Mary Baker Eddy , acting under divine inspiration, has set out certain duties to be performed daily by Christian Scientists. In Article VIII of the Manual of The Mother Church she gives three of these. Section I requires daily watchfulness and prayer for delivery from evil and evil thinking. Section 4 gives a daily prayer for the establishment of God's kingdom and enrichment of human affections. Section 6 states, "It shall be the duty of every member of this Church to defend himself daily against aggressive mental suggestion, and not be made to forget nor to neglect his duty to God, to his Leader, and to mankind."

Christian Scientists recognize these duties as designed to assist them in carrying out more effectively the healing and regenerative ministry of Christ, Truth. They gladly accept the useful discipline of performing them daily. But spiritual unfoldment is not regulated by clock and calendar. Although the orderly performance of these duties daily is of practical utility, it is by no means the whole of them.

That the performance of these duties may bear the full fruitage of spiritual demonstration, and that they may bring the satisfaction and inspiration which divine Love always purposes for its sons and daughters, the spiritual sense of what "day" and "daily" really connote needs also to be present. This spiritual sense Mrs. Eddy indicates in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures." She writes (p. 584): "Day. The irradiance of Life; light, the spiritual idea of Truth and Love." And she adds in further elucidation: "The objects of time and sense disappear in the illumination of spiritual understanding, and Mind measures time according to the good that is unfolded. This unfolding is God's day, and 'there shall be no night there.' "

In view of these words, our watching and praying for deliverance from evil, our praying for the establishment of God's kingdom and enrichment of the affections, our spiritual self-defense against mental aggression, must be more than a routine regulated by time. They must be radiant with Life. Then "the objects of time and sense disappear in the illumination of spiritual understanding." In an awareness and acknowledgment of God's day as eternally present and unfolding, we discern the infinite idea of infinite Mind, which knows no darkness or evil, and which admits no possibility of a second mentality able to launch an attack against God or His idea. Only thus can the performance of the duties outlined by our Leader be accomplished in the full sense of "day" and "daily."

As these prime duties are faithfully and systematically performed, our daily tasks fall into place naturally and harmoniously. The latter include first the study of the Lesson-Sermons in the Christian Science Quarterly and the reading of our daily newspaper, The Christian Science Monitor; secondly, household, business, and other responsibilities. Then the thought expressed by the hymn (Christian Science Hymnal, No. 46), "Thou my daily task shalt give," is seen as governing and blessing all daily activities, illuminating them at every level with the spiritual sense of day, revealing the divine idea already perfectly established both in broad plan and in tiniest detail.

The writer of this article once underwent a prolonged period of illness. According to material evidence he lay day after day in almost complete physical inaction and with the physical condition deteriorating. Yet as healing was persistently sought in Christian Science, and as the spiritual duties of a Christian Scientist were daily performed, the mortal material sense of day and of progressive deterioration gradually but inevitably yielded in consciousness to the spiritual sense of day and of unfolding good. Regardless of the physical evidence, continuous spiritual activity was acknowledged as the true fact; and more and more effectively all reality was denied to the temporal round of weary waking and restive sleeping.

It was seen that in Science the only day then and there was God's day, full of useful activity. Because at that very instant it was God's day, radiant with infinite and indestructible divine Life, there would never in all eternity be any other day, any better day, any more active day than the present one. Constantly thanks were given for God's day, the unfolding of spiritual good, wholly satisfying, wholly active, and with all its blessing already established as spiritual fact. In the presence of this persistent recognition of Mind's day spiritual growth went forward on many lines, until the physical deterioration was halted and turned back and healing resulted.

In the spiritual interpretation of "day" Mrs. Eddy says, "Mind measures time according to the good that is unfolded." By her capitalization of Mind, she makes quite clear that she here refers to the one infinite divine Mind, God. In order, then, to gain the spiritual sense of day as unfolding good, we must first gain the right sense of God as man's Mind. We must change the sense of consciousness from a limited personal mentality, knowing both good and evil, to the sense of consciousness as infinite divine Mind, knowing only the unfoldment, identification, and individualization of good.

This change is in line with the teaching of Christ Jesus (Matt. 4: 17), "Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." The word used for repentance in the Greek version of the New Testament means literally "change of mind." It was such a changed sense of consciousness, such Christianly scientific repentance, that took place in the healing just recorded. This produced in turn a changed understanding of day and contributed much to the healing.

Ezekiel states (39:8), "Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord God; this is the day whereof I have spoken." In the degree that we obey the Christly command to repent and accept the divine Mind as the only Mind, we find all our daily activities illuminated by the sense of God's day as the ever-present "spiritual idea of Truth and Love," in which only good unfolds. In this divine day, all right aspirations are seen to exist at the point of present fulfillment, all right purposes at the point of present realization, and wholeness is revealed as an eternally established fact of being. As this spiritual realization takes place, signs following at every level of experience bring whatever is needed in the way of healing, redemption, and blessings of every kind.

All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the Lord: and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee. For the kingdom is the Lord's: and he is the governor among the nations.—Psalm 22:27, 28.