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.
Meditations from Zion 