When someone is relieved of something that has crippled them for years, it is a great feeling to see their relief.  Nancy has struggled with Syringomyelia for years.

“Syringomyelia (SM) is a disorder in which a cyst forms within the spinal cord. This cyst expands and elongates over time, destroying the center of the cord. Since the spinal cord connects the brain to the nerves in the extremities, this damage may result in pain, weakness, and stiffness in the back, shoulders, arms or legs. Other symptoms may include headaches and loss of the ability to feel extremes of hot or cold, especially in the hands and disruption in body temperature. SM may also adversely affect sweating, sexual function and bladder and bowel control.”

This disorder has hindered Nancy in every area of her life.  Today, Boe and I visited Nancy at her home in Alpine, California.  She goes to church with Boe, so he is aware of how seriously this disorder has disrupted her life.

Nancy was enthusiastic about having us pray for her, so we got down to business.  Placing my fingers at the base of her skull (where she had been operated on before) we began using the name of Jesus Christ to heal her.

Me:

What did you feel as we were praying?

Nancy:

I felt a comforting warmth….and I DO feel less pain!

Boe:

You feel “less pain.”  I’d like to pray again and bring that pain all the way to zero.

Me:

What motion brings the most pain?  I’d like to do a “before and after” comparison to measure how affective our prayer is.

Nancy:

I feel the most pain if I lift my head to look up.

We prayed a second time.

Me:

Nancy, please test your neck and look up.

Nancy looked straight up.

Nancy:

I don’t feel any pain.

We all got excited!

This is what Boe experienced as we prayed for her today:

When I pray for someone’s healing, I like to lay a hand on them while praying and declaring.  Laying hands on the sick for healing is something the Jesus did (Luke 4:40) and I feel it’s important to follow the Great Physician’s example.   Often I will raise the other hand to take a posture of receiving and openness.  Well, tonight when I did that, I got more than I bargained for.

While praying for Nancy, I laid my right hand on her shoulder as usual and raised my left.  As I raised my left hand, as is my custom, I sensed the Lord reaching out His hand toward me and Him saying “take my hand”.  I reached up higher, and I felt tingling fill both arms and shoulders as if something was flowing through me. It was a powerful, breathtaking sensation that was unexpected, but welcome.  Clearly God was the 4th person in the room blessing us with His presence.

 

Nancy confirmed feeling something like a “chill” go through her during that specific prayer.

Nancy

We decided to do one last prayer.

Nancy:

I felt something in my spine.

 

Exactly how or what God was doing, we don’t know.  All we know is that Nancy’s pain ceased when we used the authority of the name of Jesus.

Also today, I was asked by a friend to go to the home of Kate (not her real name) who had stage 4 colon cancer and stage 4 breast cancer.  The cancer had spread to her bones and the colon cancer had metastasized (spread) to her liver.  Kate told me that she was not expecting to live much longer.

Kate:

The chemo doesn’t work any more, so I stopped it.  The tumors have doubled in size since quitting chemo.

Kate told me that her goal was to stay alive long enough to see her youngest daughter leave for college.  She acknowledged that her children were devastated by what was happening to her.

When I entered the home, I felt welcome, but there was an uncomfortably thick and heavy feeling in the house.

I asked Kate if there was anything else she wanted to tell me.

Kate:

Yes, but I want everyone else to leave the room.

Kate waited until her husband and mother left us alone and made sure the door was shut.  I won’t write what she said, but it was disturbing.  I felt that I was “in over my head” so I asked God to give me the words she needed.

Me:

Kate, I don’t believe I’m here to heal your body.  I believe I’m here to heal your heart.

I began to challenge some of Kate’s assertions and to speak the words of life that God was giving me.  I began praying healing over her heart and mind in the name of Jesus.  Then I began praying healing over her body.

Kate:

I feel less pain.  As you were praying, there was a heavy feeling….like cryptonite moving through my body.

Me:

What do you mean?

Kate:

A heavy feeling like lead.  It was REAL and unexpected!

I am still not quite sure what she meant, but when someone feels something happening to a diseased area AS WE PRAY FOR THEM, I chalk that up to a very good sign!

Kate:

While you were praying, I felt a plasticky taste in my mouth.  I kept burping.  I was trying to keep from throwing up.

I noticed the burping while I was praying, but didn’t think too much about it.  In fact, I didn’t think much about the nausea until I got debriefed by a mentor later this evening.  While I might normally think the nausea was caused by chemo, she had long since stopped treatment.  It is very likely that Kate was manifesting a spirit of infirmity that was being purged as I prayed the name of Jesus Christ over her.  Apparently, this is EXACTLY what happens when an unclean spirit is being purged.

Kate had broken a rib from coughing and the rib was causing pain.  I prayed healing over the rib and she reported “tingling” in the rib.

As we wrapped-up, I noticed a very different atmosphere in that room.  The heaviness was gone…Everything shifted.  As cheesy as it sounds, I noticed a tangible freedom in the air.

Kate said that at the end of two months, her doctors will take another scan of her body.  She committed to keep me informed.  I am expecting recovery.

UPDATE 1/14/11: Calling to the house, I learned that Kate had passed away last month.  I felt a great deal of disappointment.  Why would God not have healed her?  My mentor, Mark Cowpersmith, made it very simple and very clear.

Mark:

You can’t take credit when someone gets healed and you can’t take credit when someone doesn’t get healed.  Your job is to be obedient in praying healing for the person.

I told my friend Amanda that I wished I had been more experienced in healing or maybe at a more mature level of intimacy with God.  She pointed something else out.

Amanda:

God knew exactly how much knowledge and faith you were bringing to that home.  What was supposed to happen happened.