The Pathway of Roses · 20 of 20
Chapter XXVI
CHAPTER XXVI
THE SUPKEME PURPOSE OF. LIFE
The beliefs of the past have told us that we are now living in time, and that later on we shall enter eternity; but we are rapidly discarding this idea; first, because it is not true, and second, because we have discovered this idea to be one of the chief causes of age and premature death. By premature death we mean the passing away from this sphere before we have fulfilled the purpose for which we came, and since we are here for some special purpose, we must permit nothing that will take us away before our work is finished.
That we are living here for some great purpose we must all admit; that we have something very important to accomplish in this world we are all beginning to learn; and that we must necessarily remain here for a long time to rightly promote the divine plan is becoming more and more evident. When we think of this great theme from every viewpoint of consciousness we invariably come to the conclusion that man should remain here until he reaches such a high spiritual state that nothing in the world of things can serve him any more; and we shall find that when we begin to live for the attainment of this sublime state, every moment of existence will be perfect bliss. It is truly sweet to live when we live to promote the great divine plan.
We find, however, that but very few live a good life, and that only a limited number reach a high spiritual state before taking their departure. But what might the reason be? We all realize that old age is unnatural; and none of us require logic to demonstrate the great advantage of a life where eternal youth and eternal ascension in life are blended into one. Therefore we wish to find the fundamental cause of those conditions that produce age, that produce sickness, and that take us away from this sphere before our work is done. And this cause we find in the fact that man thinks he is living in time; when he should know that he is living in eternity.
When man fully realizes that he is living now in the great eternal now, and that he is already in eternity, he shall know age no more. Man grows old because he believes in the passing of time. He believes that he is living in a world where time is ever going, and that he is going with it— to the grave. He is conscious of the passing of years, and believes that the further he goes with the years the more years will be added to the burden of his life. He therefore thinks of himself as so many years old; but here
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he is mistaken. Time is not passing; time is; and the time that is, is eternity.
What we call time is only that period in eternity that we are conscious of now, and in truth we cannot call it a period of any definite length. To some it is long, to others it is short, to some it passes quickly, to others it drags, and it is variously interpreted by various minds; but the time itself continues to be the same— the eternity that we are conscious of now. It may be stated, however, that time must be passing because something certainly does appear to come and go. But this is only the changing attitude of consciousness as man ascends in the scale. We look at the sun; it appears to move, but we know that the sun is not moving from the earth ’s point of view; it is the earth that is moving. In like manner, we have looked upon time as passing, but now we know that time is standing still; we are moving upward and onward forever.
When man becomes conscious of the fact that time is standing still, that he is moving, and that the further on he moves the larger his life becomes, he will have attained the secret of that life that is ever young. It may be stated, however, that if man believes he is moving, that belief will cause him to think of advancing age; but the truth is that when man realizes that he is ever moving onward he will know that he is growing into life; and he will never pass into age so long as he is growing into life. The many believe that time is passing— coming to man and going away from man, and that man himself is passing, not into life but out of life; in consequence, the life more abundant is not realized. What the race does realize in growth, advancement and higher attainment is produced partly by the natural power of life to ascend in the scale and partly by the efforts of great souls. The race belief, however, concerning time and man’s relation to time, is a constant obstacle, both to emancipation from the imperfections of the lesser life, and the ascension into greater life. To secure emancipation now, to realize that youthful life now that is a necessary part of the spiritual life, and to rise daily into the greater spiritual life, the usual conception of time must be reversed. But we cannot accomplish this by trying to change our relations to those external devices that measure the movements of nature; nor will a denial of nature avail in the least. The change that is required must take place in our own consciousness.
Eealize that time is, that the time that is is eternity, and that eternity is still, always here, forever giving forth her riches to man. Eealize that there is no time except the eternal, therefore time does not pass because there is neither time to pass nor passing time. Eealize this great truth in the depths of consciousness, and years will only add to your power, your youth, your life and your spiritual attainments. Then you shall remain upon earth until your work
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is finished— until you have reached the Christ state.
When this truth is realized, you will consciously feel the stillness and the calm of the eternity that forever is. You will no longer feel that you are passing on and on to some undesired end where adverse forces will rob you of the life you are here to live; you will no longer think of death or those periods of .inability that have formerly preceded death; these mean nothing to you; they do not belong to your life; you are living in eternity; time is not adding years to your life; your life is eternal, and that which is eternal cannot be measured by years. The movements of nature in their circles and spirals may be measured; but that has nothing to do with life or time. Nature is forever moving around the great eternal now, and the eternal now is living in the deep silence of the life that forever is now. The life that you live— the real life, the eternal life, is the same life that is now; and in that life there is no time, no years, no age— only eternity.
Ascension in life means the appropriation of more and more of real life; it does not mean the changing of life from one state to another, nor the passing through periods of time. Growth does not come from the passing of time; growth comes from appropriation; besides, there is no passing of time. When we think of growth we usually think of so much gain in so much time, but that is a mistake. The soul that truly lives, appropriates all that it needs each moment; no more, no less; it doeL not deal with time; it deals only with that which has real, eternal existence; it never thinks of tomorrow because in eternity there is no tomorrow; it lives now, and it knows that the life that is now will never pass away.
When we become conscious of eternal life we no longer question the immortal existence of the soul. To feel eternal life is to know that life is eternal, and that every soul that lives lives the life eternal now. We cannot separate the life of the soul from the life that is eternal, and the moment that we discover that the two are one we know that we shall live forever. We need no external demonstration to prove to us that those that have gone before are still alive; we now know that no soul can possibly cease to exist, and we spiritually discern the immortal existence of all the souls in the world. We seek no visible sign because we are in the presence of that something from which every sign must proceed. We no longer ponder over the life after death; we know there is no death. That which is eternal life can never die, and to become conscious of the soul is to discover that the soul is eternal life. The soul is coexistent with God; what God is the soul is; the soul is the real man, the man that is forever in the image and likeness of God.
When we ask “If a man die, shall he live again?” we prove to those who understand that we are still living in the person, and that we still think of our-
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selves as being persons. The person passes away, and therefore so long as we think that we are persons we think that we shall also pass away; but we are not certain whether we shall pass into nothingness or into another life; we do not know because we are not awakened into that consciousness of eternal life that does know. We doubt no more, however, when we discover the real life of the soul, and find that we are not persons but spiritual entities, sons of the Most High. If you wish to convince yourself that you are to live after you have removed the physical body, do not seek after mysterious signs in the without; seek rather the real life in the within. The more deeply you enter into real life the more fully you realize that there is no end to your own life. The outer consciousness informs you that you have life; the inner consciousness informs you that there is no end to your life, and the one is as convincing to the mind as the other.
You know that you are living because you are conscious of life. Enter more deeply into the reality of your being and you become conscious of eternal life. Then you will not only know that you are living, but you will know that there can be no end to your living. To be conscious of life is to know that you are living now; to be conscious of eternal life is to know that you are living in eternity now, and that to live in eternity is to be eternal. To develop the consciousness of eternal life it is only necessary to grow daily in the spiritual life. Seek to understand the reality of your own divine being, and you will not only develop that spiritual discernment that knows the immortal existence of your own soul, but you will also develop that discernment that knows the present continued existence of all souls. You will know that you are destined to live eternally, and you will know that all souls, from ages past, are now living eternally. You know this, not through signs from without, or evidences that may appeal to physical senses or psychical senses, but through that spiritual understanding that is in conscious touch with every soul in God’s unbounded cosmos. Neither the physical senses nor the psychical senses can know the soul; it is therefore impossible to demonstrate to any of those senses that the soul is immortal. Spiritual consciousness alone can know this great truth and to be spiritually conscious is to live in that sacred, interior realm where we know that man is perfect and divine, as God is perfect and divine. We know this when we are in the spirit, for nothing can be hidden in the light of the spirit. In that light we see all things as they are; therefore we know, and we speak with authority, not from ourselves but from God. In the spirit we are with God, and His thought becomes our thought, His word our word, His life our life.
When you see some one leaving the body you do not weep if you are spiritually awakened; you know that the leave-taking is but seeming; there is neither going nor coming in the spirit; there is no separation in spirit; in the spirit all are one in His love. Though the soul that seems to depart becomes invisible to physical sight, still that soul is ever visible to spiritual sight. To be consciously in the spirit is to see all those who live in the spirit whatever the form may be. In the consciousness of the spirit the manifestation of the form is secondary; whether the form be physical or ethereal is not of first importance; but to fynow the spirit, to be conscious of the spirit, and to know that all souls are eternally in the spirit — that is the first importance. That soul that seems to have gone, has not gone; you who are in the spirit, can feel her life, her presence and her love just the same; and you are wide awake to the fact that she still lives. Her existence is just as real to you as it was before, because in the spirit all is real. To yout who are in the spirit, all souls are real whether they manifest in this world or in some other World. They are all in God’s sublime world, and when you are spiritually conscious your eyes are opened to the splendor and glory of that world.
CHAPTEE XXVn
THE PSALM OF KEJOICLNQ
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
When we are led by the spirit of the Most High, the condition of want is removed completely; which means that we shall want for nothing. There is nothing that we may need or desire for the living of a complete life that we shall not receive when the Lord is our shepherd. We shall have abundance in every domain of existence, and no matter how great our demands may be the adequate supply will always be at hand; provided, however, that our demands are in accord with the ascending life —the life that leads to the heights.
We are not required to place limitations upon our demands or desires; the Supreme is not limited in His power to supply; it is our privilege to desire everything that we may need to make life as large, as perfect, and as beautiful as we possibly can; in brief, the more we desire the greater becomes the life we live, and the greatest life is the most acceptable life to God as well as to man. We do not please 6-od by humbling ourselves into insignificance, the Infinite does not ask us to be small because He is great; He does not demand that we be satisfied with little because He has everything. This is not the nature of God because God is love, and love eternally declares, “ Be as I am; come and enjoy everything that I have to enjoy; what is mine is thine; what is for me is for thee, and nothing shall be withheld whatever/’
To want for nothing means that we shall be in possession of everything— everything that is necessary to a life that is all that real life is intended to be. This means that we shall have all the peace that the soul may require, even the peace that passeth understanding; we shall have all the wisdom and all the power that we may need to attain in life whatever our highest aspirations may have in view; we shall have sufficient joy to satisfy perfectly every element in the whole of being; we shall have happiness without measure, harmony as beautiful as the symphonies of heaven, and health in perfection forever. Not a moment shall your body know any ailment whatever, and not a moment shall your mind know sorrow or pain. This is the truth. It could not be otherwise when the Lord is your shepherd. God is love, and love leads away from ills and pains into the infinite delights of sublime existence.
God is equal to all your needs; He can give health and strength to the body; He can give peace and power to the mind; He can give wisdom and joy to the soul; He can surround your personal life with
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all that is rich and beautiful in physical existence; He can surround your spiritual life with all that is gorgeous and sublime in cosmic existence; and when you select Him as your shepherd He will. Take God at His word. Do not believe in His goodness and power and then act as if your belief was not true. Believe that He will actually supply your every need, then act accordingly. Have faith in abundance and expect your faith to come true. You shall not be kept waiting, nor shall you long remain empty-handed Your prayers shall be answered, your needs shall be supplied, and all that your life may require shall now become your own.
Do not depend upon yourself alone. The belief that man must depend wholly upon himself to rise to the heights of being is not true. Man alone can do nothing of real worth; it is only when we work with God and God works with us that we can do what the ideal within us desires to do. The greatest things in the world are done by those who constantly depend upon God, who walk with God and live with God, and then make the fullest, the largest and the best use of those powers they are eternally receiving from God. Wherever you may go, or whatever you may wish to do, take the Lord for your shepherd and you shall positively gain what you have in view. Failure becomes impossible because God is equal to any condition that may arise, and so long as you are with God, God is with you. Though you may meet ad- versity, you need not be disturbed; something will happen; God will cause something to happen so that things will take a turn; you shall be led into pastures green where all your desires shall be granted. Then you shall want for nothing. Remember, you shall want for nothing. This is the great truth to understand fully and demonstrate fully in the actual living of life.
The secret is absolute trust and faith in the goodness and the power of the Supreme. Believe that God is your shepherd; believe that you can want for nothing so long as He is with you; then act accordingly. Live as if you actually believed that your belief was true, and you shall find it to be true. It is only when we live the truth that the truth proves itself to be the truth. Do not wait for external evidence before you proceed to act upon your faith. Real faith has any amount of internal evidence, and any principle that proves itself to be true in the within can be demonstrated to be true in the without. What the vision of the soul may declare, the powers of the personal man can supply; and daily life can be made as true, as beautiful and as sublime as the life that is lived on the heights.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters.
