Monday, February 9, 2026

Trusting in God for Healing

Devotional-Anchor, Healing, M. FountaineNo comments

February 9, 2026

By M. Fontaine

Audio length: 11:35
Download Audio (10.6MB)

For the longest time I tried to figure out the how-tos of divine healing. I had wanted to be able to boil everything down into a step-by-step, one-two-three healing formula so I could say, “If you need God’s supernatural healing, all you have to do is follow these steps.” But I finally reached the conclusion that it doesn’t work that way.

If two people followed the same steps, one might be healed and the other might not. The more I studied various cases, the more I saw that each situation was different. The Lord seemed to handle each individual differently and tailored their healing to their particular needs and His will and work in their lives. Every person is unique, and the Lord works differently in each of our lives—not only in the matter of healing, but also in our circumstances, the lessons He teaches us, the tests and trials of our faith that we endure, and the blessings He gives us.

Trying to give universal counsel on how to get healed is just not possible, because the Lord doesn’t follow a set pattern. That is why, if you read many accounts of people’s healing, they can be very different. In some cases, the Lord miraculously heals someone through His divine intervention, while in other cases He requires us to do our part, through changes in our lifestyle, diet and exercise, or through natural remedies. In other cases, God works through medical interventions, including doctors, medication, surgery, physiotherapy and other treatments.

When we realize that the Lord works differently in each of our lives, we can better understand why in some cases He heals and in other cases He doesn’t—at least not right away. If we can grasp this, it will help us to put our trust fully in Him and His work in our lives and to not fall into condemnation or discouragement if our prayers for healing don’t result in our immediate healing from whatever is ailing us.

When we understand that God doesn’t always heal every affliction of every Christian in this life, it also helps us to have compassion on those who are suffering long-term afflictions. He is the God of all comfort who loves His children unconditionally as this beautiful passage from the Apostle Paul expresses:

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too” (2 Corinthians 1:3–5).

One Bible translation of this says that “God will shower us with his comfort through Christ” (NLT). What a beautiful picture to bear in mind when we are suffering any affliction or time of trouble!

Divine wisdom at work

It is important to bear in mind when pondering God’s healing that each of us is a complex physical and spiritual being. The Lord has bestowed on each of us different abilities, physical and spiritual attributes, and strengths and weaknesses. No two of us are alike. The Lord, our Maker, knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows everything about us—our every thought, our every weakness, our every joy, our every need. He knows exactly how to teach us the lessons He wants us to learn. He knows what tests and trials we need to endure to make us into what He wants us to be, and He measures these things out to us in the exact portion that He knows we need—never too much and never too little—and so it is with our afflictions and our healing.

Two people could have precisely the same affliction, they could both pray to be healed, and one could get healed immediately and the other could continue to be afflicted for years. Does this mean that the one who gets healed immediately is stronger spiritually or closer to the Lord than the other? Not necessarily.

The reasons the Lord allowed these two people to be afflicted in the first place may have been completely different. If His reasons for allowing the affliction are different, then His reasons for healing or not healing are different as well. Whatever the case, afflictions can be blessings in disguise because they have the potential to bring about spiritual growth and blessings in our lives.

Faith in times of affliction

Faith comes—and it grows—from hearing the Word of God (Romans 10:17). When we walk in faith, we know by His Word that the Lord is sovereign over our lives. We trust that the Lord has a plan and design for our lives, whatever that may be. Whatever we face is meant to draw us closer to God, and He has promised us that nothing in all creation can separate us from His love (Romans 8:38–39).

Those who suffer long-term illnesses or injuries have to keep the faith even when they aren’t healed. When the affliction persists month after month, they have to hold on and trust the Lord to either heal them eventually, or to give them the grace to continue to bear the affliction and grow and learn through it. They have to seek, find, and accept the Romans 8:28—“all things work together for good to those who love God”—in their situation. In each and every case, when they trust the Lord and hang on and don’t give up, it bears good fruit in their lives through the lessons they learn.

Who really has the most faith?—The person who is instantly healed of an affliction, or someone who has to bear that affliction and still carries on loving and trusting the Lord even though they may not understand why they haven’t been healed? They both have faith, but the one who has had to suffer long-term affliction has had to have enduring faith—not necessarily for healing, but faith to trust the Lord day by day to take care of them and bring them through.

In God’s time

If the Lord hasn’t healed you in answer to your prayers, or your infirmity is a long-term one or He’s made you that way from birth, should you feel condemned or discouraged? No, because whether you are healed or not, you are God’s beloved child and “there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). Whenever we are tempted to fall under condemnation or discouragement, we can remind ourselves of the truths in this passage:

He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us (Romans 8:32–34).

He wants to give you faith to endure the trials and tribulations you may face in this life—faith to praise and thank Him in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18), and faith to be a good testimony to others in your affliction. Then, when He’s ready to heal you, “the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up” (James 5:15).

If you’re doing your part, praying, trusting the Lord, and walking by faith and the Lord doesn’t choose to heal you, you shouldn’t feel condemned. Perhaps it’s not yet the Lord’s time to heal you because there are things He wants to teach you first or He is working in some way in your life through the illness. Or perhaps He wants to use you as an example of someone who perseveres in faith through the difficult times, because He knows that will help and encourage others. Whatever the case, faith means trusting in the Lord for your situation, trusting that He knows best, whether you get healed or not in this life.

Personal comfort in times of illness

One thing that can make your physical afflictions easier to bear is knowing that you can bring your every burden and care to the Lord and receive His love and encouragement. The Bible says to “give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you” (1 Peter 5:7). You can pour out your heart to the Lord in prayer and receive His help in your time of need, and His Spirit will pour out His comfort. He tells us to “call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me” (Psalm 50:15).

He can guide you in your time of affliction and help you to discern what He wants you to do about it, and how to go about receiving healing, whether through His supernatural healing, making lifestyle changes or seeking out medical assistance. He will guide you through His Word in the Bible, as well as through counseling with others and seeking His wisdom. “In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:6).

Take your heartaches, burdens, and questions to Him. He said to “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). He wants to lighten your burdens and make your afflictions easier to bear (Psalm 55:22). He loves you and He will never suffer you to be tempted beyond what you are able to bear, but will always make a way to escape (1 Corinthians 10:13). That way of escape often comes through His personal words of comfort and love and encouragement that will lift you over the storm and bring you to the light of a brighter day.

Let Jesus bear your burdens, ease your pain, and lighten your load as He has promised to.

Originally published March 2004. Adapted and republished February 2026. Read by Debra Lee.

Praying to the God of the Bible

HealingNo comments

God’s Divine Healing, Part 3: When God Doesn’t Heal

Bible Studies, Healing, Peter AmsterdamNo comments

By Peter Amsterdam

Audio length: 14:39
Download Audio (13.4MB)

While those involved in healing ministries tend to agree on many fundamental points, one point on which there is some divergence is their interpretation of why God does or doesn’t heal each person who is prayed for. The healing evangelists and theologians whose material my wife and I studied on the topic of healing—with the exception of Curry Blake—all believe that while God does heal, one should not expect that every time you pray for people they will be healed, whether instantly or in this life.

Various theologians and healing evangelists whose work I studied believe that God miraculously heals, but that He doesn’t heal every time or in every case. There are times when He chooses not to heal for reasons that are His. In this view, God is sovereign, and He has His reasons for what He does and what He allows, and those reasons are often beyond our comprehension.

In the Bible, we read of cases where disciples with the gift of healing were empowered by the Holy Spirit to heal a specific illness or disease. However, the Bible doesn’t state that everyone they prayed for was healed. For example, we read in the book of Acts that “God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them” (Acts 19:11–12). However, we also read of cases where he apparently wasn’t able to heal, such as Timothy’s “stomach and frequent illnesses” (1 Timothy 5:23) or Epaphroditus, who was suffering from a life-threatening sickness (Philippians 2:26–27), or Trophimus, whom he left at Miletus because of his illness (2 Timothy 4:20).

On this topic, John and Sonja Decker wrote:

We contend in prayer with the best understanding and leading we have, and leave the rest in the hands of a gracious and loving Lord. God in His infinite wisdom has the answer for those who are not healed. This remains a mystery to any honest minister who preaches that Jesus Christ is our Healer. Our experience is that not everyone is healed. Many are, but not all…

To not include this biblical principle in our discussion regarding divine healing is to ignore the sovereignty of a loving God who ultimately decides who receives healing and who does not. We pray for the sick, not because He guarantees healing; we pray because He has declared that He is willing! The final outcome rests with Him.¹

Don Dunkerley expresses his belief on this issue by referencing portions of the long ending of the Gospel of Mark, which is referred to as such since some of the earliest manuscripts do not include this passage, which says: “And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover” (Mark 16:17–18).

