The Power of Prayer

[RLOH]

I have never shared one of my life changing experiences with any person other than my immediate family. I constantly read post asking for prayers for people in need and I always say a prayer for those people. In September 1991 while exercising, I got a terrible headache that I knew was abnormal. I was so sick that I had to lay on the floor while I waited to die. After thirty minutes, I felt that I could stand up and call my doctor. As luck would have it, he was on vacation and his answering machine sent me to his backup doctor. I called this doctor and he agreed to see me later that afternoon. I went to him and he found nothing wrong and scheduled a cat scan for two days later. I worked second shift and believe it or not, I went to work that day and the next day. I was extremely sick both of those days, but I had myself believing I was feeling better. I had the CT scan on Wed. afternoon and did not go to work that day. I had no sooner got home from the scan when the phone rang. It was the hospital calling and they told me to get someone to get me back up there immediately. I called my wife at her job and had her take me back to the hospital. At this point I did not know what they had found and was sick with worry and pain. At the hospital they told me I had a bleeding brain aneurysm and it was extremely serious. They took me by ambulance to Cleveland, Ohio where I was put in a dark room without any visitors allowed. My brain was full of blood and I was given a 50% chance to live until surgery could be performed. If I survived the surgery, I was told that I could expect many defictits such as being blind or paralyzed. The surgery was scheduled for Friday morning, but there was too much blood in my brain. They had to wait until Monday morning hoping that the bleeding would stop. For those three days I lay in a room with no light or visitors. The doctors would not risk me getting stimulated by the sun or any vistiors. I don't think I opened my eyes for those three days, praying for Monday to come so I could have a chance at life. Sunday night at around midnight, I was praying as I has for the last three days when I heard voices near me. I opened my eyes to see my pastor and one of my life long friends standing over me praying. My worry was gone at that point. It was a strange feeling to think that I would be OK with whatever the outcome was. To this day, I thought my seeing these people was a dream, but that was not the case. They were there and their prayers along with mine were answered. I survived the eleven hour surgery with abslolutely no problems or deficits. Prayer is powerful and please pray for all in need. R.L.

 

[Ma Betty in MO]

Welcome RLOH; thanks for your story and, Yes, there is power in prayer and God is good and is good all the time! Praise God and Thank You, Jesus, for your surgery and recovery with no deficits and for the back up dr who sent you for a cat scan that showed the emergency problem! May God Bless you and yours and I pray you have a blessed and Merry CHRISTmas! Amen! Ma Betty

 

[Jim West Pa]

n/t

 

[Nauti]

Hi ma Betty,there is something i don't quite understand.You say that God is good and good all the time.You say that it is the direct result of God and jesus that R.L is now well again.I assume you are saying that it was God and jesus that made R.L well again through the power of their love.If this is the case, why did God let R.L get a brain aneurysm in the first place.....why did he let him suffer the physical pain and the terrible anxiety of not knowing what was going to happen to him.And why do thousands of other people who get illnesses or are starving to death every day (especially young innocent children) end up dying if God is truly good all the time.Every time i see young children on the t.v dying of starvation i'm afraid i loose a little more faith.Please explain this to me and help me get my faith back.

 

[steve in so la]

to draw people closer to them / maybe to teach right from wrong / maybe the Lord offers the way to go and when people dont want that way they go astray & when stuff happens they come crying to the Lord. That's what is happening in the schools now. One cannot keep the Lord on hold till they need Him. Like a spare tire , some think. Steve in so az

 

[Ma Betty in MO]

Welkcome Nauti Neil! You ask a question that many in the world ask all the time....if God heals and is so good why does He allow trials, sicknesses,diseases and starvation! Well, when Jesus arose from the tomb and then went to heaven in His resurrection after 50 days, He sent us a Comforter and He is God's Holy Spirit in place of Jesus being here doing the healing by His touching the sick and commanding evil spirits to leave! We, as God's saints who are saved in Jesus and filled with God's Holy Spirit, have the healing power of Jesus by the laying on of hands (those who have the gift of healing) and through faithful prayer that what we ask for will be done! It is by faith that the illl and those with needs have their needs met! God may have His Holy Spirit speak to someone else and they will give the money or the supplies that may be needed for His Child while those that have the healing power can lay their hands upon the sick and pray for them...some are given the very person and the problem to those who can use God's Spirit for the sick or diseased person's healing, but many aren't healed and we do not know why...maybe their faith isn't strong enough, or maybe God wants them to lean on and trust in Jesus to grow in faith as the healing is done through drs and a long healing process or death when our spirit goes back to God Who gave it! We are not to ask why, but just believe that God is Who He says He is and Jesus is His only begotten Son, Who is God born in the flesh as the Messiah, Who saves us from our sins by our asking forgiveness and mercy and He does through our obedient faith in Him! We can always depend on God but cannot always depend upon mankind, for Jesus will never leave nor forsake His own, although we can turn our backs on Him....but oh how sad for anyone that does!

When Jesus left He said for us to occupy until He comes again and do the service (work) that He did while here on this earth! There are different gifts and we are to ask for the better gifts! God's Children adopted by His grafting us into His family are to give when we see someone in need and to pray for lost souls and sick bodies! The world is full of sins and wickedness...with greed and evil hurting the poor and causing the downfall of nations; therefore we are to be God's hands on earth but someday we will be with Jesus in His heavenly realm where no sickness nor trials will ever be! Trials either draw us to Jesus or we can become bitter and turn away from Him, as it is our choice to believe and receive His love and mercy while increasing our faith in Him or keep on serving satan!

I hope this helps you and others to understand....that we, who are Christians, are the workmen of God and faithful praying turns the heart of God Jehovah to do what we ask of Him, for our and others good and for His purpose! Sometimes God says, Yes, and sometimes, He says, No...it is His choice for He rules and reigns and is the Holy God Whom we love and worship in Jesus' precious and holy name! God allows us to go our own way and make our own decisions in a sinful world, if we don't want to believe in Who Jesus is and why He came that He might save the sinners (all are born sinners) from all our confessed sins and wash us clean with His Holy Word as we study and serve Him with joy and gladness as we endure and overcome all things with His guiding our footsteps on God's straight and narrow path in this life for a glorious, joyful life, eternally, we my not receive His healings and blessings! For 'tis our choice to believe or not to believe! May God Bless and direct you in the way to go and to believe in Him as our Messiah, the One, true Christ, also! Merry CHRISTmas to you and yours! Amen! Ma Betty

 

[Sailorman]

Neil, if you were to read just the New Testament you would see some things at work. When God created the earth He placed man in charge of using it and overseeing it. Man stumbled and through it gave the devil great authority through sin. God brought deliverence from sin through the sacrifice of His son, Jesus. But we have to make choices. First to accept that sacrifice on our behalf and then to do the works he has laid out there in scripture. God does reach in to this fallen and corrupted world (the bad things happen because of our handing the world over to sin) and work a miracle that often contravenes natural processes. I have seen this in person with my own eyes. But he also places the responsability for much squarely in the hands of His servants and there, I fear, many fall short of His commands.

While forgiven, His people are far from perfect in their obedience and one day we will all have to give an account of our actions. We are called to be a light for God in the world. We are told to care for the poor, hungry, sick and oppressed. Many work at this but I fear many more do not. Please don't blame God for the failures of His children. Instead I've learned just how effective He can make you if you choose to be one of the ones who decides to make a difference. It will change your entire life! It will certainly change the lives of those you help. You want God to rescue those people yet in my experience indeed He does but He wants to work through people like you! So the question becomes, how far are you willing to obey Him and become His worker of change and show His light in a fallen and evil world?

 

[Mike Chgo area]

n/t

 

[7centsworth]

That is awesome RHOL. And amen sailor man.

 

[Nauti]

Thanks to You both(MaBetty and Sailorman).After reading your posts i realise that it is humanity i am losing faith in and not God himself.God has given everybody a massive potential to help others but i'm afraid that selfishness seems to be the way forward for many people.I always try to help others when i can(but admit i don't do enough).....i believe strongly in the phrase 'if you help others you help yourself'.I mean this in the sense that when i help others i feel good inside and this in turn makes me want to do more to help....it's a good way to go through life.It's a shame that more people do not try this for themselves......if everybody practised this there would be no unnecessary starvation and suffering in the world.Reading your posts has made me realise that i need to do more to help people directly but also to try to get the message across to others that helping less fortunate people is the way forward to a better life.However,as i said earlier there is a lot of selfishness in the world today......all people seem to be interested in is the latest gadget and material things so getting the message across may be a difficult task.Unfortunately this is very true at this time of year....i am saddened at how Christmas has become a commercial event rarther than a celebration of the most important event in man's history.I hope the big man himself is not getting too disappointed with mankinds efforts of late....hopefully we can make more of a positive difference in the coming years.
Anyway,i hope all have a lovely Christmas and a happy new year,
Best wishes,Neil.

 

[Ma Betty in MO]

Thank you Neil for your post and, Yes, it is we Christians who make the difference through loving our enemy, giving and prayer! The love of our Living God is Awesome and I couldn't live without Jesus, as my own personal Savior and Lord! May we each be the servant our Heavenly Father wants us to be and although we might want to blame God for how the sinful world is...it isn't His fault and wants us to have Peace and Good Cheer all through our earthly life so that we can be with Him throughout eternity...the first is salvation of our souls by God's forgiving grace and then to do good works for Him in Jesus' name to make a difference for the good and for His purpose in ourselves and others. It is our choice to love and obey Jesus, the Messiah, as our Lord and Savior or not! We fight not againt flesh and blood but against spiritual powers in high places....satan's demons, who are God's fallen angels! May God Bless you with a most blessed CHRISTmas and A Happy New Year and in the many to come until the saints of God are caught up into the air by Jesus and are with Him forever and ever! Amen! Ma Betty

 

[Sandtick]

Power of prayer is awesome! Love hearing and witnessing stories like this. God bless!