To be led by the spirit of the Most High is to pass through perpetual change— to pass from the good
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to the better, from the better to the best, and then higher and higher into those richer realms that infinite love has in store. In such a life there is always something new to live for, always something higher, something better to enjoy. Such a life can never be wearisome nor monotonous, for it is nothing less than a continuous feast— the richest imaginable feast, and all the elements of that feast are changed as often as we desire. It is in this feast that we partake of “the meat that ye know not of,” and it is in this feast that the soul is nourished unto eternal life. Then comes the great spiritual strength that gives us the power to transcend the seeming and enter into the realms of existing sublime. And how beautiful to enter the pastures green of those lofty worlds, there to lie down and rest in the peace that passeth understanding, in the deep eternal calm that touches the soul with the symphonies of heaven. And how beautiful to be led beside the still waters, the living waters of celestial kingdoms on high, peacefully flowing onward and onward into that fairer kingdom, wherein we shall enter some golden morn, there to behold what eternity has in store for man.
When we follow the spirit, countless worlds are constantly opening before us, and in those worlds there are pastures green everywhere. In these we shall find nourishment for the soul; in these we shall find rest for the spirit. Then shall the soul come forth with new strength; then shall the spirit arise with power, and the spiritual life within us shall begin its great eternal reign. And when the spirit hegins its reign, the outer world takes upon itself the peace, the wholeness, the harmony and the perfection of the beautiful life within. Adversity disappears; wrongs give place to the purity of the life divine; imperfections are lost in the dimness of the past, and the richness that we find in the pastures green of realms sublime, is reproduced in personal existence. Then we shall realize in the without what the soul has discerned in the within; then the joys of the spirit shall be made known to the person, and life in this world shall become the image and likeness of that other life that our most lofty moments have so beautifully revealed.
When the Infinite leads you and guides you, you will constantly be led into the larger, the greater and the better. Pastures green will always be ready for you the very moment you are ready for a larger, richer life. You will never have to remain in the lesser for a single moment after you are ready for the greater; the Most High will open the way for you, and the increase you desire in your life shall speedily become your own. All the world rests upon the Great law of perpetual increase; and the pathway of all life is upward and onward forever; therefore to follow the law of life is to ever ascend into a greater and a greater measure of the highest good that life
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can give. The great law of life is the law of infinite life because God is the source of all law and all life; and since God lives as His own laws direct, we understand that when we follow the laws of life we shall live as He lives. And we always follow His laws when we are led by Him. We therefore conclude that all life that is led by the spirit of infinite life will ever live in perpetual increase. In such a life the greatest good in life will be enjoyed now, and that good will become higher and greater without any end.
The great truth to remember is that God always leads into the greater, never to the lesser. When the Lord is your shepherd you will eternally be led into pastures green, and every new pasture will be richer than the one you knew before. Walk with God; live in the presence and the power of His spirit and follow the light of the Supreme in all things; then you shall be led eternally into greater and greater things. The boundless will ever be at your door and your faith will open that door. This is a great truth; it is a truth that we must always remember and always apply because we can receive from infinite supply only what we believe that we will receive. Believe with heart and soul that you will receive everything that is necessary to the fullness and completeness of ideal living, and you will receive all these things if you have taken the Lord for your shepherd. He will lead you into pastures green, and your faith will open your life to all the richness that those newer worlds may contain.
The Infinite never leads into trouble, sickness, adversity or pain. When we enter such conditions we are not led by the spirit of the Most High; we are simply going away from His spirit, and thus create the very ills from which we soon must suffer. “When we go away from God we create evil; this is the only way that evil can be created, and the evil we thus create is the only evil that can ever come to us.. Therefore the one great remedy that can heal all the ills of human life is found in that wonderful statement, “Return Ye Unto God.”
When people who claim to be spiritual, are led into sickness and trouble, they are either mistaking emotionalism for spirituality, or their spirituality is as yet but a negative quality. When we begin to walk with God we begin to gain real spirituality, but such a spirituality is not simply a beautiful vision of the perfect and the divine; nor is it simply an esthetic feeling or a tender sentiment; it is the great spiritual life within coming forth with living power. Spirituality is sweet and tender and beautiful, but it is also immensely strong. Therefore when we are in possession of real spirituality the ills of life must vanish just as darkness disappears with the coming of the light. No ill can exist in the living power of the spirit, and we are always filled through and through with that power when we are in the spirit,
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when we are living in that life that God lives. And when the Lord is our shepherd He invariably leads us into His life, His world, His kingdom, and into His light, wherein we shall know the truth— the truth that gives freedom to all that is in the being of man.
When you are led “beside the still waters” everything in your life will move smoothly, and all your efforts, experiences and modes of existence will work together harmoniously for greater and greater good. At first, or for some time, there may be conditions in your life that are not as they should be, but these will soon pass away, and while they do remain you will be so strong, if you live in God, that no adversity can disturb you in the least. When you are led by the spirit of the Most High, adversity will become less and less, while you will gain in strength, more and more, so that whatever adversity you may for awhile meet will be as nothing in your life. You thus become able to master whatever may appear in the present, and you are, at the same time, rising out of every condition that is in any manner undesirable or adverse. You are led beside the still waters into the peace, the contentment and the joy of complete emancipation.
The life that is led by the spirit is the most peaceful, the most comfortable and the most sweetly serene of all life; it is ever beside the still waters, and is ever in touch with the great eternal calm. But it is also the most interesting as well as the most beautiful, for it is ever moving onward and onward. And here we find a great secret. The great life is not the life that imitates the storm-tossed sea, but the life that is deep and strong and yet always peaceful and still. Such a life is great in power, limitless in capacity and wonderful in efficiency, but in all things and at all times, is forever sweetly serene. Such a life sounds the very depth of real being and calmly brings to the surface the rich treasures of those inexhaustible realms within. And thus the entire domain of human existence is made larger, richer and more beautiful without any end. We shall ever find pastures green both in the within and in the without, and beside the still waters we shall be led into that peaceful life that we have sometimes felt when the soul was attuned to God.
