Lessons in Truth · 4 of 12

Affirmations

Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he shall hear thee, and thou shalt pay thy vows. Thou shalt also decree a thing and it shall be established unto thee; and the light shall shine upon thy ways.—Job 22:27, 28.

Most people, when they first consciously set out to gain a fuller, higher knowledge of spiritual things, do so because of dissatisfaction—or perhaps unsatisfaction would be the better word—with their past and present condition of life. Inherent in the human mind is the thought that somewhere, somehow, it ought to be able to bring to itself that which it desires and which would satisfy. This thought is but the foreshadowing of that which really is.

Our wishes, it is said, do measure just

Our capabilities. Who with his might

Aspires unto the mountain’s upper height,

Holds in that aspiration a great trust

To be fulfilled, a warrant that he must

Not disregard, a strength to reach the height

To which his hopes have taken flight.

The hunger we feel is but the prompting of the Divine within us, which longs with an infinite longing to fill us. It is but one side of the law of demand and supply, the other side of which is unchangeably, unfailingly, the promise. “What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” The supply is always equal to the demand, but there must first be a demand before supply is of use.

There is a place attainable by us where we see that our doing can cease, because Spirit is the fulfillment of all our desires. We simply “be still and know” that all things whatsoever we desire are ours already; and this knowing it, or recognizing it, has power to bring the invisible God (or Good), who is the innermost substance of all things, forth into just the visible form of good we want.

But in order to attain this place of power we must take the preliminary steps, faithfully, earnestly, trustingly, though these steps at first glance seem to us as useless and ridiculous as do the ceremonial forms and religious observances of the ritualistic churchman.

To affirm anything is to assert positively, even in the face of all contrary evidence, that it is so. We may not be able to see how, by our simply affirming a thing to be true, which to all human reasoning or sight does not seem to be true at all, we can bring that thing to pass; but we can compel ourselves to cease all quibbling and go to work to prove the rule, each one for himself.

This beautiful Presence all about us and within us is the substance of every good which we can possibly desire—aye, infinitely more than we are capable of desiring; for “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.”

In some way, which it is not easy to put into words—for spiritual laws cannot always be compassed in mortal words, and yet they are none the less infallible, immutable laws which work with precision and certainty—there is power in our word of faith to bring all good things right into our everyday life.

We speak the word, we confidently affirm, but we have nothing to do with the “establishing” of the word, or the bringing it to pass. “Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee,” it says. If we decree or affirm unwaveringly, steadfastly, we hold God by his own unalterable laws to do the establishing or fulfilling.

They who have carefully studied spiritual laws find that besides denying the reality and power of apparent evil, which denying frees them from it, they also can bring any desired good into their lives by persistently affirming it is there already. In the first instructions given to students, the denials and affirmations take a large place. Later on, their own personal experiences and inward guidance lead them up to a higher plane where they no longer need rules.

The saying over of any denial or affirmation is a necessary self-training of mind which has lived so long in error and false beliefs that it needs this constant repetition of truth to unclothe it and clothe it anew.

As it is with the denials, so with the affirmations. There are four or five great sweeping affirmations of truth which cover a multitude of lesser ones, and which do marvelous work in bringing good to ourselves and to others:

First, God is Life, Love, Intelligence, Substance, Omnipotence, Omniscience, Omnipresence.

This you will remember from the first lesson—the Statement of Being. As you repeat the affirmation please remember that every particle of life, of love, intelligence, power, or of real substance in the universe is simply a certain degree, or, so to speak, quality of God made manifest or visible through a form. Try to think what is meant when you say God is omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient.

If God is omnipresence (all presence), and is all good, where is the evil? If he is omnipotence (all power), what other power can there be working in the universe?

Since God is Omnipotence and Omnipresence, put aside forever your traditional teaching of an adverse power, evil (devil), that may at any moment thwart the plans of Good and bring you harm.

Do not disturb yourself about the appearances of evil all about you; but in the very presence of what seems evil stand true and unwavering in affirming that God, the Good, is omnipresent, or all there is present. By so doing you will see the seeming evil all melt away as the darkness before the light or the dew before the morning sun, and good come to take its place.

Second, I am a child or manifestation of God, and every moment his life, love, wisdom, power flow into and through me. I am one with God, and am governed by his laws.

Remember while repeating this affirmation that nothing—no circumstance, no person or set of persons—can by any possibility interpose between you and the Source of your life, wisdom or power. It is all “hid with Christ [the innermost Christ or Spirit of your being] in God.” Nothing but your own ignorance of how to receive, or your willfulness, can hinder you having unlimited supply.

No matter how sick or weak or inefficient you seem to be, take your eyes and thoughts right off the seeming and turn them within to the Central Fountain there, and say calmly, quietly, but with steadfast assurance, “This appearance of weakness is false; the life, the wisdom, the power, which is God, is now flowing into my entire being and out through me to the external,” and you will soon see a marvelous change wrought in you by the realization this spoken word will bring to you.

