Calm in the Face of Adversity

Not too many of us are going to be thrown into a fiery furnace or cast into a lion's den because we do not wish to worship in the same manner as a politician. Most of us, I would venture, have felt that in a metaphorical sense though. The best way to demonstrate the power of Christian Science is through your works, right? So if the human picture is handing you some nasty lemons, how do you respond? Do you make lemonade, or do you complain, argue that someone else should make the lemonade, or say, "It's not my fault I was handed these lemons"? Perhaps there is a third possiblity… What if we actually followed the example given to us by the Hebrew boys or Daniel? They did not lament their fate; they did not plan to make the best of it. They focused even more on God, knowing that their physical surroundings could not affect their relationship with the divine. Do we focus more on things spiritual than material in trying times? Or do we let our thoughts be mesmerized by the apparent gravity of the situation? This state of consciousness, seeing only the perfection of your relationship with God, is not attained readily. The Bible makes it clear that Daniel and the boys each committed themselves to God first and foremost, even in the face of decress given by the king of the land that everyone worships who he dictates. Is your faith such that you would stay faithful in the face of death? Are you convinced of the reality of God and the unreality of matter? As we are able to answer these questions more in the affirmative, the more prepared we will be to see past the lions and fires in our lives to the peace of true existence.