Faith | God is always with you to help — and heal

“No matter where you are, God is there!” my mother used to tell me. I have found great comfort over the decades from knowing God is always with me to help and heal in times of need.

A few weeks ago, a stabbing pain developed in my wrist that felt acute when I played tennis. It didn’t stop me from using my hand, but the pain worsened over time, and had me worried that I would have to drop out of a major tennis tournament coming up.

While practicing on court one evening and tempted to drop the racket several times from pain ripping through my wrist, I finally took some time out after practice to pray for healing of the trouble.

I thought about the words of Jesus Christ, a master healer through the power of the Holy Spirit. He taught, “Know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32). In my prayers, I strove to understand the spiritual truth about my situation. I knew from experience, that a better understanding of spiritual reality can bring physical healing.

In pursuit of healing truth, I remembered that I had a spiritual individuality made in the likeness of God that was immortal, above and beyond anything the material senses perceive. This individuality was incorporeal, not physical, and could never be hurt or injured by anything that happened in the flesh, I knew.

To the physical senses my body felt very physical and my wrist in pain, but as Jesus instructed, the way out of suffering is to know one’s spiritual truth. Pain is not an eternal spiritual truth. It’s a temporal sensation that can disappear.

For healing to happen, I resolved to quit focusing on the temporal condition of my wrist and let my thought fill with my eternal spiritual reality. For success, I wholeheartedly embraced the truth that I was an eternal spiritual man reflecting the harmony and peace of God, now and always.

I was inspired by my prayer and lost fear of the condition.

In planning my next course of action, I wondered if I should take a couple of weeks off from playing tennis, which I was willing to do.

As I listened for guidance, I heard, “All the spiritual truth you’ve been praying is true now. It doesn’t become any truer tomorrow.”

This was an aha moment for me, for it let me know that I didn’t need to wait for healing to happen. Truth was true now!

Happy to accept spiritual truth as my truth, I lost all concern about my wrist. I essentially forgot about it, and moved on with my life plans as scheduled, unafraid.

A week later, after finishing a vigorous practice of tennis, I realized that my wrist was in perfect health. I had not experienced any pain since that prayer session I had the week before, and I had played tennis several times since — all pain free. The healing had been instantaneous.

As my mother used to say, “God is always with you.” I would add, “God’s healing power is always with you too!”

Evan Mehlenbacher is a practitioner and teacher of Christian Science in Richland, and a member of the Christian Science Church on Burden Blvd., in Pasco. Questions and comments should be directed to editor Lucy Luginbill in care of the Tri-City Herald newsroom, 4253 W. 24th Avenue, Kennewick, WA 99338. Or email lluginbill@tricityherald.com.