A feast from the Father
Mary Baker Eddy’s words, “Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need” (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 494 ), are seen on the walls of many Christian Science churches. From my early experiences in a Christian Science Sunday School and church, I was used to seeing this phrase regularly—it was one of my favorite passages. I liked the idea of God, divine Love, meeting our needs, and that there is no separation between God and His image and likeness, man. Even though circumstances may sometimes make us feel cut off from divine Love’s care, Mrs. Eddy’s statement assures us that, no matter what, we can always humbly turn to God and discover harmonious solutions.
Christ Jesus gave a great example of God’s tender, immediate care when he fed thousands of people, despite having been told moments before by his disciples that they had on hand only seven loaves of bread “and a few little fishes” (see Matthew 15:32–38 ). Right where lack of provisions seemed to be, Jesus acknowledged God’s ever-constant care for all and was grateful for it. Mrs. Eddy defines Christ as “the divine manifestation of God, which comes to the flesh to destroy incarnate error” (Science and Health, p. 583 ). The Christ is always showing us God’s loving care by removing the error of believing that we can lack anything from our Father-Mother, God, replacing this false belief with beautiful, harmonious ideas of divine Love, which unfold perfect harmony in our experience.
This was made plain to me many years ago when I was working at a Christian Science nursing facility. My pay at the time was very modest, and I was living paycheck to paycheck. I carefully planned a budget and ensured that each month I stayed strictly within that budget. This all worked fine until one day when my car broke down and it needed expensive repairs. All my careful spending and budgeting were useless in light of this situation. I had to have the car in order to get to work, so going without was not an option. I went ahead with the car repairs but had to use all my available money to do so.
When I went home with my newly repaired car, I realized there wouldn’t be enough food to last until my next paycheck, which wouldn’t come for another week and a half. I tried to devise a plan to get myself out of this situation, such as calling family members who might be able to help, but those family members who had money to spare were in Europe at the time and were unreachable. My thoughts continued to race with possible solutions, and I was determined that one of them would work out. I pondered asking my co-workers for a loan, but I wasn’t sure how I could ever repay them since I was living paycheck to paycheck. It seemed wrong to ask them to give me their hard-earned money without any guarantee that I could pay them back.
As I looked around the kitchen, all that was left was one more serving of oatmeal and a bottle of ketchup, and no amount of rationing could make that last one and a half weeks! My mind went round and round, trying to find an answer, but none came.
I then humbly prayed with an open heart to God. I put all human will, outlining, planning, and reasoning out of my thought and asked God for help. I was reminded of Mrs. Eddy’s statement about divine Love meeting every need. I clung to that idea. Even though there was no evidence in front of my eyes at that moment that my needs would be met, I kept affirming in prayer the statement as I went to bed that night. When fear tried to overwhelm me, I declared the statement louder, sometimes in thought and other times out loud.
God does meet our human needs in a tangible way.
The next morning when I went into the kitchen, the fear again tried to take hold as I wondered what I would do for lunch and dinner. There was enough oatmeal for breakfast, but that was it. I thought of Jesus being grateful to God before feeding the multitude, and so I, too, mentally worked to be grateful to God right there in the face of imminent lack. I was very grateful at that moment to have enough food for breakfast. When I drove to work later that morning, I was grateful for the car that was now working and was safe to drive. At work I was grateful that I had a job, where I could express my God-given talents. Everywhere I could I expressed gratitude.
Then late in the morning the cook at the Christian Science nursing facility came from the kitchen saying that the previous night she had made a feast for the patients and that she now had lots of leftovers for anyone who was interested in having them for lunch. My heart leaped! I had a lunch that was literally a feast. I was so grateful for God’s provision.
After work as I drove home, fear tried to creep in, but again I humbly focused on how grateful I was for the care already given to me that day. I continued to let God reveal the next step to me. I kept doubt, foreboding ruminations, and personal opinions out of my thought.
When I arrived home, I checked my mailbox, and there in the mail was a check. It was for an article I had written a couple of years prior (and had totally forgotten about) that was going to be published. The amount of the check was enough to provide plenty of food until the next payday. Needless to say, I rejoiced all the way to the bank and the grocery store.
This experience taught me that God does meet our human needs in a tangible way. He always has the perfect solution. Mrs. Eddy says in Science and Health, “Soul has infinite resources with which to bless mankind …” (p. 60 ). There are infinite ways for divine Love to show its mothering care for each one of us. After this experience, while I continued to live paycheck to paycheck, there was always enough money to provide for my needs. Later at Christmas I received checks from family members, making it possible to have a financial cushion until I moved on to higher-paying jobs.
Through the years, this experience has been a wonderful foundation for continued progress in overcoming financial difficulties. God’s provision has helped me see that all of us are in His constant care right here, right now, and that God’s provision for us is a feast!