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… prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
(The Bible – Malachi 3: 10)
Archive for the ‘Fearless living’ Tag
God’s Promise Leave a comment
COVID Safe 1 comment
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
Just recently I spent a day at Summernats with my dad. Summernats is an annual car event held in Canberra. COVID was raging in Canberra at this time and people were quite fearful of anyone who even coughed. Still Exhibition Park where the event was held was crowded with over 2000 people attending that day. We had a wonderful time!
However, after I arrived home I started to feel unwell. I had many of the symptoms associated with COVID and my mum told me to isolate from the family and stay in my room. I obeyed and used this alone time to pray quietly about the situation. The idea that came to me was that this situation was similar to one of those 3D drawings you see sometimes – the ones where if you look at it one way you see one image and if you change focus and look at it from a different angle you see a completely different picture. I knew I had to choose which picture I was looking at.
At this point I messaged my Sunday School teacher for some extra help. She told me that it was fear that was contagious not COVID. I related this to a story she had told me in Sunday School about a man in a canoe who was lost in the fog. I likened the fear to the fog. At that point the fear seemed to surround me – just like the fog. In the story the man had only to stand up in the canoe and see above the fog and to see his safe course. I knew that all I needed to do was to stand above the mental fog and see the truth of the situation – the truth that I was spiritual and not subject to material laws of contagion. With these thoughts I felt safe and fell asleep.
In the morning when I woke I was perfectly well. The fever and the cough had completely gone and the runny nose was also gone in about an hour. I was very grateful for this proof of God’s care.
Living in God’s ‘Now’ Leave a comment
An article from the Christian Science Monitor by Laura Clayton
Recently a relative said she had been feeling concerned about the future. She had been thinking about a possible move, wondering where and when she and her husband might settle next. We talked about the idea of living in God’s “now” – staying grounded in gratitude for today’s many blessings, joyfully being where we are right at the present moment. After our discussion, she said she immediately felt better, lighter, and more peaceful.
Christ Jesus assured his followers, “Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself” (Matthew 6:34). The type of living in the present now that brings lasting peace and inspired solutions is not just some clever mental game. It’s a spiritual awakening based on the timeless spiritual fact of our unity with God, good.
In this article Laura goes on to explain the spiritual reasoning she used to find a perfect solution to a family member’s accommodation problem. She concludes: Each of us can wake up to the spiritual reality of today that helps bring a more harmonious tomorrow.
Click here to read the full article.
Conference Rescued – Speaker Healed 2 comments
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
One of my roles in the years just before I retired was to organise the annual regional conference for the large state government department I worked for. These events were attended by over 300 participants and included one main keynote speaker and approximately 48 breakout sessions. Planning took many months. In order to secure an exceptional keynote speaker, it was necessary to book at least twelve months in advance.
This particular year I managed to secure a booking with someone I knew to be not only at the forefront of his specialist area, but an excellent and engaging speaker. He was pleased to be asked and at the initial interview we discussed a timeline for when he would give me details of his talk and materials for hand outs etc. During the year we touched base a couple of times and all seemed to be going to plan. However, when we were about a month out from the event he still hadn’t given me the material I was expecting and wasn’t answering my calls or emails.
Eventually I managed to make contact with his support staff. They said that he had been in hospital with a very severe case of pneumonia and even after a couple of months he was not well enough to be back at work. I said I would make contact again in a week or so to see how he was progressing. This time I managed to talk to the speaker himself. He said that although he was still very ill and weak he felt sure he would improve enough to be able to do the talk. We touched base several times over the next couple of weeks but his health was not improving. He seemed keen not to let me down and said that he would bring his wife to support him and possibly do the talk sitting down. He thought then he might possibly manage. This was still the situation, the day before the conference and it was extremely tempting to be very worried. I did not want this dear man to jeopardise his health but I also knew that the opening address was a very important part of the conference.
I have been raised in Christian Science and I’ve learnt over many years that there are spiritual laws that can be relied upon when challenges arise. So I prayed to see things from a spiritual, rather than a human perspective. I knew that this conference was a right idea. Among other things it was an opportunity for participants and presenters to share ideas that worked and to collectively rise to higher levels of performance. I knew that all right ideas are God’s because I have come to know God as infinite Mind and the source of all good. I have also come to know God as Love and that Love is not just a feeling but a divine law. This law ensured the safety of all; this law held everyone in their right place and maintained harmony. I thought on these and similar ideas until I felt a sense of calm – a strong sense that all was well. The night before the conference I slept peacefully expectant of good unfolding.
