After more than three decades of studying and striving to live Christian Science, I am in grateful awe of the glimpses of God that have come into my experience. The clarity of the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health by Mrs. Eddy, in defining and explaining God, enables us to understand Him as a very present help in all circumstances.
Christian Science was introduced to me in my grade-school years by my mother. In the face of opposition from some family and friends, she had bravely detached herself from a traditional Protestant religion and turned to this teaching. Science brought order and purpose to our family. I have often thought there is no greater gift that a parent can give a child than a working understanding of Christian Science.
There were many opportunities to express God-derived qualities in my schoolwork and in sports activities. As a football quarterback I played second string behind a teammate who was a better passer and runner. However, interestingly enough, the coach often turned to me in late-game situations. It seemed I had a penchant for being able to complete the desperation long pass or make the surprise play. A regular on the defensive squad, I learned to avail myself of spiritual power that resulted in tackling strength far in excess of what could be expected from my slight one-hundred-and-forty-five-pound frame. To me it was a case of doing what I was supposed to do, regardless of the material factors of weight and strength that were generally considered to dictate performance level. Underlined in my copy of the Christian Science textbook that I had in those days was this passage (p. 199): "Muscles are not self-acting. If mind does not move them, they are motionless. Hence the great fact that Mind alone enlarges and empowers man through its mandate, —by reason of its demand for and supply of power."
