Faith and Healing
What do you do when your dad is diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease? Will his healing hinge on your faith or prayers? In a romp through their recent emails, Brad and Wayne bite into these questions and a few more. Why do we have a difficult time living in uncertainty and going on a daily adventure with God and instead seek false security in some pat answer, ritualized technique or immutable principle? The truth is we are more secure in him than any of those things can offer, and learning to live there allows us to be part of an unfolding adventure in our lives rather than grasping at illusions of security that only disappoint in the realities of this broken world. During this conversation they talk about physical healing, inner healing, and the prayer of faith that we can engage with God as his work unfolds in our lives.
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Great to hear you talk about healing. I believe in it and often see healings. I resist sickness at every opportunity, believing not so much that healing is something which God wants to do, but rather that Jesus bore our sickness & infirmities on the cross, and has already sorted the problem, having redeemed our bodies on the Cross, a redemption some of which we can receive now (on earth as in heaven) and the fullness of which we will live in after we depart. ie our new body.
Having said that, whilst believing that sickness is something to be resisted and not embraced, we do live in a fallen world, have fallen flesh, and and ememy who is subtle and nasty.
Sometimes we may win against sickness, sometimes partially, sometimes we lose. Either way, I think we should fight sickness from the position as loved children of a Father we’re in relationship with, knowing we are ‘in process’ and that whatever the result, He can use it for our good, but that it is never from His hand, and NEVER NEVER NEVER as a punishment for our failings.
A point which is sometimes neglected is that this life is but a vapour, and that the best is yet to come! We maybe hold onto this life too dearly sometimes. The more I get to know God’s love the more I yearn for the better place. But that doesn’t mean I leave the relationship till later, nor should I sit about and suffer sickness without resisting it. It’s all part of the same thing.
That’s how I see it ayway.
Good points about the whole church discussion. When I left the last church I was at in April, I honestly started going somewhere else because I didn’t want to deal with my mother asking me every week, “Did you go to church today?” I know that this comes out of a place of concern, but sometimes we need to recognize that people need a time and space for healing and my faith in Christ really is intact. I just need a break from the organization known as Church. If we don’t allow ourselves this time and space, we’ll find ourselves just jumping back into the stream without ever spending time evaluating where we are in the faith. Now although I am attending a church that is a bit of fresh air over my last church, I am not joining or committing to anything yet. I enjoy the preaching and going to a Living the Questions class, but other than that, I have no plans to join until I know where it is that God would have me to be and do. I can tell you it’s really nice not to have the baggage of position and responsibility. For this time I need the space to exhale and process a lot of things that came out of my last experience. I’m actually enjoying my new-found freedom and really feel that I’m in a healthy place as I stand on my own two feet and become comfortable in my own skin rather than living what others think I should be.
I thought this was an interesting cartoon that I read while listening to the program today: http://www.gocomics.com/pearlsbeforeswine/?utm_source=GoComics&utm_medium=free_email&utm_campaign=user_comic
I have recently been finding myself visiting different Sunday events as a result of being in relationship with people. What’s cool is it doesn’t stink to me but my filter is fabulous. I was able to love the people in the place with genuine compassion. I am so happy. Its one of those times, Wayne has described, as look at it and go wow that’s not me, well the old me anyway, look at what Father has done “IN ME”. So cool. And on a pod cast long long ago, a response to the question of why aren’t you going to church anymore? was (I think this was Wayne)” people go to church for one of two reasons, they get something out of it or they are going out of obligation and I am not in either of those places right now.”
I also will say if I know them well, I am discovering “church” is who I am and less and less a place I go physically.
And I tell them a friend said long time ago, “nobody ever got lost following Jesus”. That statement alone has helped expose the “fence/pen as safe place” problem.
I think living the path of “unschooling/homeschool” has prepared me for dealing with people feeling defensive about their choices about education. One thing I discovered is if I hear someone compelled to defend how they live, that is not about me, its about them needing to convince themselves that what they are doing is right or more true. Somehow just that understanding expanded my heart with compassion and less receiving judgement from them. I know more and more that is just reflecting the reality of true freedom. Love is the constant not a variable.
We just had my mother-in-laws funeral and she had Alzheimers. It had been a ten year journey. We had such a wonderful celebration for her home coming. So much of His Love I know now because of that journey. Tracy, its a painful Hallelujah not a “I’ve seen the light” arrogant Hallelujah but a broken painfillled Hallellujah that is true praise. The more honest and real I was with Father about her healing the more Him I discovered and the Holy Spirit helped me embrace the mystery of God.
Not so spirituall here, but in dealing with Alzheimer’s — take advantage of all the support you can find, for yourself and all involved. Caregiver stress is serious. Perhaps the pressure of thinking you should believe for healing might add to the stress? (And I believe in healing, but getting past the notion of thinking I did something wrong if it doesn’t happen.) Let the Father walk you through each step, there are so many issues at so many levels, and trust that He will get you and your loved ones through it. Healing is a miracle, but so is having the right thing to say at the right time, or getting the assurances you need through the process, or getting wonderful doctors and nurses etc etc etc.