My presentation from the Discipleship Matter Conference workshop, Prayer & Its Various Expressions

“The only ability of a healer is their availability to be used” ~ Norma Dearing


My walk with God for the last 10 years has been one of direct guidance and direct experience. My new role of being a mother, my difficult marriage and subsequent divorce, were the catalysts and call to abide in God, not in theory, not in dogma or rhetoric .. But through living my faith. I had no time for formal groups, church-based bible study, nor was I a member of a church... however, God and I hit the ground running, with my new job working with 6-8 year olds with severe/profound emotional/behavioral disabilities not only did I feel ill-equipped to heal myself but I definitely felt ill-equipped to teach such amazing boys. So, I read the bible on my own, trusting God to show me what He wanted me to know and I began to pray...
Agnes Sanford, from her book, The Healing Light, speaks of something similar with this great image...
“If we try turning on an electric iron and it does not work, we look to the wiring of the iron, the cord, or the house. We do not stand in dismay before the iron and cry, "Oh, electricity, please come into my iron and make it work!" We realize that while the whole world is full of that mysterious power we call electricity, only the amount that flows through the wiring of the iron will make the iron work for us. The same principle is true of the creative energy of God. The whole universe is full of it, but only the amount of it that flows through our own beings will work for us. We have tried often to make this creative power flow through us, saying, "Oh, God, please do this or that!" And He has not done this or that, so we have concluded that there is no use in prayer, because God, if there is such a Being, will do as He likes regardless of our wishes. In other words, we doubt the willingness or the ability of God to actually produce within our lives and bodies the results that we desire. We do not doubt our own ability to come into His presence and fill ourselves with Him, but (we doubt) His willingness to come into us and fill us with Himself. “

Do I have a fabulous list of miraculous physical healings to share with you? No, I don’t. But what I do have is a growing faith, a growing truth of God’s Love that is able to be present through my willingness to allow God to flow in and through me. And it started with prayer. In Matthew we read,
"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; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. (Matt 7:7-8)

Through praying we learn obedience, we learn that we have a responsibility as individuals and as a community of faith, to pray. As Christians we are asked to follow Jesus, to surrender to the Will of God; to pray without ceasing. The more obedient we are to opening our hearts and lives to Christ through our own prayer life, the more we allow the will of God to manifest in our actions and lives and outward to others.

Francis McNutt, in his book, Healing, explains it this way ”Like Abraham we set out for an unknown promised land. The faith lies in setting out on the journey, not in being sure of exactly where we are going. We believe that God is faithful, provided we do what is in our power and that is to pray for the sick. Discovering this reality is liberating: to know that faith is simply obedience and the willingness to risk; not an absolute certainty about what is going to happen on the journey!”

As I prayed for myself, as I prayed for the boys, I began to be filled with a peace that I have never encountered, I began to have patience that belied anything that I had previously known. It filled my house, it filled my class room, it filled my life. As I lifted my own depression up to God every day (and I mean every day), my son and I stabilized and we began to thrive. God is a tremendous co-parent, by the way. But what began to happen in my class room was .. Holy.

During an explosive rage situation with one of my boys, that I normally would have used restraining methods for, I simply laid my hands on my student’s shoulders (to hold him in his seat) and prayed silently (public schools and all) and invited Jesus into the situation. The effects of God’s love and patience were immediate, I could feel the child physically relax, his shoulders dropped, his heart rate dropped, his breathing stabilized and what normally would have been a 20-30 min situation was over in 3 min. I was awed. Although at that point in my faith walk, I prayed that these boys would be completely healed, it wasn’t until later that I understood, with God’s help, how patience and compassion were the building blocks of healing for these children.

Francis MacNutt writes: “When God’s power to enlighten and heal was brought to bear on the same situation, new priorities emerged and true community began to form”.

It was some years later after I had moved back to Virginia, that I began praying with, meditating with, and healing within a group of social workers, counselors, and teachers which is where God made it clear to me what the next phase of my learning would contain. It was during one of these amazing groups that we were encouraged to join our prayers with laying on of hands. I had no idea what this was at the time, and felt fairly comfortable to ‘practice’ with one of the women as I was still fairly new to the group. (ya know just in case it went poorly) She began to tell me of pains in her stomach and with my hands just above her I prayed in my silent way, I felt a rushing of heat in my hands and a profound experience of Light. I no longer had words in my mind, I just had the most intense experience of love... with tears running down my face, after what seemed like 30 min (really only about 10) my arms and hands went suddenly cold. I could sense the Spirit depart from me, without knowing what that truly meant. But yet another curious thing happened, as I began to share my experience, I began to say things... deeply personal things about the source of this woman’s stomach pains. I had no idea where those words came from, but I spoke them within that same deep and profound love I had just experienced. As I spoke to her, she began to cry, and more and more of her fears, and unknown sources of pain began to get connected.. And although at that time I had no professional counseling experience, God had moved in such a way that she was surrounded by amazing clinical support to help her process what became the beginning of a deep healing. I, however, was left shattered and shaking at the sheer awesomeness of what had occurred. It was my friend and mentor that spoke the wisdom I needed to hear... “It was not you, it was God using you.” Amen.

