Opening doors
When you lose your job, the doors of opportunity can seem shut tight. Through discernment of the spiritual truth of God and man, though, we can reopen those doors. Actually, spiritual truth is the only ``door'' we really need, because it leads irresistibly to progress and purposeful employment. The Bible says, ``These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it.'' 1
When the prospects for finding another job look dim, spiritual understanding can open to us a clearer perception of our real being, which is not restricted by circumstances or insufficient capabilities. Man as God has made him is the very manifestation of God's being. The Bible describes him in such terms as ``image,'' ``likeness,'' ``son.'' Man's purpose is to express God. Expression implies action. Man is constantly active manifesting God's nature. God as Life is expressed in ever-active being. God as Love is glorified in goodness and unselfishness. God as Mind is manifested in intelligence. This expression never ceases, because God is eternal. Therefore our true being and employment never cease.
Employment, then, is much more than a job. In spiritual terms it means glorifying God -- being who we really are, God's expression. And this true sense of employment is inherent in man, because he already is God's expression.
Acknowledging our real being as the manifestation of Life and Mind, silently affirming our inseparability from God, and earnestly desiring to glorify His nature more and more in all that we do -- such prayer opens all sorts of doors. Limited concepts begin to dissolve, and we discern more of our true, limitless capacities and opportunities. With this spiritualization of thought comes a transformation in our experience. Dead ends disappear as channels for employment appear and our usefulness expands. Instead of insecurity we find developing within us a deeper faith in God, and our spiritual progress brings proof of God's continuous care.
The open door of spiritual understanding, though, is closed to materiality. Spiritual truth and the physical conception of life are opposites. One is reality, including unlimited opportunity, progress, and development. The other is a misconception of life that ultimately leads nowhere because it is a misconception.
To accept the physical senses' version of reality is to believe that man is subject to the so-called laws that seem to govern material life -- laws of statistics, disability, luck, and so on; all of which are illusive because they contradict the truth of God's goodness and omnipotence. Indulgence of fear, sensualism, hatred, and so forth only deepens the mesmerism. Clinging to materialism closes our eyes to the God-given possibilities right at hand. Mary Baker Eddy, who discovered and founded Christian Science, says succinctly, ``Error giveth no light, and it closes the door on itself.'' 2
What each of us needs is the purifying light of the Christ. ``I am the light of the world,'' 3 Christ Jesus said. The Way-shower demonstrated the infinite capacities of man.
No matter what circumstances confront us, the intelligence, joy, and unselfishness that characterize our real being are irrepressible, and the opportunities to express them are unending. Understanding this, and utilizing these God-given qualities, we'll find doors opening naturally for us. And they'll be the right doors -- the perfect channels for our individual talents. 1 Revelation 3:7, 8. 2 Miscellaneous Writings, p. 276. 3 John 8:12. -- 30 -- {et