We all need a sense of safety, a feeling of peace, about where we live. Yet sometimes we find ourselves in situations where circumstances apparently beyond our control threaten our well-being and that of our family.

A few years ago some new neighbors moved into the apartment block where I had lived for over twenty years. Their way of life was very different from mine. Their "day" extended far into the night, and my day started very early in the morning. So I was getting very little peace and rest. On top of this, the newcomers seemed to be outspokenly antagonistic toward me and the work I was doing. Although I'd tried to be neighborly, their attitude soon turned into verbal abuse, and even my visitors were subjected to foul language and ridicule.

At first I felt angry and resentful. But as a Christian I knew I needed as always to obey Christ Jesus' command—in this case quite literally to "love my neighbors." Over a period of several months there was some improvement in the situation. I made progress in obeying Christ's command. And I also became assured about the inviolability of my home. My prayer in regard to the situation showed me that my safety and my home were to be found in a stronger trust in God's care.

I woke up one morning with a passage from the Bible ringing in my ears. I looked it up in the book of Samuel and found it was the message Abigail had given to David when she set out fearlessly to meet him and his armed men to prevent them from marching on Nabal, her husband. Nabal's provocative response to David's neighborly greeting of peace and prosperity had roused David's anger. But Abigail, a woman of understanding and good sense, recognizing David's spiritual integrity and obedience to God, reasoned with him, and prevented him from doing any harm.

She said: "The Lord will certainly make my lord a sure house; because my lord fighteth the battles of the Lord, and evil hath not been found in thee all thy days ... The soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with the Lord thy God." ^{I Sam. 25:28, 29.} This story showed me that when we are faithfully serving God's purpose, we can expect His protection at all times. While we can't outline exactly how this will be realized in a given situation, we can trust that our prayer will bring a transformation of thought. Perhaps we'll see a change in our neighbors' behavior as well as our own, or perhaps we'll see a different kind of solution.

In this case as I prayed and gained the assurance of God's ever-available care, any remaining sense of animosity toward my neighbors fell away. It also became clear that in this particular instance it was right for me to look for a new place to live.

Within a very short time I had made all the arrangements and found a new apartment nearby, which suited my needs in every way. What's more, the house I was moving into had just been renovated and modernized, so I and all my new neighbors settled in at the same time. We soon became firm friends, helping each other in many little ways; and we have established a wonderful sense of "family" over the intervening years. (And the woman who took my former apartment told me she was delighted with her new home too!)

Christ Jesus' teaching and example showed people how to love their enemies. He displayed the equanimity of the Christ throughout his ministry and especially when the hatred of truth reached its climax at the time of his trial and crucifixion.

When the servants of the high priest came to take Jesus, one of the disciples drew his sword and attacked one of the men, cutting off his ear. Immediately Jesus rebuked this display of anger; and he touched the man's ear and healed him. ^{See Luke 22:50, 51 .} Surely this was a potent demonstration of Christly compassion and forgiveness in the face of enmity's provocation.

Indeed it was the depth of his own expression of God's love that carried Jesus through the dark vestibule of the crucifixion to the glory of the resurrection. The Christ literally vanquished hate and all its effects and triumphed over death. The crown of thorns was replaced by the diadem of Love.

Mrs. Eddy, who discovered the Science of Christianity, reiterates the Master's teaching on the subject of loving our enemies. In an article entitled "Love Your Enemies" she states: "Simply count your enemy to be that which defiles, defaces, and dethrones the Christ-image that you should reflect. Whatever purifies, sanctifies, and consecrates human life, is not an enemy, however much we suffer in the process." ^{Miscellaneous Writings, p. 8.}

We learn in Christian Science that the enemy we combat is not actually some person or thing "out there." And we don't need to be afraid that it's somehow "in here" either, residing in our own thinking. We can confront any suggestion of animosity as an imposition—a lie about God's man. In attempting to defend ourselves against harsh circumstances, we may at first think of building barriers around ourselves; then it may be hard to find our own way through this stockade. But as we learn that nothing can truly separate us or others from God's care, we gain a sense of inclusive love. The result is that we enlarge rather than constrict our sense of friendship and family.

By exercising the Christly qualities of compassion, forgiveness, and generosity of spirit, we reach the assurance that comes from the recognition that as children of God, we truly have no enemies. For we are in reality all members of one harmonious family, where divine Love prevails.

When we allow the spirit of Christ to govern our lives, we feel the peace and security that come from finding ourselves indissolubly "bound in the bundle of life with the Lord thy God." And this is true freedom.

Ann Kenrick