SO often devotion is connected with effort and weariness that little joy remains to the one struggling with the responsibility that accompanies devotion to a good cause. Consecration to a good purpose is really a connecting link to all the courage, vitality, originality, and strength needed for the accomplishment of that purpose; it is the positive admission, although a man may not recognize it as such, that good is demonstrable. The textbook of Christian Science, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" by Mary Baker Eddy, describes at length the meaning of Mind. Mind is everything that God is, unlimited, good, pure; Mind is expressed in true thinking, or spiritual ideas, which is the only manner in which Mind can be known. The sum total of these ideas is man; in other words, man is the expression of Mind. Another name for man is idea, since Mind is always expressed as idea.
Devotion being an idea, or an attribute of Mind, it is spiritual. Because it is not made up of matter, it cannot cause physical weariness. God is the one cause, animating devotion. Devotion expressed is restful activity. It is sometimes said that one is devoted to his work; that he thinks of it continually; that his desire to accomplish his purpose supersedes and eclipses everything else in his universe, and this statement is usually followed with the assertion that he is paying for his devotion in loss of health, strength, vitality, and so on. If consecration to a good work can bring evil and injurious results, it cannot be devotion. A mistaken sense of devotion is slavery.
Real man, the expression of Mind, is always knowing Mind. This is no wearisome task. If a man, understanding this, attempts any service, or work, it is because he is devoted to Mind. Consequently, his knowledge of Mind is manifested in the keenest interest in whatever he undertakes, and this wholesome interest never lags; it continues until each task is completed. "The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible," says Mrs. Eddy on page 199 of Science and Health, and she sets forth a fact that has been proved by many people, many times, by demonstration. Before a work is attempted, the question should be put as to whether the purpose is a worthy one. If it measures up to the standard of right,—right to one's self and right to one's neighbor, —then too much energy, time, and effort cannot be devoted to its accomplishment. This should not result in overwork or underwork; it does not mean that a man must watch the time clock, or cease to think of anything but his work. In the plan of God, everything is done at exactly the right time. Being devoted to a work does not mean that a man must be a limited thinker. His thinking should cover a variety of activity. Being consecrated to good is being interested in everything good, no matter where it is found. Consecration to good sums up the whole activity of immortal man, and this activity is manifested by the sincere student of Christian Science in multitudinous ways,—in good habits, in love for others, in honesty, sincerity, and so on. The purpose of bringing one's thinking into accord with Mind is true devotion that never fails.
