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Posts Tagged ‘healing’

Tabitha, Get Up!

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , , on October 29, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Acts 9:40
Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, “Tabitha, get up.” She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up.

Some say that the person who is sick must have faith in order to receive a healing. But doesn’t this story contradict that idea? Tabitha could not have had anything in mind–she was dead. Well, then, they say, the person praying must have great faith. But there are examples in scripture where a person is healed only by touching the garment of Jesus or one of the disciples.

Let’s face it. Healing is a mystery. And so is death and illness.

Why do some get sick and some not? Why do some die from their illness and some not? We will never know.

It is God who heals and not we, ourselves, no matter how much faith we have. God is sovereign and God chooses. In most cases, healing and resurrection have a longer reach than just a benefit for the person healed or raised from the dead. Either Jesus was building faith in his followers or he was removing the veil from the eyes of the unbelievers that they might see and believe.

There are a few instances when Jesus specifically told the healed person not to tell. My guess would be that these healings were for the witnesses present and would not serve to rouse faith in non-believers. In other words, there was no point in telling because nothing would come out of it.

What does all this mean for me today? I wish I knew. I know in my heart if I could consistently hear God’s voice within, I would know how to pray for those who are sick (emotionally and physically). But, heck, I can’t even hear His voice to find a misplaced book, much less broker health.

Henri Cartier-Bresson, one of my favorite photographers, said that he would hear the word “yes” in his mind whenever he was looking through the viewfinder. And in that moment, he would know that he had captured something meaningful. I believe this “yes” is the same voice for healing.

Lord, as I pray for others, speak your “yes” that I might hear and the sick made well. Give me confidence to pray. And may every healing bring your kingdom closer to our hearts.

I pray again today for Kim G, Vanessa M, Anne W, Sarah W, Rebecca M, Becky T, Jeff B, Chelsea A, John, Janis U, and Lily B.

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Thoughts of my Heart

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , , , on October 25, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Acts 9:22
“…Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you for having such a thought in your heart.” [Peter to Simon, the Sorcerer]

What is going on in the deepest places? I usually think of thoughts as emanating from the mind, but here is a phrase that sends me to an underground level: the thoughts of my heart.

These are the truly secret places, the closed places that are only exposed in times of trial or transparency. These are places that I have kept away from others. These are thoughts I might be ashamed to expose.

Psalm 44:21 says God knows the secrets of the heart. So, why do I bother trying to hide?

Keep me authentic today, Lord. Keep my heart open and let me not fear the opinions of others.

I know there have been times when I have tried to allow my secret self to show, but I am a fairly keen observer of people and when I see someone’s body language recoil from my small truths, I wrap my heart back up again. It takes courage to leave the heart open. It takes courage to reveal the thoughts of the heart.

I think the first revealing must start in private time with God. Unveil there since God already knows, after all. It’s safe. It’s a practice test. It’s a place of healing; here the thoughts can be tenderly trimmed like a small Bonzai; here will be some pain, but the end is far more beautiful. With that exposure can come my own acceptance of who I am… what I really think… what I believe. And then, only then, the courage will come to show my “self” to you and you and you.

What do you see or hear from the thoughts of my heart?

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Even Simon the Sorcerer

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 22, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Acts 8:9-10a, 13a
Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great … Simon himself believed and was baptized [by Philip].

I believe there is power and magic outside the faithful in God, otherwise, why would it be included in scripture so casually? Simon did not just practice “magic tricks” but true sorcery. And yet, this very man, Simon, who already had a great following and could manipulate his environment with personal power, recognized truth in Philip’s message. He recognized power greater than his own.

I think Simon also recognized intent.

The apostles, now leaders in espousing the story of the Christ, the long-awaited Messiah, had one goal: tell … and show… the power of Jesus. They lived Jesus through their love and actions.

Actions that manifest from trust are easy to do. And confidence in those actions comes from security in the knowledge of the source of power. (…Jesus said, “Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me.” Luke 8:46)

Simon had one up on me. Simon knew that miracles could happen every day. Simon knew the world around him was malleable. Simon knew people could be healed, situations transformed, and power tapped. Simon knew all of these things … he knew without doubt.

But still, after 30 years of faith, my doubt corrodes my courage.

It all goes back to intent. Why are we counted among the faithful to labor on His behalf?

Back then, everyone knew there was to be a savior … a messiah. The apostles’ primary message addressed it: the Messiah has come. The kingdom of God has touched the human race through this savior. We can be different.

But does our culture wait for a savior? No. If anything, we are waiting for a judge.

The message of Christ is not just about “eternal salvation.” It’s about change… changing ourselves… changing our world. Touching, healing, loving, speaking, and believing in the power of the Messiah, in the kingdom of God within and without.

“I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” [John 14:12]

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Act of Kindness

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , on October 2, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Acts 4:9a
“…we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed,…” [Peter]

I love this! Peter and John had just brokered a complete healing of a guy who was crippled from birth through faith and the name of Jesus. And how does he reference this miracle: an act of kindness!

It’s a moment of empathy and a desire to make things better. An act of kindness begins within one’s own heart and mind. But we have to “see” the need before we can act, kindly or otherwise.

Many years ago (back in 1993), the pop culture phenomenon spread faster than a virus: random acts of kindness. The simplicity of it made it easy to remember and even accomplish. People everywhere were stepping up to both small and large expressions of kindness. Everyone seemed to know, inherently, what kindness might look like.

