“It was a dark and stormy night” . . . literally. I was a college student camping in the Lake District of Northern England with a friend. The sun was setting, and a storm was coming in. We had been out hiking in the woods around a lake. As rain started falling, we headed back toward our campsite, but the farther we walked and the more turns we took, the more disoriented we grew as night fell. 

It was a time before cellphones or GPS. We were both Christian Scientists, used to turning to God in prayer. I remembered a simple childhood prayer: “Wherever I am, God is. Since this is so, there is no safer place than where I go.” 

My friend and I came to a road. A few cars and trucks passed by as the rain poured down. It wasn’t safe wandering in the dark, so we decided to hitch a ride in what we thought was the direction of the campsite, but we ended up heading in the opposite direction.

In Sunday School we’d learned from the Bible about individuals who’d reached out to God, divine Love, for guidance and safety. Examples included Moses, who led the children of Israel through the wilderness, and Joseph, who was sold into slavery and went through many trials, yet always relied on God and eventually saved the whole region from famine. And we’d read in the New Testament of Christ Jesus and the times he calmed storms and passed through an angry crowd unharmed.

That night, the thoughts we needed didn’t come as a rehearsal of Sunday School lessons, but rather as the trusted assurance that we, too, were cared for and could not be outside of divine Love’s domain. I think we felt something of what Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer of Christian Science, described in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures: “The depth, breadth, height, might, majesty, and glory of infinite Love fill all space. That is enough!” (p. 520) 

Thinking back on this now, especially as a parent, I am struck by the divine protection that embraced us as we took rides from two truck drivers and ended up sleeping in a garage that served as a way station for truckers. The fact that we were prayerfully alert and expectant of good enabled us to communicate without fear and with genuine gratitude to those we met. And they responded by helping us. The truckers gave us hot tea and the back seats of cars to sleep in and the next morning helped us find our campsite. 

In the world today, when refugees from wars or famine or weather are caught without homes, unsure of where the road is that will lead to their safety and security, I find myself remembering this incident of many years ago. My story may be small in contrast, and yet the governing Principle my friend and I relied on as young women is present to help now, even as it was in biblical times. God’s omnipresence, Love’s all-embracing care, the divine Mind’s direction, are at hand to bring comfort and release from fear and to open the way even in the most challenging circumstances.

Jeremiah the prophet assured those whom King Nebuchadnezzar had taken captive from Jerusalem, “I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end” (Jeremiah 29:11). The promise was kept when the people were eventually able to return to their land.

Generosity from others can appear at times and in places least expected. For instance, we see this illustrated in the Bible story of a woman from Shunem who provided the prophet Elisha a room and food whenever he came to her community; she perceived his goodness (see II Kings 4:8–10). 

A deep conviction of the goodness of others, paired with spiritual discernment, is the fruit of spiritual thinking and is possible because of the goodness of God, Spirit, which we all include. If we get lost along the way in life, turn left instead of right, or get stuck in a rut, the wisdom and grace we need to go forward we find at hand when we turn to God.

Sometimes fear tries to derail us—fear of harm or of not having adequate housing; fear of disease, deprivation, age; fear manifested as apathy or depression. While fear can seem to obscure the ideas we need, thought receptive to God’s goodness discerns answers. Science and Health states: “From beginning to end, the Scriptures are full of accounts of the triumph of Spirit, Mind, over matter. Moses proved the power of Mind by what men called miracles; so did Joshua, Elijah, and Elisha. The Christian era was ushered in with signs and wonders” (p. 139). Elijah fled to the wilderness when Queen Jezebel sought to kill him, and he resigned himself to die there. But “an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat,” and he continued on his way in safety, realizing God’s power and care as never before (see I Kings 19:1–12).

If there is an unexpected detour on our journeys, we can be assured that by relying on God, divine Love, we will be lifted up so we can purposefully continue on our path Spiritward.