Christian Science is teaching us how to accept the good which God gives His children. "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price." Jesus said, "Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life." In "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" by Mary Baker Eddy we read (p. 227), "Citizens of the world, accept the 'glorious liberty of the children of God,' and be free!"

There are certain definite rules which govern the acceptance of good. It is impossible truly to accept health without sacrificing belief in sickness, to accept abundance without giving up thoughts of poverty, to accept harmony and order without relinquishing discord and disorder. It is impossible to accept a scientific understanding of God and to express that understanding in intelligent, loving, right activity without at the same time abandoning ignorance, false standards, and mistaken concepts, and any plan of action which is based upon them.

When the revelation of Christian Science came to the eager thought of Mrs. Eddy she joyfully accepted it, and her entire experience was gradually transformed and exalted. As she went forward in her mission of presenting this truth to mankind, she found those who were ready to accept it, and they responded with a resulting change in their thought and activities. This truth today is presented to each one of us.

As we accept this divine gift and faithfully utilize it, disease gives way to health, lack to abundance, sin to righteousness, sorrow to joy. Yet we need to go farther and receive a fuller measure of good than a mere improvement in certain departments of thought and action. We must make the truth about God and His reflection our sole basis of decision. We must ask ourselves, How can I consecrate my entire activity and being most perfectly to this purpose?

Christ Jesus' instruction, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you," proves to be sound and satisfying. We find that as we learn more perfectly to express God as Mind, divine intelligence, we are recognized, in business and elsewhere, as worthy of greater responsibility and compensation; that as we express God as Life, in right activity, the world recognizes and appreciates it in a very practical way; that as we express God as Love, barriers melt away and a broader horizon of happy usefulness spreads before us. The practical results are continuous, but we need to hold to our standard of complete consecration.

In the light of this purpose a readjustment of our entire plan of living, to conform to a higher sense of what is of true importance and value, is inevitable. Our most important activity is to learn more about God, so that we can express Him better. Are we accepting to the full the benefit of all the agencies through which this knowledge can reach us, by giving proper attention to our daily study of the Bible and our Leader's writings, and to the other literature on Christian Science which comes from our Publishing Society? Sometimes it is surprising to find how small a portion of the twenty-four hours is devoted to this important purpose. We need to draw close to God and receive the good His tender love is ever bestowing upon us.

And are we including in our program a full acceptance of the joyous privilege of expressing God's love for man in our church activities? Are we sharing fully in the great happiness which accompanies doing our part in demonstrating the truth stated by Mrs. Eddy in Science and Health (p. 583), "The Church is that institution, which affords proof of its utility and is found elevating the race, rousing the dormant understanding from material beliefs to the apprehension of spiritual ideas and the demonstration of divine Science, thereby casting out devils, or error, and healing the sick"? Are we giving a proper proportion of time and attention to receiving this blessing abundantly? Do we see the importance of brancj church membership and the great opportunities of membership in The Mother Church, so that we may have our full participation in this great movement that not only is blessing the individual, but throughout the world is an influence toward stabilizing government, laying a foundation for sounder economics based on the expression of divine Love and wisdom and the Golden Rule, unifying and stimulating in every direction the progress of mankind?

At this time we are having a special opportunity to recognize the joy of helping to carry the good news of Christian Science to the whole world. The acceptance of this liberating truth is rising in a great tide all over the world, and because nothing can hinder the irresistible flow of God's truth to man, the sense of limitation as expressed in an inadequate Christian Science Publishing House had to be swept away so that a proper setting might evidence this expansion. The new Publishing House is a symbol of the advance of Christian Science in human thought and of the unconquerable freedom that goes with it. We need to accept the ideas of freedom and abundance that this enterprise represents, and give them room in our thought.

Can we afford to support the building of the new Publishing House financially, in addition to generous contributions to our local church needs? Rather, can we afford to fail to accept in our individual consciousness the liberating recognition of God's omnipotence and abundance, meeting the needs of all humanity, for which the new Publishing House stands? An inadequate contribution would indicate an insufficient recognition of what this undertaking means to each individual student and to the world. Any shutting out of its rightful place in consciousness of the idea of progress that the expansion of the Publishing House represents, would rob and limit the one who allowed it; but as we are alert to accept joyfully in our thought all that the new Publishing House symbolizes, we shall find ourselves supporting it fully, mentally and financially.

The orderly accepting in every direction of God's goodness to His children may seem to the shallow thinking of the false sense of self to entail a sacrifice; but the giving up of the false concepts of lack, limitation, disease, inactivity, and fear, in order to make way for the acceptance of abundance, health, and loving right activity, can never be a loss. It is always a gain beyond what human hope could plan.

Copyright, 1933, by The Christian Science Publishing Society, Falmouth and St. Paul Streets, Boston, Massachusetts. Entered at Boston post office as second-class matter. Acceptance for mailing at a special rate of postage for in section 1103, Act of October 3, 1917, authorized on July 11, 1918.