THE PATHWAY OF ROSES
CHAPTER I
PATHS TO THE LIFE BEAUTIFUL
The thinking world of to-day is being filled with a phase of thought that has exceptional value. True, some of it is in a somewhat chaotic condition, but most of it is rich, containing within itself the very life of that truth that is making the world free. But in the finding of this truth, and in the application of its principles, where are we to begin? What are we to do first? And after we have begun, and find ourselves in the midst of a life so large, so immense and so marvellous that it will require eternity to live it all, what are the great essentials that we should ever remember and apply? What are the great centres of life about which we may build a greater and a greater life? These are questions that thousands are asking to-day, and the answer is simple.
First, recognize the great truth that every individual can live his own life exactly as he may desire to live. Man, himself, is the real master of his own existence, and he, himself, may determine how perfect and how beautiful that existence is to be.
Your life is in your own hands. You may live as you wish. You may secure from life whatever you desire, because there is no limit to life, and no limit to your capacity to live. The elements of life can be modified, changed, developed and perfected to comply with your own supreme demand; the increase of life can be realized in the exact measure of your largest need; you are in living touch with Infinite life, and there is neither limit nor end to the source of your supply.
To live in the constant recognition of this great truth, is to rise continually into higher and higher degrees of that mastery of life that gives man the power to live his life according to his most perfect ideals. To reach the goal that every ascending mind has in view, this truth, therefore, must ever be recognized and applied. It is one of those principles that we shall always require, no matter how high we may rise in the scale of divine being.
Second, desire that which you desire, and desire with all the power of mind and soul. We invariably receive what we desire, no more, no less. We get what we wish for if the power within that wish is as strong as we can make it.
The fact that we can have an ideal, proves that we have the power to secure it. The fact that we can formulate and appreciate a desire for something larger and better, proves that we can fulfill that desire. The great essential is to desire with the whole heart; that is, to give our desires all the life and power that we can possibly arouse from the depths of invincible being.
The true desire and the true prayer are synonymous. The true prayer is invariably some immensely strong desire expressed when the human mind feels the sublime touch of the Infinite mind; and the true desire must be in perfect touch with Infinite life in order to be filled with the invincible power of that life.
To cause every wish to come true, we must express all the power of mind and soul through every wish; but we cannot give expression to all the power within us until we awaken our spiritual natures, and we cannot awaken our spiritual natures until we begin to live with the Infinite. The largeness and immensity of the supreme spiritual life within us comes forth only as consciousness is spiritualized, and we gain spiritual consciousness by living and thinking constantly in the lofty state where we actually feel that God is closer than breathing, nearer than hands and feet.
We cannot desire too much, and when we desire with all the life and power that is within us, our desires shall positively be fulfilled. The wish must be whole-hearted, not half-hearted; it must contain all the power we have, not simply the limited actions of shallow thinking; and it must contain soul, not simply emotion, but that deep, spiritual feeling that touches the very spirit of limitless life and power.
Third, have faith in God, have faith in man, have faith in yourself, have faith in everything; and have faith in faith. When you have confidence in yourself you arouse everything that is stronger, greater and superior in yourself. In consequence, the more confidence you have in yourself, the more you will attain and accomplish. But the power of self-confidence is but an atom in comparison with the marvellous power of faith.
Faith takes mind and soul into the greater realms of life. It goes out upon the boundless, and awakens those interior spiritual forces that have the power to do anything. This is why all things become possible when we have faith.
It is the nature of faith to break bounds; to transcend limitations, and take life, thought and action into the universal. It is the nature of faith to unite the lesser with the greater, to unite the mind of man with the mind of God. Therefore, we shall always require faith; however far we may go into the greater, the superior and the boundless to-day, faith will take us farther still to-morrow. And that is our purpose; to realize our largest and dearest desires in the present, and then press on to the realization of other and far greater desires in the future.
Fourth, depend upon the superior man within for results, and give this greater man the credit for everything you accomplish. When you depend upon the personal self, you place yourself in touch only with the lesser forces on the surface; you therefore will accomplish but little; but when you depend upon the supreme spiritual self, you place yourself in touch with the greater powers within, and results will be greater in proportion.
