is seeing. I ask myself if I am seeing those around me the same way God is seeing them. I remind myself that the Christ in me is seeing the Christ in everyone else. When I do this, I feel so connected to God and God's creation. I appreciate the spiritual beauty in others. I feel God's joy for God's Creation, including me.  I feel connected. Do I feel this connection all the time? I wish I did. It is my intent. But, honestly I get tripped up by believing limiting thoughts of “mini me”, which is another name for the carnal mind, or mortal mind.
Referring to the morning breakfast after the Crucifixion, Mrs. Eddy wrote, “Jesus prayed; he withdrew from the material senses to refresh his heart with brighter, with spiritual views.” This week, let's refresh our heart with brighter spiritual views and see what God is seeing. Let's not be limited by the limited “mini me”.  Let's compare what we are seeing with what is God is seeing and then bring our hearts and minds into alignment with God's great Heart of Love.
 
Section 3 – Life without Limits
The section features the story of Daniel, which we know well. However, have we stopped to think about what it would be like to have your country invaded by a foreign army, and taken by force to live in the capital of that foreign power? Let's consider how hard it was for Daniel to leave home behind. He also had to live in a foreign culture, and live by a totally new set of rules.  Daniel was very devoted to God and took time to pray to God three times a day. His wisdom and moral stand caught the attention of the king and he was able to advise the king and interpret his dreams. As Daniel rose in influence, others became envious and they were able to persuade the king to pass a law restricting praying to anyone but the king.
MyBibleLesson provides excellent background information about Daniel that I want to share. “According to the narrative, Daniel was a Jewish youth of noble status who was taken captive to Babylon in about 606 BCE by King Nebuchadnezzar's army. In Eastern nations, it was customary for the elite among war captives to serve in the king's court. Daniel and his three countrymen-Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah-were among those selected to be trained as the king's attendants. During Belshazzar's reign, Daniel occupied a position of honor after interpreting some mysterious handwriting that had appeared on the banquet room wall. That same night, Belshazzar was killed, and the Babylonian Empire fell to Darius. Recognizing Daniel's moral excellence, Darius made him the first of three presidents who oversaw the 120 satrapies (territories) of his kingdom. When Darius planned to promote him further, the jealous princes plotted against Daniel.”
Daniel was put in the lion's den by the king's order. He stared danger in the face. [Click here for a link to see a copy of Briton Rivere's image of this.]  Before this week, I don't think I ever noticed that Daniel never blamed the king for his being placed into the lions' den. He continued to treat the king with respect.  He said, “O king, live forever.”  While this is a traditional greeting to kings, it shows us Daniel's innocence in the face of hatred and envy. Innocence is a spiritual law of protection that keeps us humanly safe. (B-9)  “The divine Love, which made harmless the poisonous viper, which delivered men from the boiling oil, from the fiery furnace, from the jaws of the lion, can heal the sick in every age and triumph over sin and death.” (S-13)
 
Section 4 – There is No Intelligence in Matter
Does intelligence belong to God, or matter or to both? This week's Bible lesson challenges the prevalent thought that life, truth, intelligence and substance are in matter.   “Good friend, take to heart what I'm telling you; collect my counsels and guard them with your life.  Tune your ears to the world of Wisdom; set your heart on a life of Understanding. That's right-if you make Insight your priority, and won't take no for an answer, searching for it like a prospector panning for gold, like an adventurer on a treasure hunt, Believe me, before you know it Fear-of-God will be yours; you'll have come upon the Knowledge of God. And here's why: God gives out Wisdom free, is plainspoken in Knowledge and Understanding. He's a rich mine of Common Sense …” (Proverbs 2:1-7, The Message, B-10) 
Not everyone realized Jesus was a prophet. They knew him as the carpenter's son. They said that nothing good ever came out of Nazareth, implying that Nazareth was too rural, too backwards for a great prophet to come from that region. That didn't slow Jesus down. He knew himself and his mission. He tapped into the divine Source of Intelligence and confidently and skillfully taught in the synagogue. (B-11) If intelligence is the primal (essential, fundamental) and eternal quality of infinite Mind, then intelligence is our nature far beyond anything we can currently comprehend. That tells us that we haven't scratched the surface of our potential. (S-15)
 
