We look around us and note man’s marvelous advance in science and invention, how he conquers the air, harnesses the oceans and subdues the mountains and we are inclined to say, “Behold how wise and powerful is man.” 

But all this advance is merely the natural result of the cyclic push given to all evolution by the outgoing Cycle of Manifestation through the great Law of Growth, the cyclic urge to a higher and more perfect manifestation of Divine Will. In other words, man cannot make practical his new discoveries until the evolution of the planet has produced the necessary conditions and the discoverer has evolved the analogous forces within himself. 

Hence the motive power back of all growth and evolution is the One Life, which proceeds from Divine Will to bring forth through Divine Love, ever unfolding within us and in all creations higher and higher stages toward ultimate perfection. When man awakens to this truth and understands that he has not evolved unaided all the advance which today is so rapidly unfolding, he will begin to have faith that the power of the One Life, as a Ray of the Divine, is working within him to unfold and bring to perfection the seeds of his Divinity. 

Only his refusal to open his heart to the stream of quickening life-force and his refusal to work with it can keep him back from the mastery of his powers; for it is only through his Will to correlate with the One Life that he can keep pace with the possibilities in himself and the planet and become a conscious co-worker with God. At present man too often seeks to use the powers of God for his own selfish ends without regard to the ideals toward which all evolution is advancing. 

One phase of teaching says, “Kill out desire,” and another holds up desire as the motive power by which alone man can advance, claiming that whatever man desires he should have. Others limit desire to one set of emotions and functions which they elect to call evil, and much family discord, sorrow, suffering and even sin result. 

Thus the average student is confused and knows not which way to turn. The truth is that human desire is but a negative manifestation of Divine Will and has its seat or focus in the astral world. 

Since we should never cultivate the negative aspect of anything, instead of allowing ourselves negatively to be ruled by desire, we should carefully discriminate between the objects of our desire and then positively will that which we have chosen as best for us. The astral world contains all the unfulfilled desires of humanity, as well as those Souls who have passed away from the physical life, but who are still seeking to gratify their desires on Earth. 

All these forces of desire float out aimlessly over humanity like clouds of exhaust steam, ever seeking expression through man and sweeping him first this way and then that, expending their energy with no constructive object in view. An erroneous idea of certain modern teachings is that man, undeveloped as man/woman is today, is omnipotent and that by the mere exercise of the Will, the control of breath and life-forces, he/she can attain oneness with the Divine Will or enter Cosmic Christ/Consciousness.