Silas
Beloved of All
We are lifting up your sister in prayer with you as she remains in the ICU, and we are asking the Lord for His healing and for a complete recovery.
We believe strongly that God does heal, and that He heals in many different ways. Sometimes His healing is immediate, with a word or a touch, and sometimes it is gradual, unfolding step by step through the process He has built into the human body. That process itself is from Him, for He is the Creator of our bodies and of all the natural means of restoration. There is only one account in the Gospels where Jesus healed gradually, which reminds us that He is not confined to a single pattern. At times He touched people, at other times He simply spoke, at other times He healed from a distance. In the same way today we do not limit how He may work for your sister, whether through a sudden touch or through the skill of doctors and the slow, steady work of recovery.
At the same time we acknowledge with honesty that there is much about healing we do not understand. If we were in charge we would heal everyone immediately, but God's wisdom is higher than ours. Scripture does not teach that He wills physical healing in every case in this life. The apostle Paul prayed three times for his thorn in the flesh to be removed, and the Lord had another purpose for him. Yet Scripture also gives us strong ground for hope. Matthew applies Isaiah's prophecy, Surely He has borne our sicknesses and carried our infirmities, directly to the physical healings Jesus performed, and the Gospels tell us that Jesus went about healing every sickness and every disease among the people. When He gave His body for us, He bore both our sin and our infirmities, so we can come boldly and ask for physical healing.
We also see in Scripture that healing is often connected with faith that is actively released. There is a general belief that God is able to heal, which we all hold when we see a critical need, and then there is that moment when faith is activated to receive from Him. For many in the Gospels the touching of the hem of His garment became the point where they released that faith, and the power of Christ met them there. In the same way James instructs the church to pray over the sick, anointing with oil and offering the prayer of faith, with the promise that the prayer of faith will save the sick and the Lord will raise them up. The oil or the laying on of hands has no power in itself, but it can be a simple point of contact to help us release our faith to the Lord who alone heals. God also brings healing to the heart and mind and emotions, calming fear and bringing peace even while the body is still fighting, and we pray for that for your sister and for your whole family as well.
So we pray now for your sister. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ we bring this dear one in the ICU before You. You know her body, You formed it, and You know every need she has right now. We ask that You would lay Your hand upon her, rebuke the sickness, and bring healing according to Your mercy and will. Whether by Your immediate power or through the treatments and processes You have ordained, we ask for restoration and for a complete recovery. Give wisdom to the doctors and nurses, give strength and peace to her and to her family, and let Your presence be felt in that hospital room. We trust her into Your loving care, knowing that You are able to do far more than we can ask or imagine, and we rest in Your goodness even as we continue to ask. Amen.
We will continue to keep her in prayer and ask the Lord to comfort and strengthen you as you wait on Him.
We believe strongly that God does heal, and that He heals in many different ways. Sometimes His healing is immediate, with a word or a touch, and sometimes it is gradual, unfolding step by step through the process He has built into the human body. That process itself is from Him, for He is the Creator of our bodies and of all the natural means of restoration. There is only one account in the Gospels where Jesus healed gradually, which reminds us that He is not confined to a single pattern. At times He touched people, at other times He simply spoke, at other times He healed from a distance. In the same way today we do not limit how He may work for your sister, whether through a sudden touch or through the skill of doctors and the slow, steady work of recovery.
At the same time we acknowledge with honesty that there is much about healing we do not understand. If we were in charge we would heal everyone immediately, but God's wisdom is higher than ours. Scripture does not teach that He wills physical healing in every case in this life. The apostle Paul prayed three times for his thorn in the flesh to be removed, and the Lord had another purpose for him. Yet Scripture also gives us strong ground for hope. Matthew applies Isaiah's prophecy, Surely He has borne our sicknesses and carried our infirmities, directly to the physical healings Jesus performed, and the Gospels tell us that Jesus went about healing every sickness and every disease among the people. When He gave His body for us, He bore both our sin and our infirmities, so we can come boldly and ask for physical healing.
We also see in Scripture that healing is often connected with faith that is actively released. There is a general belief that God is able to heal, which we all hold when we see a critical need, and then there is that moment when faith is activated to receive from Him. For many in the Gospels the touching of the hem of His garment became the point where they released that faith, and the power of Christ met them there. In the same way James instructs the church to pray over the sick, anointing with oil and offering the prayer of faith, with the promise that the prayer of faith will save the sick and the Lord will raise them up. The oil or the laying on of hands has no power in itself, but it can be a simple point of contact to help us release our faith to the Lord who alone heals. God also brings healing to the heart and mind and emotions, calming fear and bringing peace even while the body is still fighting, and we pray for that for your sister and for your whole family as well.
So we pray now for your sister. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ we bring this dear one in the ICU before You. You know her body, You formed it, and You know every need she has right now. We ask that You would lay Your hand upon her, rebuke the sickness, and bring healing according to Your mercy and will. Whether by Your immediate power or through the treatments and processes You have ordained, we ask for restoration and for a complete recovery. Give wisdom to the doctors and nurses, give strength and peace to her and to her family, and let Your presence be felt in that hospital room. We trust her into Your loving care, knowing that You are able to do far more than we can ask or imagine, and we rest in Your goodness even as we continue to ask. Amen.
We will continue to keep her in prayer and ask the Lord to comfort and strengthen you as you wait on Him.
