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[Live Fearlessly in God’s Reality!]
CedarS Met (Metaphysical Application Ideas) on the Christian Science Bible Lesson:

"Reality"
 

prepared by John Biggs, CS, of Bend, Oregon

541.316.0809 / johnbiggscs@gmail.com /
@johnbiggscs / footstepsdrawingnear.com

[Bracketed italics by CedarS Director Warren Huff.  Life-transforming camperships needed!]

Golden Text [“…I am God and there is none else” Isaiah 46:9]
This is a great way to start off your Bible Lesson reading, your day, your athletic event, your job hunt… whatever. But how often do we get thrown off track the instant something un-Godlike comes our way?  The key is to stay with this primal fact: there is one God, one power; therefore, there is no other power or influence. This Bible Lesson is a great study of how we can confidently and joyfully declare this truth and live fearlessly.

Responsive Reading
Not only do we have the joy of knowing that there's only one God, good… but that joy includes the privilege and duty to let the light of that knowledge shine out. Look for ways you can tell 'the prisoners' to "Go forth!"  Be alert to how you can assure those 'in darkness' can confidently show themselves — there's nothing making them less than others. Just let yourself — and those with you, locally and in your heart — bask in the love of God. Since God is eternal, He keeps loving you forever. God, your Father-Mother, is proud of you, and you should know it.  [“Behold”—hold to the fact that Almighty God has “graven” you on “the palms” of His all-acting, all-loving and embracing hands.  Remember “You’re in good hands with” All-Great!]

Section 1 – God isn't hidden
God isn't talking to Himself in a corner somewhere, while the rest of life goes on by. God isn't hidden, and His works aren't only given to a few. Try reading citation B4 as in, "Now we HAVE received the spirit which is of God!"  We have!  Let your life sing out with the glory and knowledge of God. Just like a garden, the more you cherish and nurture your love for God, the more you'll see Love blossoming.

Since citation S2 is true [about existence apart from God being impossible], the more we acknowledge God and His work as the only reality, as All-in-all, the more we'll see this manifest in our lives. God isn't waiting for you to trust Him (and not giving you good till you do trust Him). Instead, His love is unconditional, and the more you DO trust Him, and seek your life only in Him, you'll see the fullness of divine Life unfold before you.

One thing I've noticed is that a lot of people think that we've kept God out of the schools and so bad things happen, or that we've kept Him out of the public discourse and so things just keep going downhill. But if "all reality is in God and His creation," (S4) do we honestly think we can keep God out of anywhere? Rather, let's spend our time acknowledging the all-presence of God and His creation, and we can trust that Love will illuminate our effective, healing participation in all walks of life.

Section 2 – Keep it simple, sweetheart [K.i.s.s.]
No need to gush on and on about things; say your piece and just keep right on living it. St. Francis of Assisi once said, "Preach the gospel at all times. When necessary, use words." Try it!

I'm running a Tough Mudder in California in just a few weeks with an amazing DiscoveryBound team of new and old friends, ages 21-35. It's a 10-12 mile obstacle course packed with walls to climb, tunnels to crawl, live wires to dodge and cold, muddy water to dunk in. When I was preparing for my first Mudder a year ago, I spent a lot of time thinking about the obstacles, talking about how hard it would be, and how fun I hoped it would be. I trained appropriately, with a ton of focus on my spiritual status as God's man. But when I got to the course, I immediately saw that no amount of just talking about good, or just thinking about prayers, or any of the staff's attempts to psych us up for the race, would help if all I did was waffle around. I had to go do it, knowing that God was my life. It was a great experience, which you can read more about here: Time4Thinkers.com/tough-mudder. I'm thrilled to have this upcoming opportunity, and I've used my prep time more wisely this time around, focusing much more on living my native strength, endurance, and cheer as God's child, instead of just talking about it or hoping I can do it (just let me know if you want to join this DiscoveryBound event as a team member or spectator!).

Next time the clouds of worry or second-guessing come, or anything tries to distract from "the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts," (B9) remember that those “illusive mists” have already been “banished” because God never allowed them in the first place. [See the fuller quote and idea in Hymn 359.]  Let your life be the demonstration of the revelation of the "celestial peaks" (S8) [that never “move… from their base” Hymn 359] The distractions? They're nothing. Let them fall like chaff before the wheat; move on wholeheartedly because God is your life.

