Of Good Report

As a fairly new member of a Christian Science branch church years ago, I was happy to be elected to serve on its Board of Trustees—my first opportunity to fill a church board position. What I didn’t know was that the membership was bitterly divided over whether to keep or sell the church edifice, and that board work would be contentious and stressful.

Some years ago I came to understand, in a tangible way, the meaning of this quote from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy: “Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need” ( p. 494 ).

Breaking up with someone who has been important to you can bring a sense of loss, grief, hurt, and sometimes anger. But these feelings are not inevitable.

American humorist Garrison Keillor quipped, “Anyone who thinks sitting in church can make you a Christian must also think that sitting in a garage can make you a car. ”  True, yet attending church is so much more than being a “pew potato” instead of a “couch potato.

In 1995, my husband and I went on holiday to England with our two small daughters. On our last day there, my handbag went missing from the restaurant where we were having lunch.

“Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God” ( Psalms 20:7 ). I love this passage from the Bible.

It was supposed to be one of those simple drives into town—to drop off a package for mailing, pick up a loaf of bread, leave a bag of gently used clothes in a donation box.   I’ve learned, however, as a student of Christian Science, that even these so-called mundane tasks are often opportunities to learn more about one’s relationship to God—more about the healing nature of divine Love.

I grew up in the Deep South of the United States, during a time when segregation made it nearly impossible to know anyone outside of their own race. I was also aware of the prevailing belief that not everyone was loved by God.

As a small child , loving Christian Science, I thought of myself as a Christian Scientist. Both of my parents had grown up going to Christian Science Sunday School and relied on Christian Science for all our needs.

Some years ago, a church position was vacant that needed to be filled. I was only partially qualified for it, but as I prayed about it, I was led to volunteer until a fully qualified person was found.