Article August 24, 1974 Issue

Cultivating Spiritual Growth

THOMAS HOFFMAN

What can we do when the going gets tough? Is there a surefire remedy for difficult problems? Can we find it? When life seems discouraging, we can remember Micah, who turned his disappointment into hope and cried exultantly, "Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise."^{Mic. 7:8;} We too can have a spiritual uplift of thought. And we can prove it in better lives.

In Science and Health Mrs. Eddy writes, "Only as we rise above all material sensuousness and sin, can we reach the heaven-born aspiration and spiritual consciousness, which is indicated in the Lord's Prayer and which instantaneously heals the sick."^{Science and Health, p. 16;} A mental atmosphere of spiritual clarity gained through an understanding of the Christ, Truth, clears out discouragement. On this higher mental plane we get a better perspective on real being.

As it ascends, thought drops the unnecessary burden of matter-oriented concepts. Life is God, Spirit. Matter has no legitimate hold on us, nor does it determine our life, intelligence, or abilities. Only divine Principle, God, has authority over man. When we hold to Principle, Love, it becomes the source and governor of our hopes and their fulfillment. Individual spiritual growth is enhanced by our understanding that life is governed by perfect Principle. We find that our present capabilities for good grow stronger and more abundant through this spiritual growth.

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