One should never hold in mind the thought of disease, but should efface from thought all forms and types of disease, both for one’s own sake and for that of the patient.
~ Mary Baker Eddy, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 396
If you want to stay healthy, keep your mind so filled with truth and love, that no images of disease can ever sneak in and take up residence.
The human body merely images impressions of thought governing that body. A mind filled with spiritual outlook and spiritual truth has a very positive impact on the body. Images of disease have the opposite effect.
A conscientious housekeeper is diligent to keep their kitchen clean of harmful substance to serve safe food at dinnertime. They would never allow a piece of moldy fruit to remain in their refrigerator. They would quickly toss rotting food from their cabinets.
The same rule applies to housekeeping in consciousness. Any images of disease are enemies to good health. They are the “moldy fruit,” the “rotting food” in the cabinet that cannot be allowed to remain in a house committed to sanitary conditions.
With all the advertising about disease in the media, and neighbors talking about their latest disease, it may require extra effort to purge consciousness of unwanted intruders, and keep it teeming with spiritual truth and heavenly outlook. But the effort is worth the effort. The reward is enduring good health.
Beautiful analogy, Evan. Erroneous or evil thoughts are just moldy fruits & rotting food in our household or consciousness which must be expelled out to give place to the spiritual & healthy thoughts. This analogy will be of great help if we get stuck in such erroneous thoughts. Thanks Evan for Sprit view
what do others do when a friend tells us of their perception of illnesses? I feel I have a foot in both camps so to speak. I know what both sides say…yet I must live in this mortal world. How to respond??
Judith Martin (Miss Manners) wrote a brilliant and funny book that addresses exactly this question: “Miss Manners Basic Training.” Here, she addresses the question of why we use specific polite formulas in specific situations, what these formulas accomplish, and that they are not literal. For example, we say “please excuse me” when we accidentally bump someone in a crowd. This formal apology doesn’t literally mean we committed some sin.
Thank you; congratulations; I’m very sorry; feel better soon; let me know if there’s anything I can do – these phrases are indispensable powerhouses – failing to use them
only makes us seem insensitive. The good news is that most people want to talk. After expressing some caring, we can listen, ask a question or two, and provide reassurance.
I know what you are saying, dear Elizabeth. It is not easy. I just had
someone write about a very serious prognosis that her family member
seemingly has who has a very young child. Their family is very “materially”
minded. I think the most important thing is to show compassion,
understanding and love, firstly, towards the individual who is sharing with
us, what they or mortal mind perceive to be “true”. I think by doing so, we
help allay the fear in our own mind, thus helping to alleviate it in theirs. If
they feel that we are understanding and willing to comfort, where they are
at – this love will be felt by them and any Good shared will be a help to them.
It’s definitely very challenging for me as well Elizabeth, and I imagine for all of us.
If just a passing exchange with someone I don’t know well I try to extricate myself from the conversation quickly or change the subject. If it’s someone closer and they are distressed I have expressed to them that “it” (whatever the error claims to be) cannot touch their true self, that what they truly are is pure and unchanging (not everyone is open to hearing that). Compassion is important, though it’s easy to get in sympathy with error if I am not careful. It’s most important to protect our own thought, as Mrs. Eddy says above, “for our own sake and for that of the patient.” After the conversation, we can silently reaffirm the spiritual Truth about that person and ourself.
Today’s quote is from the great S&H chapter, ‘Christian Science Practice.’ Most of us are not in the public professional practice but we are all healers, practitioners of this Science as taught by Mrs. Eddy. Mark Unger CS said in a talk that we should all think of ourselves as healers. His talk, ‘God is the Healer So What is Our Part?’ is on the High Ridge House Metaphyscial Talks page, where I also found the lecture from Libby Jones on being a vessel that I shared the other day. This page has replays of other lectures going back several years. Another good one I listened to last night was ‘Blessing Our Past’ by Lois Degler.
https://www.highridgehouse.org/news-and-events/inspiration-sharing/
Thank you for this wonderful link to the Mark Unger talk, Rose. I love the inspiration and ways we need to watch every moment to keep what we are noticing and thinking out of materiality and with spirituality. I have bookmarked the High Ridge House page of the resources to go back to. What a treasure!!
Your insights and the spiritual thoughts you share are so helpful. I appreciate them all and I also appreciate what other commenters share.
Thank you Evan for giving us the path for our thoughts and light to shine every day. Light and transparency to all.
Pat I am so glad you found the talk helpful and thanks for your kind words. I too will be returning to the High Ridge House page for more inspirational lectures. All the best to you.
I feel that in telling me about the problem, this person is actually asking for help; maybe not consciously, but asking just the same. I try to be compassionate, supportive and kind. And keep my thought wide open to how God wants me to respond. All the while silently but vigorously denying that this disease or problem has ever, ever had any place God’s kingdom. It has never ever so much as touched any of God’s perfect children. That it has no reality in God’s presence and power. Then I let it go.
A friend once told me of another friend who had a very serious cancer diagnosis. I handled it in this way, as an impersonal call for help. And I treated it impersonally in my thought, every time it came to my thought. There is no disease. Many weeks later, my friend said, “by the way, remember that friend I told you about who had cancer? Her cancer had simply and astonishingly disappeared, and she is fine.”
Very beautiful, inspiring and necessary, Evan. Thank you very much.
Keep your own thoughts elevated, but meet the individuals with the mortal concept of disease where they are, so to speak, Don’t be preachy!
This reminds me of the advice our Sunday school teacher would give us, lo those many years ago: “Stay in your lane”.
Adding to “Stay in your lane,” just MAKE SURE it’s the right lane to be in. From my Mom, it was always love, Love, LOVE. Many healing s occurred with knowing LOVE does the healing.
Thanks you Evan for this powerful reminder to keep thought pure. I sure needed this reminder today.
Blessings to all,
Suzie H
Thanks Evan for a much needed advice. When the jarring testimony of the material senses is screaming loudly it’s hard to keep thought on the enduring and the true. Knowing isn’t feeling it and that’s what I need.
Thank you, Evan and all for this very helpful reminder. It seems the
media can’t wait to contrive a new pandemic of fear to infiltrate thought
and flood the airwaves with. We have to be so on guard always to
not let these insidious thoughts of fear or disease creep into our thinking.
“Stand porter at the door of thought. Admitting only such conclusions
as you wish realized in bodily results, you will control yourself harmoniously.
When the condition is present, which you say induces disease, whether it be
air, exercise, heredity, contagion, or accident, then perform your office as
porter and shut out these unhealthy thoughts and fears. Exclude from mortal
mind the offending errors; then the body cannot suffer from them.” (Mrs. Eddy’s
wise words of wisdom, pg.#392 Science and Health)
Good analogy, thank you very much, Evan! That is practice of Christian Science. God bless you and all!
This is an exciting thought/idea and something we can all do!
“Impersonalize evil—what does that mean? Jesus rebuked evil. But his rebuke was not directed at a person. By Russell Luerssen:
https://journal.christianscience.com/shared/view/16froi4lf2c
Quotes by others:
– “As long as we see error as an externalized condition, we fight it, but when we see it as illusion, we get rid of it – it disappears. (Joel Goldstein)
– “God’s idea, man, is invulnerable and intact, and the understanding of such truths is what heals. (Fill in the blank) is not a personal possession. God’s law is harmonious and is ever operative. We can rest in this truth. The Son can do nothing of himself…accepting totally that God, Love takes care of us entirely.
This article spoke to me today
https://sentinel.christianscience.com/shared/view/2dpd1ybqif2?s=copylink
Exactly Lori. Knowing isn’t feeling it.
Mrs. Eddy says, “Let us Feel the divine energy of Spirit bringing us into Newness of life and recognizing No material power as able to destroy. Let us rejoice that we are subject to the divine powers that be.” Caps are intentional. When you feel it you will know (experience) it.
Dear Lori, -Yes, it can seem nearly impossible at times to refute the testimony of the material senses and hold thought to the good, enduring and true when we are faced with suggestions of pain, physical decline, and fear. Mary Baker Eddy states that the refutation becomes arduous due to the force of education and weight of general mortal opinions that the body suffers. When feeling overwhelmed, I find it helpful to study the “fighting pages” in Science and Health (the 390’s) that are infused with Eddy’s confidence in the power of scientific thinking. She proved this indisputably in healing the sick. Her many powerful statements in these pages such as “you will control yourself harmoniously”( thank you Angel), or omnipotent Truth “breaks the dream of disease” give me encouragement and conviction to continue to “stand porter at the door of thought.” As Evan says the reward is enduring good health.
‘Takes Christ to know Christ’.. I felt the old polio, the whole story, like the personalized script before the light of Christian Science, I talked with a friend who was dramatizing over a leg wound, in lightness I responded with a light heart, to not get into the clog-mire and it ended with her saying.. well I lost my son, I respond well I had polio..like the reaching out with Love.. flopped
We were caught in the mortal ditch, same ditch..that doesn’t in Truth exist, never does…!
..I felt so back in the old school yard with kids running away from me.. as she walked away.
Takes Christ to See Christ.. Takes Christ, Being, in every moment place and the Glory of God.
People so judge the physical ability, the jogging, the hiking, the gardening, the doing, seems mandatory to well being… maybe old bitterness, the left out – ness. The mortal adjustments
seemed so necessary to live, to be included is part of the false world.. Gods Law Of Adjustment, to be Honest as Jesus was, Christ Lives ..and moves is really Be-ing,..constantly beaming.
Practice, as the thoughts of yesterdays SpiritView, awake within , no birth no sin no death..
Thank you everyone for sharing insights, of the power and the strength… Minds Divine..
nothings personal, sums It up..Blessing All
Linda, thanks for your recommendation of pages 390 and on. I have
been working with those pages daily for several weeks., especially
390-395. Still in need of more help.
Thank you very much, Evan!
Dear Linda and Lori and tina and Elizabeth. Thank you all for sharing. I can relate to
all of your posts and have been looking further into the “fighting pages” (the 390’s),
as you put it, Linda. What is coming to me very clearly is that mortal mind, little
mind’s temptation to believe in it just can not be tolerated. And the thought that
suffering has no part of children of God, as we all are. Would God cause precious
beings to suffer, especially for all of the good that you/we have all done in our lives
– trying to be good people and in helping others? God’s Love and caring for each
of us is Real and proven and pain or discord can not be harming us in any way.
The false belief that Seems to be taking hold of us, as anything other than expressions
of this comforting Love is not true, because the One Mind is Truth and in control.
As Evan so rightly states above, “keep your/[our] mind so filled with truth and love.
Truth and Love are with us constantly and anything apart from this, just can not be.
Big Hug to all!
Thank you very much dear Evan for today’s SpiritView. It is very needed; and it is equally neccessary, to clean ones mental and human household. I need help in cleaning up my household, however, knowing that God leads me to the right doing. God expresses orderlyness and health in us, His loved reflection!
I love God’s promise in the Bible, saying: “fear not for I am with you, I strengthen you, I also help you, I hold you by the right hand of my righteouness.”
Thanks a l l for your comments!♡
Thank you for the beautiful treatment Angel. Much love to you.