TeenConnect: Your Healings
March 28, 2023
My healing of a wrestling injury
I’d just started a new wrestling season. One of my first tournaments had gone well, so I went into my next tournament feeling good. However, during the second round of a match, my opponent pushed my thumb down into the mat, dislocating it. It hurt a lot, and I started crying. I left the tournament with my mom and dad, who helped me by putting ice on my thumb. My mom said we could also pray.
While we were in the car, my mom sang a hymn to me. This hymn meant a lot because it brought me a sense of calm, peace, and security. I thought about the line, “Tender mercies are holding me” (Susan Booth Mack Snipes, Christian Science Hymnal: Hymns 430—603, No. 500, © In Our Field Productions), and it was comforting to know that God was holding me. My mom and I continued to pray, focusing on God’s care for me instead of the pain.
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I’d also learned in Christian Science Sunday School that I’m the reflection of God. An analogy that reminded me of this uses the sun as a symbolic representation of God. As His reflection, I’m like one of the sun’s rays. This helped me remember that I can never be separate from God or His goodness.
After praying for a while, I was able to use my thumb again, but not with full mobility.
After praying for a while, I was able to use my thumb again, but not with full mobility. Although I wasn’t comfortable returning to wrestling, I was able to move forward with my spring sport—baseball. And while my thumb did cause me some problems, it wasn’t enough to stop me from competing.
My mom and I kept praying with Hymn 500. When I felt discomfort or pain, I would think about a spiritual idea from my prayers and then move on with my day, because I didn’t want the discomfort I was feeling to be my focus. I also found out later that my mom had been praying with the idea of forgiveness—that I didn’t need to harbor any negative feelings toward the opponent who’d hurt my thumb and that we could recognize him as a child of God, too.
I realized my thumb was completely healed, and I’ve had no problems with it since then.
As I continued to focus on the ideas I was praying with, I didn’t pay much attention to my thumb or any discomfort. Eventually, I forgot about the incident enough that I signed up for wrestling a few years later. It was only when my mom asked me if my thumb was OK to wrestle that I realized my thumb was completely healed. I’ve had no problems with it since then.
This experience taught me that prayer is effective even when you’re focused on the spiritual ideas rather than on a specific need. I also learned that keeping your thoughts on God, good, brings healing.