I will always remember the dedication of my Sunday School teachers as they awakened in me a love for the Ten Commandments, the Lord’s Prayer (with its spiritual interpretation by Mary Baker Eddy), and the Sermon on the Mount, especially the Beatitudes (see Mary Baker Eddy, Church Manual, p. 63).
Building on that foundation, I gained a conviction that Christian Science heals. For example, I can remember being healed of an irritated navel by applying what I was learning about God and my perfection as His child. I felt comforted, knowing that nothing ungodlike could come between me and the child God knew me to be.
I recalled a familiar Bible verse that one of my teachers had asked our class to memorize: “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5). I opened my Bible to read more of the chapter where this verse appears and was surprised to find the words “health to thy navel” in a subsequent verse: “Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones” (verses 7 and 8).
In my childlike thought, I was astonished to see the word navel mentioned in the Bible. I knew I could “trust in the Lord,” but finding the word navel used in conjunction with the word health heightened my anticipation of healing, which was soon confirmed when my navel was restored to its natural state. As young as I was, it was a thrill to me to think that I had direct access to healing as a result of my own prayers.
I am grateful for my Sunday School training because it set me on a path that I can confidently follow and that has blessed me immeasurably over the years. When I look back on my Sunday School experience, I feel a rush of warmth for those teachers who came prepared each week to “... pour in truth through flood-tides of Love” (Mary Baker Eddy, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 201). Their faithfulness to Truth, and their unwavering love remain with me today.
