JESUS
STILL
HEALS
ESME JAMES
1 YES, JESUS STILL
HEALS!
What would your first reaction be if your doctor were to confirm your suspicions
that you had a disease that could lead to your death within a short space of
time? Panic? Fear? Anger? Disbelief? Depression?
Whether you’ve been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, cancer, heart disease or
hypertension, your first reaction which could be one or more of the ones
mentioned above would be most natural, and human. Even mere suspicion that we
might be suffering from one of these diseases is enough to send us into blind
panic.
I’ll never forget the time I first discovered a lump in my left breast. It was
at night, the lights were off and I was in bed. My husband was lying beside me,
half asleep, thinking over the days’ events. I was unconsciously feeling my left
breast when wham! I felt something that I was certain had not been there before.
I pressed the area again, more firmly this time. Yes, it was a lump. I fought
down waves of panic and got up as if I was merely going to make one of my
nightly visits to the bathroom.
Any woman who has passed the age of thirty-five and knows the importance of
frequent breast examinations would have discovered that breast tissue is not
smooth. It seems to be composed of a mass of little lumps. But as my finger
kneaded and probed that night I knew that what I was feeling was not natural
breast tissue. And it hadn’t been there the last time I had felt that breast.
The trouble was that I could not even tell when the last time was. I had not
been doing my breast examination as regularly as I should.
Fortunately, I am one of those people who don’t panic easily. I tend to keep
things to myself, maul over my problems and try to solve them myself and turn to
others for help only after I’ve tried and failed. Better still, I prefer to
mention in passing, a problem that I had successfully overcome, long after the
event.
As I lay wide-eyed in bed, occasionally touching the lump and willing it to
disappear, I began to plan my strategy for dealing with the situation. As a born
again Christian I was striving to build up my faith and learn to lean solely on
our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and his saving Grace. When he was in the world,
he was
“… healing every disease and sickness among the people.” (Mt.4:23).
I also strongly believed that by his death on the cross I had already been
healed of every sickness and disease. Peter confirmed this when he said:
1 Peter 2:24; “by his wounds you have been healed.”
Jesus’ healing powers were still at work in my life and in the life of every
believing Christian. So all I had to do was stand on Jesus’ promises on healing
and claim them for myself. I was not going to tell my husband or my daughter,
nor was I going to take the problem to my doctor. But even as I thought about
it, the Holy Spirit told me that I would have to go and see my doctor.
Obviously the warfare was to be waged on two fronts: the spiritual and the
natural or physical. My doctor would be the one to tell me what kind of lump it
was, whether malignant or benign, whether I would need to take X-rays or what
medication, if any, I would need.
My decision not to tell anyone my family at this initial stage stemmed from my
love for them. I did not want any of them to worry or panic.
I first experienced the power of prayer after I got married. In Africa, a woman
is expected to produce a child between nine months and one year after she gets
married, otherwise relatives, especially in-laws, begin to make her feel
uncomfortable, that is, if she does not make herself feel uncomfortable first!
I praise the Lord that soon after we got married, my husband was transferred to
Lagos, Nigeria where I later joined him. If that had not been the case and we’d
stayed home in Sierra Leone, I myself would have compounded whatever problem was
causing my lack of pregnancy by feeling very self-conscious and uncomfortable.
Whereas, in Lagos, there was no close friend or relation whom I would have
thought was talking about me behind my back.
The only doctor I went to see told me that he saw no reason why my husband and I
could not have children. He put us on a course of medication and that was that.
It did not even occur to us to seek second or even third opinions and because we
could not afford it we could not follow up a friend’s suggestion that I visited
the consultant in London who had helped her. So I just went down on my knees in
prayer. At that time, I did not know much about God, the Bible or His healing
promises in it. All I knew was that we wanted a child badly. That prayer was
answered exactly three years after we were married, with a beautiful baby boy.
Two and the half years later, our lovely baby girl was born. Praise the Lord! He
is faithful and good to those who trust Him and Him only.
Your first reaction to bad news about your health could, of course, be to talk
to others. It may be your doctor, a friend, a colleague or someone who has had
the same experience or knows of someone who is going through the same thing.
Anyone whom you feel might give the relief and comfort you so badly need at this
time, should be sought. The only snag is that sometimes we end up being more
frightened or depressed after we’ve spoken to people than before we started out.
Anyone who ‘knows’ of a good juju man or woman who would solve your problem must
be avoided at all costs. And of course, you mustn’t forget
1st Peter 5: 8-9, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls
around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing
firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are
undergoing the same kind of sufferings. “