Found: Freedom from an injustice
When her son was arrested for a drug crime he hadn’t committed, a mother feared for his future. But prayer brought a deep conviction of God’s love, a tangible peace, comfort, and ultimately justice.
One Friday afternoon, I received a message that my son and a classmate had been apprehended by members of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA). The classmate had been found in possession of a prohibited drug, and my son had been arrested with him even though he was innocent of any wrongdoing.
I was so shocked I could hardly breathe. The Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act in our country is taken very seriously, and unfortunately enforcement is not always just. I wondered how my son would live after what happened.
Then I recalled one of my favorite Bible passages: “Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord” (Exodus 14:13). I felt this was a message from our divine Father-Mother, God, telling me to be mentally still and trust Him. At that moment, deep inside me, I felt assured and confident that God is in charge of His entire creation, and that all in God’s kingdom is well.
I prayed the whole night, affirming the innocence and purity of God’s spiritual offspring, which includes everyone, even all the members of the NBI and PDEA.
The next day I traveled by bus to the city where my son was incarcerated. I couldn’t concentrate because I was remembering other times I had felt shock and fear. I was tempted to think that my study of Christian Science, which reveals the laws of God, good, was not making any difference in my life.
Yet even while in that mental state, divine comfort never left me. It was so amazing: I started to pray, and my thoughts were flooded with wonderful messages, or inspiration, about God’s laws of goodness and justice.
“Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures” by Mary Baker Eddy, the discoverer of Christian Science, explains, “Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need” (p. 494). Those messages were just what I needed. They made clear to me that throughout the Scriptures, from Genesis to Revelation, are examples of the triumph of God, the one divine Spirit and Mind. For instance, the Gospels tell of 10 lepers who did not remain lepers but were healed by Christ Jesus’ understanding of man’s true nature as spiritual and pure. And Jesus did not remain dead, but he arose to demonstrate that true life is in God, not matter.
I also thought of the experience of a family member who had a serious accident but did not remain an invalid; he was healed through Christian Science. All of this demonstrated to me the absolute power of Spirit, God. I felt assured that my son and I would experience salvation and justice. Despite frustration and discouragement, imbibing what I was learning in Christian Science about the nature of God as merciful, loving, and good made such a difference in my life. These ideas felt so real that they saved me from hopelessness.
When I arrived at the jail Saturday night, I was at peace. I wanted to feel angry toward the classmate and the apprehending officers, but I couldn’t. This is the beauty of God’s love. As we try to daily act and think in a manner consistent with our true nature as the image of God, we indeed increasingly manifest it. I felt compassion and forgiveness instead of anger.
Come Monday, I felt confident that all would be well. I was bearing in mind that God is the ultimate “prosecutor.” God, divine Truth itself, governs all creation spiritually and justly. With this sense of God’s good governing impelling my prayers, I was led to talk with just the right people and at the right time. I also went to a Christian Science Reading Room nearby. There I spent the rest of the day with the Bible and Science and Health. These two books together are considered the impersonal Pastor of Christian Science. Their ideas inspire comfort and healing.
That evening, my mobile phone rang. It was the head of the city jail, who told me that I could pick up my son. He had been absolved of the charge and released. All I could think was “Thank you, Father. You really love me and my son.” In fact, God loves and cares for all His children, without measure. Our God-given innocence is never at the mercy of human processes and procedures.
Even in the most trying of circumstances, we can hold to the spiritual fact that God, good, prevails over evil. This prepares us to see evidences of divine justice and care in our lives.