Article October 17, 1970 Issue

"Only God can tell you that"

MYRTLE DAUGHERTY

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened."^{Matt. 7:7, 8;} Here is robust Christian encouragement, in the words of Jesus, for anyone who believes in, or will try to understand, God as the loving Father whom he preached.

A young student of Christian Science once became greatly exercised over her first careful reading of a certain injunction of Mrs. Eddy's in the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health: "If students do not readily heal themselves, they should early call an experienced Christian Scientist to aid them. If they are unwilling to do this for themselves, they need only to know that error cannot produce this unnatural reluctance."^{Science and Health, p. 420;} Questions flooded her thinking.

Evidently one was expected to make some prayerful, metaphysical effort in his own behalf before asking for help. But just what did "readily" mean? And "early"? How long should one strive in his own behalf? And how hard? Should he struggle along alone, or might he even damage his health in so doing? And just what did "aid" mean? She had thought the practitioner was supposed to heal, not merely aid.

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