The Healer

Scripture: 
"and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and pains, those oppressed by demons, epileptics, and paralytics, and he healed them." Matthew 4:24

Study:
Yesterday we looked at, Jesus the Healer.  Jesus' purpose was to save souls and in the process he healed those with various sicknesses. Sickness is a hard thing. Some sicknesses directly effect our physical flesh, some effect our emotional and/or mental state, and others effect our spiritual state of being.  Regardless the sickness or need, God is the answer to all life's problems and needs.

Application:  As my friend, Tom, would say, "the first step to recovery, or healing is to admit we are powerless and in need of God's help." Most of the time, God is our last resort, after we have sought answers from doctors and medicine. We should seek Christ first. 

There are two songs that come to my mind when I am at my weakest moment. "In the Presence of Jehovah," leads me into God's presence. I can find that just being in God's presence brings healing to my spirit. 

In The Presence of Jehovah: 



Sometimes we just need to acknowledge and claim God as "The Healer." Knowing that God is faithful to meet our needs brings a sense of peace to my soul.  

The Healer by Hillsong: 

Whatever your need, God is waiting to heal you. Trust him to perform a miracle in you. Allow him to be your healer and then give Him the glory. Do you have songs that comfort you in your times of greatest need?

Prayer:
Dear Father, help me to recognize you as the Great Healer and allow you the freedom to complete His work in me. Thank you for strength for today and hope for tomorrow. In Jesus name I pray, Amen. 

And He Healed Them

Scripture: 

And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people. So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and pains, those oppressed by demons, epileptics, and paralytics, and he healed them. And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan. Matthew 4:23-25

Study:

There was only one temple in Jerusalem. However, communities that had ten or more men (families) built synagogues for the purpose of worship. They were also used during the week as schools. The law (Old Testament) was read, prayers were offered and then any man could expound upon the Scriptures. Often visiting rabbis, and Jesus, would be invited to teach.

Jesus developed a ministry that revealed His purpose for being here. Even though He (Jesus) was the object of our faith, He always pointed others to God's kingdom, and that God is with us and cares for us. Jesus...

•                Preached the good news, the Kingdom Way of life, that was available to everyone who would hear Him and receive Him. 

•                Taught the Truth of a new of life that includes freedom, hope, and peace from within and that would bring unity among the people.

•                 Healed individuals of their spiritual and physical sicknesses giving them eternal Life.

As a result of Jesus ministry people came from a long distance to hear and learn about Him, and experience his miracles of healing. 

Application: 

Do we fully grasp the truth that"Jesus Heals"? We know all about him and we believe he healed others but do we have faith that He can heal us of our own sickness and problems? 

The truth is, healing is the underlying theme of God's plan and purpose for sending Jesus into this world, into our lives, to make right all that is wrong. We pray for physical healing but that is only part of us. He wants to restore both our physical and spiritual body. This healing brings life in it's fullness back to us. It restores our relationship to God and with others. To obtain this healing requires us to go the distance to experience him and yet many choose to stay in their state of sickness, brokenness, and hurt. Jesus want to heal us but it requires us to hear Him, to receive His physical and spiritual healing, and be willing to live the life He has called us to live.  

As we accept Jesus' way to a new life we will want to follow Jesus example; minister to the physical and spiritual needs of others, share the gospel of Jesus with them, and mentor and disciple them in their walk.

Prayer: 

Dear Father, continue to heal me physically and spiritually. As I walk this journey lead me to others that I may show them your way.  In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Is Healing a Choice? Why Pray?

Is healing a choice? Why are some healed and some not? With this said, I know that I am opening a hornets nest, but I must ask these questions anyway. Almost weekly, someone will come to me and ask me to pray for them. God promised us that where there are two or more together we can ask in his name and he hears our prayers. I was wrestling with this last night as a friend of mine and I prayed for an infection that she had. 

