Dictionary.com defines lethargy as the quality or state of being drowsy and dull, listless and unenergetic, or indifferent and lazy; apathetic or sluggish inactivity.
If you ever feel any of these qualities, challenge them! They are not your norm.
God’s man is active, productive, always doing something worthwhile, profitably engaged, living and experiencing something new and progressive. There is not a single dull moment in the Life God has given man to live. God’s man is not lethargic.
The temptation to feel dull and drowsy is symptomatic of believing one lives in matter and is losing purpose, or the ability to remain active. This is error from top to bottom! God gave us dominion to live Life to the fullest.
Life is not the idle passing of time. Life is not sitting around and waiting for something good to happen. Life is not mindless self-indulgence, or excuse-making for lack.
Life is God, eternal good, an omnipresent incredible awesome and expansive universe to participate in and enjoy.
With God, there is no lack of possibility for living with joy and delight. The opportunities are boundless.
It’s always much more fun to be actively engaged with Life and seeing positive results from our efforts, then to be idling time away with nothing meaningful to show afterward.
Challenge lethargy! It’s not a friend. God has given you an active, productive, meaningful and worthwhile Life to live. Be sure to live it!
This is a great message and perfectly complements today’s Daily Lift “God is not on pause” which brings in the message “there’s always something you can do”. When the current lockdown situation began people were worried they would run out of things to do, but I’m grateful that I have always been able to fill my days, not just with housework activities but also taking the time to be still but not idle in my daily prayers, to have the opportunity to engage with my neighbours more as we are now all on an online group and are constantly texting each other to check if anyone needs anything. There is an active joy around and it’s noticeable that no-one has been complaining about the enforced lockdown. As I read today’s SV the thought came to me that we are all “an active portion of one stupendous whole” as our Leader writes. I look forward to continuing being “actively engaged with Life” as Evan puts it so well. Happy day everyone!
Thank you Lindau and you as well.
Beauty, purity, excitement in the constant goodness provided in my garden plot in the community garden is where I find such fulfillment. It is the quiet sanctuary where I pray and study the Bible Lesson. Observing the Monarch caterpillar transform into the pupa, leaving the old for the new, the gracious butterfly sets my thoughts free to move forward. The rewards of gardening of planting seeds and later harvesting your food, sharing your food, feeds and fills me with so much gratitude! Hope this planted a seed today to order those seeds in the mail. Thank you Evan, for addressing unproductive aggressive mental suggestions. You can say NOT ON MY WATCH.
“Let us feel the energy of Spirit, which leads us into newness of Life…” is what MBEDDY advises us to do in her book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. That’s what I often work with, not only in this special time. I am grateful to have learned in CS that God gives us graciously what we need when we listen and are obedient.
Thank you Evan, that you show us the man of God’s creation, who we really are with all the wonderful spiritual qualities you mention in today’s precious SpiritView. It is so helpful to me. If the challenge lethargy is met according what Evan makes us aware of, replacing it with God’s qualities, we will come out of the challenge with much more spiritual strength, health and joy.
Thank you Evan for awaking me and lifting me into spiritual Truth!
Loved this message. Thank you Evan!
Thank you for that, Evan. A message to with which to start every day. It brought to mind a passage from S&H, “Matter is not the vestibule (waiting room) of Spirit”.
Love the picture – such optomism!
This message dovetails perfectly with Dave Hohle’s Daily Lift today, and both messages are timely and needed.
I have been praying with the poem “Mother’s Evening Prayer” by Mary Baker Eddy. Especially the line:
” O Life divine, that owns each waiting hour”
Life, God, is purposeful, engaged, and always active. We reflect these qualities and can live with vigor, Joy and motivation.
Thank you Evan and all for the energetic love that you are sharing with the world.
Thank you all, because sometimes I tend to think mostly in terms of: “become passers by”, or “seek first the Kingdom of Heaven”, or “become like little children”, and “be in the world but not of the world”, and of course the statement that this world as we see it is just an illusion. Jesus also asks us to recognize God/Love in everything and everyone…..That should keep us busy. Love to you all.
Thank you Evan for helping me break through the mesmerism bubble and seeing man/woman (me)
as NOT lethargic as God is Truth,
Thank you Evan for this necessary rousing.
I smile when I remember my mother chiding us with: “Apathy is the most active form of evil.” whenever we claimed to be bored.
“If you venture upon the quiet surface of error and are in sympathy with error, what is there to disturb the waters? What is there to strip off error’s disguise?
If you launch your bark upon the ever-agitated but healthful waters of truth, you will encounter storms. The cross and crown Your good will be evil spoken of. This is the cross. Take it up and bear it, for through it you win and wear the crown. Pilgrim on earth, thy home is heaven; stranger, thou art the guest of God.”
Christian Science is a “Movement” where we are about our Father’s business, full time employment.
