Prayer for Healing

Prayer for Healing

To God be the Glory!

If you know you are in need of healing - know also that the Lord understands your situation better than you do yourself, and that He regards you with unfailing compassion. As you approach Him in faith, He will be with you to meet your needs every step of the way. You are not alone in what you are going through, and whether your healing needs are physical, mental, emotional or spiritual, trust that Jesus cares for you and be resolved to give Him all the glory for the good that will follow in your life. Truly, God loves you! He cares for you. Believe it. - Believe the Gospel.

"Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes;

lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart,

and return and be healed"

(Acts 28:27; Isa.6:10).

The Lord heals spiritually when people believe His Word and are converted, as indicated by the New Testament examples, and in the above verse. For this to happen, eyes and ears need to be open to the true Gospel. The mind also must be open to understanding - not closed. This is a work of the Holy Spirit, enabling us to understand the truth of the Scriptures as we yield to God and receive the healing of our spirit (1 Cor.2:12-14). Likewise, active faith in the Gospel of Jesus Christ can accompany the healing of the physical body also (see, for example, Acts 14:8-10) - either directly, or indirectly through the powerful witness that healing has on others who see or hear (see Acts 9:40-42).

Many Christians realize that they need to be healed spiritually - feeling as though the river of God's Spirit has become silted up. Over the years, in the Church, a lot of sand has accumulated in the form of man-made doctrines and traditions, impeding the flow of the Spirit and obscuring the foundational truth of Christ and the apostles. We have all been affected by the erosion of original Christian teachings. However, out of loyalty or fear, we may not have felt encouraged to question what we have received. Nevertheless, we should test all doctrine by what is written in the Bible, out of loyalty to God. If we have formed wrong opinions, attitudes or beliefs, then we should have the honesty and integrity to confess this before God. That is how we can be healed. God wants us to be open to change - to be more like Jesus Christ as the Holy Spirit leads. We have to be willing to be led of God.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is not a dry academic discourse, "...it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes" (Rom.1:16). May God's anointing and blessings be upon you!

In Jesus' name,

"... and the Lord confirmed the Word with accompanying signs"

(Mark 16:20).

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Healing of the Mind

Casting out the Evil

For our own spiritual healing, we have to confront the evil within, admit to it, expose it and be rid of it. We need deliverance from evil, satanic oppression and influence. We need to have cast out of our lives all evil tendencies and desires that consent to evil. We need to fully co-operate with the Holy Spirit if we want to be healed. God is not going to force us into complying with His will. We have to do more than just let go of evil desires and passions. It takes more than an act of will that refuses to follow evil desires that are felt within. We have to do more than suppress those tendencies. We have to seek to be entirely set free of them. We need to regard all evil desires and passions with godly hatred.

If we truly want to be healed, then we must truly hate what God hates. Evil passions can be suppressed, pushed down deep inside, but not removed. On the surface, we can appear to be living the good life. Outwardly, we can give the impression that we are truly disciples of God, while inwardly there lurks roots of opposition that consent to ungodliness. With the mind, as Paul said, we can consent to the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin (Rom.6:22-23). This is how we can be. The apostle Paul admitted to the raging battle that he had had to face within His life. He was held captive by fleshly passions of sin until he met His deliverer - Jesus Christ (Rom.6:23-24).

As God's children, we must be yielding to the Holy Spirit of God: "For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God" (Rom.8:13-14). If we are led of the Spirit, then we will be overcoming all tendencies to ungodliness, growing in the knowledge of God to have the mind of Christ. Why are Christians so troubled by sin? It is because root desires to follow evil are still present. The Lordship of Jesus Christ has not been fully accepted. There are pockets of resistance to the will of God - not complete surrender. It feels good to the flesh and also to the mind to occasionally follow the path of unrighteousness. We have not grown in the Spirit sufficiently to hate all that God hates. Some wrong tendencies still seem desirable. The Lord said we should pray, "Deliver us from the evil one" (Matt.6:13). This means that we should pray to be completely released from all captivity to sin and Satan - not just partially so. We need to be earnestly seeking full spiritual healing. But first, we have to admit to being spiritually sick. We have to confess to having the desire for evil. Now, we have to acquire the godly hatred for that wrong desire by listening to the Spirit. Tendencies to violence, bitterness, evil speaking and sexual immorality can be overcome - not just suppressed. The way to being healed is confession and openness to God's leading. - He will give you the knowledge and understanding to help you view this sin as He does. Sexual immorality, for example, may seem good to the mind that does not consider the full consequences. However, the marriage bond is weakened by every adulterous thought and act of extra-marital sex. Pornography may seem harmless, but the use of it can break down and wreck a marriage, causing the husband to have less regard for the wife. The girls who are drawn into it are made victims of abuse and immorality, doing themselves and others untold mental harm.

