Water into wine

Amazing occurrences resulted from the spirituality of Jesus. One marvel happened at a marriage feast, when the wine ran out before the celebrations had ended. In the Bible, John's Gospel records how Jesus' prayer turned six pots of water into wine. The quality of this wine so impressed "the ruler of the feast" that he remarked that the best wine had been saved till last (see John 2:1-11).

For me, this event is a symbol of how spirituality can turn an ordinary experience into a divine treasure.

A friend of mine caught sight of this in a small way. She had organized a July Fourth outing to a fireworks display. Her group got separated in the large crowd, and she couldn't find the rest of her party anywhere. She started praying.

She felt keenly that her mother, who was among the ones she'd lost, would be doing the same. It came to her clearly that they should just stay where they were and enjoy the fireworks - that they could trust God to link them up with the others afterward, despite the large crowds.

And that's what happened. As the crowds dispersed surprisingly quickly, my friend felt led to walk in a direction that wasn't the obvious way to go. There she found the rest of the party. Her mom had been praying, and had come to the same conclusion of staying put and enjoying "the joyous display of colors above us," as my friend described it. As inconsequential as this might seem, my friend said the wonderful thing to her was that she and her mom were free of anxiety during the fireworks and also felt a special peace and joy in communing with God.

The willingness to trust God can turn an ordinary occasion into a time for experiencing God's closeness.

We can all learn to pray like my friend did. As we understand how to see things more spiritually - more in terms of how God sees them - each experience becomes filled with ideas given by God and with actual proof that God is good.

This kind of prayer isn't any predetermined set of words. It doesn't require a certain time of day, or being in a particular place. It's a prayer of the heart and mind, a yielding of one's own thought and desires to God's view of and plan for everything.

The Bible says He "saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good" (Gen. 1:31). From God's perspective, perfect harmony is always what's here. The spiritual reality for each one of us, independent of whatever our present circumstances seem to be, is that we are part of the universal, eternal harmony that God creates and maintains. So is everyone and everything in our life. Coming to discern things in the light of this spiritual truth is what prayer is all about. It brings out in human experience the true harmony God knows.

This spiritual view of reality transforms even the most ordinary of occasions. And it also is powerful to do greater things - heal physical and mental illness, restore prosperity where there is lack, and improve wrong relationships.

Describing this kind of spiritualized thought, Mary Baker Eddy, who discovered Christian Science, wrote: "By purifying human thought, this state of mind permeates with increased harmony all the minuti of human affairs. It brings with it wonderful foresight, wisdom, and power; it unselfs the mortal purpose, gives steadiness to resolve, and success to endeavor" ("Miscellaneous Writings," pg. 204).

Spirituality turns the water of mundane experiences into the wine of inspired living. No matter how modest, such experiences assure us of God's love for us.

Consider how I

love thy precepts:

quicken me,

O Lord, according to

thy lovingkindness.

Thy word is true

from the beginning:

and every one of thy

righteous judgments

endureth for ever.

Psalms 119:159, 160

(c) Copyright 2000. The Christian Science Publishing Society