RELATIONSHIPS December 10, 2007 Issue

RELATING TO GOD'S VIEW MENDS MORE THAN FRIENDSHIPS

VALERIE MINARD

Getting Along with Others can be difficult when you feel unappreciated or disrespected. And if allowed to take over, resentment can sour and even destroy a friendship. I've learned from experience that the path to a happy resolution is smoother when I look to God for answers. Doing so has brought me unexpected benefits. I've seen that my real need is to look for the ways we're all related to God, rather than indulge in a "he said, she said" kind of thinking.

This lesson was brought home to me a few years ago. I'd felt taken advantage of—and, yes, unappreciated—in a particular friendship. But from what I'd learned in Christian Science, I realized that instead of thinking someone else should change, I should go to God for direction.

As I prayed, my answer came from the Bible story of the prodigal son, in which Jesus tells about two brothers. The younger son asks for his inheritance, and his father readily agrees, despite the request being a grave insult in that day and culture. Then, the son goes far away, spends recklessly, and is soon left with nothing. Near starvation, he thinks about the abundance at home and, with deep humility, returns. His father welcomes him with open arms and lavishly celebrates his return. The elder brother complains that although he's been faithful and hardworking, there's never been a party for him. But the father says, "Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine" (Luke 15:31).

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