I do not know the result however, I got up and unknowingly my scripture for today was from Jeremiah read..."Your wound is incurable your injury beyond healing....I have struck you as an enemy would and punished you as would the cruel, because your guilt is so great and your sin so many......Why do you cry out over your wound, your pain has no cure? Because of your great guilt and many sins I have done these things to you. 

In 2 Chronicles we are told, "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

I had an experience once that I had blogged about where God healed my foot. So I led this friend to pray for her healing. You know as we prayed we prayed that God would reveal any sin that we had not confessed and we prayed that there would be nothing in our lives to keep Him from healing her. 

Did God heal her? Was sin the reason she had this sickness? We were told in the Bible that not all sickness is a result of one's sin. However, in Israel's case God was telling them to stop their groaning and seek the Great Physician. Like Israel we lament over our sickness and yet there is nothing the medical world can do. God can cure the disease of sin, but we must let him do it. From all testimonies of the past and present we know that sickness and disease have made us aware of the consequences of our sin. We do know that sin is terminal and surely if we do not deal with sin, we will surely die both physically and spiritually.

Do you wrestle with this question? What is your take on sickness, suffering, and healing? If we do not believe in healing then why do we pray? Would love to hear from you.  

Sprained Ankle, Ibuprofen, and Prayer

This week Joey and I visited Matthew and Alyson. On Thursday morning I went bouncing down the sidewalk to the car to take care of some business and turned my foot. After loosing my shoe and stumbling across the walk, I grabbed my shoe, put it back on, finished the task and went back inside, as if nothing had happened, and hoping that no one had seen my clumsy endeavor. Ever done that before?

We started our day by making a stop at Starbucks for coffee and a muffin. I began to feel a little uncomfortable about the foot. I should have at least changed from my clog heels into my New Balance walkers, but then they wouldn't have looked as sleek with my jean outfit. My foot hurt bad, but I thought, "Ain't no sprained ankle gonna rob me of FUN in NASHVILLE with my son, so I didn't tell anyone what happened, not right then anyway.

Then we rode around East Nashville for a couple of hours looking at property. Matthew spotted a little fish restaurant, Batter'd & Fried Boston Seafood, that he wanted us to try. He parked and I jumped out. WHOoooAh, I could hardly put my weight on my foot and as I got out of the car there was no hiding the fact, I could hardly stand, much less walk. Matthew, said, "What is wrong with you?" I told them, and that is when I got the short lecture from hubby and son as to why old ladies do not wear clog heels. I like heels with jeans, rather,I did like heels and jeans. I must have looked like a drunken sailor hobbling along. I managed to get into the restaurant and sat down as soon as I could. Whew, I made it. Some relief.

After eating, I stood to walk. That didn't work. I had to take the shoes off, rules or no rules (so glad I wore slack socks that day, almost didn't), and I hobbled to the door, barely making it to the end of the sidewalk. Matthew drove the car up and I got in as quickly as a crippled woman could. By then, I wasn't sure if I had a sprain or fracture,so we made a quick trip to the pharmacy for an ice pack, Ibuprofen, and wrap. I elevated my leg and began to assess the damage.

I was in pain, and was not sure if I had broken the foot, but not enough to sit the afternoon in the emergency room at a hospital in Tennessee. I lay down, elevated the leg and foot with the ice pack, covered my head, and shut my eyes, just to rest a little while. It came to me. I had seen a video clip just recently that showed a woman at Jesus feet, touching his garment. Immediately, I began to cry. Matthew, said, "Are you crying mama?" I thought if I could just touch his garment, my foot would be healed. In my heart, I prayed. Then James 5:14 came to my mind and it was as clear as the sky, Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over ... . Matthew and Joey were to have a part in my healing. This foot thing was bigger than just me. Matthew and Joey were to be instruments of my healing.

But just as quickly as these thoughts passed through my mind, doubt crept in. Another voice said, "You are not going to ask Matthew and Joey to actually pray for your foot are you? How stupid, a foot? Matthew will laugh at you. Of all the things you need to be praying for...a foot???"
Have you ever heard the voice of doubt and disbelief?

