In my first semester at theology school in the chaplain program, I felt overwhelmed at times by all the different ways in which God was presented in class and in the material we were studying. Not only did some of these views directly conflict with each other, but they were also fundamentally different from my own beliefs as a Christian Scientist. 

At the same time, I wanted to contribute in a way that would be helpful, because I felt that my understanding of my relationship with God had proved beneficial in my own life. During the semester in my papers and class discussions, I tried to bring out helpful thoughts about God and His relationship with His creation, but wasn’t sure how successfully I’d done this and how much I was accomplishing. Prayer, and study about God as divine Principle, helped free me from some of the sense of confusion. I was also grateful for insightful and inspiring thoughts other Christian Scientists shared with me. 

I could recognize that what was lifting us all up was the Christ, or God’s active message of salvation to mankind.

One afternoon over the summer, I was sitting by a lake just soaking up the scenery. I watched a bird fly low to the water. Birds expend less effort to fly close to water than ten feet above it. This is called “ground effect.” While this technique requires less effort, it does require greater attention. Slight deviations might mean taking a bath! 

As I reflected on this, a thought came that I needed to fly “near the ground.” I interpreted this to mean that I needed to be sure that what I was sharing with others was grounded in my own experiences, resulting from my understanding of the spiritual nature of man and his relationship to God. Another outcome of this inspiration was that I saw I needed to focus less on countering all the theological views that differed from my own and more on responding to the needs expressed by others—the questions beneath the questions so to speak. I didn’t have to get pulled down or distracted but could recognize that what was lifting us all up was the Christ, or God’s active message of salvation to mankind.

I’d had some great experiences through prayer in Christian Science, where physical challenges were healed, financial needs met, relationship difficulties harmonized, dangerous situations defused, through a better awareness of the divine activity of the Christ in my life. I saw that as I discerned more of what people were truly searching for, I could allow the Christ to respond to their needs, and if led to do so, I could show how I’d been benefited by sharing my healings—these testimonies were real experiences of overcoming troubled situations. 

As I started to focus more on how the thoughts that I had about my relationship with God were grounded in these experiences, I found I was having less trouble responding in my encounters with other religious perspectives. At the same time, when I talked with fellow students, I was better able to listen to the conversation and hear the needs that were being expressed—not overtly, but from the heart. This was quite a relief. Jesus said if we are “heavy laden,” we should go to him and he would give us rest. He suggested we take his “yoke”—that it’s easy and the burden is light (see Matt. 11:28–30). Jesus demonstrated the truth about man’s spiritual nature, and that God takes care of all our needs. To me, his statements are an invitation to join him in this awareness of God’s presence, and to let the Christ do the work.

Not only did my classes become more enjoyable, but several times I was able to contribute in such a way that people expressed gratitude for what I’d shared. In one instance while attending a retreat, I took part in a discussion forum where someone asked a question that I felt matched well with a healing I’d had, and I told the group about it. Again, some of the participants said that the experience had been helpful to them. 

Later, a visiting scholar who’d attended the session came up to me and reiterated what she’d said during the discussion—that she thought what I’d described was just a coincidence. She added that she knew far too many statistics to accept that prayer could change anything, and that she didn’t appreciate Christianity, because it was not scientific. That opened the way for me to deepen the discussion and to talk about the scientific approach to Christianity explained in Christian Science. At one point she said, “This is really what I’ve been looking for.” I invited her to an upcoming Christian Science lecture, which she attended. She stayed afterward and had a good talk with one of the ushers, and left with a copy of Science and Health and an article on Christian Science that had been translated into her native language. 

I still have plenty of opportunities to be a better listener. But I’m grateful to have found that the journey is easier the more I respond with a spiritual outlook proven in experience.