Don't Be afraid; Just Believe

Don’t Be Afraid; Just Believe
(Something’s on the Boil; a discovery of prayer and healing, Volume 2)
Deeper into Prayer and Healing
By Josephus L. van den Hoek, D.C.
©2006 J.L. van den Hoek. All rights reserved. No part of this
publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written
permission of the author.
Published by: Brave New Books
Cover image: Scared businesswoman, Sergey Nivens: Abode Stock

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Except in reference to the author, the names and circumstances of individuals
and or relationship to the author, have been changed for the sake of privacy.
Disclaimer: the content of this book neither constitutes, nor substitutes for,
medical advice or treatment for any form of illness. Please consult a physician
for medical related problems.
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Healing prayers play out on the world stage.
Ariel Sharon, prime minister of Israel, suffered from a devastating stroke on
January 4, 2006. He was placed under an induced coma by medical staff and
would never recover. Ehud Olmert, the deputy prime minister, took over the
prime minister’s position. Sharon, later suffering from kidney failure and multiple
organ failure passed away on January 11, 2014. He had remained in a coma
for eight years.
President George W. Bush about Ariel Sharon says that both he and the first lady,
Laura Bush, “. . . share the concerns of the Israeli people . . . and we are praying for his
recovery.” January 5, 2006 1
Israeli Prime minister Ehud Olmert about Ariel Sharon says in his address to the
United States Congress, “I pray, as I am sure you all do too, for his recovery.” 2 May
24, 2006
“Spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef called on all Israelis to recite Psalms and
pray for Prime Minister Sharon's recovery.” 1
Arab television aired live transmissions on the drama taking place in Israel. “MK
Ahmad Tibi (Hadash-Ta'al), who spoke as commentator on al-Arabiyah network,
said he did not believe Sharon would return to the post of prime minister.” 1
“Sharon cannot be assassinated by a man. He has too many guards and too much
security around him. We believe in god, so we are asking god to kill him.” 3
Michael Ben-Horin, activist.
Amazing.
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Table of Contents
Preface 9
Introduction 12
Chapter 1: Flip-Flop. This Is Spiritual. 14
Ms. Welch
Belief versus understanding
Chapter 2: The Anatomy of Prayer 20
Simple Prayer Pathway
Clear Thinking
Satellite Prayer
Resistance to Prayer
Hearts and Minds
Chapter 3: A Prayer for Abram: Applied Concepts of Prayer 34
Mimi’s Story
Chapter 4: Conflicts Within Our Minds 40
Doubt
Chapter 5: The Happy Zone: Being Contented Christians 50
The Extraordinary Zone: Just One Step
Chapter 6: Defining Moments 54
Chapter 7: Healing the Mind, Soul, and Spirit 58
Motivational Factors in Prayer
Duty
Combat Survival
Leadership
Training
Coercion
Task Cohesion
Vindictiveness
Rewards
Ideology
Expectation
Satisfaction
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Chapter 8: Commanding Prayer: Take up Thy Sword 64
Ephesians 6:17 The Sword of the Spirit
Chapter 9: The Depth of Pain Revealed 70
Mrs. Lee’s Migraines
Christian Healing Methods Questioned
Where Does It Hurt?
Psalm 31 Revisited
Chapter 10: Take This Cup from Me 82
Jesus Calls for Help
Why Have You Forsaken Me?
Forgive Them For They Know Not What They Do
Commit My Spirit
Chapter 11: The Body of Christ 88
Chapter 12: The Spirit of Christ 94
The Spirit of Evil
The Spirit of Grace
Chapter 13: The Long Wait 102
Chapter 14: Don’t Be Afraid 108
Chapter 15: Prayer; What Do We Really Know? 112
An Old Woman’s Idle Amusement (Mahatma Gandhi)
Chapter 16: So Let’s Get It Right 118
Epilogue 122
Appendix 1: Justin’s Story 126
References/ endnotes 133
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Preface
When writing Something’s on the Boil: A Discovery of Prayer and Healing (4), I
was indeed writing about my discovery of how prayers may affect our physical
bodies. I was fascinated to discover that prayer can work to help us heal
ourselves physically because it affects the brain, nerve pathways, and hormones.
We also know that prayer can calm us by offering some peace of mind
psychologically and emotionally.
Deeper than those thoughts, though, is the thought that God is greater
than all that. Surely prayer is more than thought or meditation. Since we know
that prayer can affect us, then we can try to understand how prayer works, even
though, in my opinion, if prayers are not directed to God then they are not much
more than thoughts. Prayer really becomes interesting when we see it work
through others. Our prayers can in some way influence a third person positively,
moving beyond the boundaries of our own bodies.
Although many would have us think that prayer is the same for everyone
regardless of religion, I would have to object. From a Christian point of view,
there is only one God. Although He is not recognized as such by everyone, He
remains God. Difficult, unfair, and egotistical as it sounds, prayers that are not
directed to a Christian God cannot be categorized in the same way as Christian
prayers. That is not to say that prayers not addressed to the Christian God have
no value. Surely anyone who calls out to “God,” not knowing who he is, may yet
attract the attention of the Christian God.
We know from research evidence that the act of praying is beneficial when
praying about ourselves. We also know that the Christian God certainly has
enemies who also wield limited power in the spiritual and physical world. It
soon becomes evident that other processes may sometimes be involved. The
prayers of non-Christians must have a destination.
As Christians, when we encounter prayer, we need to realize that we are
utilizing far more than deep thought. We are, in fact, utilizing God. We are
communicating with Him, by petition, by way of conversation, and also by
relationship. We may reason with Him, counsel with Him, and even argue with
Him, but we should always recognize His sovereignty, yet so many of us still
think that we are the sovereign ones. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Blunt absence of response to prayer should be enough to make us realize that. If
Christian teachings are true and Jesus is alive, then it must follow that the Holy
Spirit is here amongst us. I don’t know how you respond to that revelation, but
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it makes me quiver at the thought. The Holy Spirit is available to us all as
Christians! Wow!
The following pages help in understanding our relationship with God,
Jesus, and The Holy Spirit. There is nothing common or usual about that. It is
the most powerful bond on earth, and it is available to us as Christians in many
ways, including prayers for our healing.
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Introduction
Something’s on the Boil: A Discovery of Prayer and Healing, was the start of a
journey of learning about prayer and healing. By now we should know that we
can at the very least ask for healing from God. After reading Justin’s story, (see
appendix one), we should also be aware that sometimes, wonderful things
happen. Although we may try to reason how or why these things take place, we
often find ourselves becoming tired from the chase. With God we do not need to
try to know everything as a scientist does. (It is incredible to think that if we only
knew less we could be so much farther along in our walk with God).
We need to be more like children and less like adults so that we don’t
suffer the “paralysis of analysis”. Matthew, Mark, and Luke all quote Jesus
saying, “It’s harder for a rich man to get into heaven than it is for a camel to get
through the eye of the needle.” (Matthew 19:24, Mark10:25, Luke 18:25) If this
little bit of news were not important for us to know, then surely it would not
have been repeated three times. When we combine that wisdom with “the first
shall be last” (Matthew 20:16) and “unless we become like children” (Matthew
18:3), then we soon see that a humble attitude is very important in heaven. We
should remember that when we pray.
Although there are many concepts of prayers for healing and also
commands for healing in the name of Jesus, we must always remember that our
attitude should be a humble one. We may have a warrior’s heart, but before the
King, we must all bow in humility. We should bow not out of ritual, routine, or
reverence for an existing hierarchy but out of love of Jesus in the recognition that
we would all be found guilty if it were not for Him. We would do well to
remember that when reading the following pages.
The following pages contain thoughts and concepts of prayer. When
prayer is discussed for the purpose of this book, it is generally used in reference
to healing. Although here the word “healing” is primarily used to describe
physical healing, it should not be forgotten that we might all need healing in one
or more aspects of ourselves. Even when we disguise our pains, we all hurt
somewhere. God may at times push on our sore spots and ask, “Does it hurt
here?” I suppose if He asks us that loaded question, we should know that we
can only answer “yes.” Then, being the Great Physician that He is, I imagine the
next words out of His mouth would be, “Right. Well, let’s take a look at that,
shall we?” At that moment, we will all realize that we are in for some healing.
In my first book, I tried to keep some of the concepts broad and light. I
didn’t want to bore you with cumbersome details about prayer. I also didn’t
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want to scare you out of reading the book. Remember, it was a discovery of
prayer and healing. Because I am neither a theologian nor an academic, I have
tried to bring concepts and thoughts to your mind. Now that your mind has
been somewhat expanded, you may be seeking more information. In this book,
we can go a little farther and a little deeper. I hope that you enjoy the challenge
of learning more.
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Chapter 1
Flip-Flop: This Is Spiritual
As soon as I saw her, I knew it was spiritual. Ms. Welsh walked into
my office with her arms flip-flopping uncontrollably. “What’s all this?” I asked.
“I think it the Parkinson’s again,” she said. As she took off her winter
coat, she told me that people at the bus station had asked her if she was coming
off drugs because her hands and arms were out of control.
Ms. Welsh had a strange history. She had spent some time under medical
care for depression and there was talk of Parkinson’s disease, although there was
no firm diagnosis for her condition. As we talked, I couldn’t help being
distracted as her arms and hands just flip-flopped and trembled out of control.
Ms. Welsh attempted to disguise her trembling arms by trying to hold them
beside her and gently pinching her pant leg. In this way, she could keep her
arms straight and minimize the shaking behavior. As a chiropractor, I could only
offer her chiropractic care, but somehow I had the feeling that just wasn’t going
to be enough.
As she lay face down on my treatment table, I noticed that she could not
keep her hands still on the armrests; she appeared to swim or dog paddle in the
air. I say I knew it was “spiritual” because I have come to a point of recognition
that out of control may mean literally “out of one’s control”. Ms. Welsh,
although in control of her faculties, was not in control of her arms. With
Parkinson’s there is often a resting tremor or by medical definition a “pill rolling
tremor”. This means that when resting, a Parkinson patient’s hands will shake,
but when they reach for something intentionally, the tremor stops.
I gently massaged her right shoulder and started to pray in my mind. It is
quite unusual, even for any experienced chiropractor, to feel the muscles
vibrating, jerking, and turning under his fingertips. It is a bit frightening. As I
touched Ms. Welch, I found myself doubting that there was anything I could do
to stop the tremors. With that thought confirmed by the vigorous trembling and
twitching, I had to stop myself from sinking into a deeper sinkhole of doubt and
despair. I have found that the only firm ground a Christian has to stand on
during times like these is the ground of basic beliefs.
The basic beliefs that we must have are really quite simple and yet they
are steadfast. We need to know that Jesus is the Son of God and that He died on
the cross for our sins but then rose again. As Christians our allegiance is to Him.
Those are the basics. Following that, we simply need to grow in that belief
because when we believe and grow we come into a relationship with the most
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powerful person ever known to man. It is our relationship with Jesus that
connects us with a source that can get things done when we ourselves cannot.
Jesus is that source. We most often communicate with Him in prayer.
“God, help this woman. This just isn’t fair. How degrading it is to be out
of control and an obvious spectacle in the public eye”, I prayed. Then my mind
wandered back into Biblical times when lepers were treated as outcasts. When
Jesus cleansed them, they were healed not only physically but also emotionally
by being accepted back into society. They were thus also healed of their
shameful feelings.
“Lord, You have brought me to a point of faith where I have spent a lot of
time investigating the Biblical claims about healing. Surely You have not brought
me to this point and confronted me with this patient only to let me fall into
doubt. Lord, now it’s up to You to do what You said You would.”
As I prayed I noticed that her left arm had fallen onto the armrest and had
stopped flapping in the air. Immediately I asked myself, “What’s going on here?
Is prayer really working? Jesus, are you finally working right in front of my
eyes?”
Doubt in prayer
It’s funny what goes through one’s mind in these situations. I consciously
doubted, which contradicts all prayer guidelines. I suppose I was thinking
rationally, which would involve questioning what I saw happening and then
trying to explain it. At the same time, I was conscious of a total absence of
emotion. From Something’s on the Boil, you will remember that I often cry tears of
overwhelming love during intimate moments with Christ. Yet not this time.
“Hey! How about that!” Ms. Welch exclaimed. “My left hand has stopped
flapping completely.”
“Right” I said. Her left hand had been still for a couple of minutes before
she herself became aware of it. About a minute later, as I continued to pray, she
again exclaimed, “Hey, my right hand has stopped going flippity flop.”
“Right” I said again as I continued to pray.
Then once again, she spoke. “Hey! My breathing has completely cleared up.”
“Right.” I didn’t want to break the cycle of whatever was going on. So I just
kept praying.
“Wow! My head is clearing up!”
With that I could see that all the shaking had stopped. “Glory be to God,”
I thought quietly, but still I wanted to trace Jesus’ footsteps.
“Has the trembling ever stopped like this before?” I asked.
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Ms Welsh explained that she had had these symptoms some years before
when they had lasted continuously for three years. Her symptoms were not
responsive to any kind of treatment. I was checking for a practical or medical
explanation but found no real evidence—other than prayer—that her condition
suddenly and spontaneously came to rest just as I started praying.
Remember that Parkinson’s tremors get worse when a person is inactive.
Therefore, we should expect her arm to flip-flop more at rest. Yet the opposite is
true. Her arms stopped dancing and came to rest following prayer.
Huntington’s chorea is another disease in which one waves the arms as if
conducting an orchestra or claps one’s hands, but that’s not what we were seeing
here.
As Ms Welch left my office that day, I once again began to think all the
familiar thoughts that I always seem to have. What was that? Could my prayer
really have made any difference? Was Jesus finally stepping in to show me that
prayer works? Was prayer working in a blatantly obvious way, and was I still
doubting as I witnessed it? Had I sunk so far that if Jesus were to part the Red
Sea in front of me that I would stand there with my mouth open and just say,
“Nuuh . . . No way.” Yet, I felt as if Jesus were right there saying, “Way man!
Way.” (Translated as, “Of course, you idiot!”)
Dealing with doubt
How long would any of us need to walk with God before we finally begin
to understand that yes, He is alive; yes, He does do what He says He will do; yes,
He does heal? The trouble is that He may move on His terms, not ours. I really
felt that as I prayed, Jesus was there, and He said, “Step aside. I’ll show you that
this works.” It’s really quite a humbling experience to see God in action.
Please understand that the Biblical disciples of Jesus also had difficulty
processing the information they received from Jesus as well as comprehending
the paradox between the realities of the real world and the spiritual world. They
too were subject to doubt, even with a physical Jesus in their midst. Jesus was
getting sick and tired of their doubts.
They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. He said to
them, "Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds?
Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost
does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have" (Luke 24:37-39).
We see that Peter experienced doubt in the midst of a miracle. While
sleeping in jail, Peter was awakened by an angel. His chains fell off and he
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walked past several guards as doors opened on their own before him. Yet it is
only afterward that he comes to realize what he had just experienced.
Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He
struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and
the chains fell off Peter's wrists. Then the angel said to him, “Put on
your clothes and sandals.” And Peter did so. “Wrap your cloak around
you and follow me,” the angel told him. Peter followed him out of the
prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really
happening; he thought he was seeing a vision. They passed the first and
second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for
them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length
of one street, suddenly the angel left him. Then Peter came to himself and
said, “Now I know without a doubt that the Lord sent his angel and
rescued me from Herod's clutches and from everything the Jewish people
were anticipating.” When this had dawned on him, he went to the
house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people
had gathered and were praying (Acts 12:7-12). (Emphasis added).
tomb.
In a second example, not all believed it at first when they found an empty
When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the
Eleven and to all the others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the
mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles.
But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to
them like nonsense. Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending
over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away,
wondering to himself what had happened (Luke 24:10-12).
(Emphasis added).
Peter must really have been scratching his head on this one.
Even when believing, we may not always understand what is really happening.
Understanding may not be as essential as belief. In time, understanding may
thus follow belief. Nobody believed it when Jesus said He was the Christ, either.
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The high priest said to him, "I charge you under oath by the living God:
Tell us if you are the Christ the Son of God."
"Yes, it is as you say," Jesus replied. "But I say to all of you: In the future
you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One
and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, "He has spoken blasphemy!
Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the
blasphemy. What do you think?"
"He is worthy of death," they answered (Matthew 26:62-66).
Doubts sneak into our thinking because we have come to know too much.
We live in a world looking for tangible, quick answers for phenomena that we
experience. We have become conditioned to reason and seek logical
explanations. We have become less like children. A child’s mind is pure. Our
minds have been polluted by life’s experiences in the real and fallen world where
we live. The lives we lead have the potential to lead us farther away from God
rather than closer to Him. God’s intention is quite the reverse.
Something out of the ordinary happened in my office the day Ms. Welch
presented herself for treatment— something so extraordinary that it had once
again led me to pursue an understanding of the methods of the spirit that works
with us through our everyday lives.
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Chapter 2
The Anatomy of Prayer
At some time, we have all probably had discussions on how to pray.
What to pray is also something we need to learn. If we take a further step
backward first and understand what prayer is, that is to say, how prayer is put
together, then we can input our prayer into an already prayer-primed freeway.
In my first book, we discussed that God is separated from man and that
prayer was our pathway between the two. This was illustrated by the following
diagram.
God
Invisible boundry between God and man
man
This is really quite a simple diagram, but when we think about it, there is more.
We know that prayer is a pathway between God and man. We also know
that prayer, in a Christian sense, requires a listener who is able to access our
prayers and respond. If we look at the simple diagram of prayer, we see that we
are separated from God physically, but we are able to communicate through
prayer, even though this pathway usually seems unilateral. That is to say, we
often find ourselves doing all the talking.
If we expand this diagram to include deeper thoughts and then also
expanded those thoughts, we could end up with arrows pointing in all
directions. For simplicity’s sake, we can view the anatomy of prayer to expand
our minds about what we actually think is going on.
We have to allow for the words of Soren Kierkegaard who said, “Prayer
does not change God, but it changes him who prays.” This would mean that
when we ask God something, He may respond to us within a thought. That
thought may be a solution to our problems. By acting on that thought, we come
to realize that our attitudes may play some role in prayer. A short example
might be to forgive someone for insulting us.
Part of a prayer response may simply be in the form of clear thinking.
When we pray, we may find a solution to a problem that appears to come from
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within us. Even though we are praying toward God, whom we generally see as
being outside of us and usually very far away, an idea from Him may suddenly
pop into our head. Whether prayer is directed to a God or not, some aspects of
the benefits of prayer must come from clear thinking. This would describe why
so many people take time to pray. The following diagram illustrates this
concept.
God
Invisible boundary between God and man
During prayer, we may
enlighten ourselves.
(Clear thinking, meditation)
During prayer, God may
enlighten us.
Man
The returning arrow above indicates that some prayers are a way of
“enlightening” ourselves through clear thinking. We could argue that this is one
method by which God responds to us. We know from Biblical reference that He
knows what we will ask even before we ask.
You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar
(Psalm 139:2).
And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think
they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for
your Father knows what you need before you ask him, (Matthew 6:7-9).
(Emphasis added).
We might ask if the speed of response is so fast that we don’t think it actually
came from God or if the clear thinking process is at work. The supersonic speed
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of thoughts coming into our minds does not exclude them as originating from
God.
We also have examples of the speed of prayer responses which show that
responses to prayer may be experienced in a real way. These two practical
examples show us that clear thinking is not the only response to prayer and that
God is already at work even before we ask.
"When I came to the spring today, I said, 'O LORD, God of my master
Abraham, if you will, please grant success to the journey on which I have
come. See, I am standing beside this spring; if a maiden comes out to draw
water and I say to her, "Please let me drink a little water from your jar,"
and if she says to me, "Drink, and I'll draw water for your camels too," let
her be the one the LORD has chosen for my master's son.'
"Before I finished praying in my heart, Rebekah came out, with her jar
on her shoulder. She went down to the spring and drew water, and I said
to her, 'Please give me a drink.'
"She quickly lowered her jar from her shoulder and said, 'Drink, and I'll
water your camels too.' So I drank, and she watered the camels also,
(Genesis 24:42-44.) (Emphasis added).
In Acts, we find a second example of the response to prayer in a fast and
practical way.
Now there was a believer in Damascus named Ananias. The Lord spoke to
him in a vision, calling, "Ananias!"
"Yes, Lord!" he replied.
The Lord said, "Go over to Straight Street, to the house of Judas. When
you arrive, ask for Saul of Tarsus. He is praying to me right now. I have
shown him a vision of a man named Ananias coming in and laying his
hands on him so that he can see again (Acts 9: 10-12). (Emphasis
added).
As Christians, we give God the glory for everything. However, if we
compare notes with the secular world, many would argue that we are not in
contact with God through prayer but rather more in contact with a higher level
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or method of communication. They may still call it a spiritual plane, but it is by
definition a plane evidently expressing the absence of the concept of an intimate
Christian God.
When we look at the secular world’s concept of prayer, we find that many
refer to prayers for healing as some kind of telepathy. This would mean that we
can communicate with or influence each other from a distance. This is often
coupled with an explanation that we are all connected somehow. That is to say,
we pray, concentrate, chant, and meditate on a level by which our minds
influence each other. I have to point out that this is not within the traditional
paradigm of Christian prayer.
God
Invisible boundary between God and man.
Man 1 telepathy Man 2
One man’s mind
to another man’s mind
In this context, I suggest that as Christians, when we pray for another
person’s healing through intercessory prayer, we should be praying from our
hearts, not our minds. Our hearts are much stronger than our minds. When we
pray with our hearts, we direct our prayers to God. We ask God to influence the
life of another person positively.
This concept is best thought of as a satellite prayer.
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I call this a satellite prayer because we pray for another person through God.
That is, we pray to God first. If God chooses to respond, He can do so by
blessing the prayer subject (man 2). Therefore, any effects of prayer are by God’s
influence and not by any power that we may have. This is how we all should be
praying on a Christian and Biblical basis. We are not nor have we ever been
gods, but we were made to be in relationship with one God. We have been given
authority in Christ under the umbrella of relationship within God’s set
parameters for our lives, and we must exercise that authority to demonstrate
both our relationship with Him and His authority over darkness in the spiritual
realm.
There are times when we may lose satellite communications and
experience silence or no answer to prayer. I remember as a child that we had to
wait to hear from astronauts in space because they were on the dark side of the
moon. There were many hours of radio silence. Such silence is not unusual in
prayer. Spiritually speaking, God is always within reach; however, on a practical
level, He may not always be answering His telephone. God remains invisible to
us.
Prayer is not unopposed
We also need to remember that in its application, prayer is often opposed.
If we apply five points of resistance to the simple prayer model above, then we
can see how satellite communications may be interrupted.
For the example of one person praying for another’s health, (man 1 and
man 2), I have identified five points of resistance. A point of resistance is simply
anything that may impede prayer at a given point. We know from the Biblical
story of Daniel that an angel was delayed for three weeks while responding to
Daniel’s prayer.
Then he continued, "Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you
set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your
God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. But
the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days.
Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was
detained there with the king of Persia (Daniel 10:12-13). (Emphasis
added).
It is therefore Biblically founded to realize that God’s response to prayer may be
resisted. On the diagram, I have labeled this point R1.
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God
Point of resistance to
God’s response (R1)
Man 1 prayer subject (man 2)
There are other points of resistance. One of the last places we want to look is
within ourselves. So perhaps that is a good place to start. There will come a time
when God asks us to look at ourselves. He may press on our sore spots and ask,
“Does it hurt here?” When He asks the question, he is really preparing our hearts
and minds for some major renovations.
We have at least two points of resistance within us. The first is within our
mind. There are battles going on in our minds all the time. These are battles of
good and evil but also battles against us. The mind is where we try to figure
things out.
If you recall the story of Easter morning in my first book, (appendix 1), you
will remember that God was telling me to take action and move forward to help
a man standing near me. Everything in me knew what was happening, but my
mind was consciously resisting. One’s will, for the purposes of this example, is
found within the mind. We therefore must label a second point of resistance
within our own minds as R2.
God
Point of resistance to
God’s response (R1)
R2
Man 1 prayer subject (Man 2)
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Even when we have overcome the resistance in our minds, we may yet
oppose ourselves. We do this by hardening our hearts. We may choose not to
pray out of bitterness, jealousy, hatred, fear, or a host of other factors which
prevent us from fully extending our hearts in prayer. This puts the point of
resistance within us, and it is deeply seated within our hearts (R3). From Psalms
we see that the attitudes of our hearts may hamper our communication with
God. If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened (Psalm 66:18).
Secondly, we read in Revelation 2 that when Jesus warns the church in
Thyatira, He is searching both their hearts and their minds, and He is judging the
church according to what He finds in their hearts and minds: Then all the churches
will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you
according to your deeds (Revelation 2: 23). (Emphasis added).
Our hearts and minds are intensely valuable and critically important
when dealing with each other and with God. This is probably grossly
underestimated in our material world. Yet we should be encouraged by
knowing that although we carry sin in our hearts and minds, the sincerity of our
hearts is monitored by God. We should cherish the thought that it may not be
our prayer that causes God to move but His mercy and grace which is given
freely on His initiative that may bring results to prayer. When God presses on
our aching or hardened hearts or our deceitful minds asking if it hurts, we
should take steps to correct our ways.
God
Point of resistance to
God’s response (R1)
R2
R3
Man 1 prayer subject (Man 2)
It is vitally important to recognize that we may harbor points of resistance
to prayer within our own hearts, but it is equally important to know that God is
willing to help us when our hearts are right with Him. King Asa of Judah
learned this the hard way when he relied on another king to help him rather than
relying on the Lord. He could have received the benefits of God’s strength but
chose the strength of another man instead, and it cost him dearly: For the eyes of
the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully
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committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at
war“(2 Chronicles 16:9). (Emphasis added).
You would hope that we learn from our mistakes, especially when we
have been clearly warned. Yet in Asa’s case, he failed to heed his warning.
In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was afflicted with a disease
in his feet. Though his disease was severe, even in his illness he
did not seek help from the LORD, but only from the physicians
(2 Chronicles 16:12).
If we as humans have two points of resistance to prayers within us, then
the recipient of our prayer must also have the ability to resist incoming prayers
and blessings. If we want to receive blessings from God, we have to actively
choose to accept them. Remember that the word “accept” in its original Greek
form requires some aspect of us to be active; hence we have the need not only to
accept (receive) but also to “take”. If we want to take care of a situation
ourselves, then we may act in the absence of God. Even if God wanted to bless
us, we may resist Him in our hearts or minds. Therefore, these points of
resistance are labeled R4 (prayer subject’s mind) and R5 (prayer subject’s heart).
Again, Biblically we can see how our hearts and minds can work to resist God.
God
Point of resistance to
God’s response (R1,
R4,R5)
R2 R3 R4 R5
Man 1 prayer subject (Man 2)
Daniel explains this concept to the king.
"O king, the Most High God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar
sovereignty and greatness and glory and splendor. Because of the high
position he gave him, all the peoples and nations and men of every
language dreaded and feared him. Those the king wanted to put to death,
he put to death; those he wanted to spare, he spared; those he wanted to
promote, he promoted; and those he wanted to humble, he humbled. But
when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was
deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory. He was
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driven away from people and given the mind of an animal; he lived with
the wild donkeys and ate grass like cattle; and his body was drenched with
the dew of heaven, until he acknowledged that the Most High God is
sovereign over the kingdoms of men and sets over them anyone he wishes
(Daniel 5:18-21). (Emphasis added.)
Is it any wonder that prayers for healing don’t always work? If we don’t
recognize at least these five points of resistance, then we cannot bypass the first
five obvious barriers to achieving improved health through prayer.
Christian inner healing
There is a great groundswell of awareness within the Christian healing
ministries that we need to be healed spiritually and emotionally. We are
becoming aware that there may be many areas within us that need healing. We
need to realize that decisions we make within our hearts and minds may hurt
another person. That is, we may use the very points of resistance within
ourselves as an offensive weapon against another person.
Sticks and stones may break our bones, but words really do hurt us. Oh
yes, words can cause inner wounds. Words can scar us on the inside for life.
Insults may wound us so deeply that we spend a lifetime hiding, licking, or
denying them.
I doubt any of us can deny having ever been insulted. If we are honest
with ourselves, we will all remember something in our childhood that has hurt
us. A school teacher may have called us stupid. Parents may have said
something out of frustration or even worse, intentionally, that shook us to the
core. We may even remember a childhood heartthrob who rejected us in some
way. We all understand the pain.
If we take our Christian father Jesus as a model, then we can see that He
understands our pain. He was abandoned by His closest friends, (Peter). He
was betrayed with a kiss from within His own ranks, (Judas). He was also put to
death by us as the human race. We were the very ones He was trying to save.
What an insult!
Yet He asks His father to forgive us. What a response! If we consider His
earlier words about forgiveness, “seventy times seven,” then we can begin to
comprehend how deeply we insulted Him and how graciously He forgives us.
The next time we are insulted, we would do well to remember that our best
response to being insulted is to forgive.
Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin
against me, and I forgive him? Till seven times?
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Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, until seven times: but, until
seventy times seven, (Matthew 18:21-23). (King James Version)
In prayer, we can all express our pains to God. We can complain about
feeling the pains we feel or we can ask God how to handle the pain or even to
remove the cause of our pain. During prayer, many things may be revealed to us
about ourselves. Trying to remember Biblical examples of forgiveness during
prayer may help us to forgive ourselves and others. Forgiveness has often
proved to be a major healing tool. When we pray, we don’t need to see big bolts
of lightning crossing the sky or hear a booming voice in answer to our prayers.
Many answers or responses to prayer are silent. Answers in this form come to us
from the inside.
Think about insults, curses, and accusations that have been said against
you. No doubt you have at times felt hurt. We would all do well to remember
that we sometimes also hurt others. Those offensive weapons are within us. We
need to learn to “hold our fire.” Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My
brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same
spring? (James 3:10-11).
When we use our offensive weapons against each other, we fire
horizontally and no longer aim vertically toward our satellite, God.
God
R2 R3 R4 R5
Man 1 target (man 2)
We see that our satellite prayer has ceased to exist and that we have
changed our prayer subject into a target. We are now firing our hearts and
minds horizontally at each other. This is clearly an ungodly situation as we have
sidelined God.
Thankfully, there are several godly ways by which we can influence each
other’s health. We have the primary weapon of prayer. We also can be carriers
of the truth, which can set others free from bondage. We may also provide
shelter or a place to rediscover God. We do this by inviting hurting or sick
friends into our homes or by visiting them in theirs. We may sometimes present
God’s peace by being neutral and not being dragged into arguments. We should
recognize that we can more often help by listening rather than talking. Sadly, we
often learn this concept by way of our well-intended but costly mistakes.
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We may bring health by encouraging the weary and helping to restore and
strengthen them. We may allow God to speak through us and bring His words
of love, restoration, and healing. Of course, we can do the obvious and take our
sick loved ones to a doctor or hospital for medical care.
Even though there are several actions on our part that may supplement or
aid the physical healing process, God may also act independently of us by
initiating healing in His own way. We see an example of this at the pool of
Bethesda where the sick waited for an angel to stir the waters so that the first to
enter into the pool would be healed. In this example, we see that God had taken
an initiative to stir the waters, and then we see Jesus taking the initiative by
approaching a man with the intention of helping him.
One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been
in this condition for a long time, he asked him, "Do you want
to get well?" (John 5:5-6).
Although there are many ways we can help our fellow man to recover
from illness, spiritually speaking, we are left with one other alternative. The only
other way to influence a second person is to use a command in Jesus’ name, on
His authority, which will be discussed in coming chapters.
When we study the anatomy of prayer, we need to consider all the
different components of prayer. We also need to understand the construction of
the prayer. A man or woman must surely be projecting more than just words
into space. We have seen that our minds are involved in prayer. We need to
think while praying. Without utilizing our minds in prayer, our prayers would
best be described as “mindless”.
Jesus must have been aware of the battles that take place within our
minds. Therefore, our minds must be a major target for opposition attacks. We
cannot underestimate that major battles are won and lost between our ears. We
are warned specifically to guard our hearts for the same reason. Above all else,
guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life (Proverbs 4:23).
Guarding the heart
So long as you live, your heart is beating. Your heart is a vital organ. This
simply means that you cannot live without it. Your heart pumps blood, reaching
every cell in your body.
Your heart is also, metaphorically speaking, the most intricate aspect of
who you are. While your mind thinks, your heart knows when your mind is
lying. Your heart is so essential that it is what God uses to determine who you
30

really are. Your sincerity is measured by your heart. Spiritually speaking,
heavenly battles are fought over your heart.
We see from several Biblical references that our hearts are a target. In the
following passage, we see an element of greed creeping into the heart of Ananias
which costs him dearly.
With his wife's full knowledge, he kept back part of the money for himself,
but brought the rest and put it at the apostles' feet. Then Peter said,
“Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have
lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you
received for the land? Didn't it belong to you before it was sold? And after
it was sold, wasn't the money at your disposal? What made you think of
doing such a thing? You have not lied to men but to God” (Acts 5:2-
4). (Emphasis added).
Peter rightly points out that Ananias’s heart had been targeted and
subsequently struck. Then Peter goes further by stating that the damage done is
to God, not to men. Once again we see how we, through our actions, are
continually impeding God’s work. Our hearts are weak, so it is imperative that
we fortify and guard our hearts and minds. God has, however, provided for our
weak hearts. Just as we encounter battles for our hearts, He also is able to
reinforce our hearts with His love. From the following passage we see that His
timing for reinforcing our hearts is perfect.
Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that
suffering produces perseverance, perseverance, character; and character,
hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his
love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. You see, at
just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the
ungodly (Romans 5:3-6). (Emphasis added).
Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the
very time God had promised him (Genesis21:2).
The rise and fall of our faith and our actions are determined from battles
won within us. Perhaps this awareness appears too simple when we look for
more complex reasons for the workings of prayer. However, I think that our
battles are won on very simple terms. They are won by the decisions we make,
within our hearts and minds, to move ahead in faith. We seem to be looking to
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complicate matters by dwelling on adding ingredients of doubt when it is not
necessary. This puts our hearts at great risk. The heart is a vital organ. It is the
birthplace of our faith.
When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not
understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown
in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path (Matthew 13:18-20).
(Emphasis added).
From this passage we see that God does not target our minds primarily but sows
His seed in our hearts. The heart is to be nurtured and loved. It is the place
where our relationship with God grows. It is so vital, in fact, that God has
chosen to communicate with us in this place rather than between our ears.
Perhaps our hearts are the true measure of who we are. Our minds allow
us to act out or reflect the intent of our hearts. However, our minds can override
the accent of our hearts. We therefore need to exercise control over our minds.
Jesus gives us instructions for prayer that may help keep our minds
focused and help to make concise decisions. Jesus also asks us to keep our
prayers concise so that our minds don’t wander.
But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your
Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret,
will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans,
for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be
like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him
(Matthew 6:6-8).
Surely a babbling prayer only broadens the target of doubt and gives an enemy
more to shoot at.
Even when thinking about prayer and our communication pathway with
God, we need to continually remind ourselves that we do not have to dwell on
the construction of our prayers and all the different parameters of prayer. God
understands us whichever way we pray. He understands us because He is
constantly listening to our hearts. If we are praying for someone else’s healing,
you can be assured that He is also listening to their hearts. God may not only be
listening to our hearts, but He may be actively searching for a way in. Here I am!
I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in
and eat with him, and he with me (Revelation 3:20).
Submission to Him may remove the constraints that we place upon Him
and allow Him to work unimpeded. If He is waiting for us to let Him in, then we
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could argue that He waits for us to turn to Him rather than trying to do things
ourselves like King Asa did. Remembering that God is sovereign takes much of
the burden from us, especially when we pray in Jesus’ name.
We should know that if there are points of resistance to our prayers, then
there are two forces active, one pushing outward from within us and another
pushing back against us. If we stop and think about it, we could be saving time
and energy by allowing God to do the pushing for us; after all, He is stronger
than the opposing forces. God can push for us because, Biblically speaking, His
spirit resides within us. Therefore, we must allow that part of Him that dwells
within us to work for us.
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you
rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and
humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy
and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).
When Jesus carries our cares and burdens, He helps us in our physical world, but
He is also active in the spiritual world.
In the following chapter, we will apply to real life some of the components
of prayer that we have identified here.
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Chapter 3
A Prayer for Abram: Applied Concepts of Prayer
Many times I have wanted to pray with someone but have resisted the call
from God with my mind. In fact, my mind is my primary point of resistance. As I
talk with people about the experience, I soon become aware that others don’t
seem to have the same level of resistance that I do.
From the Easter morning story in Something’s on the Boil, you may
remember that God had given me an impulse to act on (Appendix one). My
understanding of that impulse was that it carried the authority and promise of
healing for the man in the park that day. When I tell that story, people almost
always ask me, “Well, what did you do? Did you pray for him?” I am always
embarrassed to answer “No”. My mind had kept me from acting even though
my heart was fully committed. People look at me as if there is something wrong
with me when I reveal that I took no action. In the past, I have had some
alertness for need but not always an empowerment to act. There is a difference.
The following story may help in understanding the situation.
In the post September 11 world, we have been fully confronted with the
realities of religious extremism, especially the Muslim-Christian conflict. Living
in Europe, we are reminded daily of the wide gap between a predominately
Christian America and the predominately Muslim Middle East. In Europe, the
population influx from northern African nations, particularly Morocco, is
obvious. Where I live in The Netherlands, the Muslim population is around one
million in a land with only seventeen million inhabitants. Many asylum seekers
and other immigrants have to seek work doing menial jobs.
With our family growing up and all our children having school
commitments, the time we have to spend on cleaning our home had slowly
begun to take its toll. My lovely wife Jennifer one-day demanded assistance. We
decided to ask for help in finding a trustworthy cleaning lady. Asking around,
we found that one of our friends was very happy with someone she had just
taken on. Within a few days, our new cleaning lady, Sara, was on the job.
Sara fitted the typical stereotyped image that we had of the Moroccan
immigrant. She wore Moroccan dresses and the head coverings worn by so
many Muslim women. Her Dutch was limited, so we found ourselves making a
lot of gestures to communicate. Having been immigrants to Holland, we knew
how it was to have to learn another language.
Sara and her family were Muslims and we were Christians who were just
growing up. The September 11 attacks in the news had brought us into an
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uncomfortable situation. Sara was late one day when the bus driver had refused
to let her onto the bus because she was a Muslim. If ever a rage entered my
heart, it was on that day. The anger was overwhelming at the injustice that we,
as a white and so called Christian society, had placed upon this woman. We
were within one hundred kilometers of the German border where memories of
World War II genocide and racism were still hurting us, yet this was how we
responded to an innocent Muslim woman. Had we learned nothing?
The post September 11 events were a daily occurrence on the television
news, so I found myself turning off our television when Sara was in the house. I
respected Sara and never wanted to make her uncomfortable in our home, but
our Christian commitment was obvious.
As time went by, we slowly began to understand a little more of the
Muslim traditions and culture. Sara would sometimes bring us some of her tasty
and delicious cooking; in return, we passed everything that we could, including
food and clothing, her way. Jennifer and I often prayed for Sara and her family.
One day, Sara explained to us that her husband, Abram, was seriously ill. He
had cancer which was spreading rapidly throughout his body.
Toward the time that Abram‘s condition approached death, I began to feel
that God was once again saying to me, “Hey Jos. What about praying for
Abram? After all, you are writing a book about prayer and healing. How about
if we go over and pray at his bedside? I’ll leave it up to you, but just think about
it”. Uuuuugh! I hate it when He does that. Confrontation! It is a kind of
nudging that only God can do, and yet He says it with love. He challenged me
with everything that He had already implanted into me and now, He was asking
me to walk the walk.
There is almost no way to avoid this kind of confrontation with God. He
leaves something up to you just to see what you will do with your newfound
knowledge. In fact, what He is looking for is your faith in Him to carry you
through. This was no impossible task, no, not at all. But it was a very
uncomfortable one. “What do I say to Sara? How do I even approach the
subject? She is a Muslim, and we don’t see eye to eye on a lot of things. I don’t
even know that Muslims have any consciousness of Christian healing. Do they
even know that Jesus healed people in Biblical days?”
There were so many questions in my mind. As I started to think them
through, all I could hear God saying in my mind was, “Well, just asking. That’s
all”. Yet I know that when God asks this kind of question, there really is only
one satisfactory answer. Do it and learn. Perhaps you have recognized the
resistance pattern forming in my mind here. This is a real life resistance point
two, (R2 Prayer’s mind).
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Jennifer and I tried our best to search out Sara’s feelings about her
husband’s illness, grieving, coping mechanisms, how her children were handling
the situation, and so on. For some reason, we never were able to break into her
life in such a way that we could really communicate well on personal matters.
Perhaps Sara had a cultural comfort zone and felt we were getting too personal. I
couldn’t put my finger on what it was that stopped us from proceeding, but
whatever it was it was enough to keep Jennifer and I from praying closely with
her. All the while, unbeknown to us, God was working.
As with Justin in Something’s on the Boil, Abram’s cancer was a slow and
grueling illness. He seemed to be in and out of hospital and even returned to
Morocco for some treatment in his home country. As time passed, however, his
condition was slowly deteriorating.
God’s view of the world is so much greater than ours, and He was at work
even though we couldn’t see it. Mimi and Roger, our mutual friends who had
recommended Sara, were also praying for a breakthrough. Where Jennifer and I
had failed, Mimi and Roger had made some progress. They had taken one or
two opportunities to visit Sara in her home and sometimes delivered some
needed groceries or helped in other practical ways. This is where we see that
God uses any of His vast resources to reach someone and to achieve His ultimate
goals. Mimi had even been able to communicate well enough with Sara to be
able to pray with her.
Mimi is a great woman inside a small body. This is important because
having a small stature also makes her appear non-threatening. It is important to
mention that Mimi and her husband Roger are very real, full-blooded Americans.
As Abram’s condition deteriorated to the point of being close to death,
Mimi responded to her heart by going to visit Sara and Abram. Mimi’s intention
was to show her respect for the family and to say her final good-bye to Abram
before he died.
Mimi’s story
Mimi had experienced God’s call to pray for Abram, and she understood
God’s intentions and His call for her to respond. She knew God’s voice well and
fully understood His call to help this Muslim man, yet Mimi battled the thoughts
coming into her mind to resist. “Surely I’m not the one to do this”, she thought.
“I am a woman, an American, and am certainly not well respected amongst
Muslim men”, she reasoned. Yet inside she knew that her path had already been
laid out for her. Thus she loaded her three small children into the car and drove
to Sara’s house. Her heart was able to override the objections of her mind.
As she approached the house, she could already hear the many voices
coming from inside. Sara answered the door and ushered Mimi into the living
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room where Abram was lying motionless on the bed. The room was filled with
Muslim men and women from different places in Europe, and Mimi had
difficulty communicating because of her limited Dutch. Fortunately, one of the
men spoke English, which made her a little more comfortable.
As Mimi looked around the room, she saw many unfamiliar faces. The
women all were dressed traditionally, revealing only their faces. She couldn’t
help but notice one man who had a commanding air about him; Mimi concluded
that he must have been some kind of Muslim elder.
Time passed by exchanging minor pleasantries and nodding politely, but
all the while Mimi’s heart was pounding in her chest as she knew what task lay
before her. Once again she looked over to Abram’s bed and could see that he
was indeed very near death. She later described Abram as skin simply pulled
over his bones. His eyes were sunken and he had not spoken in over a week
because of his weakness.
The urge to pray for Abram became stronger and stronger as the minutes
passed. Then the silence was broken. “When are we going to do what we came
for, Mommy?” asked her eight-year-old daughter. It was if God was nudging
Mimi and confirming that she be bold through her daughter’s remarks.
Mimi, aware of God’s timing, stood up and commanded immediate
attention by her bold stance. “I want to pray for Abram now”, she said in her
best Dutch. The people burst out in anger, and all the men suddenly jumped to
their feet. Women started shouting and simultaneously looking for their purses
in an attempt to distract themselves from the tension which had taken over the
atmosphere in the room.
Sara jumped to her feet, shouting, “No, Mimi! No, Mimi! You must go
now”.
But Mimi stood her ground and said again, very loudly, “I want to pray.
Now!” There was so much commotion in the small house and people tried to
convince Mimi to leave before things became any worse. “I want to pray now!”
Mimi demanded once more, standing her ground.
It was becoming increasingly obvious that Mimi had overstepped her
mark; she was being ushered out of the house when Abram’s voiced shattered
the tension in the air. “Let her come”, he said as he lifted his arm and beckoned
her. The room fell into a complete silence as everyone was astonished to hear
Abram’s voice.
Mimi approached the bed as people moved aside to make way for her and
her young children. Mimi stood silently at Abram’s bedside, and she could again
feel the tension again beginning to rise around her. Mimi asked her children to
place their hands on Abram. As they all laid hands on him, Mimi closed her eyes
in faith and began to pray out loud. The room became so silent that one could
37

almost hear the pounding of another man’s heart. Mimi prayed for Abram to
come to know God in his last moments. Mimi seemed to have experienced a
burst of courage, and her heart was reinforced in order to make the sign of the
cross on Abram’s forehead. As she did, Abram’s eyes filled with tears and they
ran freely down his face while Mimi continued to pray. Then came her last
word: “Amen”.
Mimi stopped praying and turned to face all those having opposed her so
fiercely. There was not a dry eye in the house. Everyone had realized that
Mimi’s actions were heartfelt and sincere. A beautiful moment had come out of
an extremely antagonizing situation. God had brought His Spirit into the room
and everyone must have felt His presence. Sara thanked Mimi as she escorted
Mimi to the door. Mimi left behind a silent room where the only sound to be
heard was the sound of Abram crying.
In the car on the way home, Mimi’s eight-year-old daughter broke the
silence. “I know that Abram accepted Jesus”, she said. “I could tell because I
didn’t close my eyes when you were praying, and I could see his face”.
Life is full of beautiful moments when we follow and implement God’s
instructions after He places them in our hearts and minds. We can resist Him
there, but then nothing seems to happen. We may never make a breakthrough.
We really have to step out of our comfort zones and be bold. Mimi shows us that
we should be bold and that we can overcome the odds against us if we just
continue to stand firm in the face of adversity. God does reinforce us right at the
time when we need it. All of the resistance points are found in the above story.
R1, the spiritual resistance to God, is strongly indicated. Resistance within
Mimi’s mind was fierce, although her heart was willing. How can we forget R4,
Abram’s mind, and R5, Abram’s heart, after Abram’s reaction?
Abram was weak unto death and had not spoken for more than a week.
Where did he get the strength to raise his arm and beckon Mimi to his side?
How much energy did he expend thinking about whether or not to resist Mimi’s’
actions? How did he come to speak after having been silent for so long? Even at
the point of death, Abram was consciously making decisions. I wonder who
struggled most fiercely with the resistance experience in their hearts and minds,
Mimi, Abram, or Sara?
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39

Chapter 4
Conflicts within Our Minds
In Something’s on the Boil, I talked about the fact that many of us can’t
concentrate during prayer. From a friend’s recent note, I came to realize that
many of us also can’t concentrate when we read the Bible, either. So much of it
just seems so hard to understand.
First, we find it difficult to read because some of our translations are old.
Many times Jesus was speaking and even the disciples couldn’t understand what
He was talking about either. So how are we expected to read the Bible and keep
up with it today? Many Jews thought that Jesus was losing His mind, yet these
were the people who physically stood in His presence and conversed openly
with Him. I can only imagine this was an unbelievable opportunity to know
Christ.
But are we really any different from those who can say that they had met
Jesus and conversed with Him and asked Him many questions? Is the conflict
within our minds any different, even though we have the benefit of historical
hindsight? Reading these conversations with Jesus awakens me to the possibility
that we are no different today.
“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me– just as
the Father knows me and I know the Father–and I lay down my life for the
sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them
also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one
shepherd. The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life–only
to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own
accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again.
This command I received from my Father.” At these words the Jews
were again divided. Many of them said, “He is demon possessed
and raving mad. Why listen to him?” But others said, “These are not
the sayings of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of
the blind? (John 10:14-21). (Emphasis added).
Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You
keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly."
Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I
do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe,
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because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you (John 10: 24-26).
(Emphasis added).
There are many times in conversations with my wife that I say, “I just
wish Jesus would speak English.” How different is this to, "How long do You
keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly" as the Jews asked Jesus? I
am sure we would all like Jesus to simply have answered “yes” to this question.
