I started to feel very sick, a couple of weeks ago, after eating one evening. I traced the illness back to some food I had eaten and decided was responsible for the illness.
At first, my thought was lethargic, accepting the suffering with an attitude of, “Oh geez, I ate some bad food. Now I need suffer for a few hours until the sick feeling goes away.” But I quickly pounced on that suggestion and started to pray to feel my healthy well self again.
Mary Baker Eddy wrote, “If mortals think that food disturbs the harmonious functions of mind and body, either the food or this thought must be dispensed with, for the penalty is coupled with the belief” (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 388). I already ate the food, so it was too late to stop that from happening. I decided my option was to get rid of the “thought” that bad food was causing me to suffer.
In my prayers, I knew that God’s love and care was more powerful and influential over my experience than any bad food. If I ate bad food, then divine Love would neutralize that food and render it harmless in my body. I did not need to suffer from it, I accepted.
Eddy also wrote, “Mind regulates the condition of the stomach, bowels, and food, the temperature of children and of men, and matter does not” (Science and Health, p. 413). This truth reminded me that food was not in control of my experience, either in a good or a bad way. Food, as matter, is mindless. It does not have the ability to make me sick or to make me well. Only mind can affect how I feel. To get well, I needed to see that divine Mind, and not mortal mind, was determining my state of health.
So, my prayer shifted to accepting divine Mind’s government alone over my state of health. It didn’t matter what I ate for dinner, divine Mind alone was shaping and forming my experience, causing only good things to happen to me, giving me strength, health and wellness that is never lost.
Food is not more than Mind. Mind is more than food, I affirmed.
As I found my peace with Mind’s government over my health and body, I lost my fear of the food, and the sickness rapidly disappeared. In about 30 minutes, I felt well with no symptoms of food poisoning. I was my happy healthy self once again, and grateful for it.
I love the logical ‘process’ you used here Evan. This is likely the process one would apply to any phase of the belief in and fear of matter.
Thank you so much, Evan for that wonderful experience and the so understandable and metaphysical reasoning that finally lead to complete wellbeing again. Shifting our thoughts from material to spiritual reasoning is the way to healing, i.e. food is not in control of our wellbeing, only God is – so good!
The sentences from p. 388 and 413 in Science and Health are very clear, thought must be changed from the false sense of the matter to the Truth – Spirit, God alone is in control of everything. God is our Life not food! Have a lot to experience, demonstrating this Truth – what a wonderful spiritual adventure!
Thank you, Evan!! In an effort to “make sense” of our experience, we can lock ourselves into a sequence of painful consequences. But material sense never really “makes sense” so we can safely ignore its apparent causation. Divine mind is in charge – no material “rules” need apply.
I love hearing about your mishaps and how you transcended them. I wonder what that says about me?
Wow! great demonstration, Evan. I was hospitalized after eating some bad hamburger as a young man. I can truthfully say, Your path to solving that thought is a much better way. Knowing the power of divine principle, God’s thoughts towards us, as a cure to all that would make unwell is tantamount to all that heals us.
I allowed myself to be miserable for a week years ago. Finally, I called a CS practitioner and said, hey, this has gone on long enough! I had a meeting that day that I had to get to as we were buying a house and for the past week I ventured no further than the bathroom. The shift of thought and transformation of my situation was so promptly corrected that at that time, I was absolutely shocked with the very quick turn of events. Now, I know to expect a shift of thought and that we can see clearly what appears to material sense to be a just silly lie and not the truth about us as God’s dear child! Expect good. God is good! God was continually governing then and is now! God is the only power and always keeps us comfortable and safe. . .always. . . with no exceptions. None of us are ever (even for an instant) outside of this Divine care. Not only did I get to the meeting, but I was able run errands and go grocery shopping afterwards!! Forever grateful for this demonstration of good.
Thanks, Evan! Although I do take issue with some parts of the way I was raised in Christian Science i.e. denying feelings and emotions and shoving sinful behavior “under the rug” – I recently was able to feel grateful for the fact that my Parents never instilled in me Fear of Food, but instead put in my “computer” the idea that Food had no power over me….one way or the other. Thus I’ve never really had any Food Issues and don’t give power to Organic or Inorganic Food, but feel free to eat healthily and happily with no fear of food having power over me!
