Theme: Trust
Hymn 115
John M. Neale – Adapted
Holy Father, Thou hast taught us
We should live to Thee alone;
Year by year, Thy hand hath brought us
On through dangers oft unknown.
When we wandered, Thou hast found us;
When we doubted, sent us light;
Still Thine arm has been around us,
All our paths were in Thy sight.
We would trust in Thy protecting,
Wholly rest upon Thine arm,
Follow wholly Thy directing,
Thou our only guard from harm.
Keep us from our own undoing,
Help us turn to Thee when tried,
Still our strength in Thee renewing,
Keep us ever at Thy side.
Readings from the Bible.
II Samuel 22:1‑4 David,17‑21,26,31‑33
David spake unto the Lord the words of this
song in the day that the Lord had delivered him out of the hand of all his
enemies, and out of the hand of Saul: And he said, The Lord is my rock, and my
fortress, and my deliverer; The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my
shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour;
thou savest me from violence. I will
call on the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine
enemies.
He sent from above, he took
me; he drew me out of many waters; He delivered me from my strong enemy, and
from them that hated me: for they were too strong for me. They prevented me in the day of my calamity:
but the Lord was my stay. He brought me
forth also into a large place: he delivered me, because he delighted in
me. The Lord rewarded me according to my
righteousness: according to the cleanness of my hands hath he recompensed
me.
With the merciful thou wilt
shew thyself merciful, and with the upright man thou wilt shew thyself
upright.
As for God, his way is
perfect; the word of the Lord is tried: he is a buckler to all them that trust
in him. For who is God, save the
Lord? and who is a rock, save our God? God is my strength and power: and he maketh
my way perfect.
Psalms 5:1‑4,11 let,12
Give ear to my words, O Lord,
consider my meditation. Hearken unto the
voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O
Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up. For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in
wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee.
let all those that put their trust in thee
rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them
also that love thy name be joyful in thee.
For thou, Lord, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass
him as with a shield.
Psalms 16:1‑3,5‑11
Preserve me, O God: for in
thee do I put my trust. O my soul, thou
hast said unto the Lord, Thou art my Lord: my goodness extendeth not to thee;
But to the saints that are in the earth, and to the excellent, in whom is all
my delight.
The Lord is the portion of
mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot. The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant
places; yea, I have a goodly heritage. I
will bless the Lord, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in
the night seasons. I have set the Lord
always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory
rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.
For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine
Holy One to see corruption. Thou wilt
shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand
there are pleasures for evermore.
Psalms 18:1-6,20,21
I will love thee, O Lord, my
strength. The Lord is my rock, and my
fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my
buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. I will call upon the
Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies. The sorrows of death compassed me, and the
floods of ungodly men made me afraid.
The sorrows of hell compassed me about: the snares of death prevented
me. In my distress I called upon the
Lord, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry
came before him, even into his ears.
The Lord rewarded me
according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands hath he
recompensed me. For I have kept the ways
of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God.
Psalms 25:1‑6,20,21
Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift
up my soul. O my God, I trust in thee:
let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me. Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed:
let them be ashamed which transgress without cause. Shew me thy ways, O Lord; teach me thy
paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach
me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day. Remember, O Lord, thy tender mercies and thy
lovingkindnesses; for they have been ever of old.
O keep my soul, and deliver
me: let me not be ashamed; for I put my trust in thee. Let integrity and uprightness preserve me;
for I wait on thee.
Psalms 31:1‑5
In thee, O Lord, do I put my
trust; let me never be ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness. Bow down thine ear to me; deliver me
speedily: be thou my strong rock, for an house of defence to save me. For thou art my rock and my fortress;
therefore for thy name's sake lead me, and guide me. Pull me out of the net that they have laid
privily for me: for thou art my strength.
Into thine hand I commit my spirit: thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of
truth.
Psalms 36:5‑10
Thy mercy, O Lord, is in the
heavens; and thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds. Thy righteousness is like the great
mountains; thy judgments are a great deep: O Lord, thou preservest man and
beast. How excellent is thy
lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the
shadow of thy wings. They shall be
abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house; and thou shalt make them
drink of the river of thy pleasures. For
with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light. O continue
thy lovingkindness unto them that know thee; and thy righteousness to the
upright in heart.