The following evening was the meet and greet and the conference opening dinner. When I arrived the hall was already abuzz with excited participants. Quickly I noticed that there was quite a gathering of people over near the bar. In the centre of this someone was holding the floor and entertaining a small crowd. As I moved closer I realised that was my keynote speaker. He greeted me with a huge grin. ‘You wouldn’t believe what happened’, he said. ‘You know how I’ve been so sick for the last few months. Well last night, it was like a switch flicked and instantly I was completely well. I haven’t felt this well in years. Look at me now!’ His excitement and enthusiasm spilled over into the group and he continued to entertain them. Needless to say his talk was a great success, as was the rest of the conference.
Every day I am grateful for what I am learning in Christian Science. It teaches me to be calm in the face of challenges; it teaches me to turn away from the human scenario and to acknowledge the spiritual truths; it teaches me that there are spiritual laws that apply to all life and if understood and trusted these laws will adjust any discordant situation.
Credit Card Safe in a Busy Airport 1 comment
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
Just before the COVID restrictions came into force my sister and I were travelling in the US. At one point we were catching a flight from one of the larger airports. The terminal was extremely busy and there were long queues everywhere. We needed to check in our luggage so we queued at one of the self-serve terminals. There was a cost for each bag and my sister said that it was her turn to pay this time. She inserted her credit card into the slot in the machine and we filled out all the on-screen questions and received our baggage tags. From there we queued again to drop our bags and then joined the long winding queue going through security.
Finally we were through with just enough time to find lunch before our flight left. At this point my sister realised that she no longer had her credit card. We had left it in the self-serve terminal! This was the card that held all her travel money. A good hour had passed since we checked our baggage and with the queues everywhere it seemed impossible that the card could be found. My sister suggested that I wait near the café with the hand luggage and she would go back through to the check-in machines. My job was to stay calm and to pray. I knew my sister would be praying too.
I sat quietly in a corner and turned to God. I have come to know God as the all-knowing divine Mind. The All-knowing I reasoned knew exactly where that card was. I have also come to know God as divine, Father-Mother Love. As a loving parent God protects and guides His offspring. I have had many proofs of God’s loving care in other circumstances and this gave me confidence that all was well. In my prayer I also acknowledged that God’s man is honest. As I thought on these things I felt a sense of peace that replaced any sense of anxiety I had felt.
Within a very short time my sister was back – and smiling! She waved the card at me. ‘ Look what I found’, she said. ‘It was exactly where we left it in the check-in machine.’ My sister explained that she had intended to go to the information counter in the hope that the card had been handed in but she had a very strong mental message not to do this but to go to the terminal we had used and check there. She obeyed this direction and found the card in the slot just where we had left it. We had no human explanation as to how this could have happened given the number of people using the machines. A later check on her card showed that no extra charges had been made beyond our last baggage charge.
For what I am learning in Christian Science and for the peace that these teachings bring I am always grateful.
Thy hand in all things I behold,
And all things in Thy hand.
Thou leadest me by unsought ways,
Thou turn’st my mourning into praise.
(Christian Science Hymnal 134)
Run Over but Unharmed 2 comments
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
Prior to these current COVID restrictions I travelled often with my sister. In 2019 she was invited to do a series of Christian Science lectures across the US. I was her support person. It was my job to take charge of the everyday organisational issues such as getting through airports and finding meals in strange cities. More importantly it was my job to prayerfully protect and support her lecturing work.
My prayers were prayers of affirmation, not petition. I acknowledged God as divine Love and as infinite all-knowing Mind. I acknowledged that these lectures were right ideas and as such they were God’s ideas, as all right activity is God’s. I knew that God protected and brought to fruition all His ideas harmoniously. I also knew that all those involved in bringing these lectures to the public were protected in this work and that only good could come of these activities.
On this particular day the lecture went off very harmoniously. The venue was perfect, the audience large and focussed and my sister spoke with such sincerity and inspiration that all were moved by the words. Afterwards we were taken back to our accommodation by one of the organisers. When we arrived the driver pulled up in the driveway and my sister jumped out. For a moment I sat half in and half out of the back seat while I passed bags and coats out to my sister. Without checking whether we were fully out the driver suddenly started forward. My sister immediately called for her to stop which she did. The quick movement of the car jerked me out onto the driveway. I didn’t fall but I landed awkwardly and the car came to a stop completely on my right foot. This wasn’t a small car and the pressure on my foot was immense. I was wearing only my little ‘going out’ shoes and these offered no protection. Because of the prayerful work I had been doing during the day I felt no fear. I also felt no pain. My sister called out to the driver to back up but she became confused about what had happened and asked a series of questions that didn’t quickly result in her taking the necessary action.
