Getting into bed one night, I was suddenly overwhelmed by excruciating pain in one foot. It was as though I had somehow crushed some bones. I wondered at first, "What caused this? I didn't hit anything with my foot. There has been no indication of a cause." I couldn't move or have anything touch my foot without a stifled exclamation of pain.
The answer to my prayer was the truth that this was actually ridiculous. I claimed aloud that there was only one cause. That cause is God. He doesn't cause pain or any other inharmony. As I have grown to understand Him through my study of Christian Science, I knew that looking for cause in matter was going to get me nowhere. It was difficult to concentrate, but reaching for God's inspiration, I thought of the Annual Meeting of The Mother Church, which I had attended a few months before. Listening for His direction, I began to be grateful for the report of this meeting as it had appeared in the Journal. Reading this, I had gained a new perspective on the dedication of those who participated.
As I lay in bed I thought, not of the content of the reports but of the willingness of each participant and of his or her desire to serve Church in whatever way was needed. With that I recognized the willingness of members everywhere to understand Church as described in Science and Health: "The structure of Truth and Love; whatever rests upon and proceeds from divine Principle." I recalled a recent visit to another part of the country, where I had been impressed with the dedication of people in serving their branch church. Examples of their selfless contributions came to thought.
