ONE OF THE THINGS I love about Christian Science is that I'm constantly learning something new. Life is a "work in progress" as I discover gems of truth in the Bible, which before I hadn't seen.
The Sermon on the Mount, found in Matthew (chaps. 5-7), is a wonderful guideline for living, especially as it teaches we should not judge, condemn, or criticize others. It has been a great discipline not to find fault in other people, but it has made me a more loving and happy person. I believe that the following healing was a result of this change in my thinking.
For about 20 years I had used long-distance glasses, but last year I found that the spectacles I was wearing had become useless. Thinking the fault lay with the prescription glasses, I took them back to the optician, who was surprised to find my eyesight had greatly improved. As there is a law in my state (Western Australia) that we take a medical examination to retain a driving license after reaching a certain age, I was again tested and found to have good sight. No spectacles were required for driving. It was wonderful to have the freedom to drive, day or night, with clear vision.
As I thought this healing through, I remembered a letter shared with me by my sister many years ago. The writer, whose name I do not know, wrote about his (or her) resolution to see only perfection all around, starting with God and His creation—ourselves, our friends, our so-called enemies—even those conducting our affairs of State. The writer wrote, "I look upon the world with God's eyes and see it as He sees it, and I refuse to see it in any other way." The author also spoke of watching his thoughts and not giving way to criticism. The letter finished with: "The result has been simply marvelous. Try it and you will forget to wear your glasses. They will become unnecessary. You will be seeing with God's eyes, and you will behold a perfect universe."
After reading this letter again more than a year and a half ago, I endeavoured to make sure that I was seeing as God sees. Criticism, an example of "mental malpractice," as termed in Christian Science, is very wrong, and I did not want to engage in that kind of counterproductive thinking. Although the writer had stated that this discipline of spiritual seeing improves human sight, I had not been thinking about healing. I just loved "seeing correctly" and knowing that others' so-called shortcomings are not part of their real, spiritual nature. Before long, I discovered the long-distance glasses were no longer necessary.
As yet I still wear reading glasses, but often find I have been reading without them. My aim is to keep on seeing perfection everywhere, until the reading glasses, too, become unnecessary.
SOUTH PERTH, WESTERN AUSTRALIA
AUSTRALIA
