IT is just as essential that the voyager upon the ocean of life and experience should understand the fundamental basic laws of navigation as that the pilot of your stately ship upon the ocean that divides continents should understand the laws of navigation. It is essential that the individual should understand some of the experiences that are likely to beset him when he swings his rudder to correct his course. If he understands that in changing the course from a lesser to a greater ideal, there is necessarily a volume of habit and backwater, that continues to prefer and urge toward the course that has been pursued before, if the pilot understands this law and realizes that if he persists in his intention, with determined effort to proceed onward, he can in time outride this urge in the course that has been before pursued, and set up for himself a new current that sustains him in the course he Wills to go. He can set up a new current which with its backwaters and supporting current will carry him on toward whatever goal at which he determines to aim. It is this first effort to change the course, which human beings have not looked upon as they might with an earnest attempt to understand its potentialities, for it is in these beginnings that must be repeated again and again with that faith until they are able to carry themselves along to all they have attained in any former understanding or aim. If the soul would understand that it is necessary for it to study the probable cross currents, the probable vibrations that have to be taken into consideration, if the human being would study this law of living, of navigating the great ocean of experience, as carefully as intelligently as he docs the lesser confusing experiences upon the ocean of your earth, he would find himself carried more rapidly forward to peace.

Some of these most simple fundamentals, that of persisting in a new course of shutting his eyes, of minimizing the effect of the resisting current, would be one great step indeed toward attainment, for we have few mortals who have developed the faculty of setting a single eye to the goal and let come what may, persist with unswerving expectation of fulfilment toward that goal. Rather they take into account all the resisting currents, all the cross currents all the unexpected (because unknown by them) intervention and interruption. These take upon them huge importance in the eyes of the registerer, while the great eternal, standing back, is lost sight of quite entirely, also that it is possible for any soul to attain mastery, that it is the aim and motive of existence to reach this place in consciousness, where realities are never lost sight of, where time is left bowed down to where the theme of existence continually plays through into higher harmonics of conscious realization for the individual. If the individual with seed to sow would not become mixed up with conditions and effects as it is very easy to do, (because it is very easy to look back into the old current), but it is also possible for the child of the living God to lay hand upon intention, and with a faith which is innate to sustain himself across all resistance, all apparent hindrance, to cease to estimate how much time or how little time it takes, of simple knowing that it shall be, to Will that it shall be, and that it shall be a persistent, perpetual, continuous and eternal process, moving onward, forward and upward to that dominion over all; moving forward in the conquest of the misunderstood to that of the understanding of all.

If the soul could take its interest in existence, in living life; could learn to revel in all notes, all experience, all reflection, and all aspects of life as one who is studying it, as one who is earnestly and lovingly seeking after understanding; many of the conditions that now take upon themselves great proportions, that seem to be ominous enemies to the progress of the soul, would turn into friendly children, friendly acts to be studied by the individual who is to take hold upon them and arrange them where and how he wills. But when the soul takes the reverse or perverted attitude and feels that these conditions have assembled to over-power, and that probably he will submit to their tyranny, that probably they have assembled to conquer him, and that they will, no doubt, succeed. This attitude so entirely changes the aspect of an envolving soul, in its course from the joyous living, to that of helpless resignation which is quite the opposite pole, and that which we urge each soul to set its eye upon and never again in the course of its ongoing to lose sight of. We urge that the individual himself can so imbed this thought within his consciousness that no matter how the surges beat about the foot of the mighty Rock of Ages, (which is faith and security,) and no matter how the current may roll, still, the calm awareness of the eternal security may abide, no matter what the past or the crucifixion of members, of parts, of phases of the instrument to be handled may be, if only now that rearranging and mastery of that organization of these forces may be conducted by their creator, the authority which has a right to use them, instead of being used by them.

There is an attitude of mind which can surely be induced by any soul that Wills to do this thing, that attitude that sees the goal, the harbor aimed at, seeing it no matter what the resisting current may attempt to impress upon his Will, upon his mind, yet, he can continually bring the distance between him and the realization less and less as he daily grows in steadfastness in consciousness of his existence, his security becomes absolute. This attitude is possible for one upon a death bed or back upon any rung of the ladder of a life's experiences upon the earth, anywhere, anytime. It is possible from the battle field in the midst of the greatest fight, for a soul to place his hand upon the rudder and declare the intent of his goal. It is possible for the individual at such a point to rally such forces, as will come to carry him to the peace that "passeth understanding." What is needed by every individual is to have more confidence in his assets to more thoroughly understand his latent possibilities and the potential equipment which he has. The confidence that comes to a soul that is in the habit of meditating upon his powers, of previewing them, of inquiring of them their possibilities and testing them out. The strength and power of the Master is evolved through this process. If the individual could more thoroughly appreciate this power to equip himself for life more satisfying to him.