Does God Still Heal Today

The Holy Spirit can ask us to do BIG things! Sometimes these things are outside of our comfort zone and even our understanding (Proverbs 3:5). But when we are obedient to His requests, the world changes, our faith increases, and our relationship with Him gets stronger!

The following story is about all of that and then some.

HOW I WAS ASKED TO HEAL SOMEONE THROUGH PRAYER

Getting my three kids ready to leave each Friday morning for swimming lessons was usually a bit crazy. This Friday morning was no different. Dirty breakfast dishes were all over the counter, bags were packed, snacks were in hand, swimsuits were on, and my youngest was being buckled into her car seat when I heard the sound my phone makes when I get a text. I quickly grabbed my phone and flipped it open (yes, this was a few years back before we caved and got smartphones).

As I read it, I heard a voice in my head that was so clear it was almost audible,

“I want you to heal her.”

Wait, what?!?!

I had to sit down.

My kids, who were once standing by the door, were now wandering back into the living room. I sat there dumbfounded. Could the Holy Spirit really have just asked ME to heal HER, my friend? I had told the Lord that I wanted to be obedient to what He asks me to do but there was only one problem – I did not know how to do THAT. 

So many things began to wander through my mind. I mean, I grew up in a Presbyterian church, went to a Baptist college, and now was attending a Baptist church, so basically my whole frame of reference is from the Evangelical community.

I had been taught that the Lord heals through prayer and that prayer works. But now, the Lord was asking me to do it, like really heal someone through prayer.

Oh, man, what does that even look like? I was excited and nervous all at the same time.

I believe in the Bible. I believe that Jesus performed miracles and He gave His disciples the ability to do everything He did, but could I? I wanted to believe that God heals today, but I had never seen it first hand nor had I known anyone with a supernatural healing story. So this request that the Holy Spirit was placing on me was a foreign concept.

I mean how could I, a stay at home mom, use the power of the Holy Spirit that is flowing through me to miraculously heal someone?

Maybe I heard wrong.

I immediately prayed,

“Lord, If this is really You, and You are asking me to heal her, help me understand what I need to do. You are the best teacher. John 14:2 says, “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” Teach me!

As I backed out of the driveway, I started to think of who I should call on my 20 minute drive. I needed to get out of my own head. I mean, this could be all me, right? And not the voice of God? 

I prayed, “Lord, I really want to talk to someone about this. Please let me connect with a friend that can help me sort this all out.”

I called my sister-in-law, Katherine, and she answered!

I told her what had happened and that I was not sure if I was hearing the voice of the Lord. She sat quietly on the phone listening to my whole story and without a pause she said, “Does this request bring anxiety?”

Without hesitation I said, “No! It brings me great peace and excitement.”

She then went on to affirm me and suggested that I spend some time that afternoon in prayer asking the Lord all of my questions. She graciously prayed for me and we hung up. 

I felt empowered! I felt ready to take on the world! I mean, I had the Living God asking me to impact the world for His glory by healing someone. But, I first had to overcome my BIGGEST hurdle: how does one pray for healing?

On our drive home from swimming lessons, all I could think about was spending some uninterrupted time with the Lord on my knees. But how was I going to do that with three little kids? They are usually clamoring for my attention at all hours of the day. I discovered that it wasn’t hard.

When the Lord is trying to teach you something He ALWAYS provides a way. 

I decided to put on their favorite show in our family room and then headed to the piano bench in our living room. I grabbed my Bible and dropped to my knees and said out loud, “Lord, I am here for help and to listen. If you really want me to heal my friend, teach me how to do it.”

I immediately heard in my head, “Open your Bible,” and that is what I did.

I opened it randomly and my eyes were immediately drawn to,

“I have put my words in your mouth and covered you with the shadow of my hand– I who set the heavens in place, who laid the foundations of the earth, and who say to Zion, ‘You are my people.’”

