Traveling presents a wide spectrum of opportunities—some of them expected, some not. When I go out on a lecture tour, I use a concept that has proven most useful to me over the years. It’s a phrase that comes from a discussion Jesus had about John the Baptist. Jesus queried the multitude about their perspective, “What went ye out for to see?” (Matt. 11:8). Many had gone out to the Jordan valley to observe John. In a sense Jesus was inviting them to move beyond common intentions and seek the higher motive and purpose of their journey. They weren’t just to go out and engage a personality or an event; they were to go out and see the divine purpose at hand.
So how does that translate into our journeys? It’s pretty common to think of traveling as engaging people, places, and events—maybe even to find some adventure. That’s a good start, but I’ve found there’s more to be explored than just what’s on the surface, what’s obvious. It’s a process that Mary Baker Eddy terms “scientific translation” or finding the spiritual fact or reality behind whatever the physical senses behold. What I like to do is ask the question about anything I encounter, “How does God see this?” And then listen. Sometimes it’s easy to see the spiritual fact in our presence because what is before us might be pleasant and enjoyable; it’s not too hard to see the spiritual qualities behind those evidences. For instance one can appreciate the spiritual qualities of love and understanding when you see people helping each other or maybe the grandeur of beauty and order in a scenic outlook.
But sometimes it’s not so easy. Once in a while you encounter something that isn’t so pleasant, like a disagreement, a flight delay, a poverty-stricken community. So how does God see that? That’s where scientific translation takes a bit of a different tack. Through the process of inversion one can see just the opposite of whatever is presented. Instead of dwelling on the disagreement, for instance, one can invert that picture and see in its place, through a spiritual perspective, the harmony of ideas being governed by their divine Principle. And the result of doing that? Well, it’s more than just setting your thought at ease; it can provide the catalyst to change that human appearance into more constructive results.
