Ulcer healed

Reprinted from O Arauto da Ciência Cristã (The Herald of Christian Science, Portuguese edition)

When I began studying Christian Science some 38 years ago, the book Science and Health delighted me because it made me understand that God does not punish, that He is loving and cares for His children.

At the time, I was a newlywed and suffered from many ills for which I sought medical treatment. The main one was an ulcer that caused me a lot of pain and from which I’d been suffering for a number of years.

Eating was so difficult that my meals basically consisted of only milk and crackers. I felt apprehensive about that, but my doctor told me not to worry because milk is very nutritional. Still, he could offer me no hope for a permanent cure.

I didn’t want to suffer from this condition anymore. It not only interfered with my eating but also with my housework, which I could barely accomplish because of the discomfort I felt.

I then decided to read the weekly Christian Science Bible Lesson every day. With this study, I began to feel calmer and stronger and to have more of a sense of what the Bible calls “dominion” (Gen. 1:28). I remember that I prayed a lot with this Bible passage: “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ” (II Cor. 10:3–5).

I began to overcome the fear of pain and to regain hope that I could be free of the illness. As I focused more on spiritual things, I noticed that I was naturally keeping the physical senses out of my thought; it was as if I was forgetting about the body and the pain.

I also prayed with “the scientific statement of being” from Science and Health, which says, “There is no life, truth, intelligence, nor substance in matter. All is infinite Mind and its infinite manifestation, for God is All-in-all. Spirit is immortal Truth; matter is mortal error. Spirit is the real and eternal; matter is the unreal and temporal. Spirit is God, and man is His image and likeness. Therefore man is not material; he is spiritual” (Science and Health, p. 468). I understood that just as a ray of sun cannot be altered, because it is joined to the sun as its reflection, so my spiritual and true identity was always united to my Creator, God, and expressed His perfection.

I made an effort to hold on to these passages and to apply them in my daily life. In fact, prayer became my daily spiritual nutrition. This change in thought brought me much tranquility, confidence, and healing. In only a few months after starting this prayer and study, I very naturally began eating normally.

The pain also disappeared and did not return. I was completely well. How happy I was to be free from a difficulty that had afflicted me for so many years and which I thought would never be healed!

The study of Christian Science is for me like a present from God because it brings healing, blessings, and prosperity. I have gained permanent health, discernment, and peace of mind.

Irene Costa De Chaves | Florianópolis, SC, Brazil