When I got to know about Christian Science, I was amazed by the wonderful healings that I was experiencing. I was reading Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy wherever I found the opportunity—at home, on the tram, during breaks at work. Near my office there was a Christian Science church, and at the end of the day, when there was time, I would visit its Reading Room and spend time reading the literature there too.
That’s how the spiritual growth began that inspired me to resign from my work in a medical institution. Right away I found a job in an entirely unrelated field, which developed into a great work experience, thanks to my newly gained understanding of Science. Several special incidents followed which proved to me how practical this Science is.
One day my colleagues were desperately searching for an important document. It was still before the digital age, so the papers were stored in thick binders. Busy with my work, I had only noticed in passing what was going on. Suddenly my supervisor, probably tired of searching, addressed me, and said I should “try my luck.” Instead, I turned my thought to God, the omniscient Principle of being, and entrusted myself to His guidance completely. I knew that Principle would lead me and divine intelligence would be expressed.
Hardly understanding the meaning of the individual labels on the long row of binders, I reached up, took one binder out without knowing in the slightest what it contained, opened it at random to a particular document, and asked if that was the one being searched for. It was the exact one! I had been led by the divine hand. I had nothing to do with it, other than trusting in God’s guidance. Everyone looked at me in complete bafflement. The one who was most happily surprised by God’s instantaneous help was me! I gave thanks.
Because of a previous illness and operation, I couldn’t move one ankle normally anymore, so I walked with a limp. My prayers had not yet brought about a healing of that.
One Wednesday I came out of a testimony meeting at the branch Church of Christ, Scientist, I was then attending, feeling uplifted and inspired by what I had heard. On my way to the tram, I realized that it was about to arrive, but I was still quite far from the station. Because it operated only every twenty minutes at that time of day, I wanted to catch it if possible, so I began to run without even considering that I normally couldn’t do that.
I made it, and while sitting in the tram I noticed that something about my foot had changed. I moved it, and realized happily that the joint functioned with complete freedom. That was the end of the limp!
One Wednesday evening, I was taking the subway home from church. Suddenly a group of young men got into the car, and it appeared they were ready to make trouble. A young woman stood up and moved to the back of the car. Fear spread.
The men began harassing the passengers. I stayed quietly in my seat, quite close to them, and remembered the demand in Christian Science to behold the true man, the perfect man created by God, where an unlovable person appears to be.
My thoughts turned to my nephews who were just that age, and it became easy for me to love these youths, precisely because God had made them good. Without hesitating or second-guessing myself, I stood up, purposefully approached the leader of the group, and asked him amiably if the train was going to a particular stop. I knew the answer, but I needed a pretext for stepping in. That threw the young man off his stride.
Perplexed, he turned to the others, and one of them gave the right answer. I thanked them and sat down again. That was the end of the ill-intended plan. They got out and went on their way peacefully.
All that remained for me to do was to thank God for His wise guidance in every situation. God, the one omnipotent Mind, doesn’t need human psychology to operate. “He already knows all,” as it says in Science and Health in reference to prayer (p. 2).
Surely each of us has a lot we can report about God’s wonderful works. When we rely on God and get a limited, mortal sense of ourselves and others out of the way, we will always find blessing. I am infinitely grateful for Christian Science!
Bärbel Mohr
Frankfurt, Germany