He restoreth my soul; he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
When we enter into the life of the Infinite, all that is high, all that is perfect and all that is beautiful in the soul will be restored to consciousness. The glory, the divinity and the sublime majesty of the soul will be revealed; the veil of mystery will be removed and we may behold the gorgeous splendor of the spiritual life as it truly is. The soul is no longer lost from view; we are no longer ignorant of the wonderful life within us; the heavens are opened, so to speak, and we may see most clearly and most
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perfectly that eternal something within us that is created in the image and likeness of God. Our divine nature is restored to us; we learn what we are; we discover our great inheritance; we find that we are not mere human creatures, but sons of the Most High, destined to reign with Him on the heights of glory, and to live in His sublime kingdom during countless ages yet to be.
When the soul is restored, our inner spiritual nature becomes the ruling power in life; mind and body becomes servants to the soul, and we no longer live for circumstances, conditions and things; we begin to live for life itself, and we thus gain, in an ever increasing measure, all the richness, all the beauty and all the power that life can give. When we live for life we can gain everything of worth that is in life, and we invariably live for life when the soul is the ruling power in life. In the life of the soul all is perfect and all is well because the soul lives the same life that God lives. Therefore when the soul becomes the ruling power in personal life, we will live as God lives in our entire domain of life, and throughout that domain all will always be well. When the soul is the master in human life, all will be well in human life, and the soul is always restored to its high place in life when we elect to be led by the spirit of God.
The soul is perfect, being created in the image of God; therefore, the elimination of the imperfect in life must begin when the soul becomes the ruling power. When the soul rules in mind and body it will live in every part of mind and body; and where the soul lives there can be neither sickness nor pain, neither weakness nor want. When the soul is restored to its high place of majesty and power in life, all the ills of life must inevitably disappear. When the light returns, the darkness is no more. When the wholeness of the spirit becomes a living power in mind and body, the life of the person must necessarily become as clean, as strong and as wholesome as the life of the soul. And such a state of being is invariably secured when the soul is selected to reign in the wonderful kingdom of man. The ills of life come only when we follow those desires of the person that are not inspired from within; but when the soul is restored, every desire of the person will be true to the life of the spirit. We shall then no longer follow darkness into wrong and distress, but we shall follow divine light into peace, wholeness, freedom and joy. We naturally follow our desires in everything that we may think or do; therefore when all our desires are born from above, we shall naturally keep the eye single upon the light from above, and in consequence, will ever be led by the wisdom of God.
When the soul is restored to complete mastership in the human domain, everything changes for the better; a new life begins and all the elements of this
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new life contain possibilities for greater things than we ever knew before. We actually enter a new world, and the former things are passing away. What was against us either disappears or changes so completely that all its power is given to the promotion of what we have in view; and those things that always were for us become stronger and stronger until we feel that limitless power is on our side. When the soul rules the destiny of human life all the forces of life will build for a greater and a greater destiny; all things will move towards the heights; want will give place to perpetual increase; sickness will give place to wholeness and strength, and adversity will give place to harmony and joy. Restore the soul to mastery in your life and your entire being will be restored to its birthright divine; all that is worthy and beautiful in sublime existence will begin to accumulate in your world, and life to you will be rich indeed. Follow the spirit and you will always go right. He will lead you in the paths of righteousness, and whatever you think or do will always be for the best. In brief, nothing but the best can happen to you because the Lord is your shepherd and He will surely care for His own. The spirit never leads into anything but that which is right, that which is good, that which is best. When you do not follow the spirit, you are either going wrong or you are drifting into channels that will finally take you into the wrong. You may not be consciously following the spirit now, and yet you may be seemingly going right now, but this does not mean that you are on the true path. Those who are not following the spirit now are going wrong, and to them adversity will come sooner or later. Present conditions, however favorable, do not prove that you are on the path that leads to freedom and the greater life. You are on that path only when you know that you are led by His spirit in all things and at all times. We cannot judge according to appearances; the truth comes only from the supreme light within; and when we know the truth and live accordingly, we know that all will be right— in the within and in the without— all will be right.
We all follow the inner light to some degree; the soul is awakened in us all and is prompting us all; but in many instances we are led by those personal desires that are not in harmony with real life, and we are influenced by external conditions and things; thus we go wrong, and here is the cause of our troubles and pains. Whenever we go right, we go right because we have followed the higher promptings from within; and whenever we go wrong, we go wrong because we have followed those external conditions that are not in harmony with the real life within. But do we know when we are prompted by the soul f Do we know when we are led by the spirit? Do we know when we are guided by the Infinite and by Infinite Wisdom alone! At first we may not know; we may follow the spirit at times without
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knowing that it is the spirit, and at times we may think we are led by the spirit and yet be mistaken. But every person who fully and absolutely decides to follow the spirit in all things, henceforth and forever, will not long remain unconscious to the radiant presence of the Most High. If you will take this great step your spirit will soon be attuned to the tender music of the still small voice, and your mind will be illumined more and more with the glory of His sight. Then you will know, and never be mistaken, whenever He speaks to you; then you will see His light at all times and you will always know that it is the light divine. You will readily discern the meaning of His will in all things, and you will find that to follow His will is to go where glory is waiting. Xot to some other world, but to His world, here and now. “ There is another and a better world” here and now wherein we all may dwell in the never-ending today; and the light of His spirit leads directly into the freedom and joy of that beautiful world.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: For thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
When God is with us nothing but that which is good can happen. It matters not what we may meet or what we may be required to pass through, good will be the final outcome. We need fear no condition that can possibly arise; Supreme Power is with us, and we may overcome and surmount anything. We shall come out of every experience uninjured and unharmed; nothing can hurt us because there can be no hurt in the presence of infinite goodness, infinite power, infinite love. Wherever we are called we may safely go; whatever we are expected to do we may proceed. So long as we feel and know that God is with us, all will be well. We shall be led, guided, directed and protected; we may, without doubt or fear, proceed to do our part, and leave results to higher power; the very best will come to pass. Even though things happen for a short time that seem adverse, the outcome of everything will be good— very good. The light of divine wisdom is guiding our life, our thought, our actions, our destiny, and therefore all things will work together for the very highest good that we can possibly realize in every state of continued existence.
What is here spoken of as the valley of the shadow of death is the most extreme condition of danger that a person can possibly pass through; there can be no worse state of threatening calamity than the “dark valley,” yet even there “I will fear no evil, for thou art with me.” It matters not to what extreme we may be taken by circumstances or fate, God is equal to all our needs. He can protect us and guide us anywhere, and He will. He can take us out in safety, and He will surely do so if we have selected Him as our shepherd. And not simply because His power
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is supreme, but also because where God is there can be no evil. There is no evil to fear where God is because there can be no evil where God is. Be with God and God will be with you; and when God is with you, you are ever in the presence of the good and the beautiful. You are in a world where freedom is complete, where truth is omnipresent, and where all the elements of life are in touch with higher and better things.
