Tooth problem healed

It's a joy to put this on Mrs. Howell's website as what I experienced about 2 years ago can be of enormous help to someone else. I had gone to the dentist to have my teeth cleaned. When the dentist examined the x-rays, he said I had an infected tooth that ought to come out that very afternoon.

In my years of studying and practicing Christian Science, I had seen God's power demonstrated in so many ways. However, teeth problems were another situation. This day I longed to see His power at work with this tooth condition so I said to the dentist," I'll think about having it removed."

I went home and called a family member who also happens to be a Christian Science practitioner to pray for me. That week was a very challenging to me. But do you know, (and I recall the day), on Sunday of that week, I felt the healing taking place. I was so grateful to be feeling better. And the interesting part was what took place over the next few days. My ear began draining yukky stuff (won't go into too much detail on this) and within a week, I was completely free of the infection. And when I next went back to the dentist for teeth cleaning, I asked him if such a thing could happen. He said, "I don't know. I've never heard of this before." But I know, and Christian Scientists know, that God can do what man cannot. I still have that tooth and it's perfectly sound.

How can I ever be thankful to God enough for revealing to Mary Baker Eddy the divine laws that underlay what our blessed Master, Christ Jesus, employed in his sublime healing and saving work!

Doing things God's Way

(Some thoughts this lovely Tennessee morning on God's will vs. our own)



Since one hundred percent obedient
Is what our Master was we see,
Making our own terms with God
Will never be allowed you and me.

Life shows us this:
Suffering almost always does.
But by whatever way we come
To learn to say (and mean)
"Do with my life as You know best,"
Only then do we know real joy,
Feel deep peace of mind,
Experience what Jesus taught and knew --
That our loving Father longs to see
All His children absolutely blest.

Hour-by-hour obedience
Is the one sure way.

(From my first published book,
"For Love of Christ" --
2006)

Reply to someone trying to "save" me!

Every now and then, some well-meaning member of another Christian denomination will come across something I've blogged on Christian Science, and allow themselves to get all worked up. And some will reach out and try to "save" me! Whether in emails or letters or phone calls, or collaring me in person, their efforts amuse me. It just isn't possible to turn me away from my religion that I thank God for every single day.

A few years ago, a dear lady who tried every way she could think of to dissuade me from Christian Science received a, I trust, loving reply from me. This stopped it, and I excerpt some of the thoughts I shared with her, below:

"Dear_____:

Since I see no other way to follow in Jesus' footsteps 100% without striving to understand how to heal as he did--through the aid of Christian Science -- I ask myself, how can you be 100% obedient to his commandments? Just a thought I have, and have had. This isn't to say the road isn't terribly rugged for followers of my religion at times. You would have to have stayed with its teachings these past few years to understand just how rugged. But I could not go one day without its truths that encourage and help us to rely on God for every problem we have.

Christ and Christian Science are what I need. More than I could desire, in fact. And my admiration and respect for Mary Baker Eddy, who as you will recall, once wrote, 'I love Jesus more than any man who ever was and is' can't be shaken. I do not know where I would be without CS and could never pay off my indebtedness to God for making it available in my life. As you know, my mother left the Methodist church she loved when CS healed her dramatically of something she had suffered for years which kind doctors could not relieve her of.

I know you are genuinely doing what you feel your beliefs endorse. But your praying for my "soul" is not going to change my beliefs -- no, my convictions -- in the least. So, let us agree to part in love for Christ our Saviour."

Jesus -- On Giving

Giving, with the
selfishness removed,
is somewhat like
a child's Yo-Yo:
do you remember
playing with one?
Send it out,
bak it comes.
When love impels
an action,
the reaction
though not always
from recepient per se,
or in kind,
will do what Jesus
said it would:

"Give, and it shall be given
unto you; good measure, pressed
down, and shaken together, and
running over."
(Luke 6:31)

Selfless giving,
so God-approved,
so full of good
for all concerned.
God's law of love,
operating perpetually,
impartially covering all,
sees that this is done.

