The majority of men try to sail the ocean of life without the sustaining power of Spirit, but eventually they always go down in a troubled sea. Men need every day the saving call, 'Be of good cheer: it is I be not afraid.' There are greater storms on land than on sea, and they are far more destructive because of the many minds reached by the psychic waves. We live constantly in a sea of thought that is moved on by every impulse of the mind. When we have found the spirit of the law the material expression adjusts itself. His walking on the water is a lesson in spiritual overcoming. It is not necessary to walk on material water to follow Jesus. An understanding of God in His true character establishes the mind firmly in faith and causes the feet to walk safely over the sea of the mixed, negative thoughts of the race. He is the underlying principle of the universe, upholding all things by His word of power, by the omnipresent energy that permeates all creation. God is substance: sub, under stare, to stand. Faith necessary to accomplish so great a work comes from understanding-understanding of God and man and the law of mastery given to man. The race thoughts have formed a sea of thought, and to walk over it safely requires that one have faith in oneself. Water ('the sea'), in Mark 6:47-51, represents mental potentiality it can also be understood as negation. The sea is capable of production, but must come under the dominion of the formative power of mind, the imagination. We say that a man is 'at sea' when he is in doubt about a mental process in other words he has not established his thoughts in line with the principle involved, he is unstable. The 'Seas' of Genesis 1:10 represent the unformed state of mind. Below the firmament are the unexpressed capacities (waters) of the subconscious mind. Above the firmament are the unexpressed capacities (waters) of the conscious mind resting in faith in Divine Mind. In every mental proposition we have an above and a below. This point or ' firmament' is faith moving on the unformed capacities of Spirit consciousness.

There must be a firm starting point established. The waters of Genesis 1:6, 7 represent unexpressed possibilities in mind. Water in its different aspects represents weakness and negativeness, cleansing, mental potentiality, and in some cases life, or vital energy.

Firmament under the ocean