Theme: Plenty
Hymn 97
Thomas Hastings – Adapted
He that goeth forth with weeping,
Bearing still the precious seed,
Never tiring, never sleeping,
Soon shall see his toil succeed;
Showers of rain will fall from heaven,
Then the cheering sun will shine;
So shall plenteous fruit be given,
Through an influence all divine.
Sow thy seed, be never weary,
Let not fear thy thoughts employ;
Though the prospect seem most dreary,
Thou shalt reap the fruits of joy:
Lo, the scene of verdure brightening,
See the rising grain appear;
Look again, the fields are whitening,
Harvest time is surely here.
Readings from the Bible.
Psalms 68:4‑7 (to ;),8‑11
Sing unto God, sing praises
to his name: extol him that rideth upon the heavens by his name JAH, and
rejoice before him. A father of the
fatherless, and a judge of the widows, is God in his holy habitation. God setteth the solitary in families: he
bringeth out those which are bound with chains: but the rebellious dwell in a
dry land. O God, when thou wentest forth
before thy people, when thou didst march through the wilderness;
The earth shook, the heavens
also dropped at the presence of God: even Sinai itself was moved at the
presence of God, the God of Israel.
Thou, O God, didst send a plentiful rain, whereby thou didst confirm
thine inheritance, when it was weary.
Thy congregation hath dwelt therein: thou, O God, hast prepared of thy
goodness for the poor. The Lord gave the
word: great was the company of those that published it.
Psalms 86:1‑5,11‑15
Bow down thine ear, O Lord,
hear me: for I am poor and needy.
Preserve my soul; for I am holy: O thou my God, save thy servant that
trusteth in thee. Be merciful unto me, O
Lord: for I cry unto thee daily. Rejoice
the soul of thy servant: for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to
forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.
Teach me thy way, O Lord; I
will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name. I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all
my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore. For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou
hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell.
O God, the proud are risen against me, and the assemblies of violent men
have sought after my soul; and have not set thee before them. But thou, O Lord, art a God full of
compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.
Psalms 130:5‑7
I wait for the Lord, my soul
doth wait, and in his word do I hope. My
soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say,
more than they that watch for the morning.
Let Israel hope in the Lord: for with the Lord there is mercy, and with
him is plenteous redemption.
Deuteronomy 28:11 the,12 (to
:)
the Lord shall make thee
plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle,
and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the Lord sware unto thy
fathers to give thee. The Lord shall open
unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his
season, and to bless all the work of thine hand:
Deuteronomy 30:9 the,10
the Lord thy God will make
thee plenteous in every work of thine hand, in the fruit of thy body, and in
the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy land, for good: for the Lord
will again rejoice over thee for good, as he rejoiced over thy fathers: If thou
shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to keep his commandments and
his statutes which are written in this book of the law, and if thou turn unto
the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul.
Proverbs 3:1‑18
My son, forget not my law;
but let thine heart keep my commandments: For length of days, and long life,
and peace, shall they add to thee. Let
not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the
table of thine heart: So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the
sight of God and man. #Trust in the Lord
with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall
direct thy paths. #Be not wise in thine
own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil.
It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones. Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with
the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with
plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine. #My son, despise not the chastening of the
Lord; neither be weary of his correction: For whom the Lord loveth he
correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.
#Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and
the man that getteth understanding. For
the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain
thereof than fine gold. She is more
precious than rubies: and all the things thou canst desire are not to be
compared unto her. Length of days is in
her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honour. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all
her paths are peace. She is a tree of
life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her.
Joel 2:21‑26
#Fear not, O land; be glad
and rejoice: for the Lord will do great things.
Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field: for the pastures of the
wilderness do spring, for the tree beareth her fruit, the fig tree and the vine
do yield their strength. Be glad then,
ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God: for he hath given you
the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain,
the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. And the floors shall be full of wheat, and
the fats shall overflow with wine and oil.
And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the
cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent
among you. And ye shall eat in plenty,
and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, that hath dealt
wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed.
Matthew 9:35‑38 Jesus
Jesus went about all the
cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of
the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the
people.
#But when he saw the multitudes,
he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered
abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.
Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but
the labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will
send forth labourers into his harvest.
Readings from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy.
10:5‑16
The world must grow to the spiritual
understanding of prayer. If good enough
to profit by Jesus' cup of earthly sorrows, God will sustain us under these
sorrows. Until we are thus divinely
qualified and are willing to drink his cup, millions of vain repetitions will
never pour into prayer the unction of Spirit in demonstration of power and
"with signs following." Christian Science reveals a necessity for
overcoming the world, the flesh, and evil, and thus destroying all error.
Seeking is not sufficient. It is striving that enables us to enter. Spiritual attainments open the door to a
higher understanding of the divine Life.
41:14‑32
The proofs of Truth, Life, and Love, which
Jesus gave by casting out error and healing the sick, completed his earthly
mission; but in the Christian Church this demonstration of healing was early
lost, about three centuries after the crucifixion. No ancient school of philosophy, materia medica, or scholastic theology
ever taught or demonstrated the divine healing of absolute Science.
Jesus foresaw the reception Christian Science
would have before it was understood, but this foreknowledge hindered him
not. He fulfilled his God‑mission, and
then sat down at the right hand of the Father.
