During a Christian Science church service some years ago, I had an instantaneous healing of chronic stomach trouble. This showed me one way that Church, as defined in the Glossary of the Christian Science textbook, “affords proof of its utility” (Mary Baker Eddy, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 583).

For about two years, I had endured extreme discomfort in my stomach on a regular basis. It seemed to become most acute whenever I was hungry, and I had developed a habit of keeping a supply of snacks in my purse to head off the pain. But at the same time, I was praying consistently, expecting God’s love to heal me as I grew spiritually through my study of Christian Science. This hymn from the Christian Science Hymnal captures some of the ideas with which I was praying: