Article July 7, 1956 Issue

"ASK ME OF THINGS TO COME"

GRACE B. LONGSTAFF

In the Old Testament there are a number of references to familiar spirits. The people of ancient times believed that there were certain persons who had fellowship with spirits or had spirits dwelling in them and that these spirits had the ability to foretell events. At one time Saul went to consult a woman at En-dor who had a familiar spirit. However, those who believed in God and had learned to depend on His direction and to let Him unfold the answer to their problems knew that to go to the necromancers and wizards was to belittle God. We find this verse in the Bible (Isa. 8:19): "When they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God?"

This passage, along with another from Isaiah (45:11), "Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands command ye me," was included in a weekly Lesson-Sermon outlined in the Christian Science Quarterly. The word "me" stood out to the writer as though it had been on an electric sign. At once she realized that we must always ask God concerning His sons and daughters. Further, the awakening came that the familiar spirit might be likened to mortal mind. The writer saw clearly that her thought needed to be turned away from mortal mind, from being tempted to believe that this so-called mind had the intelligence to provide the answer to any problem.

A physical problem had come up that morning. She had awakened with a heavy sense of burden. An overwhelming pain had seized her, and she was tempted to go to the familiar spirit, that aggressive mental suggestion, which was saying to her: "What about this? How can you carry on during the day? You are really too ill even to answer the telephone." Then the command came, in line with what had been revealed to her while she was studying the Lesson-Sermon, that she must ask God concerning the whole affair. Immediately her thought was lifted to God, and she became so absorbed in the constructive thoughts that came to her from divine Love that she was not aware of just when the pain left.

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DIVINE DEMAND
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