I knew that I must quiten that voice so I quickly said to Matthew, "When you have a minute I want you to do something for me." He said, "What?" I said, "I want you and your daddy to pray for my foot to be healed." He did laugh but not in a sarcastic way. It was like he was saying, "Mama, I expected you to do something like this." I immediately felt a sense of calm about my body. Shortly, he and Joey came over and laid their hands on me and prayed for my foot.

We needed to go pick Alyson up from a meeting. So, I got up and started to walk. It was better, ok, it was well, so why was I was still being careful. Matthew was kidding me but he was really speaking truth into my life, when he said, "Walk like you are healed, not like one of little faith." I did, the pain was gone, and I could stand on my foot.

I have prayed for individuals all my life. I expected healing in their lives and healing occured. So why am I still amazed at my foot being healed? Why would a believer not believe that God can heal today? I almost did not ask them to pray for me. What if I had not asked them to pray for me? Do we actually believe in the healing power of Jesus? Do we fail to see individuals healed because we fear asking God to do it? As I reflect on my experience just now, I have asked God to forgive me for my doubt. I thank him for the healing and that he allowed Matthew and Joey to experience it with me. I do serve my God who is also the Healer and Great Physician.

I love the song, One Touch, by Nicole Mullen. We must reach out to Jesus if we want him to work in our life. I hope you will let the message speak into your life.

Are you in need of healing? Jesus can heal you of anything that you are in need to be healed from. Will you reach out and touch God today and allow him to heal you? God heals. Share your story.

How Important is What You Believe?

Where has life taken you? Are you hopeful? Is your life reduced to chance or do you believe that there is a God of the universe that can orchestrate everything about your life? A person's belief paradigm is the core of what and who they are, and how they live their life. It governs their thoughts, words, and actions. Regardless the circumstance or situation we do not have to live as one without hope.

You see, there was a time in my life that that I believed in Jesus died for me. I believed the truths about Him and the miracles he was able to perform in peoples lives, but I did not trust him to orchestrate my life. I was one of those Christians that prayed with one knee on the ground in submission but kept the other one up holding onto my independence. You know that kind. 

In October of 2007 I was born again and baptized signifying my death to self (flesh) and rebirth in the Spirit. God changed my thinking about everything. I accepted the truth that we live in the world but we do not have to be of the world. My paradigm now was based on God's word, not the world's or my own.   This video clip demonstrates a paradigm change, how one surrenders their born nature and accepts a new spirit, a new set if ideas, a new way of thinking.  It defies what man would say is the impossible.

Is this really possible... to undergo a paradigm change,  to defy the sin nature within us, thereby allowing God to work in and through us daily? Yes, however, we cannot do it within ourselves. Regardless the situation or circumstances there is an order to how God works in our lives. Ervin Padgett, a saint, now in heaven, understood this so well and quoted 2 Chronicles 7:14 at every opportunity that he had. I can hear him now, "If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, I will heal their land." According to this scripture if we humble ourselves to our Maker, Savior, and Lord he will work in our lives to orchestrate his will for our lives, he will heal our land. Christian the Lion had to surrender his will to the will of his owners and in doing so defied his natural instincts and thus had a loving relationship with his owners.

Wicked ways? Oops did I say that? We do not want to use or accept that we all have junk in our lives, things that are wicked, against ourself, others, and God, but we do. According to this scripture in order for our Maker, Savior, and Lord to work in our lives there are some conditions that need to be met. 1) humble yourself, Surrender. 2) Ask for forgiveness from God first, and the hard part, to forgive others. 3) Seek God's face first and foremost in your life. Read, study, and meditate on his Word 4) Turn from your ways and practice His Ways. Then, God will heal your land. 

What seems impossible to you? (health, hope, love, job, children, restored relationships, guilt free life, etc. ) Luke 18:27 tells us that "What is impossible with man is possible with God." God loves us, he is our true friend. The song writer summed it up when he scripted the words, "What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and grieves bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer." Surrender your life to Christ and let him Heal your land.

Is Jesus such a friend that you can cast your cares upon Him? Share your story.