Society, today, is led of the flesh. Pre-marital sex is accepted as normal. For a youth to refrain from having sex is thought of by many as abnormal. By contrast, abortion and divorce have become acceptable. Children learn wrong values and become emotionally scarred as a result of broken homes. Loose morality inevitably leads to a loosening of the marriage ties. The very thought to indulge in anything immoral should be hated with perfect hatred. It should seem to us as an abomination - not as something minor. "Those who love the Lord hate evil" (Ps.97:10).

There is a difference between hating the evil and hating the perpetrators of the evil. Bitterness of mind is often born out of past suffering. It harbours the desire to hurt and take revenge on the ones who have caused the pain. Justice under national law often seems inadequate and misapplied. However, one should also have the faith to know that ultimately the wicked will face the wrath of God. Entrust your grievance to the Almighty and these roots of bitterness will not bind you. Allow His love the chance to grow and spread healing in your heart.

Only by learning of the Holy Spirit to hate what God hates can we be truly healed in our spirit.

"Hate what is evil, cling to what is good"

(Rom.12:9)

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The Final Battle

In Christ, we have victory over sin and the devil.

Jesus has already achieved this victory for us, having overcome the powers of this world to provide the perfect offering of His life to God for our sakes. He is the One through whom we receive the power of the Holy Spirit for the pulling down of every stronghold of opposition to His will, as we walk with Him in faith (2 Cor.10:4-5). However, at the present time, because of sin, it might not seem that we have any victory at all. -An old sin resurfaces and you feel depressed that you once again failed to do the righteous act. You may not even feel that you are "in Christ". You are conscious of having asked forgiveness for this sin many times before. "Where is the victory and the power?" you might ask. "My words of repentance seem hollow - without substance, because they have been uttered numerous times before." Now, if you are thinking this way - rejoice! You are at last treading on the path of true repentance by being honest before God. You are not trying to quickly sweep away the rubbish under the carpet with a short, repetitive, meaningless prayer. You are starting to take your sins more seriously - as God does. He doesn't want you to stagnate in your walk of faith, or to collapse into a wallow of self-pity because of your failures. He wants you to grow in His knowledge and grace.

Natural bodily passions are good and God-given, but they need to be harnessed to conform to God's will and purpose. All that is contrary to the will of the Spirit is to be hated as evil. When such passions are applied in a godly context, the result is a wholesome relationship. When these are expressed in ungodliness, the ultimate result can be harmful in the extreme - and, without repentance, the end is death. "Flee the evil desires of youth," Paul admonished Timothy, "and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart" (2 Tim.2:22). Again, to the Corinthians, Paul exhorted, "Flee from sexual immorality" (1 Cor.6:18). One recalls the fleeing of Joseph from the wife of his Egyptian master, Potiphar (Gen.39:12), in order to avoid adultery and unfaithfulness. The Corinthians were also admonished to flee from idolatry - the giving to objects a form of worship, love and reverence that is God's due. We can place all kinds of 'idols' before our love for God - ambitions, status, lusts, family, people, work, treasures, possessions. Letting go of one's idols will set one free to worship God in Spirit and in truth (John 4:23-24): "God is spirit, and His worshippers must worship Him in Spirit and in truth." Our repentance needs to be truthful. Likewise our love: "Those who love the Lord hate evil" (Ps.97:10).

In the Old Testament, we can read that the people of God were given strict food laws and were taught to discern between clean and unclean meats. The Lord did not expect the Israelites to receive all food with thanksgiving. The eating of unclean foods was to be regarded as an abomination. - How much more the eating of the unclean foods with which we can feed our minds? "Anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart," Jesus said (Mat.5:18). The media of television and radio, the Internet, newspapers, magazines, books and advertising need to be treated with discernment. Much is spiritually harmful and should be regarded as an abomination. There are spiritual food laws - not all that is available is good to eat and consume with our eyes and minds. We will be tempted because we have natural desires, but we need to regard all temptations to sin with revulsion. Apply discernment. Hate what God hates. Learn to choose between what is wholesome and what is corrupting. Do not consent to evil practises or call evil good. The Bible defines what is morally wrong. Repent with godly sorrow for having bathed in impurity (2 Cor.7:10). Refuse to drink from the cup of Babylon (Rev.17:4-5) - enticing though it may be.

