Thursday 29 January 2009

Weekly Quote 46

There is one God, the Father, and one Lord, Jesus-Christ - (1 Cor 8:6)
Good alone prevails in my life

The story of Jesus-Christ should be understood within a Greek context, where aspects of Deity were almost always personified. What Paul is saying is that the cosmos is Oneness, with God and His Creation unseparated. Down the ages this "monist" view of the world has continuously been challenged by "dualism" which attempts to introduce a second principle - such as matter, flesh, evil, etc.

Light and darkness do not constitute two principles. Darkness is nothingness, the absence of light. All this may sound like dry philosophy but it is vital to our consciousness and our life. Do we deep down believe that negation is a force that can challenge God? Or do we accept God alone, and ourselves as expression of Him? Do we face life bravely, saying "I embrace God-the-Good only and turn my back on all appearances to the contrary?

Today place all your faith in the One Principle, God. In spite of all personalities, conditions and circumstances insist that Good alone prevails in your life.

The Path of Truth Vol. 52, No. 6 page 352.

Friday 23 January 2009

Weekly Quote 45

You shall call, and the Lord will answer - (Is 58:9)
I behold God's kingdom in me



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To the great promise in Isaiah the Master adds a qualification: "Whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you receive it, and you will." We have to accept the truth of the promise before it can be fulfilled in us. This is the central dynamic of Truth, the "leap" of mind and heart that we must make - we have to trust God in everything that we need and truly desire.

Almost all of us have been indoctrinated from birth in the global religion of materialism and the interpretation of life's experience demanded by it. It is very hard to see things differently, to believe that there is a Power within us for Which all things are possible. Yet we must believe it. Within us each is the little leaven that can transform our reality - we must give it the chance to do its work.
"Ask and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you." Lift the veil of fear and behold the Kingdom of heaven in which you already dwell.
The Path of Truth Vol. 54, No. 3 page 157.

Friday 16 January 2009

Weekly Quote 44

Now I am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken - (Ps 37:25)
I place my trust in Him Who never fails



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The whole of Psalm 37 is a gem for followers of Truth. It is echoed in many places in the teachings of the Master, repeatedly affirming that negation disappears before Good. Older followers of Truth, particularly, will agree with the Psalmist's reflection that he has not seen the righteous (right thinkers, feelers and doers) forsaken.

Our progress along the path of Truth is better evaluated in retrospect than in the moment. Like a hiker we may pause on a rise and look back upon the difficult terrain we have traversed and draw satisfaction from it. The great value placed upon prediction and planning in today's culture of materialism would misdirect our journey. Spirit (a name of God) is in hand - we simply trust It and use It. In due course we will comprehend the good It has brought us.

If now you are passing through the deep dark valley of despair, take courage from those who declare the fulfilment that has come through their reliance on Him. Say to yourself "I will have what they have."

The Path of Truth Vol. 55, No. 3 page 166.

Friday 9 January 2009

Weekly Quote 43

Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. - (Isa 46:9)
I become vulnerable before the world and simple before God


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Filled with expectation, quick to laugh, direct, affectionate, uncomplicated. What else can we say of children, except, tragically, quote the lines of Wordsworth: "Trailing clouds of glory do we come from God, Who is our home. Heaven lies about us in our infancy! Shades of the prison house begin to close upon the growing boy."

Plato saw our period between lives as time spent with the gods, or God. The prophet lingers in all children. And it is these qualities that we seek to rekindle as followers of truth - to believe in goodness, in love, in "magic", in "miracles", to become totally vulnerable before the world, to rely utterly on our Father for protection and supply.

We reject our prison house of negation and rise shining eyes again to God from whence comes our supply. The Master was a master of simplicity. So should we be.

The Path of Truth Vol. 50, No. 2 page 108.

Friday 2 January 2009

Weekly Quote 42

Behold, the Kingdom of God is in the midst of you - (Lk 17:21)
Father, I leave everything to You



How we have been brainwashed that we must do something, especially something arduous and associated with guilt, before we can draw near to God. We struggle to get in the right frame of mind, to humble ourselves, to confess our "sin", and all the time He Who constitutes us, Who is us, simply longs to take over all our burdens and illuminate our lives.

What parent waits for their child to grovel or become something different, before they help? Love and compassion compels the parent to step in. The only thing that stops the parent is if the child rejects them - which is what we do with all our preconditions.

Start simply: "Dear Father, I leave everything to You." Say it every time you feel a wave of depression or confusion, every time hopelessness would overwhelm you. Imagine an all-powerful Father solving your every problem, leaving you free to get on with immediate tasks. The path of Truth will take you much further, but make this your first step.

The Path of Truth Vol. 54, No. 1 page 28.