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'Into the ark' at Christmastime
Originally appeared on spirituality.com
This is the time of year in Oregon when I can’t help but think about the Bible story of Noah’s Ark. As rain pours down day after day, having an ark doesn’t sound like such a bad idea. One December, I was reading this story and was touched by God’s invitation to Noah to “come into the ark,” along with Noah’s wife and children (see Gen. 6:18).
Noah had built the ark to God’s exact specifications. But what if he hadn’t actually ever gotten around to entering the ark? What would have been the point?
God didn’t tell Noah how to build the ark and then leave him standing next to an oversized boat in his back yard. At the right time, He graciously invited Noah inside to a place of safety. Refuge and sanctuary are often mentioned in the Bible, and bring up comforting images such as the ark.
Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, by Mary Baker Eddy, defines ark, in part, as: “Safety; the idea, or reflection, of Truth, proved to be as immortal as its Principle; the understanding of Spirit, destroying belief in matter” (p. 581).
Who wouldn’t like to be invited by divine Love into a safe place, a place of refuge when feeling flooded by pressures, obligations, fears, sickness, or even too-much-of-a-good-thing such as the holiday frenzy?
Last year around Christmas, I began to feel overwhelmed because of an overly full schedule. It included fostering a brand new infant, preparing for family gatherings, fulfilling church duties, accommodating houseguests, and doing accounting work for an elderly friend. Right before Christmas, heavy cold symptoms began to bother me. As a Christian Scientist, my first line of defense has always been prayer. So I got right on it! I was following the guidance of Jesus to enter “the closet” of prayer (see Matt. 6:6), and also thinking of something I had read in Science and Health, “The closet typifies the sanctuary of Spirit . . .” (p. 15). Prayer, for me, was like “coming into the ark.”
But the morning after Christmas, the day I was to stand up and conduct a church service as First Reader, I literally had no speaking voice. Should I call a substitute?
First, I decided to practice at home, whispering the words. I looked for inspiration in that day’s Christian Science Bible Lesson and hoped a clear answer would come after that. It did, but in the form of a question: “Can you love Me (God) enough to trust Me with the service today?” This repeated over and over in my thoughts until I could truly answer, “Yes!” It felt like I was being personally invited into the ark, the comfort and refuge of Love’s embrace. Was I willing to leave the flood of what-ifs, the worries, the anxieties, and just walk up the ramp into the ark to be buoyed up to safety? By the time I needed to leave for church, I felt significant relief of the symptoms. This improvement was encouraging, and I knew it wouldn’t be irresponsible of me to stand in front of the church to read.
What I learned that day, and in the days following as the symptoms disappeared, was that sometimes it takes courage to take those first steps toward refuge in Love, especially when God requires something from me. But I have to say that in this particular situation, I experienced a real sense of safety and refuge.
As I read in church that day, my voice became completely audible and I felt lovingly protected throughout the service.
I could get used to living in this “ark.”