Stop the Murmuring

[Espaid]

Murmur from Webster’s 1828 Dictionary:
To grumble; to complain; to utter complaints in a low, half articulated voice; to utter sullen discontent

I was struck by how many times the children of Israel “murmured” against Moses and against God. They complained about the bitter water, then about lack of food, then about lack of water.

And yet, every time their need was met, they still murmured. They had been miraculously delivered at the Red Sea, the bitter water became sweet, God provided manna, and again water flowed from the rock. You’d think after a while they’d stop their murmuring!

It got me thinking how much do I murmur/complain during the day? It is a negative state and easy to fall into. It is denying God’s Love and care. The antidote: constant gratitude for the good already at hand.

[JPalmer]

Thank you for this post! I have been thinking on this a lot as well.

Their murmuring seemed to come from taking a personal view of Moses as the only man that God worked through. If they had seen that it was God working, impersonally, then they would have seen that murmuring was worse than a waste of time, it was entertaining devils unawares, and therefore an affront to God. Imagine how different history would have been if they all embraced their place as God’s expression and manifestation!

It’s fascinating how this mirrors what we’ve been discussing at recent Roundtables, regarding supposed Christian Scientist’s treatment of Mrs. Eddy’s place and importance. Imagine how different the present would be if the organization would have refrained from entertaining those devils, and instead advanced the Cause by standing on her shoulders*, being lifted up as she was lifted up by God.

I have such gratitude that the practitioners here are always working to have us stand on our own feet, and never seeking to have us dependent on them personally. I wouldn’t have been able to feel comfortable coming into another situation where I was loyal to person. Loyalty to Truth and Love, however, makes so much sense!

I am grateful that Christian Science teaches us God’s impersonal nature and how to hone our spiritual sense so we know whether it is an angel (right thinking) or a devil (wrong thinking) seeking to be entertained. I am grateful to this church and its practitioners for the unity and support we experience here, for reinforcing right thinking and rebuking wrong thinking, and for keeping us on the path God has set before us so the future won’t have to imagine the blessings that could have been. Thank you!

—
* Isaac Newton once wrote “If I have seen a little further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants.” Certainly a better thought than trying to knock everyone down to ground level.

[Rae]

Thanks for your insights! Last night while reading S&H, I came across Mrs. Eddy’s quote: “It is error to murmur or to be angry over sin.” (369:31-32) Because of the Bible lesson, her sobering words hit me in a deeper way. I began to see how my comments to myself on the world were self-righteous, and even more important why even entertain a lie. I went to bed with a resolve to be more vigilant for the Truth and to claim it. The testimony from Wed. night came to mind: “The universe is filled with spiritual ideas, which He evolves, and they are obedient to the Mind that makes them.” A feeling of freedom washed over me. Divine Mind is in control always. It was very healing to stop tending the Regulator.

I have often marveled at how having crossed through the Red Sea and rejoiced for what God had done, the Israelites could begin complaining (within 3 days!) But that whole story illustrates how powerful the magnetics are within this dream. The emotional, mental and physical needs are demanding! I can see that perhaps they were going through a fasting of sorts, a cleanse. When God did provide the manna in the wilderness, it’s interesting that it would appear each morning and would only last for one day, so no hoarding. A lesson to trust in God for their every need.

One definition of WILDERNESS in the Glossary: “the vestibule in which a material sense of things disappears, and spiritual sense unfolds the great facts of existence.”

MORNING: “Light, symbol of Truth; revelation and progress.”

CHILDREN OF ISRAEL: “The representative of Soul, not corporeal sense; the offspring of Spirit, who, having wrestled with error, sin and sense, are governed by divine Science.”

Thanks for the powerful lesson.

Rae

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