Section 5 – Christ as Healing, Saving Power
In Jeremiah 8, the prophet Jeremiah is very sad. He questions whether something can be done to save the people's loss of faith. He is also asking whether God abandoned the nation. What caused him to be so sad? Picture life for the Israelites in the 6th century BCE. The Babylonian army invaded and smashed Jerusalem. It took the best and brightest back to Babylon. The Israelites had once been prosperous (during the United Kingdom reigns of King David and King Solomon). They had once had a temple where they worshipped in Jerusalem. But now they lived as captives in a foreign land, subjects of King Nebuchadnezzar.  Sound familiar? Yes, this was Daniel's situation.
When Jeremiah asks whether there is a balm in Gilead, he is asking, “What happened, is God for us?!” He also wonders about the stiff-necked people he lives with. He asks, “So why does this people go backward, and just keep on going-backward!  They stubbornly hold on to their illusions, refuse to change direction.” (MSG)  Jeremiah is heartbroken because of how some people insist that everything is OK. He thinks that is scandalous.  “From prophet to priest, all trade in falsehood. They treat the wound of my people as if it were nothing: ‘All is well, all is well,' they insist, when in fact nothing is well. They should be ashamed of their detestable practices, but they have no shame; they don't even blush!”
He expresses his grief, “For my dear broken people, I'm heartbroken. I weep, seized by grief. Are there no healing ointments in Gilead? Isn't there a doctor in the house? So why can't something be done to heal and save my dear, dear people?” (B-15)  It turns out that as difficult as the exile was; it was a period of tremendous, tremendous spiritual growth. Spiritual growth brings healing. That's a spiritual law!  Fast forward several hundred years, and the prophet Jesus of Nazareth is healing people of physical ailments and sin through prayer instantaneously. 
In Luke, it records that Jesus heals the woman that had been ill for 18 years. (B-17) Whether the pace of healing is fast, slow, or apparently stopped, it is helpful to ask what is God seeing about me, about this illness or other challenge? The Comforter, Christ, is always in alignment with God, so Christ is our aid in this journey to healing. 
What is the effect of working out the rules of the Christ Science? Mary Baker Eddy records from her own healing practice, “the author has restored health in cases of both acute and chronic disease in their severest forms. Secretions have been changed, the structure has been renewed, shortened limbs have been elongated, ankylosed joints have been made supple, and carious bones have been restored to healthy conditions.” (S-20)
When our daughter was a toddler we got a call from the woman that took care of her during the day.  She had been carrying our daughter down the steps, lost her balance and accidentally dropped her.  The woman alerted us that that she had heard a crack and our daughter was crying.  We called a Christian Science Practitioner for help with our fears that our daughter may have broken a bone.  
On the way to the woman's house, my wife and I held to the safety in the following passage.  “All that is made is the work of God, and all is good.  We leave this brief and glorious history of spiritual creation (as stated in the first chapter of Genesis) in the hands of God, not of man, in the keeping of Spirit, not matter, — joyfully acknowledging now and forever God's supremacy, omnipotence, and omnipresence.”  When we arrived our daughter was calm and happy. We took her to a pediatrician, who witnessed that our daughter was entirely well. We learned that we could entirely lean on the fact of creation told in Genesis and as revealed by Christian Science.
 
Section 6 – [“Take 5” for God's lamp to lead you aright!]
Psalms 119:105 (B-18) “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path”, has been set to music. What path are you on? Where are your feet going? Are your feet taking you into the land of limits, or into the land of your unlimited, whole, spiritual nature?  Here is a link to a performance of this song by recording stars Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith: Lamp Unto My Feet [This verse (B-18) has been carved in stone at the base of CedarS Time Travelers Trail. It is a reminder to take the Christ and “the inspired word of the Bible as our sufficient guide to eternal Life”, one step, vs. a 5-year plan, at a time.  Like a handheld olive oil lamp, God's word, leads us step by step with a soft glow of “consecration; charity; gentleness; prayer; heavenly inspiration.” (S&H 592:25)]
Paul said, “In him, we live, and move, and have our being.” (B-20) [See Warren's P.S.] Before you start your homework, or start an activity, remember to “Take 5”, that is take five minutes to be still and connect with God. If you sit in that space, just being present, not trying to do anything but just be, you will find peace, wholeness and a connection to God. This is the “indissoluble spiritual link” mentioned in the 26th citation from Science and Health.
“When will the error of believing that there is life in matter, and that sin, sickness, and death are creations of God, be unmasked? When will it be understood that matter has neither intelligence, life, nor sensation, and that the opposite belief is the prolific source of all suffering? God created all through Mind, and made all perfect and eternal. Befogged in error (the error of believing that matter can be intelligent for good or evil), we can catch clear glimpses of God only as the mists disperse, or as they melt into such thinness that we perceive the divine image in some word or deed which indicates the true idea, – the supremacy and reality of good, the nothingness and unreality of evil.” (S&H 205:7-13,15)
This week let go of all your preconceived ideas of how the week should happen. Let Christ, the divine influence in human consciousness, direct you and change your thought. Since the source of good is infinite, shouldn't good keep getting bigger and bigger and better and better?

