When my children were very small, a lump appeared on the inside of one of my wrists. I wanted to heal this problem completely through prayer and immediately knew that God could heal anything. One synonym for God is divine Mind, and I knew that Mind was in control of my thinking and wouldn't allow me to be afraid.
My years of studying Christian Science had taught me that God is the Supreme Ruler of His universe, the only universe, and that only His laws of health, harmony and joy are real. God has already made each one of us to be like Him. Since all that God made is good, anything unlike good has to be a lie. I didn't really have to get rid of the lie, but I needed to know it was a lie.
As I prayed, and studied ideas in Science and Health about growth, I realized that the only real growth I could ever have was the spiritual growth that would draw me close to God. The chapter "Prayer," for example, points out: "What we most need is the prayer of fervent desire for growth in grace, expressed in patience, meekness, love, and good deeds. To keep the commandments of our Master and follow his example, is our proper debt to him and the only worthy evidence of our gratitude for all that he has done. Outward worship is not of itself sufficient to express loyal and heartfelt gratitude, since he has said: 'If ye love me, keep my commandments' " (p. 4).
