A few years ago, I was elected to the office of First Reader of my branch Church of Christ, Scientist. The spiritual growth I experienced during that three-year term completely changed my approach to life and led to the healing of a distressing condition.

One morning, I awoke to find my right eye and cheek swollen and discolored. It was the Thanksgiving holiday week in the United States, which is a very demanding time for First Readers because they have to prepare for a Thanksgiving Day service as well as the regular Sunday service and Wednesday testimony meeting. Between this commitment and holiday plans with family and friends, I anticipated questions about my face. It seemed impossible that they wouldn’t notice it, and many of my family members and friends are very health-conscious.

I worried about not just the symptoms but also about how to respond to others’ speculation and concerns about the condition. But then I realized that I was giving credence to something that was actually unreal because not created by God, who is both all good and the creator of all. Also, I was predicting that this Thanksgiving week, which is normally filled with gratitude to God, would play out in a negative way.