The help we need is here
THERE is help, and it is right at hand. As a small child in distress instinctively turns to a parent, trusting implicitly in wisdom and resources far beyond his own, so can we turn to our divine Parent for strength and deliverance. Contrary to what the material senses would tell us, we are not, in truth, the product of chance or of the whim of human parents; we are the vi- tal manifestation of one infinite, wholly good God. The true selfhood of each one is the reflection of our Father. As we acknowledge and obey His spiritual laws, endeavoring to express love, joy, integrity, and so on, more of this selfhood will come to light. And we'll experience to a greater degree the harmony and progress that are native to our true selfhood.
Whatever the challenge, God's help is powerful, invariable, expressing His supreme goodness, as Christ Jesus showed through his healing works. Our creator is a help now in the face of sickness or entrenched sin. He is a practical help in the everyday matters that would sometimes discourage us.
For example, at one time, working in a busy office where pressure was always at the boiling point, I was presented with a very lengthy and intricate specification, which I was told must be typed and on my employer's desk by a particular hour. This left me barely two hours. Not only was the specification full of unusual, unfamiliar trade terms, but it was written in an almost illegible scrawl. Momentarily I panicked. I knew a very important and remunerative contract depended on the prompt and accurate presentation of the specification.
It didn't seem that I had a chance of completing this assignment on time, but I had always been taught to face problems with prayer, acknowledging one all-powerful, infinite God as the controlling force in my life. For one precious moment I prayed very simply, ``Father, I don't think I can do this alone, but I know that with You all things are possible.'' I recalled the words of a loved hymn, ``Take my hands, and let them move / At the impulse of Thy love,'' 1 and I began to type. The work was completed on time with only two small errors that were easily corrected. ``Excellent'' was the comment, but I knew the credit did not ultimately lie with me.
Mary Baker Eddy, who discovered and founded Christian Science, writes, ``Step by step will those who trust Him find that `God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.' '' 2 We do not turn for help to an unknown deity in a far-off heaven, but to omnipresent, omnipotent divine Love, from which we cannot be separated.
Does this mean, then, that God is concerned with typing specifications? Of course not. But it does mean that the divine law of good, acknowledged as supreme, acts to harmonize circumstances, to bring divine power to bear on whatever the challenge may be. Then we find help and resources we never dreamed of--sometimes in totally unexpected ways.
We must be willing to accept our sonship with our heavenly Father. We cannot expect troubles to yield if we persist in acting contrary to our true nature. Once self-pity, self-will, self-righteousness, and all the other ``selfs'' that would clutter consciousness are ousted, to be replaced by humility and childlike trust, the way is clear for the law of divine good to work on our behalf.
God is Love. The Bible assures us of this. One such promise reads, ``I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.'' 3 This promise is just as applicable now as it was in Biblical times, and just as powerful. Divine Love is ready and waiting to save and bless. Truly, you are never alone. 1 Christian Science Hymnal, No. 324. 2 Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 444. 3 Isaiah 41:13.
