A lesson in trust

It was a grand litter of kittens, and they were all developing normally and naturally. However, after their eyes had opened, one was having trouble with his eyes, and things weren't as they should be. After a few days I grew concerned, feeling I was too busy to deal with this myself. I telephoned the vet and described the symptoms. I was told that if I didn't take the little creature in for treatment, the infection could spread to the entire litter. As I put down the phone I realized I had been hoping the vet would say this was quite normal and not to worry. Instead, I was faced with what seemed to be a serious condition.

This woke me up, and I turned to God in prayer with a conviction that had been lacking before. I prayerfully affirmed God's care for each of His creatures and strove to discern the spiritual nature of His creation, a creation in which each identity is perfect and whole. I dwelt on and cherished the delightful spiritual qualities that I was reminded of by these kittens and their mother, and refused to allow fear to infect my thought. Above all, I wholeheartedly trusted God, remembering the many instances in our family when alarming symptoms had not developed or taken their supposedly normal course. I gave thanks for the occasions when we had had convincing evidence of God's care and control. The difficulty wasn't mentioned to anyone else or observed by anyone - which made it easier for me to stay with my healing prayer. Within a few days the eyes cleared , and that was the end of the problem.

I accepted this further lesson in trust with humility and gratitude. Time and again we are called on to trust God's care and acknowledge His power. We are continually being presented with pictures of disease, distress, unhappiness. It is vital for our own well-being and the good of humanity that we refuse to be impressed by or afraid of these pictures. But neither can we ignore them.

One of the magnificent lessons learned through study of the Bible is that we're blessed by trusting God. The efficacy of this trust is illustrated in the lives of staunch Bible characters such as Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Elijah, Elisha, and of course, above all, our Master, Christ Jesus. Often a brief review of how they triumphed over adverse circumstances has been sufficient to renew and strengthen my trust in God's goodness and perfect government. The opening words of Psalm 18 beautifully describe the feeling of security and peace that comes as a result of trusting God: ''I will love thee, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.'' n1

n1 Psalms 18:1, 2.

A wholehearted trust in God requires an understanding and acceptance of His actual nature and the nature of His creation. As the Scriptures indicate, God is supreme, all good, all power, the only Principle and originator of life. The universe He created is spiritual, the outcome of His being as Spirit. And because God is good, His universe must express goodness and perfection. There is no imperfection, inadequacy, or disease in God's nature, nor in man's. Therefore these are the bogus product of limited, materialistic thought.

Realizing this, one finds it easier to cope with fear, easier to refuse to be impressed by sin or disease. Such a trust, based on an understanding of what is actually real and God-created, can become a daily demonstration of God's care and ever-presence.

Referring to Jesus' raising of Lazarus from the grave, Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, asks, ''Who dares to doubt this consummate test of the power and willingness of divine Mind to hold man forever intact in his perfect state, and to govern man's entire action?'' n2

n2 Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, pp. 493-494.

Divine Mind, God, is the only genuine power and presence with us at every moment, wherever we are. Our trust in Him will not only benefit us but will contribute to the healing of suffering wherever it appears. DAILY BIBLE VERSE In God I will praise his word, in god I have put my trust. Psalms 56:4