the hero in us all

Spiritual resource to share: humility and willingness

My son and I have just finished watching three movies recently: Hotel Rwanda, Schindler's List and The Nativity Story. And interspersed with these viewings was a neat Sunday School conversation about what it means to be a hero.

The three men in the stories actually had a lot of spiritual qualities in common: humilty, willingness, listening to that voice within that rose up against injustice, and courage. But all three men were vastly different: Paul Rusesabagina was a family man who just wanted to be a good employee, Oskar Schindler was a ladies' man and war profiteer, and Joseph was a single man soon to be married.

But each man was thrown into circumstances that changed the course of history in various degrees. Each man varied in how long it took for a transformation to take place: Joseph's was immediate after he learned of Mary's conception. Rusesabagina grew as the cirumstances grew more dire. And Schindler's transformation took well after the start of the war.

Does one have to be a certain type of person to be a hero? The profiles of these three men show that heroes aren't a certain "type."

So what does this mean about heroes and what does this mean about us?

In our Sunday School class, we talked about the nature of Truth. MBEddy writes that "....
Christian Science speedily shows Truth to be triumphant." And that Truth, expressed in integrity, honesty and a foundation of love for mankind will be expressed. It doesn't matter what kind of person we are. As a reflection of God, we already have these qualities and it is our willingness to be of help and our humility to listen that bring these qualities of a hero forth.

To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.

Fire, sub-zero weather and thought police

Spiritual resource to share: watchfulness

So here we are, my husband and I, sitting around our living room fire while outside the temperature is dropping way below zero. And we are talking about God and my healing practice. [I know it sounds so cliche - the fire, the cold and the talk about God ; ) ] I like hearing my husband's views on Christian Science. He has been practicing it now for quite a few years and has a fresh take on many of the truths that I have grown up with.

"So, what do you think happens with a practitioner and patient?" I asked, curious to hear his perspective.

"Well, a practitioner is kind of like the thought police. Not in the sense that they are going to be punitive about it, but that they help you guard your own thought; help to bring it in line with what is real."

Hmm. Neat image. Jesus has always given me the model of the most perfect and thorough healer, and I can see how Jesus helped others bring their thought in line with how God sees them. In Science and Health, Mary Baker Eddy writes,

"Jesus beheld in Science the perfect man, who appeared to him where sinning mortal man appears to mortals. In this perfect man the Saviour saw God's own likeness, and this correct view of man healed the sick."

In Jesus' healing of the leper (see other healings including the healing of sight) he touches the person. I looked up the word touch. One definition of it is "to bring to the same level of understanding."

I could see this in my healing work. When a patient calls, we connect and I work with them to awaken thought to a spiritual reality that is foundational to being - bringing thought to that level of understanding that says "You are made in the image and likeness of God, all-good, all-loving, all-embracing good."

Policing thought is another way of "...bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ." Or as Mary Baker Eddy explains it and its effects: "Stand porter at the door of thought. Admitting only such conclusions as you wish realized in bodily results, you will control yourself harmoniously."

I love the practice. I have been both a practitioner and a patient many times now. The calm, confident and comforting assurance of a practitioner helps to "police" the thought, remove the fear, while being a companion who is gently waking thought up to yield to the all might and tender love of our eternal Father, our forever Mother, God.

I know there are a lot of you healers out there! Your thoughts??

To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.