Free from skin discomfort

A year ago, I had a healing that wasn’t just a healing, but an enlightening lesson. I had been having a recurring, painful issue with the skin on my hands. I didn’t know what it was at first, or why it was happening, but it made daily tasks and even sleeping difficult. It was uncomfortable to wash my hands, to give my baby boy a bath, or even to change his diapers. It was very frustrating.

At first I thought I could just cover the affected skin, hiding the irritation, and totally missed the idea that I needed to affirm my already perfect being as God made me. Weeks went by and nothing helped, including bandages, ointments, or lotions. I lost a lot of sleep because I would wake up scratching my hands.

When I finally found out the name of the problem by looking it up on the Internet, the situation felt worse. I realized I had let a “weed” grow in my “thought garden.” I was too afraid to even think of denouncing the problem and of claiming that it was not a part of me. But I still sensed deep down that this was not something God made—that this condition didn’t really belong to me.

I brought up the topic in Sunday School with my teacher, and she gave me such wonderful insight. I realized I had the spiritual tools I needed to pull through this situation.

I saw that I was making something out of nothing. (One way to think about fear is “false evidence appearing real.”) I was giving in to the monster of fear. It seemed that the symptoms only flared up when I was stressed or worried, which I realized are forms of fear. Fear is often subtle error, and in remembering that error is only a mistaken concept, I realized I needed to stop taking ownership of it and claiming it as my own thought. I needed to use spiritual sense and see that God, Mind, my Father-Mother, gives me all my thoughts and my strength. The painful sensation, or condition, was only a mistake that could easily be corrected by realizing that God is my Shepherd and could only provide the most complete and loving care. 

I used these verses from the Christian Science Hymnal to help me truly grasp the falsity and nothingness of this condition: 

That was what I needed to realize, that I am God’s child, perfect and immortal. I am God’s creation, and I express beauty. There was no room for false concepts about myself and no need to be afraid. Man is not flawed, but is the reflection of perfection. Nothing can deny our true selfhood, our happiness, and our oneness with our Father-Mother God.

As soon as I realized my oneness with God, understood it well enough to stop fretting and stressing about how to prevent reoccurrences of the problem, I was free from discomfort. All the symptoms went away, and I no longer felt odd, ugly, or worried that someone would notice the state of my hands—the condition disappeared entirely.

And I am still free because I realized that we are never bound or shackled to evil or error. When we face mistaken perceptions from time to time, they can be corrected because they are not a part of our true being.

I am grateful for Mary Baker Eddy’s bravery in following the path God had appointed for her and sharing Christian Science with the world through Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. I thank God for love and guidance. I am also grateful for other Christian Scientists who have shared spiritual thoughts and empowering ideas that have helped to illumine my path. 

Angelina Dixon 
Ballwin, Missouri, US