Praying for healing will always be challenging. It demands our trust ”“ no matter the outcome.
Without a doubt, there is healing which can be received through prayer.
The problem occurs that not every prayer results in healing. The decision lies in the hands, wisdom, and purposes of our sovereign God.
There are times we pray and God responds with a quick and miraculous healing. Other times, He permits us to go through the guidance of the medical profession, directing through doctors and medicine. It may be a journey which takes time and results in health.
And other times, the answer is not on this side of eternity.
But it is an answer, none the less.
When praying for healing, or other answers from God, I often think of the three Hebrew boys whose faith was tested in the fires of a furnace.
When facing the decision to bow down before the golden image and worship, they refused to do so even though they knew they faced death. Their response was:
“Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”
(Daniel 3:16-18, NASB)
They knew without a shadow of doubt that God is able to deliver, but chose to be faithful to Him even if He should not.
I hope you will join me at Woman to Woman Ministries HERE as we look further at praying for healing and other desperate situations.
Photo by Joshua Lanzarini on Unsplash
Today I am joining … Inspire Me Monday and Remember Me Monday .
This is always such a difficult discussion to have with folks Ms. Joanne. Some, mistakenly believe (in my understanding) that God’s predestination means that He has predetermined when we will die. Does He know? Yes, absolutely. “If our death is predetermined then why pray at all for healing”, a dear friend once asked. I suggested that God’s predestination is the planned journey has had for our life, laid out before we were born. This is where the interplay between predestination and free will becomes cloudy for a great many, including me. Faith, however, tells me that God’s way are much higher than mine and I can accept there are things I shall never know or understand about God in this life. Praying for healing is petitioning God’s will be done, not a bargaining position. Great post ma’am.
J.D., thank you for sharing your thoughts. This is surely one of the deep mysteries of God. May He find us faithful, steadfast in our walk, trusting Him in all things. Not always easy but even then, He will give us all we need to continue our journey with Him until we are one day with Him. Blessings!
Yes, we have to trust in God’s goodness and faithfulness regardless of the outcome. I have a friend whose husband recently died despite the fact that hundreds of people had prayed for his healing. We don’t know why it happened like this. He was far too young to die in human terms but the testimony of my friend and her family has been a beautiful witness to God’s faithfulness even in the midst of sorrow.
There are times we do not understand in the moment. And then sometimes, God in His grace and mercy brings understanding. May God be with your friend and her family as they journey through this loss. May He bring comfort and peace as only He can.
His ways can perplex us, but may we always proclaim that He is sovereign!
Yes, praying we will always be able to say, “Even if He does not …” and be found faithful and trusting Him.
Amen Joanne, thank you for this beautiful truth. Blessings.
~Selah ~