Identity crisis

There was just enough time to get to my friend's house when I remembered the paper. The one she had given me with all the information. Her unlisted phone number; her new address and directions how to get there.

But I could no more remember where I had put that paper than I could remember any of the numbers so carefully written on it.

I dashed frantically through the house, rooted in desk drawers, emptied out purses. All the while I violently berated myself. What makes me so careless? So disorderly? So stupid?

Suddenly I became aware of what I was saying about myself. It was contrary to everything I had proved in Christian Science. I was blindly accepting only what the obtuse material senses were saying about me. "Science reverses the false testimony of the physical senses, and by this reversal mortals arrive at the fundamentals facts of being." As I pondered these words of Mary Baker Eddy's n2 the torrent of self-condemnation ceased. I realized that my true character, the immortal expression of God Himself, had never been and never could be less than accurate, orderly, intelligent.

n1 Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures,m p. 120.

n2 Mrs. Eddy is the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science.

Immediately I felt a pleasant, warm glow. I thought again where I might have put the paper. The answer came: "In my wallet." And sure enough, there it was.

Of course, I should have thought of looking in my wallet in the first place. But the point here is not so much that I found the paper as that I saw something basic of my true identity: that it is immortal and always intact.

As in the case of any "identity crisis," this one could be defined as identifying with "the false testimony of the physical senses" instead of with "the fundamental facts of being." Identifying with the physical senses and fearing what they say always hides what is truly good. It might be likened to standing in a brilliantly lighted room with eyes tightly shut, complaining about the dark. Christian Science shows us how to open our eyes and see the good that is always present.

What are "the fundamental facts of being" concerning our true identity? Here are a few: Man is made in the image of God. Man is wholly spiritual and perfect. Man is eternally inseparable from God.

Christian Science explains other fundamental facts. That God is infinite good, ever present and eternal. That the real man, the true, spiritual identify to each of us, includes and expresses all good.

Christian Science gives seven synonymous terms for God: Life. Truth. Love. Spirit. Soul. Mind. Principle. "Man," in Mrs. Eddy's words, "is the expression of God's being." n3

n3 Science and Health,m p. 470.

Man's true identity, then expresses the intelligence and vitality of Mind. The order, perfection, and harmony of Principle. The integrity of Truth.

As "the expression of God's being," true identity shows the grace of Soul, the substance of Spirit, the joy and spontaneity of Life. Man as divine Love's reflection is loving and loved. He is eternally satisfied. Forever complete.

You may be thinking: This all sounds quite lovely, but what about this mortal self I call "me"? I can't believe its perfect, sinless, vital. Well, that mortal self is not the true identity of any of us. It is, rather, a misconception of selfhood. It must be put off, denied.

Christ Jesus said, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself . . ." n4

n4 Matthew 16:24.

Human nature tends to indulge or condemn this false sense of self. It justifies it. It resents it. It sometimes worships it and frequently fears it. But Jesus' instructions are unmistakable: Deny it!

So whatever "the false testimony of the physical senses" may be arguing to you concerning your identity, stop agreeing. Deny it. Reverse it. Accept the truth about yourself. Accept the fundamental spiritual fact of your being -- that you are in reality the beloved child of your Father-mother God.

When you do this, you will have taken a major step toward solving the greatest identity crisis of them all. And you will find much more than just a slip of paper. You'll find the real you!