After one has been received and entertained as a guest in the home of a friend, it is customary to send a thank-you letter. Sometimes a gift is sent, but always an expression of thanks for the hospitality extended is in order.
Have we, as Christian Scientists, been delinquent in writing in the form of a testimony our thank-you letter to God for the hospitality and generous riches of His house which He has so abundantly showered upon us all? Do we not become indebted to Him each time we attend a church service, read an inspiring and enlightening article in one of the Christian Science periodicals, listen to an explanation of the teachings of this Science at a lecture, or come in any way into His house and under the blessed influence of His hospitality?
Mrs. Eddy felt it so important to make the giving of testimonies an integral part of the activity of the Christian Science movement that she established the Wednesday testimony meetings, at which one is privileged to give and to hear testimonies of healings accomplished through the application of the teachings of this Science. She also included in the textbook, Science and Health, a chapter entitled "Fruitage," which is made up exclusively of testimonies written by those who were healed simply through an unbiased reading of the book.
The Christian Science religious periodicals also include testimonies of healing. In these publications we find first many articles expounding the teachings of Christian Science; and then we come to the section which we might call the thank-you part. Here we read expressions of gratitude for the efficacy of this healing and regenerating religion as the testifiers have demonstrated it, and they give proof that it is the truth.
Jesus often felt it important that an acknowledgment of healing be made publicly. The woman who had been healed of an issue of blood when she "touched the border of his garment" Luke 8:44 would have kept the blessing of her healing hidden within her own consciousness, but Jesus gently, as well as firmly, persuaded her to come forth and acknowledge before the multitude that she had been healed, thereby sharing her blessing with others. How well Jesus knew that the doubting Thomases, as well as those who dared to hope, needed this proof of the healing truth that he had taught them! And of the lepers who were healed, he asked, "But where are the nine?"17:17 when only one returned to give thanks to God.
In the Manual of The Mother Church by Mrs. Eddy we read: "Testimony in regard to the healing of the sick is highly important. More than a mere rehearsal of blessings, it scales the pinnacle of praise and illustrates the demonstration of Christ, 'who healeth all thy diseases'(Psalm 103:3)."Man., Art. VIII. Sect. 24
Has not many a newcomer to Science, in his very first experiences of attending the Wednesday testimony meetings, eagerly awaited the period allotted to the giving of testimonies and joyously taken in every word of proof that the right understanding of God does heal? And do not these testimonies inspire and encourage each one, the more experienced student as well as the beginner, to strive more earnestly to make the demonstration of Christian Science healing his primal objective?
Truly the privilege of sharing our experiences, orally or in writing, blesses the giver as well as those who receive, and every Christian Scientist has had some healing experience which could be enlarged by sharing it with those who are needing and wanting spiritual healing. We never know how far and wide a simple expression of gratitude will carry its healing message, but we know that we can leave our offering of gratitude in God's hands, confident that He will direct the message to the receptive heart.
The written testimonies in the periodicals are always waiting to heal and bless the one who is reaching out to God. I have found healing many times in turning to them for inspiration. The following experience is an illustration. For several days I had been having help from a practitioner for a physical problem which did not seem to yield to the prayerful work being done.
At a time when the condition seemed greatly aggravated and painful, I tried to telephone the practitioner but could not reach her. Almost in desperation I picked up a Christian Science Sentinel and began to read the testimonies. The first one told of a healing of the identical difficulty I was experiencing and quoted the following sentence: "Establish the scientific sense of health, and you relieve the oppressed organ."Science and Health, p. 373
The pondering of this statement by the writer of the testimony had brought healing to him, and the blessing was being shared and was bringing healing to me as I prayerfully considered the meaning of the phrase, "the scientific sense of health." To me at that moment it meant a complete sense of health as I realized the harmonious nature of God which is brought out in our Leader's spiritual interpretation of the Lord's Prayer:
"Our Father which art in heaven,
Our Father-Mother God, all-
harmoninus."p. 16
I saw that since God is all-harmonious, man, His image and likeness, cannot experience part harmony and part discord; he must be completely harmonious.
I knew that this is a scientific fact and that it is provable here and now, since God has bestowed upon each one of us, by virtue of man's unity with Him, the ability to demonstrate the truth which he understands. This awakening so lifted my consciousness above the sense of physical discord that I found instant relief from the pain and discomfort. How my heart went out in gratitude to God for the healing which prompted the writing of that testimony and for the desire and willingness to share it with others!
That testifying is worth much more than presenting arguments is implied in Jesus' answer to John the Baptist, who sent his disciples to the Master to inquire, "Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?" After performing many healing works, Jesus said to them, "Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised" Luke 7:19, 22—all self-evident and incontestable proofs of God's power to heal all manner of discord.
God is ever waiting to direct each one who listens for His guidance and to give at the right time the thought that will bless most abundantly. The giving of expressions of gratitude indeed "scales the pinnacle of praise" and fulfills our obligation to our Leader. To her, the giving of testimonies was "highly important," and it should be so to each of her followers. Jesus' command to all his disciples, in his day and now, is, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." Mark 16:15
Our written testimonies are reaching out to the four corners of the earth through the medium of our periodicals, bringing hope and encouragement and healing to all who read with a receptive heart. Thus when one who has touched the hem of the Christ garment and received a healing sends out his thank-you message to God, the world is bound to be enriched.
