Symptoms of infection healed

by Sue A. Spotts
from the Christian Science Sentinel, October 2, 2023

Several years ago I found myself feeling hurt and quite put off by the actions of some family members. During this time, I began experiencing symptoms of a urinary tract infection.

I prayed to see myself and everyone in our true, spiritual light, as innocent children of God—loved by our divine Father-Mother, loving, free from sin and discord, and pure of heart. I held to the inspiration that each one of us in his or her true nature is both blessed of the Father and a blessing. I knew that I and all of God’s children reflect divine Love, so my love for these family members was assured, as was theirs for me. (The tension with these individuals did eventually dissolve.)

As the days passed, however, symptoms of the infection worsened, until one afternoon the condition became so painful that it was difficult even to sit still. I humbly asked God what I needed to know, and this statement from the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, came to thought: “… Truth is real, and error is unreal.” I looked it up and found the full context of the statement to be very helpful in focusing my prayer: “Truth is immortal; error is mortal. Truth is limitless; error is limited. Truth is intelligent; error is non-intelligent. Moreover, Truth is real, and error is unreal. This last statement contains the point you will most reluctantly admit, although first and last it is the most important to understand” (Mary Baker Eddy, p. 466).

I read and reread those lines. Initially, they registered as little more than words on a page. But I continued reading, sincerely desiring to glimpse something of the pure spiritual reality they conveyed.

Soon, the word admit piqued my interest. As I thought about it, I realized that the word carries a double meaning. For example, to admit these spiritual truths could mean to let them in mentally, prayerfully—as one would open the door of their home and joyfully and gratefully admit a welcome guest. To admit these statements could also mean to recognize and acknowledge their factuality, to assent to their truth.

I felt I was definitely welcoming these declarations into thought and engaging with them prayerfully. But I could also, even in these very trying circumstances, consent to the fact that right then Truth, God, was real, and the claim of sickness and discord—having no history or cause in Him or in His entirely good and spiritual creation—was unreal. This wasn’t going to be more true in the future, after the physical senses reported a change for the better. Nor did the actuality of these statements await my gaining a better spiritual understanding and conviction of them. In fact, no matter where I felt I fell on a human spectrum of faith and spiritual understanding, it didn’t alter the invariable spiritual fact that my true being as God’s child is forever harmonious and perfect in His likeness.

I resisted a strong reluctance to make this most basic admission­—a reluctance I knew was unnatural. This was made easier by the recognition that the spiritual truths I was declaring were the Word of God, as revealed to Mary Baker Eddy and recorded by her in Science and Health, and had divine authority. I knew, too, that my previous healings in Christian Science, and those of many others, were testament to the efficacy of prayer that humbly acknowledges God’s allness.

As I continued to pray, consenting as best I could to the fact that God’s allness was the present reality, thought began to shift. A feeling of happiness and confidence began to rise up within. It was a growing conviction that God and His divine goodness alone were real and that what the senses were projecting had no validity or credibility.

As a result, I was able to go forward that afternoon with a few simple tasks. Within an hour or so, all symptoms of the painful infection were gone. There was a complete healing.

Looking back, I can see that I wasn’t praying alone. God was with me, as He is with all of us as we pray earnestly.

For God’s abundant grace as expressed through His Comforter, divine Science, I’m deeply and continually grateful.

This article was published in the October 2, 2023 issue of the Christian Science Sentinel. To learn more about this weekly inspirational magazine, published online and in print, visit HERE.