One evening in May 2019, I moved my leg in such a way that the very sharp pain I felt suggested that I had either torn or pulled a muscle.
Rather than dwell on the accident, I thought back to the readings I had just heard from a Church of Christ, Scientist, testimony meeting, which included the following citation: “To begin rightly is to end rightly. Every concept which seems to begin with the brain begins falsely. Divine Mind is the only cause or Principle of existence. Cause does not exist in matter, in mortal mind, or in physical forms” (Mary Baker Eddy, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 262). I took comfort in the fact that I began my day studying the Christian Science weekly Bible Lesson from the Christian Science Quarterly, and I thought, “The ideas you gained stand to carry you through your day to its very end.”
I also remembered back to a testifier during the meeting who had found healing through the study of the following passage: “ ‘Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him.’ Suffer no claim of sin or of sickness to grow upon the thought. Dismiss it with an abiding conviction that it is illegitimate, because you know that God is no more the author of sickness than He is of sin. You have no law of His to support the necessity either of sin or sickness, but you have divine authority for denying that necessity and healing the sick” (Science and Health, p. 390).
Both statements came immediately to my thought and provided me quiet strength as I began to pray for healing. I am so grateful to Mrs. Eddy for her provision for testimony meetings and the inspiration garnered from one another’s shared experiences. I also turned to the recent Christian Science Sentinels and Journals that lay on the table next to the chair in the den, where I’d been sitting when this incident occurred. Upon opening them, I found several authors’ comments pertaining to leg problems in various articles and was thankful that these periodicals so often meet our immediate needs.
In the days that followed, walking didn’t pose much of a problem; moving my leg in certain ways brought great discomfort, though. After a couple of weeks, I felt I was “getting by,” but plans were already in place to attend my annual Christian Science association meeting, and this trip across several states seemed daunting. While my husband and I caught our flight to the meeting without incident, climbing stairs presented a challenge, and entering and exiting the backseat areas of the various Ubers and friends’ vehicles proved especially painful during this trip.
But the day of the association meeting was most uplifting! The speaker shared what it meant to live Christian Science 24 hours a day, and attendees were urged to take that association day and find within it whatever was needed.
I was impressed by the Christian Science healings that were shared: One that especially stood out was the healing of laryngitis in a man who was to introduce the President of the United States. With what seemed to me to be extreme courage and faith exhibited by the man, the healing came within minutes of the time he was to perform that task.
Those testimonies and the reminder by our speaker that Christian Scientists are all a family were particularly comforting to me, and I came away feeling very inspired by all that had been shared. I felt so much love expressed by the attendees and at the church service that followed the next day. This seemed to me to be an example of the brotherly love that is essential for living Christian Science.
The very evening we returned home, while sitting in the living room, I felt a distinct pop in my leg, as if something went back into place. That was the end to all limitation in movement and discomfort right then and there. I attribute the final thrust of inspiration that culminated in this healing directly to the fruits of the association meeting weekend. I have had no further difficulty with my leg.
Joy Miller Albins
Fairfield Glade, Tennessee, US
