I had been studying Christian Science less than a year when I found myself with symptoms of pneumonia. This condition had occurred in my life three times before. In each instance, the disease had been treated medically, and the prognosis after the third attack was that I would face death should I contract the illness again.
With this in mind, I felt there was little choice but to rely entirely on God for my healing, and a Christian Science practitioner was called to pray for me. At one point a crisis occurred in the case, and I felt I was passing on. After she had informed the practitioner, my wife returned with instructions to read me "the scientific statement of being," found in Science and Health by Mrs. Eddy. It begins (p. 468): "There is no life, truth, intelligence, nor substance in matter. All is infinite Mind and its infinite manifestation, for God is All-in-all."
Although I did not then understand the fuller spiritual significance of these words, I was determined to trust my radical reliance on God for healing, and there was no fear. In less than ten minutes I was instantly healed. Normal breathing and strength were restored, and I arose and ate my first meal in about five days. This happened twenty-four years ago, and there has been no return of the pneumonia, nor had I ever been as well as I have in the years since that victory.
