It was suppertime on New Year’s Eve and I had just finished preparing for my church’s Sunday service, which I was to conduct as First Reader. Suddenly, I became overwhelmed with the symptoms of vertigo. Everything seemed to be spinning around me. This was not something that had troubled me before. The sudden onset and severity of the difficulty were quite frightening. I was so unsure of my balance that I crawled to the couch because I was afraid of falling.
I called a Christian Science practitioner and asked her for Christian Science treatment. We both prayed for a few hours, but when the symptoms did not abate, I became concerned about my ability to serve at church the next morning. So I telephoned a friend to ask if she could be on call to substitute for me, if necessary. It was about ten o’clock at night when I reached her. She agreed and then asked, “Do you need someone to come and be with you?” I said I had no idea who I could ask at that late hour on New Year’s Eve. She said, “I will come.” The Christianity of her offer touched me deeply, and I gratefully accepted.
I might add at this point that it had begun to snow, the roads were slippery, and my friend lives some distance away. I began to pray for her safe travel, and as I awaited her arrival I turned wholeheartedly to God. It was then I remembered the benediction I had selected for the next day’s service: “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen” (Jude 1:24, 25).
