Christ Jesus’ ministry illustrates forgiveness and unconditional love, and as I prayed one day to understand Christly love, I found an opportunity to express this love myself. I was putting on eyeliner one morning and noticed that one eye was tender. I began to pray immediately and affirm that all was well.
Later that day I realized there was something in my eye, so I tried to flush it out with water. Glancing in a makeup mirror that magnifies, I saw a large bump on the corner of my eye. “What is that?” I wondered. But then a clear spiritual intuition came to “magnify the Lord” (Psalms 34:3). I knew that meant turning thought away from the body, toward Spirit, God.
I put down the mirror and went to my office, picked up my Bible, and opened it at random to Jesus’ words in Matthew 7:5: “Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.” I recalled that I was annoyed with a friend who had said some unkind things. It was obvious that this irritation of mortal mind was presenting itself as an irritated eye.
As I prayed about this situation, the thought came, “Cast the beam out of your own eye so that you can see the ‘gentle beam of living Love’ ” (Mary Baker Eddy, “Christmas Morn,” Poems, p. 29). My prayer was brief but heartfelt as I strove to cast out negative thoughts of hurt, anger, or judgment, and to behold instead the perfect man whom God created.
All irritation melted away in that instant, and I was completely at peace. I felt I was seeing things as God sees them—totally good and harmonious. I went on with my day and noticed hours later that the swelling on my eye was completely gone. A few days later my friend called, and our conversation was genuinely cordial, with no hint of the previous anger and hurt. I was so grateful for this quick healing. Christian Science has taught me to turn to God for everything.
