Introduction
The material in this section comes from a leaflet put together for the use of any who attend the Diocesan Ministry of Healing teaching sessions and who express a wish to pray for others on their own.
It is a great privilege to be able to come to God in prayer and to realise that he allows us to share with him as he extends his kingdom where we are. It is uplifting to help others see his glory as we pray for the things that please him, and it is exciting to see God at work amongst us as he answers our prayers, often in ways we hardly expected. This is the experience of all committed intercessors, but to engage in faithful daily prayer for those who are ill or in any kind of need is something special. God has given us the opportunity to influence the lives of others for the better by bringing them to him so that he can touch them. As we think of ourselves in this role of praying for the sick, we can imagine ourselves carrying the sick person to Jesus and gently laying them down before him, perhaps telling him about their need, and then asking him to touch them. One of the best examples of this in the gospels is that of the four men who brought their paralysed friend to Jesus. They stopped at nothing to get him to the Lord. The following are some straightforward pointers to help in praying for those who are unwell.
Always remember that Jesus is the one who heals, not ourselves.
We must never think that a person’s healing depends on our own qualities or abilities. We may think that we do not have enough faith, or we don’t pray long or hard enough. These thoughts can be counter-productive. Our task is simply to bring the person in need to Jesus and to tell the Lord what their needs are. We can be specific in this but we must not tell the Lord what he should do. He knows the sick person better than we do and his purposes for them. We must remember that his purpose and will are always the best. When we have this attitude, we can fully give all the glory and the praise to Jesus Christ to whom only it belongs.
We need to be people who are ‘disciples’ living in a personal relationship with him.
If we want to be effective intercessors we should always try to grow in our relationship with Jesus. We must study his word, and prayerfully reflect on the parts of the gospels which show our Lord practising his own healing ministry. Someone has said that when we intercede for the sick, we put one hand in the hand of the Lord Jesus and the other in the hand of the sick person, believing that the love and power of Jesus can flow through us into them. We must be careful that there is nothing in our hearts, or minds, or lives which would hinder that flow or which would make us ashamed to put our hand into the hand of the Lord. We need to keep examining our lives and repenting of self-will and selfishness, and trying to surrender ourselves more and more to the Lord each day so that we can be useful instruments of his.
We need to be people of compassion.
Jesus had great compassion for those who were sick or in any kind of need. He did not look on the worthiness of the person who came to him for healing but he looked at the way the person could be – in full health of body, mind and spirit; the way God the Father intended them to be when he created them. This means that we do not get hung up on whether the recipient of the healing ministry has sufficient faith. Of course, where there is an opportunity to prepare them to receive the healing ministry, we point them to Jesus, counselling them to trust in him alone and to surrender themselves to him. As we do this, we encourage them to come to Jesus themselves, as many in the gospels did, so that they can receive from him. But it is our love and compassion for the sick person which will encourage those for whom we pray and which draws alongside the compassion of Jesus and unites our prayers with him.
We need to pray with faith, not anxiety or doubt.
It is important not to keep on wondering whether the person for whom we pray is experiencing healing. We must remember that the Lord answers every prayer offered in faith, even if that answer is, ‘wait.’ Sometimes the person ministered to will tell us of something which they felt or experienced during the time of ministry. When this happens, we simple give thanks and praise to our loving God.
We should expect to see results as we pray.
While we do not make a point of constantly asking the person whether or not they are receiving healing, it should come as no surprise to us when there are signs of improvement. Again, this is a reason for thanksgiving. One of the ways in which we can increase our expectation and that of the person for whom we are praying is to lay hold of the healing promises of God in the bible and apply them in prayer.
We should pray with perseverance.
This applies, not only to the healing ministry, but to all intercessory prayer. Sometimes the Lord is testing us to see if we are truly relying upon him and are willing that what we pray for will be used for his glory. Sometimes we are opposed in prayer by Satan, and must struggle in prayer against him until we overcome the obstacles he puts in our way through the power of the Holy Spirit. In certain circumstances we must view our prayer as ‘binding the strong man’ and ‘plundering’ his house. So, we pray that in Jesus’ name the person for whom we are praying will be released from confusion, fear and anxiety and enabled to see the truth of Christ and his word. We are taking part in pushing back the kingdom of darkness which would seek to impose illness and dis-ease on as many as possible.
We should pray for those in the medical profession.
We must remember that all skill and knowledge come from God and he enables doctors, nurses and specialists to bring the advances of medical science to bear on those who are ill. We pray that they may be given particular understandings and encouragement as they seek to treat those who have asked us to pray for them. God’s healing ministry is one of ‘wholeness’ where body, mind, and spirit come under his loving touch which mostly, though not always, happens through a combination of medicine and prayer. We should always counsel those who ask us for prayer to consult their doctor so that they can tell us, if they wish, what exactly their healing needs are.
We should realise the importance of giving thanks and practice this as we pray.
Giving thanks allows God’s healing to continue in ourselves and those for whom we pray. Giving thanks enables us to keep our healing. Giving thanks always enables us to know that the source of all healing is found in God our loving heavenly Father who always wants to give us good things. We thank him in every circumstance for this certainty.
Lord, let your Spirit meet us here
to mend the body, mind and soul,
to disentangle peace from pain
and make your broken people whole.
(from Hymn 514 ©1969 Stainer & Bell Ltd
Church Hymnal – 5th edition)
A PRAYER FOR ALL WHO SUFFER
Almighty God, in the name of Jesus your Son, who healed the sick and consoled the sad, we bring to you in the silence of our hearts those for whom we now pray…………..………..; those who suffer in body, mind or spirit; those who know anxiety, fear and depression; those who feel lonely and isolated; those who are homeless and hungry; those enslaved in any kind of addiction; those oppressed by the evil actions of others; those who are bereaved. We ask that according to your will they may be healed and receive your comfort and live to glorify your name, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
If you would like to watch a healing service from the Church’s Ministry of Healing website, please follow the link below.
www.cmh-themount.org
You may find the service ‘A Celebration of Wholeness and Healing’ on page 457 of the Book of Common Prayer (2004)
Unless otherwise stated, this material has been written by those on the Board of Ministry involved in the Healing Ministry.