In fact, when He did answer plainly he was crucified for it (Matthew 26:62-66).
We come across many seemingly bizarre incidents in the Bible. Holy
Communion must be seen as bizarre by many. “You’re going to do what?” my
friend would ask. “Drink blood? Eeeew!” We aren’t talking about a Halloween
party, séance, or a vampire’s ball, but a Sunday morning church service where
people celebrate Christ just like millions of Christians all over the world.
Today some could argue the case that eating Jesus’ flesh and
drinking His blood goes beyond cannibalism and is perversely sick. The face
value of it is quite shocking. Can you imagine your child going into a non-
Christian friend’s home and telling the parents that he drank blood and ate flesh
but left out the “of Christ” bit? Jesus was speaking of the spiritual nourishment
one draws from him; the Jews, who had been fed the day before with loaves and
fishes miraculously multiplied, were focused on physical food. Jesus was trying
to stretch their spiritual senses, but they were blinded by physical desires.
Naturally, they were shocked at the idea of literally eating Jesus’ flesh and
drinking His blood. Such things were forbidden under the Law of Moses. Jesus
was looking toward the day when He would establish a physical ceremonycommunion-
to remind Christians of their spiritual needs. I must admit, without
the true understanding of the symbolism of it, it really doesn’t come over well. I
have to chuckle when the Bible demonstrates people’s reactions to the concept of
the last supper.
“I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this
bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the
life of the world.”
Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this
man give us his flesh to eat?”
Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of
the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I
will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my
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blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains
in me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of
the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the
bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died,
but he who feeds on this bread will live forever. ”He said this while
teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.
On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who
can accept it?”
Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them,
“Does this offend you? What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where
he was before! The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words
I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. Yet there are some of you
who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of
them did not believe and who would betray him. He went on to say, “This
is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled
him.” From this time many of his disciples turned back and no
longer followed him.
“You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve
(John6:51-67). (Emphasis added).
This last question from Jesus is so blunt but also so revealing. It’s crunch
time; decisions have to be made. Is Jesus crazy or are we just getting it all
wrong?
If we could dissect time and analyze every portion of it, then this would
be a most interesting moment in time to dissect. There is so much controversy in
this incident that we could philosophize about it forever. The solution to
understanding this moment is to trust and believe in Jesus. This means that we
have to trust Him even when everything in us tries to sway us from the truth. It
is warfare of our minds and spirits; therefore, discernment is essential.
I would be worried if my children were to come home with the converse
statement that they had eaten the flesh and had drunk the blood of Satan. It
really would not come over well. Peter’s response to Jesus’ question
demonstrates the essence of faith in Jesus and conversely the absence of
alternatives other than, like those who abandoned Him, to walk away from Him.
Fortunately, Peter demonstrates a certain level of spiritual maturity needed to
sustain us when doubt and confusion falls upon us. Simon Peter answered him,
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“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that
you are the Holy One of God” (John 6:68).
Many would argue that there may also be spiritual influences keeping us
from developing Christian maturity by reading and learning. For this reason,
levels of understanding as well as discernment are essential.
We can put on the armor of God, including the helmet of salvation and the
breastplate of righteousness, and pick up our shield of faith, but they would be
useless and cumbersome items if they served no purpose. Paul shows us in
Ephesians exactly why we need them: Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his
mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the
devil's schemes (Ephesians 6:10-17).
We must defend ourselves against schemes. I don’t know when you were
last attacked by a scheme, but I can bet it is quite different from being attacked
by a tangible military weapon. This only makes defence mechanisms all the
more difficult. I would think that the reason we are told to wear a helmet is that
we are likely to be hit in the head since the head is a primary target. The head is
a primary target because a single blow to the head can be deadly. If we were to
use metaphors, we could state that a single strike between our ears could define
the outcome of any battle.
Have you forgotten these words? “You do not want to leave too, do you?”
Here we see that that “blow” was spiritually perfect as it was delivered by Jesus
himself in the description, “I tell you the truth”. Many of His disciples “turned
back and no longer followed him.” We see that Jesus intentionally delivered this
deadly blow, “For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe
and who would betray him”. As a result, few survived the battle which took place
between the ears of those present on that day. In John 2:23, we read that many
believed in Jesus because of His miracles and yet Jesus remained untouched by
the shallow beliefs of many of His followers. John 2:24 shows us that He knew
the people through and through. He wanted their core, where He had planted
His seed: their hearts.
During the time he was in Jerusalem, those days of the Passover Feast, many people
noticed the signs he was displaying and, seeing they pointed straight to God, entrusted
their lives to him. But Jesus didn't entrust his life to them. He knew them inside and out,
knew how untrustworthy they were. He didn't need any help in seeing right through
them (John 2:23-24) (The Message).
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In other words, He knew many would leave Him with the first blow to the head.
Jesus knows that we will face a “boxing match”, which takes place between our
ears.
If there is a boxing-match-like struggle going on inside our heads, then we
must either stay out of the ring, which achieves nothing, or wear a helmet while
we are in it. Jesus prefers that we enter the ring prepared and that we engage in
battle rather than remain passive. James elaborates on this. “What good is it, my
brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?”
(James 2:14). We must enter into battle in order to be effective Christians. It is
not enough to let our lights shine only when hidden in a cupboard. Have you
ever heard of a professional boxer who has never been hit in the head? It is
unlikely.
I have discovered the hard way that when we are told to put on the full
armor of God, that is exactly what we must do. I used to think of armor as heavy
and cumbersome. I like to think that I could move quickly if I had to and not be
restricted by shields and defensive armor. However, after you have been hit in
the head a few times, you begin to understand that armor is a benefit, not a
handicap.
Doubt
The counter attack to any truth is doubt. Doubt is the single most effective
weapon that can paralyze our Christian faith. Doubt is the single most effective
weapon that Satan utilises against us. It is so effective that he has been using it
over and over to thwart Christian faith and venomously paralyze Christian
activity repetitively throughout the ages. The origin of doubt is brought to light
very early in Genesis. It is masterfully used against Eve in an attempt to separate
Man from God. Mathew Henry in his Bible commentaries says, “It is the craft of
Satan to speak of the Divine law as uncertain or unreasonable, and so to draw
people to sin.” To me that is doubt in a nutshell. The purpose of his temptations
of Christ was to bring Christ to sin against God. Jesus had a very deep wisdom
and understanding. In Job we read that God has defined wisdom after much
thought as the fear of the Lord and that understanding was to shun evil.
Then he looked at wisdom and appraised it; he confirmed it and tested it.
And he said to man, The fear of the Lord-that is wisdom, and to shun evil
is understanding (Job 28:27-28).
Jesus did indeed shun evil. We need to realise that doubt is the venom of
the snake that attacks both our wisdom and understanding. We, like Peter, may
sometimes realise in hindsight what has happened to us in certain situations.
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Where would we be if Peter was convinced that Jesus had not been resurrected?
All kinds of thoughts can creep into our minds at any time. We need to take
those thoughts captive and measure them against the teachings of God to help
us understand.
Let me ask you this probing question: Does Jesus heal today? Think very
carefully before you answer this question. When we pray for the healing of the
sick, we are constantly forced to believe that Jesus heals. If we did not, then
there would be little or no use allowing Jesus into our thoughts, hopes, and
prayers on this subject. Prayer for healing would be pointless. Shutting God out
of the occurrence of illness in our lives because we have given up on prayer for
healing could expose the reality of Mathew Henry’s statement, “It is the craft of
Satan to speak of the Divine law as uncertain or unreasonable, and so to draw
people to sin.” The way doubt is delivered is sly, slithering, smooth, and
venomous.
Our priority should always be to maintain intimate relations with Jesus.
Jesus knows this; He Himself may test us on this reality. This is what He says
about the seed which falls on fertile soil: Those on the rock are the ones who receive
the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but
in the time of testing they fall away (Luke 8:13). (Emphasis added). We see that
God will test us to see if we are wise and understanding by His own definition.
“But you don’t understand”, one could argue. “Our situation is different.
We don’t have Jesus around and all the apostles are dead. Today you only get
healed by doctors, and then it’s only if you have insurance”. How do you think
that Jesus would respond to this statement?
I can only think that we are no different today than people were 2000
years ago when Jesus walked the streets of Jerusalem. Many didn’t understand
about the same issues even when He was walking in their midst. Yet Jesus’
response to Jairus in Mark is no different than what I think He would answer
today.
While Jesus was still speaking, some men came from the house of Jairus,
the synagogue ruler. “Your daughter is dead,” they said. “Why bother the
teacher anymore?” Ignoring what they said, Jesus told the synagogue
ruler, “Don't be afraid; just believe.” He did not let anyone follow him
except Peter, James and John the brother of James (Mark 5:35-37).
(Emphasis added).
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Jesus was prepared to stand alone when confronted with doubt. He
ignored the statement that the daughter of Jairus was dead. Death was of no
consequence to Jesus. It was as though He were demonstrating to us that there
are no insurmountable odds, including death. His response to Jairus at the news
of his daughter’s death was so short and yet so deeply revealing of all of Jesus’
teachings: “Don't be afraid; just believe.”
When we are confronted with all the issues that come to our minds about
prayers for healing, perhaps “Don’t be afraid; just believe” is the most common
response we could expect. If we look at the reaction of the disciples to Jesus’ own
resurrection, we see that the way they reacted was no different from the way
many of us respond today. We surely don’t easily believe. When they heard that
Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it (Mark 16:11).
(Emphasis added). We see that the words spoken to Peter by the angel in the
tomb reflect this attitude.
He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in
Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and
on the third day be raised again’” (Luke 24:6-7).
We could sum this up as “He told you so; just believe”. Jesus even gets a little
irritated because after everything He had taught them, the disciples still had
problems just believing. Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he
rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had
seen him after he had risen (Mark 16:14).
I have to ask myself, “What’s the matter with us? This is the kind of question we
find in the Bible. Why can’t we just believe?”
The story of Jairus and his daughter is interrupted by the better known
incident of the woman with the issue of blood who reached out in faith and
touched His robe.
When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a
large crowd gathered around him while he was by the lake. Then one of the
synagogue rulers, named Jairus, came there. Seeing Jesus, he fell at his feet
and pleaded earnestly with him, “My little daughter is dying. Please come
and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.” So Jesus
went with him.
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A large crowd followed and pressed around him. And a woman was there
who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. She had suffered a great
deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead
of getting better she grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came up
behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, “If I
just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” Immediately her bleeding stopped
and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.
At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned
around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”
“You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and
yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’”
But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. Then the woman,
knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and,
trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. He said to her, “Daughter,
your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”
While Jesus was still speaking, some men came from the house of Jairus,
the synagogue ruler. “Your daughter is dead,” they said. “Why bother the
teacher anymore?”
Ignoring what they said, Jesus told the synagogue ruler, “Don't be afraid;
just believe.”
He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James and John the brother
of James. When they came to the home of the synagogue ruler, Jesus saw a
commotion, with people crying and wailing loudly. He went in and said to
them, “Why all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead but
asleep.” But they laughed at him.
After he put them all out, he took the child's father and mother and the
disciples who were with him, and went in where the child was. He took her
by the hand and said to her, "Talitha koum!" (which means, "Little girl, I
say to you, get up!”). Immediately the girl stood up and walked around
(she was twelve years old). At this they were completely astonished (Mark
5:21- 42).
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Jesus was already on the way to the home of Jairus when the second
incident occurred. After the woman touched His robe, all the attention seems to
have fallen away from Jairus and his daughter. When Jairus is eventually told
that his daughter is dead, Jesus at first ignores the message. Maybe because he
was “still speaking” to the woman who had touched Him. Perhaps the message
of death was of no consequence to Him. Imagine that! If you were calling out to
Jesus for help for your dying daughter and found that He agreed to help you, it
would be a great boost of confidence. The news that comes of the daughter’s
death must have been devastating for Jairus, yet Jesus totally ignores the report.
Then Jesus comes with the single most eye opening and encouraging statement
that any of us would want to hear. “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” Wow!
An interesting life lesson is that we, as Christians, may sometimes forget
that Jesus is already walking through life with us. Distractions abound, but Jesus
will finish what He has started out to do. We see that Jesus continues His
journey with Jairus to see Jairus’ daughter, who in the meantime has died.
Then while everyone laughs at Jesus because He says the girl is sleeping
(Biblically used to depict death), Jesus simply speaks two words and resurrects
the daughter of Jairus, thus following through on His original intention.
When praying for healing, there may be many distractions and plenty of
opportunity for doubt. When we recognise the distractions during prayer, we
should remember these words, “Don’t be afraid; just believe”
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Chapter 5
The Happy Zone
Although we focus on the healing power of Jesus, we need not forget the
healing recipient. Something is going on other than that they are spontaneously
overcome with healing in the walk of everyday life.
I can’t help but think of the few words, “saw their faith” in this verse:
Some men brought to him a paralytic, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he
said to the paralytic, "Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven" (Matthew 9:2). (Emphasis
added). Here we see that the recipient of healing was already “primed”
somehow, probably by the Holy Spirit. The spirit may call on us to pray for the
sick at times with the intention of healing. He may also call on the sick to ask for
it.
Most Christians live in the boundaries of ordinary faith. I call this the
Happy Zone. Miracles do not happen in the Happy Zone. I once heard it said
that “extraordinary things happen to extraordinary people”. The secret to being
an extraordinary person is thus to be extra ordinary. More precisely, the secret of
experiencing the extraordinary lies within the prefix “extra”. Without the extra,
we are only left with ordinary.
The Happy Zone is where we go to church, sing a few songs, pray, feel
safe, and experience a sense of belonging, but it is a lack luster place. The Happy
Zone is indeed a good feeling place for most, but it frustrates the “happy” right
out of me. Why? The answer is simple. Nothing ever happens. The Happy
Zone is so comfortable that we forget to ask some of the hard questions about
our faith. Some of the questions I have involve the actions of the Holy Spirit. For
starters, where is He? What has He done today to change someone’s life? Where
is the transformation that He brings? Where are the gifts of His spirit? Where is
the extraordinary evidence of His presence?
Perhaps the Holy Spirit is present comforting the lonely, comforting the
broken hearted, and bringing peace to troubled hearts. Yet He may be yearning
for someone to step out of the Happy Zone into the Extraordinary Zone,
allowing Him to release the immeasurable bounds of His life-giving spirit. What
I call the Extraordinary Zone is only one step away from The Happy Zone.
Re-examine the story of the woman with the issue of blood in Luke 8.
"Who touched me?" Jesus asked. When they all denied it, Peter said, "Master, the
people are crowding and pressing against you" (Luke 8:45).
What in the world made Jesus ask this question? I think this question is
profound, but not in the sense of Peter’s statement about the pressing crowd.
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Peter is saying, “Dude, you are being crushed from all sides. There are people
everywhere. You are being mobbed like the future Beatles, and you ask who
touched you? Dude, almost everyone touched you.” In fact, many did touch
Jesus as He walked past, but all except one in the crowd were walking with Jesus
in the Happy Zone.
One woman, amidst a sea of people, was different. One woman stepped
out of the Happy Zone and into the Extraordinary Zone when she touched Jesus.
Physically, her action was no different an action than any other person in the
crowd, but spiritually, it was beyond the Happy Zone. Her action so astounded
Jesus that He stopped and asked the question, “Who touched me?” in the middle
of a Beatle-mania crowd. But Jesus said, "Someone touched me; I know that power
has gone out from me" (Luke 8:46). (Emphasis added).
It seems that in the Happy Zone, nobody drained any power from Jesus,
probably because it was not extra ordinary to do so. It was ordinary because the
crowd was pushing against Him. Everybody was touching Him, making it
ordinary. This is what Peter said. “Jesus. Dude man. Like yeah.”
Did Peter recognize the extraordinary? No. But Jesus did.
Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came
trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why
she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. Then he said
to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace" (Luke 8:47-48).
(Emphasis added).
The woman “seeing that she could not go unnoticed” came trembling and fell at His
feet. Wow! She took one step beyond the Happy Zone, and she could not go
unnoticed! Profound! Exciting! So simple! This woman stopped the master of
the universe, the God of all creation, the only son of God, the sacrificial lamb in
His tracks and brought everyone surrounding Him to a standstill by one extra
ordinary action. She touched Him. As a result, she could not go unnoticed.
“Could” and “not” are key words. She could not have slipped away into the
crowd and denied her actions. It was impossible. It must have been like
spiritual sparks were flying everywhere as her arm connected with Jesus’ robe. In
hindsight, everybody knew something extra ordinary happened right at that
moment. She could not go unnoticed.
Was the action of moving away from the ordinary Happy Zone into the
Extraordinary Zone easy? No. How do we know? Because she “came trembling
and fell at his feet”, meaning that it took everything she had to move away from
the gravitational force of the Happy Zone. She would have to move beyond
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normal bounds to reach the Extraordinary Zone, and in doing so, she would
break the sound barrier, causing a spiritual sonic boom that only Jesus could
hear. This is what stopped Jesus in His tracks. After the boom, Jesus drew
everyone’s attention to the fact that He heard it. This woman was healed by her
extraordinary action in faith beyond the strong gravitational boundaries of the
Happy Zone. Perhaps that is where we should live.
I strongly believe that accepting Jesus into our lives changes our lives. I
also believe that we release a certain power that allows extraordinary things to
happen when we move away from the Happy Zone.
Two blind men were sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that
Jesus was going by, they shouted, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!" (Matthew
20:30) Here we go again. Two blind men were sitting by the road. In other
words, two blind men were doing what blind people did in Biblical days. They
sat by the road. That was ordinary for them. But then something extraordinary
happened.
Jesus was walking by, minding His own business. (Extraordinary by
anyone’s standards, when you think about it). "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on
us!" they shouted. The key words to show release from the Happy Zone into the
Extraordinary Zone are, “they shouted”. They shouted. Amazing, isn’t it? I
have to think back how the walls of Jericho, an impenetrable fortress, fell at the
sound of trumpets and a great shout from the people. Quite extraordinary, isn’t
it? Two blind men shouted. Extraordinary.
“The crowd rebuked them and told them to be quiet,” (Matthew 20:31). “Be
ordinary, you guys! Don’t go around shouting in the middle of the day! Do you
hear us shouting? Shut up and be quiet so we can maintain the delicate balance
of the Happy Zone.” But they shouted all the louder, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy
on us!" (Matthew 20:31) The key words, or should I say, actions of these two blind
men reveal it all to us. It was so extraordinary that Jesus interrupted His trip to
Jericho, holding up a large crowd that was following Him, to give his attention to
two, now extraordinary, blind men. That is cool. In modern terms, He might
have said, “Hey, what’s up, guys? What’s going on? How can I help you?” Jesus
“had compassion on them”. He took the time to listen and respond in the
simplest way He could. He touched their eyes and healed them. Extraordinary,
isn’t it?
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The obvious question we should be asking ourselves on the issue of
healing is, where is it? Why don’t we see it? Where are the gifts of The Spirit
and how do we release the Holy Spirit and allow Him to work extraordinarily?
We need to reach out and shout with whatever it takes to move from the Happy
Zone into the Extraordinary Zone to see extraordinary results.
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Chapter 6
Defining Moments:
God, Abraham, and Isaac
Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of
Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about"
(Genesis 22:2).
And so it was, many years ago in the beginning of the Bible, God
shows us what it takes to see Him in Action. How we sometimes wish that
God spoke to us in this way. Wouldn’t it just be so much easier to follow
Him and His instructions? In this very well-known story, we can find at
least two lessons. We need to learn that we must follow Gods’ instructions
first by our obedience and then by our faith in His ways.
Abraham has instructions to move ahead toward a specific location
with the purpose of sacrificing his only son. The first part doesn’t seem so
bad in comparison to the second part. Sometimes we are willing to accept
responsibility for helping God to some extent, but we may not always want
to go all the way. No plan is complete without an ending, and it is usually
the ending that reveals all. So Abraham and Isaac would follow God’s
instructions to go to the region of Moriah. So what? If the story ended here,
we would not learn much. But the story is just beginning: When they reached the
place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He
bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood (Genesis 22:9.
Abraham was willing to go all the way in following God’s instructions. Are
we? Are we willing to go all the way in following God? Of course, there are
all kinds of questions that Abraham must have had in his mind. I can only
imagine Abraham wrestling with his own thoughts. The process to coming
to a conc1usion must have boiled down to fundamentals. "Is God really
talking to me?" Abraham must have asked himself. "If God is talking to me,
then He must know more than I do”, Abraham must have reasoned. “If God
really is talking to me, and He knows more than I, then I must trust Him and
no other source". Abraham must have conc1uded. Hebrews 11:19 tells us
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about Abraham’s reasoning. It says “Abraham reasoned that God could raise the
dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death.” Then he reached
out his hand and took the knife to slay his son (Genesis 22:10).
This is Abraham’s defining moment. All the confusing questions in his
mind must have stopped as soon as he made his decision. Abraham would
trust God more than himself and raise his hand, holding a weapon of death
with which he would slay his only son Isaac. This is Abraham's defining
moment because he took action based on faith. Although he must have
reasoned about God and His instructions, Abraham exhibited his faith by
raising his hand.
When challenged about our faith in healing, we are always
confronted by the very real possibility, dare I say, even probability, that
prayer subjects will not be healed as attributed to divine healing. Again
and again, I have been confronted with the possibility that God will not act
until we have overcome our obstacles to faith and followed Abraham' s
lead by raising our hand. The results of our faith and the "raising of our
hands" may well be the defining moment between yes and no answers to
prayer.
But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, "Abraham!
Abraham!"
"Here I am,” he replied.
"Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said. "Do not do anything to him.
Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me
your son, your only son"(Genesis 22:11-12).
I am awed when I consider how fast God responds to faith.
Amazing, isn't it? What is the one thing that will move God? I would have
to answer that it is the actions that we take when we "raise our hand" in
faith, leaving the rest up to God. No wonder Abraham is referenced in the
New Testament as one of Gods’ greatest examples of a man of faith.
When we come across people in our lives who are ill and require healing,
we can do several things. We can wish them a speedy recovery, send
flowers, pray, or even do nothing.
If we conclude that physical healing was something of the past,
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realized only in Biblical texts, then we will no doubt never witness the
wonders that could coincide with prayers for recovery. If we also afford the
belief that we will all be healed in heaven where there is no pain or
suffering, then we also will never see the results attributed to our prayers
said in faith. It’s a great reason to take no action at all.
In a short statement recorded in John, Jesus may have given us a
reality check on this issue.
Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God
would come, Jesus replied, ''The kingdom of God does not come with
your careful observation, nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it
is,' because the kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:20-21).
We should not look back to see God working in the past and leave
His works only in the past. We should also not look only to the future and
leave our fate until that time. Jesus said, "The kingdom of God does not come with
your careful observation, nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is". We have to
realize that the kingdom of God is intertwined into our daily lives. The
kingdom of God is at work when we pray in faith for health, and the
kingdom of God is present in the midst of your doubt and confrontation
with the realities of the real world.
You connect with that kingdom when you say a word of
encouragement to someone who is ill. Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to
the soul and healing to the bones (Proverbs 16:24). You connect with the same
kingdom of God when you exhibit restraint, patience, and understanding
within the very same world that expects you to demonstrate anger and
frustration. A patient man has great understanding but a quick-tempered man
displays folly. A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones (Proverbs
14:29-31).
Jesus explains it well, although I have had much difficulty
understanding it. The kingdom of God cannot be identified because it is
dynamic and always in motion; it doesn’t stand still. That's why Jesus says
"The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say,
'Here it is, or 'There it is ". If we could clearly identify God’s kingdom around
us, there would be no need for faith. Faith is essential to God’s kingdom as
it is essential that we use it to connect with His kingdom. Jesus says “the
kingdom is within you”.
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In order to demonstrate God’s kingdom and its power, we need to
act. What else can lift the lame out of a chair or help the blind to see or
allow the dumb to speak without physical intervention? Nothing. These
things take place within the Kingdom of God that exists inside the
Christian heart. When we lift our hands like Abraham, we demonstrate
this. If Moses did not raise his hand carrying the “rod of God” at the edge
of the sea, the waters would not have parted. If Moses had not used the
“rod of God” to strike the stone, the Israelites would still be very thirsty
people today. If you and I do not step out in faith in the face of the
adversities of our world, we also will lead thirsty lives.
