Testimony of Healing August 30, 1993 Issue

I used to be part of an active drama group—we entertained...

Edith Ann Benjamin Washington

I used to be part of an active drama group—we entertained people for over four years. Then jealousy, misunderstandings, cruelty, and spiteful competition set in. There appeared to be no one in the group untouched by these things.

One day after a heated encounter, I saw one member put a cigarette in her mouth. I found myself saying, "Give me one of those." As we talked and smoked, my friend related to me all the "benefits" of smoking. Thus began my experience in smoking. The habit kept on for three or four years and became more addictive. I even started smoking at home when my mother would work late. Once she came home early when I was smoking in bed, and she asked me who had been smoking. I told her the plumber had. Two or three days later she reminded me that the plumber had been there two weeks before. Then she said in a kind but firm way, "Sin is like this—if you lie, then it will cause you to steal; then it will cause you to cheat; then kill." Those words were very strong. I surely didn't want to do any of those things.

I began to study more earnestly and to pray more effectively as we are taught in Christian Science. One night after I was in college I had a mighty battle. This was the night that I found out the truth about the smoking habit. It was after eleven o'clock, and I was not allowed to leave the dormitory to get more cigarettes until seven the next morning. As I tried to study, the urge to smoke grew greater. Around one o'clock, when everyone was asleep, I began to shake. I turned to God in silent prayer. I began by being very quiet and thought of the Lord's Prayer, with its spiritual interpretation as given in Science and Health. I read through the prayer slowly, several times. Then a calm came.

Send a comment to the editors