A few years ago, my knees began to feel stiff and painful. I had a hard time running or walking normally. But because this problem developed gradually and appeared at random times, I thought at first that I could just keep on walking and force my knees to bend as they should. I soon discovered this wasn't possible. What I needed was healing.
After many years of studying Christian Science, I naturally turned to prayer. I knew that healing would occur through a change in thought—through seeing myself as God saw me, as perfect and spiritual. I recalled a statement by Mary Baker Eddy that supported this conclusion. In Science and Health she wrote: "The Christian Scientist, understanding scientifically that all is Mind, commences with mental causation, the truth of being, to destroy the error. This corrective is an alterative, reaching to every part of the human system. According to Scripture, it searches 'the joints and marrow,' and it restores the harmony of man" (p. 423).
I also asked a Christian Science practitioner to pray with me. Rather than have me focus on the physical situation, the practitioner encouraged me to pray about what needed to change in my thought. It became apparent that I needed a greater sense of selfworth, and that I needed to replace a feeling of neediness with a desire to give and to be grateful for present good.
