The first time I read Science and Health by Mrs. Eddy I was unable to understand right away the statement (p. 182), "The demands of God appeal to thought only." At that time I believed that an illness was completely material. But the thorough study of this book showed me that everything begins with a thought— even an illness—and that only divine metaphysics, the Science of Mind, God, can help us in solving our problems.
Before becoming acquainted with this scientific Christianity, I had had a stomach ailment of many years standing that interrupted my work for weeks at a time. Three different physicians diagnosed stomach ulcers. In concerning myself with Science and Health, I forgot these complaints. Several years later, however, I suffered a severe relapse. This time I did not go to the doctor; moreover, I continued at my regular work, despite great pain. During the fourth night I walked up and down in my room, as I found no comfort in rest. Finally I turned once again to God, quietly expecting to receive the right idea. At once the answer came to mind, in the words of a passage from Science and Health (p. 249): "God is the infinite, and infinity never began, will never end, and includes nothing unlike God." In my heart I understood that my true nature is included in God, as there can be nothing outside infinity, and that I must therefore be within it—in this infinite Mind. This perception of truth brought me an instantaneous healing. Since then I have been able to eat everything that is set before me, even those dishes I formerly didn't like.
Following this healing many years ago, stomach complaint has been unknown to me, because my thought is completely free of fear of this malady. I am genuinely grateful to God for this healing, for it elucidates the sentence from Science and Health (pp. 288–289), "The eternal Truth destroys what mortals seem to have learned from error, and man's real existence as a child of God comes to light."