When we are in the presence of danger we almost invariably shrink into dread or fear of some kind; and when called upon to do what seems beyond us, or what we personally dislike, we usually hesitate, or refuse absolutely; but this is all a mistake. God is with us; we need fear nothing, for He will protect us in everything. God is our strength, and with His strength we can surely do anything that life may require of us. WTien we feel weak we should remember that His rod and His staff are at our service. If we must have something to lean upon, His staff is ever at hand, and with such a staff we shall not fall down; no matter how heavy the burden, or how difficult the task, we shall not fall down. His staff will support us whenever we may need support; His rod will hold us up whatever the circumstances may be, and the power of His presence will give us all the strength we may require to reach any goal we may have in view. We should rather look upon difficulties as opportunities through which we may demonstrate to others the great truth that nothing is impossible when God is with us. And when called upon to do what seems beyond our capacity, we shall proceed nevertheless, pressing on in the full faith that we can. God is with us, and when He is with us we can do anything that our present sphere of existence may require.
If we have a great purpose to carry through we need never hesitate. Though the opposition may be great and the obstacles seemingly insurmountable, we may safely proceed. We need fear neither danger nor defeat, for Thou art with me. God will see us through. The Lord is our shepherd; we shall want for nothing; indeed, we shall receive everything we may need to accomplish what we have undertaken. When the task seems hard and the flesh seems weak, then we should remember, Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me. And in that comfort our strength shall return, even more than enough to carry through the task that lies before us. We are equal to any occasion when God is with us, and God will always be with us if that is our deepest prayer of the heart. Therefore, we should never complain, and never give up to weariness or defeat. When it seems as if we could do nothing more, God will do the rest; and if we take heart again and proceed in unison with Him, we shall become stronger than we ever were before. When it seems as if everything would be lost, we should refuse to judge according to the seeming.
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“The Lord is my shepherd.” The seeming loss will not take place. The tide will turn. God can turn anything in our favor, and if we accept Him as our shepherd He always will.
When God is our strength how great indeed is that strength. With Him at our side we have our own life in our own hands, and may do with it whatsoever we will. The present is ours to enjoy, the future is ours to create. Adverse indications mean nothing; threatening ills or failures mean nothing; we need fear none of these things. God is greater than all outward indications, and His greatness is with us, on our side, working for our happiness and welfare. We should never recognize that which seems to be against us, for when God is with us His strength is our strength, His life is our life, and the wisdom that illumines His mind the same wisdom shall illumine our minds also. We therefore can never have any occasion to fear, to hesitate or to entertain doubts in any form or manner. The Lord is our shepherd. He will surely care for His own, and whatever is necessary to give fullness, perfection and completeness to the great eternal now, that we shall all receive.
God is with us when we choose to be with God. This is the simple secret. When we select Him as our shepherd, then we become His own; then He will care for us, guide us and protect us; then He will place the gates ajar so we may enter into pastures green; then He will lead us beside the still waters into the peace and the joy of the beautiful life. It will all be as we desire. The Infinite is ever ready, and it is our privilege to accept His goodness today. But to accept Him as our shepherd does not mean that we must completely relinquish our own will and our own way. When we decide to go God’s way we shall find that He is helping us to gain our way; and when we decide to follow His will we shall find that He is giving us all the power required to carry out our will. Thus we shall find that the goodness of God is far greater than we thought, and that His love is as boundless as the infinite sea.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
When God is with us we shall continue to enjoy the best that life can give regardless of what surrounding conditions may be. Though things may seemingly be against us, and though we may be in the presence of enmity and adversity, nevertheless, those things shall neither touch us nor disturb us. In the midst of such circumstances, or any kind of circumstances, God will prepare a table of everything that is rich and desirable in life. Whatever may happen in the world in which we live, God will protect us from loss. His table will always be richly laden, and it will be our privilege to partake accord-
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ing to our largest and most heart-felt need. When the Lord is our shepherd we need fear neither persons nor things that may seem to be against us. When God is with us, nothing can be against us. We have a place at His table, and those who are guests at His table shall want for nothing. He will provide for His guests and provide richly; therefore if we accept Him as our everlasting host we need never be disturbed about any condition, circumstance or event. The best will happen, and all will always be well.
When things go wrong with those who are living only for the world, things will go right with us. Misfortune can not overtake us. In His presence the power of evil is powerless, and we are ever in His presence so long as we elect that we so shall be. When we take God with us, and leave all our plans and desires with God before we decide, there will not even be indications of misfortune or adversity in our world. He will continue to prepare His table before us, and we shall continue to enjoy, both the good things of this world, and “the meat that ye know not of. ‘ ‘ We shall continue in prosperity even though all who live in the material world go down into adversity. The Lord is our shepherd, and we shall not want. However, if we should meet what would seem to be the indications of a threatening misfortune, we need not be disturbed. There may be temporary losses, and adverse conditions may come so near as to almost enter into our very lives, nevertheless we need not be disturbed. Whatever may threaten to happen, we need fear no evil, for Thou art with me. The entire experience will simply prove to be an open door to better things and greater things than we ever knew before. Such experiences sometimes come to those who are in His care; not often, but sometimes; and they come to test our faith, our spiritual strength and our dependence upon Him; they come to prepare us for a greater life, for pastures green, for new fields of endeavor and for a higher mission in the world. Count it all joy; so long as we are with God, God will be with us; and He will cause all things to work together for greater good than we ever dreamed.
Whatever may come to the world, the best alone can come to us. And we shall thus, not only realize the richness and the beauty of that life that is lived in God, but we shall become living examples to the world, proving to the world that God’s way is best. We shall then demonstrate to all who have eyes to see, that to follow the light of the spirit is to follow that light that leads into everything that is worthy and beautiful in endless existence. The world believes that the spiritual life leads away from happiness and abundance; we must prove to everybody that the spiritual life leads into greater happiness and a richer life than we have ever known before. And we can prove this when we take the Lord for
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our shepherd. When we accept a place at His table, we shall demonstrate in the most tangible and the most convincing manner that to go with God is to go where every person may supply his every need; and not only be supplied, but supplied in the richest, the most worthy and the most ideal manner conceivable. To go with God is to find everything that heart can wish for in this world, and in addition, the infinite glory, the gorgeous splendor and the supreme joy of His kingdom on the heights.