[Warren's P.S. on citations S-24 and B-20, Acts 17:28: “St. Paul said to the Athenians, “For in Him we live, and move, and have our being.” This statement is in substance identical with my own: “There is no life, truth, substance, nor intelligence in matter.” It is quite clear that as yet this grandest verity has not been fully demonstrated, but it is nevertheless true. If Christian Science reiterates St. Paul's teaching, we, as Christian Scientists, should give to the world convincing proof of the validity of this scientific statement of being. Having perceived, in advance of others, this scientific fact, we owe to ourselves and to the world a struggle for its demonstration.” (Retrospection…, Eddy, 93:17)]


 

[If you couldn't come to CedarS for either the College Summit weekend or the Midwest Bible Conference, you can STILL come to CedarS this fall (Oct. 16-20), if you are an executive wishing to lead your company in more democratic ways based upon principles successfully practiced by WorldBlu Founder and Principia College graduate Traci Fenton. Click here to find out more and to enroll today to become one of 50 potential participants. (URL: http://www.worldblu.com/blucamp/ )]

 

 
 
 [Camp Director's Note: This sharing is the latest in an ongoing, 11-year series of CedarS Bible Lesson “Mets” (Metaphysical application ideas) contributed weekly by a rotation of CedarS Resident Practitioners and occasionally by other metaphysicians.  (Ask and look for “Possible Sunday School Topics “and “Possible Younger Class Lessons” in subsequent emails.) These weekly offerings are intended to encourage further study and application of ideas in the lesson and to invigorate Sunday School participation by students and by the budding teachers on our staff. Originally sent JUST to my Sunday School students and to campers, staff and CedarS families who wanted to continue at home and in their home Sunday Schools the same type of focused Lesson study, application and inspiration they had felt at camp, CedarS lesson “mets “and Sunday School ideas are in no way meant to be definitive or conclusive or in any way a substitute for daily study of the lesson. The thoughts presented are the inspiration of the moment and are offered to give a bit more dimension and background as well as new angles (and angels) on the daily applicability of some of the ideas and passages being studied. The weekly Bible Lessons are copyrighted by the Christian Science Publishing Society and are printed in the Christian Science Quarterly as available at Christian Science Reading Rooms or online at eBibleLesson.com or myBibleLesson.com. The citations referenced (i.e.B-1 and S-28) from this week's Bible Lesson in the “Met” (Metaphysical application ideas) are taken from the Bible (B-1 thru B-24) and the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health With Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy (S-1 thru S-30). The Bible and Science and Health are the ordained pastor of the Churches of Christ, Scientist. The Bible Lesson is the sermon read in Christian Science church services throughout the world. The Lesson-Sermon speaks individually through the Christ to everyone, providing unique insights and tailor-made applications for each one. We are glad you requested this metaphysical sharing and hope that you find some of the ideas helpful in your daily spiritual journey, in your deeper digging in the books and in closer bonding with your Comforter and Pastor.]
 
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or call us at 417-532-6699

[PSST: Be a myth-buster; reveal the glory of the Lord!]
Possible Sunday School Topics for the Christian Science Bible Lesson on
Matter
for September 16, 2012
by Merrill Boudreaux
 
Matter equates to silly myths. Focus instead on your godliness, or God-like-ness.
 
P.S.S.T. Golden Text: The primary material myth is what? The belief of life in matter. What is the counter fact? See the Scientific Statement of Being in S & H 468: 8.
 
P.S.S.T. Responsive Reading: What does the voice, the word of God, whispered or shouted, say about you, the glory of the Lord? (See esp. Isa. 42: 16). Consider yourself the glory of the Lord. Look up the word glory and see how it applies to you.
 
