Experiencing God’s Healing: A Journey of Faith
It was in the spring of 1980 that I first experienced God’s healing response to prayer. I had been teaching on healing at our weekly Bible study in the dayroom of the barracks at Charleston AFB. Exploring the miracles of Jesus and the ongoing work of the apostles after His resurrection had convinced me intellectually that healing should be a part of a believer’s life today—but I had never seen it happen firsthand.
We had an outreach ministry on the base called The Crossroads that met on Fridays and Saturdays in the church annex. We called it a coffeehouse ministry, though I don’t recall any coffee being served. Mostly, we sat around and talked, occasionally watching rapture films like A Thief in the Night and A Distant Thunder. But one thing we did consistently was pray. We prayed for each other, for those on the base, and for those out in the world doing what people do on Friday and Saturday nights. One young man even prayed for sports teams—every single one, and every player on the roster. When someone came in with a problem, we’d talk and we’d pray.
I remember her face, though her name escapes me. She asked to talk, so we stepped aside from the general hum of conversation. She needed prayer for a headache. She had attended a few of the Bible study meetings and heard me speak on healing. This wasn’t a joke or a test—she had a real need and truly believed that God could heal her headache. Today, it seems like such a small thing, but at the time, it felt like cannonballing into this new realm of faith. I had no idea what to expect. I silently reviewed the verses on healing that I had memorized and then asked her to raise her hands in gratitude when the headache left.
As I placed my hand on her head, her arms shot up instantly. I tried to correct her, explaining that she was supposed to raise her hands after the headache was gone. She cut me off—the headache was already gone. Just like that. I had just witnessed my first real-life healing.
That was the first of many moments where I saw God move in people’s lives. Through this blog, I want to share my testimony of what God has done and what He is capable of—if we would just ask.
The Power of Prayer and God’s Unchanging Nature
In 2 Chronicles 20, the Bible recounts how the Moabites, Ammonites, and others gathered to attack Jehoshaphat. In response, Jehoshaphat called a fast and gathered the people for prayer. The structure of his prayer is incredibly powerful. He began with “Are you not God in heaven?” (v.6). Then he declared, “Did you not, our God, drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel?” (v.7). Finally, he petitioned, “Will you not execute judgment on them?” (v.20). God responded, and the enemies of Judah turned against each other until they were utterly destroyed.
Are you not… Did you not… Will you not…
The power of Jehoshaphat’s prayer lay in his understanding of God’s nature, His character, and His history of faithfulness. God has not changed. The same Jesus who healed the blind, cleansed the leper, made the lame walk, and raised the dead is alive today—ready and willing to do the same.
I have witnessed so many instances of God’s intervention—from the healing of a blind girl and a man with tuberculosis and AIDS in Zambia to a woman raised from her deathbed in Georgia. These testimonies are not just stories; they are evidence of a living God who still moves in power. May they bring you hope and strengthen your faith.
A Prayer for Healing and Victory
Lord Jesus, are you not the redeemer of my soul and the healer of my body, mind, and spirit? Did you not die on the cross to pay the price for my sins and rise from the dead to give me new life? Did you not bear the stripes that provide for our healing? Did you not send the Holy Spirit to work in and through Your people to bring healing to a broken world?
Will you not, now, touch the lives of those reading these words and heal them? Will you not give them victory over the enemy of their soul and bring them peace?
Our eyes are on You, our Hope and our King. Amen.