Testimonies of Healing

When I read a testimony in an issue of the Christian Science Sentinel by a man who is not a member of The Mother Church but who experienced a healing through the teachings of Christian Science, I realized I, too, could express my gratitude for Christian Science even though I am not a member of the Church. About fifteen years ago I was in the hospital with what the doctors had diagnosed as infectious hepatitis.

My mother took up the study of Christian Science when we lived in a small midwestern town. When I was seven years old, on a Saturday night, which was a big shopping time in town for ranchers, I was playing around my parents' store with a schoolmate.

It was through the testimonies of healing I read in copies of The Herald of Christian Science that my interest in Science was awakened. It was clear from them how Christian Science was practiced, how divine Truth was applicable to any and every situation, and how the testifiers relied on God.

Although I had been encouraged by my mother as I grew up to take an active part in church and to study Christian Science, it was only after marriage and the birth of a child that I sought to rely confidently on Christian Science. In fact, it was a specific experience that turned me wholeheartedly to Science.

This is my second published testimony, and it is long overdue. My first testimony told of my original encounter with Christian Science when a neighborhood friend invited me to attend a Christian Science Sunday School.

It has been such a joy to witness God's healing power through the practice of Christian Science. Four generations of our family have experienced this healing power through scientific prayer and trust in God's love and ever-governing law.

Before our first son was born I made arrangements to have the delivery at home with the attendance of a qualified midwife. When the time came, however, I seemed unable to forward the birth.

While helping a friend move a heavy picnic table, I injured my back. It was difficult to think clearly because of the excruciating pain, but my loving wife, a dedicated student of Christian Science, helped me pray.

Christian Science has been a blessing to me throughout my life. I am especially grateful for having been raised in a family where, because of my mother's dedication to Science, it was the normal practice to turn to God for help whenever a problem arose.

I will always be grateful to the friend who sent me issues of the Christian Science Sentinel one winter. I enjoyed reading them and thought Christian Science a beautiful teaching but not something I could practice in my own life.