My. 165:16 ~ “As an active portion of one stupendous whole, goodness identifies man with universal good.”
May we be “instant in season” with joy
“It is the apathetic person that sees the cause while the charitable person sees the need.”
― Shannon L. Alder
Wow “apathy is the most active form of evil”! That’s great! Thanks for sharing it.
I just used the word lethargy to describe how I was feeling a day or so ago. I am working from home but it has been trudging along, not sure why.
Thank you for this and all comments.
Thank you, Evan, and all you commenters. Excellent conversation.
what a darling photo of the child climbing on soft gym set. that’s us, climbing up to the Heavenly king.dom, right? Your vlog today brought about a healing of lethargy and also of cowardice. With the energy you describe as our birthright, I will no longer shrink from sticking up for Christian Science. Jesus had doubters in his earthly experience and he refuted them. I’ll be graceful but will take and keep my stand! Thank you so much.
Thank you Evan!
Thank you Evan. A friend had posted a picture of a sign that someone had posted in her neighborhood that said “Today I will be…” Below the sign were words that could be pulled off the sign and taken with them as a reminder that said “happy, strong, confident, etcetera.” I thought of several other qualities as well. Several of the suggestions had been taken from the sign by neighbors.
Life is expressing Love. That never stops.
What a great message, Evan! And thanks for all the valuable comments. It reminds me of MBE’s passage Mis. 230:1-25 with heading “IMPROVE YOUR TIME”
Through Christian Science training both in Sunday School, CSO, and my natural love of God, Christ Jesus, the Holy Bible and the teachings of Christian Science, my life has been full of excitement, adventure, creativity, action, and purpose! I am so very grateful for this. “Never a dull moment!”
In the Church Manual p.77:18, MBE reminds us: “God requires wisdom, economy, and brotherly love to characterize all the proceedings of the members of The Mother Church,…”
Applying these qualities to our use of time is a way of improving time. As we grow in understanding, our use of time becomes more meaningful. What better occupation can their be than healing? Who can ever be bored, when filling their thoughts with Truth, exploring “the teeming universe of Mind” (SH p. 513:6)? Once, before Association, I was inspired to read Science and Health through in one week. That was such an uplifting experience and led to many possibilities for sharing healing ideas with people who opened their hearts to me.
Have a happy time “improving moments” today.
What a great blog today. It sure woke me up..thank you so much Evan and everyone
Yes, what a great message and great comments. I was praying along these lines this morning, and this is a helpful cup of cold water. I am grateful to have a lot of good right now, a good place to get out and walk. Good books both CS and other. Good friends checking in on me from time to time. I have been knowing this morning that there is no general mortal belief claiming to rest on certain ages in society. Just the divine Mind knowing a good plan of Life for all His ageless, perfect children.
Thank you! Lethargy seemed to come knocking a few days ago. It’s good to have so many truths of what ourLife IS rather than fight what we are not all the time.
Thank you so much, Evan, and all the bloggers, for the many healing ideas! A speaker at my Association many years ago said we should try something new every day, even simple things like skipping backwards. That reflects youth. Over the years I’ve collected close to 500 names for God and choose 2 each week to use as I study the Bible Lesson. This week they are Everlasting Love and Justice and The God of Joy. Enthusiasm is natural as it comes from our Creator. Thank you for the definition of lethargy. I am praying with the counter-FACTS for myself, my family and the family of humankind. Love to all.
Beauty, purity, excitement in the constant goodness provided in my garden plot in the community garden is where I find such fulfillment. It is the quiet sanctuary where I pray and study the Bible Lesson. Observing the Monarch caterpillar transform into the pupa, leaving the old for the new, the gracious butterfly sets my thoughts free to move forward. The rewards of gardening of planting seeds and later harvesting your food, sharing your food, feeds and fills me with so much gratitude! Hope this planted a seed today to order those seeds in the mail. Thank you Evan, for addressing unproductive aggressive mental suggestions. You can say NOT ON MY WATCH.
Yes ofcourse as the reflection and expression of LIFE, a synonym of GOD, we express vigor, vitality, freshness, newness of LIFE, GOD. So there can never be a dull moment or lethargy but the renewal of life energies moment to moment.
As we express more and more gratitude to God for the bountiful blessings in our life, we feel happier, stronger, renewed and dull moments disappear. New purpose and zest to carry on opens up and we are blessed abundantly.
Great message Evan. And the comments, as always, are inspiring. Thank you all.
Thank you Evan and all the commentators for elaborating on the rousing goodness of our God. This message originated 4/15 but I just read it today 5/5 and found the Truth contained therein so applicable to my need today to heal any belief of lethargic thinking. Thank you to Jesus, our Way-Shower and Mary Baker Eddy, our Leader and thank you to to Evan for feeding us these beautiful, lovely, thoughtful vlogs helping each one of us to grow more spiritward in our own individual way. Thank you Evan for devoting your life to Christian Science healing.