Grateful for God’s Protection

Many years ago, northern Germany experienced a winter with extremely heavy snowfall and bitter cold. Before this heavy snowfall began, I wanted to visit my girlfriend at the time and later wife, in a village in the far north where she was spending part of her apprenticeship. I borrowed a Fau Beetle. At first, the journey went smoothly, even though it was already snowing the whole time. Then I came to increasingly smaller, more rural roads, and the already sparse traffic became even sparser while the snowfall continued to increase. At some point, the car skidded at the rear and slowly slid into a shallow ditch. It wasn’t deep, but it was full of snow, and the slope was steep enough that the car couldn’t get out on its own. The wheels were spinning, and they were definitely summer tires with not much tread, just a cheap student car. After a short time, I realized that this wasn’t going to work and that I needed help. After waiting a while longer, I gave up.

There was no traffic at all. No one was coming by. The snowfall was heavy, and there were no mobile phones at that time. So, I was on my own. I got out, took a look at everything, and came up with the following plan. I put the car in first gear, released the clutch, and sure enough, the car didn’t stall, but the wheels spun on the spot without the car moving. Then I got out. While the wheels continued to spin in place, I wedged my shoulder under the driver’s door opening and pushed with all my strength under the car’s roof while simultaneously pushing the car forward. I kept increasing my strength until the car actually started to move, and with the help of the engine and the strength I had been given, I was able to push the weight of almost one ton back onto the road. If I hadn’t experienced it myself, I probably wouldn’t believe today that such a thing is physically possible. Today, I’m reminded of Samson, who brought down the temple of the Philistines. With divine help, he brought down the house of cards, thus destroying the foul belief called animal magnetism, which was celebrating its apparent triumph over the divine with a big party. I was then able to continue my journey and arrived unharmed at my friend’s house. I must qualify unharmed. My shoulder was adorned with a huge hematoma, but strangely enough, I was not in any pain. Anyone who heard my last testimony knows that I was not an active Christian Scientist at the time, even though I was raised in its spirit. Unfortunately, I cannot say this is a classic Christian Science healing testimony.

Or can I? As with my previous testimony, I later realized that I am always under God’s protection. I, all of us, no one is exempt from this. We too often exclude ourselves from it through thoughts full of fear, full of doubt, a total lack of confidence, etc., and through reliance on material appearances. In that situation, I didn’t think about whether I could succeed. I had neither the time nor the capacity for that, and I succeeded. That is the connection to the divine, even if we are not aware of it. Who are we? Is God not always aware of his reflection? Can the reflection, which is also God himself, be unaware of this at any time? Courage, confidence, faith, and success. Your father knows what you need even before you ask for it. Says Jesus. We need, and we have, a direct permanent communication line to God. Then we won’t always have to call his emergency number. I believe that I’ve always kept it since my youth, even though I have behaved like the prodigal son for a long time. I’m so grateful for these experiences and for this guidance, which so clearly shows God’s love and care for each and every one of his creatures, and especially for every human being. And of course, I’m also grateful for all of you here who listen to me and who together form this wonderful independent Christian Science Church in Plainfield.