You do not change God’s attitude towards you one iota, by either importuning or affirming. You only change your attitude towards him who is always on the giving hand. By thus affirming you put yourself into harmony with the divine law, which is always working towards your good and never towards your harm or punishment.

Third, I am Spirit, perfect, holy, harmonious. Nothing can hurt me or make me sick or afraid, for Spirit is God, and cannot be hurt or made sick or afraid. I manifest my real Self through this body now.

Fourth, God works in me to will and to do whatsoever he wishes me to do, and he cannot fail.

Affirming his mind working both to will and to do makes us will only the good; and he, the very Father in us, doeth the works, hence there can be no failure. Whatsoever we fully commit to the Father to do, and affirm is done, we shall see accomplished. These, then, are the four comprehensive affirmations:

First, God is Life, Love, Intelligence, Substance, Omnipotence, Omnipresence, Omniscience.

Second, I am the child or manifestation of God; and his life, love, wisdom, power, flow into and through me every moment. I am one with God, and am governed by his law.

Third, I am Spirit, perfect, holy, harmonious. Nothing can hurt me or make me sick or afraid, for Spirit is God, and God cannot be sick or hurt or afraid. I manifest my real Self now.

Fourth, God works in me to will and to do whatsoever he wishes done by me; hence I cannot fail.

Commit each one of these affirmations to memory, so that you may repeat them in the silence of your own mind in any place and at any time. Strangely will they act to deliver you out of the greatest external distresses, places where no human help avails. It is as though the moment you assert emphatically your oneness with God the Father, there is instantly set in motion all the power of omnipotent love to rush to your rescue. And when it has undertaken for you, you can cease from external ways and means, and boldly claim, “It is done; I have the desires of my heart.” “Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing,” said the Psalmist.

In reality God is forever in process of movement toward us that he may manifest more fully himself (all good) through us. Our affirming, backed by faith, is the grip which connects the car of our conscious human need with the ever-moving cable of his power and supply.

They who have claimed their birthright by thus calmly affirming their oneness with God, know how still they can be from external planning and efforts after they have called into operation this marvelous power by affirmation. It has healed the sick, brought joy in place of mourning, literally opened prison doors and bid the prisoner go free, without one particle of human effort or assistance.

Understand, it is not necessarily using just this form of words that has availed in each individual case; but it has been the denying of apparent evil, and in spite of all contrary evidence affirming the good to be all there is; affirming our oneness with God’s omnipotent power to accomplish, even when there were no visible signs of his being present, that wrought the deliverance. In one case within my knowledge, just simply claiming, “God is your defense and deliverance,” for a man who had been five years an exile from home and country through a series of deceptions and machinations which for depth and subtlety were unparalleled, opened all the doors wide and restored the man to his family within a month, without one single effort or step taken from the human side; and that, too, after five years of the most strenuous human efforts of lawyers, etc., having failed utterly to bring the truth to light or to release the prisoner.

Some minds are so constituted as to get better results from repeated use of denials; others from using denials less and affirmations more.

No definite rules can be laid down as to which will work most effectually in each individual case to eradicate apparent evil and bring into manifestation the good. But some little hint can be given which may be helpful.

Denials have an erasive or destructive tendency. Affirmations build up, and give strength and courage and power. People who remember vividly, and are inclined to dwell in their thoughts on the pains, sorrows and troubles of the past or present, need to deny a great deal; for denials cleanse the mind and blot out of memory all seeming evils and unhappiness, so that they become as a faraway dream. Again, denials are particularly useful to those who are hard or intolerant, or aggressively sinful; to those who, as a result of success, have become over-confident, thinking the mortal is sufficient of itself for all things; to the selfish, and to any who do not scruple to harm others.

Affirmations should be used by the timid and those who have a feeling of their own inefficiency; those who stand in fear of other minds; those who “give in” easily; those who are subject to anxiety or doubt, and those who are in positions of responsibility. The people who are in any way negative or passive need to use affirmations more; the ones who are selfconfident or unforgiving, need denials more. Deny evil; affirm good. Deny weakness; affirm strength. Deny any undesirable condition, and affirm the good you desire. This is what Jesus meant when he said, “What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe [or claim or affirm] that ye receive them, and ye shall have them” (Mark 11:24). It is what is meant by the promise, “Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon [or that you stand squarely and firmly upon], that have I given you.”

Practice these denials and affirmations silently on the street, in the cars, when you are wakeful during the night, anywhere, everywhere, and they will give you a new, and, to you, strange mastery over external things and over yourself. If there comes a moment when you are in doubt as to what to do, stand still and affirm, “God in me is Infinite Wisdom; I know just what to do.” “For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist.” Do not get flustered nor anxious, but depend fully and trustingly on your principle, and you will be surprised at the sudden inspiration which will come to you as to the mode of procedure.

So always this principle will work in the solution of all life’s problems—I care not what the form of detail is—to free us, God’s children, from all undesirable conditions, and to bring good into our lives, if we will take up the simple rules and use them faithfully, until they lead us into such realization of our Godhood that we need no longer depend upon them.