Expanding Horizons

Someone who commented on one of blog postings, "Whose Glory?" has caused me to think about what happens when we earnestly pray and work to give up self to serve God. I, too, like that individual once thought that if I erased a lot of "me", life would be a void--colorless, dull, unexciting. This is not what happens.

The woman who discovered my religion writes in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" on the topic of becoming closer to God, finding out our true selfhood as His image and likeness: "This scientific sense of being, forsaking matter for Spirit, by no means suggests man's absorption into Deity and the loss of his identity, but confers upon man enlarged individuality, a wider sphere of thought and action, a more expansive love, a higher and more permanent peace." (Page 265)

I have certainly found this to be the case. God has opened up channels for blessing others beyond anything I could have imagined even 4 years ago. And I am not talking just in my locality, but all over this planet.

To go back to when my first book was published: my sole hope was not to just share pretty poetry and interesting essays with others, though there have been plenty of them devoted to the beautiful things in our Father's universe. And I know some readers have found enjoyment, on a certain level.

And frequenting the local public library where I grew up, to check out as many books as they would let me have, I thought how nice it would be to have a book of mine on the shelf of some library.  But what I was aiming for in my 4 books so far, and the one due out in September, is to bring God to the thoughts of the reader--to honor our Master, Christ Jesus, and  publish the Good News of Christ's saving power. And the heartwarming results of this! rather than just earn money for my books, I wished them to be accepted in public libraries where they could more widely bless. And the places where they have been accepted, and the feedback I have received from readers in many countries, has nearly overwhelmed me at times.

To give my readers an idea of how God has brought about a "wider sphere of thought and action" in my life, let me list just some of the foreign libraries where my books presently are. Too many here in the USA to list.

Liverpool, England
Pusan, Korea
Beijing China
Riga, Latvia
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Port Adelaide, South Australia
Macao, China
Noumea, New Caledonia
Katowice, Poland
Ottawa, Canada
Nicosia, Cypress
Guadalajara, Mexico
Coatbridge, Scotland
Manchester, England
Ontario, Canada
Alexandria, Egypt
Lampeter, Wales
Stirling, Scotland
Dublin, Ireland
Inverclyde, Scotland
Bucharest, Romania
Paisley, Scotland
Beirut, Lebanon
Budapest, Hungary
Valletta, Malta
Blackburn, Scotland
Thessalonika, Greece
Glasgow, Scotland
Orkney, Scotland
London, England
Okinawa, Japan
Bangor, Northern Ireland
Manilla, the Philippines
Lisbon, Portugal
Monkton, Scotland
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada
Edinburgh, Scotland
Dublane, Scotland
Paris, France
Newcastle, Australia
Fort Saskatchewan, Canada
Renfrew, Scotland
Zurich, Switzerland
Inverness, Scotland
Isle of Man
Lyon, France
Clydebank, Scotland
Ceredigion, Wales
East Kilbride, Scotland
Hagatna, Guam
Harrow, England
Osaka, Japan
Leicester, England
Tokyo, Japan
Radyr, Wales
Seoul, Korea
Rekyavik, Iceland
Cardiff, Wales
Aberdeen, Scotland
Hong Kong, China
Devon, England
Dumbarton, Scotland
Luxembourg
Bogota, Colombia
Raratonga, Cook Islands
Islamabad, Pakistan
Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia
Windhoek, Namibia
Limerick, Ireland
Dundee, Scotland
Bridgetown, Barbados
Nanjing, China
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Shanghai, China
Santiago, Chile
Copenhagen, Denmark
Canberra, Australia
Kintilloch, Scotland
Rio de Janiero, Brazil
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Cymru, Wales
Nagasaki, Japan
Dorado, Puerto Rico
Aberystwyth, Wales
Vaduz, Liechtenstein
Barcelona, Spain
Stourbridge, England
Cork City, Ireland
Yerevan, Armenia
Dunedin, New Zealand
Clackmannshire, Scotland
Sao Paulo, Brazil
Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria
Wellington, New Zealand
Reims, France
Luton, England
Hamilton, Scotland
Hiroshima, Japan
Regina, Canada
Thimphu, Bhutan
Hamilton, New Zealand
Ballerup, Denmark
Rotterdam, the Netherlands
Tallin, Estonia
Colombo, Sri Lanka
Grenada, West Indies
Halifax, Nova Scotia
Geelong, Australia
Panaji, Goa
Aitkenvale; Queensland, Australia
Wenjiang, China
Vaughan, Ontario, Canada
Singapore
Lanarkshire, Scotland
Vienna, Austria
Livingston, Scotland
Swansea, Wales
Chennai, India
Selkirk, Scottish Borders
Galway, Ireland
Hangzhou, China
Dumferline, Scotland
Kiev, Ukraine
Limassol, Cypress
Malmo, Sweden
Abroath, Scotland
Ayr, Scotland
Lllandysul, Wales
Belfast, Northern Ireland
Kirkcaldy, Scotland
Nara, Japan
Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada
Tauranga, New Zealand
Warsaw, Poland
Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada
Brasov, Romania
Vilnius, Lithuania
St. Andrews, Scotland
Hastings, New Zealand
Kobenhavn, Denmark
Brisbane, Australia
Minsk, Belarus
Moscow, Russia
Trieste, Italy
Swaziland, Africa


The way God's goodness is poured out on us, I except to hear from many more. I suspect there are more libraries that have put my books in their collections being that not all foreign librarians take the time to send me a letter that has to be translated into English. But I'm thrilled with the letters I have received.


'

Why I Write Poems for Christ

One of the joys of my life these past few years of having access to the world on-line is writing poems honoring God's Holy Son. Why do I feel so inspired to do this? It is the hope that what our great Master taught and practiced shall reach people who have yet to become acquainted with these sublime teachings. And opening their thoughts to the Word, have it lodged within their hearts. And so lodged, lead an individual to obey what Jesus said. I am convinced that there is no other way under the sun to find the peace and joy and purpose of life.

Jesus said of His words that they shall not pass away, though everything else perish. And those adoring souls who do what they can, who use whatever ability they feel God has given them, can see their poetry -- if they listen to inspiration divine -- reach the hearts of those now living. And those lives yet to be. Can we who are His think of any activity higher?

Whose Glory?

Wanting to be useful in this world, and use whatever abilities we may have, is a legitimate desire. We rightly want to be a force for good, to give freely to help mankind. And the life and teachings of Christ Jesus are our shining, forever example.

I have felt a sense of awe that when the tempter went at our Master to try to get him to magnify himself, pursue aims just for himself, he dealt with the evil immediately. He didn't fall for it, knew better than to have in thought anything other than seeing that his Father was glorified. In Jesus' case, and aspiration and actions were 100% pure.

For what it's worth to someone reading this blog, I have found that subjugating self to being about God's business doesn't take anything good away from us. It doesn't cause us to shut down and no long be able to employ talents. Not at all. Areas of usefulness will probably not be in the direction we once outlined for ourselves. But when we desire to serve Him, He sees to it that wider avenues of blessing others open up before us. They never fail to, when our motives are pure, and we want God to get the glory--be in the limelight, so to speak.

On the topic of laboring more selflessly, the woman who founded my religion has a statement that has always impressed me. She writes: "Goodness and benevolence never tire. They maintain themselves and others and never stop from exhaustion. He who is afraid of being too generous has lost the power of being magnanimous. The best man or woman is the most unselfed." ("First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany, page 165)

I am so thankful to have countless examples of selfless men and woman down the years who being Christ's followers, did the praying and struggling at times to overcome self, in order to be more useful to God and mankind.

How Christian Science Heals

When talking with someone who is new to the teachings of Christian Science and has no conception of just how healing happens, I often refer them to the last 100 pages of "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures". There are so many testimonies to the effectiveness of this method of Christ-healing from people who, from just reading Mary Baker Eddy's book, experienced the removal of what was troubling them. One of the most helpful to me is found on page 603 where an individual from Portland, OR told how he found complete freedom from an accident.

