Testimony of Healing January 20, 1945 Issue

The first healing I experienced...

Frances Pethick Nelson

The first healing I experienced in Christian Science was when, as a very young child, I was healed instantaneously of whooping cough through the loving ministrations of the Christian Scientist in whose care I had been left. My parents, who were not students of Christian Science, were not at home when I was seized with violent spasms of coughing and whooping. Neighbors became greatly alarmed, for I seemed to be passing on, and they immediately tried to reach my parents. The one caring for me quieted their fears and silenced my coughing by treating the situation as we are taught in Christian Science, When my parents returned later that evening I was sleeping quietly, entirely healed. Although my parents did not understand the healing power of Christian Science, they gratefully acknowledged its efficacy in bringing about this permanent and complete healing.

Many years elapsed before I seriously took up the study of this Science. Not until everything I had thought to be important in life was completely wiped out— home, parents, material possessions, friends—all of which were taken from me in rapid succession, did I turn wholeheartedly to Christian Science. Then I had the privilege of proving the power of God, as indicated in Mary Baker Eddy's statement in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 494), "Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need." I turned humbly to Him for the demonstrable understanding behind those words, and it was soon revealed to me. In a strange community, with no one to lean on but God, I was able to secure a professional position during the lowest ebb of the financial depression. I had previously been told that I was wasting my time because without influential connections securing a teaching position was impossible. The twenty-third Psalm and the previously quoted statement from the Christian Science textbook sustained me and brought me great comfort throughout the experience.

I am deeply grateful that my little daughter can attend the Christian Science Sunday School. When she was six years old she broke her arm. While it seemed wise to have the bone set by a physician, a Christian Science practitioner was called and work was taken up. Soon after the bone was set, the child asked, "Mother, is this a dream?" I quickly replied in the affirmative. Throughout the experience she had none of the usual disturbing and painful conditions that accompany broken bones. What a blessing to know that though we may not always be spared the experience, we are spared, through our understanding of Christian Science, all the dire consequences. Thus we prove the powerlessness of the error in whatever guise it comes to tempt us.

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