Bringing out something good – together
Sometimes we may find ourselves jockeying for position or status, which can have unhappy effects. But when we start from the unifying basis of everyone’s worth as God’s offspring, this opens the door to healing and harmony – as a man experienced firsthand after a combative day at work.
Sometimes we can get haunting thoughts about how we’re positioned with respect to others. Back in my school days, I did pretty well in my studies and activities, but there was always someone who did better. And I was well aware of it!
Yet, through some authentic discovery of God’s good nature as ever-present divine Love, and of our spiritual nature as children of this Love, I found the progress that settled my struggle and brought other great benefits. And it helped me realize that this type of thing can also happen on a wider scale, wherever there seem to be fights for power, place, or resources. In God we all have a way to understand our lives and relation to one another – a spiritual way, which allows the healing that really helps things along.
I remember a time some years back when I’d had a difficult day with some coworkers. There had been a lot of clashing and jockeying going on, which had been so unpleasant that after dinner I found myself dizzy and nauseous.
I lay down and began to pray. In my prayers I gave myself over to seeing everyone in a way that was independent of the drama of the day: as children of God, the divine Love and Spirit that unites us all. Our true nature or identity is the expression of the one divine Spirit, with Godlike qualities coming forward in all of us. This goodness is deeply significant to who and what we are.
When the ancient Israelites were searching for the Promised Land, they had tough times with each other. The Bible tells that at one point, when they were complaining and infighting, doubting that they would ever get to a better spot, they were beset by hunger and thirst. Moses “prayed for the people,” and God soon spoke to Moses, “Gather the people together, and I will give them water” (Numbers 21:7, 16) The short of it was that during their journey, they then kept finding where to dig wells and how to press on for a better life.
We too are accompanied in our life journeys. In my case with the nauseousness, I had seen before how even in the midst of troubles, God is upholding our essence and our good purpose. Each of us, with an identity cared for by God, is like a light shining forth, with everything we need.
So that evening, I yearned to better understand that what really constitutes our existence are the good qualities that God is bringing forth. I committed myself to identifying with this concept of life as spiritual, not dependent on matter. And within minutes, I felt well and went on to have a productive evening. Things improved in terms of how I was relating with my colleagues, too.
Here’s a profound question to ask ourselves: What or who generates the life of each of us? Christian Science helps us know that it’s not really events around us or even our material bodies that determine our existence. Rather, it’s the universally loving God. Our purpose is expressing God’s goodness. This is what defines us.
In this way of identifying with God, with our divine Mind and the Soul of the universe, there’s no competition. We all reflect God, which comes forward in individual ways – an endless unfoldment of good activity. And as we grasp something of this, then we find ourselves in a better orbit of thinking and living – one in which we feel our worth.
Intense focus on the drama or perceived flaws of the people we’re dealing with in a situation can get to feeling really unhelpful. But we can try to understand and embrace God’s reality for us. God certainly offers us a view of life in which jealousies and jockeying for position and other inharmonies don’t have a place. And it feels like coming home. It brings the peace of knowing and fulfilling the wonderful ways that God has for us to express Him.
We’re all in essence God’s people, positioned to bring out something good together.