Although we cannot say, “Here it is”, or “There it is”, we must be
assured that the kingdom of God is within us. Our actions in faith bring
forth His kingdom.
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Chapter 7
Healing the Mind, Soul, and Spirit
Because I am constantly faced with the need for physical healing in my
chiropractic practice, I mostly relate to the word “healing” as physical healing.
In my research I have found, however, that much of the Christian healing
teachings today are related to non-physical parameters. Instead, they are geared
toward “inner healing”.
I fully understand the need for inner healing as I am always talking with
broken people. People who are broken emotionally or spiritually may also
develop physical problems. A simple example would be the headaches that
develop from stress and tension. There are so many factors that can lead to
headaches that it could take quite some time to take an adequate case history
from someone. Fortunately, a few probing questions, asked routinely, can
narrow down the areas where some healing may be needed. Sometimes it
surprises me to find out what it is that really troubles people.
If we consider that prayer for healing does not always work, then we may
also need to be well informed about what enemy, or aspects of the enemy, we are
dealing with and how the enemy may resist our efforts. Knowledge improves
our chances of success. Biblically speaking, we know that Joshua sent spies into
the land of Canaan to probe the enemy. If we consider satellite prayers for
healing, we also need to be aware that all our prayers are not automatically and
decisively hitting their target, even when breaking through the enemy resistance
at R1 (Resistance to God in the spiritual realm).
In the military, when soldiers fire artillery, they also use bracketing
probes. Because artillery is not an exact science, at least two volleys are fired
without any real expectation other than to gauge distance. Military artillery
barrages are usually fired from a number of artillery cannons. One cannon
generally fires a long volley, purposely firing beyond the expected distance of
the enemy. A second single volley is fired purposely short of a target. The
distance between the two probing volleys is then divided by two and then the
calculated distance is passed on the entire artillery unit. This is followed by an
order to “fire for effect”. Then the entire artillery bank fires, devastatingly
wiping out anything within a given area.
Using our model of satellite prayer, some of our prayers may be too
hopeful, thus firing long. Some of our prayers may be too weak, thus firing
short. When we gauge the success of our prayers and get feedback and then
combine prayer together with other Christian believers, we can fire for effect,
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expecting maximum results and maximum devastation to the enemy within a
given area.
The concept of likening our intercessory prayers for healing to military
artillery fire brings a number of interesting points into view. Michael T. Carson
in his article “Fire the Mission and Save the Guns Combat Motivation of Artillerymen”
(1)
brings me to suggests artillery concepts for comparison and contrast with our
Christian warfare tactics and concepts of prayer.
We know that intercessory prayers are not necessarily accurate in hitting
their target. When we consider “soaking prayer” as an artillery bombardment of
prayer, we see that almost everything in a given target area is hit. An artillery
bombardment does not distinguish between the good guys and the enemy, often
resulting in casualties on both sides. It could be said that during an artillery
bombardment, everything is affected: friendly soldiers, the enemy, animals,
bugs, trees, houses, cars, or any object within the target area. Carson rightly
references artillery as the “God of War” because of its destructive abilities.
When we are asked to pray for someone using intercessory prayer, we are
often not directly involved. Prayer requests may sometimes be for a friend of a
friend. “Could you please pray for my uncle John; he lives in Australia and is
having a prostate operation?” We can only use intercessory prayer for this
situation. We are asked to take action for someone who has no relation to us, and
we are not personally involved in the situation.
Carson researches attitudes of artillery gunners who are often overlooked
in victories as compared to infantrymen. Glorious war stories are often told by
the infantry because they are on the front lines and engaging the enemy directly.
The artillery is generally at the rear and often even outside of visual contact with
the enemy. It is interesting to note that “artillery barrages are not magical,
suddenly appearing upon the battlefield. Rather humans must operate the guns,
and these gunners experience intense artillery attacks themselves in the form of
counter-battery fires.”
Carson reviews combat motivation theory. If we compare the motivation
for soldiers firing artillery cannons and compare their motivation with those
asked to use intercessory prayer, we may realize how important our prayers and
motivation are to the success of reaching our goals with prayer. The truth is that
we often agree to pray for others or we promise to pray, but we are weak in our
efforts. This may lead to a failed mission instead of a successful mission.
To understand these concepts, several combat motivational factors have
been identified:
Duty
Combat Survival
Primary Group Cohesion
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Leadership
Training
Coercion
Task Cohesion
Vindictiveness
Rewards
Ideology
Expectation of Combat
Satisfaction
Duty
A sense of duty is one such factor. “Duty is the individual’s sense of
responsibility to fulfill and complete a specific combat-related task. Essentially it
contains the notion that others are relying upon the individual and that person
must perform his job in order not to let them down”. (1) When asked to pray, do
we do it out of a sense of duty or do we promise to pray but forget? Paul looked
straight at the Sanhedrin and said, “My brothers, I have fulfilled my duty to God in all
good conscience to this day” (Acts 23:31).
Can you imagine the consequences of forgetting to fire artillery guns? What
effect would that have on the outcome of a battle? Imagine the downward spiral
of morale among the soldiers who are expecting support.
As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing
to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right (1
Samuel 12:23).
Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will
come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children
(Genesis32:11).
Combat Survival and Primary Group Cohesion
“Combat Survival is the motivation for the individual to fight for himself in
order to protect himself. This differs from Primary Group Cohesion as a
motivational factor because the individual is not fighting for the good of the
group (survival of the group), rather he is fighting for his own good”. (1) If we are
not personally at risk we may not pray fervently or even at all.
If it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing
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to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership,
let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully
(Romans 12:28).
Leadership
“Leadership involves the leader’s ability to inspire other service members
to undertake difficult tasks, especially while under fire. This often includes a
demonstrable acceptance of risk and sacrifice.” When we consider prayer groups,
prayer teams, or prayer ministries, can leaders motivate us to pray even in fearful
situations, asking us to put ourselves at risk? (1)
All Scripture is God breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking,
correcting and training in righteousness, (2 Timothy 3:16)
Training
“Training is a conditioned response to a combat situation. It permits the
individual to immediately react to a dangerous event and fosters confidence in the
warrior’s skills to enable him to function in combat.” (1) What training do we have for
praying for the sick? Do we wear our armor or even carry our sword? How can we
expect results if we won’t even train for battle?
After Jesus had gone indoors, his disciples asked him privately, “Why
couldn't we drive it out?”
He replied, “This kind can come out only by prayer.” (Mark 9:28-30)
(some manuscripts add fasting.)
My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline and do not resent his rebuke
(Proverbs 3:11).
Coercion
“Coercion (formal discipline) has the effect of ensuring an individual
carries out his assigned task through formal punitive means. It involves the
threat of punishment of some kind to motivate someone to fight.” (1) I would
have to hope that we are authentic in our prayers and not participating through
coercion. Surely we have to be genuine in our motivation of prayer.
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Task Cohesion
“Task Cohesion consists of the shared commitment among members for
achieving a goal that requires the collective efforts of the group. While this is
similar to duty, it differs in the level of responsibility. Whereas duty is more an
individual sense of obligation, task cohesion is a group perspective.” (1) Are we
cohesive in our prayer intent? Biblically, we could liken this to “agreeing in
prayer.” “Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for,
it will be done for you by my Father in heaven” (Matthew 18:19).
Vindictiveness
“Vindictiveness is the desire for revenge against the enemy. For example,
a service member may witness a friend being killed and then has an immense
desire to inflict death upon the enemy for this action.” (1) Are we vindictive
toward the enemy? Is this the right motivation to pray? Should we be praying
for someone’s healing because it hurts the enemy or should we be praying out of
love and concern? What’s in your heart?
Rewards
“Rewards (recognition) motivated certain individuals as they hoped for
winning recognition for their effort and performance in combat.” (1) Do we want
to pray for healing because it makes us look good? Do we gloat on the
recognition of prayerful success? “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites,
for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by
men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full” (Matthew 6:5).
Ideology
“Ideology consists of an individual’s own belief in one’s society and what
it represents which makes it worth defending, i.e., a political philosophy worth
fighting for.” (1) Are we praying from an ideological perspective? Are we praying
to prove that prayer works? I have to think back to the warning placed in
Something’s on the Boil:
Warning! You are about to influence both your life and the life of
the person for whom you are about to pray. Never take this
responsibility lightly because doing so may cause irreparable
damage to the souls involved and may have eternal consequences!
Beware of imitations!
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Expectations of Combat
“Expectations of combat involved the preconceptions of what combat will
be like. If preconceptions are far from reality, motivation tends to suffer. If close
to reality, motivation tends to be high.” (1)
“Don’t be afraid; just believe”. Do these words sound familiar? The
reality of resurrection is, generally speaking, absurd or “far from reality”.
Although we may be faced with situations that are far from reality, Jesus gives us
hope. Perhaps if Peter had stepped out of the boat to walk on water when the
seas were calm or frozen, we would all have supported him in prayer. Who then
will pray in a storm?
Satisfaction
“Finally, satisfaction has the individual sensing a contribution to victory
because he is inflicting damage upon the enemy.” (1) Isn’t it great that we can
experience victory through prayer! It’s a good feeling to be involved in setting
captives free.
There are many variables in prayer and warfare. We should all
understand the importance of support groups praying for those engaged front
line ministries, and we should make every effort to teach the importance of duty,
cohesion, ideology, and training through good leadership. Militarily speaking,
prior to World War I when artillery was placed in full view of the enemy, the
withdrawal of artillery batteries from the battlefield indicated defeat. How
disheartening to be a prayerful infantryman on the front lines who sees his
backup support abandoning him. “I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “this very
night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times” (Matthew 26:34). Our
intercessory artillery fire is as essential as any command on the front lines given
in Jesus’ name. We are all in a battle. We all need to be serious in firing our
weapons for maximum effect.
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Chapter 8
Commanding Prayer: Take up Thy Sword
Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand,
and your enemies will fall by the sword before you (Leviticus 26:8).
“Your enemies will fall by the sword before you”. That’s encouraging,
isn’t it? Although many people would like to think that we have a loving God,
and we don’t kill our enemies any more, we would be very naive if we thought
we would never have to fight. After all, we are told to wear armour because we
are likely to get clobbered, and we have to stand guard so our hearts are not
stolen by the thief in the night. Our fight, however, is not against each other but
against evil in its spiritual form.
In contrast to an artillery bombardment of prayer or satellite prayer,
certain situations require far more precision. If we liken an artillery prayer
bombardment to what some call “soaking prayer”, the impression we get is a
large target area being covered. Soaking implies that every last bit of an object
becomes wet. The use of artillery is similar; every piece of ground within a given
area is hit either directly or by the scatter of shrapnel. There is no escape.
Laser guided bombs are far more precise, hitting a target with devastating
accuracy while leaving surrounding areas intact. Technology for laser guided
missiles did not exist in the Bible, but there is evidence that one weapon is just as
effective: the sword.
Ephesians 6:17 defines the sword: “Take the helmet of salvation and the sword
of the Spirit, which is the word of God”. Recognizing an offensive weapon implies
that there are times when we must attack. Conversely, we see that Jesus used the
“sword” against Satan by quoting the word. In the desert Jesus said, “It is
written”, thus quoting the word. The word convinced Satan to leave Him.
Surely, there is power in this sword, the word of God.
For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any
double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit,
joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart
(Hebrews 4:12).
The sword of the spirit is living. Furthermore, it is active; therefore, it is at
work of its own accord. We, as swordsmen, wield the sword, but the power is
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inherent to the sword. The sword is sharp as it penetrates deep into the heart
and is able to divide the soul from the spirit. The sword is also consciously
working because it is judging thoughts and attitudes of the heart. The sword is
thus immensely powerful of its own accord.
We should also remember that it cannot be wielded by an evil force. In 1
Samuel, we find evidence to support this statement. The Ark of the Covenant
was captured by the Philistines and placed in the temple of Dagon near the idol
Dagon. During the night, the idol fell face down before the Ark. Although the
Ark was a coveted item by Israel’s enemies, they could not contain its inherent
living power. They finally released the Ark under its own power to return to the
Israelites.
So the Philistines fought, and the Israelites were defeated and every man
fled to his tent. The slaughter was very great; Israel lost thirty thousand
foot soldiers. The ark of God was captured, and Eli's two sons, Hophni
and Phinehas, died (1 Samuel 4:10-12).
Then they carried the ark into Dagon's temple and set it beside Dagon.
When the people of Ashdod rose early the next day, there was Dagon,
fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the LORD! They took
Dagon and put him back in his place. But the following morning when
they rose, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the ark
of the LORD! His head and hands had been broken off and were lying on
the threshold; only his body remained.
When the men of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, "The ark of
the god of Israel must not stay here with us, because his hand is heavy
upon us and upon Dagon our god." (1 Samuel 5:2-8).
So they did this. They took two such cows and hitched them to the cart and
penned up their calves. They placed the ark of the LORD on the cart and
along with it the chest containing the gold rats and the models of the
tumors. Then the cows went straight up toward Beth Shemesh, keeping on
the road and lowing all the way; they did not turn to the right or to the
left. The rulers of the Philistines followed them as far as the border of Beth
Shemesh (1 Samuel 6:10-12).
Remember that the Ark contained the Ten Commandments written on
stone tablets. This was the only existing written word of God, and yet it wielded
its own power which worked destructively in the hands of Israel’s enemies.
When in our hands as followers of Christ, the sword is not held in
isolation but works in conjunction with the amour we wear, our attitudes,
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prayer, and praise. Offensively, we may lunge with the sword; defensively, we
may block with the sword to protect ourselves. During our times of rest, we also
need to remember to train with the sword. Every swordsman needs at least
some basic instruction. The sword, the word of God, can ready us for battle but
also counsel us and comfort us and of course heal our bleeding wounds. That’s
really quite amazing! Isn’t it?
John aptly points out that we are most powerful when we work in synergy
with the sword. John 15:7 says, “If you remain in me and my words remain in you,
ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you”. When we are both obedient and
active, the word wields its maximum power. Prayer helps us with
understanding the word because we are continually in communication with God
who is both the author of the word and the word itself. When prayer is used by
God to communicate with us, and when we read the word, we are being
quickened or vitalized. Just as a sword is tempered to harden its steel through a
heating process and give it strength, so we are tempered, quickened, and
strengthened by faith, wisdom, and understanding.
Historically, the sword has been a symbol of strength for many cultures.
It had long been a primary weapon for soldiers during warfare. Probably the
best known swordsmen were the Japanese samurai. The steel of a samurai
sword is repeatedly heated, folded, and beaten to form up to as many as thirty
thousand thin steel layers to strengthen it as well as to give it flexibility.
Although the samurai mastered the weaponry of the sword, the sword also fell
victim to time. During the late 1800’s, samurais were forbidden to carry their
swords that had so defined their sense of existence. With the modernization of
military weaponry, the samurai had lost their power, and the samurai sword had
lost its primary appeal as a weapon. Today, a genuine samurai sword is treated
with due respect because of its historical and cultural value.
Conversely, the sword of the spirit that we are asked to carry has lost none
of its strength or power. The Bible shows us that the sword of the spirit is
coveted by others as some have tried to borrow its power and others have tried
to buy its power. Both situations failed. The sons of Sceva tried to borrow the
power they had seen the apostles use, but they failed miserably and ended up
running naked in the streets.
Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the
name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon possessed. They
would say, “In the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, I command
you to come out.” Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing
this. (One day) the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and I know
about Paul, but who are you?” Then the man who had the evil spirit
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jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating
that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding (Acts 19:13-16).
(Emphasis added).
In a second example we see Simon trying to buy the power of the Holy Spirit.
When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles'
hands, he offered them money and said, "Give me also this ability so that
everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit."
Peter answered: "May your money perish with you, because you thought
you could buy the gift of God with money! You have no part or share in
this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. Repent of this
wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you for having
such a thought in your heart. For I see that you are full of bitterness and
captive to sin"(Acts 8:18-23).
The sword has long been symbol of strength and of power. God, however,
is always victorious in any struggle of power against Him. His ability to disarm
His enemies is so great that even kings cannot oppose Him.
"Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt. It has not
been bound up for healing or put in a splint so as to become strong enough
to hold a sword. Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am
against Pharaoh king of Egypt. I will break both his arms, the good arm as
well as the broken one, and make the sword fall from his hand. I will
disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the
countries (Ezekiel 30:21-23).
When we use commanding prayer or give commands in Jesus’ name, we
are lunging with the sword and affirming our authority in Christ. We also
demonstrate to observers around us that it is Jesus who brings about any
changes which occur, not us. The authority of Jesus’ name carries the maximum
authority in the spiritual realm. From the story of the sons of Sceva, we see that
even the evil spirit within the man recognized Jesus’ name. However, His name
carried no real authority in this instance when it was borrowed (“In Jesus Name,
whom Paul preaches”). Perhaps we could view this situation as being a lesson
that we need to be fully committed when commanding in the name of Jesus.
Running home bleeding, bruised, and naked is not the ideal picture that comes to
mind of a victorious winner. Apparently the sons of Sceva were not wearing any
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armor nor, were they standing their ground; they had no foundation upon which
to give a command in Jesus’ name.
Commanding in Jesus’ name should be reserved for appropriate
circumstances where the Holy Spirit guides us. If the sword of the spirit carries
its own power and we are battling while working in synergy with the inherent
power of the sword, then it follows that by the sword’s power, the commands are
given to us to use appropriately. God gives the sword to those in need; therefore,
it truly is a magnificent and gracious gift.
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Chapter 9
The Depth of Pain Revealed
Mrs. Lee
Mrs. Lee consulted me on a Sunday afternoon because she was suffering
from severe “migraine” headaches. Whenever someone comes into my office
with a readymade diagnosis, I immediately doubt the diagnosis. As Mrs. Lee
revealed her symptoms, I changed my focus from her physical to her inner state.
I wanted to ask Mrs. Lee two questions that day. The first was, “Are you
involved with the occult?” She said no. The second was, “Have you experienced
severe trauma recently? For example, has anyone been shot in front of you?”
What questions to ask someone who you had only just met! But I just had an
impression that I could spend a lot of time treating Mrs. Lee with chiropractic
methods and not get the results that I could get by revealing the origin of her
physical problems.
“Yes. My husband shot and killed his work partner in front of my eyes.
Now that I come to think about it, my husband’s colleague, the one he shot, was
involved with the occult.” This was about as far as we had gotten that day. Mrs.
Lee was carrying some serious damage emotionally. All kinds of damage from
this kind of experience could have contributed to her migraine history. Without
addressing these issues, I doubt that we would ever adequately be able to treat
Mrs. Lee’s migraines. Once again, I doubted the migraine diagnosis Mrs. Lee
had presented. I suspected a diagnosis of unresolved and severe post-traumatic
stress disorder coupled with inner emotional and spiritual wounding resulting in
physical tension and severe headaches. As a Christian, I would translate this
diagnosis for the layman as, “Man! You need Jesus!”
A lot of prayer and counseling would have to go into helping Mrs. Lee.
She could continue looking for a doctor or therapist to help her headaches, but
unless some of the inner issues were resolved, she would never be free of
symptoms. Because Mrs. Lee had not had any counseling for the trauma which
she had experienced, her physical symptoms would eventually be so severe that
her inner wounding would be forgotten. A simple prayer for healing of her
migraine headaches probably would fall short of its target. It would not surprise
me, however, if her headaches stopped completely after her emotional wounds
were addressed.
I don’t ask everyone who comes into my office if she or he had seen
someone shot recently. Thankfully, it’s not every day that someone answers
“yes” to that question. However, people come into my office every day bleeding
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from inner wounds. These wounds are caused by the way we talk, live, and
carry on in our daily lives. The wounds of responsibility for an abortion have left
many men and women hurting badly. Adultery and divorce are rampant.
Alcoholism, poverty, domestic violence, homosexuality, and sexual abuse are
emotional and spiritual killers, and yet our society has not been able to respond
adequately.
Some women have abortions frequently. Some people live with the shame
of poverty, causing depressions that are developing into physical illnesses.
When homosexuality is forced upon someone or when it is learned or even
experimented with, it can leave deep wounds. Yet our society has trouble
defining limits. Rather than shunning adultery, today many accept it as
commonplace and even encourage it. Yet the wounds of betrayal are probably
the deepest wounds that we can afflict upon one another. Is it any wonder that
Christian healing is growing in popularity?
Superficially, I would have to say that Christian healing for inner wounds,
when not as a result of participation in a secular teaching course, is primarily the
work of the Holy Spirit. I have seen people change as a result of accepting Jesus,
whereby many of their wounds are healed. For others, conversion has made no
changes to either their behavior or their pain.
Christian counselors encourage many to recognize the origins of their
inner wounds. Some people may have been hurt when their parents abandoned
them at a young age; some may have been wounded emotionally while still in
the womb. Some Christian associations intently consider the demonic and
spiritual warfare as a cause of our pains.
I question some of the Christian healing programs. I fear we are applying
psychological principles with a Christian accent. If we were to delete the
Christian component, would there be any difference in the inner healing rate
amongst people seeking help? Part of me doubts there would be any difference,
but another part of me does not feel comfortable with the thought that I may be
insulting the Holy Spirit by asking this question.
Still, some Christian teachings seem to use standard counseling and
psychology methods combined with applied theology. This methodology is not
promoted as such and is targeted toward wounded Christians. I question the
source of the healing component. Does it lie in the healing brought by the Holy
Spirit, or does it lie in the healing brought about by psychology and counseling?
The answer may be neither exclusive nor conclusive. That is to say, we may
never know what component of inner healing teachings does the healing.
We also cannot limit the Holy Spirit to work exclusively with or without
any other healing components including counseling, deliverance, or psychology.
Either way, there are a lot of people coming to the realization that they need
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help. The Bible states that no man can understand the working methods of the
Holy Spirit. We can try tracing His footsteps, but any attempts at mapping or
charting His methodology are futile. Jesus in His answer to Nicodemus shows
us that the working of the Holy Spirit is spiritual, thus non-tangible, moving like
the wind, no one knowing where it comes from or where it goes.
The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot
tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of
the Spirit” (John 3:8).
“You are Israel's teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these
things? I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify to
what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. I
have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will
you believe if I speak of heavenly things?
(John 3:10-12).
Thankfully, many are finding solutions to their problems through
Christian healing programs as well as outside of them. While not everyone
would agree, as a Christian I would say that no amount of psychological help
can replace the restoration brought about by the workings of the Holy Spirit. He
knows exactly where we are wounded and what remedies we need.
Where does it hurt?
“Where does it hurt?” Do these words sound familiar? At some point,
most of us have been asked this question either as children by our parents or as
adults by our doctors. A doctor asks this question to narrow down the range of
possibilities for a diagnosis. After making a diagnosis, a doctor can implement
treatment.
In order to tell where it hurts, we have to be educated about our bodies
and their components. From a young age, we can already indicate that we hurt
in our arms or our legs. As adults, we may be able to indicate that our pain
comes from our heart, uterus, or lungs. But it is rather more difficult to verbalize
that we hurt in a subsection of our soul. As with the study of the anatomy of
prayer, we need to study the concept of the anatomy of our spirit, soul, mind,
will, and emotions.
Many teachers of Christian healing have a model of some of the differing
components of the human being. We know that we have a body with all its
physical parts. Biblically, we know that we also have a spiritual part. We call
this our spirit or our soul. Generally, we interchange the two words spirit and
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soul, referring to the part of us that goes on after life. While on the cross Jesus
called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he
had said this, he breathed his last” (Luke 23:46). However, from other Biblical
references we can see that the soul and spirit can be separated. Hebrews 4:12
describes the sword, or Word of God, as being able to divide soul and spirit.
Although the intent of the text is not to demonstrate this concept it may warrant
further investigation. The New Bible Dictionary discusses the different words
used for soul and spirit. The Hebrew word ‘nepes’ means possessing life. The
corresponding Greek word ‘psyche’ is also used. The definition says” The word
nepes (soul) is never used for the spirit of the dead.” (2) That may again imply that
it is different from the spirit because we know that into His Fathers hands He
(Jesus) committed His spirit, an ongoing entity. 1 Thessalonians 5:25 also names
the soul, spirit and body separately. Thus they may be considered to be different
entities. In turn, we also find that the soul also has several attributes that are
different from the spirit.
While we live, every part of us is contained within our physical bodies. Yet
we know that at least two spiritual components exist within us: our spirit and
our soul.
