Your "true north"-taking SATs
	Notes and References 1/14/01 Compass or thermometer leadership/Taking SATS This morning before church I was watching the TV program, Meet the Press. The discussion centered around outgoing President Clinton’s job performance rating being so high while the personal opinion polls about his character were so low. An analogy was used to criticize the President and while the correctness or incorrectness of the criticism is not relevant to our class the analogy used is. The analogy was one of a compass and a thermometer. The critic was saying that Clinton’s popularity was due to him reading the temperature of the country before making decisions and as long as he made popular decisions he would get a high approval rating. That was in contrast to other leaders that have a “true north” to their compass and would stand by that compass setting no matter what opinions of others say. Interesting analogy. Forget about the context within which it was used and apply it to your life. Do you have a “true north”, an inherent standard that characterizes you to others? Or, do you compromise your position or your standards to find acceptance, popularity, or success (however temporary that success may be)? You asked that we talk about preparing for SAT exams this morning and so we did. I refered you to the notebook I gave you in which a number of citations are listed on the subject of exams. It will help you think correctly and give you a steady compass to guide you through the test process. I won’t bother to repeat all the citations we covered in these notes. They are also listed in the Archives section of our Grand and Noble Sunday School class website. In summary, howeve, let me reiterate that the real test is whether you love your true identity enough to bring that person to the test. There are many tests we take aren’t there? Interview, friendships, first dates are all tests of who we are. Some tests, like SATs, measure what we know. Other tests measure what we look like or how fast we run or how well we play an instrument. Others measure how “cool” we are. Do you have a true north to bring to these exams? Or do you take the temperature of the tester and conform to be what they determine you should be. Your true north in taking SATs is the declaration that you are reflection of Mind. The same Mind giving the test is taking the test and is grading the test. “Remember “that you possess sovereign power to think and act rightly and nothing can dispossess you of this heritage”. This kind of reasoning (praying) requires a growing sense of your completeness rather than an accumulation of things (knowledge, friends, money, possessions, etc). Let me remind you of our class about a month ago with the key passage from S&H on page 206: The advancing stages of Christian Science are gained through growth, not accretion; Two other references are helpful in this discussion: The first one deals with what happens when we lose that sense of our individuality and our inherent goodness. It leads to conflicting levels of behavior My 134:8 To triumph in truth, to keep the faith individually and collectively, conflicting elements must be mastered. Defeat need not follow victory. Joy over good achievements and work well done should not be eclipsed by some lost opportunity, some imperative demand not yet met. The second citation is in this week’s lesson. I found a very helpful compass this week at work. It is simple, direct and brings us all back to our true north: Mic 6:8 He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
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