Good purpose for all ... even mosquitoes?
A quick glance at the news presents plenty of evidence of situations where one person feels they need to harm another to get good for themselves. It could involve tyranny and violence surrounding elections, communal disobedience of laws, or individual corruption or bullying. It might even be as simple as accepting the concept of pesky mosquitoes that seem to survive by living off others. Recently, I went for an early morning hike in a nearby forest. I had planned on stopping periodically to read and then, while walking, to pray and reflect. But as I got deeper into the woods, the mosquitoes and flies were biting regularly. My breaks got shorter, and the walk was less peaceful.
I decided to address this situation prayerfully. My first thought was a quote from Mary Baker Eddy’s book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures that points out all of God’s creation is “harmless, useful, indestructible” (p. 514 ). I feel this passage expounds on the creation story in the first chapter of Genesis, which declares God’s affirmation of all of His creation as good (verse 31 ). To be honest I wasn’t so much interested in the mosquitoes being “indestructible,” I just wanted them to be “harmless”!
As I prayed more, it became clear I had to address the mistaken idea that I, as a child of God, was mortal and susceptible to harm. The world’s perspective presents decay and weakness and vulnerability as a natural part of life. However, the Bible contains various accounts of the good news that Jesus freed himself and others from these mortal limitations. And I feel that, as a child of God and a “joint-heir[s] with Christ” (see Romans 8:16, 17 ), only my Creator could bear witness to who I truly am.
I was also inspired to look within my own consciousness and see if I was harboring any tendency to oppress or harm others to get what I wanted. If I was being faithful to the idea that God is good and with me always, I would not need to take something from anyone else, force them to do something, or harm them to protect what I had.
I realized I was not looking to get a bad mosquito to become a good mosquito. Instead I wanted to understand how each of God’s ideas uniquely blesses others. What really brought a sense of peace and light to my prayer was the idea that both the mosquito and I had to be a blessing to each other. I saw this not so much in terms of two different vulnerable things trying to get along, but more along the lines of what must be spiritually true about God’s intelligent, purposeful, harmonious creation.
By this point I had forgotten about the mosquitoes and was happy to recognize I hadn’t been bothered for a while. Actually there was not a mosquito in sight. And this was at the swampiest part of the trail. The rest of the hike was much more peaceful. Since the day of this hike, I have had run-ins with a few mosquitoes and have found realigning my thought with the truth about God’s blessed ideas makes a difference.
What I have really appreciated about this experience is the proof, however small, that God is present and that His care for creation can be experienced. God’s care includes proper government of each idea. God’s ideas are spiritually created, and, as such, they naturally bless each other. This is helping me reject the temptation to believe that I, or others, am liable to cause others harm in pursuit of well-being. These temptations can be met prayerfully, starting with the idea that spiritual purpose and progress is the plan for all.