Eventually the driver did back up and I was able to pull my foot away. Throughout this I continued to feel calm. Despite the feeling of great pressure, at no point was there any pain or discomfort. As the driver pulled away we picked up our things and headed inside. I can honestly say I did not have a single twinge or any indication that anything untoward had happened. There were absolutely no after effects. I put this down totally to the fact that I had been keeping my thought fixed on the omnipotence of God, good, during that day and all the previous touring days. Christian Science teaches me that what I think is very important in determining the events of my life and my wellbeing. I am hugely grateful for all that I am learning as a student of Christian Science.
Hold thought steadfastly to the enduring, the good, and the true, and you will bring these into your experience proportionably to their occupancy of your thoughts.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy p260:4)
A number of Christian Science lectures, including the ones given by my sister on this tour are available on this site. Click on the Christian Science Lectures tab in the menu at the top.
Trusting God – Needs Met Leave a comment
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
My family was just about to complete a posting with the Australian Government in Zimbabwe. We had spent a happy three years there and I was now looking forward to returning to Canberra. One evening my husband came home from work and told me that he had resigned from the Australian Government and that he didn’t want to leave Africa again. He had decided that we would go to South Africa where we both had Permanent Residence. It was a bombshell and to be honest, I was very worried about the move as previously I had found it difficult to live in South Africa. I realised that I needed to get my own fears out of the way and just trust in God, good, and know that whatever was right for our family would be revealed.
When we got to South Africa, we had no home, no vehicle, knew no one and it was raining non-stop! I must admit that the human picture was daunting! My husband and I decided that he would go and look for a car to buy and to keep dry, I took our two young girls to spend the afternoon at the city library. While we were there, I met a lady with a little girl the same age as my daughters. She was very friendly and welcoming and it was a very happy encounter.
The following morning, we went to the local Christian Science Church for the first time and took the girls down to the Sunday School. Who should be in the class but the little girl from the library! This just seemed such a wonderful example of God caring for all of us – it was if God was saying – don’t worry, I know exactly what you need and I am going before you!
Back in Zimbabwe, I had decided that I would trust this whole move to God. This encounter in the library was just the beginning of wonderful provision. The next day was the last day of the school year and we needed to get the girls enrolled in schools. We were aware that in South Africa, it is necessary to enrol your child for Kindergarten in good time as there are long waiting lists. However, at the first school we went to, an unexpected vacancy had occurred that very morning and my daughter was interviewed and offered the place. My younger daughter was given a place at the pre-school next door. We then found a small town house to rent in the same road.
Later in the week, my husband was interviewed and offered a place at the university to start a course which was being offered for the first time. Throughout the time that he studied, I was able to find work which paid our living expenses – many things I had never done before but which all fitted in with caring for the girls during the school holidays – I taught pre-school, recorder groups, English and study skills to groups of Eritrean students and ran science courses for teachers from rural areas. It was indeed a time of growth for us all.
Sometimes changes seem to be forced upon us. This experience really showed me that whatever comes our way, God is always with us and knows exactly what we need.
Best of all, when the time was right, we did get back to Canberra!
Where you’re going, Love will lead you. Where you’re walking, Love will guide.
(Christian Science Hymnal 598)
Beyond Lockdown – A Light at the End of the Tunnel Leave a comment
In Canberra the lengthy COVID restrictions are now being eased. Thank goodness! As we approach re-opening and a more normal way of living and interacting, it’s important that we make sure all we’ve been through in the last 18 months has not been in vain.
We can think of these months of social isolation in two ways – as an awful time that was so hard, so lonely and often scary, or, as a unique opportunity. Could anything else have given us the opportunity to stop the busyness of everyday life, be still, and re-evaluate how we’ve been living in this world and treating one another? That initial decision as to how we’re going to think about this time, is immensely important because it dictates the failure or success of our experience ahead.
The repercussions of the initial decisions we make was brought home to me in a very dramatic way. My husband and I and our two young girls were holidaying, staying in a country motel. It was the very darkest time of night, we were all deep asleep when the oldest girl, who normally slept very soundly, for no discernible reason, suddenly woke up. As we were settling her back down, we smelled smoke. My husband looked out and saw the bushes beside the building on fire. Being ex-army he jumped into action and began hosing down the flames, but then realised the underside of the building was also alight. That’s when he found the whole of the underneath of the motel, which was fully occupied, was also on fire, and the rooms were starting to fill with smoke. We roused everyone and soon the fire was being put out. When the police arrived, they said it was an act of deliberate arson and five minutes more the floors would have collapsed into the flames.
