Recently I had a healing that made me want to sing praise to God. During the day, an internal pain developed, which I tolerated. But by evening, I was in so much pain that I could not continue the tasks I was doing. I realized it was time to turn away from wondering about the pain and reacting to it, and instead to turn solely to God, to the actual truth of being that Christian Science opens up for us. My husband, upon seeing my situation, immediately stopped what he was doing and began praying silently.

The moment I made a wholehearted effort to turn only to God, I felt supported with an abundance of divine ideas. These ideas came with grace and order, in a way that I could hear, accept, and act on. Many of the ideas came directly from that week’s Bible Lesson, titled “Substance.” I also remembered this guidance in Science and Health: “When the illusion of sickness or sin tempts you, cling steadfastly to God and His idea. Allow nothing but His likeness to abide in your thought” (p. 495:14–16). So, I obeyed and clung to God. I considered how God, Spirit, is the only actual substance, and that I reflect this spiritual substance as God’s likeness. I realized that I could trust that God’s goodness is the only substance, and this deflated the worry about unfamiliar pain, posing as substance.

I went through the synonyms of God and loved how they brought definition to my understanding of substance. For example, it had been tempting to wonder what was causing the pain and where it could lead, but the idea of substance as divine Principle assured me that God was steadfastly upholding me and all every moment; that the goodness, harmony, and purity of God’s substance, and therefore my substance as God’s likeness, is unbreakable law. Because divine Principle is Love, I saw that Principle upholds all Its ideas lovingly, without pain, and that this divine Love casts out fear, as the Bible declares. I realized that as Love’s likeness, I could have no fear, and that as divine Mind’s likeness, I always reflect what divine Mind is knowing about substance. None of this was an academic exercise; I was tangibly leaning on these truths and losing belief in anything that was not of God, of Principle, of Love.

The ideas that came about divine Mind and infinite Love reminded me that all of us – those in Ukraine, in Russia, in Europe, everywhere – are upheld by this same, everywhere-present Love. I recalled an article that I had read that morning titled “How Strife May Be Stilled,” which Mary Baker Eddy wrote for The Boston Globe during a time of war in 1904. She wrote, “The First Commandment…obeyed, is sufficient to still all strife” (Miscellany, p. 279:11–13). And so I strove in those moments to obey the First Commandment and have no other gods but God, but Love, Truth, Spirit.

I then listened to the recording of the Bible Lesson, which felt like a wonderful reaffirmation of all the prayers that had been coming to me. The recording ended with Hymn 470 from the Christian Science Hymnal, which begins, “Faith grasps the blessing she desires,/ Hope points the upward gaze;/ And Love, celestial Love, inspires/ The eloquence of praise,” and ends with “But God Himself does comprehend/ And answer silent prayer.” The singing of the hymn echoed exactly the way I was feeling.

I thought about the book of Psalms and how natural it is to want to sing praise to God when you have been spending time with Him and you feel His healing presence. Surely David, who wrote many Psalms, must have often felt that way, and I felt kin to David and all who praise God for His goodness. The pain, which had made every position uncomfortable, was now gone, its substancelessness proved, and what was left was holy, joyful gratitude – the real substance of being. I’m grateful for the immediacy of this healing. It’s a reminder to me that it’s really true that NOW is the accepted time.