The best part of it is the personal nature of those random acts. An act is particularly kind if it comes from a person’s heart. My daughter can ruin an act of kindness in one quick stroke. How? When she demands one of me: “Bring me a surprise from Chicago when you go,” or “Buy me this or that for my birthday,” or “Give me a surprise party.” An act of kindness cannot be demanded (or even suggested for that matter). It becomes something else. When I ask my kids to clean their rooms and they do it (on occasion), that’s not kindness, that’s just cooperation or obedience.

The healing of the crippled man by Peter and John was their first big act of kindness post-resurrection. Jesus didn’t tell them what to do, when to do it, or where. This act came from within. They just knew it was the right moment.

I think it’s time to resurrect conscious acts of kindness, meet a need, broker a healing, show love.

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Really Looking

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , , on September 29, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Acts 3:3-4
When he [the crippled beggar] saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!”

Eye contact. It’s a lost art. But really, it’s one of the most important connections.

When I was in acting school and took stage combat, it was the first thing we learned. One cannot engage in combat without looking, really looking, in the eyes of the opponent. In stage combat, it’s a team effort. The one striking and the one being struck must see each other and agree on the moment.

Last night, at a rehearsal, my stage partner was supposed to give me a kiss. He missed my lips and it landed on my chin… basically because I didn’t look at him, nor he at me. We were not in sync.

I think the great healing that Peter did at the Gate Beautiful outside the temple courts was similar. The cripple was in a begging habit, calling out, asking for help, but without looking at the actual people going in or coming out. He was throwing out his need like buckshot and hoping his plea would somehow land on the heart of someone.

But healings are specific. Peter demanded the man really look at him. I believe the healing happened in that moment. The “get up and walk part” was after the fact. When they really looked at each other, the crippled man’s authentic need was passed to Peter and in exchange, Peter released the power of the Holy Spirit.

Healing love, concern, hope, trust, assurance, and confidence are among the many things that are passed through the eyes. Not that there isn’t power in other connections (like touch), but the eyes are a unique window to the soul.

Today, open my eyes to see Jesus. Today, open my eyes to see need. Today, open my eyes to give of the Spirit.

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Pick Your Last Days

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on September 25, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Acts 2:14, 16b-17
Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say…. this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel [2:28-29]: ‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams….”

When, exactly, are the Last Days? Good luck with that. Theologians and other Christian writers have written volumes about this phenomenon while the Pentecostals and Charismatics have been waving the Last Days banner since the turn of the 19th century. People have been talking about the Last Days for a long time. Is it possible that we’re still in the Last Days? Have the last 2000 years been the Last Days?

In his post-Holy Spirit filling in Acts 2, Peter certainly implied that the Last Days were beginning that day. He saw the outpouring of power and the speaking in tongues (other languages) that day as a sure sign of Joel’s prophecy being fulfilled.

Here are the choices I see: either we are still in the Last Days… or the Last Days haven’t really started yet… or we’re on the other side of the Last Days. Pick your camp!

I think the disciples and newly committed Christ followers in Peter’s time, believed the Last Days were right then and that it was indeed … a matter of days or weeks, at best, before Christ would return and the world would end as they knew it. They lived and died as martyrs because of their commitment to this idea. They lived fully and without compromise.

But, in the same way that Nineveh was spared when Jonah finally did what he was supposed to do, e.g. warn Nineveh’s residents of coming destruction if they didn’t change… so has the world has been spared… for now. We are still here.

But are we paying attention to the Joels and Jonahs of our own age? Are we reading the signs of warning? Are we taking seriously that we may be on borrowed time?

There are still men and women today prophesying… seeing visions… and dreaming dreams. Their words speak of spiritual deserts, economic chaos, environmental collapse, human suffering at the hands of evil, starvation and traumatic illness.

Not everyone can be a prophet or a watchman on the wall, but we can be listeners. We can change our own small world. We can love our neighbor and love our environment. We can pray for change. We can pray for healing.

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Just Say the Word

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , , , on July 23, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Luke 7:7
“Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You. But say the word, and my servant will be healed.”

The centurion who came to Jesus asking for the healing of his servant had total faith and confidence that Jesus was able to do it. What he didn’t know was whether Jesus would choose to do it.

So often, as I pray for the healing for one person or another, I feel like a little girl in a classroom with her hand up, waving and snapping my fingers, “choose me, choose me–heal my friend, heal my daughter.” It’s like I’m trying to convince Him that my request is worthy.

I suppose there is some support in scripture for persistent “whining,” look at the story of the widow and judge [Luke 18:4-5]. But, of course, this judge was not a godly judge. And then there’s the clever Greek mother [Luke 7:24-30] who pleaded for the “crumbs under the table” so that Jesus might choose to heal her daughter.

But even in his own time, Jesus did not heal everyone. Those He did heal were by His choice and His timing and for the glory of the God and the advancement of the kingdom (that is, the building of koinonia… groups of believers who would live as Christ taught).

In modern times, we have doctors and therapists and practitioners who do what they can to encourage the body to heal itself. They provide altering drugs and change the environment in which the disease or pain lives. But, in the end, the healing is still an act of God. We must grow in our confidence and faith that Jesus can and will “say the word” of healing for our loved ones and ourselves. We must carry our faith and hope to the very end. We must wait for His word despite all circumstances.

And when he does not “say the word” and that healing does not come and there is death instead, we can know that we stood firm in our faith and trust and then our acceptance of His silence will come easier. This I believe.

Oh, Lord, just “say the word” today for Lily B, Sarah W, Janis U, Anne W, Linda D, Chelsea A, and Gerda S.

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