Been a while since last post. Many things have happened in my family, taking away much time. It has been hard on them. My wife's mother (Alta) passed away suddenly 24-Feb-2010 [see pic left, Alta & my daughter, Kimberly]. As you can imagine, with my wife's dad (Bobby) still in rehabilitation after a stroke 13-Dec-2009, it has been very hard on her.
Despite all this, God is taking care of us all, and all things considered, everybody is doing pretty good. I've been going to see Bobby everyday and reading scripture to him and my Smith Wigglesworth Devotional (very powerful). Wednesday (03-Mar-2010), for some reason, I felt strongly that when I went to see him, that someone would show up that needed healing and I would get them healed in front of Bobby as a witness to him. It happened! A man named Jerry showed up to see Bobby while I was reading to him and talking about Jesus. Jerry's church upbringing doesn't lead him to believe in healing & miracles. I prayed with Bobby and nothing happened. But I asked Jerry if there was something physically wrong with him. He denied it at first, but then told me that he had had some trouble with pain in his back and right hip and that the chiropractor told him one leg was shorter than the other. So I asked if I could pray for that anyway even though he was not in pain. He agreed.
I laid my hand on his hip and prayed. I said, "Do you feel that?" (I actually didn't feel anything, but I've learned to ask). A wonderful look of surprise came over him, and he said, "Oh my gosh! My leg feels like it has been dipped in an ice bucket." That's a first for me... never heard "cold" but always "hot." Then it started tingling. He spent some time trying to "convince" us it was really happening. LOL! I know his church has taught him that miracles have passed away, or that they just don't happen like they once did in the Bible... but I wonder what Jerry thinks now.
Anyway, my sister (TammyC) was there and she said to Jerry, "Try it out!" So he did. He was in tears by now as he walked around Bobby's room. He kept saying, "I can't believe this. This is amazing." I looked at Bobby, he was crying too. I told Bobby, "That's what Jesus wants for you." So, we prayed for Bobby again. His shoulder got warm... but not much else happened.
UPDATE (18-Feb-2012): I was in Wal-Mart getting a gift for a little 3-year old girl to take to her party that my family couldn't attend (they were all out of town at a dance competition). I ran into Jerry. He stopped me and we talked casually. But then he got serious for a second. He said, "I've never told you this, but remember when you prayed for my hip?" I had a flood of memories of the above incident. As I was standing there in front of him with these memories flooding my mind, grabbed my hand with both of his and said, "I just want to thank you again for praying for my hip that day. I haven't had any trouble at all out of it since." He was sincere and I was touched. What can you say, but, a weak "You're welcome" and "Give glory to Jesus, He's the Healer. He loves you and that is proof."
Bobby now has a roommate (Harry, age 74). Harry had a mild stroke and could not move his right side very much. Very weak. He couldn't lift his arm above his shoulder. He and one of his 4 sons witnessed what we were doing with Jerry & Bobby. So I asked if I could pray for him. He agreed, of course. Tammy & her friend (Billie) & I laid hands on him and prayed. I asked if he felt anything. He said the pain left him immediately. Wonderful Jesus! Then I noticed a spot on his abdomen getting warm. I asked what that might be... his son, who was crying by now, said that is where the docs had put a tube into him to drain some bile or something. Obviously Jesus was doing something there.
Thursday (04-Mar-2010), I drove to Georgia on my usual business trip. I listened to Dr. Roger Sapp on some MP3s I had on my Zune. Something he said caught my attention. He said something like, "I never know what I'm going to get when I lay hands on someone. If you get in this all-or-nothing way of thinking, then you usually get nothing. Don't think that way. I never know what I'm going to get when I lay hands on someone, but I believe that I have enough faith to get SOMETHING, and so, I always do. Then if you get part of it, and SOMETHING is different, then you know you are on the road to get 100%. But never despise partial healings." I needed that. I thought, that's what I've been doing wrong with Bobby.
So, that night, I decided to go see Bobby before I went home from my business trip. I read Smith Wigglesworth to him, and then I said, "Now, Bobby, I don't know if we'll get it all, but I do believe we both have enough faith to get something, don't you?" He said, "I absolutely KNOW we can." (Never heard him talk that way!) I thought, there's nothing wrong with his arm & leg... it is a brain injury. So this time I put my hand on the right side of his head and prayed. He immediately said, "Something's tugging on my arm!" I uncovered his left arm, and the muscles in his arm were flexed! He looked down at it and said, "I've never seen it do that before!" It stayed flexed for several seconds... amazing. I asked him to move it. He moved his arm toward his body very slightly and said, "That's the most I've ever been able to move it."
Wonderful Jesus again! I told Bobby I'd be back some more and we'd get some more. I also looked over at his roommate Harry... he had both his right hand and left hands clasped behind his head! He said, "I could move my right hand all the way back today." He told me he couldn't do that before we prayed.
I told my wife (TammyM)... she's excited... so am I. We're gonna see Jesus do this 100%.
So, new advice for training others & yourself: Take Roger's advice... don't go for the whole thing if you can feel it stretching your faith. Instead, KNOW that you have at least faith enough to get SOMETHING... so, just expect SOMETHING GOOD to happen, and boldly proclaim beforehand that something is certainly going to happen and change when you pray... and Father will oblige every time! Amen!
Also, something else that had happened since last post was my wife's sister (Penny's) husband (Tim) was electrocuted on job by 7200 volts. It burned him over 17% of his body, but miraculously, he was not killed, and did not even pass out! I went to the ER to see him and we all laid hands on him and rebuked the pain and asked Father to heal him. His pain nearly disappeared and he didn't even need pain medicine when they put in in the helicopter to take him to the burn center in Augusta, GA. He's spent the whole month of February in a burn center and has amazed doctors at his recovery. He came home this weekend and got to spend some time with his family. I went to see him, and he told me about the whole thing. He said when he was being electrocuted he heard the voice of God say, "No!", as in, "no, you cannot take his life." Plan on seeing him some more and praying with him some more. He is a truly awesome man, and his wife (Penny) has taken better care of him than teams of nurses could ever do. We love them dearly and look forward to his full recovery.
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