P.S.S.T. Section 1: Who made you? Why? Of what are you made? S1. In you is light or darkness? It is impossible to be both. S3. Ask students if they know any Greek or Roman myths about creation, gods, or humans with god-like skills. Ex. Achilles, Zeus, Hercules. Define myth. Counter these myths with citation S5 regarding “All that is made….”
 
P.S.S.T. Section 2: Consider you, the glory of the Lord, as perfectly beautiful.    What is a prayer worthy of memory in citation B5? “…let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us.” Identify the recipe ingredients for beauty in citation S6. How long are you beautiful? Who made you so? S8.
 
P.S.S.T. Section 3: What myths are in the Daniel story? B9. The king had power to grant or eliminate life; there is a human law that supersedes God's law. Why do you think this story was told and written in the Bible? One can be taken captive and yet not be captivated or captured; jealousy falls before godliness; human plots cannot interfere with God's plan for you, the glory of the Lord. What are you subject to? S14. What synonym for a myth is revealed in citation S14? Theory. Define theory; define speculation. Do they have a basis in fact?
 
P.S.S.T. Section 4: As the glory of the Lord what are you given? B10. From where does your intelligence come? What is intelligence? S15. What does omni mean? What myths or theories are to be combated in citation S17?
 
P.S.S.T. Section 5: What does immediately mean? Why could Jesus heal immediately? Can you? Do you? If the myth of life in matter is debunked what is immediately revealed and ready to practice? S20, S21. What is your primary aid to be a myth buster? Science and Health. S22, S23
 
P.S.S.T. Section 6: What are you commanded to not do in citation B19? Is a false report another name for a myth? Can your body ever report the truth? What should you seek to attain in citation S25? Once attained what can you do with it? What a broom indeed. What are the results of yielding to spiritual ideas, sweeping out myths from thought, or giving place to the infinite? S27. You, revealed as the glory of the Lord, right here, right now.


[PYCL:  Mind always wins over matter, without a fight, by busting its myths.]
CedarS Possible Younger Class Lessons for:  
“Matter”

The Christian Science Bible Lesson for September 16, 2012
by Kerry Jenkins, CS, House Springs, MO (314) 406-0041 [Bracketed titles by Warren Huff]
 
[PYCL:   *Remove the space between the body's atoms to put it in its place – on a pin head.]
You might begin by talking about the difference between matter and the subject last week of “substance”.  You wouldn't want it to devolve into trite statements that are not actually felt, but I think you could investigate what makes matter insubstantial.  For example, when we have a healing that is without a “normal” time frame, or is “inexplicable” by human standards, this might be one indication that matter is not substance (see section 5 Bible story).  *Another way to look at this is to talk in some simple terms about what more recent physics has revealed about the insubstantial nature of matter.  Such a study can be very helpful in putting the human body in its place (on the head of a pin!).
 
[PYCL:  Although it can be challenging, rejoice in the myth-busting of “irreverent, silly myths”!]
I love this translation used in this week's Golden Text.  It's written just for our Sunday School students!  Define the word “irreverent” and talk about “silly myths”.  What “irreverent, silly myths” do we subscribe to today?  Can you come up with a few to share and give them the opportunity to share some of their own?  The Bible examples are obvious, particularly the second chapter of Genesis.  But there are many today that we think nothing of.  For example: my son often asks me if he is getting stronger by exercising (we do a lot of active things together).  We are working together to see that we exercise to express our joy, energy and because we reflect Life, God who is naturally active.  We often tacitly accept that exercise makes us stronger or in better shape or helps us lose weight.  All of these things make perfect sense if we subscribe to the “silly myth” of material man.  This is something that is easy to do; we are constantly faced with it.  Can you talk about times where this was found to be a myth in your life?  How can we think about physical activity?  What I heard in Christian Science Class Instruction was that “we exercise because we are healthy” (not to get healthy).  What does that do for us day to day?  Wow, doesn't that release us from the arguments that it is just too hard to do; that we are in “bad” shape; that we are too overweight, too old, injured, and so on?  It really can make you stop and think.  And don't think that kids don't face their own challenges with feeling physically uncomfortable with exercise or sports of some kind.  They may not be facing “age”, etc. but matter has a way of catching our attention no matter where we are coming from.  Huck (my son) and I often remind each other that we are going to be challenged, but it's how we handle that challenge that matters and brings healing to our thought (and body).
 