Our spirit and our soul are different. Peter Horrobin, author of Healing
Through Deliverance, (3) describes the soul as having further subdivisions, namely,
the mind, the emotions, and the will. Injury to any of our components may cause
dysfunction or pain leading to a malfunction of our whole being. Before we
consider healing we must first understand, and, more importantly, recognize
that something is wrong. By the time we feel the physical pains from our
spiritual wounds, we may already have been malfunctioning for some time.
We have several mechanisms for coping. The first and most obvious is
denial. “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.”
Whoever first said these words must have been living in denial. Words hurt us
all deeply, and we may carry the pains for years. Many cope by trying to forget,
commonly by getting drunk. Many escape pain by running away. All too often,
we run away from our own families. When we begin to pray for healing in any
area of our lives, it soon becomes obvious that we really need to identify what
parts of us have been wounded and consider them in our whole picture of
health.
As we identify our wounds, we also have to consider which remedies are
most appropriate. That is why we always need to consider forgiveness.
Forgiveness on its own is probably one of the most potent healing panaceas
available to us today. Wouldn’t it be great if more of us were to forgive?
Wouldn’t it be great if we would forgive not just others but also ourselves and
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even forgive God for all the times we have blamed Him for our pains? How
many of our painful relationships could be restored?
In a conversation with a couple I once encountered, our dialog revolved
around an issue of forgiveness. When I politely stated that forgiveness was
essential for healing, I was promptly asked, “Forgiveness for what?” In this
particular instance I tried to show them that they needed to ask God where they
had gone wrong. Surely He would show them where they had gone wrong. It is
not always necessary that we confront others but rather that we warn others
when they have gone astray. We should help our friends when we see them
wander from a godly path.
Recently while on a healing retreat, I retreated into my room for prayer.
As I asked God to help me understand the many different healing components,
He revealed something to me. I have had very few experiences when the
relevance of reading the Bible really has spoken to me on such a scale. If there
was only one area of understanding that stayed with me after the retreat, it
would have to be the following.
Jesus was wounded and crucified, but we may all have missed the extent
to which He suffered. Generally, we think of Jesus’ suffering on the cross, yet
that was only one component of the price He paid for us. I hope that by
considering the following passage, you may come to feel and recognize how
intensely we hurt Him. The following passage is, strangely enough, found in the
Old Testament, written long before Jesus was physically born into our world.
They are the words of David recorded in Psalm 31. When you read these words,
I ask you to consider them as if spoken by Jesus. In this context, so much of the
path of understanding our spiritual wounding is brought to light.
Psalm 31
For the director of music. A psalm of David.
1
In you, O LORD, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame;
deliver me in your righteousness.
Jesus shows us that He takes refuge in His father. He gives us a great
example to follow, and we are encouraged to take refuge in the Lord. We know
that Jesus was mocked and put to shame. He was made a spectacle and
humiliated by politicians, Roman soldiers, and by the same people who had
welcomed Him into Jerusalem. By asking His father to deliver Him in His
righteousness, Jesus may as well have asked to be delivered from evil. It is
chilling to hear Jesus referring to His own prayer. We should neither forget nor
underestimate the setting in which Jesus died. He was indeed surrounded by
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evil. Even if we could not see that evil was surrounding Him, Jesus knew exactly
who was involved in the scheme of plotting his death.
2
Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong
fortress to save me.
How can we ever forget the words that Jesus cried out from the cross:
“Father, why hast thou forsaken me?” The same words imply the cry for help.
Jesus asks for help to come quickly. Although we know that God was silent in
response to Jesus’ question of abandonment, we also know that Jesus died
relatively quickly on the cross. Jesus reiterates His trust in God as being His rock
and refuge. Is there any better place of refuge than that which God offers?
3
Since you are my rock and my fortress, for the sake of your name lead and
guide me.
Peter, whom Jesus Himself refers to as the rock upon which He would
build His Kingdom, abandoned Jesus. Jesus asks His father to be the rock—the
rock that Peter was not. We need to rely on God the father to be our rock. This
was not to diminish Peter the rock upon which the church would be built, but to
show that God the father is firm, always and forever. (A strong fortress to save
me). The statement that Jesus promised to build his church on Peter is commonly
accepted, but it is incorrect. A look at the Greek words used in Matthew 16:18,
show that Jesus is making a play on words that is clear in Greek but not made
clear in most English translations. The word for Peter is indeed rock, but it is a
small rock that could be held in one’s hand. The word for rock in the phrase,
“upon this rock” means a huge stone, a foundation stone. He promises to build
His church on the confession that Peter made in verse 16: “You are the Christ, the
Son of the living God.” Jesus did not plan to build His church on Peter, a mere
man whom He knew would abandon and deny Him. He built His church on
Himself as God’s Anointed One, the meaning of Messiah, God’s Son).
Jesus knows that only His father can be the rock and fortress whom He can rely
on as unshakable. Jesus shows us His wisdom in asking His father to guide him
through the ordeal of crucifixion, humiliation, sacrifice, and the completion of his
glorious plan. When Jesus says, “for the sake of your name”, He is saying “Your
name must be held on high.” God’s name must be held on high and exalted in
the process of the crucifixion. Essentially, this is the basis for the future of the
gospel.
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4
Free me from the trap that is set for me, for you are my refuge.
Jesus had been trapped by Judas and He was trapped unto death. From
this arrest there would be no escape. This trap was in fact a working out of
God’s plan through a human process of events. Jesus would, however, be freed
from death in the resurrection which lay only three days ahead. Jesus had
described His father’s house as a fortress. In the refuge of heaven, Jesus would
be restored to His rightful place with and by His father.
5
Into your hands I commit my spirit; redeem me, O LORD, the God of truth.
Jesus quotes these words on the cross. Jesus uses David’s words to release
Himself to God. Jesus found in David a parallel of His own demise. Jesus was a
teacher of the law. He also frequently quoted and interpreted the law as no other
could, and He did so with great authority. It is not by chance that Jesus quoted
this phrase, “Into your hands I commit my spirit”. As He shut His eyes, His dying
thoughts must have been, “Redeem me, O LORD, the God of truth”. Jesus referred
to Himself as the truth when He said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No
one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). When Jesus uses the term the
God of truth, He is testifying that God is indeed His father.
6
I hate those who cling to worthless idols; I trust in the LORD.
I had a lot of difficulty with this statement because of the word “hate”. Is
hate a sin? Could we have missed something and found a flaw in the image of
Jesus as sinless? Hardly!
It seems that Jesus and God are capable of hate. Certainly when spoken
from the point of view of righteousness and almighty authority, hate is no sin. It
is more a statement of definition. Do not plot evil against your neighbor, and do not
love to swear falsely. I hate all this," declares the LORD (Zechariah 8:17).
The words, “I hate those”, from verse six, seem harsh, and yet they can be
understood. Perhaps “I hate those” was said in a burst of anger and contempt
for those who turn from the Father. Yet Jesus asks for grace, mercy, and
forgiveness of those who “know not what they do”. These words are said amidst
a very powerful struggle and during a time of self-sacrifice and are then followed
by, “I trust in The Lord” while hanging crucified on the cross. What a revealing
testimony.
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Remember that these are the words of David. However, Jesus may well
have been referencing this passage. In this context, the next words of Jesus give
us a very real insight into the very nature of His relationship with God His
father.
7
I will be glad and rejoice in your love, for you saw my affliction and knew the
anguish of my soul.
These are very revealing words indeed! They are words that we should
remember when we suffer with the pains of ill health or with anguish within our
souls. Be glad! Give praise and rejoice in His love. Wow! Perhaps that’s where
we are all going wrong. We should follow this example and especially praise
God during our weakest and darkest moment. Why should we praise? “For you
saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul.” Is there any doubt that God
knows about and fully understands our situation? After reading this psalm,
surely you must understand that He does. Surely He also cares.
8
You have not handed me over to the enemy but have set my feet in a spacious
place.
Jesus was not handed over to Satan at death, but He was set upon the
throne after the resurrection. The dimensions of heaven are immense. Heaven is
a most spacious place. Jesus’ victory was not only over sin but also over death
and darkness “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”
(1 Corinthians 15:55)
9
Be merciful to me, O LORD, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with
sorrow, my soul and my body with grief.
Jesus was in physical, emotional, and mental agony. His eyes were no
doubt not only physically weakened from a loss of blood and from the trauma of
having been beaten, but also His eyes were growing weak with sorrow for
mankind and their ways.
10
My life is consumed by anguish and my years by groaning; my strength fails
because of my affliction, and my bones grow weak.
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This is a good description Jesus’ suffering. His strength was certainly
failing, and He was growing weaker by the moment. No doubt, the bones in His
legs could not support Him any longer.
11
Because of all my enemies, I am the utter contempt of my neighbors; I am a
dread to my friends- those who see me on the street flee from me.
We should not forget that there was a plot or a scheme against Jesus and
His ministry. He was not justly put to death but rather unjustly because of the
threat of civil unrest. Jesus was not accepted even in His own town; even His
friends and neighbors dreaded Him. And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to
them, “Only in his hometown and in his own house is a prophet without honor”
(Matthew 13:57). Peter, after having spent so much time with Jesus, abandoned
Him and denied Him three times. Judas, hand-picked by Jesus, betrayed Him.
Oh what a bitter pain to carry—the pain of betrayal. The scourging, the
crucifixion, and the walk to the cross must have been ugly: blood, anguish,
hatred, pain, and sorrow. Women and children must have turned away at such a
sight. These may have been the very people to which He said, “Let the little
children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such
as these” (Matthew 19:14).
12
I am forgotten by them as though I were dead; I have become like broken
pottery.
People who came to see the crucifixion may already have been going
home ahead of the crowds as Jesus’ lifeless body hung on the cross. Broken
pottery is useless; it generally gives no further productive service. In Isaiah we
read that some pieces of broken pottery can, however, be used “for taking coals
from a hearth or scooping water out of a cistern" (Isaiah 30:13-15), but we know that
Jesus was broken mercilessly and no fragment would remain. The burden of sin
breaks a person as pressure breaks pottery. Jesus was accepting the sins of the
world, and He was broken as pottery under its enormous weight. Jesus’ body
would soon be pierced and His flesh broken. Everything for which Jesus had
stood was shattered on the cross in the eyes of His followers because He did not
come down from it. He was left mortal, a mere man, thus no God, no messiah,
and certainly no “King of the Jews” in the eyes of those who so despised Him.
13
For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side; they conspire
against me and plot to take my life.
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Jesus was mocked and slandered in His trial. He was mocked as He was
forced to carry His cross, and He was also mocked while nailed upon the cross.
Jesus was not alone but was crucified between two criminals at Golgotha. He
had terror on His left and terror on His right. Above His head were the Words
“King of the Jews”, and below Him were the crucifixion guards drawing lots for
His robe. There could be no other way to describe it. At His bleeding feet were
Jewish leaders who had conspired and plotted against Him.
14
But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, "You are my God."
With the above in mind, Jesus confirms His testimony. What a profound
declaration and a statement of encouragement to us when we are shattered as
pottery and feel worthless.
15
My times are in your hands; deliver me from my enemies and from those who
pursue me.
As death approaches, Jesus asks to be “relieved of duty”. His last words
would be, “It is finished.” When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.”
With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit (John 19:30).
16
Let your face shine on your servant; save me in your unfailing love.
A shining face is not new in Biblical terms. Moses’ face shone so brightly
that he had to wear a veil after being in the presence of God. Jesus’ face shone
during his transfiguration. We are blessed as His face shines upon us. ' "The
LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious
to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace" '(Numbers 6:24-26).
The second part of verse sixteen asks to be saved in God’s unfailing love. The
Father’s love is unfailing and described as the rock.
17
Let me not be put to shame, O LORD, but let the wicked be put to shame
and lie silent in the grave.
Would Jesus die in vain and thereby be put to shame? Hardly. This was
not the plan of salvation. Jesus confirms the plan of salvation by confirming the
final system of judgment whereby the wicked be put to shame and lie silent in
the grave. Satan is wicked and he shall be shamed. Satan will lie silent because
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the crucifixion means his defeat. Although we know there is a time gap between
the plan of redemption through the cross and final judgment, Satan will be
silenced forever.
18
Let their lying lips be silenced, for with pride and contempt they speak
arrogantly against the righteous.
Jesus has silenced His accusers through the resurrection because He has
the final word. “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will confess to God.’” (Romans 14:11).
19
How great is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you,
which you bestow in the sight of men on those who take refuge in you.
Jesus praises the plan of redemption with this verse in His thoughts. We
are rewarded in heaven for our actions of taking refuge in the Lord. Jesus took
refuge in God when He was faced with humiliation, mockery, abandonment,
betrayal, hatred, and death. We should confirm our faith in times of affliction.
We should stand firm, not being tossed upon the waves, so that we can endure
hardships and illness with the confidence shown by Jesus. Always, always,
always, look to Him first.
20
In the shelter of your presence you hide them from the intrigues of men;
in your dwelling you keep them safe from accusing tongues.
Heaven is the ultimate sanctuary, but we don’t need to die to experience
God’s safety from accusing tongues. Satan is the accuser, and we need to do
battle, but even Satan may be silenced in Jesus’ name. Many needing healing
have been wrongly accused but are unable to defend themselves against the
accuser and have thus become captive to a lie. Jesus came to set the captives free,
and one of our tasks is to engage in battle to free those wrongly accused.
21
Praise be to the LORD, for he showed his wonderful love to me when I was in
a besieged city.
Jesus died outside the walls of Jerusalem, a city besieged and occupied by
the Romans.
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22
In my alarm I said, "I am cut off from your sight!" Yet you heard my cry for
mercy when I called to you for help.
“My God, My God why have you forsaken me?” Do these words sound
familiar? Jesus was alarmed, but even then He knew that God heard Him. Jesus
experienced the silence of prayer just as we do when we pray. But that doesn’t
mean that He doesn’t hear our cry or care for us, all the more to the contrary.
Surely He doesn’t want us to have to go through the pains that He did. He hears
and He is active even if we are not hearing His response to our satisfaction.
23
Love the LORD, all his saints! The LORD preserves the faithful, but the proud
he pays back in full. 24 Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.
“What is the most important commandment?” Jesus was asked. “To love
the Lord with all your heart and with all your soul “(Matthew 22:37). “Love the LORD,
all his saints! “Says verse 23 above. Jesus has encouraged us one last time to
follow this most important commandment. Lucifer was cast to earth because of
his sinful pride. We read above that “the proud he pays back in full.” Be strong
and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord. Jesus encourages us from the cross
both directly and indirectly through His thoughts, His actions, His character, and
His culture.
“Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.”
Simply wonderful. We only have to visit someone in hospital to realize
that there are many who suffer physical illnesses. People experience pains in
different ways; some cry, some become angry, some pray, and others are silent
and passive. Our attitudes to pain and suffering may help us carry the burden of
our ordeals even though they do not necessarily remove the ordeal from us.
Jesus showed us the depth of His attitude during suffering. He showed us
this attitude as a leader does—by example. We know that Jesus could have come
down from the cross, but He didn’t. He did not heal Himself of the wounds of
the cross, nor did He brush aside the wounds of His heart. What He did do was
show us His love for us and for His father. He showed us where to put our trust
even during times when we are crucified by the pains of this world, which are
beyond our control. And yet we can remember the words He said to Jairus.
“Don't be afraid; just believe.”
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Chapter 10
“Take this cup from me”
“But I suffer from more than just physical pains . . . . ”
When we are sick, is it any wonder that we ask if we haven’t suffered enough?
Physical suffering is just that--suffering. There is nothing in any way pleasant
about it. Even mild symptoms can become intolerable at times. Isn’t it enough
that we sometimes experience physical problems? Why do we have to carry all
the emotional traumas that come with it? That’s just too much!
Jesus suffered on the cross. There can be no doubt that He experienced
pain and physical suffering. We know that He carried our iniquities also. This
must have been an enormous load. Consider your sins added to those of your
family added to those of all the people in your street, neighborhood, and
country. If that is not enough, add to them the sins of everyone who has lived on
earth since the beginning of time as well as those to come. Jesus paid for your
sins, and mine, on the cross along with those of every individual in the past,
present, and future.
As Jesus began to feel the reality of the cost of His gracious act on our
behalf, He spoke out and
1) Called for help.
Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, "My Father,
if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will"
(Matthew 26:39).
2) Asked why God, His father, had abandoned Him.
About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, [ Some
manuscripts Eli, Eli] lama sabachthani?”–which means, “My God, my God, why
have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46).
3) He asked God to forgive those who crucified Him.
Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing”
(Luke 23:34).
4) Committed His spirit into God’s hands.
Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.”
When he had said this, he breathed his last (Luke 23:45-47).
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Jesus calls for help
He went away a second time and prayed, "My Father, if it is not possible for this
cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done” (Matthew 26:42). The
terminology of taking the cup has a Biblical precedent. We read this phrase in
Isaiah 51:22.
This is what your Sovereign LORD says, your God, who defends his
people: "See, I have taken out of your hand the cup that made you stagger;
from that cup, the goblet of my wrath, you will never drink again” (Isaiah
51:22).
By reading this in Isaiah, we see that Jesus was staggering under the weight of
impending crucifixion and that God’s plan to sacrifice Jesus for our sins was
beginning to take its toll on Jesus. He was beginning to suffer the weight of the
consequences of our sinful ways.
Jesus was well versed in His Old testament knowledge and the
interpretation of it. In my opinion, having observed the nature and character of
Jesus, we can see that Jesus was quoting or at least referring to scripture, if not
consciously, at least subconsciously. Every thought that Jesus had must have
taken Him back to the basics of what He stood for. Once again, He was showing
us the source of His information and stressing the importance of God’s word for
us.
From the text in Isaiah, we see that the goblet contained the wrath of God.
That is the punishment of sin. God did not take the cup from Jesus because Jesus
was to take it and drink from it for all of us. This was the plan of redemption.
Jeremiah also knew the wrath of God and how it was contained in a cup.
This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, said to me: "Take from my hand
this cup filled with the wine of my wrath and make all the nations to
whom I send you drink it.
The tumult will resound to the ends of the earth, for the LORD will bring
charges against the nations; he will bring judgment on all mankind and
put the wicked to the sword, declares the LORD
(Jeremiah 25:15, 31).
From Jeremiah we see the force of the wrath of God contained in the cup.
This is the cup from which Jesus drank for all of us. Jesus knew what the cup
contained. The only alternative was that we all would have to drink from it. One
drop would make us violently ill. Jesus was willing to be a sacrifice on our
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behalf to prevent God’s wrath from falling on each one of us. When He asked
God to take the cup from Him, He also said “not my will but your will be done”.
Jesus activated the plan of salvation and of the sacrificial lamb by willingly
agreeing to participate in the crucifixion.
It’s also interesting to see that although Jesus had all authority and power
at His disposal, He himself had to plead with God. Twice Jesus asked with
prayer that the cup be taken from Him. For some reason, many of us think that
one prayer is enough in most circumstances. Here we see that this is not so, even
for Jesus. This may show us that we may plead with God in times of duress.
Jesus was experiencing pain in His soul which weighed heavily on Him. Then he
said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and
keep watch with me” (Matthew 26:38).
Coupled with His expression of pain to His disciples, He also asked His
disciples for support. He asked them to keep watch with Him. I can’t imagine
any greater insult to Jesus than to fall asleep when He was hurting “to the point
death” after having been personally asked to keep watch with Him. I liken this
to the withdrawal of artillery from the battlefield. How quick we are to abandon
our intimacy with Jesus. In addition to failing to keep watch while Jesus prayed,
the disciples also ran away when Jesus was arrested.
At that time Jesus said to the crowd, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you
have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? Every day I sat in the
temple courts teaching, and you did not arrest me. But this has all taken
place that the writings of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the
disciples deserted him and fled (Matthew 26:55-57).
(Emphasis added).
None of us will ever be able to fully comprehend the sacrifice Jesus made
for us. When we understand this cup of wrath and combine it with an insight
borrowed from David, we can begin to understand that Jesus knows the weight
of suffering physically, spiritually, and emotionally. He suffered voluntarily,
paying for our transgressions, but He accepted the task of fully understanding
the wounds of our own hearts. Jesus was also being prepared to undergo the
wrath of God for us, even when we were to fall out of relationship with Him,
reject Him, insult Him, bruise Him, humiliate Him, abandon Him, and crucify
Him.
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“Why have you forsaken me?”
What would make Jesus ask such a question? Jesus was closer to God
than anyone. It was Jesus Himself who said, “All things have been committed to me
by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father
except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him (Matthew 11:27). No
one has ever more intimately known the father than Jesus Christ. What pain it
must have caused Jesus to ponder God’s abandonment, especially when He,
Jesus, should already have known the answer to this question.
In modern scientific times, we know of several types of strong bonds.
Chemically, we have molecules that come together to form what are known as
compounds. We also know that breaking certain bonds or otherwise stable
relationships may cause significant damage. I think of splitting an atom, for
example. This releases a devastatingly uncontrollable amount of untamable
energy.
Breaking the intimate and stable bond between Jesus and God must surely
have been much more significant than splitting an atom. The ramifications of
abandonment must have hurt Jesus intimately, causing Him to shout out.
Perhaps conversely, God Himself felt the pain of separation and responded by
causing nature to respond. Mark 15:38-40 says, The curtain of the temple was torn in
two from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard
his cry and saw how he died, he said, "Surely this man was the Son of God!" We know
that there was a great earthquake when Jesus died. Perhaps the very same rocks
that would sing praises as Jesus entered Jerusalem were now anguished by the
separation of Father and Son, so deep were its repercussions on a universal scale.
“I don’t like this God of yours”, a patient told me in anguish of her
personal pains. “How can He allow such suffering?” This is a great question
that we all will ask God at one time or another. Perhaps this is a reflection of
what Jesus felt. “Why have you abandoned me?” In order for Jesus to ask this
question of His father, this abandonment must have been deeply, deeply
significant. Where then is He in our suffering? I have no other answer than very
close by.
Why do I say this? Because once you have been hurt on such a
significantly deep level, you understand that this must never happen to anyone
else again. Secondly, Jesus Himself commanded His disciples when entering
into the homes of the sick to say these words, “The kingdom of God is near you”
(Luke 10:9). He cannot abandon us because He knows the pain of abandonment
to such a painful level that He can never, never let us go. His willingness to
suffer the pain of separation from His father is evidence of that.
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“Forgive them for they know not what they do”
Amazing, isn’t it? Here we have the God of the universe, creator of the
world, asking for forgiveness on our behalf while hanging upon a cross with
nails in His hands and feet, having been beaten, mocked, and spit upon, insulted
to the very core of His spirit and soul, and yet unbroken in His love for us. Who
could ever have expressed a more perfect love for mankind? We have discussed
our pains and sufferings both physically and emotionally and the depth of the
pains that come with insults. We have seen how Christ suffered for us.
We know that there is nothing short of re-crucifying Him that we cannot
be forgiven for. So deep is His love for us. So understanding is He of our
imperfect ways. So faithfully He pleads with His Father on our behalf. So
intently He walks with us through our own suffering. We simply need to believe
that He will ask His father’s forgiveness on our behalf when we would abandon
Him in our suffering, and so near His kingdom is to us when we ourselves
would walk away from Him.
He committed His spirit into God’s hands.
Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.”
When he had said this, he breathed his last (Luke 23:45-47).
How I have grown to love these words. How long had He pondered His
own last words? What kind of exit would we make when breathing our last?
This has got to be one of the most intimate acts of faith ever to be known to man.
“Father” is such an intimate address. “Into your hands”, a last act of humble
obedience and trust. “I”, of my own free will, unencumbered by any other factor
under all creation including my separation from you, commit “my” spirit. My
spirit, no longer mine, but Yours.
There comes a time in our lives when we see our sick and dying loved
ones leave us and enter God’s realm. There comes a time when God calls us
closer to Himself. There comes a time in every man’s life when he is destined to
die. There comes a time when healing of the sick, even the very young ones,
leaves us with an opportunity to say to the Father, “into your hands I commit my
spirit”. It is an absolutely astonishing and intimate moment. We can thank Jesus
for demonstrating its significance to us. It is at this very moment in time we best
recall the words of Jesus, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.”
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Chapter 11
The Body of Christ
There was a time when we could reach out and touch Jesus, even if it were
just the hem of his garment. Oh, what I would give to have been able to witness
the miracle of the woman who did just that.