Dunkerley wrote the following on the topic:

When Jesus said of us, “They will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well” (Mark 16:18), He did not say that everyone would get well or that those who did would be healed instantly. In the same passage He promised deliverance from potentially fatal accidents (snakebites) and from those who would murder us for the sake of the Gospel (deadly poison). But surely Christians have died in fatal accidents; and Jesus taught that many would be martyred for the faith (Matthew 24:9). He specifically predicted the martyrdom of Peter (John 21:18–19). The promised healings and rescues will happen often enough to commend the Gospel to unbelievers, but they are not promised for every single instance.

The Kingdom of God came with the first coming of Christ, who preached that “the kingdom of heaven is near” (Matthew 4:17). He demonstrated the power of that Kingdom as He advanced it against the kingdom of darkness by healing the sick and casting out demons (Matthew 4:23–25). But the Kingdom of God did not come in its fullness. That awaits the Second Coming of Christ, “when He hands over the kingdom of God to the Father after He has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet” (1 Corinthians 15:24–25).

So the Kingdom of God is here and, in another sense, not yet. The sick are healed, but not all of them, and not all instantaneously and completely. The presence of the Kingdom encourages us to pray for ourselves, that it may be true of us that “the power of the Lord [is] present … to heal the sick” (Luke 5:17). The absence of the consummated Kingdom keeps us from discouragement when we do not see the powerful results we would like.

We have many questions about the mysteries of God’s sovereign will. Perhaps the best answer is the one Moses gave: “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law” (Deuteronomy 29:29).²

Scripture teaches us that what God has promised, He will perform (Isaiah 46:9–10). His Word is settled forever in heaven (Psalm 119:89), and we can stand on His promises (2 Corinthians 1:20). We also believe that God is God, that He is almighty, that His ways are higher than ours, and that in His divine wisdom and understanding, He may have reasons which are beyond our understanding for not healing someone when we pray for them (Isaiah 55:8–11).

We believe that our compassionate and loving God sometimes does or allows things that to our human way of thinking don’t seem fair or may seem as if He is failing to keep His Word or answer our heartfelt prayers. In such cases, we have to trust that God knows more than we do what will achieve His good and perfect will and purpose. He knows the future, and He has His reasons for everything He does or allows, and His reasons are based in love. Trusting God, even when it seems to us that He is not answering our prayers, takes faith—perhaps as much faith as it does to believe God for His healing.

Some people with healing ministries teach that God can and does use sickness in some cases to draw those who are sick closer to Him. When God doesn’t heal, the patience and faith the sick person needs to sustain them through the illness can draw the person closer to the Lord, and it often does. We read about this throughout the Epistles:

In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:6–7).

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything (James 1:2–4).

My personal experience has taught me that not everyone who gets prayed for gets healed, and that those who endure sickness and pain often gain important lessons or spiritual growth from the experience. I’ve seen and read about the lives of those who have physical infirmities and because of those infirmities have helped countless others find the Lord. In times of sickness, I have learned things about myself or about my relationship with the Lord, which have helped me in the long run.

The following excerpt from Got Questions on the topic expresses this well:

A person may sincerely pray and truly have faith that God can heal, but if it is not God’s will to provide the healing at that time, then no healing will come (see 1 John 5:14). Sometimes God’s blessings come in other ways besides physical healing. If it were always God’s will for people to be healed, then everyone would be healed every time he or she became ill. If good health were always God’s will, then Christians should never die.

We can’t blame someone’s malady on a lack of faith, for we know, biblically, that God sometimes uses illness to accomplish His will. Also, it’s not just wayward believers who get sick. Paul “left Trophimus sick in Miletus” (2 Timothy 4:20), and Paul himself had a physical ailment that the Lord declined to heal (2 Corinthians 12:7–9)…

Of course, God can and does heal today when He wants to. The question we need to ask in any given situation is, what does God want? Does He desire to heal the individual in this life, or does He have another plan to show His glory through weakness? Someday, all sickness and death will be eradicated (see Revelation 21:4).³

While it’s a good thing to stand on God’s Word, to know that God has promised to—and does—answer prayer, it is also important to face certain truths, such as that not every prayer is answered in the manner we expect and sometimes God chooses not to answer immediately. God is greater than we are, and while we should claim the promises in Scripture and stand on His Word and trust Him thoroughly, we need to understand that His ways are higher than ours and in His infinite love and wisdom, He may do or allow things in our lives or those of others that we don’t understand.

The expectation that God will answer every prayer for healing in the exact way that we request can fail to acknowledge His sovereignty over every person’s life. When a prayer is not answered, or is answered differently than we would have hoped, to put the blame on someone is saying that we know better than God. But we know that is not the case; He knows supremely better than we do what is best for each individual. “For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose” (Philippians 2:13).

At the same time, we need to remember that there are promises of healing in God’s Word. We also know that Jesus, the apostles, and many believers in the early church and throughout Christian history have received and exercised the gifts of healing in their witness, as well as for one another. As believers, we are encouraged in the Bible to pray for people in need of healing, that “the prayer of faith will raise him up” (James 5:14–15).

We have probably all experienced God’s healing or witnessed people who were healed after they received prayer. Sometimes He heals instantaneously, sometimes progressively. Some people He heals in this lifetime, and others He heals eternally through taking them home to Him. Whether God heals someone in this lifetime or in eternity, we know that He is compassionate and loving. We can trust that as we follow His Word by praying for the sick and committing them into God’s care, He will answer according to His will and good purpose for their lives.

Originally published April 2012. Adapted and republished October 2025. Read by John Laurence.

https://anchor.tfionline.com/post/gods-divine-healing-part3/?=

¹ John and Sonja Decker, Doing What Jesus Did (Foursquare Media, 2007), 3.

² Don Dunkerley, Healing Evangelism (Chosen Books, 1995), 53–54, 68.

³ “Why doesn’t God heal everyone?” GotQuestions.org, https://www.gotquestions.org/God-heal-everyone.html.

Day 24 of the 30-Day Praise Challenge

Becky Harling, HealingNo comments

Day 24

Becky Harling @ https://beckyharling.com/

“I am the LORD, Who heals you.” – Ex.15:26

The Invitation

“When you are suffering, whether physically, emotionally, or spiritually, call on Me for healing. I am the Lord who heals you. Too often, My child, you hesitate to ask Me for healing for fear that you will be disappointed. But this doesn’t protect you; it only prevents you from experiencing all that I desire to give you. Instead, praise Me for My healing power.

Healing may come in this lifetime, or I may call you to Heaven for your final & complete healing. Either way, I want you to trust Me. I am filled with compassion for you, & My presence will always be with you.

Exalt Me as your Messiah who rises with healing in His wings. As you praise Me, I will draw you deeper into My healing power; memories, emotions, & bodies are all healed in My presence. Even though you do not always understand My decisions about healing, will you dare to praise Me anyway?

Within the scope of eternity, weeping only lasts for a short time, & joy comes in the morning. Someday there will be an end to all physical & emotional suffering.” (Ex.15:26; Mk.10:51; Lk.7:22; Mal.4:2; Ps.30:5)

In your worship time today, focus on Jesus’ healing power. Too often we hesitate to ask Him for the very healing He desires to bring us. Praise Him that He longs to heal your memories, emotions, addictions, & body. Praise Him for His healing power in the lives of those you love.

“By His wounds you have been healed.” (1Pet.2:24)

Listen

Listen to “Healing” performed by Ben & Noelle

Here is a post that Noelle made about the song "Healing."

“Healing”

Last week, my husband and I released a record “Sacred Songs” and the first track is called “Healing.” Ben wrote this song several years ago but the story behind it most recently, is our personal “healing” story.

As many of you know, we experienced a miscarriage in April. It was during this time, we were in the middle of recording “Sacred Songs.” Ben had been in Norman, mixing, when the doctor called me to tell me we lost the baby. He immediately came home and upon arrival, he put the CD in, and the first track, “Healing” came on. He started singing the song over me. I begged him not to play it, not to sing. I didn’t want to hear those words, let alone sing them. He cried as he sang and we held each other. God's healing was very present in that moment, even though I didn’t “feel” it.

I tell this story, not get your sympathy, but so that you might have a better understanding of this song. Many relate this song to a physical healing they are asking God for, but in reality, I believe all of us have healing that needs to take place in our hearts and emotions. It was in that moment, that song became so real to me. I didn’t have the strength to ask, but the song did that for me. That is the power of music. It’s our prayer that as you listen to that song, or any other song, for that matter, that it will aid in your time of inability.

The lyrics “nothing broken, nothing missing” used to be the prayer, Ben, before he was my husband, would pray over me. He would send me texts, just to remind me of the continuous healing God was doing in me. Many negative things had been spoken over me and God’s refreshing reminder was healing to me. He’s doing things in the midst of your pain. The times you might think He’s not present is the closest He’s been to you. Embrace this time to allow God to heal those things in you. Let this song be a help to you. To quote Bob Goff, “our lives are held together with scotch tape, bailing wire, and grace.” Thank you God, that our emotional/spiritual health is resting in His ability, not our own.

This really isn’t to promote our song or record, but to give you a better understanding of our music. These songs are things we’ve walked through. It’s a soundtrack to the redemptive story He is writing in us. Sometimes His healing looks different to us than what we are imagining. He loves to surprise us, to draw us closer. It doesn’t take much, just a simple “help” is enough for Him. He longs to rescue you. Be encouraged.

“Healer” performed by Kari Jobe.

Pray

Holy Healer, I praise You for Your healing. Thank You that I am made whole in Your presence & that You desire to heal my body, soul, & spirit. I lay before You these needs of healing ______________ [name any physical ailments, emotional pain, painful memories, addictions, or compulsions], & I praise You for the healing You will bring.

Thank You that I can call on the elders in my church & other mentors in my life to pray on my behalf for healing. How thankful I am that I can trust You, even though I don’t always understand Your ways.

I praise You that as I worship You, You promise to turn my valley of weeping into a place of abundant blessing.

Thank You that You are a God who restores health & heals wounds.

As You heal me, You will bring opportunities for me to share the healing work You have accomplished in my life for Your glory. How I praise You!

(Mal.4:2; Jam.5:16; Ps.84:5-6; Jer.30:17; Ps.107:8, 20)

Journal

In what areas of life have you experienced God’s healing presence? Write a prayer of praise for the healing He has already brought to your life.

I Need to Apologise

HealingNo comments

Pray and Expect Miracles!

Dennis Edwards, Healing, Miracles, PrayerNo comments

Dennis Edwards

I just think there is a balance in everything. We can pray and expect miracles, but if not....We have seen a lot of healings and miracles in our lifetime and walk with the Lord. If those suffering some chronic disease like Parkinson don't get healed immediately, how are they going to feel. I just think they could get discouraged.

Life is a battle. It's not easy. We should be walking in victory, but often we are struggling. What are we going to do? We're going to smile through our tears. We're going to pick up our cross, whatever it may be, and run the race with patience looking unto Jesus. We're going to draw nigh to Him in faith, and that drawing is what is going to transform us. Spending time in prayer, isn't for God's benefit, but for ours. We are transformed in those moments of quiet prayer and reflection. Prayer is for the transforming of our character more than for the answering of our requests. That's what I think.

Let's pray over everyone that needs it. Let's lay hands, anoint with oil, petition or declare. Just the fact that we spend the time and show the concern for those that are sick and struggling may be an encouragement to them and their faith will be activated and God will heal. But if He doesn't heal at the moment, it could be he is working a bigger miracle in their hearts and in the hearts and lives of those around them. Who knows the wonderous ways of God. His ways are past finding out. There's no perfect formular.

Jordan Peterson's wife got healed by praying the rosary with a friend daily and doing the stations of the cross. She ended up renewing her Catholic faith and her intellectual husband had to acknowledge something had happened. How can we understand the ways of God. We can pray to remove the mountains and cast them into the sea, but I haven't heard or seen of any physical mountains being removed, or any trees being plucked up, or any one walking on water. In some dire situation it very well might happen and God may do those types of miracles. Maybe the greater things ye shall do is not in the area of healing, though it could be.

Maybe it's in the area of getting out the message, like the Chosen production, or Mel Gibson's films on Jesus. Maybe during those 3 and 1/2 years of persecution in great Tribulation God's grace will manifest and we will see even greater miracles and healings and walking on water, and mountains moving, and trees being plucked up. But even if we don't, we will not bow down to the idols of this world. We will sing in the face of the difficulties and rejoice that we are counted worthy to suffer shame and persecution for His name.

Let's stir up our faith and expect miracles like the faith healers proclaim and trust that God will bring the results He desires in His time and place. God is sovereign. He is still on the throne and prayer changes things.

Is It Always God's Will to Heal or Deliver Us From Our Problem?

HealingNo comments

From a Podcast by Melissa Dougherty and Mike Winger with my additional comments

Introduction by Melissa Dougherty: Matthew 7:7-8 says, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened." This was the major scripture used when I was in the New Age for the Law of Attraction, a New Age belief that taught that ‘like attracts like.’ You can manifest your reality by following the supposed law of the universe, a law that is said to be responding to your thoughts, feelings, and words. Matthew 7:7 was called the 'Ask-Believe-Receive' formula. If you ask and you believe, then you will receive it. In many churches, it is used the same way. If you have enough faith and believe without doubting, then God will give you what you desire. So, if that's the case, why have so many not received what they were believing for? What about the healing, help or breakthrough we have been begging God for, and it hasn’t come?

Mike Winger does a great job of explaining and answering these thoughts. A constant question I get asked is, what do the scriptures really mean, when they're used in so many different ways by so many different people? I asked Mike Winger to come on my channel a while ago and break down ten of the most misused Scriptures from the Word of Faith camp and the New Age movement. I gave him the scripture and explained to him how it is interpreted by someone in the New Age and Word of Faith movement. He then broke down the passage and explained what he believes it actually means. There are a lot of Scriptures that are used to support Word of Faith, New Age and New Thought teachings. Matthew 7:7 is just one of the ones that I see mostly misused in churches and from New Age and New Thought teachers.

Melissa begins podcast: We are going to go to Matthew 7:7, “Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, Knock and it shall be given you.” It connects with Mark 11:24 “Whatsoever things you desire when you pray, believe that you receive them and you shall have them.” These verses are the “life force” of so much of the New Age or New Thought teaching. What do they really mean, Mike?

Mike Winger (edited and added to by Dennis): The first thing we need to expose is the idea that God will give you whatever you ask. That’s the ‘Secret’ of the New Thought or New Age movement. “Ask and you shall receive.” However, that idea is not completely true. God is a relational God who wants to be in relationship with us. He answers prayer in regards to His plan and how He will use it to draw us closer to Him, into a deeper relationship with Him, and to form our character more like His. Hebrews 12:11.

Apostle James wrote, “You ask and receive not, because you ask amiss that you may consume it upon your lusts,” James 4:3. In the psalms we read, “He gave them their request, but sent leanness to their souls,” Psalm 106:15. If we continue to ask, without clarifying that asking, like Jesus did, “nevertheless, not my will but thine be done,” or in the example prayer where Jesus says, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” we may actually receive what we want but fall out of close relationship with the Lord.

Dennis Edwards: We can read in Scripture where the children of Israel asked for meat in the wilderness, and God sends it to them to prove He is capable of manifesting their desire, but then He allows those those that go on an eating spree to get deadly sick and die. Numbers 11:4, 13, 17-23, 31-34. 1 Corinthians 10:5-6. In the book of Judges we find Samson, one of God’s judges, lusting after the Philistine woman rather than being content with an Israeli wife. God fulfils Samson’s wish, or lets him fulfil his own desires, but it leads to Samsons losing his eyesight and then his life. Judges 13-17.

Apostle Peter has a message about being spiritually blind when we don’t keep our goals on the spiritual qualities of character which God is trying to develop in our lives.

2 Peter 1:2-9 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, 3 According as his divine power has given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that has called us to glory and virtue: 4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. 5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; 6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; 7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But he that lacks these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.

It's when we stop progressing in our spiritual walk with the Lord and in His character-building process in our lives, that we become fruitless and eventually blind, lose our vision and forget the salvation we had found in Jesus. Our hearts become hardened.

Apostle Paul says something similar in 1 Corinthians 13.

1 Corinthians 13:1-3 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not love, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not love, it profits me nothing.

Apostle Paul seems to be saying that the top goal in our spiritual walk with the Lord is not speaking in tongues, or having a word of knowledge, or even having the faith to remove mountains through prayer, or sacrificially giving away everything we have to feed the poor. The top or supreme goal in our lives is to love God and to love others. Our loving attitude, our loving relationship with God and others is the greatest proof of our relationship with God, and the greatest sign of God’s presence with us. God is more interested in transforming our heart so that it is in right relationship with Him and with others, than in transforming our bodies. His goal is the transforming of our character to become like His. That’s why we pray, “according to thy will.” We don’t want God to answer our prayers, if they are not according to His will. If Jesus had gotten His desire to avoid the crucifixion, we wouldn’t have salvation. The Bible says, “Though He was a son, yet learned He obedience through the things that He suffered.” Hebrews 5:7-8.

In another example, God allowed Satan to tempt Job to show Satan that Job really did love and trust God. God, in a sense, was witnessing to Satan. Job passed the test and proclaimed, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him,” Job 13:15. Job was deathly sick, so it looked like God had abandoned him and given him over to death. But though Job didn’t see his healing at that moment. He didn’t feel his healing at that moment. He nevertheless trusted that God knew what He was doing. He manifested his trust and faith in God with his declaration of faith in spite of the seemingly contrary circumstances. In the end, God honoured Job’s faith and trust. God healed Job and restored to him his wealth and family.

Another example where God’s people desired something contrary to His will is when the people of Israel desire a king to rule over them. 1 Samuel 8:1-22.

God told them it was better for them to have judges rather than a king, but then He yielded to their request. He wanted to teach them that relationship with Him was the most important aspect of their lives. God often fulfils our misguided requests in order to teach us to desire Him and His will in our lives, over or above our personal desires or needs, which often end up as being unfulfilling anyway.

Mike and Dennis: Jesus Himself prayed desperately in agony sweating blood for “healing” from the problem He was facing. But He clarified His request with, “Not my will, but thine be done,” Luke 22:42, Mark 13:46, Matthew 26:39, in all three of the synoptic Gospels. Apostle John, whom it was said that Jesus loved the most, wrote; “And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep His commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight,” 1 John 3:22-23. John went on to clarify, “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing, according to His will, he hears us; and if He hears us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him,” 1 John 5:14-15. When we pray, we should want God’s will above our own.

Just think about, if a parent would give his/her child everything they desired, what would happen? The child would turn out spoiled, like many of the children of the rich in the world do today. Our answering the requests of our children is relational. It’s not just “do as you please.” We are pleased to answer our children’s requests when they follow our guideline and rules, which we have implemented for their good and Godly growth. God is the same way. God is interested in transforming our character, not in just answering our requests. Nevertheless, He often answers our requests even when He knows it is not good for us. Why? Because He can use it to bring about some good in our lives, in our character building, and in our relationship with Him and others. We learn more often from our mistakes than from our successes. Romans 8:28.

The “Law of Attraction” that says “ask and you shall receive,” is a counterfeit. The idea is not that we need to get into alignment with a universal law or force to receive what we desire. Asking and receiving selfishly is self-worship. Satan may grant your requests and take you down the path to destruction. Luke 4:4. If you are just asking to fulfil the desires of your eyes, or of your lusts, or of your pride, you’ll be moving away from God and into the world or the devil’s domain. 1 John 2:15-17.

Mike Winger: When we offer our requests, we bend our wills to Gods’. Jesus modelled that submission in His prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, and we should do the same even in the face of the most dire and painful circumstances. We have our requests. We make them known to God. But then we yield to God and His will, because His plans are ultimately good, even if we can't see it or feel it in the moment.

Melissa Dougherty: I agree with that, and the first thing that comes to my mind is my concern with the people who aren't receiving their healing just yet. But one of the things that I keep hearing is, God should always heal a hundred percent of the time. He should always heal. If you are in a position where you're not getting healed, or getting what you're believing for, if you're not getting your healing, and then maybe somebody else does, how would you break that down to that person? How scripturally would you say that is? Everything you just said, Mike, makes so much sense to me, but it is an offense to somebody else who says, “No, God should always give me my healing, God should always give me my supernatural encounter. I need to have more faith.” What would you say to them?

Mike Winger: Sometimes God's plans are bigger than our plans and better, as difficult as this might be to swallow. But remember the analogy I gave you earlier about the cheap replacement of abundant life, versus the abundant life that Christ was talking about. The immediate healing is as important as it is as valuable. Don't get me wrong, I have issues that I want to get healed. Me too, I need healing. I have had a chronic back problem for quite a while. I have prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed. But I’m not healed, yet, and still, I trust in God that he's using it for his glory in my life. I don't think it's a lack of prayer or lack of faith. I think it is somehow His will, at least for the moment. Why? Because I’ve prayed and trusted and I’ve sought prayer with others, and claimed healing. I know God's using it for my good. But that’s not just my idea. That is what Scripture tells us.

I think Paul the Apostle gives us, or even better, Jesus gives us a great example. Jesus doesn't get His healing, or escape from the problem that He is facing. He ends up dying on the cross in what looks like total defeat and triumph of His enemies. But that seeming defeat brought salvation to all mankind, a glorious eternal experience. It was worth it. It was better than him bypassing the cross. His submission to God’s will was better than His own personal desires. Sometimes our situations where we don’t get healing, or we don’t get what we are asking for in prayer, are actually better for us, in the long run. We just have a hard time seeing it at the moment, because we're still not in eternity. We don’t see the benefits of our sufferings yet.

Here's another example from 2nd Corinthians 12. The famous passage from Apostle Paul which every Word of Faith movement tries to explain away. We are talking about Paul’s thorn in the flesh. Let's read it and just gather a few important points. Whether you think it was a physical illness or not is irrelevant. Let's read it and think about what it he says. 2 Corinthians 12:7, “So to keep me from being conceited or arrogant because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations.” Paul says that God had revealed such amazing things to him and he knew so much and had seen so much in the spirit, that God has to do something to keep him humble. He says, “a thorn was given to me in the flesh a messenger of Satan to harass me to keep me from being conceited.”

Apostle Paul has got this evil demonic thing going on, whether it's a physical illness, or a spiritual attack, or persecution. It's obviously something really unpleasant. We can agree there. I don't care if it's a spiritual attack or a physical illness or job stress. All of these things are the same thing. They are not pleasant. In my life right now I'm suffering from a back problem. Paul was suffering and his suffering was given to him ultimately by God, even though it has a demonic, or some kind of demonic element to it. In other words, the Devil couldn't have given Paul the thorn in the flesh, unless God allowed it.

The reason for God allowed it, Paul tells us, is quite revealing. It was to keep Paul humble. In other words, in God’s view, Paul's humility was more important than Paul’s prosperity or sense of well-being or his healing. But then, in the next verse, Paul says, “Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this that it should leave me, but He said to me,” and here's God's response to Paul, obviously a man of great faith, the apostle Paul. God says to him, “My grace is sufficient for you for my power is made perfect in weakness.” God is clearly saying, “Paul, I want you to be weak, because when you are weak you rely on my grace for your life. It is my strength that enables you to get through these hard times and I’m glorified in that.”

What is Paul's response, what lesson had he learned from all this? He says and he concludes, and this is again just reading straight from the text, 2 Corinthians 12:9. “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities (or ‘weakness’ in other translations).” Paul says, “I will be glad, I will rejoice, I will boast in my weaknesses,” “that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” In other words, what he is saying is very sobering and it speaks to me personally. As I go through hard times that won't leave me even through desperate and or united prayer, I can rest on these promises that God has given to Apostle Paul. I can rest on these scriptures and say, Lord, I’m relying on you. I’m trusting in you and relying upon your Word. Right now, I can rejoice and will rejoice, because there is great spiritual benefit through the great physical trials that I am going through even if I can’t see it or understand it.

Dennis Edwards: There are many similar verses in Scripture where the Lord encourages to go to Him for the strength that we need for whatever battles in life we are facing. Here are a few.

Matthew 11:28-30; Isaiah 40:28-31; 2 Corinthians 1:4; John 14:27; 1 Corinthians 2:9; Romans 15:4; Romans 8:38-39; James 4:6-10, Psalm 23, Psalm 91, Matthew 6:9-13, Revelation 7:16-17, & 21:4.

Watch the Podcast here https://fightforyourfaith.blogspot.com/2024/09/does-god-always-heal.html