Testimony of Healing July 27, 1981 Issue

My freshman year in college was the first real exposure I had to...

LOUISE MILLS

My freshman year in college was the first real exposure I had to hard liquor and drugs. Having been raised with Christian Science and coming from a loving, supportive family, I had learned to rely on God during my childhood and high-school years.

Suddenly, at college the word "party" had a new meaning. Not only would students join together in conversation, but sharing alcoholic beverages and taking drugs were also considered part of this social activity. I soon found myself experimenting with various forms of liquor in response to tremendous pressure from my dormitory neighbors. I could not, however, be persuaded to experiment with drugs, since I was aware of the severe effects that could result from a dosage—large or small.

As the year progressed, I found less and less pleasure in social drinking and began to realize that I missed actively expressing the Christlike qualities I had learned to demonstrate while attending the Christian Science Sunday School. I was not obeying what Christ Jesus called "the first and great commandment" (Matt. 22:37, 38), "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind," if I sought to gain social acceptance by material means. My true identity and spiritual being already were fully known by God, but I needed to rediscover my relationship to Him. I stopped drinking and began deep study of the Bible Lessons found in the Christian Science Quarterly. That summer I was blessed with taking class instruction in Christian Science, which left me well equipped for my second year of college. I have since transferred to a large university where I continue to learn more of what Mrs. Eddy defines as "good" (Science and Health, p. 587): "God; Spirit; omnipotence; omniscience; omnipresence; omniaction."