The needs of the weary, hungry, unhappy, and sick are not different today from those of the multitudes following our Master, Christ Jesus, when he taught, healed, and fed them many years ago on the hills of Judea and by the Galilean Sea. And this same pure Christianity of the healing Christ, Truth, has been restored and made available to all through Christian Science.
Through inspiration from God, our dear Leader, Mrs. Eddy, received the purpose of a Christian Science lecture, and she established the Board of Lectureship. The understanding of this fact makes it possible for a lecture to be God-directed, God-ordained, God-governed, and God-protected. As such it represents an activity of the divine idea, "Church," which Mrs. Eddy defines in Science and Health as: "The structure of Truth and Love; whatever rests upon and proceeds from divine Principle." Science and Health, p. 583
I heard two church members talking one day. One remarked to the other, "How you love your church work!"
The other replied, "My church work is love!"
The first step, and the most important one, in lecture preparation is to see the activity as an opportunity to express divine Love and then to love the activity with all our hearts. It is never hard or laborious to work and pray for what we value, appreciate, and love. The expression of divine Love brings our thought into line with the divine Mind, the source of all the right ideas we need in our lecture preparatory work. And how necessary our prayerful work is!
The metaphysical work should be done by the entire membership in cooperation with that which is done by the lecture committee. God is the only lawgiver; therefore the only law governing any church activity emanates from God, the one Mind. And as we bring our work for a lecture into conformity with God's law, we are defending this activity against malpractice or any resistance to its basic healing purpose. The understanding that there is only one Mind destroys the belief in many minds and does away with apathy, indifference, criticism, negative thinking, and counterattraction. We need to work for a lecture as we would for a patient. We need to be radical in our metaphysical work and to understand that what we are declaring is true. Let us expect fruitage.
Fresh inspiration lifts our work out of a routine. If our inspiration comes through consecrated prayerful work, every detail of the human activity will work out harmoniously, and we shall reach the receptive hearts and meet their human needs. Church members are greatly blessed through their inspired support of church activities. All the truths they know for lectures and for other church activities, they bring into their own experience.
A lecture is for the community in which it is given. It is important that the community be thoroughly informed regarding the time and the place of the lecture. Instead of feeling timid and restrained when inviting a stranger to a lecture or when telling him of Christian Science, we can obey the Golden Rule and let our efforts be divinely directed. If we fully realize the allness and goodness of God and the nothingness of evil or of any opposing power, we shall see opportunities open up to invite newcomers. Many times the resistance is more in our own thought than in that of the one we are inviting.
The inspirational committee of one branch church had the following as one of its items on a special program: each member was to invite and take to every lecture at least one non-Scientist. The record at the end of the year's program showed one hundred and twenty non-Scientists had attended lectures. The fruitage reports showed that among this group many fine healings had resulted, including those of physical disorders and alcoholism. Attendance at church services and applications for church membership increased.
The highest mission of a lecture is always healing, and healing covers many aspects of regeneration and purification of thought. To a newcomer, a lecture should bring hope, courage, serenity, and peace. It should enlighten his understanding, point the way of life and health, and correct misconceptions about our religion and its Discoverer and Founder, Mrs. Eddy. A lecture feeds the heart that is hungering after righteousness. And today much of humanity is truly hungering after righteousness. A lecture brings out the nothingness of error and the allness of God, Truth; yes, it feeds the starved affections. To the experienced Christian Scientist, a lecture gives fresh inspiration; it awakens, strengthens, and restores understanding. To the public and the world, a lecture presents the pure Christianity Christ Jesus taught and gave to mankind.
Let us be grateful for The Christian Science Board of Lectureship and support it. The members of this board are presenting the truth throughout the world and are striving to live up to what our Leader states of our Way-shower, "The divinity of the Christ was made manifest in the humanity of Jesus." p. 25 The lecture preparatory work may be likened to the activity described thus: "Prepare the way, take up the stumblingblock out of the way of my people." Isa. 57:14
One evening after a busy day, when my work continued on until late at night, I felt a great sense of fatigue and found myself reaching out for strength to carry on. The thought came to me that wherever Christ is present, the supply to meet every need is always present. So I realized I was working with the same Christ, Truth, that Jesus used in supplying food for the multitude of five thousand. I knew the same Christ, Truth, was present to meet my need for strength and fresh inspiration. I prayed to accept the healing ideas and spiritual strength that I knew were present with me. This prayerful work gave me added strength, and the sense of fatigue disappeared. We can know that wherever the Christ is, there is supply, whether the need is for food, strength, inspiration, health, right ideas, or a multitude to attend our lecture.
In our work for the lectures, let us "prepare the way," remove "the stumblingblock," and lift up the Christ so completely that we can say after each lecture that we too have fed the multitude.
