Service for Thursday, Nov. 27, 2014

Subject: Thanksgiving

THANKSGIVING DAY, 2014

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

A PROCLAMATION

Thanksgiving Day invites us to reflect on the blessings we enjoy and the freedoms we cherish.  As we gather with family and friends to take part in this uniquely American celebration, we give thanks for the extraordinary opportunities we have in a Nation of limitless possibilities, and we pay tribute to all those who defend our Union as members of our Armed Forces.  This holiday reminds us to show compassion and concern for people we have never met and deep gratitude toward those who have sacrificed to help build the most prosperous Nation on earth.  These traditions honor the rich history of our country and hold us together as one American family, no matter who we are or where we come from.

Nearly 400 years ago, a group of Pilgrims left their homeland and sailed across an ocean in pursuit of liberty and prosperity.  With the friendship and kindness of the Wampanoag people, they learned to harvest the rich bounty of a new world.

Together, they shared a successful crop, celebrating bonds of community during a time of great hardship.  Through times of war and of peace, the example of a Native tribe who extended a hand to a new people has endured.  During the American Revolution and the Civil War, days of thanksgiving drew Americans together in prayer and in the spirit that guides us to better days, and in each year since, our Nation has paused to show our gratitude for our families, communities, and country.

With God's grace, this holiday season we carry forward the legacy of our forebears.  In the company of our loved ones, we give thanks for the people we care about and the joy we share, and we remember those who are less fortunate.  At shelters and soup kitchens, Americans give meaning to the simple truth that binds us together:  we are our brother's and our sister's keepers.  We remember how a determined people set out for a better world ‑‑ how through faith and the charity of others, they forged a new life built on freedom and opportunity.

The spirit of Thanksgiving is universal.  It is found in small moments between strangers, reunions shared with friends and loved ones, and in quiet prayers for others.  Within the heart of America's promise burns the inextinguishable belief that together we can advance our common prosperity ‑‑ that we can build a more hopeful, more just, and more unified Nation.  This Thanksgiving, let us recall the values that unite our diverse country, and let us resolve to strengthen these lasting ties.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim Thursday, November 27, 2014, as a National Day of Thanksgiving.  I encourage the people of the United States to join together ‑‑ whether in our homes, places of worship, community centers, or any place of fellowship for friends and neighbors ‑‑ and give thanks for all we have received in the past year, express appreciation to those whose lives enrich our own, and share our bounty with others.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty‑sixth day of November, in the year of our Lord two thousand fourteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty‑ninth.

BARACK OBAMA

 Hymn 73 

 Based on the Dutch of Abraham Rutgers

 Glory, honor, praise and pure oblations

   Unto God the Lord belong;

 Come into His presence with thanksgiving,

   Come before Him with a song.

 In His hand is all the power of nations,

 Sing to Him, ye joyous congregations,

   Psalms of gratitude and praise

   Unto God the Father raise.

 God is Mind and holy thought is sending;

   Man, His image, hears His voice.

 Every heart may understand His message,

   In His kindness may rejoice.

 Lo, He speaks, all condemnation ending,

 Every true desire with Love's will blending;

   Losing self, in Him we find

   Joy, health, hope, for all mankind.

Readings from the Bible.

Colossians 1:3‑6,9‑13,16,17

We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, Since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have to all the saints, For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel; Which is come unto you, as it is in all the world; and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you, since the day ye heard of it, and knew the grace of God in truth:

For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:

For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

II Peter 1:2‑8

Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.  And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.  For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Silent prayer, followed by the audible repetition of the Lord’s prayer, with its spiritual interpretation as given in the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, by Mary Baker Eddy

Our Father which art in heaven,

Our Father-Mother God, all-harmonious,

Hallowed be Thy name.

Adorable One.

Thy kingdom come.

Thy kingdom is come; Thou art ever-present.

Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Enable us to know – as in heaven, so on earth

God is omnipotent, supreme.

Give us this day our daily bread;

Give us grace for today; feed the famished affections;

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

And Love is reflected in love;

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil;

And God leadeth us not into temptation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.

For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.

  For God is infinite, all-power, all Life, Truth, Love, over all, and All.

 Hymn 150 

 William P. McKenzie

 In mercy, in goodness, how great is our King;

 Our tribute, thanksgiving, with glad hearts we bring.

 Thou art the Renewer, the Ancient of Days,

 Who givest, for mourning, the garment of praise.

 We thank Thee for work in the wide harvest field,

 For gladness that ripens when sorrow is healed;

 Made strong with Thy goodness that meets every need,

 We gather the fruit of the Sower's good seed.

 Dear Father and Saviour, we thank Thee for life,

 And courage that rises undaunted by strife,

 For confident giving and giving's reward,

 For beauty and love in the life of our Lord.

Explanatory Note

Friends:

The Bible and the Christian Science textbook are our only preachers. We shall now read Scriptural texts, and their correlative passages from our denominational textbook; these comprise our sermon.

The canonical writings, together with the word of our textbook, corroborating and explaining the Bible texts in their spiritual import and application to all ages, past, present, and future, constitute a sermon undivorced from truth, uncontaminated and unfettered by human hypotheses, and divinely authorized.

The lesson-sermon from the Bible and the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, by Mary Baker Eddy, read by the First and Second Readers.

The content of the Lesson Sermon may be found in the Christian Science Quarterly. You may also read the Lesson-Sermon for this week online by clicking here.

Solo: “Thanks Be to God”

Sharing of testimonies appropriate for the occasion by members of the congregation.

 Hymn 283 

 From the German of Joachim Neander

 Praise we the Lord, for His mercy endureth forever.

 Let us extol Him with joyous and loving endeavor;

        Come let us sing,

        Praising our God and our King,

 Should we be silent?  Ah, never.

 Praise we the Lord, who our footsteps still holdeth

          from sliding;

 Daily He campeth about us, protecting and guiding;

        E'en while we sleep

        Watch doth He tenderly keep;

 Ever new mercies providing.

 Praise we the Lord with a joyous and glad adoration;

 Lo, unto them that believe there is no condemnation;

        Now will we raise

        Songs of thanksgiving and praise,

 Christ is become our salvation.

"The Scientific Statement of Being" (S&H p. 468} and the correlative scripture according to I John 3:1-3.

There is no life, truth, intelligence, nor substance in matter. All is infinite Mind and its infinite manifestation, for God is All-in-all. Spirit is immortal Truth; matter is mortal error. Spirit is the real and eternal; matter is the unreal and temporal. Spirit is God, and man is His image and likeness. Therefore man is not material; he is spiritual.

Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p.468

1John.3

[1] Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.

[2] Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

[3] And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.

Benediction

Psalms 100: 4,5

  Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise; be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

  For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

Service for Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2014

Theme: Worthy

 Hymn 15 

 Based on the Danish of Bernhard S. Ingemann

 As gold by fire is tested,

   Its purity shown forth,

 So cleansing fires of Truth may prove

   To man his native worth.

 And as a mirror shows us

   A likeness clear and bright,

 So God forever sees His child

   Revealed in radiant light.

 'Twas thus the loving Master

   Saw man's perfection shine,

 Beheld God's child forever pure

   In radiance all divine.

Readings from the Bible.

II Samuel 22:1‑7 David,17‑22

 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.  When the waves of death compassed me, 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 to my God: and he did hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry did enter into his ears. 

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.  For I have kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God.

Psalms 18:1‑6,16‑20,25,26,30‑32

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. 

He sent from above, he took me, he drew me out of many waters.  He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them which 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; with an upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright; With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the froward thou wilt shew thyself froward. 

As for God, his way is perfect: the word of the Lord is tried: he is a buckler to all those that trust in him.  For who is God save the Lord?  or who is a rock save our God?  It is God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way perfect.

Matthew 10:1,5‑14,16

And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease. 

These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.  And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.  Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.  Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses, Nor scrip for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves: for the workman is worthy of his meat.  And into whatsoever city or town ye shall enter, inquire who in it is worthy; and there abide till ye go thence.  And when ye come into an house, salute it.  And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it: but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you.  And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. 

#Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

Luke 15:11‑23 A

 A certain man had two sons: And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living.  And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living.  And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want.  And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.  And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him.  And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!  I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants.  And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.  And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son.  But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry:

Luke 21:32,33,36

Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled.  Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. 

Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.

Romans 8:16‑19

The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint‑heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.  For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.  For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.

Ephesians 4:1‑8

I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.  But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.  Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.

Hebrews 3:1‑4

Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; Who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house.  For this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath more honour than the house.  For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God.

Readings from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy.

4:3‑26

  What we most need is the prayer of fervent desire for growth in grace, expressed in patience, meekness, love, and good deeds.  To keep the commandments of our Master and follow his example, is our proper debt to him and the only worthy evidence of our gratitude for all that he has done.  Outward worship is not of itself sufficient to express loyal and heartfelt gratitude, since he has said: "If ye love me, keep my commandments."

  The habitual struggle to be always good is unceasing prayer.  Its motives are made manifest in the blessings they bring,‑‑blessings which, even if not acknowledged in audible words, attest our worthiness to be partakers of Love. 

