My thumb was perfect

Last year was my first summer at a camp for Christian Scientists in Maine. I was enjoying all the activities and learning new skills, like sailing and archery.

One day, we were playing a competitive game when a girl accidentally ran into my hand. I heard a loud, threatening crack from my thumb. In the past, I’ve jammed my thumb during volleyball and basketball, but this was much more severe. When I looked down at my thumb, I saw that it was crooked and swollen. It hurt, and I was afraid I’d broken it. 

ANNA LITWILLER—STAFF

I told my counselors what had happened, and they had the Christian Science nurse come to bandage my hand. The first thing she did was to ask which hymn from the Christian Science Hymnal was my favorite. I told her that I loved Hymn 350, which has the refrain “All, all is well” (Mary Peters, adapt.).

She pulled out a Hymnal and had me flip to the page. She asked me why I loved that hymn so much. I told her it was because it reassures me that everything will be OK, that everything is OK, and that everything has always been OK. This is because God loves us and is always taking care of us.

I scanned the hymn for another helpful passage and saw a phrase I hadn’t noticed before: “Strong the hand stretched forth to shield us.” It was the most perfect idea for this situation! It made me think of God’s strong hand shielding me instead of thinking of a broken hand.

I continued to pray with the peaceful, healing ideas from this hymn.

The very next day, my thumb was back in place, as though nothing had ever happened. There was no more pain, either! I had a good and normal day and even water skied. My thumb was perfect.

The lesson I learned from this healing was that sometimes we can see something (like the way my thumb looked after the accident) that seems scary and impressive. But instead of looking at that, I can immediately turn to what I know about God. When I let my thoughts rest on God in this instance, I felt His presence, and it resulted in a quick healing. I’m so grateful.