My gratitude to God for Christ Jesus, the Way-shower, and for Mrs. Eddy, who obeyed his teaching, is boundless, for I have felt the redeeming power of the Christ, Truth, in my life.
During the latter part of 1966, at a time when I had only recently acquired the responsibilities of a wife and family, I launched my own law practice. Neither my wife nor I were then Christian Scientists. As is the case with many young lawyers who are beginning their own practice and are not associated with an established law firm, my responsibilities to my practice, my wife, and our son were large. My income seemed subject to great fluctuations, and much of the time it was barely adequate to meet our needs. Feeling these responsibilities, I found myself smoking more excessively, drinking alcoholic beverages almost every evening when I came home from work, and worrying constantly about my law practice. In addition, as if the foregoing were not enough, I had a problem with nerves. For this I consulted a physician, who prescribed drugs. I took them and promptly experienced an aggravation of symptoms. I was quite miserable!
One day the doctor informed me that I must realize "mind is over matter." He was of course referring to the human mind, and not to the power of divine Mind, God, over the illusion of the senses—the power of Truth to dispel error—as students of Christian Science understand it. His statement, however, was sufficient to get me thinking about my childhood when I had occasionally attended a Christian Science Sunday School.
