In-Person lecture: NEVER ALONE: HOW SPIRITUAL IDEAS WORK IN US

Speaker: Melanie Wahlberg.

Melanie Wahlberg, practitioner of Christian Science healing and international speaker, will present her talk, “Never Alone: How spiritual ideas work in us,” on May 21 at 7 p.m. at the Christian Sscience Church at 1475 Evergreen Park Dr SW, in Olympia, WA.

The talk will focus on universal healing precepts found in the Holy Bible, especially in Christ Jesus’ life and teachings, and show how they are available for anyone to understand and experience. The talk is free, open to the community, and is sponsored by First Church of Christ, Scientist, Olympia.

“In the middle of difficult circumstances, it would be so reassuring to feel supported in our efforts for progress, instead of feeling alone. In this talk,” says Melanie, “I discuss what I’ve found helpful in my practice of Christian Science healing: that God loves us deeply, is an active presence of good in our lives, and provides fresh ideas about our spiritual nature that wipe away fear and reveal inspired solutions. And I’ll share how this approach has transformed lives, including a mother and her infant daughter who each experienced healing. With ideas from God working on our behalf this way, we discover that we’re never truly alone.”

Melanie will discuss the approach to spirituality and well-being that explains these ideas, Christian Science, and share examples of healing from her own life and the lives of others. She will explain why Christian Science is both Christian and scientific, meaning that anyone can prove its effectiveness for themselves. The practice is fully described in the book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, written by the founder of the Christian Science movement, Mary Baker Eddy.

Melanie will also touch on the life of Mary Baker Eddy, a mid-nineteenth century woman from New England, and how she came to understand, confirm, and teach what she felt was original Christian healing. Eddy herself said she was especially inspired by Jesus’ demand, “He that believes on me, the works that I do will he do also; and greater works than these will he do, because I go unto my Father” (found in the Gospel of John 14:12 in the Bible).

For over 150 years, people around the world have also worked to follow Christ Jesus in this practice of Christianity and continue to do so today, with healings of physical ills and personal difficulties for themselves and others.

About Melanie Wahlberg

Two influences that Melanie will never forget were the Christian Science Sunday School and a mom who turned to prayer and encouraged her to do the same. These influences showed her something of the reliability of God and spiritual inspiration, and trusting this helped her find her way growing up. Significant healing experiences with relationship and food issues, and violence in the community, were also unforgettable. From this, Melanie got an idea of the many ways that Christian Science can transform lives.

After finishing a doctorate in mathematics, Melanie became a college professor and truly enjoyed teaching. She found that teaching was less about telling students something than facilitating the students’ discoveries of new concepts. There was nothing better than witnessing a reluctant student realize that a previously mystifying concept was actually within reach to anyone.

But the higher promise of Christian Science beckoned her to help people redeem and uplift their lives in a fuller way. When students came to her office for help with calculus, Melanie and her students often found themselves talking about the joy and excitement of growing spirituality.  After just two years at the college, Melanie resigned from her position and began accepting calls as a Christian Science practitioner. She wrote articles for the Christian Science periodicals, was a frequent guest on Sentinel radio, and began advertising her practice in The Christian Science Journal in 2004. She and her husband also started a family.

Melanie loves working from her home office in the Los Angeles area. She likes to see lives transformed by the healing ideas of Christian Science, where we ourselves are helped and, at the same time, find we can help others. Her life as a mom has a lot of the same focus. And whether the spiritual ideas apply to health issues, school, social lives, or sports, her three kids push her to “keep it real.”

Top photo by Christelle Hayek on Unsplash