Testimony of Healing April 21, 1997 Issue

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse ... and prove me...

Marc A. Brenner

"Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse ... and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it" (Mal. 3:10). These words from Malachi characterize the bountiful blessings I have received in over a half-century of the study and application of the Science of Christianity.

Among the many lessons I have learned has been that we must never pray for "things," but rather pray to see and do God's will. A clear example of this was my experience in entering the Naval Reserve Officers' Training Corps program at my university some forty-five years ago. This program was something I aspired to do—it provided a full university scholarship, foreign travel, prestige, and a commission in the regular Navy upon graduation. But I found that in seeking material gain, my human efforts failed—in both the written and physical examinations. It was only when I recognized God as the source of all my happiness and well-being that I gained entry into this program.

During my senior year in high school, I took the written exam for this program and failed miserably. The exam consisted mostly of questions on chemistry and physics, subjects of which I had very little knowledge. The following year I had the opportunity to retake this exam, and this time I turned entirely to God. As a student in the Christian Science Sunday School, I talked with my teacher, who helped me to see that all anyone could see in me was the manifestation of my thinking, and that if I held to the Christ in my consciousness, then all the examiners could see in me was the perfection expressed through the Christ. To me, this meant seeing myself as God's perfect reflection. This I did, dropping all worry and fear about the exam. The results were miraculous: even though I had no more knowledge of the subject matter than I had had the previous year, I answered the questions with ease, and was subsequently informed I had passed!

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