I am immensely grateful for Christian Science and have experienced its healing efficacy for several decades. I would like to share a healing I had in May 2015. While working as a Christian Science nurse during the night shift at a Christian Science nursing facility, I felt very uncomfortable around midnight. Knowing that we are each created to worship God alone, I prayed that I could not be made to believe or bow down to the mesmeric suggestion of illness. 

However, the symptoms worsened, so I called the Christian Science practitioner who was supporting the healing purpose of this Christian Science nursing facility that night through prayer. The first sentence she spoke to me appears in many places in the Bible: “Be not afraid.” I remembered that Mary Baker Eddy also uses that sentence in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures: “Christian scientific practice begins with Christ’s keynote of harmony, ‘Be not afraid!’ ” (p. 410).

I had to lie down in my room. I felt more discomfort on my left side, and found that I was unable to move my left arm or leg. I was also unable to articulate any word or sentence. The practitioner was called several times, and even though I couldn’t speak to her, I could understand the truths she was sharing over the phone. She often reminded me of my spiritual being and heritage as a child of God. Science and Health explains this in a helpful passage that answers the question, “What is man?” It begins: “Man is not matter; he is not made up of brain, blood, bones, and other material elements. The Scriptures inform us that man is made in the image and likeness of God.… He is the compound idea of God, including all right ideas; …” (p. 475).

I spent the rest of the night pondering the truths in this passage and listening to a recording of Science and Health. I also prayed with many other passages I knew by heart, such as the Lord’s Prayer, with its spiritual interpretation from Science and Health (see pp. 16–17), and “the scientific statement of being,” which begins: “There is no life, truth, intelligence, nor substance in matter. All is infinite Mind and its infinite manifestation, for God is All-in-all” (Science and Health,p. 468). 

Another Christian Science nurse tenderly cared for me and gave me a drink of water. I was able to swallow very slowly. When morning came, the director of Christian Science nursing at the facility visited me. I was frustrated because I was able to speak only broken words here and there. He immediately voiced the truth that I was a spiritual idea with all of my faculties intact, no matter what mortal mind was trying to make us believe. He added that he would never, even for a moment, accept the false picture of me that was being presented. This gave me a lot of encouragement, and my frustration began to dissolve. He then assisted me in eating some food, though swallowing was still difficult.

I was scheduled to have the next two days off work, and I spent that time praying, studying, listening to uplifting hymns, and reading inspiring articles in the Christian Science periodicals. Though still unable to speak properly, I did have several contacts with the practitioner. 

On the second day, my speaking ability came back, slowly but surely. Moreover, I was able to use my left arm and leg, though I was still a little unstable. On the third day, a scheduled workday for me, I was able to go back to work and perform my duties at the nursing facility, supporting and helping patients. In all, I had missed only five hours of work. 

Within a week, complete normalcy of speech and movement was restored through prayerful metaphysical treatment alone. My gratitude is overwhelming for the untiring, loving work of the Christian Science practitioner, as well as the caring support of the staff at the Christian Science nursing facility. The whole staff rejoiced with me after witnessing the quick healing I experienced. 

Through this incident, I learned that in any adverse circumstance: “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear” (Psalms 46:1, 2). We can conquer fear and its effects because evil has no real power or existence; it is a lie that cannot stand on its own. God, Love, is infinite and destroys all kinds of fears when we turn to Him as we are taught in the Bible and the writings of Mary Baker Eddy. 

These days I continue to serve as a Christian Science nurse, helping others experience healing through a clearer understanding of the truth that frees. I am very grateful to bear witness to the ever-present power of divine Love. 

Leonee Abeygoonewardene
Los Angeles, California, US