Man Lives By Divine Decree

THERE are appraisers for every known commodity in the financial world, yet not one is qualified to assess the worth of a single life. No one, that is, except God. To Him all His children are infinitely valuable, infinitely precious. Unfortunately, some people sell themselves short and fail to recognize that God's unchanging love for His children includes them right now. As a result, suicide brings a premature end to all too many promising lives and settles a burden of untold anguish on loved ones left behind. Often individuals look on suicide as an escape from an overwhelming sense of helplessness. Accompanying this sense of helplessness is a deep frustration with their own inability to cope. In this emotional turmoil their perspective becomes distorted and, sadly, they view suicide as their only way out.

There is a better way. Instead of ``taking your life'' by dropping the final curtain with a tragic note of despair, take control of your life by turning to God in prayer. In the Bible the earnest seeker will find Christ Jesus' words tenderly reaching him and piercing through the deepest depression with shafts of spiritual light that show God's help is always present.

In the Gospel of John, for example, Jesus speaks of his followers as his sheep. Referring to them he says, ``I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly'' (10:10). This more abundant sense of life in our Father's care can be found right here and right now. Throughout his life, Christ Jesus spoke of his sonship with God and stressed to his followers that they, too, were the children of God.

The Discoverer of Christian Science, Mary Baker Eddy, explains this relationship of God to man throughout her book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. In one place she writes, ``Man is the expression of God's being'' (p. 470). God is Life itself. God, Life, manifests Himself as the spontaneity of Love, the vigor of Spirit, and the beauty and holiness of Soul.

Each of us is uniquely individual and absolutely essential. No human measurements can calculate the worth of that which expresses God's very being. Each of us lives by divine authority. And our spiritual selfhood is perfect and indestructible.

The following verse from a hymn in the Christian Science Hymnal (No. 324) offers a prayer that has helped me when I have found myself struggling with hopelessness:

Take my life, and let it be

Consecrated, Lord, to Thee.

Take my moments and my days,

Let them flow in ceaseless praise.

Take my hands, and let them move

At the impulse of Thy love.

The heavy weight of personal responsibility lifts off our shoulders as we commit our moments and days to learning more about God, about Life itself. As we place our lives in His hands and trust Him, our true Parent, we are freed from confusion, depression, and emotional turmoil. Seemingly hopeless circumstances give way to new solutions. And we find our lives showing promise of rich fulfillment and lasting purpose.

As our understanding of our true identity as God's expression of Himself becomes clearer to us, we find ourselves letting God take our lives to use in ways we never before dreamed of, to express more of His wisdom, beauty, and grandeur.

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