Francis MacNutt writes, “Somehow it was much easier to believe that God could heal the sick through prayer, than to believe that he would heal through my prayer. And in his book, The Prayer that Heals, Praying for Healing in the Family, he puts the question directly to us:
“Part of the Good News is that God wants to use your words and the touch of your hands to heal your loved ones. Even if you do not feel worthy or holy, Jesus wants to use you to pray for the needs in your family and community.”

In James we read, “ Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. " (James 5:13-16)

The Bible is absolutely clear that God can heal, has healed, and will heal individuals. James specifically directs the individual believer to go to God. When in need, call on God’s people, the community of faith. We pray, Jesus heals. It IS the will of the Lord to make us whole.

What about Faith.

"I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. (Mark 11:23)

This is an amazing quote, yet, what about...”does not have doubt” I have come to understand that the expectation, the faith, that God will meet me in prayer and not only meet me in prayer but will answer that prayer, according to his Will, is not in doubt.

“It is comforting to know that God can work through our weaknesses to accomplish the things he wants, yet whose faith is needed? The faith can be in the person praying for the healing, or it can be in the sick person asking, even if the person doing the praying has little or no faith, or sometimes, it just seems that God wants to manifest his goodness when no one in particular seems to have faith. “ writes Francis MacNutt.

So we learn to approach prayer with humility, understanding that is it God who does the healing. To be clear, when we speak about faith necessary for healing, we are speaking about faith in God not faith in our own faith. As Francis MacNutt explains: “Once we begin to look at our own faith, however, rather than at God, we begin to concentrate on our own inadequacy.”

In contrast he writes: “ My faith is in God - In his faithfulness to his promises to hear and answer my prayers. I have absolute confidence that God answers my prayers, whether I see the results or not. (My faith is) In his wisdom, which so far surpasses mine, I trust that he understands, even when I don’t know every motive, every circumstance involved in my praying for healing of a particular person. Because of my ignorance I sometimes pray for a mistaken thing, or in a mistaken way, and so I do not see the results turn out as I think they should. But these will turn out as God in his wisdom sees best. (My faith is) In his power. I believe that everything is possible with God. Nothing then is impossible to the prayer of the Christian. (My faith is) In his goodness. Because I believe that everything is possible with God. I try to see everything as reflecting his love. Whatever is ultimately the most loving thing will happen in response to my prayers for healing. "

Jesus tells us directly that “ I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” (John 14:12)

Finally after many years, I got it. He called, I said yes.. Let the equipping begin, so to speak. I now work again in the public schools, but as a mental health counselor. Prayer is a part of the treatment plan for each of my clients, oh not.. Medicaid’s funded plan, but God’s. It was a revelation to me, the deeper I listened to God’s calling, how divinely placed I was in my job and my life to begin praying for healing. God brought me to the Charlottesville City schools and Peace Lutheran Church for some very important reasons.

First, prayer within a fellowship of believers is a gift and the way, I think, that truly reflects the healing ministry of Jesus.
And, for me, the most important aspect of my spiritual growth has taken place through Peace’s commitment to discipleship. Through fellowship and a year-long Discipleship Triad, I now pray with others, out loud and even lead prayer at various times. God has been calling me to Healing Ministry over the last 10 years. Now the equipping takes a different turn. It has been through the discipleship study that God’s Word takes on new meaning... words found in Matthew,

“ Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. (Matthew 10:6-8)

I realize some of what God has accomplished through me even as I tottered along thinking I wasn’t ‘right’ yet. I realize now.. how much God can do through simple, small prayers.

As an example.. the evening my 10 year old son and I were part of the Peace Lutheran delegation for IMPACT. Gathered together were over 500 people from 20 congregations to boldly come together in community to work for social justice in Charlottesville and for some strange reason they put the Lutherans up front. After giving my son the normal harsh tone whispered expectations of pristine behavior, he become relentlessly wiggly and dramatically restless, after another volley of mother-tone admonishments, he confessed he had a mosquito bite that had to be scratched. A thought formed in my mind to pray for healing of the mosquito bite, which was immediately replaced with an inward smirk and a thought.. 'I’m so sure Jesus is going to heal a mosquito bite.' But just as that thought formed.. I felt Jesus looking over my shoulder at my son with such deep love and joy..and an inner response, “Yes, Laura, of course we are going to pray for that mosquito bite.' So I put my hand on my son’s leg and quietly prayed the bite would be healed in the name of Jesus. And so it was. My son first looked surprised, then smiled in a knowing 10 year old way... Jesus heals mosquito bites. Simple. Small. Ordinary. Jesus heals. As a disciple of Christ, I am asked to heal in his name.

