“Jesus portrayed a deliverance from the past which in itself promised a triumph for the future. Forgiveness thus provided salvation. The beauty of divine love, once fully admitted to the human heart, forever destroys the charm of sin and the power of evil.” [UB, 188:5.3]
Facts about Yeast: It is a single-cell organism, called Saccharomyces cerevisiae, which needs food, warmth, and moisture to thrive. It converts its food—sugar and starch—through fermentation, into carbon dioxide and alcohol. It is the carbon dioxide that makes baked goods rise. Yeast will become inactive if the water temperature reaches 120F or more. At 140F, it will die completely.
Lot was the nephew of the Old Testament patriarch Abraham. He was a man who seemed to be significantly influenced by his environment. As long as he accompanied his godly uncle Abraham, he managed to stay out of trouble. But when he got away from Abraham's good example and moved to the city of Sodom, he was distressed by the evil going on about him. Yet, he did not work up the initiative to leave Sodom. God considered Lot and his family righteous, so he saved them. On the verge of Sodom’s destruction, two angels led Lot, his wife, and two daughters away. His wife turned and looked back.
“Man should not blame God for those afflictions which are the natural result of the life which he chooses to live; neither should man complain of those experiences which are a part of life as it is lived on this world. It is the Father’s will that mortal man should work persistently and consistently toward the betterment of his estate on earth. Intelligent application would enable man to overcome much of his earthly misery.” [UB, 148:5.3]
“Is faith—the supreme assertion of human thought—desirable? Then must the mind of man find itself in that troublesome predicament where it ever knows less than it can believe.
Is the love of truth and the willingness to go wherever it leads, desirable? Then must man grow up in a world where error is present and falsehood always possible.” [UB, 3:5.10]
Thought Adjuster: “When Salome, the mother of James and John Zebedee, approached Jesus, soliciting that her sons be assigned honorific sittings at his right and left in the upcoming kingdom, Jesus was both saddened and appalled by her bold request.
Thought Adjuster: “Toddlers bravely and jubilantly take their first independent steps to cross the distance separating them from the welcoming embrace of their parents. Once runaway adolescents become homesick, they humbly retrace their way home, where the porch light remained turned on ever since they departed.
“God the Father deals with man his child on the basis, not of actual virtue or worthiness, but in recognition of the child’s motivation—the creature purpose and intent. The relationship is one of parent-child association and is actuated by divine love.” [UB, 103:4.5]
Thought Adjuster: “Self-serving and self-promoting intentions can prompt seemingly philanthropic initiatives applauded by undiscerning beholders. Perpetrators of low-grade actions skillfully gold-plate them to conceal their lack of benevolent substance.
“Jesus spoke directly to men’s souls. He was a teacher of man’s spirit, but through the mind. He lived with men.” [UB, 141:7.10]
Thought Adjuster: “This sentence conveys an important message about how to go about establishing authentic contact with men’s souls—as Jesus so successfully did. There is a world of difference between a preacher—a smooth talker—and a teacher—an inspirational figure who imparts commanding authority to his lessons by impeccably ‘actuating’ them on the construction site of reality.
Assumption: a thing that is accepted as true or as certain to happen, without proof.
Thought Adjuster: “You often have to make sense of puzzling, conflicting state of affairs that rob you of your peace of mind. The best way to proceed is to ever keep an open mind.