Psalms 37:3‑7
Trust in the Lord, and do
good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he
shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it
to pass. And he shall bring forth thy
righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday. Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him:
fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man
who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
Psalms 40:4‑6,8,11
Blessed is that man that
maketh the Lord his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside
to lies. Many, O Lord my God, are thy
wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us‑ward:
they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of
them, they are more than can be numbered.
Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou
opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required.
I delight to do thy will, O
my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.
Withhold not thou thy tender
mercies from me, O Lord: let thy lovingkindness and thy truth continually
preserve me.
Psalms 56:3,4,11
What time I am afraid, I will
trust in thee. In God I will praise his
word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto
me.
In God have I put my trust: I
will not be afraid what man can do unto me.
Psalms 71:1‑3,5
In thee, O Lord, do I put my
trust: let me never be put to confusion.
Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape: incline thine
ear unto me, and save me. Be thou my
strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given
commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress.
For thou art my hope, O Lord
God: thou art my trust from my youth.
Proverbs 3:5,6
#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.
Readings from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy.
1:10
Thoughts unspoken are not unknown to the
divine Mind. Desire is prayer; and no
loss can occur from trusting God with our desires, that they may be moulded and
exalted before they take form in words and in deeds.
15:25
Christians rejoice in secret beauty and
bounty, hidden from the world, but known to God. Self‑forgetfulness, purity, and affection are
constant prayers. Practice not
profession, understanding not belief, gain the ear and right hand of
omnipotence and they assuredly call down infinite blessings. Trustworthiness is the foundation of enlightened
faith. Without a fitness for holiness,
we cannot receive holiness.
20:14
Jesus bore our infirmities; he knew the error
of mortal belief, and "with his stripes [the rejection of error] we are
healed." "Despised and
rejected of men," returning blessing for cursing, he taught mortals the
opposite of themselves, even the nature of God; and when error felt the power
of Truth, the scourge and the cross awaited the great Teacher. Yet he swerved not, well knowing that to obey
the divine order and trust God, saves retracing and traversing anew the path
from sin to holiness.
23:21
In Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and English, ^faith^
and the words corresponding thereto have these two definitions, ^trustfulness^
and ^trustworthiness^. One kind of faith
trusts one's welfare to others. Another kind of faith understands divine Love
and how to work out one's "own salvation, with fear and
trembling." "Lord, I believe;
help thou mine unbelief!" expresses the helplessness of a blind faith;
whereas the injunction, "Believe . . . and thou shalt be saved!"
demands self‑reliant trustworthiness, which includes spiritual understanding
and confides all to God.
226:25
The lame, the deaf, the dumb, the blind, the
sick, the sensual, the sinner, I wished to save from the slavery of their own
beliefs and from the educational systems of the Pharaohs, who to‑day, as of
yore, hold the children of Israel in bondage.
I saw before me the awful conflict, the Red Sea and the wilderness; but
I pressed on through faith in God, trusting Truth, the strong deliverer, to
guide me into the land of Christian Science, where fetters fall and the rights
of man are fully known and acknowledged.
428:3
Life is real, and death is the illusion. A demonstration of the facts of Soul in
Jesus' way resolves the dark visions of material sense into harmony and
immortality. Man's privilege at this
supreme moment is to prove the words of our Master: "If a man keep my
saying, he shall never see death."
To divest thought of false trusts and material evidences in order that
the spiritual facts of being may appear,‑‑this is the great attainment by means
of which we shall sweep away the false and give place to the true. Thus we may establish in truth the temple, or
body, "whose builder and maker is God."
444:7‑30
If Christian Scientists ever fail to receive
aid from other Scientists,‑‑their brethren upon whom they may call,‑‑God will
still guide them into the right use of temporary and eternal means. Step by
step will those who trust Him find that "God is our refuge and strength, a
very present help in trouble."
Students are advised by the author to be
charitable and kind, not only towards differing forms of religion and medicine,
but to those who hold these differing opinions.
Let us be faithful in pointing the way through Christ, as we understand
it, but let us also be careful always to "judge righteous judgment,"
and never to condemn rashly.
"Whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the
other also." That is, Fear not that he will smite thee again for thy
forbearance. If ecclesiastical sects or
medical schools turn a deaf ear to the teachings of Christian Science, then
part from these opponents as did Abraham when he parted from Lot, and say in
thy heart: "Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and
between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren." Immortals, or God's children in divine
Science, are one harmonious family; but mortals, or the "children of
men" in material sense, are discordant and ofttimes false brethren.
455:3‑27
A mental state of self‑condemnation and guilt
or a faltering and doubting trust in Truth are unsuitable conditions for
healing the sick. Such mental states
indicate weakness instead of strength.
Hence the necessity of being right yourself in order to teach this
Science of healing. You must utilize the
moral might of Mind in order to walk over the waves of error and support your
claims by demonstration. If you are
yourself lost in the belief and fear of disease or sin, and if, knowing the
remedy, you fail to use the energies of Mind in your own behalf, you can
exercise little or no power for others' help.
"First cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou
see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye."
The student, who receives his knowledge of
Christian Science, or metaphysical healing, from a human teacher, may be
mistaken in judgment and demonstration, but God cannot mistake. God selects for the highest service one who has
grown into such a fitness for it as renders any abuse of the mission an
impossibility. The All‑wise does not
bestow His highest trusts upon the unworthy.
When He commissions a messenger, it is one who is spiritually near
Himself. No person can misuse this mental power, if he is taught of God to
discern it.
487:25‑13
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.
The Hebrew and Greek words often translated
^belief^ differ somewhat in meaning from that conveyed by the English verb
^believe^; they have more the significance of faith, understanding, trust, con‑stancy,
firmness. Hence the Scriptures often
appear in our common version to approve and endorse belief, when they mean to
enforce the necessity of understanding.
495:2‑24
Truth casts out error now as
surely as it did nineteen centuries ago.
All of Truth is not understood; hence its healing power is not fully
demonstrated.
If sickness is true or the idea of Truth, you
cannot destroy sickness, and it would be absurd to try. Then classify sickness and error as our
Master did, when he spoke of the sick, "whom Satan hath bound," and
find a sovereign antidote for error in the life‑giving power of Truth acting on
human belief, a power which opens the prison doors to such as are bound, and
sets the captive free physically and morally.
When the illusion of sickness or sin tempts
you, cling steadfastly to God and His idea. Allow nothing but His likeness to abide in
your thought. Let neither fear nor doubt
overshadow your clear sense and calm trust, that the recognition of life
harmonious‑‑as Life eternally is‑‑can destroy any painful sense of, or belief
in, that which Life is not. Let
Christian Science, instead of corporeal sense, support your understanding of
being, and this understanding will supplant error with Truth, replace mortality
with immortality, and silence discord with harmony.
Silent prayer followed by the audible repetition of the Lord’s Prayer.
Hymn 176
Based on the Danish of Nikolaj F. S. Grundtvig
Long hast thou stood, O church of God,
Long mid the tempest's assailing,
Founded secure on timeless rock
Rises thy light, never failing;
Shining that all may understand
What has been wrought by God's command,
O'er night and chaos prevailing.
Let there be light, and light was there,
Clear as the Word that declared it;
Healing and peace to all it gave,
Who in humility shared it.
Ah, they were faithful, they who heard,
Steadfast their trust in God's great Word,
Steadfast the Love that prepared it.
Let there be light, the Word shines forth,
Lo, where the new morning whitens;
O church of God, with Book unsealed,
How its page beacons and brightens.
Living stones we, each in his place,
May we be worthy such a grace,
While Truth the wide earth enlightens.
Sharing of experiences, testimonies and remarks by members of the congregation.
Hymn 216
From the German of Georg Neumark
O he who trusts in God's protection
And hopes in Him when fears alarm,
Is sheltered by His lovingkindness,
Delivered by His mighty arm;
If ye God's law can understand,
Ye have not builded on the sand.
O wait on Him with veneration,
Be silent in humility;
He leads you after His own counsel,
His will is done and still shall be;
All good for you His wisdom planned;
O trust in God and understand.
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