A deeper trust in God brings healing

THERE were only a few large rocks protruding out of that icy-cold, fast-flowing water, but we needed to cross over the stream. So without too much hesitation we stepped out onto the first rock and carefully, step by step, made it to the other side. How much trust we had in those rocks! Even though we couldn't see what lay beneath them, we were sure they would support us. I've often thought of that experience when it comes to the question of placing my trust in God. It's true that we can't physically see God. But that doesn't mean that His goodness and power are not completely dependable. The Bible reassures us, ``The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.''1

Christ Jesus knew that he could trust utterly in God. He didn't believe there was anything that could actually separate man from God's unchanging care. He relied on God, divine Love, as the solid substance of all true being. Mary Baker Eddy, who discovered the divine Science that underlies Jesus' healing works, writes, ``Step by step will those who trust Him find that `God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.'''2

How can we come to trust God more? Through gaining an increased understanding of His nature as infinite Life, the invisible yet ever-present divine Principle, governing His creation wisely and lovingly. God is also Spirit, as the Bible teaches. So man, who is God's likeness, is not really a vulnerable mortal who at any moment can have the foundations of life washed away from under his feet. Man is spiritual, the immortal witness of divine Life. God constantly supports and upholds man because divine Principle always underlies its own expression.

The more we learn of God's underlying support and endeavor to obey divine Principle through expressing purity and integrity, the safer we feel in trusting Him with every detail of our lives. Mrs. Eddy writes in Science and Health, ``The understanding that Life is God, Spirit, lengthens our days by strengthening our trust in the deathless reality of Life, its almightiness and immortality.''3

Recently I had to make a major decision. The implications seemed so over- whelming I hardly realized that Christ--the message of God's love--was present for me to rely upon. Then one day I became quite ill. It seemed I'd been doing all the praying I could and didn't know what more to do.

But that night a basic question came to me: Do you really trust God? Just trust Him? I thought, ``God is good; He loves you. He is caring for you and everyone right now. All you have to do is to deepen your trust in God. His love is the rock you can always rely on because it is the unchanging Principle of all life. God is your Life.''

In the morning I woke up feeling so happy. It wasn't until hours later that I remembered the illness of the night before. Not only did I feel exceptionally well, but even the thought of the illness had faded into the basic unreality it really was. I knew God's love is the only reality. And soon my decision was made. It is turning out to be a satisfying one, bringing with it a much deeper faith in God.

How good it is to deepen our trust in God through prayer and study of the Bible, through growing obedience to divine law. No, we do not physically see the divine Principle underlying that rock of Life and Love we are depending on. Yet as we do trust in God's unchanging and substantial goodness, we spiritually perceive more of His presence. The God-inspired steps we are to take become visible. Then calmly and safely we walk over the stream of turbulent events and discover more evidence that God's love is indeed trustworthy.

1Deuteronomy 33:27. 2Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 444. 3Ibid., p. 487. You can find more articles like this one in the Christian Science Sentinel, a weekly magazine. DAILY BIBLE VERSE: They that trust in the Lord shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever. Psalms 125:1