….the real question, of course, is not whether God can heal or does heal; it is whether or not God wills to heal all those who truly come to Him 8n faith. In other words, is it always a given that He will say yes to our requests for healing? Is it a sure thing, a slam-dunk that miraculous healing is always His first and best option?
Some assert that very thing and insist that if you aren’t experiencing this healing, it’s only because you lack the necessary faith or perhaps have some hidden sin in your life. Others still insist that, no, miraculous healing belonged to another era, and we ought not to expect or even seek such divine intervention.
Let me state my answer to the real question in just 12 words. It’s not a conclusion I have come to lightly; I have firmly arrived in this place after 40 years of paralysis and decades of working with disabled and suffering people around this world.
Here is what I believe: God reserves the right to heal or not…as He sees fit.
Ah, there are many things that God has revealed—things I do know and understand. But there are many more things that He has not chosen to reveal yet and may not reveal tbis side of heaven. And one of those things is why He sometimes chooses to step in and supernaturally heal one person and not another.
….at the end of the day, it’s not a question of who has the most faith, but what God, in His wisdom, love, and sovereignty chooses to do.
[Should you quit praying for healing? NO!] The gospel of Luke reminds us to pray always and not give up. Jesus Himself urges us to keep on asking, keep on seeking, and keep on knocking. God, in His grace, and compassion, could yet choose to heal. But it will be in His time, and in accordance with His mighty purposes.
[When we pray, we can always pray with] an assurance of the power, love, and wisdom of God. “Those who prayed left the issue of their prayers with the heavenly Father in child-like confidence, repeating prayer for healing until His will was known, and accepting the answer when it came, whatever it was, with submissive and trustful praise.” (Henry Frost, missionary)
My affliction has stretched my hope, made me know Christ better, helped me long for truth, led me to repentance of sin, goaded me to give thanks in times of sorrow, increased my faith, and strengthened my character. Being in this wheelchair has meant knowing Him better, feeling His pleasure every day.
If that doesn’t qualify as a miracle in your book, then–may I say it in all kindness?—I prefer my book to yours.
(Joni Eareckson Tada, “A Place of Healing”)