"Precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little." Isaiah 28:10
"Precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little." Isaiah 28:10
Since last May, our branch church has been praying together for the world every Monday evening. We meet on Zoom and share passages from Mary Baker Eddy’s writings, the Bible, hymns, and poems. These passages inspire a half-hour of silent prayer. After this quiet time, we come together again for a moment, and then continue into our every-day lives in different countries on different continents — feeling uplifted and strengthened.
Does it sound silly to meet online in order to be quiet together? It surely does — but it’s great!
These meetings are like a buoy lifting us all up, leaving us with a tangible sense of unity and of God’s power. Sometimes we share some more inspiring thoughts after the silent prayer. The common feedback is that we all find ourselves filled with peace.
It’s the peace and clarity within which we are praying for. Peace begins with — and within — each of us. This has led me to think more about what peace is, and how we can find it.
In the Bible, we read that Moses had been led to safety by God’s commandment: “The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace” (Exodus 14:14).
In Psalms we are encouraged to “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).
A short statement by Mary Baker Eddy, which illuminates these commands, has been a precious guidance to me: “To attain peace and holiness is to recognize the divine presence and Allness.” (Message to the Mother Church 1902:16). So, God being the only power is really the source of peace. And for us to know that God is the only power makes this peace tangible in our consciousness.
Over the last months it became clear to me that, even in praying for the world, we are not praying for something to happen or not to happen, or to go away — be it a pandemic or a war. All our prayer is focused on is acknowledging and accepting individually the omnipotence and omnipresence of God, good, the only cause of all of Her expressions.
Prayer is also about accepting and understanding that we “live, and move, and have our being” in God (Acts 17:28), and then “living, and moving,” and consciously “having my being,” in God. We also know this to be true for everybody in the whole world. There is no power that could chuck anybody out of being in God.
Praying along these lines has been an empowering blessing to all involved, and I have felt its healing “side-effects.” For example, earlier this year I found myself struggling with sudden symptoms of the ‘flu. I was at work, and thoughts crept in of needing to go home — or at least getting myself tested. Although I was alone, it was as if I could retire to our common silent prayer, like to a room — it helped me enter my closet! I felt so strongly that I live in God, Mind, which never invented sickness or any cause for me to get sick. As an idea of this loving Mind, I could not be a threat or danger to other ideas. All fear left. There was no cause for any of these symptoms or worries. I was clearly seeing that I was not fighting an illness, but I was rejecting a mental suggestion. That was it! With a short “no!” a few minutes later, the suggestions and symptoms vanished for good.
Here’s another example. One Monday evening at the end of February, I wanted to start our Zoom prayer session from our church building, where I would be serving on the Reading Room later that evening. On my way to church, as I was dropping something off at the waste recycling centre, I suddenly felt a sharp pain. Looking down I realized that a heavy, sharp edged wooden plank had landed on my foot. “There is no way I’m getting impressed here!” was my first reaction. As I was limping back to the car to get the next load, I felt my foot swelling and getting hot. Fear crept in with thoughts of “What if?” However, I was on my way to a prayer meeting — to acknowledge the power and presence of God! So, I did just that. I acknowledged that there was no law causing an ill effect in the presence of God. Instead, I was simply under God’s law.
I held to a beloved hymn that we had chosen to focus on at our prayer session: “Lord, open my eyes that I may see / Your presence everywhere/ … Be still, O heart, and trust / God's omnipresent power” (Hymn. 527:2). This helped me lift my thoughts off of the hurting foot. I insisted that I was whole, drove to church, and started the prayer session. I resisted the impulse to take off my shoe and check on my foot.
That evening we were sharing the article, “God with us all” by Jeannie Ferber, that had been published online by the Christian Science Sentinel in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. I was inspired by the idea that even under these circumstances, I can open my eyes to the good and harmony already present. This presence of harmony was the Truth, and that’s why it was present to protect people in war zones, as Ferber referred to, and why I could rely on it being present in my life as well. As I continued to pray at the Reading Room, I was in awe of the power of this Truth. I felt uplifted by a restored sense of peace and God’s protection of the world. The sense of helplessness and being in danger — caused by the political events of the past days — had left.
On my way home, I realised I could walk freely and without pain. My foot had been completely out of my mind for the whole evening!
I am so grateful for Mary Baker Eddy’s vision of the structure of church embracing the world — spiritually as well as literally — and for all the wonderful inspiration and tools we are given day by day by the Mother Church.