A number of years ago, I noticed a small, puffy discoloration on my neck. Having relied on Christian Science for healing in the past, and understanding my true being as God’s offspring to be whole and unblemished, I wasn’t afraid of it. But I didn’t often pray specifically about the spot, and for several years it was simply a minor annoyance, although it continued to grow. I’d notice the spot when looking in a mirror, and when I shaved, I had to be careful not to nick it. Sometimes it felt sore, but most of the time I just ignored it. At one point, my wife, who is not a Christian Scientist, said she thought it might be skin cancer.

Near the end of one summer, my wife looked at my neck in the bright sunshine and said, “You’d better do something about that spot on your neck. It’s turned black.” 

It was clear that I needed to pray more diligently about this. While I had prayed about it occasionally, I decided to devote more effort to treating this problem metaphysically.