Getting the right picture

Original content on Christian Science written for this column by one of our readers. Audio read by a member of our audio team. In an educational training workshop I attended with other school teachers, we were told several times, 'There is no comprehension without picturing.' Based on that concept, we were asked to think of creative ways to encourage students to picture the information presented in classroom lessons. I have thought about this instruction often through the years, not only in relation to teaching and sharing information but also in my practice of Christian Science. I've learned that wisdom is needed in discerning which mental images I should accept as productive and good, and which ones should be cast out as unproductive or harmful. Whether voiced obviously or subtly, information about health concerns, for example, can bring up certain unproductive mental pictures. Next might follow fears about contagion, vulnerability, age, or heredity and how these may affect body and mind. Mary Baker Eddy writes in 'Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures,' 'The crude creations of mortal thought must finally give place to the glorious forms which we sometimes behold in the camera of divine Mind, when the mental picture is spiritual and eternal. Mortals must look beyond fading, finite forms, if they would gain the true sense of things. Where shall the gaze rest but in the unsearchable realm of Mind?' (p. 264). Christ Jesus called the devil a liar, and we can think of the devil as those suggestions coming to our thinking that put materiality front and center rather than God, Spirit. But these are lies without any truth to them because God is the only power and reality. We can then see that any claim that there is another, contrary, or equal power to God is simply a lie, whatever form it takes. What cures is understanding that God, divine Mind, is Life, Spirit, the only substance, and holds complete control; that He is the one loving presence and the source of all real thought and life. What divine Mind communicates is divine Truth, in which there is no lie, darkness, or fear. When we choose to accept these right thoughts and align our thinking with the divine Mind, we exchange the dark images for light – for wholeness and health of mind and body. Such prayers have a healing effect, not just on our own lives but in the world as well. Jesus said, 'The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light' (Matthew 6:22). If our eye, our mental perception, is focused on the reality of Spirit, not distracted by anything unlike God, then the body of our thought (and therefore its manifestation, the human body) will be 'full of light' – whole and healthy. This understanding reveals that our substance is not material – that, in fact, matter has nothing to do with our substance, which is entirely spiritual, as the expression of divine Spirit. Recommended Why one state election could rattle modern Germany Throughout my life, I've had so many wonderful healings, as have my family members and our animals, by relying on God, divine Love, for the spiritual ideas that adjust our thinking, which then adjusts our experience. One such healing happened years ago after a contagious disease was reported to be going around in our daughter's school, and a few symptoms that parents had been told to look out for appeared on her body. I was praying about what our next steps should be, but I was also afraid. Then, at one point, I walked through the living room, where a family member was watching TV. A commercial came on about a product for cleaning dishes, and on the screen was this large, all-caps slogan: 'NO EXCUSE FOR SPOTS!' This seemed like a direct angel message, or thought from God, coming in a way that I could understand. I gratefully accepted the fact that God, good, is the only creator and loves His creation. My daughter and the others in her school were all God's loved children and could not be harmed. There is no excuse for – no possibility of – any 'spot' or bad outcome in God's entirely good creation, anywhere or at any time. I sat down, closed my eyes, and was in awe of the comfort those words brought. They were exactly what I needed to hear. I thanked God for the understanding of His tender presence that had the power to release everyone from the fear of harmful experiences or outcomes. Within a day, my daughter's skin was clear, and she was her normal, free self. We abided by required school protocols as she returned to school. And I did not hear any more discussion at the school about contagion. We don't have to accept false pictures that would intimidate us into believing them, no matter how aggressive or alarming. When our thought is filled with the pure reality of God's allness, we see the falsity of anything unlike God, and healing comes naturally. The quickness of this healing has been a constant reminder to me that we live in Love and can hear Mind's communications and grasp spiritual reality in very practical ways. Each healing reveals more of the kingdom of God that Jesus said is within us. And then we find that the only information we need to 'picture' comes from God, and leads to practical, spiritual comprehension. Going forward, these weekday articles offering a Christian Science perspective on our lives and the world are being published without a byline and read for audio by our audio team. Each Saturday this column will feature a poem with the byline and recorded for audio by the author. In both cases, the goal is the same, to bring a touch of God's healing light into the lives of our readers through the shared thoughts and healing demonstrations of fellow readers. If you want to know more about contributing, please email JSHWrite@csps.com.