Jesus' Precepts Practical

        The man who delivers our paper each morning was getting sloppier and sloppier, as though he didn't really care about his customers.  Finally, one morning recently after it had rained hard, my husband's Wall Street Journal, though put in the paper slot under the one for mail, was ruined.  Soaking wet!  So, he had to call the Journal in New York City--yet again to complain about an unreadable paper--then go out and buy another as he wanted to read his paper that day.

        Speaking for myself, a slight feeling of annoyance had been simmering, and this one morning it turned to downright irritation.  After some hours of harboring this (shame on me!), spiritual truths began flooding consciousness.  There was something concrete I could do to clear away this conflict, it was clear.

        Being a follower of Christ Jesus and a life-long student of Christian Science, I knew enough to know that when personal conflicts arise, it's my own thinking that needs to be addressed/corrected/turned radically around to what Jesus' teachings require of us.

        The devil's work was not going to be done by me.  The sense of irritation was not going to linger.  The carnal mind would like nothing better than to see us stirred up, if  not downright resentful.  And in this sorry state of thinking, we obviously are not being obedient to what our Master taught.

        So, I went to work prayerfully to see this man as a child of God, governed by Him, and doing the right thing, instead of letting the false material picture remain in thought.  And soon, the disturbed feelings toward him melted away. There was the most peaceful sense that God, the Father of us both, was in charge of the situation completely. And there the whole thing was left.

       Not surprisingly, a real change in the way he did his job occurred.  And just a couple of days ago, while walking one of our dogs about daylight he drove up.  He handed me the paper with a smile, we chatted, and wished each other a good day as we each went our way.

        Here was another solid proof that Jesus' divine precepts for daily interacting with our fellow beings is supremely practical.