When your to-do list is way too long
I was feeling stressed. I was preparing to go to a camp for Christian Scientists in the United Kingdom where I live, and it seemed as though I had 101 tasks to do. As I was walking upstairs to get a few things done, a thought came to me from that week’s Bible Lesson from the Christian Science Quarterly. The passage was from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy and it says: “Beholding the infinite tasks of truth, we pause,—wait on God. Then we push onward, until boundless thought walks enraptured, and conception unconfined is winged to reach the divine glory” (p. 323). I said to myself, “Yes, I have infinite tasks to do today!” Then, without really thinking about the true meaning of that passage, I pushed it out of thought.
A few moments later, I realized I needed to go into the loft in my house to get some things for camp. So I pulled down the ladders and climbed up. It’s a very dark space and some spots are only fixed with plasterboard, which is very weak. As I was walking around looking for things, I stood with both feet on the plasterboard and fell through the ceiling. I landed on the stairs, along with a lot of plasterboard and insulation.
I knew I would stop feeling burdened if, instead of shouldering things on my own, I paused and let God guide me through each task.
In pain and feeling panicked, I phoned my mum. The first thing she reminded me of was that I can’t fall out of God’s love, and that I am still just as much God’s perfect expression as I was five minutes ago. We talked for a little while, and I knew I needed to go back to that passage from Science and Health that had come to me earlier. The key line that struck me was “we pause,—wait on God. Then we push onward, until boundless thought walks enraptured.” To me, this meant I needed to give everything over to God, because He is all-powerful and ever present. I knew I would stop feeling burdened if, instead of shouldering things on my own, I paused and let God guide me through each task.
I decided to listen to that week’s Bible Lesson. It felt so perfect—as though it had been put together specifically for this moment in my life. When listening to another passage, “Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32), I realized it was that simple. All I needed to know was the truth about myself. I know the truth is that I am spiritual, not material, because God is Spirit and He made me in His image. I could not be impressed by or believe in anything that argued I wasn’t spiritual—such as an accident—or that suggested I wouldn’t be able to attend or enjoy camp.
Over the next two days, I kept my focus on God, divine Love, as I prayed. What helped me to do this was that I was so overjoyed by how much love I felt from friends, family, and coworkers. For example, I had asked my friend’s dad, who was a plasterer, if he could fix the broken ceiling, and he offered to fix it for next to no charge. I also felt the love and prayers of those around me and that helped, too.
I even completed all the tasks I had on my list!
By the second day after the incident, I was completely healed and free from all pain. I was able to clean things up and put the ladders away without fear or discomfort. And I even completed all the tasks I had on my list!
Camp was a huge success, and I had so much fun soaking up the atmosphere, which I knew was Love expressed.
