All through the sacred pages of the Bible there are accounts of how those who trusted in God and listened for His voice were miraculously guided, and saved from situations that might otherwise have led to disaster. The human family has always turned intuitively to God for help when confronted with perilous circumstances.

The Psalmist, referring to the protecting and all-embracing love of God, declared (Ps. 32:7), "Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance." Often the love of God was made manifest in an angel message revealing at just the right time the essential guidance and inspiration to meet the immediate need. Hagar heard the angel of God when her son was about to die of thirst, and she immediately saw a well of water which saved him.

God-derived wisdom directed Moses to know just what to do when the children of Israel were in serious danger, and their obedience brought them through their Red Sea experience unharmed. Like Daniel, the three Hebrews were protected by the God of love, in whom they trusted implicitly. The divine influence was seen in Peter's experience when an angel appeared to him in the prison and led him to freedom. To these holy men God was not a faraway, abstract God, but a living, ever-present, all-powerful divine Principle revealing itself to spiritually enlightened consciousness as equal to every exigency. Their understanding of and obedience to divine law brought them so near to God that they communed with Him naturally.

On page 308 of the Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," Mary Baker Eddy draws attention to Love's enfolding of humanity where she says, "The Soul-inspired patriarchs heard the voice of Truth, and talked with God as consciously as man talks with man."

Many times Christians have had to make strong demands on divine Love before their freedom came. The experience of Paul and Silas, who were beaten and cast into the inner prison with their feet held fast in stocks, is a pertinent illustration. We read (Acts 16:25, 26): "At midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed."

What a lesson this mighty triumph of Paul and Silas has for students of Christian Science. Often a long-drawn-out problem is quickly solved when we turn away from it and sing hymns of gratitude and praise to infinite Love for the care and mercy shown to others as well as ourselves. Instead of harboring self-pity, impatience, or resentment, or searching too much for so-called causes of our seeming plight, we should heed the admonition of the Psalmist (Ps. 98:4), "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise."

Joy is a spiritual quality, indispensable to our spiritual progress and greatly needed in these seemingly trying times. Joy naturally finds expression through song, for singing and joy are often associated together, and there is no better harbinger of true joy and happiness than the singing of heartfelt gratitude to the Giver of all good. The Psalmist sang (Ps. 28:7), "The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him." Joy is a nonconductor of evil; it mirrors that peace of mind which is a transparency for Truth.

Among the priceless blessings that students of Christian Science possess is the Christian Science Hymnal. Its hymns are indeed "songs of deliverance." They provide wonderful opportunities to glorify God, and we cannot help being benefited by singing them. Each hymn lifts consciousness above the mists of earth, and the shadows cast by the belief in a selfhood apart from God, into the sunshine of Soul.

At a time when it seemed that I had reached an impasse in my experience, and the way, according to mortal sense, seemed very dark and rather hopeless, I decided to sing as a means of expressing my love for and gratitude to God for the truth. In the midst of performing everyday duties I sang one of Mrs. Eddy's hymns, a stanza of which reads (Poems, p. 4):

The Apostle Paul's deliverance from prison must have inspired his wise counsel to the Christians at Colossae (Col. 3:16), "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord."

The singing of hymns in our church services as provided for in the Manual of The Mother Church by Mrs. Eddy is a very important part of each service and a vital contribution to the spiritualization of the thought of the congregation. Therefore it is our privilege to enter wholeheartedly into this part of our services.

The writer recalls hearing a testimony of healing and redemption given at a testimony meeting in one of the branches of The Mother Church, The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts. This individual related that he had been in a strange city without friends and work, and while he was walking the streets his attention had been called to a Christian Science church by the congregational singing of a hymn. Attracted by the beauty of the singing and the rich organ accompaniment, he had entered the church. The joy and gratitude which inspired the singing of this group of Christian Scientists had reached beyond the walls of their edifice and spiritually awakened this weary seeker of the truth, starting him on the way of spiritual enlightenment to health and success.

How beautifully Mrs. Eddy expresses the tender, encircling love of our Father-Mother God in these words from Science and Health (p. 234): "Whatever inspires with wisdom, Truth, or Love—be it song, sermon, or Science—blesses the human family with crumbs of comfort from Christ's table, feeding the hungry and giving living waters to the thirsty."