Healing Prayer

God always responds to prayer for healing and that prayer always makes a difference. The difference may not be dramatic or obvious because prayer does not cancel or suspend the particular network of constraints bringing some outcome into being.  Prayer is the means by which a specific action of God works in and through that network to bring some succession of events to a different outcome than would otherwise have been.

 All humanity is the creation of a loving God Who wills everyone to have wholeness and health.  When you petition God for healing, don’t say, “Heal only if it be Your will.”  Instead say, “Please heal because I know it is Your will to repair and restore Your corrupted creation.”  Sickness and brokenness are contrary to the will of God.  At no time is sickness a part of His purpose or plan for any part of His creation.  The primary purpose of prayer for healing is to see God’s will fulfilled in the restoration of wholeness.  But remember, healing is not a “one-time” thing.  Healing is, in reality, a continual meeting of a continual need.  One healing usually leads to the recognition of a need for further healing, either a physical healing or a healing of the heart.  God calls each of us to see healing as a continuing pilgrimage toward wholeness.

Whenever we see hate, ill-will, division, separation, alienation, disease, decay, misery, tragedy, corruption, fear, suffering, iniquity, immorality, wickedness, depravity or unmitigated evil, we know it is the fruit of Satan and those who have joined him.  Whenever we see love, mercy, grace, forgiveness, reconciliation, restoration, joy, health, healing and well being, we know it is the fruit of God and His children.  Satan comes to destroy and kill; God comes to give life.  When a tragedy occurs, many well meaning Christians will say, “I don’t know why God did this; we don’t understand now but someday we will.”  They are really saying, “I don’t know why God was so unfair, so cruel and so unloving but someday we will understand.”  Similarly, many Christians having lifelong afflictions such as blindness or paralysis will not accept prayer for healing; they believe God wants them to be afflicted so he can use them in a more powerful way.  But remember, all humanity is the creation of a loving God Who wills everyone to have wholeness and health.  To think otherwise is to insult God.

The fact that God’s response to healing prayer is not always dramatic and obvious opens the door to familiar Calvinist and pseudo-Christian claptrap:  (1) God orchestrates the tragic death of babies because he needs more little angels in heaven; (2) God causes us to become crippled and maimed to strengthen our spirit, bring us closer to Him, teach us a lesson, give us a new perspective on life and make us stronger witnesses; (3) if God has not answered your prayer for healing, it is because you or those around you are harboring un-confessed sin; (4) if God has not healed you, it is because your faith is weak and (5) God is giving us the disease, suffering and death we deserve; He is self glorified as He watches fear, suffering and hopelessness swallow mankind.