  Simply asking that we may love God will never make us love Him; but the longing to be better and holier, expressed in daily watchfulness and in striving to assimilate more of the divine character, will mould and fashion us anew, until we awake in His likeness.  We reach the Science of Christianity through demonstration of the divine nature; but in this wicked world goodness will "be evil spoken of," and patience must bring experience. 

22:11‑22

  "Work out your own salvation," is the demand of Life and Love, for to this end God worketh with you.  "Occupy till I come!"  Wait for your reward, and "be not weary in well doing."  If your endeavors are beset by fearful odds, and you receive no present reward, go not back to error, nor become a sluggard in the race. 

  When the smoke of battle clears away, you will discern the good you have done, and receive according to your deserving.  Love is not hasty to deliver us from temptation, for Love means that we shall be tried and purified. 

28:22

  Remember, thou Christian martyr, it is enough if thou art found worthy to unloose the sandals of thy Master's feet!  To suppose that persecution for righteousness' sake belongs to the past, and that Christianity to‑day is at peace with the world because it is honored by sects and societies, is to mistake the very nature of religion.  Error repeats itself.  The trials encountered by prophet, disciple, and apostle, "of whom the world was not worthy," await, in some form, every pioneer of truth. 

134:31

  A miracle fulfils God's law, but does not violate that law.  This fact at present seems more mysterious than the miracle itself.  The Psalmist sang: "What ailed thee, O thou sea, that thou fleddest?  Thou Jordan, that thou wast driven back?  Ye mountains, that ye skipped like rams, and ye little hills, like lambs?  Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob."  The miracle introduces no disorder, but unfolds the primal order, establishing the Science of God's unchangeable law.  Spiritual evolution alone is worthy of the exercise of divine power. 

238:1

  Motives and acts are not rightly valued before they are understood.  It is well to wait till those whom you would benefit are ready for the blessing, for Science is working changes in personal character as well as in the material universe. 

239:5

  Take away wealth, fame, and social organizations, which weigh not one jot in the balance of God, and we get clearer views of Principle.  Break up cliques, level wealth with honesty, let worth be judged according to wisdom, and we get better views of humanity.

251:15

  We must learn how mankind govern the body,‑‑whether through faith in hygiene, in drugs, or in will‑power.  We should learn whether they govern the body through a belief in the necessity of sickness and death, sin and pardon, or govern it from the higher understanding that the divine Mind makes perfect, acts upon the so‑called human mind through truth, leads the human mind to relinquish all error, to find the divine Mind to be the only Mind, and the healer of sin, disease, death.  This process of higher spiritual understanding improves mankind until error disappears, and nothing is left which deserves to perish or to be punished. 

296:31‑15

  Mortal belief is a liar from the beginning, not deserving power.  It says to mortals, "You are wretched!" and they think they are so; and nothing can change this state, until the belief changes.  Mortal belief says, "You are happy!" and mortals are so; and no circumstance can alter the situation, until the belief on this subject changes.  Human belief says to mortals, "You are sick!" and this testimony manifests itself on the body as sickness.  It is as necessary for a health‑illusion, as for an illusion of sickness, to be instructed out of itself into the understanding of what constitutes health; for a change in either a health‑belief or a belief in sickness affects the physical condition. 

  Erroneous belief is destroyed by truth.  Change the evidence, and that disappears which before seemed real to this false belief, and the human consciousness rises higher.

525:17

  In the Gospel of John, it is declared that all things were made through the Word of God, "and without Him [the logos, or word] was not anything made that was made."  Everything good or worthy, God made.  Whatever is valueless or baneful, He did not make,‑‑hence its unreality.  In the Science of Genesis we read that He saw everything which He had made, "and, behold, it was very good."  The corporeal senses declare otherwise; and if we give the same heed to the history of error as to the records of truth, the Scriptural record of sin and death favors the false conclusion of the material senses.  Sin, sickness, and death must be deemed as devoid of reality as they are of good, God. 

Silent prayer followed by the audible repetition of the Lord’s Prayer.

 Hymn 204 

Based on the Swedish of Lina Sandell Berg

 O Father, Thy kingdom is come upon earth,

   Thou rulest in all Thy creation;

 Thou sendest Thy witnesses, telling Thy worth,

   To call and entreat every nation,

     With news of Thy mighty salvation.

 They lift up a light amid shadows of fear,

   And Love is Thy banner above them;

 No trouble shall touch them, no foes that appear

   Shall e'er from their loyalty move them;

     'Tis Thou dost uphold and approve them.

 They go in Thy strength, and they speak in Thy name,

   With power of Thy promise forth faring,

 And during the battle the victory claim,‑‑

   Their trust in Thy truth is their daring,

     Salvation to all men declaring.

Sharing of experiences, testimonies and remarks by members of the congregation.

 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.