Living in God’s Creation

The idea of age and time came to me while trying to decide what to write about next. As we reach our senior years, a lot of us think that our time is coming to an end. Not so! If we accept that into our thought, then we are subject to all that it includes. I do not want to go there.

I have learned that what we see with our physical eyes is not all there is to see. The word discernment has to do with our view of life. It is an important word to understand, as it is about understanding, judgment, and insight. It means to see or understand the difference between two things, such as good and evil, or our mortal life and our immortal life, as the spiritual image and likeness of God. God’s creation is infinite and timeless.

Things such as keeping track of age and material history are irrelevant in God’s creation. Our history is so much more than age and how we identify ourselves as human beings. Our true identity as a reflection of God is beyond measurement or description; it transcends time and space. 

When we measure and limit ourselves based on the material evidence, we get trapped in all the doubts and fears that go along with it. We believe we are separated from all the good that is in God’s creation.

There are many daily reminders that numerical age describes and delimits our life. When I went beyond human age and time, and align myself with God, despite material sense evidence, I reaped the reward.

Several years ago, faced with a life-threating condition, my daughter took me to the emergency room at the closest hospital where the doctor told her that if this were not taken care of, I would not live. I refused to listen to such predictions because I knew that God was the source of my life. But I had agreed to let her take care of my body while I took care of my thought. They said this was a rare and unusual condition, and they rushed me to another hospital where they surgically remove a blockage. But they were unable to remove the source of the problem, as they said it would be too risky, as it was stuck to other organs and might damage them.

All the time, this was going on, not once did I fear for my life. I knew I was spiritual, and I lived and moved and had my being in God. No matter what happened to this body, it didn’t change that. I knew I was inseparable from my source. Respecting my beliefs, my daughter always took the doctors in the hall when they were talking about my condition. I knew if I let their comments into my thought, I would have to fight to get them out and get my thought back on God.

After five weeks, they released me and said they would keep their eye on what was going on. During my regular study, I ran across a statement in Science and Health that inspired my thought and removed any negative feelings I had left. “A spiritual idea has not a single element of error, and this truth removes properly whatever is offensive.” (SH 463:12–13)

Three months after I was released, they did a scan and discovered that part of the problem had vanished, but the source of the problem was still there. Several months later, they did another scan, and the organ that was the source of the problem was no longer there, it also had vanished. It was one of those organs, in belief, that can cause you trouble, but you can live without. Go figure! So why have them? 😊

Several times while in the hospital, I did get a bit down and fought to regain my divine point of view. All through this, I did my daily study and would frequently get “blips” of understanding that would brighten my day. It took me about a year to fully recover from this ordeal. I was told at my age I may never regain my full strength. I held to the fact that the source of my strength is God, not the muscles in my body. Divine energy flows from God, not from my mortal condition or age. And guess what, I am healthier and stronger than I have ever been. By keeping a divine point of view and not wavering from it, I was blessed with demonstrating who I am as God’s reflection.

I learned through this experience that success depends on persistent effort and the improvement of moments. It has given me a sense of my divine Life. It is not constrained by age or time but is forever ageless.

This material experience has a beginning and end, and Jesus showed us that we could leave this experience by shedding our mortal body and ascending, but I don’t know anyone, in this present time, that is advanced enough in their understanding to accomplish that, but passing from this experience to the next need not be traumatic, but should be harmless and peaceful.

“For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” (Gal. 6:8)