I hear you Bevi, I had a painful secret from my childhood and my mother didn’t know how to handle it. She never talked about my innocence nor was I able to talk about how it affected me. I spent years feeling out of sorts, maybe even guilty and unloved. If I tried to talk to my mother about what was going on in my mind or physically her answer was always something from the bible or S&H, which at the time was not what I wanted to hear. I felt hypocritical about going to Sunday School so by teen years I quit going. Now when I look back I realized that I “hated” my mother for this, and that I held her responsible for not handling the secret in my defense, and this brought tears to my eyes that I could “hate” her, because I also loved her! Later I returned to Christian Science and when I finally got to the point in my study that God, my real Parent, loves me unconditionally I was able to let go of all those awful feelings, as well as forgive the past. Take it out, look at it, realize the falsity of it, and let it go. That is what worked for me!
Oh, I’m so grateful U share with us the correct starting point, Evan. Fear is usually the first obstacle. Thank u for pointing out Mind, only, is in control. Self-government is God’s gift!
Types of food, how they are prepared, seasonings , salts, can not create reaction in the body. Matter is not . Eddy 468 S&H. Must understand this as another “bear” with no power. Thanks Evan for the alerting thought and all that contribute.
Oh, Thank You, Dear Jennifer from Vancouver Island!! We need more CSer’s to come forward and share with each other what happened to them as children being raised in C.S. I’ve found that a lot of us were raised by C.S. parents who didn’t know the difference between handling sickness and sin. They just conveniently Denied it All! Wrong! Much damage has been done…not only to children but to the Religion. I’m working through a lot in Therapy and 12-Step Groups to get back to a sense of being valued and loved as a Child of God. Without That, studying C.S. words just feels like putting “peanut butter” over the wounds, but not really Healing it. Feel, Deal and Heal!!
Thank you, Jennifer and Bevi, for your courageous posts on a sensitive topic. Mrs. Eddy is very clear that wrong doing must be challenged and the thinking corrected, uncomfortable as that may be for those involved. I am grateful that you are finding closure now and have drawn attention to the need to be frank with children, acknowledging their experiences and feelings then claiming their innocence and ability to dismiss the hurt as well as confronting those who have misbehaved toward them.
Thank you Evan for your testimony and its metaphysical reasoning, and for putting those wonderful quotes from Mrs. Eddy regarding food in one document. So grateful for all your “treatments.” Will go on my refrig.
I love your statement, “Food is not more than Mind. Mind is more than food” – can think of many ways to use it, filling in various challenges in place of food and using any of the seven synonyms for God. Powerful and direct! Thank you, Evan!
This is very helpful. I wonder how to apply it if any/all food seems to cause problems. An extremely elderly and until very recently fit and independent relative has been hospitalised with an as yet undiagnosed severe digestive condition – can’t even keep (theoretically good) food down. At this age any prolonged hospital admission leads some to fear even worse than hours of suffering.
Thank you, Evan. You give us good ideas for handling food allergies also. It’s all the same lie.
Jennifer and Bev deserve our compassion and understanding, but not every Christian Science childhood is one of painful memories or misguided parents. I was raised in CS and attended Sunday School until I turned 20. I had a very happy and healthy childhood, and thank my parents for sharing Christian Science with me and my sisters. Blessings to Bev and Jennifer, who know who their true Parent is.
Big Thanks to Linda Kirby and Kathleen for your Loving, Supportive and Helpful Comments. This All helps with the Healing! Being raised in C.S. in a dysfunctional family has pushed me to explore Healing in a wonderful variety of ways and has propelled me to be open to All different modalities of Healing and Religions. So grateful I have been forced to open my Thought and Heart to include many different ideas about God and Healing and thus have been able to build bridges to other Religions. Christian Science does NOT have the monopoly on Truth or Healing! There are many Paths to God!
Thanks Evan. This is very helpful to me right now as, for the last 3 weeks, I have been trying to realise that physical (so-called) conditions do not delineate my life experience. As always you present us with a slightly new slant on the familiar.