An honest, humble thought of oneself in the light of infinite Truth is something like the view from a high point in the Sierras or the Alps; there is seemingly no end to the heights, depths, forms, textures, colors, to be seen in any direction. And the farther one walks, the more there is to be seen. But a selfish thought of oneself is like being concerned with the mountains only as it is necessary to cross them to get to a more important destination.
The way we approach our study of the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy, shows our thought of ourselves, and the promise or lack of promise in our outlook. If on a given day a page of the textbook opens to us at least one new idea and hints to us an endless flow of ever more wonderful ideas, we are thinking of ourselves honestly and humbly as followers of the author of this book. But if a page of this book offers only a statement to be used for the purpose of gaining a healing, or of forming an opinion, we are thinking of ourselves as humanly important individuals seeking to be comforted and satisfied by what we can gain from its pages.
Christ Jesus demanded of his followers complete dedication. He said, "He that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it."Matt. 10:38, 39; Mrs. Eddy, in the opening lines of her chapter on Prayer in Science and Health, writes, "Prayer, watching, and working, combined with self-immolation, are God's gracious means for accomplishing whatever has been successfully done for the Christianization and health of mankind."Science and Health, p. 1;
