"Take heed what ye hear"

CARRIE SHREWSBURY

In the affairs of everyday life, good is plentiful and is ever at hand. We have but to look for, recognize, and grasp the good, and then see to it "that no man take thy crown." Webster defines crown as "a reward of victory ... given on account of, or obtained by, faithful or successful effort." When, by faithful effort, we may have obtained our reward, our next privilege is to keep or hold fast that which is good. Be not robbed of the joy of having found God, good. This precious possession must be zealously guarded. On one occasion, the Master admonished his students, "Take heed what ye hear: ... unto you that hear shall more be given." He also said, "He that hath ears to hear, let him hear." Jesus began the parable of the sower, as given in the fourth chapter of Mark, with the words, "Hearken; Behold." These words preface a sudden stillness; and prepare thought for contemplation, a readiness and willingness to listen to the words about to be spoken.

The psalmist sang, "Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in." In healing sin or sickness, it is necessary that the patient's thought be lifted to hear the words of Spirit; and with the coming in of their glory shall come joy, health, happiness, peace, a renewed state of mind, and a healthy body.

Let every individual examine the spiritual quality of his understanding as to how he hears, and "take heed" as to what he hears, that the ground may be prepared for the grain. This grain will later yield abundant fruit, as the weeds and stones are removed from the soil, and the seed is safeguarded that it may fall on good ground, and not by the wayside, where it has no care. As we guard the mental realm daily, hourly, we exclude the evil suggestions that try to enter. Our Leader, Mrs. Eddy, tells us in "The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany" (p. 210), "There is no door through which evil can enter, and no space for evil to fill in a mind filled with goodness."

The thoughtless phrase, "I heard," or, "Somebody told me," is a frequent expression, often followed by that which is not worth repeating. Is it any wonder that listeners are often good hearers when they are not attentive to wrong or foolish conversation? If they are alert to the situation, they are busy shutting out the voice of anything unlike good, and are obedient to the precept, "Take heed what ye hear." If means seem limited, and we do not make ends meet, "hearken." Shut out all the claims of so-called matter or limited mortal mind, and raise thought to divine Mind, where all ideas are harmonious, and where there is no "too short" or "too small," but where perfection is the rule. We cannot, however, hope to escape from false beliefs while seeking safety from error on its own plane. We must rise into the realm of divine Mind, and maintain this mental attitude; for into this domain error cannot enter. The Master often escaped to the mountains for refreshment; and to this height the multitude climbed to reach and to hear him. In this purified atmosphere of thought they listened to the words of Life, which fed them at one time for three days. Soul is ever speaking to and through its own. It needs but a ready listener, an awakened consciousness, to hear the very message that can remove the weeds and stones from the mental realm of an otherwise fine character.

All that is necessary for the rule of perfection to be made manifest now and here is a quickened understanding that is constantly separating the tares from the wheat, until there shall be no tares. In our Church Manual (Art. VIII, Sect. 6) we read: "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." Lest we neglect to remember to whom duty is due, we are plainly shown that our first duty is to God; then follows our duty to our Leader; and next to mankind. This fulfillment of duty requires constant mental activity.

The world around us is filled with sounds and sights, heard and seen by those whose ears and eyes are attuned to the melodies and objects of nature. But every day we should be more than ever alert to listen to that voice which, when heard, will lift us to the place where we may heed the admonitions of divine Mind. Thus, we may awaken to that self-examination and self-betterment which are necessary to the elevation of character, and which are rapidly making reforms in the business and social relations of all mankind; and will so continue to do, until God's will is done "in earth, as it is in heaven."

Like thoughts whose very sweetness yieldeth proof
That they were born for immortality.

Wordsworth.

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