I first felt God's protection some years ago when I was involved in an accident that could have been fatal. My sister was a new student of Christian Science, and told me that she had suddenly been impelled to turn to Science and Health at that moment, and to hold fast to the fact that God protects all. She prayed with the truths she was reading until she felt at peace.

When I arrived home, shaken but completely safe and unharmed except for a few cuts and bruises, I told my sister that it was as though I'd been embraced in God's arms. She told me about her feeling gripped by an urgent need, and how the truths she had been studying calmed and uplifted her. There were no negative aftereffects for me, and I gave God's love and care full credit for that protection.

Another experience also affirmed for me the power of God to help us. I am a farmer who cultivates strawberries on four acres of land with about 80,000 plants. During harvest season in 2003, I sold the berries to a purchaser, who took them by a refrigerated truck to sell them in a distant city.

I sent this man a bill in mid-August. When he didn't pay in a reasonable time, I became worried. It was almost the whole annual income from the crop.

During the fall, I took all the practical steps I could to try to communicate with the man, but to no avail. I then filed legal papers, at which time I found out that he was on the verge of bankruptcy. I also learned that another farmer in the area had not been paid, and that the amount due him was even greater. It seemed like a dead-end situation, in which we were the losers.

At this point, I felt I needed the certainty of God's power in my life. I called a Christian Science practitioner for help in bringing spiritual clarity to my thought, through the power of God's law. He calmed my fear, anger, and resentment.

With my thoughts turned to God, I saw that my strawberries represented my efforts to provide something of value, backed by my honesty, integrity, and reliability. I learned that divine Love, which motivates me, could not be "deprived of its manifestation, or object" (Science and Health, p. 304). I also began to think of my customer as a child of God—and to acknowledge that he was created honest, as well as grateful and dependable.

This prayerful effort took a lot of patience and trust, since the situation seemed to me to be bleak. Although time continued to pass without payment, I never gave up hope.

The first sign of encouragement came in July of the following summer. The purchaser called me on his own, expressing remorse for not having met the payment. He genuinely wanted to pay this debt. He told me he was about to sell his house.

After a period of 13 months, I did receive full payment for the strawberries, including interest. So did the other farmer. I was very grateful to have been paid for my work, and that the blessing included everyone. But more important, I had learned that God governs my business. And I am grateful that I can turn to His love to take care of my family.

PER-OLOF MELLGREN
GÄLLÖ, SWEDEN