Persistence Could Be Your Key

Persistence Could By Your Key

And a woman, who had had a flow of blood for twelve years, and had undergone much at the hands of a number of medical men, and had given all she had, and was no better, but even worse, when she had news of the things which Jesus did, went among the people coming after him, and put her hand on his robe. For she said, If I may only put my hand on his robe, I will be made well. And straight away the fountain of her blood was stopped, and she had a feeling in her body that her disease had gone and she was well. - Mark 5:25-29

Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For each one that asks receives, and the one that seeks finds; and to the one knocking, it will be opened. - Matthew 7:7-8

And He also spoke a parable to them to teach it is always right to pray, and not to faint, saying, A certain judge was in a certain city, not fearing God and not respecting man. And a widow was in that city, and she came to him, saying, Avenge me from my adversary. And for a time he would not. But after these things he said to himself, Even if I do not fear God, and do not respect man, yet because this widow causes me trouble, I will avenge her, that not coming to the end, she wear me down. And the Lord said, Hear what the unrighteous judge says; and will God not at all execute the avengement of His elect, those crying to Him day and night, also having been long-suffering over them? I say to you that He will carry out the avengement of them speedily. But the Son of Man coming then, will He find faith on the earth? - Luke 18:1-8

Have you been seeking God for divine healing? Have you received prayer? Once? Twice? Even three times, with no difference in your condition? Don't give up! One thing that I've learned from Scripture as well as from personal experience is that persistence pays off.

In each Scripture above we see the benefits of our being persistent. But when we're in the middle of seeking God for an answer to prayer - especially a healing - persistence can be hard to come by.

For some reason, in most Christian circles, it is felt that if someone receives prayer for healing and they aren't healed the first time, then something must be wrong. Either the person's faith isn't up to par or the condition just might be their “thorn in the flesh.”

These attitudes and assumptions can have devastating effects on the person who needs God's healing touch. The person my start questioning his faith or his salvation. They may begin to believe that their affliction has indeed been sent from God and that they must learn to bear their cross. While there are indeed crosses we each must bear as a servant of Christ, illness is not one of them.

In the gospels, time and again Jesus equates sickness with sin. Neither belong in the body of Christ or in the kingdom of God. But we are presently living in a fallen state and we will at times get sick or injured. When this happens we must pray, pray, pray!

There are times when God will indeed heal us the first time we ask. But when He doesn't seem to answer you the first or second time, don't become discouraged. While God is not the source of our illnesses, I do believe that He will use a situation for His purposes.

One good that can come from a delayed healing is a strengthening of our faith as well as being able to stand firm against attacks from the devil.

When I was seeking the Lord for my healing from fibromyalgia it was a long time in coming. Every Sunday after the service the pastor would invite anyone who needed prayer to come forward. As the weeks passed without an answer to my prayer (and at times my condition even worsened) I began to doubt my faith. I began listening to the suggestions of the enemy. Perhaps I needed to accept the fact that God gave me this thorn and learn to live with it. And surely I shouldn't make a fool of myself by going up for prayer any more. What would everyone think if they saw me going up week after week, month after month, with no answer to my prayer. Why, then they'd know for sure that my faith was weak.

Every Sunday morning I sat in the pew struggling between what my heart desired and what my mind was trying to convince me of. After a few weeks of wrestling and lots of pressing in to God, I decided that I didn't care what anyone else thought. I wasn't going to give God any rest until I was healed. Persistence was my key.

Just as the woman with the issue of blood threw all obstacles aside and pushed through the crowd until she touched the hem of Jesus' garment, so we must set our minds on our goal and push through until we reach it.

Next month - another miraculous healing testimony!

6/02


	Persistence Could By Your Key And a woman, who had had a flow of blood for twelve years, and had undergone much at the hands of a number of medical men, and had given all she had, and was no better, but even worse, when she had news of the things which Jesus did, went among the people coming after him, and put her hand on his robe. For she said, If I may only put my hand on his robe, I will be made well. And straight away the fountain of her blood was stopped, and she had a feeling in her body that her disease had gone and she was well. - Mark 5:25-29 Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For each one that asks receives, and the one that seeks finds; and to the one knocking, it will be opened. - Matthew 7:7-8 And He also spoke a parable to them to teach it is always right to pray, and not to faint, saying, A certain judge was in a certain city, not fearing God and not respecting man. And a widow was in that city, and she came to him, saying, Avenge me from my adversary. And for a time he would not. But after these things he said to himself, Even if I do not fear God, and do not respect man, yet because this widow causes me trouble, I will avenge her, that not coming to the end, she wear me down. And the Lord said, Hear what the unrighteous judge says; and will God not at all execute the avengement of His elect, those crying to Him day and night, also having been long-suffering over them? I say to you that He will carry out the avengement of them speedily. But the Son of Man coming then, will He find faith on the earth? - Luke 18:1-8 Have you been seeking God for divine healing? Have you received prayer? Once? Twice? Even three times, with no difference in your condition? Don't give up! One thing that I've learned from Scripture as well as from personal experience is that persistence pays off. In each Scripture above we see the benefits of our being persistent. But when we're in the middle of seeking God for an answer to prayer - especially a healing - persistence can be hard to come by. For some reason, in most Christian circles, it is felt that if someone receives prayer for healing and they aren't healed the first time, then something must be wrong. Either the person's faith isn't up to par or the condition just might be their “thorn in the flesh.” These attitudes and assumptions can have devastating effects on the person who needs God's healing touch. The person my start questioning his faith or his salvation. They may begin to believe that their affliction has indeed been sent from God and that they must learn to bear their cross. While there are indeed crosses we each must bear as a servant of Christ, illness is not one of them. In the gospels, time and again Jesus equates sickness with sin. Neither belong in the body of Christ or in the kingdom of God. But we are presently living in a fallen state and we will at times get sick or injured. When this happens we must pray, pray, pray! There are times when God will indeed heal us the first time we ask. But when He doesn't seem to answer you the first or second time, don't become discouraged. While God is not the source of our illnesses, I do believe that He will use a situation for His purposes. One good that can come from a delayed healing is a strengthening of our faith as well as being able to stand firm against attacks from the devil. When I was seeking the Lord for my healing from fibromyalgia it was a long time in coming. Every Sunday after the service the pastor would invite anyone who needed prayer to come forward. As the weeks passed without an answer to my prayer (and at times my condition even worsened) I began to doubt my faith. I began listening to the suggestions of the enemy. Perhaps I needed to accept the fact that God gave me this thorn and learn to live with it. And surely I shouldn't make a fool of myself by going up for prayer any more. What would everyone think if they saw me going up week after week, month after month, with no answer to my prayer. Why, then they'd know for sure that my faith was weak. Every Sunday morning I sat in the pew struggling between what my heart desired and what my mind was trying to convince me of. After a few weeks of wrestling and lots of pressing in to God, I decided that I didn't care what anyone else thought. I wasn't going to give God any rest until I was healed. Persistence was my key. Just as the woman with the issue of blood threw all obstacles aside and pushed through the crowd until she touched the hem of Jesus' garment, so we must set our minds on our goal and push through until we reach it. Next month - another miraculous healing testimony! 6/02