Persecuted from city to city, his apostles still went about doing good
deeds, for which they were maligned and stoned.
The truth taught by Jesus, the elders scoffed at. Why?
Because it demanded more than they were willing to practise. It was enough for them to believe in a
national Deity; but that belief, from their time to ours, has never made a
disciple who could cast out evils and heal the sick.
112:32
God is the Principle of divine
metaphysics. As there is but one God,
there can be but one divine Principle of all Science; and there must be fixed
rules for the demonstration of this divine Principle. The letter of Science plentifully reaches
humanity to‑day, but its spirit comes only in small degrees. The vital part, the heart and soul of
Christian Science, is Love. Without
this, the letter is but the dead body of Science,‑‑pulseless, cold,
inanimate.
224:11‑27
In the record of nineteen centuries, there
are sects many but not enough Christianity.
Centuries ago religionists were ready to hail an anthropomorphic God,
and array His vicegerent with pomp and splendor; but this was not the manner of
truth's appearing. Of old the cross was
truth's central sign, and it is to‑day.
The modern lash is less material than the Roman scourge, but it is
equally as cutting. Cold disdain,
stubborn resistance, opposition from church, state laws, and the press, are
still the harbingers of truth's full‑orbed appearing.
A higher and more practical Christianity,
demonstrating justice and meeting the needs of mortals in sickness and in
health, stands at the door of this age, knocking for admission. Will you open or close the door upon this
angel visitant, who cometh in the quiet of meekness, as he came of old to the
patriarch at noonday?
365:15
If the Scientist reaches his patient through
divine Love, the healing work will be accomplished at one visit, and the
disease will vanish into its native nothingness like dew before the morning
sunshine. If the Scientist has enough
Christly affection to win his own pardon, and such commendation as the Magdalen
gained from Jesus, then he is Christian enough to practise scientifically and
deal with his patients compassionately; and the result will correspond with the
spiritual intent.
454:14
He, who understands in a sufficient degree
the Principle of Mind‑healing, points out to his student error as well as
truth, the wrong as well as the right practice.
Love for God and man is the true incentive in both healing and
teaching. Love inspires, illumines,
designates, and leads the way. Right
motives give pinions to thought, and strength and freedom to speech and
action. Love is priestess at the altar
of Truth. Wait patiently for divine Love
to move upon the waters of mortal mind, and form the perfect concept. Patience must "have her perfect
work."
487:25‑6
The Apostle James said, "Show me thy
faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works." The
understanding that Life is God, Spirit, lengthens our days by strengthening our
trust in the deathless reality of Life, its almightiness and immortality.
This faith relies upon an understood
Principle. This Principle makes whole
the diseased, and brings out the enduring and harmonious phases of things. The result of our teachings is their
sufficient confirmation. When, on the
strength of these instructions, you are able to banish a severe malady, the
cure shows that you understand this teaching, and therefore you receive the
blessing of Truth.
497:3 As
As adherents of Truth, we
take the inspired Word of the Bible as our sufficient guide to eternal
Life.
519:25‑15
God rests in action. Imparting has not impoverished, can never
impoverish, the divine Mind. No
exhaustion follows the action of this Mind, according to the apprehension of
divine Science. The highest and sweetest
rest, even from a human standpoint, is in holy work.
Unfathomable Mind is expressed. The depth, breadth, height, might, majesty,
and glory of infinite Love fill all space.
That is enough! Human language
can repeat only an infinitesimal part of what exists. The absolute ideal, man, is no more seen nor
comprehended by mortals, than is his infinite Principle, Love. Principle and its idea, man, are coexistent
and eternal. The numerals of infinity,
called seven days, can never be
reckoned according to the calendar of time.
These days will appear as mortality disappears, and they will reveal
eternity, newness of Life, in which all sense of error forever disappears and
thought accepts the divine infinite calculus.
Silent prayer followed by the
audible repetition of the Lord’s Prayer.
Hymn 169
John Henry Newman
Lead, kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom,
Lead Thou me on;
The night is dark, and I am far from home,
Lead Thou me on.
Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to see
The distant scene; one step enough for me.
I was not ever thus, nor prayed that Thou
Shouldst lead me on;
I loved to choose and see my path; but now
Lead Thou me on.
I loved the garish day, and, spite of fears,
Pride ruled my will: remember not past years.
So long Thy power hath blest me, sure it still
Will lead me on
O'er moor and fen, o'er crag and torrent, till
The night is gone,
And with the morn those angel faces smile,
Which I have loved long since, and lost
awhile.
Sharing of experiences, testimonies and remarks by members of the congregation.
Hymn 291
John Newton*
Quiet, Lord, my froward heart,
Make me gentle, pure, and mild,
Upright, simple, free from art;
Make me as a little child,
From distrust and envy free,
Pleased with all that pleaseth Thee.
What Thou shalt today provide
Let me as a child receive,
What tomorrow may betide
Calmly to Thy wisdom leave;
'Tis enough that Thou wilt care,
Why should I the burden bear?
As a little child relies
On a care beyond its own,
Being neither strong nor wise,
Will not take a step alone,
Let me thus with Thee abide,
As my Father, Friend, and Guide.
