Persistent Right Thinking

Duncan Sinclair

"Let us not be weary in well doing," writes Paul to the Galatians: "for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." And as well doing presupposes right thinking, the apostle's words may be interpreted as meaning that if we persist in thinking rightly we shall reap the inevitable reward, since effect must inevitably follow its cause.

Christian Science makes a great deal of right thinking, and is consistent in so doing. Indeed, the task which Christian Science sets itself is to instruct mankind to think rightly about everything. And in this it begins with God, declaring that He is infinite Mind, and that as Mind He knows His own creation, which consists of perfect spiritual ideas. The universe—the real universe—is thus wholly mental and spiritual. Christian Science teaches, further, that man—the real man—is the idea of God, infinite Mind, and that he images or reflects all right or true ideas of Mind.

The truths which have just been stated underlie and determine the thinking of the Christian Scientist. He never forgets them. In thought he is continually reverting to them. And it is necessary that he should do so in order to counteract material sense, which apparently persists in arguing for a material universe in which evil claims to play an enormous part, sickness, suffering, sin—inharmony of all sorts—belonging to this illusory sense of creation. In other words, the Christian Scientist is equipped with the truths of Being, the truths relative to God and His perfect spiritual creation, including man; and thus equipped he is empowered to think rightly with regard to so-called material sense and all its false concepts, in this way destroying them.

Now while the truth that destroys error is known to the student of Christian Science, the task he is set of neutralizing the error in human consciousness is not one which he regards lightly. Take, for example, the false belief of disease. Sometimes this error claims to be very persistent. One may have believed himself to be ill for a considerable time, and this may have given rise to the fear within him that his healing may take a long time even after he takes up the study of Christian Science. Should the fear seem to persist and so keep back the healing, the truth about the perfection of man as God's idea should all the more firmly be persisted in, in order to destroy the fear. Time and time again this truth should be held before the thought and affirmed until realized, no compromise being made with the error. Every time the suggestion of material sense asserts itself it should be denied, seen as nothing, and thus routed.

While the process of the realization of Truth and the denial of error is going on, various temptations may come to one, trying to prevent the healing work. The belief that this work is difficult and demands too much of us is not uncommon. What then? Should such suggestions arise, let us keep more steadfastly before us than ever the great truths of Being, remembering that they assuredly carry with them the unlimited power of God. There is no need to look at what might be called the intermediate steps; the truth realized will take care of these. Mrs. Eddy's words regarding her own method of procedure, to be found on page 426 of "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," convey a most helpful lesson. She writes: "The discoverer of Christian Science finds the path less difficult when she has the high goal always before her thoughts, than when she counts her footsteps in endeavoring to reach it." And she adds these significant words: "When the destination is desirable, expectation speeds our progress."

"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." That message came from God through His prophet Isaiah to all who live under the sun. And the hope which it inspires may be realized through Christian Science. But we must be honest, persevering, persistent, in our endeavor to obtain an understanding of what Christian Science teaches, and equally so in applying our understanding to whatever the problem may be which presents itself for solution. The great thing is never to doubt the power of Truth to destroy error. We must have unlimited faith in right thinking, even in the face of the seeming thunders of mortal mind. For what is mortal mind, so called, but a suppositional counterfeit of perfect divine Mind? May we never fail to keep before us our Leader's inspired words (Science and Health, p. 400), "By lifting thought above error, or disease, and contending persistently for truth, you destroy error."

Duncan Sinclair

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