God is always with us

This testimony first appeared in the August 20, 2013, online Russian edition of the Herald of Christian Science. It was reprinted in the February 2014 French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish editions of The Herald of Christian Science.

I grew up in Georgia, a small country in the South Caucasus. In Georgia most people are Orthodox Christians, and I was raised in that religion. I always believed in God and my religion. Then, in October 1999, I met an American, who became our family’s friend. He did not speak Georgian, we did not know English, but we all could speak some Russian, so we communicated in that language.

Our American friend was a very friendly and happy person. One day he gave me a little pamphlet about Christian Science. Although I didn’t speak English at that time, I could read the pamphlet because it was in both Russian and English. I read the pamphlet every day. I found that the ideas in it made my life better. For example, in 2003, I was promoted from a part-time to a full-time school teacher, and in 2007, I was named the best teacher in the elementary school where I taught. I had been living in my parents’ home at the time, so when I received a pay raise, the extra money helped me, as well as my family. I was also able to help some of my friends and neighbors by lending them small amounts of money.

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During summer vacation that same year, I had a job cleaning rooms at a resort hotel. The work was very hard, and we worked long hours every day of the week. My back became very painful, so I went to a doctor. She gave me some medicine and told me to avoid eating certain foods. These remedies did not help, so I threw out the medicine and began to pray for myself as Christian Scientists do. Within five days, my back no longer hurt.

My American friend left Georgia to go to Iraq in 2005. During the 42 months he was there, I prayed daily for his safety. When he came back four years later, we were soon married. Then a few months later, we moved to the United States. However, soon after we arrived, my husband was offered a job in Afghanistan. We decided together that he should take the job. Before he left, he gave me Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy and a Bible, and he recommended that I use them to read the weekly Bible Lessons outlined in the Christian Science Quarterly.

It was hard living by myself in a new country. I wasn’t familiar with the culture at all, and I could barely speak English. After my husband left, I lived in our home by myself. But I knew I was not alone because Christian Science had taught me that I am God’s child, and God is always with us. The day after my husband left, I spent the whole day reading Science and Health. The ideas I read helped me feel close to God and kept me from feeling lonely and afraid. In Georgia I had lived with my large family and had many friends. Now I was living alone for the first time in my life. Studying Christian Science helped me meet the challenges that came up each day.

I enrolled at a community college to study English. Always before opening the classroom door, I would pray for myself and also for all the other students. I prayed with the Lord’s Prayer, especially Mary Baker Eddy’s spiritual interpretation of the last verse, “For God is infinite, all-power, all Life, Truth, Love, over all, and All” (Science and Health, p. 17). It helped me very much. During this time, a Christian Science practitioner, who was a friend of my husband’s, would pray for me when I had examinations. I passed all my classes.

Although my husband was living and working in dangerous places in Iraq and Afghanistan, he was never harmed. I felt that my prayers helped him. He returned from Afghanistan almost two years ago. I finished my college classes, and I am now a US citizen. Eight months ago, because of what I was learning in Christian Science, I stopped using medicine for menstrual cramps, and now I am free of that problem. I am so grateful for Christian Science, and I am grateful to God. Christian Science showed me how to listen to God, and it is still showing me the way to live. God is always with us!

Maka Chkhaidze
Stevenson, Washington, US

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