In my early teens, my family underwent some dramatic changes. Not only had my parents split up when I was fourteen, but as a result my mother started taking my sister and I to a charismatic church. Unable to deal with many of the emotional struggles she was faced with, my mother found that many of the strategies she had adopted from a certain denomination was not sufficient to battle her current situation. Crippled with depression, issues of self worth and rejection from my father, my mother went from a tongue lashing church to a tongues speaking church. And, to be honest the experience simultaneously freaked me out and intrigued me. But, not more than a year later, I found my self on my knees, praying the sinner’s prayer and asking Jesus into my heart. If it is true that the Lord works in mysterious ways, well this was one of those moments.

Does He always want to heal?
But, in the midst of this major transition we found ourselves adopting a doctrine that raised some peculiar questions about the issue of healing. I will not name the denomination that my family and I were drawn into for obvious reasons. As well, I would say that the denomination itself does not necessarily subscribe to such an extreme position on healing. Rather, I am convinced that it was merely the particular church we were attending. With that said, up until that point, we had never taken a serious look at the reports of modern accounts of God’s healing touch on His people. We had always assumed that God can heal whenever and to whomever He chose. However, given the importance of the age of revelation (that period when God was writing His Word through individuals-such as the Old and New Testament times), God’s healing activities were common, while nowadays it is not only rare, it is pretty much unheard of. This was the previous understanding we accepted concerning God’s miracles of healing. And, it was one that we, during this time of transition, would reject, embracing another view that was equally as extreme as the prior.

Does He heal at all?
Right about now, I am sure you are asking your self, “well, come out with it. What is it you believed about healing that you have abandoned? And, what is it you believe now?� To make a long story short, at one time I believed that God would heal all the time given the amount of faith one invested in the request. This may seem a bit absurd coming from a committed Christian, but this was what I believed. Of course, it is no less ridiculous to accept this in contrast to the idea that God never heals in this day and age. Unfortunately, I went from a frying pan into a fire, damaging not only my faith in God’s ability to give His children good gifts, but the confidence I had in my own faith.

New Balance
What all of this really boils down to is an issue of balance. Either extreme is not only unhealthy, it is unbiblical. No where in the Bible can I find some strange prophecy revealing an end to God’s limitless grace concerning healing. Nor is there a shred of scriptural evidence that would lead one to conclude that God will always heal provided one believes enough. Sure, we can read in the Gospel where Jesus said if one has the faith of a mustard seed, one can move a mountain. But, is this a recipe for some metaphysical system or is it simply a prescription for living a faith filled life?

God is good
I think that the best attitude one should have about healing is this, always expect it, but do not be disappointed when one is not healed. Remember, in one of his writings, Paul mentioned that three times he prayed for a particular thorn in his fleas to be removed yet God left it there. This reveals a couple of things about healing. One, it is important to anticipate it. And two, realize that all things work together for good for those called according to His purpose. Paul expected God to heal him. That is why he prayed not once, or twice, but three times. However, when he wasn’t healed, he was so sensitive to God’s spirit that he knew it was for some greater good. Why doesn’t God heal all the time? Who knows? We do know, however, that even Lazarus died years after his resurrection. The truth is, one day there will be no need for repairs to our bodies, to our hearts, to our souls. In a broken world, healing seems to have a higher purpose than just a temporary fix to a larger problem. One day, all will be healed. Until then, we must believe God for the best, even when the best is not what we necessarily want.

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