To be anointed with oil is to have everything that is worthy and superior come down upon us. The oil of all things is the richest essence of all things, and when we are anointed with this richest essence, our minds become enriched with all that has quality and worth, all that is high in the scale of being. And it is but natural that that mind that lives and thinks with God, should be constantly enriched. Everything that comes from God has quality; everything that we receive from God has high worth, and everything that pertains to the spiritual life contains all the elements of real superiority; therefore, to follow God is to rise eternally in the scale of superior being. When we elect to go with God we leave behind us all that is common, ordinary or inferior; and we put on the royal garments of true quality and high worth. We become superior in body, mind and soul, and every element in our being becomes a living expres- sion of that quality that reveals the royal presence of God.
When we are actually living in the spirit, and can fully appreciate all that is good and beautiful in real life, we become so filled with gratitude and joy that neither thoughts nor words can express what we feel. It is then that we wish as never before “that the mind could fathom and the tongue could utter the thoughts that arise in me. ‘ ‘ Our cup is running over; we have everything that can fill the fullness of life with the richness of life, and our joy is great indeed. Words fail us, but that something within that is far more eloquent than words gives utterance to what we wish to say. And as we listen, this language divine becomes heavenly music, repeating again and again that tender refrain, “God’s beautiful gift tome.”
To always live in the realization of that sublime state of being where our cup is running over, is to become conscious more and more of the great truth that real life has everything that man can wish for, and infinitely more. And as we grow in the conscious realization of this truth, the power of this truth will manifest itself in our external world. Then we shall find increase everywhere; wherever we may go in the physical world, in the mental world or in the spiritual world, God will prepare His table before us, and we shall enjoy the richest feast that His infinite goodness can possibly provide. In every domain of
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existence His bountiful hand will be our supply, and our cup will always be running over. What we feel and realize in the world of the spirit that we shall gain in the world of things. Thus our joy becomes complete; all that we need is always at hand, all that we desire for a greater existence shall be speedily supplied, and wherever our place in life may be, God will appear and prepare His table before us. He will be our supply always and everywhere; and existence will be rich indeed.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
When the soul enters the faith that leads eternally into the kingdom, the entire being of man is placed in the keeping of the spirit of goodness. That power that works for the good and the good only, will henceforth be with man under every circumstance and condition; and all his actions will be attended by the angel of mercy. His life will be lived in the consciousness of the Infinite presence, and this consciousness is the open door to the house of the Lord. The moment we feel that God is closer than breathing, nearer than hands and feet, we are upon the threshold of the sublime spiritual world— the Father’s House of the Many Mansions, and from that moment we may dwell in His house forever. From that moment all will be changed; life will never seei/i ordinary, commonplace or mere existence any more,- we have seen the House Beautiful, we have felt the touch of the life that God lives, we have been on the heights, and we have had a glimpse of the glory that eternity holds in store. Henceforth, there is so much to live for, that simply to think of the ever ascending destiny that lies before us, is in itself a source of unspeakable joy. Then who can measure the peace, the joy, in brief, the unbounded ecstasy that must follow the living of the life? Those who have been led beside the still waters know the meaning of such a life. Those who have entered the house of the Lord know what is prepared for them that love Him. But tongue can never tell, and only the mind of the soul can understand.
To follow the spirit is to enter the glorified vastness of the great spiritual mind within; and here is wisdom. Spiritual things must be spiritually discerned; we must enter spiritual light in order to know the reality of our own divine being, and the mind of the soul is eternally illumined with this light. There are no mysteries in spiritual consciousness; all is clear; the meaning of life is perfectly understood; the purpose of it all is distinctly revealed, and the soul knows what it is about every step of the way. Every soul that goes with God in all things and at all times, will ever live in this consciousness,, and will ever rise higher and higher into the greater brilliancy and the more sublime beauty of the spir-
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itual light. To live such a life is to dwell in the house of the Lord, and whosoever will may dwell in that house forever.
The world in which we live may not, at present, contain everything that the heart can wish for; but “ there is another and a better world “ that does contain everything. Our human dwelling place may not be perfect, it may not be complete, it may not satisfy the soul’s longing for the ideal and the beautiful; but the house of the Lord can satisfy. We therefore need not be unhappy; personal life need not be incomplete because there are seeming limitations among external conditions. The fact that we manifest in visible form does not mean that we should live wholly among visible things. The law of true being is to manifest in the personal but to always live in the spiritual. The house of the Lord is our true dwelling place now and forever. And as there are many mansions in the Father’s House— innumerable mansions, we shall not be confined to one place, or one state of existence; we shall live in each of these mansions; we shall enjoy them all, we shall pass through them all as eternity goes on. No matter how lofty the present abode of the soul, there is always something higher; no matter how unspeakable our spiritual joys today, or any time in eternity, there are always greater joys coming in days that are yet to be. We thus realize what it means to dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
When we have entered to dwell permanently in the house of the Lord, existence, both personal and spiritual, becomes perpetual joy. Whatever external conditions may be, or whatever may come and go in personal life, we are always in the joy everlasting, in the peace that passeth understanding, in the world on high where all is forever well. We no longer depend upon things, and we are no longer moved by things; we have transcended the world of things; we have gained the power to perfectly use things, and we are attaining the mastery of all things. We are living in God’s world— the world of limitless richness, happiness and power; therefore, the world of things constitutes but a small part of our vast and wonderful domain. We have found so many sources of joy, so many states of being that can add to the value of life, that though other things should sometimes fail, we are never affected in the least. Confusion and failure in the outer world mean no more to us than the loss of a penny would mean to a man who owns a mountain of gold. Things may come and go in the outer world, but we are living in the house of the Lord. In that house there is never confusion, trouble nor pain; in that house there can be neither failure nor want. The Most High provides for that house; therefore so long as we dwell in His house we shall want for nothing. Whatever may come or go, we shall always have abundance, both in the within and in the without. We need fear nothing; we may rejoice always, for in His house all is well, and for evermore shall be.
