Accept certainty, not chance

To accept that good fortune can have a place in our lives is to accept that bad luck can also have a place. This belief in chance, either good or bad, is a type of mental blinker that hinders us from finding a solid basis on which to build happy and confident lives.

On what, then, can we depend?

Christ Jesus showed by his example that God's law can always be depended on with absolute certainty. Whether he was passing unscathed through an angry mob, calming a storm at sea, feeding a multitude, or healing the sick, he proved the efficacy of divine law to heal and save. Every phase of Jesus' experience illustrated his complete certainty that God alone, good alone, governs man.

Those who want to attain something of the dominion that Jesus always displayed love to study the Gospels, where his example is recorded for us. Through this study we learn that the Master's wonderful certainty of good came directly from God. ''The Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works,'' n1 Jesus said. Also, ''With God all things are possible.'' n2

n1 John 14:10.

n2 Matthew 19:26.

Because, as the Bible teaches, there is only one infinite, all-powerful God, all true law must and can only come from God, Spirit, not matter. And because man is the offspring of God, in truth he is always governed by divine law. What are termed material laws - laws of disease, chance, and so forth - may appear to be very real and powerful. But if they're not the product of God, of good, they have no eternal divine Principle behind them. Real law emanates from Principle, from divine Spirit, and therefore must be spiritual. Being spiritual, it can never be destroyed, never fluctuate. It is eternal, infinite, always present and perfectly effective. It does not include an iota of chance, is not haphazard, inconsequential. It is completely dependable, entirely good, and, above all, it is the law of perfect divine Love. This law could not permit even the tiniest element of misfortune.

The fact that this law of God is spiritual and perfect doesn't mean it is far removed from our everyday needs. On the contrary, it cares for them. The understanding that our real being is always under the control of God's perfect law, far from cutting us off from Him, places us clearly under His government. When we align our thoughts and lives with divine law, we are kept on a safe and balanced course amid the sometimes startling challenges of material law. As Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, writes, ''Be allied to the deific power, and all that is good will aid your journey, as the stars in their courses fought against Sisera.'' n3 When we do this, we begin to see that chance is no more than a false view of law.

n3 Unity of Good, p. 17.

I had proof of God's law in action when I was cycling along a country road hitherto unknown to me. I came to an unexpected decline and began descending. Within a few seconds my bicycle was out of control; the brakes were not working, and there appeared to be nothing I could do to keep myself from hurtling down a very steep hill. However, I could and did turn immediately to God with all my heart, and I felt God's loving presence with me. I saw a small lane on the opposite side of the road, leading uphill. I swerved safely across the road, and the bicycle eventually came to a standstill near the top of that small lane. No one could have been more grateful and more aware of God's law of infinite good than I was at that moment.

Some months later I traveled by car up and down the main road, but could not see that small uphill lane. I concluded that the lane had been at such an angle to the road that in ordinary circumstances it was very difficult to notice. God, however, had opened my eyes to see it in that moment of need. I knew that His law of perfect control had certainly been applied to this situation, superseding the belief in chance. My certainty of God's loving presence and direction had kept me safe, and this same divine power is available for each of us to call upon. Our well-being is a matter of divine law, not chance. DAILY BIBLE VERSE The Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he will save us. Isaiah 33:22