March on...

As has been brought out, the news seems bigger and louder than ever. However there have been a couple of occasions where I learned something specific from the news that I needed to know to help me with a seemingly personal experience.

The first instance that comes to my remembrance was that of a strange foot issue that seemed to arise out of “nowhere.” I began having serious pain in one foot one day while on a business trip in downtown San Francisco. I was very engaged in my work, on my feet and walking around throughout the two-day event but this issue began after no seeming material cause and just was a pain that made no sense at all to me.

I later learned, when I left the event to run an evening errand, that that day was the Women’s Day March. I had been holed up working all day, but the rest of the world outside had been extremely riled up and loud and vocal during this March. It suddenly clicked in my thought that I had to take a stand against all the anger and violent words of the March. I had to take a side – but the side I was on was God’s and not a human side. I wanted to stand on the side of equality, but I refused to stand with the self-righteous anger and the insulting nature that pervaded what I saw of the March and its participants. This active refusal to stand with error, and stand for Truth and with God healed the foot that night. I later learned that a friend of mine experienced a very similar strange foot issue the same day after being in the city, but without Christian Science to handle it, it took her a few days to return to normal.

This case was an example to me of how outside current events do impact our experience, and how being aware can help us target our prayer specifically and effectively. This also brings to mind this paragraph from “Taking Offense,” which reminds us that part of our task in uplifting the race (and our own experience) is not to be a part of “the ceaseless action and reaction upon each other of these different atoms.”

“We should remember that the world is wide; that there are a thousand million different human wills, opinions, ambitions, tastes, and loves; that each person has a different history, constitution, culture, character, from all the rest; that human life is the work, the play, the ceaseless action and reaction upon each other of these different atoms. Then, we should go forth into life with the smallest expectations, but with the largest patience; with a keen relish for and appreciation of everything beautiful, great, and good, but with a temper so genial that the friction of the world shall not wear upon our sensibilities; with an equanimity so settled that no passing breath nor accidental disturbance shall agitate or ruffle it; with a charity broad enough to cover the whole world’s evil, and sweet enough to neutralize what is bitter in it, — determined not to be offended when no wrong is meant, nor even when it is, unless the offense be against God.” (Mis. 224:11)

Animal Magnetism...

Another instance was during the time when North Korea and the United States were having a war of words, and we as an Association were asked to pray specifically about it, I had a healing related to this piece of news. The articles popped up on my phone multiple times a day, and I prayed over them. However, there was a mounting fear in my thought that was not being handled. A number of my close friends were on the West Coast and I was becoming increasingly afraid because of their proximity to the offending country. It was a selfish fear, I guess because of all the people on the West Coast, but error was getting at me through a seemingly personal fear rather than a general one.

Anyway, I was visiting with family that weekend and had a headache that was growing increasingly debilitating. By the evening all I could do was cry in pain, and finally the fears that were non-verbalized came out for the first time. My family recognized the animal magnetism of the suggestion right away and began caring for me with Christian Science. Within a few hours I fell into a peaceful sleep and awoke the next day in perfect health. The next day, my family forgot entirely that I had been ill and we had a really lovely day together. I remembered though, because where I had felt a sinking fear about my friends, I now felt secure and like the empty, hopelessness was filled. Those fears did not return, and my continuing prayers on the topic were probably more effective because this underlying fear was finally handled.