Article February 4, 1980 Issue

Reading the signs

FEROL AUSTEN

The elements of nature and weather have always been greatly important to mankind. Fishermen and farmers have long had to be expert at reading the signs of impending storms and other weather conditions. Christ Jesus was well aware of this when he tried to raise people's thought to a higher, more spiritual, view. Using a familiar analogy, he said to them, "When ye see a cloud rise out of the west, straightway ye say, There cometh a shower; and so it is." And he also said, "Ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky and of the earth; but how is it that ye do not discern this time?" ^{Luke 12:54, 56;}

Are we always busy discerning "the face of the sky and of the earth," absorbed in prophesying and fearing catastrophe and disaster? Then we are failing to make the effort to see beyond material things to the wisdom and care with which God actually governs the universe. We can reject the belief that there is not enough for all. Depleting animal life, razing the earth, and limiting the quality of life are not ways to somehow better and prolong existence. Certainly we need to restrain our demands on energy that are simply for our indulgences, and we should save the wildlife and the earth from the greed and ignorance that are all part of one belief in a material universe. But at the same time, we need to understand more of our real environment. We can affirm with conviction, for example, that energy comes from God and is spiritual. Life is spiritual. And the world in its true element is not earthy nor destined for turbulence and upheaval, for it, too, is wholly spiritual.

Of far more effect upon us than any condition of nature is the perception of our spiritual environment. Reliant on the laws of God, obedient to His wisdom, and cognizant of the unchanging power and beauty of His universe, we can understand the environment of divine Love as a present reality. Such a recognition and acceptance of God's universe improves our health and deepens our happiness.

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