Once having truly repented of a sin, you are no longer the same person you were before. You have moved on in your pilgrimage with God and will be blessed with greater spiritual strength. Remember, "in Christ Jesus" there is no condemnation (Rom.8:1). "Walk in the Spirit, and you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh" (Gal.5:16). - The Holy Spirit will gently lead and nurture us as we grow in Christ and learn to let go of our own personal idols. The final battle that we face in our war over sin is not against sin, but against God. This is the battle of the old self against the leading of the Holy Spirit. The battle will rage only so far as we cling on to our idols and resist the Holy Spirit's pull upon our lives. Realize that sin is in opposition to God. Yield and surrender to God in every way. Allow the Holy Spirit to take command. Stop resisting. Let the Kingdom of God be established truly and completely in your life. Call Jesus "Lord" in Spirit and in truth. Relax and rejoice in the company and presence of God. Cast away your idols, repent of sins. Humble yourself in the sight of God and He will lift you up. Resist the devil, flee from sin and the devil will flee from you (James 4:7). Surrender all to God.

"Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up"

(James 4:10)

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Do you have God's firewall against sin?

If you know that you have received the gift of the Holy Spirit as your personal Comforter and Guide, know also that He provides for each one of us a personal firewall against sin. He will alert us to current dangers and attacks of the enemy. He will prompt us to act in a certain way to avoid threats to our system. He will warn us against lowering our shield of defense and taking actions that leave us open to harm. He will work silently and unseen to protect us when we are asleep. However, for our own personal firewall against sin to stay operative, we must not close down the communication link. WE MUST remain attentive and listening. The Holy Spirit speaks into the conscience that we may act to allay problems and difficulties that can arise from sin or temptations to sin. Are we listening?

It only takes a tiny root of sin to become established in our thoughts - just a tiny seed of sin to germinate - for it to corrupt, grow and cause havoc with our spiritual - and sometimes physical - condition: "Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: looking diligently lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled; lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright" (Heb.12:14-16). These roots of bitterness - these seeds of sin - need to be rejected and eliminated as soon as they are recognized for what they are. For, if we do not heed the warning of the conscience, that root will take a firm hold in the mind and bring us down. However, if this has happened to you, don't despair. There is a way out. Sincere and godly sorrow for having allowed the sin to take root in the first place will lead, by God's grace and mercy, to repentance and restoration. From the sorrow of repentance will come the joy of knowing that you are forgiven and brought back into God's peace and favour. We have the promise that He will lift us up (James 4:10) when we truly repent. Do not give up with a prayer of repentance until you experience the joy of God's forgiveness and acceptance. When forgiven, it is like starting again with a clean slate and you will be changed, different and spiritually wiser as a result.

These attacks against the mind - temptations to sin - need to be dealt with at the 'port' stage - to use the computer analogy - to shut out all that can lead one astray. To do this, we must prayerfully keep open the channels of communication with God. This means: reading the Bible on a regular basis; learning what pleases and what grieves the Holy Spirit; learning to hate what God hates and to love what God loves. - Allow the ministry of Christian music and song to refresh your spirit. Jesus sang psalms (Matt. 26:30) and so should we. A consciousness of His presence should be with us through every waking moment. Each day, our aim should be to emulate the prophet Enoch, of whom it is simply written: "Enoch walked with God" (Gen.5:22).

As we grow in faith, so we must learn to maintain more and more the kind of prayerful attitude that will ensure that our firewall is never shut down - that we may be always protected with the full armour of God. The demonic forces of evil will attack us in our areas and moments of weakness, when we are perhaps tired and vulnerable. For example, taking alcohol can have a numbing effect on our moral sensitivities, causing us to feel less caring about our responsibilities - especially when our eyes are ready to close. Relaxing in front of the tv and watching a movie might seem a good idea - but television is a medium the devil uses to great effect. When feeling extremely tired, instead of forcing our eyes to stay open by watching the box - we should just follow the prompting of the Holy Spirit and our body's own desire for rest and go to bed. - Allow the Holy Spirit to minister to you in your meditations as you prepare for sleep. Let the Holy Spirit minister to you also as you awake. Start each day with God's wonderful ministry of grace. In God's presence you will have no need to worry, but remember to wear your armour at all times - don't ever think to take it off, for the adversary is at the gate.

Keep in mind, as far as possible, the fact that your usefulness in God's service depends upon your obedience. Shore up your defenses. Don't let down your shield. Stay faithful; and the Almighty will place a wall of fire between you and the enemy. Learn to walk with God.

"Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes"

(Eph.6:11).

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'Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen '

(2 Pet.3v18)

* HOPE & PRAY YOU WERE BLESSED *