Section 3 – Live like the Truth is actually true
No supposed authority could deter Jesus from shining out with the great love of God. "Ought not this woman be loosed?" [B12, Luke 13:16]  Ought not you, your neighborhood, your co-workers, be loosed from whatever's holding you down? I love how Jesus didn't make some long, lofty speech; he just knew that there was no reason this woman shouldn't be free, and therefore, she must be free. Try approaching this week with that same calm presence of mind — be delighted to approach the week in this way! (B13). Citation S12 gives a very clear illustration of why we need to know that spirituality is reality. Waffles may be good for breakfast, but when it comes to approaching every day, let's stand firm instead of waffling around.

Section 4 – This isn't theoretical
Are we looking for temporary relief, or for a healing cure? Citation B16 assures us that if we'll persist in what we've learned of God, we'll keep seeing how His nature animates and uplifts our thought till we see our essential oneness with God. Don't hedge your bets [by partially relying on drugs for relief or for cure.] Citation S17 inspires me with the directness of its message: "We MUST look deep into realism…" (emphasis added). Keep letting your new views of Truth destroy those clouds of error — be willing to keep moving forward!

Section 5 – Hold fast
No matter how strong the adversary seems, or what the source of adversity is, we can joyfully hold fast to peace of God. I like how the first artist in citation S22 doesn't get into some lofty argument with the second artist. I appreciate this metaphor in its reminder that we must be clear on what we're claiming and accepting as reality. Many of you are probably very accustomed to knowing that God is all, that God is good, and that God is Love. But are we really then living with those truths firmly in thought, or do we get sidetracked any time the 'adversary' (suggestion of limits, fear, apathy…) come along? Citation S23 is one of my favorite paragraphs in Science & Health, [that uses one of my favorite words let three times]. Notice that it doesn't say "force unselfishness to reign within us” or “force yourself to accept Science” or “force yourself to have one God." This is not about willpower beating evil. It's about listening to Truth, yielding to its supremacy, and to continue yielding to good alone — no matter what.

Section 6 – Perfection is not outside your grasp
The soil in citation B23 represents qualities and states of thought, not people or bad days. Be willing to let thought unfold upward, all day, to be prepared for all of God's angel messages. So even if it seems like your day is off to a rocky start, you can turn your day around by adding in the “fertilizer” of a love for God.

I had a coach in high school who told us that perfect practice makes perfect. I thought that was a weird thing to say — don't you become perfect by practicing, even if you start out poorly? But later I realized that if I didn't practice perfectly —perfect form, timing, awareness, attitude — then I was just drilling wrong actions into habit. I needed to be willing to slow down and practice perfectly (even if that meant having one-on-one coaching sessions, taking extra care in my warm-ups, and making sure all my focus was on the present moment instead of thinking about the weekend ahead).

There's no need to think we have to go through bad times before we can reach perfection. And, even when we’re facing dark times, we never have to let that throw us from our pursuit and demonstration of perfection. Do you remember reading anywhere in this Bible Lesson that knowing the truth would mean everything was easy for you? Or, it's good to understand God because then He makes life easy for us? I don't remember reading that at all — I just remember the assurances that God is the only reality, and thus I don't need to bow down to any suggestion otherwise.

By humbly holding to the truths we learn through our study of Christian Science, and to the individual, loving angel messages from God, we can prepare the soil of our hearts to receive and cherish the Christ message. You are never incapable of knowing, obeying, and living these truths, and seeing them manifest in your life (and the lives of those around you).


The Met application ideas above are provided primarily to help CedarS campers and staff (as well as friends) see and daily demonstrate the great value of studying and applying the Christian Science Bible lessons throughout the year, not just at camp!  YOU CAN ALSO SIGN UP for weekly emails from past CedarS staff of possible ways to share Bible Lesson applications with older, as well as younger, Sunday School classes by clicking the "Subscribe Now" button (lower left) at http://www.cedarscamps.org/metaphysical/ ]

 [THANK YOU in advance for MAKING A TAX-DEDUCTIBLE GIFT ONLINE,
BY PHONE at 636-394-6162
OR BY MAIL at:
CedarS Office, 1314 Parkview Valley Dr, Ballwin, MO 63011

[Additional Director's Note: You can sign up to have these application ideas emailed to you free – by Monday each week in English; or by each Wednesday you can get a FREE TRANSLATION: in German, thanks to Manfred and Jeanette; or in Spanish, thanks to a team of Ana, Erick, Claudia and Patricio, or in Portuguese, thanks to helpers of Orlando Trentini in Brazil.  A voluntary French translation by Rodger Glokpor, a Christian Scientist from Togo (West Africa) has been contributed.  Thank you, Rodger and all translators! Go to http://www.cedarscamps.org/ and click "Newsletters" to sign-up for a free translation into these languages.  This sharing is the latest in an ongoing, 13-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 emails to follow.) 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 serve as 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 and in a variety of useful formats 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-26) and the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health With Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy (S-1 thru S-32). 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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