In every Olympics, the athletes' ability to defy limits and achieve new standards of excellence inspires people the world over. Each gold medal represents a triumph of beauty, strength, and courage. Few of us may enter an Olympics, but all of us face the multiple events and challenges of life. What will we win? The Apostle Paul puts it this way: "Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.... Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible." I Cor. 9:24, 25.
Jesus taught
his followers
to accept the Christ
as their own nature.
The race he referred to is the triumph over our limitations, a victory we can achieve through Christ. The Christ, which is still with us today, was the spiritual identity of Jesus that gave him absolute power to calm storms, heal the sick, and even revive the dead. Jesus taught his followers, including those who follow him today, to accept the Christ as their own nature derived from God, and to begin to prove it in their lives. This prepares one for the bigger challenges that come along.
Mary Baker Eddy emphasized this idea of rigorous spiritual discipline, when she wrote: "There is no excellence without labor; and the time to work, is now. Only by persistent, unremitting, straight-forward toil; by turning neither to the right nor to the left, seeking no other pursuit or pleasure than that which cometh from God, can you win and wear the crown of the faithful." Miscellaneous Writings, p. 340.
I found myself engaging in this kind of mental regimen at the same time that the 2000 Olympics in Sydney were held. I had been experiencing a severe skin irritation on my right hand and a painful and immobile right shoulder. The pain, discomfort, unsightliness, inconvenience culminated during a very demanding business event—a weekend-long activity where I needed free and unrestrained use of both hands and shoulders. I had to lift heavy objects, move items, shake hands with clients, and be active the entire time. I didn't think there was any way I could fulfill all these tasks with these problems.
I removed
self-doubt by
turning to God.
I had been praying for many weeks about the skin condition with all the mental discipline of an athlete. I read extensively from the Bible and from the writings of Mrs. Eddy for inspiration. I set aside time to listen and respond to God's messages to me. And yet, just as the business event was about to start, instead of seeing relife in my hand, the shoulder problem appeared. I was so discouraged and filled with self-doubt that I just wanted to give up. But I knew prayer heals. I'd seen this in my own life many times, as well as in the lives of so many others. I also knew that the physical healing would follow as prayer changed the way I thought about things. So with renewed determination, I refused to give up.
It became clearer to me that I needed to accept that I am God's child, His image, not a flawed mortal trying to become better. This spiritual fact allowed me to eliminate the self-doubts that were distracting me and helped me focus on the goodness of God already present in even the tiniest things. For instance, I was so grateful for this special opportunity to work with my mom in her business. I was filled with joy in meeting old and new customers and seeing friends as they came to the event. I was thankful for in the beauty and harmony of our presentation. And every time the temptation came to look at my hands, feel the pain in my shoulder, or be discouraged, I made the choice to be grateful and loving, and to express God's grace instead. Pretty soon, this became automatic.
That evening before bed, I watched some of the Olympic coverage on TV. One of the commentators, who had won a gold medal many years before and was now an inspirational speaker, mentioned that the victories in sports, work, relationships, and life are in large part the result of overcoming self-doubt. That's what I had done—I had removed self-doubt by turning to God, just as Jesus taught us to do. The Bible says, "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." Phil, 4:13. The Christ had strengthened me. It had helped me rise above my limitations.
The next day, the last day of the business event, my hands appeared no better, and my shoulder was still painful and restricted in movement. But there had been an essential change—I had raised my consciousness to God's realm of spiritual freedom and stayed there. I was no longer giving thought or attention to the condition of my hands and shoulder. They simply couldn't bring me down. I felt at peace, confident that the physical freedom would follow. I was able to complete my work without effort or inconvenience, and without others' taking notice of either problem.
And then, I did win my gold—the next day my hands and shoulder were completely well. Healing was the natural outcome of my conscientious spiritual endeavors to win the immortal crown promised to each of us.
I have fought a good fight, I have finished my
course, I have kept the faith.
II Timothy 4:7