When you give credit to the personal self, you ignore the interior spiritual man; you thereby fail to secure that greater wisdom and power that the spiritual man alone can supply. Instead of being led by that inner light that knows, you are led by the confusion of outer thought; you are turned away from the path that leads to truth, freedom, and the perfect life, and your mistakes are many. Instead of being taken into the current of that invincible life that can carry you through to your very highest goal, you remain in the hands of mere physical energy, that energy that can do nothing more than simply keep your body alive.
Whenever you accomplish something worth while, and give the praise to your own outer personal self, you immediately lose your hold on those powers through which those results were gained; in consequence, failure will begin, and you will have to retrace all your former steps to again gain possession of that power that can do whatever you may wish to have done.
To constantly depend upon the greater self, to constantly expect the desired results from the greater self, and to always give credit to the greater self, is to constantly draw upon the limitless wisdom and power of the greater self—the supreme spiritual man with you. You thereby become larger and stronger in all the elements of your being, rising ever in the scale, gaining ground perpetually, and passing from victory to victory. What you desire you will receive because higher power is working through you, and as you ascend in the scale, there is nothing that you will not attain and accomplish.
The principal cause of failure among those who are trying to live in harmony with real truth, may be found in the general tendency to think of the outer person as the power that does things on the visible plane. But it is the interior man that gives the power, though the outer person is required to apply it. And the more thought we give to the interior man, the more life and power we bring forth from within.
The interior man is the man, created in the image and likeness of God; it is therefore evident that when you begin to live with the life and the power of the interior man, the expression of real greatness and real spirituality will begin. And from that moment you will not be limited to the power of the personal self; instead you will fill the personal self with that divine power from on high that is limitless, inexhaustible and invincible.
Fifth, live for a great purpose, and hold the central idea of that purpose constantly before mind. Do not live for the mere sake of prolonging existence; live for something that magnifies, on the largest possible scale, all the elements of existence. To live for a great purpose is to live a great life, and the greater your life, the greater the good that you will receive from life. The ruling desire of every living soul is to have life, and have it more abundantly; therefore, to fulfill that desire we must continue perpetually to live for that which produces more life. No matter how rich we may become in real, spiritual life, here is a principle that we must ever remember and apply.
Do not work for yourself; work for the great idea that stands at the apex of your greatest purpose. The greater the idea for which you work, the greater will be your work; and it is he who does the greatest work that does the most for everybody, himself included. When your work is great you become a great power for good among thousands, and at the same time you do more for yourself than you could possibly do in any other manner.
When you begin to live and work for a great purpose, you get into the current of great forces, great minds and great souls. You gain from every source; all the powerful lives in the world will work with you; you become a living part of that movement in the world that determines the greater destiny of man; you become one of the chief elements upon which will depend the future of countless generations yet to be; you become one of the chosen of the Most High.
To live for a great purpose is to live in the world of great ideas, and great ideas awaken great thoughts. Man is as he thinks. Great thoughts produce great minds; from great minds proceed great works, and great works constitute the building material with which the kingdom upon earth is to be constructed.
When we begin to live for a great and good purpose, we place in action that law that causes all things to work together for good. Henceforth, nothing is in vain; every person, thing or event that comes into our world will add to the welfare, the richness and the beauty of that world. All things become ministers of the life that is real life, we have been giving our best everywhere, and we are receiving the best from every source in return.
To live for that which is high, lofty and sublime, is to walk with God; the love, the life, the power and the wisdom of the Infinite will ever be with us, and to have such companions is to be blessed indeed. Every moment will give us the peace that passeth understanding, every hour will be filled with the joy everlasting, and every day will be as a thousand years in celestial kingdoms on high.
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To live always in the Secret Places of the Most High,
To think only those thoughts that are inspired from above,
To do all things in the conviction that God is with us,
To give the best to all the world with no thought of reward,
To leave all recompense to Him who doeth all things well,
To love everybody as God loves us, and be Kind as He is Kind,
To ask God for everything and in faith expect everything,
To live in perpetual gratitude to Him who gives everything,
To love God so much that we can inwardly feel that My Father and I are one,
This is the prayer without ceasing, the true worship of the soul. |