Fear was starting to govern everyone’s thinking as they realised that through the evil actions of others, they had all nearly been killed in their sleep. It was at that point I realised we had a decision to make. There was another way of looking at the situation. It was that, even in the middle of the night when we were all sleeping the most soundly, even then we were alerted, saved and kept unharmed, that even in that extreme situation evil could not win. It was that option that we voiced to the group, and when we did, the atmosphere tangibly changed. Feelings of fear and vulnerability were replaced with a deep sense of safety and protection. Too, instead of my daughter feeling frightened, she felt the exact opposite, she felt like a hero.
Afterwards when I was thinking about what had taken place, I realised that in the weeks leading up to that holiday, I had been doing a lot of praying. Praying to me is not a pleading to a far-off God for benevolence, but a deep, conscientious recognition of the divine goodness ever-present in our lives. Tuning our thought to all that is right and good and loving is a bit like practising our maths calculations – we get better at it and see more right results appear. To me that’s what God is, the Principle that makes life work right and brings out those good results.
As we now move forward into this new way of living, recognising the good we’ve all had the time to focus on and practice, can help us feel assured that good results lie ahead for us. Through this period, haven’t we all been diligently and selflessly caring for one another in being isolated and law-abiding? Haven’t we had the time to rethink how we value our families and community? Haven’t we all been re-evaluating how we can better care for our planet? The basis of this thinking is love, and the Bible defines God as Love. Thinking rightly and acting lovingly is like doing our maths correctly, it assures us of good outcomes. It gives us the assurance that our futures will work out rightly.
This way of thinking about God, life and ourselves is Christianly scientific. If you’d like to look into this powerful healing way of thinking then visit the beautiful official website christianscience.com.
Chest Infection Healed Quickly Leave a comment
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
Just before the lockdown began, I came down with a chest infection. If I walked upstairs or tried to talk, I coughed uncontrollably making it very difficult to hold a conversation, talk on the phone or take part in online meetings. It was also difficult to sleep at night. To allay the fears of family members who were concerned that I might be infectious and so should not be babysitting, I agreed to take a Covid test.
Throughout this time, I had been at home praying asking God to show me what I needed to know and not mixing with others. Eventually I remembered the statement in the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy, (p 420)
“If students do not readily heal themselves, they should early call an experienced Christian Scientist to aid them. If they are unwilling to do this for themselves, they need only to know that error cannot produce this unnatural reluctance.”
I decided to contact a Christian Science practitioner who was unimpressed by the symptoms and likened the coughing to a “performance wanting to get my attention”. She assured me that “Spirit (my true substance) can’t irritate or distress itself” and agreed to pray for me.
That night I slept peacefully and in the morning I found a text on my phone saying that my Covid test was negative. Over the next two days, the coughing disappeared and I was able to fulfill care commitments for my family with no problem.
I am deeply grateful for this healing and for the lessons that I continue to learn from the experience.
A cherry on the cake came a few days later. I realised that my ribs were sore on one side – and found myself thinking that this was due to the violent coughing that I had been doing. I realised that as the cough had never actually been part of me, there was no reason for there to be any after-effects. I rejected the suggestion and concentrated on the reading that I was doing. When I had finished reading, I realised that all feeling of aching had disappeared.
This whole experience was really a ‘wake-up call’ – a nudge to draw closer to God and to feel his love not only for myself but everyone around me.
Where is God When Bad Things Happen? Leave a comment
From the pandemic to political division to climate disasters, today’s news begs the question “Where is God when bad things happen?” And if God is here, why doesn’t it seem to make a difference?
This podcast series investigates different aspects of this large question. Each of the speakers shares a different view of God that can help you find your own peace and experience the kind of stability we all want these days.
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Here are the links to the four sessions in this series:
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Where is God When Bad Things Happen – Part 1: The Basics with Scott Preller
Where is God When Bad Things Happen – Part 2: Responding to Emergencies with Diana Davis Butler
Where is God When Bad Things Happen – Part 3: Finding Hope with Hilary Harper-Wilcoxen
Where is God When Bad Things Happen – Part 4: Getting Out of the Mess We’re In with Deborah Huebsch
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A new podcast is produced each week and can be accessed via the PODCASTS tab in the menu line at the top of this home page.
Christian Science Canberra 