In talking about persistence in prayer, the impression can often be given that we are trying to cajole an unwilling God to part with our healing. Nothing could be further away from the truth. If we would fall over ourselves to provide healing to our kids, would God be reticent about healing His own kids? Are we kinder than He? Has He not promised?
Some will say: “Agreed, He is kinder than we are, he has indeed promised. But we still do not see the healing He promised. Why is this?” There are more than a few reasons for our lack of results in the church generally. However, two overarching ones are that many – pastors included-simply don’t believe that God heals today. Thus, much prayer is of the variety: “well, I’ve tried everything else, there’s no hope, so I might as well try prayer.” Sorry, beloved, but this is not faith. We think that God heals because someone is suffering, but the fact is that God mostly heals because someone believes.
We also tend to forget that all healings are against opposition. In Luke 13:16, Jesus said of the woman bowed over for 18 years:
“Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?”.”
The madman of Gadara (Luke 8:26-30) was also healed after stiff resistance by the indwelling demons. We are often put off by resistance but tend to blame God for these disappointments. If you blame God for tragedy, you don’t understand God.
As a church, corporately, we hardly teach or preach healing, we don’t organize for healing, we don’t pay the price. But we turn around and are disappointed when prayers go unanswered. I personally have spent hours on end with seekers who had spent years hearing doctrines that undermined their faith in God doing anything miraculous, not just healing. Some will come seeking healing to argue with you as to why God has no interest in healing them.
I’ve always maintained that unless a pastor taught on healing and the gifts of the Spirit at least a third of the year (complete, detailed teachings, not occasional quips), their church would be unlikely to see much in the way of healings. I really believe this. To reap corn, you must plant it first. We plant one thing, but seek to harvest-another. That’s hard to do. How often are you fed a meal of healing and spiritual gifts at your church?
