Of Termites and Treasure

PERSIS E. ZUBER

Living in gold country, one can find himself bent double scanning the ground in hopes of a "lucky" find. But there is greater treasure to be found when thought is raised up to a higher, more spiritual level. And neither chance nor luck is involved in bringing it to light. Isaiah tells us, "I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the Lord, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel."^{Isa. 45:3;}

This promise was fulfilled, greatly enriching our little church. Shortly after a promising beginning, our new Christian Science Society had troubles. From outside the building nothing seemed amiss. But services were poorly attended and membership was falling off. For the remaining few members it was a time of total dedication, perseverance, and hard work, but not without periods of discouragement.

Mrs. Eddy tells us in the Christian Science textbook, "Working and praying with true motives, your Father will open the way."^{Science and Health, p. 326;} While this assurance was fresh in my thought one day, I overturned an old log in the forest. What an unexpected sight! Untold numbers of busy white ants had hollowed out all but the shell. Yet on the surface there had been no hint of the activity below. Then, after only a few moments in the bright sunlight, the ants simply melted away, vanished!