[PYCL — Section 2: “Mirror, mirror on the wall,” inner beauty is best of all!]
In thinking about the subject of matter and beauty that is especially addressed in Section 2, there is material here to work with even the youngest classes.  Consider asking each pupil to describe someone they love in great detail but not use a single physical trait.  With the little ones you tell them: “you can't tell us whether they are short or tall, have a certain hair or eye or skin color, what clothes they wear, or even if they are a boy or girl”.  You can only describe them by qualities.  Give them an example if they are younger.  Here's how I might describe Huck: he's endlessly energetic, cheerful, quick to laugh, earnest, loves climbing, running, biking, is graceful, kind, compassionate and empathetic, funny, …you get the picture.  This description doesn't say anything about his physical appearance.  What if we identified ourselves and others this way?  What if we could peek “around” physical appearances and really see ourselves and others?  Then wouldn't we be seeing as Christ sees, as Jesus saw others and as he healed them?  For the youngest classes you could list their description of someone they love and have them take home their description to share.  Could they consider this for people that they might have a harder time getting along with or that they have only ever identified by physical appearance?  I would recommend giving them a long period of quiet to come up with a list if they are a bit older before you start giving them suggestions.  Ask them to pray and think deeply about it rather than just writing things like “nice”.
 
[PYCL — Section 3: Help pupils find the Bible's relevance: How Daniel won without a fight.]
The story of Daniel and his visit to the den of lions is always a favorite among the youngest.  Ask the older kids if this story has any bearing on their lives today, and if so, what?  We want to help them think about the relevance of the Bible to daily life.  Our Leader turned to the Bible constantly for guidance.  We want to raise Biblically-knowledgeable students in our Sunday Schools; and if they are seeing the relevance of stories such as this to their current life, they will find it more interesting.  [*See Warren's P.S> below.]    Can you share a “lion's den” experience with the kids?  Were you ever tricked into doing something that caused you to head down a path that had problems that were not foreseen (think of poor King Darius).  [Have you ever needed to be a peace-maker in the midst of those who were eager to eat you alive? Did you feel safe like Daniel did by “understanding the control that Love held over all”? (S&H 514:26)]  What situation could you say was similar to being in a lion's den and how did you fair?  What are the “lions” in your “den”?  How did your understanding of God's constant care and of the lion's powerlessness keep you safe?  Also I think it's fair to ask them why they think that Daniel didn't stop praying to his God after that law passed.  Couldn't he have just pretended to pray to Darius' statue and then “really” pray to God?  This would be for the slightly older kids, probably too confusing for the littlest.  What does this story have to do with our lesson subject on matter?  The last two questions could be very easily and profitable linked together.  Isn't what we worship or even “pretend” to worship for reasons of societal acceptance, etc. going to affect how we think of God, how we feel close to God and how we feel about ourselves?  What gives us “spiritual power”?  See if they can find that phrase in MBE's writing.
 
[PYCL — Section 5: Discuss the health-giving power of Mind over every material condition!]
It is interesting to consider MBE's statement in section 5, citation S21 that “Health is not a condition of matter, but of Mind”.  What does that mean?  When we say we are healthy what are we saying?  Our body feels good or well?  If health is a condition of Mind or God, how does that apply to us?  Last week there was an interesting discussion of body/temple/church.  If this is something that you addressed last week, consider looking back and seeing how to look at body and health here.  She continues that statement by making it clear that the material senses are not reliable witnesses to health.  What can we truly rely on for a proper assessment?  Think of Jesus' example of healing in this section of the woman that was bent over.
 
As always, enjoy your opportunity to be together to share and learn!
 
[*Warren's P.S.:  You can help us train up Bible-based problem-solvers in Christian Science Sunday Schools and in those of other denominations who visit CedarS Bible Lands Park by helping us fund the $2500 needed for the next stage of adding more signs, rails and audio capabilities to our Time Traavelers Trail.  This will enable us to customize tours.  For example, the story of Daniel in this week's lesson could be treated as an A.P. History event showing that Daniel's living of his prayers of self-forgetful boldness, pure honesty, and affectionate understanding allowed them to be answered as he faced down jealosy, anger, fear, bullying…  You could also use Daniel as a Beatitude-themed example of living the peacemaker Beatitude and winning without a fight by “understanding the control that Love held over all”.  (S&H 514:26) Click on a CedarS blog for examples of other Bible characters living other Beatitudes.] 

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