Dream on fair soul, dream on. Thy visions are not in vain. Other and greater worlds are waiting for thee. Dream on fair soul, dream on. Let thy spirit ascend to the supreme heights of those greater worlds where thou shall behold the glory and splendor of that sublime existence that is in store for thee. And let nothing that may come or go in thy waging hours cause ihee to forget what thou hast seen. For the time is near when the dreams of the night shall rise with the morning but shall not depart with the setting sun. What thou hast seen in thy visions shall come to remain,’ and what thy lofty moments have revealed to thee shall become thine own forever.
CHAPTEE XXVin
GOD’S BEAUTIFUL GIFT TO ME
The great goal is cosmic consciousness, and every soul that endeavors to live according to the highest light that is known in the world, is daily drawing nearer and nearer to that sublime state. To such a soul the heavens may be opened at any time, and the splendors of the cosmic world revealed. Then everything will change. Life will not be the same any more. The meaning of it all will be discerned, and no fault can be found anywhere. When we look at life from the heights of the cosmic realm we can see only the divine side of existence; we therefore can see no evil; in brief, when we are in the cosmic we have absolutely forgotten everything about evil; we do not know that there is such a thing as evil because we are in that exalted world where we can be conscious only of the good. And here is the real evidence of cosmic consciousness. When you have entered the peace that passeth understanding and the joy that can only be described as a million heavens in one, you are in the cosmic state, providing you have forgotten every ill and every wrong you ever knew. In the cosmic world everything is as God made it; nothing has been changed in any way; absolute perfection and absolute divinity reign supremely, and the glory of it all no power in man can ever attempt to picture. It is beyond all the powers of the personal man; it is for the soul only to understand and enjoy.
When we enter the cosmic state we transcend that part of man that takes cognizance of the imperfect and incomplete; we enter a realm that never knew anything less than absolute, divine perfection, and therefore when we are in that realm we can know no evil. In the cosmic state our eyes are too pure to see evil, and the mind too high in divine consciousness to even think of evil. We are thinking the thoughts of the Infinite and everything we are conscious of is manifesting the shining glory of the Most High. In the cosmic state we think the truth, the absolute truth, because in that state everything is the expression of absolute truth. Therefore, the more frequently we enter into the realization of cosmic consciousness the more fully will the mind discern the truth, and the more readily can we think the truth whatever the field of our thought may be.
There are many minds that think that they have frequent experiences in cosmic consciousness, but not all of these have judged those experiences correctly. The great within is filled with wonderful realms of every description, and some have mistaken one or
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more of these realms for the home of the soul when the body has been removed. Many have thought they have seen heaven after beholding the gorgeous splendor of these inner realms, while others, after meeting the beautiful thoughts that take human shape in the great within, believe they have conversed with angels. But this is not the cosmic world. Though we may find peace and joy and ecstasy without measure in many of these beautiful interior realms, still we also find imperfection in one or more of its many forms. We do not forget evil while we are in the ecstasy of the great within; nor do we become unconscious of everything but that which is pure shining divinity. This, however, is precisely what happens when we are in the cosmic state; we meet only that which is wholly in the likeness of God, and our joy at times becomes so great that our feelings cannot contain themselves. Our cup overflows and the person bursts forth in tears. We have found that for which we have waited and prayed so long; we are inwardly moved as never before, and it is but natural that the person should weep for joy. We have found eternal life, we have felt His presence, we have touched the hem of His garment, we have met Him face to face.
The greater number of those who are spiritually inclined are almost constantly on the verge of the cosmic state, and at intervals they receive glimpses of that wondrous world. Could they but see them-
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selves at such moments, they would discover that their faces are also shining as the sun, for their minds are illumined with radiant glory from on high. But such moments do not usually come when the senses expect them, nor can they be produced at will. We gain glimpses of the cosmic only when the soul occupies the supreme state in consciousness, and we begin to live within the pearly gates of the cosmic when the soul has gained full supremacy in every domain in consciousness. Therefore, to attain cosmic consciousness, we must give the spiritual life the first place in everything; we must do everything to the glory of God, and follow the light of the spirit in everything we may think or do. The eye must be single, and to see and to know only that which is wholly divine must be the one supreme desire.
The ruling spirit in the cosmic world is divine perfection; therefore the more we think of divine perfection, and the more we try to see divine perfection in all things, the more we develop the consciousness of divine perfection; and the development of this form of consciousness will finally culminate in divine consciousness which is synonymous with cosmic consciousness. To keep the eye single upon the great truth that every creation of God is good is to draw nearer and nearer to that state where we became conscious only of the absolutely good; then follows the limitless joy of the cosmic world. But when we permit the eye to become double, and begin to see the
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evil as well as the good, the unreal as well as the real, we fall from our lofty state; and this is the only fall of man. When we partake of the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, we fall from the cosmic world, and we have to leave paradise. We cannot live in the garden of bliss, in the joys of cosmic consciousness, so long as we know evil as well as good; but when we become unconscious of evil, with the eye single upon His supreme goodness alone, then the gates of paradise shall open for us once more. Then we shall forget everything but that which is good and beautiful and true; we shall enter the new heaven and the new earth, the new heaven in the within, and the new earth in the without, and while still in personal form we shall live in the cosmic world.
To rise daily into a higher and better understanding of the reality of the cosmic state of existence is to become conscious, more and more, of the real sweetness of existence. Life becomes so rich and so beautiful that to live is in itself absolutely sufficient. In the cosmic state every moment seems to be an eternity of bliss, and every movement of consciousness produces a million pleasures. In comparison, the joys of sense have no significance whatever. Therefore, when the mere living of life gives all the joy that heart and soul may desire, it is evidence conclusive that the cosmic state has been reached; and the joys that are to follow, the soul on the heights alone c-n know.
The cosmic world is that highly refined, spiritualized world all about us, permeating everything, encompassing everything; the great divine sea in which we live and move and have our being; a world of pure light, gorgeous splendor and celestial brilliancy. The cosmic world is the world sublime; it is everywhere, and we live in it now and eternally, but only those who are spiritually awakened can discern its reality and behold the shining glories of its fair transcendent realms. When the true spiritual awakening begins we discover the cosmic world, and we enter cosmic consciousness. The heavens are opened and the vision before us reveals splendors and glories that tongue can never describe, joys that cannot be measured, and life that is a million heavens in one.
When we are in the cosmic state the entire world is clothed with the sun; the waters of the deep reflect the radiant glory of celestial kingdoms, and the mountains proclaim the majesty and the power of the life that is lived on the heights. Nature sings the everlasting praises of Him who is closer than breathing, nearer than hands and feet, and every human countenance beams with the beautiful smile of God. The flowers declare the thoughts of the Infinite: the forest chants the silent prelude to worship, while the birds inspire the soul to ascend to the vast empyrean blue. We are speechless with ecstasy, but as we be-
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hold the beauty and glory of it all the spirit within speaks from out the fullness of the heart and sweetly proclaims in language divine— “ God’s beautiful gift to me.”
There is an upper realm in the spiritual life of man where the reality and perfection of divine existence is revealed. In this realm all is truth, all is purity, all is love. To enter this realm is to become conscious of eternal truth and understand the truth as it manifests everywhere. In the cosmic state the spiritual understanding of truth is complete, therefore every step in the spiritual understanding of truth is a step towards cosmic consciousness. All understanding is spiritual that discerns the spirit of truth as well as the reality of truth; and the mind develops in the discernment of truth when every effort to understand truth enters into the very innermost life of truth. When you think of truth, think of the spirit of truth; that is, that spiritual life or soul that is within truth; and desire with all the power of life, thought and feeling to enter into the soul of truth. To enter into the soul of truth is to enter into the cosmic state, and you not only gain an illumined understanding of the truth itself, but you become conscious of the entire cosmic world. The heavens are opened, for I Am the door, the way, the truth—- the spirit of truth.
To enter the cosmic state is to become conscious of that divinity within us that is too pure to behold anything but that which is absolute purity. ‘ ‘ To the pure all things are pure, ‘ ‘ and in the cosmic state we become pure; we enter into the world of shining purity; we do not recognize evil, and to us, iniquity has no significance whatever. While we are in the cosmic state we are in a pure state and can know only the boundless world of sublime purity that is all about us and all within us everywhere. Therefore, to enter the cosmic state the mind must be pure; that is, the mind must face the divinity that is in all things, and must, at all times, keep the eye single upon the shining purity of that divinity.
The cosmic realm is filled through and through with love, and to enter this realm is to love every living creature with all the power of heart and soul. When you are in the cosmic state you are in the universal; all life is divine to you; all life is beautiful, all life is precious, all life is sacred; your sympathy is as large as the universe and as touching as the innermost tenderness of the soul. To love everybody, no matter what they are or what they have done, is a part of your own life. You are above personal conditions; you are above personal deeds; you can see through the imperfect and behold the shining glory that reigns supremely in all that is. You see the divine reality in all things and you love it with all the tenderness of heart and soul. This divine loveliness in all things is the all in all in all things; to you it is beautiful, “fairer than ten thousand to the soul.”
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To love in the spirit of the universal is not to disregard the person. You love the person infinitely more because when you are in the cosmic every atom in the person is glorified with the presence of Him who is closer to life than breathing, nearer than hands and feet. You love the person because all that is true in that person is the coming forth of the divine. That which may not be true you do not see; your eyes are too pure to behold iniquity; besides, the imperfect in any person is insignificant and does not belong to the real person himself. Even in the most sinful of persons the evil is but a fragment compared with the good that is inherent in every fibre of his being. Take the worst person in the world and you will find the good and the right in him a thousand times greater than the wrong. When you are awakened to the truth you know this; therefore it becomes so easy to love; and since your heart is simply overflowing with love, you must love— love everything and everybody. And what a supreme joy is found in such a love.
To enter the cosmic state and develop cosmic consciousness, the soul must be given perfect freedom to love in the universal. It is a part of the life of the soul to love everything in existence, therefore the physical senses must not interfere with this love by impressing the mind to think that some things are evil and not worthy of love. Everything is worthy of love because in everything the good is infinitely greater than that which appears not to be good. The senses must be trained to recognize this great truth and the mind must be trained to harmonize all thinking with the sublime desires of the soul. When you meet a person see the all in all in that person; you will then see the shining purity of divine loveliness animating every fibre of his being; his countenance will be glorified before you, and you will love him with that beautiful love that reigned in the tenderness of the Christ. Meet all things in this sublime spiritual attitude, and the material veil will be removed more and more until all the splendors of the cosmic world are revealed to your vision.
To develop cosmic consciousness, place yourself in the hands of higher power. Depend upon higher power in all things; do nothing without first calling upon higher power; and so live that every thought, word and action is inspired by the spirit of higher power. Feel that higher power is always with you; deeply desire higher power to direct you, and open consciousness so completely to the limitless life of higher power that you actually realize that you live, move and have your being in the infinite power of the Most High. To enter the cosmic state you must transcend all belief in limitations; you must enter the universal where you clearly discern that all things are possible, for God is everywhere; and when your life is filled through and through with the presence of higher power you are lifted to the mountain tops
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of this lofty state. You rise above personal conditions and enter the limitless— where life is limitless, where power is limitless, where truth is limitless, where light is limitless, where the good is limitless, where love is limitless— where everything is limitless; and that is the cosmic world.
To live hy faith is another supreme essential in the attainment of this sublime state. It is the very nature of faith to go out upon the limitless, and wherever faith may go, better things, higher things and greater things are found than were ever known before. Faith invariably leads upward and onward; faith always inspires the soul to ascend; while the spirit of faith illumines the way. To enter into the true spirit of faith, have faith in the innermost life of faith. There is a hidden power in faith; this power is the power of the Infinite; it is the soul of faith, the spirit of faith, and is eternally one with the spirit of the Most High. To enter into the spirit of faith is to enter into the spirit of the Most High, and thus be filled through and through with the power of the Most High. And this is the reason why all things are possible to him who has faith.
When you use the power of faith, have faith with the spirit of faith. You thus enter into the real power of faith and the illumined world of faith. In consequence, you not only gain the power to make all things possible, but you also enter into the spiritual light, and in the spiritual light the shining glory of the cosmic is revealed. To have faith with the spirit of faith, think of that supreme spiritual life and power that is in faith. Mentally dwell upon this inner life of faith, and whenever you use your faith, which should be every moment of existence, enter into the spirit of faith with all the power of feeling, thought and soul. You thus place yourself in perfect spiritual touch with the world of celestial light, with the world of divine wisdom, with the world of eternal life, with the world of limitless power, with the world of shining purity, with the world of that love that loves everything and everybody with the most touching tenderness of the Most High. You are in the Mind that was in Christ Jesus; you are in the same Spirit that He was when His face did shine as the sun and His garment became white as the light.
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