The events on the ninth day of December 2020 shall forever remain a treasured memory.
I was traveling from Nyeri to my hometown of Karatina in a public service vehicle when it was involved in a serious collision with a lorry that was moving in the opposite direction.
Two days before the collision I had been studying the Bible Lesson from the Christian Science Quarterly, which that week was on the subject “God the Preserver of Man.” I became inspired by a verse in the Lesson from the book of Joshua: “For the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest” (1:9). It was not a coincidence that these words came as I was about to travel, when I would most need the spiritual assurance that divine Love is embracing each one of us, wherever we are.
Our vehicle had been traveling at a high speed. Suddenly, I heard a very loud bang, and then the noise of breaking glass. When I regained consciousness, I immediately said, “Lord, Almighty God, our lives are safe and secure in Your caring and loving hands.” Soon people from the nearby homes began to arrive at the scene to rescue us from the vehicle, as we were trapped inside.
After assisting a fellow passenger, I was informed that I was bleeding under my chin and on my upper lip; I had not been aware of this, since I was not feeling any pain. I found time to give gratitude to our Lord Almighty that everyone in the crash had survived, and then I quietly affirmed “the scientific statement of being,” found on page 468 of Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy. It begins: “There is no life, truth, intelligence, nor substance in matter. All is infinite Mind and its infinite manifestation, for God is All-in-all.” Declaring this truth helped dispel fear of the injuries.
From my study of Christian Science, I knew that man is the expression of Spirit, God, and is therefore always safe and secure in Him. I called a Christian Science practitioner who had introduced me to Christian Science many years ago and requested metaphysical treatment from him.
At the hospital where the passengers were taken, the examining doctor told me that they needed to check if I had internal injuries and would also require a head scan. I informed the doctor that a Christian Science practitioner was treating my case through prayer, and I was able to briefly leave casualty (the emergency room) and update the practitioner in privacy. He assured me that I had not lost my oneness with Soul, God, and that everyone involved would witness my perfection as Soul’s spiritual and unbroken reflection.
I confidently informed the doctor that I would not require a head scan or other tests, and she agreed to release me after my wounds were cleaned and bandaged. By then the bleeding had stopped. I was given tablets for pain (which I did not take) and advised to come back to the hospital in 48 hours to change the bandage. Then I was discharged and driven home by a friend.
My family was overjoyed to see me. Before going to bed and preparing for my evening prayers, that passage from Joshua with the assurance of God’s care came to mind, and a yearning for the comforting Word of God led me to once again read the Bible Lesson. The readings served my immediate spiritual needs.
Two verses from Psalms reflected what had occurred that day: “In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears” (18:6), and “I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears” (34:4). As I thought on these verses, I felt engulfed in God’s protective care. Above all, I felt His love for me and all humanity. I was filled with gratitude, and I fell asleep feeling full of joy and peace.
However, the following day I woke up with severe pain in much of my body. I walked with difficulty, and the temptation to take the painkillers was great. But then I remembered wise counsel I had read in the Bible Lesson: “When the illusion of sickness or sin tempts you, cling steadfastly to God and His idea. Allow nothing but His likeness to abide in your thought. Let neither fear nor doubt overshadow your clear sense and calm trust, that the recognition of life harmonious—as Life eternally is—can destroy any painful sense of, or belief in, that which Life is not. Let Christian Science, instead of corporeal sense, support your understanding of being, and this understanding will supplant error with Truth, replace mortality with immortality, and silence discord with harmony” (Science and Health, p. 495).
After taking my breakfast, I took a walking stick and walked slowly towards a hill one kilometer away from our home. After reaching the top of the hill, I sat on a patch of grass to rest. I then deeply prayed, acknowledging the wonder of God’s power. My favorite psalm came to mind, which ends with this promise: “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever” (Psalms 23:6).
I came down from the hill late in the afternoon feeling satisfied and spiritually nourished.
The next three days I continued to pray while communicating with the practitioner daily. Each time we spoke, he encouraged me. I was growing spiritually and realizing my unity with God.
By the end of the week, I was completely healed of pain. I did not need to go back to the hospital for a change of bandage—the two cuts had healed also.
I had a great desire to share this wonderful experience at a Wednesday testimony meeting at church. Three weeks after the accident, I traveled to First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Nairobi, and I gave my testimony of how I had witnessed divine Love’s healing power.
Richard Riri
Nairobi, Kenya
