God Will Take Care of It
[Of Special Interest to Children]
Little Rick was playing with his toys when suddenly he hit his thumb with a hammer. A startled cry brought his mother running, but before she could reach him she heard him say: "God will take care of it. Error can't use me. Error can't use mother, either; we don't want any old error around this neighborhood." By this time Rick's mother was by his side and talked to him about God, and the accident was quickly crowded out of thought.
Now Rick is a little fellow, less than three years old, and he does not know many big words; so it was surprising to hear him use the word "neighborhood." But it can be seen how all-including was the thought which had healed him so quickly. He first declared God's care of him, the loving, tender, guiding presence upon which we can always depend. Then he not only freed himself from the belief that error had the power to use him, but protected himself when he declared that error could not use his mother (through her anxiety for him), and he protected others when he did not "want any old error around this neighborhood."
Of course the little fellow did not stop to reason this out. He simply voiced what came to him. The great prophet Jeremiah said: "Ah, Lord God! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child. But the Lord said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.... Then the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth." Jeremiah was obedient, and went forth with faith in God, and did what God told him to do.
It should not be hard for us to speak as God commands, to tell of good, to say some of the great, yet simple truths we have learned through our study of Christian Science. Let us all be willing soldiers of our Father-Mother God, eager to serve and to be obedient; then we shall be worthy to be called His children.
It is not necessarily difficult to use what we have learned of the Christ, Truth, and the more we use it the easier it becomes. When we are studying music, or learning to play tennis or baseball, we must practice and then practice some more, until what we are trying to do becomes a real joy. Exactly the same method applies to Christian Science. The more we use the facts we have learned in Sunday school or in our study of the Lesson-Sermon in the Christian Science Quarterly, the simpler we shall find it to prove Christian Science. The more we love, the more love we shall see around us, and the more love will be given us.
Little Rick was taught very early to be kind and loving to his playmates, to animals, and even to his toys, and one day he proved that he knew how to put into practice what he knew of divine Love. There was a dog in the next dooryard called Blackie. Everyone believed that he did not like children, for he often snapped at them. Rick had watched him do this with other children, but fear could not keep him and Blackie apart; so he started toward the dog, saying, "Rick loves Blackie, and Blackie loves Rick." He said this over and over, as though convincing himself of the very presence and power of Love. The dog, instead of snapping at the little outstretched hand, caressed it, and so the boy and dog became good friends.
Here we give a simple proof of how a little child, who has had the example of loving Christian Science surroundings, could experience healing perfectly and quickly because of his understanding of Love's presence. When Blackie had a bad cut on his back, Rick was found in the driveway with him, carefully repeating the first verse of the lovely poem Mary Baker Eddy wrote for us, beginning (Poems, p. 14), "Shepherd, show me how to go." He had learned only the first verse, but he was using it, and after each line Blackie would get a friendly pat on his head, as much as to say, Everything is all right. And Blackie was all right, for angel thoughts do heal.
We can all thank God that Mrs. Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, had such faith in God that she could understand the clear message of Truth and Love which He gave her and give it to the whole world. More than once in her writings she has quoted the words, "A little child shall lead them." She saw the important place all children hold in the world, and how much their pure thought is needed. In "The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany" (p. 113) she says, "A child will demonstrate Christian Science and have a clear perception of it."
Yes, Mrs. Eddy knew that "God will take care of it." It makes no difference where the problem may be, whether in the schoolroom, in the playgrounds, at camp, or at home. She knew it because she had proved it so many times in her own life. Her love for children was so great that she gave them a special gift one New Year's Day, which appears in "Miscellaneous Writings" (p. 400). It was the verse for the little children:
"Father-Mother God,
Loving me,—
Guard me when I sleep;
Guide my little feet
Up to Thee."
