Testimony of Healing February 18, 1905 Issue

The first Christian Science service which I attended...

Margaret H. Anderson

The first Christian Science service which I attended seemed nothing more to me than a form of worship differing somewhat from those to which I had been accustomed. For years I had been looking for something not to be found in the churches,—a sure foundation on which to build,—something which would make our own surroundings more harmonious and enable us to be a practical help to others. I felt that no theory was of any use unless it could be brought daily and hourly into the individual lives of men and women, making them healthier, happier, and able to do their work better. Like hundreds of others I failed in trying to reconcile the suffering, sorrow, and injustice which seemed to abound everywhere, with the idea of an omnipotent God whose name is Love. Ultimately I gave up the search, but the hope never died that at some time the mystery of it all would be revealed.

When the meaning of Christian Science dawned on me, I felt that it was what I had been looking for, yet its promises seemed so extravagant that I sometimes smiled at the thought of believing them. A copy of Science and Health was, however, lent me, and with this book I had no difficulty. Nothing can ever alter the conviction which came to me in reading it. I simply knew it was true.

The message it brought to me so distinctly at first was that found in the First Epistle of John, "God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all,"—no sin, no sorrow, no disease, no death; that in this God we live and move and have our being. He is omnipotent, therefore evil is not supreme. The sweetness of this message was sufficient to heal me of fatigue and worry. My work became easier, it was no longer a burden. The fear and dislike of the cold weather, which used to make me so miserable, quite disappeared. I can now be as comfortable in winter as in summer. This glimmer of light brought such a sense of relief and peace that for a time I rested there, till I learned that we cannot at present linger on the Mount of Transfiguration. We have to come down to the valleys where the shadows of mortal beliefs have gathered, and work our way up.

Send a comment to the editors

NEXT IN THIS ISSUE

Testimony of Healing

In the hope that some one may find encouragement to...