I sometimes ask myself how we can reach out and touch Jesus today.
Obviously, we need to reach out to Jesus with our hearts and not with our hands.
But what then are we reaching out for, if not the body of Christ? Jesus’ broken
body was laid to rest in a tomb more than 2000 years ago. Three days later, Christ
was resurrected. The gospels tell us that Jesus ascended into heaven with his
body intact. We can’t touch him anymore.
I am astounded at the thought that the body of Christ today is us. We as
Christians are all part of the body of Christ. Now you are the body of Christ, and
each one of you is a part of it (1 Corinthians 12:27).
It is interesting, in reference to the burdens that we carry, that Jesus
still offers us His yoke. A yoke is a very sturdy piece of wood usually used to
connect two bulls, oxen, or cows together to help them pull a cart. In order to
offer us His yoke, his body would have to carry the load.
Today, without His body available to carry our heavy burdens, there must
be something else carrying our burdens because Jesus still offers us his yoke. Of
course, there are times when His spirit carries our burdens. When we share our
burdens with others, our load is lightened. This may be interesting when
suffering from the burdens of illness. James tells us we should confess our sins
to each other. When we do, we disperse the load over the full body of Christ. A
practical example would be to confess that we are having a hard time coping
with the burden of illness.
In addition, chronically ill people need a lot of caring. When we help
someone else by doing chores, shopping, or vacuuming the carpet, we are in fact
lightening that person’s load. In a sense, our bodies are carrying the load. The
body of Christ is in fact the church—not the building but the community of
believers.
The body of Christ carries the load of those suffering amongst us.
Sometimes the right hand doesn’t know what the left hand is doing. Sometimes
the toe feels totally separate and unimportant as compared to the liver, but it is
still a part of the whole functioning body of Christ.
When you feel the urge to do something for someone who is sick, ask
yourself this question: Am I being asked to do something and act so that the
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body of Christ may function in its entirety, or am I withholding my effort and
actually hampering the efficiency of the body of Christ?
When the brain sends out a signal to the calf muscle of the leg to contract,
the muscle has only one option and that is to respond by contraction. The
muscle does not need to know all the brain’s reasons for sending such an order.
All it is asked to do is respond to the brain’s impulse. The brain, on the other
hand, is correlating data from all of the body. A message to the leg muscles to
contract enables the body to walk. Walking is an essential and healthy body
activity. How often do we impede the workings of the body of Christ by
refusing to respond to the impulse we receive from the head of the body, Jesus
Christ?
While lunching recently, I became aware of our ineptitude to receive
messages and respond properly when God prompts us. A woman I was lunching
with had been into hospital to visit a relative suffering from prostatic carcinoma.
She explained to me the feeling of uselessness as she sat by the bedside. “What’s
the point of praying?" she asked herself.
In order to ask herself that question, she must first have been thinking
about praying for her relative. She would have had to think about and process
the impulse of prayer first and secondly reason. In this case, she didn't pray at
all.
When we are children, we first crawl and then learn to walk. When we
begin walking, we cannot immediately do the high jump. We need to train for
years to become proficient at adult activities. So it is with prayer. We learn by
painful experiences of falling down. It is the experience of failures that trains us
for success. Thereby we become stronger in our response to Jesus as He directs
the activities of the body of the church, which is us.
Christ’s body is working all the time just as our own bodies are. When we
are asleep, we continue to breath. When we are asleep, our blood is moved from
our muscles to our digestive system and the complex workings of our digestive
system are taking place. The next time you get up in the morning to use the
toilet, ask yourself how your bladder became so full and how it is that you were
not aware of such complex activity in your own body.
When we pray with or for our suffering friends, we remain part of a
complex body. When we are confronted with the suffering of Christian friends,
the workings of the body of Christ become very difficult to understand. We want
to pray for them, and we genuinely want them to get well, but sometimes they
don’t. In this situation, we have two members or two separate parts of the body
of Christ coming together but not necessarily with the head’s intent for healing.
I have to think back to my recent luncheon. The woman could have
prayed for healing, and we should never rule out the possibility that it might
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happen, but sometimes the inevitable lies ahead of us. There are times when
death is not sent to challenge us or to show us how fragile life is but rather to
take us away. When we realize that possibility, then our efforts in prayer should
be directed toward the healing of the soul and not the body.
Every day I look around me and see people suffering from illnesses and
handicaps. Every day I ponder as to what the intent of the challenge of Biblical
healing really is. Is it only to help us to become healing molecules within the
body of Christ? I don’t think so. Is it only to bring relief from suffering? I don’t
think so. Is it to only bring glory to God? I don’t think so. I think it is for us to
learn.
We are continually learning that nothing is absolute. Do our friends get
well every time we pray? No. Do babies, innocent lives, pass away in what
seems a cruel way? Yes, they do. And when they do, is the pain not immense?
Yes, it is. The question remains, what have we learned?
In my practice, I have come to know a woman who has lost one of her legs
from just above her knee. Her other leg is whole as far as her feet, but on that
foot her toes have been amputated. During the night her amputated leg, now
just a stump, shakes and has uncontrollable contractions that keep her awake
and in pain. Every night it’s the same story, unrelenting and unbearable. Her
stump has become a secondary problem and sleep deprivation a primary
concern. Her lack of sleep is slowly stealing her health away, just like a cancer
does.
This woman needs caring. She needs help around the house and she also
needs help physically. She also needs someone to talk to. I smile as l see helpers
come to her aid. Is it asking too much to push someone around in a wheelchair?
It really hit home one day when l was observing a helper who was wheeling this
woman around in her chair. He was smiling, singing, and then whistling as he
helped her. Let’s be realistic for a moment. The lady with one leg is not going to
miraculously grow one back as a result of prayer. It is very possible, though, that
a man with two legs would do her legwork for her. Isn’t it wonderful how the
body of Christ works?
Recently I listened as a friend began talking about his struggle with
leukemia. As he was talking, I felt God’s spirit move inside me. This was now
an all-too-familiar conscious sensation. He described his illness, and my soul
cringed as he also described the pain that Jesus felt when His friend Lazarus was
dead. My friend described Jesus’ pain as a groan.
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In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know
what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with
groans that words cannot express (Romans 8:26).
Jesus was deeply moved in spirit and troubled, as John 11:33 tells us. My friend
described the pain that Jesus felt for the ones He loved, comparing the groan to
that sound made by a mother bear when she has lost her cub. Somehow inside I
could feel what Jesus must have felt. It was painful to the core.
As my friend described his own experiences, I became aware that the
process of healing was beginning to manifest in the room in which we found
ourselves. This Christian man was speaking out to other members of the body of
Christ about the workings of the head, Jesus Christ. Although all of us present
were part of that body, I felt that many of us were disconnected from the head on
this issue. Why is it that we can be so close to each other and yet so removed
from the head? Conversations about Christian healing, even among Christian
believers, can immediately separate or alienate other members of the same body
of Christ. Why is it that this wholly integrated, Christ-demonstrated, aspect of
the body of Christ is so taboo to so many Christians?
Conscious of God’s abundance of healing power, His groan for His
suffering children and His spirit’s desire for me to pray wholeheartedly for this
man in front of all these people, I still took no action. Why? I knew that if I had
stepped forward that day, I would have simultaneously caused a flurry of
division amongst the other members of the body of Christ who were present. Is
this something new? Jesus traveling to His own home town also could do no
miracles except for healing a few people. Why? Because so many did not believe.
However, I do pray for this issue because there are so many who need help.
The body of Christ consists of a large, diverse, and resourceful support
network. There is no one who cannot be reached. Your prayers may alert the
head of the body of Christ of a particular need. How the response is made is up
to the head to decide. Withholding prayer may impede or preclude a response.
That may be why prayer is so important. That may also be why we are asked to
bring everything to God in prayer, not just some things to God in prayer.
In my book, Something's on the Boil (4) , I wrote about my experience of
praying about a pimple. Quite ludicrous actually, don’t you think? Why in the
world would anyone bother God about a pimple? I have been asked that very
question, and I will share one response with you.
I was learning. I was questioning God. I was searching for God’s
responses to little things. One day as I was explaining this to a woman sitting
near me, I noticed that she was sinking further and further into her armchair as I
explained about letting God into all facets of one’s life. She also began to cry. I
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was communicating something, but I didn’t know what. I asked why she was
responding so emotionally to my explanation about praying for a pimple.
“I have suffered from breast cancer”, she told me. “I prayed about that
because it was a big problem. Now I have a problem with my eye and have had
all kinds of medications which are not helping", she continued. "I have never
considered praying to God about my eye because it is too small."
It soon became clear that my pimple prayer experience, ridiculous as it
seemed, had touched someone very deeply. God is resourceful, and He will use
any means available to reach you, even stories about pimples. Our job is to put
all our resources into His hands.
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93

Chapter 12
The Spirit of Christ
Although the body of Christ is today, spiritually speaking, Christ’s
followers, His Spirit remains just that; a Spirit. Christians are taught to think that
the Holy Spirit is a very real entity. Although many people miss the significance
of the spiritual world around us, it is very real. We can’t see the Holy Spirit with
our eyes, but we can observe Him working; the same is true for the spirit of evil.
The Spirit of Evil
When I sat down to eat lunch during my regular break in my practice, a
thought suddenly came into my mind. “Have you ever heard of 666?” I asked
my receptionist.
“No, I have no idea what you are talking about”, she replied.
“The antichrist, you have no idea who that is?”
“No.” I spent probably no more than two minutes explaining briefly what
I was referring to when the face of my receptionist began to change. She looked
at me like I was really going too far with this one and almost began to mock me
with the expression on her face.
Right at that moment, a man walked into my practice. He was big and
had long, jet black, hair. As he approached me, I noticed tattoos creeping up
above his open collar. He was a handsome man, and yet he carried a fearsome
air with him. I wasn’t quite sure why he walked into the clinic. Somehow he
seemed out of place.
“I have an appointment at one o’clock”. He said. Indeed, he did. After having
discussed this man’s reason for consulting me, I asked him to take off his shirt so
that I could examine him more closely. I noticed that he had a mild stutter. As he
began to undress, the full extent of his tattoos became evident. He was covered
from his fingertips all up his arm and his back.
“You’ve got some pretty pictures there”, I said. “Please come over and
stand in front of the mirror so that I can evaluate your posture.” As he turned his
back to me, I could see a large face tattooed on his back. There was also the word
“Satanas” (Greek for satan) tattooed on the forehead of the face. The face was
unusual because it had tattooed flames around it, giving the impression that the
face was on fire or at least radiated fire and heat. “What’s this?” I asked him
referring to the flaming face.
“It’s the flaming face of Satan”, he responded in his native Dutch. During
my examination, I couldn’t help but notice the multiples of evil, aggressive, and
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angry tattoos on his arms. He stood silently while I continued my examination
and turned his hand so I could look at his wrist. There were the numbers 666
tattooed right across the palm side of his wrist. The numbers must have been
about four inches high. “What’s this?” I asked, knowing full well what the
answer was.
His body snapped to attention and his head turned to look directly into
my eyes. “It’s the mark of the beast”, he said, this time responding in English.
“Hey, that’s cool! If you get a chance on the way out could you show this
to my receptionist? She would get a kick out of it”, I said.
This man was associated with a well-known gang. In fact, three of his
gang members had been murdered by others in the gang, and there was a lot of
press about it. I asked him a few questions about the gang killings and we
chatted for just a few minutes about the brutality of these murders.
I still had a feeling there was something just not quite right about him
being in my clinic. A big guy like this, oozing testosterone and with a history of
violent behavior just didn’t seem to fit the description of my average patient.
“Let me just go into the other room and fill up on some massage oil. I’ll be
right back”, I said. As I left the room I began to pray. “Hey, God. This is no
average patient. There is an air about this man which is distinctly evil. Protect
me from whatever it is that I am confronted with.” As I was filling up my bottle
of massage oil, I thought about praying for and blessing the oil. I knew that if I
blessed the oil, it could cause an unpleasant response from the patient if he truly
was evil.
At the same time, I was aware that this was just another day in the office. I
was not going to bless any oil because I was not in a spiritual fight. All the while,
I was also aware that as I left the man waiting he would also be checking out his
surroundings in the room. After all, don’t we all look around a bit while we wait
for the doctor? Different instruments, an interesting chart on the wall, a picture
of the wife and family or whatever; there are always plenty of things which
attract our curiosity. I couldn’t hide my Christianity. It was too late for that.
On a white board in my office were a few bible quotes, a few scribbled
verses, and an arrow diagram. When patients ask me questions, I like to draw
things out for them so they can follow the conversation visually. Heaven knows I
talk with a lot of people about their faith. I knew the man would be checking me
out. I also knew that there was enough evidence in the room to convict me of
Christian faith if it were a crime. If the man were evil, he would know that he
was standing in the presence of one of God’s own children.
I held the bottle of oil in my hand and headed back to the treatment room.
“God protect me”, I prayed. The man took a seat on my treatment chair, and I
applied the oil to his arm. There was no screaming pain. His skin did not melt in
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front of my eyes and his head did not spin around like the “exorcist”. But what
happened next totally caught me by surprise.
Hissss, Hisss, Hissss. As soon as I heard it, I knew I was dealing with a
demon, not in the spiritual world but right there in the flesh. I looked up at the
man and our eyes connected. There was utter silence.
“If I know who you are, a demon, then you must recognize me as child of
God. A Christian”, I thought. “We are not here to do battle. This is not a war.
Rather we are on neutral ground”, my mind seemed to say.
I continued to treat as he hissed. Then as I moved behind the treatment
chair to massage his neck, I brought up the courage to ask him. “How long have
you been stuttering?” I asked. I didn’t use the words “hissing like a snake”
because I still felt it to be insulting and a terrible thing to say to anyone.
“Since I was five”, he answered. He described how he had had some kind
of a convulsive seizure as a child and since then his life had taken a different
route. He had become more violent and had difficulties at school, and he
stuttered. He had had a lot of therapy, including speech therapy, but he had
decided to discontinue them because he wasn’t making any real progress. This
could indicate a history of demonic influence but it wasn’t enough to be certain.
It could be that he had a convulsive seizure and suffered some brain damage as a
result. That didn’t mean he was evil.
Although his response was in reference to stuttering, I never really got an
answer on the hissing until months later.
The divides between real and not real, between physical and spiritual,
between medical and non-medical, and between sense and nonsense are often so
thin that we cannot dissect one from the other. Perhaps that is why we have to
rely on the gifts of the spirit and the sharpness of the sword to dissect the two
worlds.
I finished the treatment and suggested he make another appointment with
my receptionist. As I turned from him to write in my notes, he suddenly spoke
loudly. “Hey. Get this oil off me.” I turned back to face him as he stood holding
up his forearm.
“What?” I thought. “Really? Why? It’s already rubbed in and dried, and I
didn’t even bless that oil. Why does it then irritate you so much that you ask me
to rub it off?” I thought.
Aloud, I said, “Sure. Let me help you with that”, as if it was something
that I do every day. That fact is that in more than fifteen years of practice, only
one other person had ever asked me to wipe off the oil after treatment. “Oh and
by the way, don’t forget to show your wrist tattoo to my secretary as you leave,”
I reminded him.
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I noticed that my receptionist took a long time in talking with the man at
her desk. I was standing in the kitchen area of my practice when I saw the man
leave the clinic. As soon as the door shut behind him, my receptionist ran across
the clinic to me. “Jos! That man hisses like a snake!” she exclaimed. If I had told
her that in any other circumstances, she would have thought me an idiot.
“Yes, I know”, I replied. We knew that something very unusual had just
happened. It was no coincidence that just before the man came into the clinic we
had been talking about the numbers 666 and the antichrist. Was this a soldier of
darkness who had been in the clinic on that day? I think so. He certainly carried
the spirit of evil with him.
Some months later I treated the mans’ father.
“He makes quite an impression. Doesn’t he? The father said referring to
his son. “He has a very aggressive past, ever since his convulsion years ago. It
was so bad at one time that I and several others had to restrain him from beating
up a man who, from across the street, made a comment about his stuttering”. He
added.
“I asked him about his stuttering” I replied. With that remark the fathers
face grew pale. He was speechless. It took him quite a few moments to grasp the
reality of what I had just said. Then came the father’s response.
“You are lucky to be alive.” He said, acknowledging that his sons’
response was often violently out of proportion.
“How long has he been hissing?” I asked promptly. This time my
response drew a blank face.
“You mean stuttering?” The father asked?
“No I mean hissing. Your son hisses like a snake.” I asserted.
“He stutters.” The father replied.
“He stutters, yes but more to the point he hissed like a snake when he was
here. He was not trying to talk but he hissed. It concerns me.” I stated, but his
father had no idea as to any behavior that I had referred to.
We are confronted by the spiritual world all the time, but many of us do
not recognize it as such. We put situations like this one down to coincidence,
nonsense, and fanaticism, failing to see spiritual connections. Conversely, some
see everything as spiritual and become “reality handicapped”, so that they lose
rational judgment and thinking. People can just hear voices, for example, without
being attacked by spiritual demons. We know that the brain can be sick just like
any other part of the body, causing hallucinations. That does not mean that the
hallucinations are brought on by the spiritual world. Then again, we know that
the Bible says that men will dream dreams, so we know that a spiritual-based life
experience, even if it be just inside our heads, is still very spiritually based. In the
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last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will
prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams (Acts 2:17).
Although the snake man event alerted me to very real spiritual
confrontations, I was reluctant to consider it more deeply. I suppose I really
didn’t know what to do with the information and the experience. I just couldn’t
place it anywhere until one day something else happened.
The Spirit of Grace
I walked into my reception area to call the next patient in for treatment.
“Mrs. Wonflu, Mrs Wonflu, please come in for your scheduled appointment”.
There was something odd about this woman as she approached me. Her eyes
seemed to wander as she walked toward me and I wondered how she managed
to walk a straight line without keeping her eyes on where she was going. “How
can I help you, Mrs. Wonflu?” I asked. This was her reply:
“I have back pain, arm pain, and neck pain. Sometimes I have arm and
elbow pain, but mostly in my shoulders and sometimes in my hands. I am a
Christian. I also have foot and ankle pain, and I am also being treated by a social
service organization.” And so her story went on.
“What is it that you are being treated for by the social service people?” I
asked.
“Oh, I’m crazy”, she replied.
This conversation took place during a time that I was slowly drifting away
from God. I guess I was drifting from Him because I am often overcome with
doubt. We all have those periods. Life tends to go in a direction that leads us to
question things. I was just drifting loose and was carried by the tide of life. But
one thing alerted me in the conversation and as soon as her words were spoken, I
knew that God was saying, “Hey Jos, pay attention.”
One sentence that this woman said was right in the middle of a long list of
ailments followed by another long list of ailments. What sentence do you think
it was? Did it get your attention? Pay attention. “I am a Christian”, she said.
What in the world does being a Christian have to do with anything? I
wondered. As soon as she said those words, my ears pricked up. Her long list of
aliments and personal history took a lot of noting in my files, but that one remark
about being a Christian just didn’t go with the flow of things that she was telling
me. It was soon time for her examination. As this woman disrobed, her tattoos
became all too evident. They were literally from one hand all the way up her
arm, around her back and down her other arm. Does this ring a bell?
During the examination, I couldn’t help but notice a large tattoo of a horse
and rider on Mrs. Wonflu’s left shoulder blade. “Great pictures.” I said. “What’s
this one?”
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“That is the Jesus of Revelation. He is riding a horse as described in the
Bible.” Luckily I had read Revelation and had followed an in-depth course on it,
so the concept of the horse and rider was familiar to me. “What about this one?”
I asked as I pointed to a still fresh tattoo extending from her wrist to her elbow.
“That is the fire of the Holy Spirit. Underneath it is the word for the Holy
Spirit written in Hebrew.”
I examined the tattoos one by one. They were all indeed Biblical imagery
reflecting her Christian faith. Although I found this form of expression a little
extreme, I guess for her it was ok. Why would that be? It’s simple: she was
“crazy”.
Following her examination and treatment, I sat at my desk and we talked
for a few minutes. Since I was drifting freely in the current of life, I felt it right to
ask, “What does being a Christian have to do with anything?”
Without hesitation, Mrs. Wonflu began to explain the concept of sin and
forgiveness. She described her conversion and professed faith in Jesus Christ.
She explained eternal life and her acceptance into heaven—all very coherently
and intelligently, I might add. I have heard a lot of testimonies in my time, but in
my current period of doubt, I found her answer a little too standard or rehearsed.
I thought, “If there is a God and He heals, why then are you crazy? Why
hasn’t He healed you? You testify that you are in relationship with Him and He
with you. Surely He cannot just ignore your ailments”. After all, I was drifting.
I was in a position of doubt, drifting like everyone else between truth and
untruth, reality and non-reality, faith and no faith. “God, where are you? Reveal
yourself! Help me to see you more clearly!” I thought.
Mrs. Wonflu’s answer really didn’t do it for me. “What has God done for
you today?” I demanded, pointing my hand in the air and then landing my index
finger firmly on the desk right in front of her. “What has Jesus done for you
today?” I just really wanted to get an answer from her. I was totally unprepared
for her reply.
“I have a long history of sexual abuse. I have been mistreated by people
close to me for the greater majority of my life. I was bitter and angry, and I just
wanted to go around killing everybody. But now I’m not like that anymore. I
am at peace after a lifetime of torment. Jesus has given me peace. That is what
He has done for me today”, she replied quietly.
As her words seared their way into my heart, I became aware with every
word that this was God’s way of reminding me of His presence. “Yes, I am real.
Yes, I am working. Yes, I am transforming this woman’s life right before your
eyes, and yes, you may follow me if you choose.” Ooh that hurt. It was like I got
a good talking to by the Holy Spirit. “Get your oars back in the water and start
paddling upstream.”
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What a contrast to the snake man! Although the snake man incident was
very real, I never really knew what to do with the experience. I guess it was just
rolling around in my head with a lot of other information and experiences. It
wasn’t until I had met Mrs. Wonflu, probably about two years later, when the
real message sank in. Both of these people had backgrounds that had caused
them to be angry with the world. The snake man was living in spiritual
darkness. Mrs. Wonflu, however, had made a choice to come out of the darkness
and into the light. Even while being “crazy”, she accepted Jesus.
Mrs. Wonflu was slowly, slowly coping with her condition, and she was
ever so slowly healing internally. The sword of the spirit was taking time to
dissect every painful internal scar one at a time to help bring restoration to her
troubled soul. This was the working of the spirit of grace revealed to me through
a “crazy” lady.
How different the two spirits are: one evil, the other graceful.
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101

Chapter 13
The Long Wait
Why are we so impatient? Whoever said that healing had to be instant?
Perhaps we all want to see the miracles so that we can believe. There is so much
to learn about ourselves and others through illness that we overlook the lessons
for a short adrenaline kick that comes with spontaneous healing. Aren’t we just a
bunch of fools?
I can imagine God looking down on us and laughing at our stupidity. We
want more and more, and we want it faster and faster. What’s the point of
miraculous healings if we learn nothing from them? There are many miraculous
events in the Bible. One of the most spectacular has to be the parting of the sea to
allow the Israelites to cross over. It was spectacular, and it was witnessed by the
whole tribe of Israel consisting of over one million people. It was also witnessed
by the pursuing Egyptian army.
Neither the Israelites nor the Egyptians witnessed this event as
bystanders; they participated in this event. The Israelites had to walk between
the separated walls of water and the soldiers of the Egyptian army would die
when the walls of water collapsed. What a spectacle it must have been. I can
imagine it would have been a bit like walking through Niagara Falls without
getting wet. This was no small event. Millions of liters of water had to be
displaced long enough to let a whole developing nation walk, not drive, across a
sea bed to an opposite shore.
Although parting the waters was a most spectacular event, it did not occur
in isolation of other great events. Prior to the parting of the waters, the Egyptian
army was held back by fire. To hold back an army, not just a battalion, requires a
large fire. I imagine such a fire would have to be larger than the fires of the Iraqi
oil fields during the Gulf War. Millions around the world witnessed those fires
through their television sets in the comfort of their own homes. In contrast, the
pursuing Egyptian army must have felt the enormous heat of the fire and
smelled its burning fumes. The soldiers also would have been covered in the
soot from the fires.
