I still remember the stern look on my wife's grandfather as we talked. He was quite skeptical about my choice of career. He asked, "Can you make a living as a practitioner?"
Now that I look back on it, I can understand why he was concerned. He was a self-made businessman who founded his own printing company. I had a career as a recording engineer, but after one year I quit and began preparations to work professionally as a Christian Science practitioner. He didn't know much about Christian Science, and he could not understand why I would give up a paying job to do something that, to him, looked highly questionable as an income maker. I knew he was really asking, "How are you going to support my granddaughter?"
Before making this decision, I had completed class instruction with an authorized teacher of Christian Science, and I just loved the idea of spending my time in the healing practice. I could truly say that I was the happiest I had ever been. I was enjoying the in-depth study of the Bible and Mary Baker Eddy's writings and the uninterrupted time to pray, ponder, and grow. It was a time of humility, of self-examination, of gaining a greater understanding of Christian Science as the Comforter Christ Jesus promised us. I was realizing that a devotion to spiritual healing based on a deepening love for God and mankind was the most important thing I could do with my life.
