Editorial July 1, 2019 Issue

What problem are we trying to solve?

Ned Odegaard

Our first awareness of a problem usually starts with symptoms, the outward evidence that something is wrong—that something, somewhere, needs to be fixed. But it’s not always clear at the outset where to start in identifying the root cause of the difficulty. I’ve learned that however much the setting and the individuals involved vary, efforts to effect change need to start with the same simple question: “What problem are we actually trying to solve?”

When you see a stain in a ceiling caused by a water leak, the source of the problem is not the ceiling itself—that’s just where the problem becomes visible. The source of the problem is usually farther up, in the flashing around the chimney or perhaps the plumbing several floors above. There’s no point setting out to solve a problem if we’re not clear about its cause and exactly what needs to be fixed.

This need to distinguish between symptoms on the one hand and the actual underlying problem on the other is also central to the solution of health problems. Through a lifetime of practicing Christian Science, I have found that it represents a unique and reliable way to get at the very heart of health problems and find permanent healing. And it’s available to anyone, in any setting, at any time.

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Bible Lens—July 1–7, 2019