The Israelites no doubt saw the fire behind them as they walked through
the sea on dry land. They saw the miracles. Yet only a short time after this event
that would mark the exodus forever, the Israelites fell into doubt and forgot what
God had already done for them. They begged for instant food and instant water
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as if they had learned nothing. If God were limited to the confines of human
emotions, He must have been thinking of the Israelites something like, “What is
the matter with you?” He must have asked this in a frustrated manner rather
than as a loving father asks his child why he or she is crying. “Why is it that you
are so impulsive and impatient, so ungrateful and so quick to forget what I have
already done for you?” God may have asked.
They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go
around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; 5 they spoke
against God and against Moses, and said, "Why have you brought us up
out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water!
And we detest this miserable food!" (Numbers 21:4-5)
I am probably no different from the Israelites. I have become impatient
and long to see instant healings. The truth is that they are not common. Perhaps
I should clarify that by saying that they do happen, but sometimes there is a long
lead up to healing.
“Jos, a friend of mine is very sick. Do you think you can help her?” I was
asked by a patient of mine. The question was not in reference to my learned
chiropractic skills but rather referred to my Christian healing interests.
“I can’t heal anybody”, I answered. “If healing takes place, it is always
God who does it. It’s all about Him, not me. What’s going on?”
“My friend has Parkinson’s and she has uncontrollable shaking. She is
suffering immensely. Do you think you can help?”
There was a certain beauty in this question. My patient, a non-Christian
woman, was asking the help of Jesus Christ. She was unselfish as she was asking
for her friend, not herself. She was asking the help of another God, not her own.
I was astounded by the revelation that was encapsulated within her questions.
My first response was, “Does she believe?” This is the politically correct way of
asking, in Dutch culture, if her friend, the woman with Parkinson’s, was a
Christian.
The response I got was, at best, “wishy-washy”. Rather than follow my
heart’s desire to witness a miracle, I was moved by seeing an opportunity to
share the gospel of Jesus Christ to a non-believing but searching soul. Mrs. Fort,
the lady in question, later contacted me, asking for help.
Mrs. Fort contacted me by e-mail. We communicated back and forth a few
times over a period of months. That is a long time. Mrs. Fort was on my mind
almost every day. I studied her situation from all spiritual angles. I considered
the possibility of demonic involvement as that sometimes is concomitant to
severe debilitating illness. I studied the possibility that she may be, spiritually
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speaking, held captive to her illness and therefore in need of deliverance.
Deliverance would bring her out of the hands of the enemy and out the darkness
of enemy territory and into the freedom of the light.
I carefully studied and considered her medical diagnosis. I also
considered all the reasons not to help her. I can assure you I could think up all
kinds of reasons not to become involved in another’s undefined illness. During
this long period of study and consideration, Mrs. Fort continued to suffer
terribly. I cannot adequately describe the pains she experienced from unceasing
tremors. The tiredness she experienced only allowed her energy to function
somewhat normally for about two hours a day. Her situation was intense.
All the while, I was contemplating and studying, but I had physically not
lifted more than a spiritual finger of thought to help her. All the while, I was
conscious of the long wait. I thought of prisoners in jails waiting for their
lawyers to come up with strategies to help free them. I thought of prisoners of
war who had to wait for wars to end before ever again experiencing freedom. I
couldn’t help but think about what it must be like for an innocent prisoner to
wait for all the bureaucratic red tape to be cut through before one is set free.
Minutes turn into hours, hours to days, and days into weeks and months.
When one is in captivity, it seems like the world should be concerned with one’s
innocence, but the reality is that they are not, and life goes on, both on the inside
and on the outside. All the while the clock continues to tick, oblivious to the
aches and pains of the world that is so tightly contained within its own
continuum.
When would I gain the confidence to help Mrs. Fort? How long would I
struggle with the thoughts on this matter that so consumed me?
While Mrs. Fort was on my mind, so was my family, my personal life, and
of course, my business. Life does not come in a neat package; it is more like
potatoes, mashed peas, and gravy. All the good, the bad, and the ugly are
mashed together. At the time of writing both Mrs. Fort and I separately continue
to experience the long wait.
The priority in helping Mrs. Fort was a need for spiritual support.
Healing, in my opinion, is secondary to the benefits that come from spiritual
growth and growth in relationship with Jesus Christ. Healing is either a byproduct
of spiritual growth or a result of spiritual growth. Many healing
teachings emphasize the need for covering spiritual struggles with a “spiritual
umbrella”. That umbrella is prayer. To recruit an inexperienced group of prayer
supporters and then place them directly into harm’s way and unable to defend
themselves on a spiritual battlefield would be irresponsible.
Again, time comes into the equation. Though we would like to think that
prayer support or “artillery” support is really not that important, perhaps failing
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to pray is like taking away the retaining wall of a dam. Wasted water, wasted
opportunity, and a lot of people would get hurt.
Getting volunteers together to pray for healing is just not always that easy.
A lot of the legwork has to be done first. That might include spending time
talking about spiritual healing to just about anyone who is willing to listen. I
suppose I don’t really have to tell you the many questions that this subject brings
up in people. It seems that everyone wants to run, but surprisingly, they want to
run away from the battlefield, not toward it. Suddenly, everyone is busy, on
holidays, or has relatives visiting from overseas.
I think about Elijah praying for rain. The greatest prophet ever on earth
still had to wait seven days after beginning to pray for rain following a five-year
drought. Abraham and Sarah had to wait until old age for a child. In fact, they
waited so long that death of old age was more likely than new life through
childbirth. The Bible actually describes Abraham as being ninety-nine years old
when God told Him he would father a child with Sarah.
So why not just go ahead and pray for Mrs. Fort’s healing? There are
many answers to this question based on differing perspectives.
The obvious answer is that nobody wants to appear a fool. Who really
believes that prayer heals? Praying from a distance and hoping that our artillery
prayers will have some effect is quite different from being on the front lines, in
this case, perhaps by someone’s bedside praying boldly for healing and fully
expecting it from God. Who really wants to stand in that place where every fiber
in our body tells us we are not going to witness a miracle? Who really wants to
stand in that place to be tossed and thrown about as in a tempest? Who really
wants to walk in the valley of the shadow of death, knowing the dangers, the
confusion, the doubt, and the fears that the valley contains? Who really wants to
invade enemy territory and break into the enemies’ own strongholds, clashing
head to head with an army of darkness? Not many. Who then will witness the
miracle of healing?
Some years ago, I heard a well-known speaker tell a proverb attributed to
Confucius: “Man who stands on mountainside with mouth open, waiting for
roast duck to fly in, got long wait.”
In terms of healing, we could take a lesson from Confucius. “Blind man
who sits by roadside waiting for Messiah to walk by and restore sight, got long
wait”. Indeed.
Two blind men were sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that
Jesus was going by, they shouted, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on
us!" Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes. Immediately
they received their sight and followed him (Matthew 20:30, 34).
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So how do we cope with the waiting? We most often have to wait for
opportunity or until it suits us to take any action. Sometimes we need to wait on
God’s prompting, and sometimes we do not need to wait at all. When Jesus landed
and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick (Matthew
14:14).
Jesus teaches us patience. He allows us the time to work things through
and to think. We can study, ponder, delve into scripture, pray, pray more, pray
again, and wait patiently for His response. I believe that although we have the
choice to refuse His promptings, He will prompt us at just the right moment, and
He will enable us at just the right moment, and He will encourage us at just the
right moment; then He will empower us at just the right moment if we pursue
Him with all our heart and demonstrate that by our actions.
Moses became a Biblical icon because of his action, participation, and
leadership in the exodus of God’s children from the captivity of the Egyptians.
However, Moses was no hero overnight. Moses was already aged before the
exodus campaign had begun. Moses also did not part the waters on his own.
Exodus 14:21 tells us that Moses stretched out his hand. Moses took an action in
response to God’s prompting. The waters did not part suddenly, but Moses
stood with his hands outstretched “and all that night the LORD drove the sea back
with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land”. Moses later expresses God’s
power in song. “Your right hand is majestic in power” Exodus 15:16.
There can be no doubt that this event was a grand-scale act of God. The
winds parted the water and held back the sea. With howling winds, wouldn’t we
be more likely to head for our tents? The majesty and the limits of God’s power
cannot be understood by man. Although Moses is best known for his role in
parting the sea, I think his part in closing the waters is no less definitive of God’s
sovereignty. God’s judgment, wisdom, and understanding cannot be opposed
by man, the entire Egyptian army, or Satan’s army of darkness. The intentional
closing of the waters represents a definitive judgment of those opposing God.
God could have crushed the entire Egyptian empire with one breath from
His nostrils as they held His people captive in Egypt, but what would that prove
and what would we learn from it? The Israelites unknowingly still had a long
wait to get into the Promised Land. We have to learn patience and obedience in
order to serve God well. Testing times may sometimes be opportunities for us to
grow.
The book of Exodus tells us why we sometimes have long periods of
waiting and demonstrates that we should not expect instant successes. Chapter
23 of Exodus says in verse 20, “See, I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you
along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared”. This indicates that a
process is taking place, not an instant change. The second part of the verse
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confirms that the changes which are to take place are a progression toward a
further destination: “and to bring thee to a place which I have prepared”. The process
of change over time is summed up in verse 30 as God speaks of the progressive
strengthening of the state of Israel so that they may become strong over time.
Little by little I will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take
possession (Exodus 23: 29-30).
Why is it that we are so impatient? We know that we should be more
Christ-like in our daily lives. Wisdom is gained over time, as is understanding.
God Himself defines wisdom and understanding, “and he said to man, 'The fear of
the Lord—that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding” (Job 28:28).
In our impatience we may be sacrificing wisdom and understanding.
That inherently cannot draw us closer to a goal of becoming like Christ.
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Chapter 14
“Don’t Be Afraid”
Fear is a common Biblical emotion, and we all experience it. We encounter
fear for the first time in Genesis after Eve and Adam partook of the fruit from the
tree of life and then hid from God.
But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?"
He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was
naked; so I hid."
And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from
the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?" (Genesis 3:9-
11). (Emphasis added).
It is only after an encounter with Satan that Adam was afraid. We can
quickly conclude by this dialogue that it was not God’s intent for us to live in
fear or to be afraid but rather to live without shame or fear in relationship with
God.
When reading the Bible, we often encounter the experience of fear. It is
sometimes encountered by God’s enemies and also by His loyal subjects.
Moses, Israel’s greatest spiritual leader, instructing the Israelites says, “Be strong
and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God
goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you." (Deuteronomy 31:5-7).
(Emphasis added). Having experienced much of God’s most obvious displays of
power, the Israelites still needed Moses to reassure them that God is with them
always. Are we any different, although we have more knowledge of God’s
works in the New Testament? One would think that we would have conquered
fear by now, but this is far from the truth.
Medically speaking, fear can work in our favor. For example, fear
increases our heartbeat. An increased heart rate allows blood to pump quickly
into our muscles when we run. Fear of a prowling lion signals danger. Our
pupils dilate to accept all incoming visual stimuli, our hearts begin to pound, and
our blood moves from non-essential parts of our bodies, such as butterflies in the
stomach, and is rerouted to our muscles so that we can run like the wind toward
safety. This fear of danger is no ungodly fear. It is a safety mechanism built into
us so that we are can adequately respond to danger. One would think that when
faced with the fear of evil, we would run toward God.
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In the course of helping Ms. Welch, I had encountered fear many times.
When I noticed that prayer immediately had an effect on her condition, I became
aware of the need to approach her with the offer of help. Not having the needed
confidence to address the subject with her, I waited for an opportunity to test the
spirits that I thought were affecting her. After my first real experience with
prayer for Ms. Welch, I had to address the issues at hand. I was confronted with
the fear of not being certain of what had happened, thus leaving me exposed to
ridicule for what some may see as coincidence. I was also faced with the fear that
there may have been some spiritual presence; some would say it was a demonic
presence that would have to be dealt with.
On the occasion described in Chapter 1, when Ms. Welch left my office,
her shaking was only mildly noticeable in her right hand. I had learned not to
fool myself, and I knew that whatever was affecting her spiritually was still
there. During the following two visits when Ms. Welch came into my office, I
deliberately refrained from prayer. Ms. Welch was again shaking uncontrollably
and there was no attempt on my part to help her in any other way than to treat
her with normal chiropractic methods. I found that under these conditions, Ms.
Welch entered my office shaking and left in the same way.
With my initial experience of utilizing prayer as a method of helping Ms.
Welch still at the forefront in my mind, I could not discount the possibility that
there was some spiritual aspect which was keeping her captive. To confront that
spirit, I had to face my fears and stand on God’s word through faith.
Ms. Welch entered my office for a fourth time after having been shaking
continuously for weeks on end. As she lay face down on my chiropractic table, I
knew I had to challenge the spirit affecting her and also gauge my level of
confidence and authority in Christ.
I had learned about the authority we have in Christ by accident while in
Los Angeles two years earlier. It was not that I was looking for this information,
but through a surprising set of experiences, I received it as though it was
implanted into me from God. More accurately, God gave me a word,
“authority”, and basically I started to learn everything I could about Christian
authority, every time the word was mentioned anywhere in conversation, media,
church or the Bible. It was as if the word “authority” rang a bell in my head that
alerted me to listen and learn. We have an immense authority in Christ, but we
have to learn to use it. Using it requires us to overcome all kinds of fears that are
set against us to keep us from exercising that authority.
Ms. Welch lay on my adjusting table, and I knew I had to test the presence
of the spirit affecting her. Her arms were flapping wildly, and her upper body
was trembling savagely. I could feel the tightness of her muscles under my
hands as they twitched, causing her pain in every fiber of her muscles. Her
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muscles were painful from the continuous spasms and the build-up of metabolic
waste products from her cells. I leaned over the table and whispered this
statement: “You know who I am. Stop it!” I never planned these words; they just
came out of my mouth when I moved in faith. When the words came out, I knew
that I was a Christian exercising Christ’s authority. “Stop it!” This was a
command.
These words were whispered over Ms. Welch and were not addressed to
her but to the spirit. With that her hands fell to rest on the armrests of my
treatment table as if two lead weights were suddenly dropped. The response
was so sudden that I was aghast at the speed of the response to my given
command. From that moment I knew that the only way to help Ms. Welch was
to overcome my own fears and address this problem with the authority that any
Christian has over the spiritual world.
“I think it’s time that we address this situation spiritually”, I said to Ms.
Welch. “Would you mind if I ask my friend Rebecca, who has some experience
in these matters, to help me help you with this condition?” I asked Ms. Welch.
Her positive response led to a series of discussions with Ms. Welch that
confronted her problems, ridded her of her spiritual bondage, stopped her
shaking, and saved her soul. Ms. Welch was so thankful to us for helping her but
also to God for having done it. Her healing or deliverance helped her accept the
grace of God, and she accepted Jesus Christ.
It was great to see and it was everything reminiscent of Biblical
descriptions of healing. It was quick. It was deliberate. It was done in faith. It
required us both to overcome fear. As a result of God’s grace in healing, Ms.
Welch submitted herself to Jesus Christ, accepting Him as the Son of God.
If fear is a common weapon of the enemy, then we have to overcome that
weapon with faith. Paul describes faith as an effective shield, but unless we carry
the shield and raise it when attacked, we will all be overwhelmed by fear in a
spiritual battle. Many of us would rather avoid fear than confront it.
If this attitude renders us helpless to evil, then we have already lost the
fight. If we are rendered helpless to fear, then fear has nothing to fear from us. I
don’t know about you, but I would rather fight back than continue to be held
captive and rendered helpless by fear. God gave us instructions to be
productive. If that means confronting and overcoming fear, then that is what we
should do.
It is interesting to experience fear because that is what it actually is, an
experience. By definition, we learn from experience; when we do, we become
stronger in fighting fear. We recognize its attack patterns, and by definition of
“learning”, we become stronger with each confrontation, thus weakening fear’s
effects upon us.
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The words “fear not” and “don’t be afraid” are repeated many times in
both the New and Old Testaments. Perhaps it is time we begin to call for
Christians to act in faith rather than to be docile. We should be letting our lights
shine, not hiding them in a cupboard. We should be heeding the words, “Don’t
be afraid; just believe.”
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Chapter 15
Prayer: What Do We Really Know?
“Prayer is not an old woman's idle amusement. Properly understood and applied, it is
the most potent instrument of action”. Mahatma Gandhi
It has to be obvious to those who know, “prayer is the most potent
instrument of action”, but to those who don’t know or understand even the
basics of prayer, prayer appears silly enough to be used for “an old woman’s idle
amusement”.
What gives us enough understanding of prayer to make us appreciate its
power? The only way is to apply prayer to life’s situations. We all need to
discover that prayers are heard; then we can believe enough to apply prayer as a
powerful tool rather than a means to relieve some of life’s stress as it comes our
way.
We have all at some point sent a fleeting prayer on its way. Few of us may
have experienced the struggle that one undergoes in expressing one’s heart to
God beyond which the appreciation for prayer can be found. Perhaps Mahatma
Gandhi understood this when he used the key words “properly understood and
applied”.
The words “properly understood” almost seem to set one’s mind in a state
of bewilderment because who can really understand prayer? “Properly
understood” in reference to prayer seems to present us with an oxymoron. To
really understand prayer, we would need at least one lifetime of bittersweet
experiences to realize even the beginnings of the potency of prayer.
However, we know that Jesus at least gave us some basic instruction of
what to pray. We know that He spent more time than most of us praying. We
know that He placed a high priority on prayer. We also know that while
knowingly experiencing His last night of freedom, Jesus spent His time praying,
not partying, or, as in the case of His disciples, sleeping. Jesus certainly
“properly understood” and also applied the principles of prayer.
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The question we must all face is how we can better understand anything
about the gospel truths. How do we apply those truths and live productive lives
for Christ? How do we walk in His power, mercy, grace, love, and hope?
Mahatma, although not a Christian, was no fool. When he chose his
words referring to an “old woman”, he demonstrated that we should not be so
condescending toward prayer. An old woman, in a man’s eyes, equates
weakness. Secondly, he chooses to use the word “idle”. Idle, means that there is
no energy being exerted. By using negative words, he is scoffing at those who
negate the very use and power of prayer. His very carefully chosen words
already imply stupidity when negating prayer, even before he has completed his
statement expressing the positive affirmation of the powerful potential of prayer.
If we are to see the results of our prayers, we have to begin by
acknowledging that they have some value. That value has to be higher than an
“old woman’s idle amusement”.
I wonder how many of us get bogged down with this first step. It is a
crippling blow that the enemy delivers to our heads when we begin to rationalize
the concept of prayer. I have struggled with it for years. I sometimes can’t help
but agree when some people say to me that “prayer doesn’t achieve anything”,
or “you can’t be serious about prayer”, or “stop praying about it and do
something”.
I have come to realize that if the enemy can cripple us at the level of the
“old woman”, then he has pretty well crippled our effectiveness as Christians
before we have even had a chance to consider any kind of action. If we are
already crippled in our spiritual infancy, how can we ever expect to properly
understand anything about the gospel truths? It is imperative that we
continually take every thought captive so that we can assess its truth as
compared to that of the gospel teachings. We demolish arguments and every
pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every
thought to make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5).
When we find that our thoughts are not only challenging the gospel truths
but also attempting to erase the very foundations upon which they are founded,
then we should regard those thoughts as being planted by an entity other than
God. At that time, we need to exercise faith. (The key word being “exercise”).
We need to exercise weak muscles to make them strong. Exercising hurts and is
generally boring if not backed by motivation. Spiritually speaking, prayer is
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useless unless you expect it to work. Once again we need to attribute some value
to prayer above that of an old woman’s amusement, or we will develop a new
truth that prayer is useless. This new truth has to be recognized as untrue.
The beginning to discovering any truths about prayer has to be built on a
foundation of faith. Then we must realize that a foundation is useless if we don’t
build on it. Isn’t it logical that we begin to accept Christian foundations of the
gospel in faith as being true and then build on them? It is the only way to start,
and we all have to start in the same place: at the beginning.
After our first step forward, we have to continue onward in faith. Our
works, which are our efforts to serve God, have to founded and formed in faith.
If we are to work in faith, we should also be motivated in our work by love. Our
love is for God and for others, Biblically described as our neighbors.
Furthermore, our endurance to continue to work and produce a fruitful life for
Christ must be reinforced with hope.
We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced
by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by
hope in our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Thessalonians 1:3).
Elijah demonstrates hope and faith by sending his servant out seven times
to see if there is any indication of rain on the horizon following a long drought.
Even after the sixth negative reply, Elijah maintains both hope and faith.
"Go and look toward the sea," he told his servant. And he went up and
looked.
"There is nothing there," he said.
Seven times Elijah said, "Go back."
The seventh time the servant reported, "A cloud as small as a man's hand
is rising from the sea" (1 Kings 18:43-44).
If we look back to Mahatma Gandhi’s quote, we can contrast the weakness
of an old woman with the image of Elijah, an old man, and yet one of the Bible’s
greatest prophets. We can contrast Elijah’s determination with an old woman’s
amusement. And we can confirm that Elijah clearly not only understood prayer
but also applied, it resulting in potent action. Meanwhile, the sky grew black with
clouds, the wind rose, a heavy rain came on and Ahab rode off to Jezreel (I Kings 18:45).
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In her book Broken Dreams, Fulfilled Promises (5), Carolyn Ros says, “A
believer without prayer is like a soldier with a gun but no bullets.” A soldier
without a gun is not always helpless or useless, but he is certainly grossly
undermined in his potential. He is greatly limited in his capacity to serve in a
manner for which he has been trained. On the battlefield, an infantry soldier
without a gun, unless tending to wounded, is useless. The same soldier sleeping
in his bed during peace time also achieves nothing. Jesus asks us as His
followers to let our light shine and not to hide it.
Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it
on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way,
let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and
praise your Father in heaven (Matthew 5:15-17).
Clearly we have to exercise our potential to the maximum, not to our minimum.
Sometimes we are abruptly and unexpectedly faced with the need to “fire
our guns”. When a soldier is trained in boot camp, he is taught discipline, made
to be physically fit, and most certainly trained to fire his weapon to the most
devastating effect of the enemy. He is trained to follow orders but also to
exercise judgment. During the American military buildup along the Iraqi border
in Kuwait, soldiers expressed their frustration while waiting to go into battle and
fully utilizing their weaponry and do what they had been trained to do. It was
not that they were hungry for blood but that they were trained for the very task
they were facing but were not yet given orders to advance.
As Christians wielding the weaponry of prayer, we should be looking for
opportunity to release our potential. Sadly, in many circumstances, we are not
looking for opportunities. Fear stops us from taking action; thus we hide our
lights under a bowl. Doubt also prevents us from action; thus we hide our light
under a bowl. Fear of ridicule prevents us from letting our light shine, so we end
up hiding our light under a bowl. Can you imagine a soldier presenting these
excuses to his commanding officer during a charge of the enemy as sufficient
reason not to fire his weapon? Court martial!
Timothy Warner in his book Spiritual Warfare (6) holds nothing back in his
description of prayer: “Prayer is not a rear echelon activity; prayer is front lines
spiritual warfare.” He quotes S.D. Gordon’s book Quiet Talks On Prayer (7) , saying,
“Prayer is striking the winning blow at the concealed enemy.” Warner explains
that prayer is not our weapon but is in fact the battle itself, arguing that we
struggle with prayer for that reason.
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Jesus is kind and He is patient, but He will discipline us, just like a soldier
must be disciplined, and He will prune us to bear fruit. Christians all over the
world, the message is clear: fire your weapons in the face of the enemy. Pray like
never before. Train to pray and teach others to pray and learn the potential of
your actions.
Mahatma was wise but Jesus is wiser. Mahatma was describing prayer to
unbelievers. Jesus was talking to His own, including us. What will it take for you
to realize the potential of prayer? If you are a Christian follower of Christ, then
together with Him you can make it rain during drought and you can relieve pain
during doubt.
Fire your weapons.
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117

Chapter 16
So Let’s Get It Right
To grasp the process and application of prayers for healing, we have to
overcome the single most obvious obstacle in its path. We have to overcome the
tenet that prayer has absolutely no effect.
Let’s look first at some of the most talked about Christian incidents and
then ask ourselves if we aren’t all just being fooled into believing an illusion of
God, prayer, and faith. Consider creation. Did God blow himself up and scatter
Himself throughout the universe with the Big Bang? Is that how we came into
being in the first place? Did we really develop from microbes and bacteria in a
cesspool of mud? If so, where did the mud come from?