Isaiah 51:16

I felt very strongly that through this passage God was establishing that He was speaking to me. I felt great comfort knowing the truths stated in this verse, but I was curious why He was highlighting that He would put the words in my mouth and would cover me with His hand? How does that play into this whole healing thing?

I said, “God, thank you for pointing out that you are the creator of the universe, but how does that help me heal someone? I need to know what to say. I need to know how to do it.”

I then heard, “Flip the pages.” With excitement, I grabbed about an inch of the pages and flipped to another section of the Bible. I began scanning the two pages that I landed on in Matthew. On either side of the page were stories of Jesus healing people. 

I said, “Lord, this is great that you are showing me that Jesus healed people, but how do I do it? I am not Jesus. What do I say?”

I heard, “Flip the pages again.” So I did. The next set of pages that I landed on were some of the exact same stories from Matthew, but this time they were in Mark and highlighted in red were the words Jesus used as He healed those people. 

I couldn’t believe it. God was answering ALL of my questions with HIS WORD.

However, I still wasn’t convinced (silly me) that I could use the words that Jesus said in Mark to heal my friend.

I then said to the Lord, “This is wonderful that you are showing me the actual words Jesus used, but I am not Jesus.” 

“Flip the pages again,” was His response. I landed in Mark again it 11:23-24 JUMPED off of the page.

“Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” 

Mark 11:23-24

I was undone. 

Really, Lord? All I have to do is pray and believe? Use you, Jesus, as my example? Is it really that easy?

SILENCE!

How I Processed What He Just Told Me

I Knew in my heart that He was done speaking, but I wasn’t. I began praying out loud asking the Lord to keep this encounter fresh in my mind and to build my confidence and faith to do what He asked.

My final request to the Lord was this…“Lord, I do not think I will be able to tell her about this. I need you to bring her to me.” 

The very next day He did!  

Healing My Friend

We happened to be attending the same get together and right before the main event began she looked at me and said, “Can we talk?” 

I started shaking. “Lord, this is it? If it is, I need your help.”

My friend and I talked, prayed, and cried together for three hours. When it was over we couldn’t believe what had just happened and began to talk and reflect on what we just experienced together. I asked her how she was feeling and she said that for the first time in years she was happy. 

Wait, happy? No!

I wanted to know how she was feeling physically. But no matter how many different ways I asked her about her physical health she kept saying how happy she was and that she couldn’t believe how God spoke to her during our conversation.

She said there were times when she would ask God questions in her head and before she could put the question mark on them I was beginning to answer what she internally asked God. 

God had made the Isaiah passage real. He had “placed the words in my mouth” at just the right time AND He was present. I felt His hand upon me during the whole conversation with my friend.

I was in awe of our prayer time and thankful for what had happened.

But, I went home wondering where the healing was?

He gave me the words to say, but where was the healing? She was still hurting and in physical pain, but she was happy. I wanted answers, so I did what most people do, I went to Google and I began to search for answers.

In the back of my mind I wondered if the Lord had given me the gifts of healing that Friday morning before swimming lessons and so that is where I started.

The gifts of healing is the only gift referred to as plural and all the sites said the same thing; healing can take on many forms. It can be physical, mental, emotional, spiritual and relational. 

My mind was blown. Physical healing is not the only way God heals. This was a HUGE revelation to me. My husband looked at me and said, “Emily, you healed her emotionally.” 

I began to cry quietly in my chair.

I began to thank God for trusting me with this gift, for teaching me through an amazing love encounter, for lighting a fire in my spirit and whetting my appetite for knowledge.

I wanted to learn EVERYTHING I could about these new “Gifts of Healing” the Lord gave me. 

This became the first of many encounters I’ve had with God asking me to heal His children, to take the authority He has given me,

“Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority ….to heal every disease and sickness.”

Matthew 10:1

and to use it to glorify His name and show love to those around me. I look forward to many more.

I Would Love to Hear From You

• Has the Lord ever asked you to do something you were scared to do?
• Have you ever healed anyone through prayer?  

I would love to hear your stories. You can comment in the section below or reach out to me on through the CONTACT page.