Or you can draw upon the example from the book of Acts: "Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus." (Acts 4:29-30)
Notice the disciples did not pray to preach AND to heal, but to preach BY healing. They preached the message of salvation by actually continuing the works of Jesus. There are 26 healing miracles by Jesus in the New Testament. Jesus came as Lord and Savior to the unworthy, the broken, maimed, crippled, the sinners. He healed them. He restored them. As he heals and restores us and leads us by His Way, his example and call to continue preaching the Good News and healing, in his name.

"And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."
(Mark 16:17-18)

And so we are led to mystery. “Healing is a mystery. The best we can do is to bow down before the mystery that is God.” writes MacNutt.
We begin prayer asking God to be present, inviting the Spirit into our heart and minds. We ask the Spirit for wisdom and for discernment, to center us within the Will of God so as not to be sidetracked, or..hijacked by our own agendas or mis-perceptions of a given situation, for what we may think is needed, may indeed not be what is truly needed. The first step in prayer is to listen to find out what to pray for. We pray within the understanding that we don’t have all of the facts of a given situation, unless God chooses to reveal those to us. Proverbs 3 reminds us, “ To trust the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding”. Amen. Sometimes we pray and no one gets healed, sometimes we’re looking for a miracle and healing takes place by regular old ways. (like by doctors)
But to be clear...to pray in faith does NOT mean you stop going to doctors or counselors. It does mean you trust that God will answer your prayer through all of the means at HIS disposal. Sometimes healing takes place incrementally, over time, at a divine pace that defies our control or desires. Sometimes one person’s healing involves others and so it takes God time to get everyone in the right place. These are some of the ways in which I’ve seen God work. I will say, this is by no means an absolute list.

Sometimes the pain and physical suffering are linked to emotional and spiritual brokeness that needs to be healed before physical healing can take place. We so often come to prayer seeking physical healing, healing for tangible signs of suffering. Yet, Jesus seeks to heal the whole of us. He heals not only sickness but also our sin, our spirits.
When you look at healing stories in the gospels, often confession, repentance, and forgiveness are closely interwoven with the healing.

James said, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” Confessing our sins lays them at the feet of Jesus, which is where our salvation is as well. Confessing our sins, Confessing... speaking our truth, being able to clearly look at our own actions, our own inactions.. our mistakes, takes us into our own pains and scams, our hurts and angers, our disappointments and fears. God is waiting to forgive us.
But if we don’t ask for forgiveness we begin building walls between ourselves and God which leads to walls between ourselves and others, and finally walls within ourselves. Shame for our unforgiven actions which we think, like to pretend, God doesn’t know about can deepen this separation between us and God. “Physical healing is not an end in itself but leads to a more intense personal relationship with God. We do not seek healing so much as we seek the healer. “ writes MacNutt.

"If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." (2 Chronicles 7:14)

To some people the word "humility" means to cower down...but Biblically it means "to admit to ones weakness and limitations while recognizing the strength of God". We truly understand God’s love for us when we have confessed and repented and sense, in greater measure, God’s unconditional love for us.
God has brought into my life many people who have encouraged, instructed, and supported me in this call to healing. There are many I have met here at Peace who have a similar calling and are responding to it. We have prayer groups.. I pluralize that as we are now in talks about adding another. We have had several healing services with hands on healing and anointing. As you’ve already seen, prayer shawls and prayer beads groups have formed. We have a growing care ministry for those in crisis and/or sick. Our church has stepped boldly into Global mission work, drawing upon the prayers of so many dedicated to partnering in prayer with our missionaries and those they serve in places such as Honduras, India, and Africa. Prayer partners have developed for specific needs, for specific teams, such as the leadership team at Peace (forever in need of prayer ) We also, as a congregation have selected each person attending this conference and have been praying for you. Once called as disciples, one must allow that “new priorities emerge” ... God priorities.

I have been so blessed by meeting and becoming friends with Dr Nancy Schmitz who has answered a similar call and we are embarking together to become members of the International Order of St. Luke, an ecumenical organization dedicated to the Christian healing ministry. We have begun to pray for one another, to pray within and for our families, our communities and the circle of fellowship and prayer needs grow. We have come to understand that Jesus sends people into our lives, across our paths compelling us to pray and allowing God to heal so as they then can be witnesses to God’s love and Grace. As the people who listened to the woman at the well said..
"They said to the woman, "We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world." (John 4:42)

And the greatest of these: Love.

Jesus replied:” Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-40)

When you know the love of God, when you allow God’s love to fill you, you can then see how very much God loves each of us. When you feel God’s love wash over you, often times that is the very first and most profound healing. And when you allow God’s love to flow through you to others... indescribable. Really.


MacNutt writes, “God seems delighted to work in a climate of Love.”

Agnes Sanford writes: “Love is the beginning and the ending of all of our work and the enfolding mantle in which all the gifts of the Spirit are cherished and protected. Love is not merely a gift, it is the whole way of life.”

We pray for others because as loved children of God there is no other way but to be that love outwardly, to share it in all ways. Love must be the medium in which we center all prayer. The love that Christ exampled for us as he walked to the cross, to bear our sin and suffering, the love of God to have sent his only son to die in order to save me, you... this is the paramount key to healing. God’s Love.