Let me give a portion of it for anyone coming across this blog who is seeking a higher way to health than through medical means. This individual, who after the accident, took up "Science and Health" writes that "I became so absorbed in the book that I forgot all about my ankle; it went entirely out of my thought, for I had a glimpse of all God's creation as spiritual, and for the time being lost sight of my material selfhood. After two hours I laid the book down and walked into another room. When next I thought of my ankle, I found it was not hurting me. The swelling had gone down, the black and blue appearance had nearly vanished, and it was perfectly well. It was healed while I was 'absent from the body' and 'present with the Lord.' This experience was worth a great deal to me, for it showed me how the healing is done."

A precedent for doing what this person did--turn away from the body to God for healing--is found in the Bible, particularly in the life and works of Christ Jesus. He healed many who had physical troubles, showing that disease is a violation of an inherent right -- the right of the children of God to experience harmony in every aspect of life.

Underlying our Master's words and deeds was eternal divine law, which we can learn how to apply. Through prayer that springs from an understanding of God as the perfect Principle of the universe, and of our actual nature as His spiritual image, we can experience genuine health.

Despite the appearance that we're merely physical beings, the true self of everyone is incorporeal, diseaseless, never helpless. We actually live in Spirit and are eternally above and apart from physicality and suffering. Wholeness is the very essence of God's nature, and His children express that wholeness. We can turn away from preoccupation with the body--with how to repair it, add to it, or substract from it -- and realize that Spirit is our true source and substance. God is the sole maintainer of our well-being.

Sickness, or inharmony of any kind, isn't a part of our real identity. And awakening to this fact results in healing. The book mentioned above says, "The Christlike understanding of scientific being and divine healing includes a perfect Principle and idea, -- perfect God and perfect man as the basis of thought and demonstration." (page 259)

Jesus didn't examine the body either to determine the cause of illness or to cure it. He was deeply compassionate with the sufferers he encountered. Yet his teachings turn us away from over-concern about the body to greater trust in God's care. Turning to God was what Jesus invariably did and taught and advocated.

I learned several years ago how powerful Christ, Truth is. I was called to visit a Christian Scientist in a residential home who urgently needed help. When I went into the room, the scene was daunting. I read some comforting truths from "Science and Health" to calm the tumult. Then I turned and looked out the window. I prayed earnestly to witness right there God's absolute allness and the nothingness of matter, sickness, suffering. After a little while I had such a feeling of Love's presence that I turned around. The situation had changed markedly. The woman was sitting up in bed, and said she felt as though she could eat someting. That was the end of her difficulty, which earlier had seemed overwhelming to those concerned.

I've seen over and over again that freedom from suffering comes as the truth of God's allness and of our perfection as His children becomes more real to us. Being 'absent from the body and present with the Lord' does heal.

From Betty Gillingham, C.S.

I am grateful to God for so many things! I've been thinking lately about feeling comforted. Christian Science to me is such a comfort, especially in these times that trouble so many. It helps me to not feel fearful, with all the media reports about the economy, predicted diseases, threats to our country's safety, and so on.

Of course, our Lord and Master, told us what to expect. In Luke Jesus says plainly, in verse after verse in chapter 21 how challenging life is going to get. But I love this, in verse 28: "And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh."

Christian Science helps me do just this. I find in its teachings so many statements of truth that reiterate what Jesus said and taught. Which is the purpose of my religion being established by Mary Baker Eddy in the first place.

The way I became a Christian Scientist is this: I was a Christian, baptized in my religion, worked hard in my church. But I wasn't satisfied, had gotten to the point where I had to know something more about God. I didn't know what this was at the time, just was searching for more. My friend in college was a devoted student of Christian Science and she mentioned it to me one day. She herself had just turned to it a year before. While talking with her one day about deeper issues, she said: "You will probably find what you are looking for in Christian Science. I certainly have." Later I got Mrs. Eddy's book, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. I ate it up. I was ready for it.

I will say to someone who begins reading this life-changing book, that there will or may be many things you don't understand, and perhaps in this day and time, words that you need a dictionary for. I sure did. And I had just gotten my master's degree and was about to start teaching school. I kept looking up words unfamiliar to me and did I get a further education -- humanly and spiritually.

This was many decades ago, and through all these years -- many of them as a public practitioner of Christian Science -- I've not only seen numerous proofs of God's healing power. I have myself been blessed with so many healings through the understanding of God and man that our great Teacher, Christ Jesus, had.