Many years ago, my career in fashion retail required many airline flights to visit stores, vendors, and factories worldwide. On one of my earliest flights, the plane was hit with lightning and lost power. We plunged sharply before the power recovered. Thankfully there was no further issue and harmony was restored. However, my fear was so great that I didn’t feel I could get on my connecting flight. I actually had thoughts that I would have to just live in that location!
Realizing that was not a reasonable thought, I called a Christian Science practitioner, and we began praying to understand God’s continuous government of good, His law of harmony, and His love for His idea, man. I spent the time on that next flight thinking about Mary Baker Eddy’s poem “Mother’s Evening Prayer.” I found so much comfort in the ideas in that poem, and it has become my favorite source of inspiration in the 35 years since that incident, especially when flying.
The poem begins, “O gentle presence, peace and joy and power” (Poems, p. 4). That combination—gentle presence, peace, joy, and power—is characterized as belonging to God. It doesn’t occur in any material sphere. It so perfectly represented God’s total government that I could rely on to meet every need.
