Have you ever prayed and prayed and saw no evidence of healing progress?
Don’t give up. Truth is always the victor. Ills may appear intransigent and unyielding at times, but they will crumble and dissipate into their native nothingness. God’s law of progress is always at work moving us in a healthy direction.
Here’s a legend that was reportedly read in Mary Baker Eddy’s home many times at her request that addresses the obstinate belief and restores hope of inevitable cure.
Once the river flowed free and easy over its rocky bed, but one night the temperature of the river dropped a dozen degrees or so, and continued dropping all the next day, and by night it had formed a thin coating of ice under which the river flowed.
Accepting the best of it, the river flowed on under the ice, but that night the coat thickened, crowding the activities of the river further down. This went on until at last the river was a frozen mass. “O dear,” said the river, as it tried to move and couldn’t, “was it ever possible that I was free and could move and will that day ever come again?”
A south wind passed by and said, “If the sun would shine on you it would help you!” and the next day the sun did shine on the river, and the river was glad and full of expectations. “Now I shall flow and be free, but after shining all day nothing happened, and that evening the river was very despondent. But the sun, who had more persistence than the river, came again and shined all day. But nothing happened, and so this little drama went on day after day and week after week, and the river became very discouraged and almost knew it would never flow again, never would be free again.
But the sun kept on shining. And one day the river felt a little loosening. It couldn’t tell just what, but that night, it was solid again, and the river lost hope, but the sun came again the next day and it loosened again—and again at night it froze stiff. “How disgusting” said the river. “Every little bit I gain, I immediately lose it.” But the sun kept shining.
At last the ice broke up into great chunks and floated away so swiftly that the river was all of a quiver. How easily it had all departed.
So with the obstinate case, the first day’s treatment may not melt the ice, nor the second, nor the third,–and at night (in doubt or anxiety) it may freeze up again, but when faithfully followed, and the sunlight of Love is applied untiringly, the change does take place.
Judge not from appearances, neither the first day’s sun nor the last melted the river of ice. It took them both and all the days in between to overcome the condition that had been growing and intensifying for months and years.
It took seven times around the walls of Jericho to reduce them to dust, and who will say which was the most effective trip—the first or the last?
Spiritually, man is already free, and if he can get this established firmly in his thought and hold to it regardless of appearances, the demonstration is made.
Thank you God for Evan’s blogs. They are like little angel messages every day!
I understand what you are saying about persistence and agree with it.
What about the case, where the situation is life threatening, and a delay in demonstration could mean death?
Your entry remindes me of this quote:
Never give up, never give up, never, never, never give up. Winston Churchill
Thank you for this reminder so beautifully demonstrated by the story of the river!
Texas Reader
thanks so much for this great metaphor– it’s such a great reminder that Mary Baker Eddy “never gave up”– and that’s why she succeeded. And each of us can do it to!
thanks again
To Dennis above,
Yes, we certainly want to include in our prayers that God’s health and good is here and now without delay. There is no separation between you and your Life, the Life that animiates you, preserves you and keeps you well.
If you have a question behind your question, meaning “delay medical treatment” then that is another issue that each person has to resolve individually. Anyone can utilize whatever health care options they desire. If a temporal step seems requisite to preserve the greater good, then the patient is free to take that temporary step. But I find it most helpful to cover that territory early on by knowing the immediacy of God’s help, and the inseparability of me from it, so the issue of “delay” doesn’t arise in the first place. I also know that I’ll have whatever I need at any given moment to continue progressing and make the full demnonstration, which eliminates fear about what may or may not happen tomorrow.
God’s good comes without delay! You have all you need at every moment.
What a wonderful story! And to know it was read in Mrs. Eddy’s home many times brings it nearer and dearer to my heart.
I have been long on the road to healing and this story brings so much promise.
I appreciate and am so grateful for this blog! It has brought me many blessings!
Jayne
Dear Evan…I love having this story in written form to refer to…I’ve only had my own retelling of it and I have always wondered if I had it right…glad to know that I did…but what joy to realize that this story is so far-reaching…
Great post..with Love, Kate
Thanks Evan. I have learned in CS that no matter how sweet a dream is, it is still unreal. But last night I dreamed that I had been walking along wide and deep rivers and oh the water was so deep, clear and flowing until I awakened. I didn’t mind it but when I was reading the textbook I came across Pison [river] then I remembered there were the four rivers. Also the definition of river as channel of thought. When smooth and unobstructed, it typifies the course of Truth; EUPHRATES. Divine Science encompassing the universe and man; the true idea of God; a type of the glory which is to come… I felt refreshed because I was inspired claiming that healing for me is already Here and Now. Then I remembered to search what you have in your blogs under RIVER and oh this is so inspiring!