Someone once dreamed he had a problem. He tried to ignore the difficulty, but it did not leave the dream. He thought about the situation a great deal, but it remained unchanged in the dream. Then, even in his dream, he began to learn that God is good and therefore problems can't really exist. He increasingly rejoiced in this truth. At some point his problem entirely disappeared from his dream, and all was well.

This fable may help explain how Christian Science heals. For one thing, Christian Scientists are learning that God is good. All He creates is perfect. Understanding this makes it increasingly natural to view the physical universe with its limits and imperfections as being as deceptive as a dream. And unless an individual is content with these limits and imperfections, his goal must be to find out what's really going on—and eventually to wake up from the dream.

Therefore any challenge that faces us—be it physical, financial, or emotional—requires looking beyond the dream. If we ignore the problem, we're clearly not going to progress. On the other hand, letting thought dwell on the problem may make things even worse. But knowing the truth of the situation—that all is well, because God makes all perfect to begin with—will remove the difficulty.

This is Christian Science healing, and it is effective and lasting. Further, in countless instances this healing has followed a single application of the truths that Christian Science teaches.

Sometimes, though, healings take longer. In these cases persistence is vital. This persistence must be persistence in spiritual progress, not merely a human determination to fight it out.

If healing is delayed, we may wish to check our thought. First, have we chosen to ignore the error rather than heal it? Notice how the man Luke tells of, "which had a spirit of an unclean devil," faced Christ Jesus in the synagogue with the cry, "Let us alone." ^{Luke 4:33,34;} But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit and healed the insane man.

Second, are we dealing with the trouble as a big material reality to be overcome? Mind, God, is All. Therefore error can enter our experience only as a mistaken concept, be it about body, finances, people, government. We never have an unsolvable problem to contend with; we have an individual responsibility to change wrong thoughts. As Mrs. Eddy states, "When we remove disease by addressing the disturbed mind, giving no heed to the body, we prove that thought alone creates the suffering." ^{Science and Health, p. 400;}

Third, are we wholeheartedly striving for a change of consciousness? Are we sincerely working to learn more of perfect God and perfect man? If the motive for our search is merely to heal distress, progress may be slow. But if our motive is to learn more about the truth of the universe, our thought reaches toward the infinite. God becomes inseparable from our lives. Our consciousness changes, and since we are dealing entirely with thought, we are healed.

The three reminders mentioned above, plus persistence, were the keys to my healing of an embarrassing skin irritation. Ignoring the problem had become impossible. The trap of treating it like a big reality, which could be overcome by a good thought, had to be avoided. Finally I worked to learn more of purity, wholeness, beauty, and beyond that to know God as my daily companion. This absorbed so much of my attention that I forgot about the problem. The condition was no longer in my thought, and therefore it disappeared from my body.

Of course we need never assume a prolonged struggle is inevitable. Immediate healings should be expected; they were regularly brought about by Jesus. When our consciousness is filled with Truth, error finds no opening; then it disappears. Mrs. Eddy writes, "Be of good cheer; the warfare with one's self is grand; it gives one plenty of employment, and the divine Principle worketh with you, —and obedience crowns persistent effort with everlasting victory." ^{Miscellaneous Writings, p. 118.}