Invitations to the plain of Ono
When Nehemiah received the report of the sad state of Jerusalem, See Neh., chaps. 1–6. he determined to repair and restore the city's wall. After praying earnestly, Nehemiah approached King Artaxerxes and was given permission to undertake the restoration. During the time Nehemiah spent in Jerusalem many attempts were made by his enemies to hinder the work, by ridicule, fear, lies, and treachery; but Nehemiah refused to be distracted by any of these things. His steadfast trust in God's wisdom and supremacy enabled him to overcome all obstacles and complete the work with rejoicing.
This Bible story came to mind in an unusual way when I was struggling with life and making little actual progress. In addition, I was having a physical problem that made standing and walking very difficult. "Oh no," I thought, "how am I going to cope with my duty at the Christian Science Reading Room tomorrow?" During the next few days I started to think about how many times in the previous weeks I had reacted to situations with "Oh no!"—"Oh no, not another disaster," "Oh no, not that old problem again," "Oh no, not another demand on me when I'm up to my eyes already," and so on and so on. That was when I thought about the Bible story and the invitations Nehemiah received to meet certain of his enemies in the plain of Ono. Neh. 6:1–4. Nehemiah recognized the invitations as yet another delaying tactic on the part of his enemies, and he replied, "I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you?"
While it may not be the most original pun, the lesson was there for me just the same! It occurred to me that I had received several invitations to the "plain of Ono," but instead of rejecting them promptly as Nehemiah had done, I had accepted them and allowed myself to be pulled down from the spiritual high ground of progress. I began to see that such discord and dismay were invitations that needed to be seen for what they really were, namely, false suggestions of the carnal mind, which were attempting to hinder my spiritual progress, and which required firmly refuting and dismissing with spiritual truths.
Like Nehemiah, we, too, can turn to God, divine Mind, for the spiritual inspiration and direction that build a strong defense against any evil thought that would turn us away from our spiritual heritage as God's children. God is the source of all true thought. And He is infinite, omnipotent, and omnipresent good. How, therefore, could there be anything evil, disastrous, sick, or sinful within that infinite and ever-present good?
The Bible story kept me thinking about a play on words. It was simple in its way, but the lesson was there just the same.
The divine Mind controls and governs the universe, including man, and there is no power or presence that can actually prevent us from experiencing this divine good. Mrs. Eddy writes in Science and Health, "It is our ignorance of God, the divine Principle, which produces apparent discord, and the right understanding of Him restores harmony." Science and Health, p. 390.
I realized, then, that I needed to deal with all the suggestions of frustration and dismay that I was facing by acknowledging the supremacy of Spirit, God, and His immutable and eternal laws of good. I also needed to draw closer to God in prayer and learn more about my true spiritual selfhood. This would help me to be alert to detect any suggestion that would claim I—or anyone else—could be separated from God, divine good. As a result of this new, spiritual understanding, things began to happen. Several urgent repair jobs that needed to be done in my home were completed. And by the end of the week the physical difficulty was completely healed. I also felt a great release from despondency and the feeling of failure that had seemed to envelop me for such a long time. These were replaced by real joy and gratitude for the healing and for the forward spiritual steps that were now being made.
Accepting mortal mind's invitations to ponder, ruminate on, or go along with erroneous suggestions is never productive but tends toward procrastination and stagnation. Wasn't this one of the lessons Christ Jesus' disciples had to learn after the crucifixion when they tried perhaps to console themselves by going fishing? But they caught nothing. It was only as the light dawned and Jesus appeared on the shore and told them to "cast the net on the right side of the ship" John 21:6. that their fishing became successful. Then they joyously recognized their mission, and that their Master, Christ Jesus, had indeed overcome death and the grave.
We need to watch, too, that we don't make concessions to the beliefs that would hinder our progress toward understanding more of the life that is spiritual. The Scriptures inform us that God, Spirit, has created man in His image and likeness and given him dominion over all things. Therefore nothing can truly prevent us from beginning to prove our spiritual heritage as children of God—from growing in His grace.
Speaking of our purpose to commune with God and live rightly, Science and Health assures us: "You have begun at the numeration-table of Christian Science, and nothing but wrong intention can hinder your advancement. Working and praying with true motives, your Father will open the way. 'Who did hinder you, that ye should not obey the truth?' " Science and Health, p. 326. Nothing can really obstruct our journey Spiritward. But let's make sure we don't unwittingly accept, even temporarily, any invitations to the plain of Ono—or "Oh no!"
