In "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," p. 213, Rev. Ed.), Mrs. Eddy says, "Every step towards goodness is a departure from materiality, and is a tendency towards God, Spirit." Many of us are not willing to take one step at a time. We think because we are not able to make great progress, that it is not worth while to take the little steps, make the small advancements daily, weekly, using the little light that is shown us and thereby receiving more. Standing still and waiting for some great opportunity or experience is not progression. It is stagnation. Water that has neither inlet nor outlet stagnates, and is not only useless but becomes absolutely objectionable. Just so surely do we as Christian Scientists stagnate and become not only useless but absolutely objectionable if we do not force an outlet or outflow of error and darkness by opening our consciousness to an influx of light. We know that the absence of darkness follows as a natural sequence the presence of light. In fact, that all darkness—all error—is simply an absence of light and truth.

Is not the main reason we do not take more steps towards goodness that we dislike going alone? When it is borne in upon our consciousness that a certain step is the one for us to take, we immediately begin to look around for company. We want some one else to go with us, understand us, sympathize with us, and approve of us,—in other words, we look to personality instead of Principle, and the moment we do that we cease to grow.

Principle is Life, Truth, and Love, "with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning," and so long as we look to Principle and reflect Principle we can reflect only Life, Truth, and Love. When we are filled with fear and anxiety we are not reflecting Principle, because Principle is all harmonious.

If our motives are right our thoughts will soar. They will be ennobling, uplifting, reassuring. Our speech will flow, and our actions will be as open as the day. Fear and anxiety will flee from us, because we have the assurance that we shall be guarded and protected by the divine Power so long as we are in His service.

If we desire to go very far in the strait and narrow way we must be willing to go alone. "All heights are lonely." We cannot take all our friends and relatives with us, just when we are ready to go. We must be willing to let them come in their own time and in their own way, but we must make no concessions or delay so far as we are concerned.

Jesus said, "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me." He did not say, "My disciples and followers are not quite ready for this advanced thought, so I will modify and qualify my speech and actions to meet their understanding; I will remain on their plane of thought so they may understand and appreciate me." No; he said, "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me."

When Jesus was but twelve years of age he remained in Jerusalem teaching in the synagogue, and when his anxious parents finally found him and reproved him for what seemed to them lack of filial obedience, he simply answered, "Wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?" He did not try to apologize or explain; he knew they could not understand him. He knew they were not ready to go with him, and so he went alone and attended to his Father's business.

We could cite many Scriptural passages where Jesus, our Way-shower, stood alone, went alone, misunderstood and unsupported, clung to Principle instead of personality, and in the language of the Scripture he "grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him." This final demonstration was made because he had accomplished the preceding work. He had taken his steps towards goodness in their proper order.

Now, if Jesus is our Way-shower and we are to imitate him, how are we to do it? Mrs. Eddy says in Science and Health (p. 25, Rev. Ed.), "Implicit faith in the Teacher, and all the emotional love we can bestow on him, will never make us imitators of him. We must go and do likewise, else we are not improving the great blessings which our blessed Master worked and suffered to bestow upon us." Again she says, p. 483, "One must fulfil one's mission without timidity or dissimulation, for, to be well done, the work must be done unselfishly."

We must take our steps towards goodness, little as they may be, insignificant as they may seem to us. Let us take them fearlessly, hopefully, joyfully. There is nothing depressing about being good. It is joyous. "Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation. Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation."