I feel it is important and appropriate to take you back to a testimony that happened long before we ever left the country or had any thought of going on a mission trip. The reason for sharing this testimony is to give evidence that miracles and supernatural healings take place today. Miracles are an expression of God’s goodness. They are not something we earn, there is no formula to make them happen, they are neither phony nor fake but they are very real. I do not have all the answers for when, why or how, but they do still happen. God is still in the miracle making business. I would like to add that they can take place anywhere and not just on mission trips as many would suppose. Healing, on the other hand, is something for us all and it is something for right now. Jesus paid the price and provided healing for everyone. It too is an expression of God’s love and it is His will for us all to be whole, complete and restored to the way He designed us.
For many years of my earlier life I had the belief that healings were only done by Jesus when He physically walked the earth. I did not give thought to the belief that miracles or supernatural healings could take place today. It wasn’t until I was equipped with the truth and studied for myself that I discovered my authority and position in healing and it was confirmed with evidence in my life. However, I learned a lesson that healing does not always come in the form of a miracle. I recall an experience in 2013 after three different doctors made the determination that I needed bilateral hernia surgery. I decided to exercise my faith by asking for, believing and declaring a healing miracle in my body that would prevent me from needing surgery. In my spiritual immaturity I allowed myself to become disappointment when it didn’t happen. I could have let my experience define my belief moving forward but instead I chose to trust in His promises, His faithfulness and His word. God does not cause our sickness and He always helps us through in our healing. Sometimes healing can come in the form of a miracle but most of the time it is a process and every time, it is out of His love and goodness.
I used to own a landscaping and brick paving company and for many years during that time I did a lot of inappropriate lifting and over-exertion that caused damage to my lower back. As a result of my actions I encountered many problems like pinched nerves, bulging disc’s and pain quite often. It would almost be like clockwork that I would fight the same battle on an annual basis in the spring and I could count on an average recovery of one to two months minimum. To me, it was just the norm that I would have to deal with as a part of my life, you know, doctor visits, adjustments, therapy, traction and pain relievers.
In 2010, after being at our church only a few years, I received the truth about being healed by the work of Jesus. When I say I received it, I mean, I didn’t just listen to another message about it, I finally grabbed hold it and understood it to be real. As a result, I had gone several years without experiencing any pain or discomfort in my body, simply by knowing the truth. However, in the spring of 2014 a familiar beginning to the onset of the same type of back pain began. I immediately started addressing it with my words of faith by speaking over it and declaring myself healed but it was difficult for me to look past the natural. As it got worse over the next few days, I humbled myself by asking my wife and friends to pray for me. With the thoughts in my head that I must have done something wrong for this pain to return and challenges with why I wasn’t seeing improvement, I found myself in a deep battle with progressing pain that I have not had in many years. On top of the self-condemnation and trying to take my thoughts captive, fear started to settle in with what people would think of me because I had shared with many people about overcoming back issues and now look at me. I knew enough at that time that the condemnation I was feeling was not from God and that I had to deal with the fear and maybe a little pride, before it all became consuming. I needed to get my focus off of what the enemy was screaming at me and focus on what the voice of God says about me. This led me to lean on His word by reading and meditating on several verses that I held close. I’m not going to lie, the battle continued to intensify. It was on May 6th 2014 that the pain had reached a level that was worse than I could remember it ever being. I was fighting severe discomfort due to a pinched nerve. It became so painful that I was unable to move properly, I couldn't walk upright, sitting was uncomfortable, laying down wasn’t any better and standing up from any position was strenuous. It would seem that my faith lost traction as my focus turned to my natural circumstance.
Later that the evening I sat next to my wife on the couch in the most comfortable position I could find while trying to distract myself with a television show because there was no relief from anything else. Eventually I reached the point of exhaustion and Rachelle encouraged me to come to bed. I remember not wanting to get up because of the pain I would experience by moving, yet I made my way ever so slowly. After the difficult task of getting in to our bed, I collapsed under fatigue and finally fell asleep, however that was short lived because the pain was so intense. If I moved while in bed a jolt would shoot through my body like that of electricity. It was certainly an unpleasant experience and the fear of something being severely wrong raced through my mind. Through the night I was in and out of sleep, then around one o'clock in the morning I woke and I heard God say "get up and read My word". I was reminded in that moment that this was a spiritual battle. I also remember arguing with God, “I don’t think You understand how painful it is for me to get out of the bed and walk to the living room”, (this was where my bible was). Given my physical circumstance, I knew I needed to be obedient and go use the weapons available to me. I got up and took more ibuprofen, I acknowledge that this was a physical issue and that God’s promises were the answer. I made my way to the great room with those electric like jolts coursing through my body with every step. I grabbed my bible and sat reading the scriptures that I saved, thanking and praising God through my pain. I reminded myself that there is POWER in the name of Jesus, that He is my healer, my provider and that He is more than enough.
Some of the scriptures I hung on to were; Isaiah 53:5 “by His stripes I am healed”, Isaiah 54:17 “no weapon formed against me shall prosper”; Luke 10:19 “I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy”; Proverbs 3:5 “trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding”; 2 Timothy 1:7 “you have not given me a spirit of fear but of power love and a sound mind”; Psalms 55:22 “cast all my cares upon Him for He cares for me” and Isaiah 41:10 “He will uphold me with His righteous right hand”. My focused turned from my distress to, the Lord is my strong tower and my refuge, I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength and He will not permit the godly to slip and fall. It is amazing how empowering His word is because I had the restored ability to break the power that bound me, rebuke the spirit of infirmity and cancel the enemy’s plans for me in this attack. I reminded the enemy that I did not have to put up with this and he is a defeated foe by the work of Jesus Christ.
After that time in battle it was about 2:30 am. I knew I needed to get some sleep because regardless of how I felt, I had to go to work the next day. I knew there was a verse about God giving restful sleep. So, I looked it up by searching for it on the internet and found in Proverbs 3:24 “you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet”. As I made my way back to the bedroom, I asked God “will you give me that sweet sleep?” Back in bed at this point and still in pain, I must have fallen sleep right away and I slept soundly for the rest of the night because I didn’t wake up until 6:30 am feeling as if I slept for eight hours. There was my “Sweet Sleep”.
Yes, I was still in pain and the enemy was still trying to attack me but I had the rest I needed. I remember as I made my way down the hallway fighting the fight of faith, I was saying with my voice, “I do not have to put up with this, Jesus died for this and the healing that is mine.” This fight certainly wasn’t easy, because as I sat at the kitchen counter bar stool, I broke down and cried not just from the frustration and discomfort but from the intensity of the battle going on in my mind too. I believe it was then that I told the enemy "I am healed in Jesus name” and without thinking I got up. Instantly in that moment, the pain, the pressure and the discomfort was gone! I was in shock as I moved around confirming it. “Really, it’s gone”, I thought. My tears of pain were now tears of joy. Never in all my years of experiencing back issues before has it just dropped off like it did. My previous experience would prove it would typically take weeks of intentional care and recovery for it to go away and now, nothing but the name of Jesus. I’d love to end this testimony on a high note but to be brutally honest, I fought thoughts of, “will it coming back, when is it coming back, was this just a reprieve and do I dare tell anyone that I just experienced a miracle only to find myself in the same situation again.” I had to fight those thoughts with thanksgiving and praise, declaring and receiving my miracle of what just took place. I immediately shared with my wife who was asleep and then wrote an email to my Pastors Jerry and Joy Weinzierl. Throughout the morning even during my shower I couldn’t help but cry uncontrollably. I felt the intimate, intense and powerful love of God so much in that moment. Almost as if He were holding me. I couldn’t stop thinking of how much God loves us, cares for us and how real His word is. I know that healing can be a process but this was my miracle.
Signs, miracles and wonders aren't reserved for overseas trips to third world countries. They can happen anywhere, in your backyard, neighborhood, workplace, schoolyard, community around you and even in your kitchen. We don’t seek after signs, miracles and wonders but we must have faith that God is working for our good and have an expectation that they can happen.
Healing is ours now and it can manifest through the atmosphere of worship, praising, the sharing or hearing of His word, the laying on of hands or through the reading or hearing of a testimony. I believe that someone could be receiving their healing right now while reading this. My encouragement to you is, press in, don’t give up and believe that what He says is true no matter what the circumstances around you reveal. He is willing, He is able and He is good.