The divine Mind, being the infinite All, governs all by governing itself. There is really nothing outside or external to God over which He must exercise control. All real control is self-control; man, the image of Mind, reflects God's power to govern Himself. As our Leader, Mrs. Eddy, states in Science and Health, "Reflecting God's government, man is self-governed."Science and Health, p. 125. Understanding this fact is the basis for controlling our own thinking and, therefore, our experience.
From this premise, Christian Science shows that there cannot, in reality, be an uncontrolled state or an uncontrollable situation. Because man manifests or expresses the Mind that includes all within itself as ideas, he knows what he needs to know when he needs to know it. Self-control is as much a reflected quality of God as is intelligence or integrity or love. Man can never be without it.
Much human evidence argues to the contrary. People often appear to be controlled by others, by circumstances, or by events outside themselves. Mortal man's control over his reactions and emotions, over his body and its action, even over his own affairs, seems very limited. In fact, much mental depression and bodily distress is believed to arise out of a feeling of helplessness, out of the sense that one's experience, generally, has got out of control.