If we cannot even discuss the issue of creationism in our schools, then
religion, and faith in it, will surely dwindle as our next generations are less
exposed to religious creationism. There must be a foundation upon which faith
in our Christian God is built. Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning”. This must be
the foundation of our faith.
Did the world really flood? Was Noah a real person or just a metaphor?
Scientists are slowly finding more evidence that there certainly was a
catastrophic flood in the Middle East. Other religions have recorded the same
event but have told the story without naming Noah and possibly even before
Noah’s time. So again there is speculation. We may either be skeptical about any
flood or we may be open minded.
Perhaps that is the way the foundation was built. We are told about an
event, but we are free to ponder its implications. We are allowed to doubt, study,
apply scientific principles, or even negate the whole issue. We may choose to
“believe it or not”.
Which is really the stronger foundation, the one that is evidence based or
the one that allows for interpretation, self-examination, pondering, and doubt?
Which then builds a stronger observer of the truth if you, I, and all mankind are
the observers? God in all His wisdom may have created an eternal foundation
by having us search for it rather than laying it obtrusively, unavoidably in our
path. Perhaps this is why the Bible tells us that when we seek we shall find
rather than to take everything for granted. Prayer makes us think.
Are we are we really thinking? Today we still see pilgrimages of people
seeking healing in the waters of Lourdes in France. Of the hundreds of
thousands, if not millions, of people who have visited Lourdes in the hope that
Mary, the mother of God, would heal them, however, less than one hundred
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have been authenticated as genuine miracles. That is quite a disappointing
figure, especially when more than sixty percent cannot be verified. The Catholic
Church, which monitors these claims of healing and Lourdes, has its own
medical staff. One Dutch magazine recently stated that “the chance of being
killed in an auto accident on route to Lourdes is greater than the chances of
healing at Lourdes” (8) .
This kind of puts the healing issue in perspective, doesn’t it? The reality
may be that we feel good when making a pilgrimage, but our illnesses don’t just
disappear. Should we blindly follow a mysterious healing power such as that of
Lourdes, or should we investigate, ask questions, apply scripture, seek God, and
heal through relationship? Do we need to go somewhere to find God, or can we
find Him wherever we are? Do we need to go to Lourdes to find healing any
more than we need to find a church to pray in? Or are we able to communicate
with God wherever we are? Which builds a stronger servant of the Lord?
Were the healings of Jesus fact or fiction? Were mass hysteria, placebo,
psychology, and mysticism more likely cures than Godly wonders? Did anyone
really get healed at all? It’s all so confusing, isn’t it? Yes, we all have lots of
questions about this subject, and when confronted with scientific evidence of
false beliefs, then we are even more confused.
Christians are asked to believe in a spiritual world that is more real and
more significant than our own. We are asked to believe that Jesus died and
miraculously rose again. We are expected to believe that a donkey spoke in a
human voice in the Old Testament, yet none of us are fooled by Eddie Murphy’s
voice behind the donkey’s caricature in the movie “Shrek”.
Today there are those who expect us to believe that it is possible, even
plausible, that where there was a lack of knowledge, Biblical writers needed to
fill in the gaps with fantasy fragments in order to pull Biblical stories together.
There are those who want to convince anybody who will listen that the people to
whom the Biblical stories were told also may not have been the brightest group.
However, the Bible tells us that we should be as little children.
Some things we have to take on faith so that we can build up other parts
of our foundations in faith. Do you necessarily have to expect and believe in
some level of fantasy for our Bible events to really be believed? What’s real and
what’s not? Are we actually blinding ourselves by not asking questions about
our Biblical foundations, or are we learning about faith and its foundations?
Which makes the stronger soldier for Christ?
Unfortunately, I can’t answer these questions for you. I have to refer you
to God to answer these questions. Perhaps you could try praying. Prayer is a talk
with God. Actually, it’s more than that because during prayer God can talk with
us. I believe that is true, no matter what anybody else says. God does talk with
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us. If you can’t believe the simplest of prayers at its elementary level could work,
then anything more would seem ridiculous. I also believe that prayer can bring
about healing in the same way that prayer can help us find a job, a parking place
on a busy shopping day, business opportunities in an economic crisis, and rain
during drought.
However, my beliefs are not essential to your faith. Your faith is
developed by practicing your faith. You will need to walk along faith’s road and
participate interactively. You will need to pray during periods of doubt, and you
will need to pray during periods of drought. You will need to pray and pray and
pray. You will also need to count your blessings as they come your way and
attribute those blessings to answered prayers. Over a long period of time,
perhaps a lifetime, you will begin to build a relative database of prayers and
answers to prayers upon which you can base your decisions about the workings
of prayer.
What does Jesus say when we ask him how to pray? His answer to the
disciples was short and simple. He gave them what we call the Lord’s prayer.
He never asked them not to pray because it was a waste of time. He instead led
by example. Jesus prayed fervently and often. There is no doubt that He also
heard His father’s voice, literally and instinctively. We also know He heard
God’s silence, just like we do. Perhaps the most revealing truth about the
essential foundations of prayer is not written but rather revealed to us when we
think about what Jesus expects us to build our foundations upon. Think about it;
Jesus never led us away from prayer but rather toward it.
Jesus directed us to pray so that we might overcome objections, doubt,
fear, and many other hindrances to our faith. The stronger the relationship with
Him, the stronger the wavering foundation under our feet becomes. God’s
foundations are not inanimate but rather living and dynamic. We grow stronger
with every step we take in faith. The world would have us convinced otherwise.
While the world is able to demonstrate that the voices some
schizophrenics hear are localized in certain parts of the brain, we cannot simply
abandon prayers for healing or prayers and commands of deliverance for these
sufferers. Sometimes medications fail. Sometimes medications mask underlying
problems. We could take a lesson from Solomon and apply both wisdom and
understanding to prayer. We should not abandon prayer for the sake of medical
or scientific research because when science is weighed against the word of God,
and then tested throughout the ages, we find that science can always be
improved upon. Medical science has its wonders, its tragedies, and its limits.
Prayer can traverse the vast expanse of heaven and earth and faith can move
mountains.
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I would like to leave the last word over to Jesus. His wisdom exceeds all
else. “Why should we continue to pursue health through spiritual means?” The
same question was asked of Jairus: “Why trouble the master any further? The child is
dead” (Mark 5:35).
Jesus’ response is enough to convince me to reassure you about the place
and worthiness of a spiritual dimension to healing. Prayer is essential. Never
forget these words of Jesus Christ in response to an already lost life.
“Don’t be afraid; just believe” (Mark 5:36).
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Epilogue
While Jesus walked the streets and alleyways of Jerusalem, He was not
oblivious to the needs of the people who shared those streets with Him. We see
that Jesus was interactive with the local people. We see that Jesus looked at
people’s hearts and circumstances. He experienced the sadness of our world. He
understood the pains of betrayal, divorce, and infidelity. Jesus was also moved
with compassion. He really felt the heartbreak of our helplessness during illness,
so much so that the Bible tells us that His compassion motivated Him to heal
people of physical illness and disease. Our real world existence, in the absence
of a physical Jesus on our streets, is still ridden with the same pains of 2000 years
ago.
While we still see suffering all around us today, we have become more
adept at dealing with illness. Does this mean that we have learned to become
less reliant on God when we suffer ill health? Maybe yes. Maybe no. It’s all a
question of perspective. The world’s modern health care system is not based on
a God-centered model. You only need to spend an hour in any cancer ward to
understand that we are sometimes left helpless to disease. Patients die, even the
young ones. It hurts, doesn’t it? Yes, it does.
So where then is God in our suffering? Does prayer really ever change
anything? Does God really heal today? Why does God allow all this suffering?
There are just so many questions. If you spend just a few minutes with a family
grieving over a lost child, you will sense that the painful realities of our world
are painful to those who walk with Christ and also to those who do not. We
seemingly have no real evidence that Jesus heals. What’s the use of prayer?
Jesus walked amongst us in reality, but paradoxically, when He left the
disciples looking at the soles of His feet during the ascension, He also said “I will
never leave you.” Jesus left us with His Spirit. Amazing!
The spirit world, although shielded from our eyes, is intermingled into
our daily lives. When Jesus was physically in the desert, He spent forty days
fasting and praying. He spent forty days inter-communicating with the spirit
world. He prayed in the garden while his best friends fell asleep. Jesus spent
His time calling out to His father in prayer, although Jesus could not see Him.
Why shouldn’t we do the same? Although Jesus asked three times for God to
find a way out of the impending crucifixion dilemma, He was not miraculously
saved by the hand of God. Here we see the two parts of the Trilogy of God
(Father and Son) connected in prayer with all the resources of heaven and earth
at the ready, and yet God is not willing to relieve Jesus of His dutiful suffering.
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This is akin to spiritual blunt force trauma to the head. In fact, God’s decision
not to save the Son forces Jesus to the cross. Jesus was the last sacrificial lamb.
What we have learned is that Jesus suffered on the cross, and we have
come to understand, in part, the suffering of His soul. We have seen that Jesus
led by example to pray into the spiritual realm in order to bring all our needs to
God. We have seen that God can answer us spontaneously, over time, or not at
all. We have seen that our hearts and minds can hamper God’s work as well as
facilitate it. We have seen that those we pray for have free choice to accept God’s
blessing by the status of their hearts and minds. We know that God’s work may
also be hampered or delayed in the spiritual world. We have learned that when
we participate willingly and wholly in communion, that we are eating the flesh
and drinking the blood of Jesus Christ because of its spiritual nourishment.
Two realities are intertwined, one physical, one spiritual. The healthy
ability to peer into the spiritual world comes through building one’s relationship
with Jesus Christ. The ability to allow God to change our hearts and minds
comes about by the relationship built by communication with Him in prayer. We
must present ourselves to God for healing. I have no doubt He then will press on
our sore spots, ask if it hurts, and prescribe a spiritual remedy based on Christlikeness.
Are you willing to present yourself?
The pathway of prayer is the only real way to dialog with God and to
build relationship with Him. By definition, this is a spiritual process. The
benefits are first spiritual and then sometimes physical.
When reading almost any Christian book on the issue of healing, we are
forever confronted with the word “faith”. Faith is an integral component of
healing. What about trust, then? Trusting in God is not the equivalent of faith in
God. From time to time, I am confronted by people who are dying and having to
face death. The big killers of today, cancer, AIDS, or other diseases, are rampant
and commonplace. What good does having faith do when death is imminent?
What good is faith when the point of no return has been passed and one only has
a few final breaths to take? Should we continue to have faith in healing, or do
these situations rather require us to lay our faith aside and begin to trust?
The switch between the two is an enormous paradigm shift of our
attitudes, expectations, and faith. Could trusting be a more powerful factor than
faith? Perhaps when all our faith is geared toward healing critically ill friends,
we risk losing the ability to trust. Having faith for healing those who are
critically ill and near death almost exclusively requires us to have faith to the
bitter end for the risk that we might abandon our faith.
Wisdom, however, may provide a substitute for faith at the final hour.
Dare we lay down our faith at death’s door and begin to trust God instead?
Wow! Imagine the courage that would take! What an act of confidence in the
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Lord at such a critical moment. “Yes, Lord, I will trust you with my life at
death’s door. Yes, Lord, I am willing to put aside my faith and desire for healing
to put everything I have back into your hands. I trust you, Lord, on both sides of
the division separating life as I know it and life after death which is in your
hands. Yes, Lord, I will exchange my faith for trusting You.” Trusting Jesus is not
the same as having faith.
Paul probably understood this when he said, “I have fought the good
fight” (2 Timothy 4:7). Paul was near death and consciously gave his life into the
Lord’s hands. Jesus did the same. “It is finished”, He said, followed by “Into
Your hands I commit my spirit.” Jesus trusted God when crossing the divide
between Life and death. Perhaps we should do the same.
_____________________________________________________________________
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125

Appendix
Justin’s story: Chapter 1 from Something’s on the Boil: A Discovery
of Prayer and Healing
“This is the last time you will see him. Doctors say he will not make it
through the night.”
My friend Justin was dying. His body was weak and had lost so much
weight that my arms were thicker than his thighs. Justin was only nineteen and
had already struggled for some years with cancer that had spread through his
body.
While holding what was to be an all-night vigil over Justin, his mother
beckoned to me that it was time to say good-bye. I had to bring up the courage to
say good-bye to a friend. He was lying in his room at home where it was always
a bit dark, even during the day. The wallpaper pattern was like a woven basket.
He liked that; it was one of the first things he told me when we met at school.
I was glad I wasn’t alone in saying good-bye, as Xander and Tim, also
friends, were with me. As we entered Justin’s room, he lay motionless. He had
lost so much weight that he looked as if his skin had simply been pulled over his
bones. I knew that acknowledging us was a monumental effort for him. Even
blinking would take up too much energy.
At eighteen, how do you say good-bye to a friend? I had said many goodbyes
before but never a permanent, “this is it” kind of good-bye. Xander and
Tim had been old school friends with Justin. I was the newcomer in the group,
and each of us had a different relationship with him. Justin once told me that he
had a “chameleon personality” and could relate well with all kinds of people and
blend in with their personalities. During the time we were friends, I found this
to be true.
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We stood next to his bed, the three of us. Justin
had a few guitars, a Marshall amplifier, and a
speaker that was the size of two suitcases stacked
vertically on top of each other next to his bed. There
really was barely enough room even to sit.
Then Tim said something like “Good-bye,
mate.” This was a true Australian farewell. In these
circumstances, it implied so much more than goodbye.
The word “mate” expressed a personal bond.
The love in his voice ripped into my heart. Xander
picked up one of Justin’s guitars and started to sing. I admired that. How could
he sing? I had such a lump in my throat that I couldn’t even talk. I was too
emotional and to tell the truth was more hoping to get a chance to move out of
the room than stay there. As Xander began to sing, all my muscles tensed. I
could feel the moisture welling up inside my nose, and tears filled my eyes. It
was a beautiful moment, a moment so drenched with love that I found myself
unable to cope. When I wiped my tears, I found my hand was shaking
uncontrollably. I just stood there, unable to speak and overwhelmed.
All the while, Justin just lay there expressionless. His bed was positioned
against the wall, and fitting tight against the foot of his bed was a large
wardrobe. Justin faced the side of the wardrobe, and he looked directly at a
figure of Jesus on the cross that his mother had hung there for him.
When Xander finished his song, I got my chance to escape, as it seemed
like an appropriate moment to leave. Being closest to the door, I turned and
exited, sensing that Tim and Xander had followed my lead and would follow.
Waiting outside was Justin’s mother, and I could see by the expression on her
face that she was struggling with the dread of loss. She had nursed her husband
and then lost him following a long struggle with heart disease, and now this.
When Justin and I were becoming friends, I had met his father a few times. I
remember the funeral because it was the first funeral I had ever attended. Justin’s
father was to be cremated.
Having been to more funerals since then, I know that sometimes you
remember very little about them. This one was different. I can’t remember the
details of the service, but what I do remember was something that has been
imprinted onto my mind. The casket lay on a conveyer belt; in my perception, it
was ready to move beyond a curtain and into the furnace. The curtains had
opened and the casket started to move forward. There was a somber mood as
background music was playing a last farewell.
Then a shout pierced the air and Justin’s mother lunged toward the coffin, trying
to hold it back from the furnace. Three or four men jumped up to restrain her. She was
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mourning and did not want to let her husband go. My heart went out to Justin’s mother
because she had already experienced so much pain and had sacrificed her life to the caring
of her ill husband.
Anyone will tell you it’s a difficult journey to care for someone through a
long bout of illness, but at the same time it’s love that carries you through it and
keeps you going. As a caregiver you give your time, your love, your patience,
your friendship, and your understanding. At the same time, you develop a
relationship endured through difficult times together with a bond that is so
deeply rooted that words cannot express it.
While outside his room, I glanced back to see Justin was still lying
motionless, and I knew he was taking his last breaths. I said good-bye to Justin’s
mom. I wanted her last moments with him to be private. She was appreciative
of the friendship I had built up with her eldest son.
I can’t recall how much time passed, but I had heard nothing further
about Justin. Finally, I got up the courage to call his mother and ask. I didn’t
want to call because I didn’t really want to know the answer; I knew it would
hurt to hear the truth. I was worried that the funeral might have already taken
place and that I had not been informed.
To my surprise, Justin’s mother asked if I wanted to come and see him. I
was thinking that I couldn’t go through that experience again; it was just too
painful. Then she told me something that struck me and has been with me
almost 20 years since.
She told me that after we left, Justin’s final moments were drawing near,
so she called the priest, an Anglican Church minister. Justin wasn’t the
“churchy” type and as far as I can recall, neither was his family. This was
probably a formality, just something you do when death is close, or perhaps she
had a buried Christian faith that I had not seen in her. She told me that the priest
had come and anointed Justin’s head with oil. She said the room glowed like the
lights were on. I wondered what had happened. As a Christian, I believed
healing was possible, but I had never experienced anything like that. Justin
recovered and carried on for another ten years after that night.
I often refer to this experience in conversations with friends when the
subject of death comes up. What it meant and if it really had any impact on
others, I don’t know, but I continue to carry it with me.
As time went on, Justin and I were sometimes close, but at other times, we
drifted apart. Later I lost contact with Justin for a long time as our lives took us
in different directions. One day while I was sitting on the beach in the blistering
Australian sun, Justin surprisingly showed up and we caught up on lost time.
The first thing he told me was, “I have accepted Jesus as my personal Savior!”
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Well, I can’t tell you how strange that sounded, coming from him.
Remember he was not the “churchy type.” His choice of words to express
himself just didn’t seem to be his own. I listened to his story, and we talked for
hours. We had in the past had long conversations sometimes lasting well into the
night about God, faith, and Christian beliefs. He had so many questions but
never had made a commitment. My one burning question for Justin was, “What
happened that night when we came to say good-bye?’’
Justin’s answer
“I lay there in my room that night. My mother had placed the figure of
Jesus on the cross on the side of my wardrobe. I lay there, knowing I was dying.
I looked at the cross and simply said, what have I got to lose?”
His conversion took place sometime later. Over the next decade Justin had
bouts of remissions, but he was still sick with cancer. He returned to work but
would be in and out of hospital periodically to check his progress. Once when
he was in hospital there was an attending nurse to whom he was attracted. He
worked up the courage to ask her out on a date. Her reply was, “Sure, if you
take me out to my church meeting.” He did just that, but instead of a hot date,
he was led to a wonderful and loving relationship with the Lord.
Almost ten years later and just before he died, I was with Justin at his
home. We were watching T.V. when he interrupted and asked, “Do you think I
will go to heaven?”
The question surprised me because the answer was so obvious. “Of
course,” I said, “that’s guaranteed.” His life had completely changed and he had
indeed accepted Jesus. I wondered how he could ever have thought to ask. He
looked at me with a look that implied, “Thank you for confirming that. If anyone
should know the answer to that question in relationship to me, it would be you.
That’s great! That’s great!”
One week later, I stood at his bedside and again found myself saying
good-bye. It was heart wrenching. Justin was lying on his left side with his back
turned toward me. He had the covers pulled up around his neck because he was
always so cold. He was too weak to turn and face me, but as I leaned over him to
see his face he nodded slightly and acknowledged me. “I’ll see you later,” I said,
feeling stupid that I couldn’t find any other words. It was one of those moments
when you want to be meaningful but you blurt out something ridiculous.
That was my last good-bye. I knew when I had said “see you later,” I
wouldn’t see him alive again. Looking back at this statement, it may have been
appropriate since Christians never say good-bye because they will always meet
again in Heaven.
Sometime later, Justin’s mother told me how he had died. He was taking
his last breaths when he smiled, turned his face to one side, and seemed to
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experience some sense of relief. What she told me implied to me that God came
to Justin at the very last moment. Justin was still alive and his spirit still in his
own body. At that moment, Justin recognized God for who He was, welcomed
Him, and then left with Him.
Although this experience made a great impact on me, I had never given it
the attention that it deserved. In fact, I didn’t even consider that many years later
it would lead to major changes in my own life. Yet even as something was “on
the boil”, I was somehow oblivious to it.
Easter morning
Twenty years passed before I had a second experience that was quite
different from the first, but it had such an impact on me that I still wonder about
its meaning.
Justin’s experience occurred when I was living in Australia. I had since
been living in Europe already for five years when I had the chance to get back to
Melbourne to see my parents. It was Easter
morning, and I had asked my parents to find an
outdoor Easter sunrise service that we could attend.
As I stepped out of the car, the smell of the
eucalyptus trees filled the air. I had taken it for
granted when I lived in Australia, but now, having
been away, the gum tree fragrance seemed to
heighten my state of awareness. It was just a few
minutes before 6:00 a.m. The band began to play for the Salvation Army service;
the music echoed throughout the forest area and also seemed to heighten my
state of awareness. I simply felt, “I am here for a purpose, and something is on
the boil.” I looked around at other people near me and tried to read their faces,
searching for any evidence that anyone else may have been experiencing the
same sensation. I seemed to be the only one who could sense it.
As we stood singing and listening to the short message, my mother
motioned to me about a man standing near us. “What’s the matter with that man
there? Do you think he’s alright?”
He stood about twenty meters to my right. I had already seen him and
watched him as he stood singing. His song sheet was shaking in his hands; in my
mind I already diagnosed him with Parkinson’s. Before my mother whispered to
me, I had already had an urge to speak to this man. I stood where I was but
experienced what I would almost call a physical push to approach him. The
image in my mind was to go to this man, touch his forehead, and heal him in the
name of Jesus Christ.
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I stood shaking as I was overcome with this emotion and sensation. I
reached into my pocket for a tissue to wipe my tears and blow my nose, but I
didn’t have one. All my energy then went into restraining my tears. I knew God
was talking but I was held back by bewilderment. I doubted, thinking that this
may not be real, fearing the embarrassment if I made a fool of myself.
Nevertheless, the sensations and the thoughts were overwhelming.
God was urging me to listen and obey. I did nothing. Even worse, I felt
burdened with the sense of having disappointed God. After all the years that we
had been in relationship, He had asked me clearly to do something for him, and I
consciously said, “No.”
Both these experiences impacted me so greatly that they led me to begin a
journey of questions concerning my faith and the issue of healing. Why had God
singled me out and put me on the spot? Although the message was clear, and I
have no doubt about what I was being asked to do in relation to this man,
perhaps in response to the man’s own prayers, I still did nothing. Had I
consciously stood in the way of God’s work? Was He using the experience to
teach me, knowing that I would take no action? That experience was some five
years ago. Again it’s something that I carry with me and wonder, “What if?”
Sometimes I wish I would take the time to track the man down and ask
him what his prayers and feelings were. Had he been praying for healing? How
was he coping with Parkinson’s disease? What was his relationship with Jesus?
Did he sense anything that day? Was he there that Sunday waiting to come in
contact with a stranger? There are just so many questions that come to my mind;
my heart longs for answers. Whatever the case, it brings me to where I am now,
experiencing a journey of faith that has led to my better but still incomplete
understanding of Christian prayer for healing.
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132

References:
1) Fire the Mission and Save the Guns Combat Motivation of Artillerymen,
Michael T. Carson, http://www.8th-4th-arty.com/survey, 6 May 2002
2) New Bible Dictionary Third edition, I.H. Marshall,A.R. Millard,J.I. Packer
& D.I. Wiseman, Intervarsity Press, Leicester, England2004
3) Healing Through Deliverance, Peter Horrobin, Vol.1 pg. 38-39, Sovereign
World 2003.
4) Something’s On The Boil A Discovery Of Prayer And Healing, Josephus L.
van den Hoek D.C., Trafford, 2004.
5) Broken Dreams, Fulfilled Promises, Carolyn Ros, Kingsway
Communications Ltd., 2006.
6) Spiritual Warfare, Timothy M. Warner, Crossway Books,1991
7) Quiet Talks On Prayer, S.D. Gordon, Fleming H. Revel Company 1904.
8) Quest geeft antwoord, Wondere Wereld, pg. 81, februari 2006
Endnotes:
1
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3195313,00.html
2
http://www.haaretz.com/news/prime-minister-ehud-olmert-s-address-before-congress-1.188571
3
http://www.wnd.com/2005/07/31479/#EDBxv1fcHhg14HTd.99
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