Editorial December 26, 1983 Issue

We can remove fear's "mountain"

WILLIAM E. MOODY

The deep desire of a Christian disciple is to do the Father's will. With unswerving fidelity and in obedience to Christ Jesus' teachings, the disciple strives to move steadily on toward the heart's final goal of full salvation. While it is undoubtedly a life of diligent effort—of working at redemption and healing, of sharing the good news with others—it is also meant to be a life full of hope, expectancy, and joy, blessed with the Father's grace.

One may find, however, that along the path Spiritward there are what could seem at times like mountains that need to be removed—perhaps disease, sin, lack, and so on. But as the path is cleared, the result is always a brighter view of the kingdom of God—a view less impeded by obstructions of materiality. The "mountains" need not be cause for discouragement or despair, for each one can provide opportunity to prove God's care, to realize the omnipresence of infinite Spirit. Removing the barriers reveals steppingstones to reality. Our apprehension of spirituality becomes more vivid. And we come closer to Almighty God by demonstrating the power of the immortal truth of man's being as His spiritual image and likeness.

One of the mountains that disciples of scientific Christianity are called upon to move—to remove out of human consciousness, out of our path Spiritward—is the mountain of fear. How do we move this apparently formidable stone heap? A pure kernel of faith in God's goodness and omnipotence is a starting point. Christ Jesus taught, "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you."^{ Matt. 17:20.} A hymn in the Christian Science Hymnal, taken from one of Charles Wesley's poems, includes these lines on faith as an active quality of Christian life: