Note: In addition to our experiences, much of what is found here is drawn from the book Healing by Francis McNutt, Let Jesus Heal Your Hidden Wounds by Brad Long and Cindy Strickland and Healing the Sick by Hannah and Alex Absolom. I highly recommend each of these titles. And… scroll down of click here for short instructional videos on Listen-Love-Pray.
The Bible invites us to practice healing. Jesus healed, and as we’ll see, he directed his disciples to heal others. Does he expect us to heal? Many reading this will have experienced healing. And as Paul wrote to his friends in Corinth, God comforts us so we can comfort others. As we’ve discussed elsewhere, God seems to enjoy working through us to do for others the same sorts of things he has done for us. In other words, “what God does for you He delights to do through you.” If at some time God has healed you, he would love to work through you to bring healing to others.
In the New Testament, Jesus isn’t the only one who healed the sick.
- Jesus sent the 12 and the 72 to proclaim the Kingdom of God and heal the sick (Luke 9 and 10)
- Paul lists healing among the Spiritual gifts, along with many other gifts employed to bring healing, like faith, discernment, wisdom, knowledge, etc. (See 1 Corinthians 12:29).
- In the letter James wrote to the churches, he says, “If anyone is sick, he should call the elders, anoint with oil, confess your sins to each other, and pray.” James 5:14-16
Healing is meant to be a standard, common practice in the church. When we do not engage in ministries that bring healing, we are avoiding much of what we were sent to do. But many Christians get nervous with the subject of healing. Some healing ministries have more hype than substance, with no shortage of bad theology. And then, of course, there are the valid questions: Does God still heal today? What happens if I pray for someone to be healed, and they aren’t healed? And lastly, many people have negative personal experiences around healing.
A good place to start is with the simple question – What is healing? Much could be written here, but it’s helpful to connect it with our understanding of shalom. Shalom is much more than the absence of conflict. It is about things being in right relationship. When we experience shalom, we are in a right relationship with God, others, and ourself. Moreover, things are right in the physical realm, too. We are in right relationship with creation. We are strong and able to work, eat, think, and enjoy life in creation. Healing is about restoring shalom by setting things right with God, with ourselves, with others, and with creation. It is called for whenever we are hurt, injured, or wounded in our bodies, emotions, relationships, and spirits.
But healing raises questions related to responsibility. A study of the healing passage in James 5 shows there are three parties in healing ministry: the person who needs healing, those at the church who minister healing, and God.
Who is responsible for bringing about healing? That should be clear and simple: God is. When we take on the responsibility for doing what only God can do, we feel a load of pressure and recognize our inadequacy – as we should. If we feel responsible for someone’s healing, we will be reluctant to engage in healing practices, because we know we can’t do it. But we are not responsible for healing a person. That responsibility belongs to Jesus. Jesus heals. We are simply called to do our part, which is described below. We need to be responsible to do what God calls us to do, but the results belong to God.
What are the responsibilities of the person seeking healing? It varies and depends a great deal on their condition. Jesus healed people based on their own faith, based on others’ faith, and sometimes just because he had compassion. If the person who needs some form of healing is able, it is natural to invite them to participate in the healing—say where it hurts, tell the story of what happened and how it happened, and let those praying know how they are feeling and what they are sensing as others are praying.
What are the responsibilities of those who are ministering? We are to love our neighbor like the Bible tells us to. We are to learn to cooperate with the Spirit as we interact with the one who needs healing, and we are to ask Jesus to heal. Also, we are called on to be patient. (Love is patient.) It is wise to avoid giving advice or putting any pressure on the person to respond in the ways we want them to. (Love does not seek its own way.) Healing ministry and healing prayer is about following Jesus’ lead and does not involve putting pressure on another person.
There are several types or areas of healing
Spiritual healing – Forgiveness of sin Mark 2:1-10 shows Spiritual healing before physical
Emotional healing – Healing of the emotions John 4, “The Woman at the Well”, is a great example.
Physical healing – Lots of examples: Mark 1:29-33, Acts 3:1-8, Acts 14:8-10
Deliverance – Casting out demons: Luke 8:26-49, Luke 9:37-42, Acts 16:16-18
Of course, our spirits, emotions, relationships and bodies are interrelated. And we interact with an invisible spiritual realm. It should not be surprising then that a physical infirmity may have an emotional source, or that a physical ailment led someone into sinful behaviors, or that demonic activity took advantage of weaknesses brought on by any of the other three. Healing in one area may bring about healing in other areas. It’s not uncommon, for example, that someone forgives an enemy and their physical ailment is relieved. Conversely, seeking to bring healing to on area may reveal the need for healing in other areas.
There are other types of healing, such as societal healing, generational healing, relational healing, etc. But for our purposes, we’ll focus on the needs of an individual who wants to receive healing. In our work at LoveFirst Coast, we focus on spiritual and emotional healing (types 1 and 2) while making room for physical healing and deliverance (types 3 and 4) and working for the broader forms of healing.
Listen, Love, and Pray. Steps Toward Healing
These are the “steps” we take.
1) Listen. Listen to the person. Ask open-ended questions and learn what they need. “What’s going on?” “Where do you think that came from?” “What would you like us to do?” “Would you mind saying more about…?” Often, listening brings healing. Few people are really listened to—and they bottle up pain and stress. Speaking and being heard allows them to release what they have been carrying. AND we need to listen for the Holy Spirit. As Henry Blackaby taught in the classic study Experiencing God, the Spirit speaks through prayer, scripture, circumstances, and the church. Much more could be written about this, but pay attention while you are praying. Is God bringing scriptures to mind? Is he bringing up things from memory? What are those praying with you seeing and saying. So two questions: what is the person saying? What is God saying?
2) Love. Love them. This usually means giving them your full attention and taking initiative to serve them, care for them, make them feel safe and comfortable. We do not want to presume, or assume, or be rude in any way. Love builds up another person. When we love someone else, we keep our attention on them. At the very least, the person receiving ministry should feel encouraged and blessed as a result of receiving. They should feel loved.
3) Pray. We pray for God to act, for the Spirit to move, and for Jesus to come in and heal. We pray with our eyes open and our hearts open to the person we are serving and to God.
The stairs shape helps us remember this pattern. We descend into prayer. There are three steps down toward the position of service and humility. We need to humble ourselves to truly listen to another person. Christian Healing Ministry (Francis and Juith McNutt) teaches that perhaps 70% of healing takes place when we intentionally, graciously listen to another person. Few people are truly listened to in our culture. To be able to express oneself in a loving, supportive environment makes a big difference.
The second humbling step is to love them. We are careful with what they say. We are respectful in how we ask questions. We listen without interrupting. We offer an explanation of what we’re doing, and we ask permission before we do things associated with prayer. Ask permission to touch, lay on hands, anoint with oil, or when we ask a delicate question. (Remember – no pressure!) We serve. We comfort. We offer to meet needs if we can. (Can we get you some water? Would a different chair help? Do you need a break?) We are to be patient, kind, believing, hopeful, and gentle with the person.
Finally, we pray. We take them before God, before Christ the Great Physician, and ask the Spirit to move in us and through us to bring healing. In prayer, we humble ourselves before God.
Spiritual wounds and afflictions can come from numerous sources – loss, grief, prolonged suffering, abuse, unforgiveness, hidden sin, bad theology, etc. The need for spiritual healing often includes a need to acknowledge and confess sin for their own part of the situation. These sorts of matters do not come up very often unless trust is high. Needless to say confidentiality is essential.
Our pattern with hearing about wounds, hurts, or sins will be familiar. We… listen, love, and pray. Here are some guidelines when someone confesses sin:
1) Listen to their confession of sin.
2) Love them by first identifying with them as a sinner and then by assuring them that Jesus does forgive and will forgive them.
3) Pray with them as they confess their sin to God and offer an assurance of forgiveness. Every Christian has the authority, after hearing someone confess sin, to reassure a brother or sister by saying, “in the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.”
After prayer, ask them if there is anything they need to do in response. They may need to take some steps to make it right, to make acknowledgment and restoration, or to be silent, let it go, and just move on. Avoid telling them what to do. Just pray for them and ask them what steps they need to take. Listen to their response. Love them by offering encouragement. Pray with them again if it seems right, for example if they are going to try to do something that requires courage.
Also, there may be a need for the person to forgive someone who sinned against them. Harboring unforgiveness leaves many people sick. If so, here’s the pattern. Listen to their story of what happened. Love them through it. Ask if they’ve forgiven the person or if there is anything keeping them from doing so. Ask them what they think they need to do. Forgiveness often takes steps, and you may only be able to help them move a little way toward forgiveness. Pray for them to find the strength to move toward forgiveness. (By the way, this is a step toward relational healing.)
After praying and hearing, you may need to repeat the process several times. Be patient. Ask how they are feeling. Ask if anything is helping or hindering them from receiving healing. Repeat the pattern of Listen– Love—Pray as often as it seems necessary.
Questions for Reflection:
- Have you ever experienced healing or relief simply by being listened to? What is it about being listened to that heals?
- Have you ever seen others suddenly, miraculously healed? What happened?
- Have you ever been skeptical of healing ministry? Why? How can those problems be avoided as we obey Christ and engage in healing ministry?
- We believe healing prayer and the practice of medicine go together. How do you see it? Why is this significant?
- How could it be harmful if we allow people to think that healing depends on their faith? What (or rather who) is healing dependent on? (Of course, the answer is Jesus. But we Christians sometimes forget that.) Why is it important?
- Who’s faith is built up when we see God heal?
- Is God saying anything? What will you do about it?they need to do anything
Videos
Week 1: The Basics of Listen-Love-Pray
Week 2: Remembering Who God Is and Who We Are When We Listen, Love, and Pray.
A Few Names of God: Our Father, Gracious Heavenly Father, Wonderful Counselor, Prince of Peace, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Messiah, Light of the World, Jesus, Father, Son, Holy Spirit, The Great I Am, Abba Father, Morning Star, Good Shepherd, Savior, Redeemer, Holy Spirit, Advocate, Comforter, Holy One, Emmanuel – God With Us, Great Physician, Spirit of Truth, Spirit of Jesus, Merciful Father, Friend of Sinners, Mediator, Guide, Righteous Judge, The Resurrection and the Life, Lamb of God, God of Abraham, Creator.
Week 3: How do we know if we are praying according to God’s will? God’s will for us is captured in the idea of shalom. God is at work restoring shalom. Knowing a bit about that can help us pray with confidence.
Week 4: In 1st Peter 2, the Bible calls us a “royal priesthood”. We are members of the King’s family. God has entrusted us with authority. What does it mean to pray with the authority of heaven?
Week 5: How do we find and sustain the strength to love and care for others? What helps us hang onto courage and patience to be a blessing to others? Who can keep us in the game? Jesus did this better than anyone. We can gain a lot of insight for staying at it by looking at his lifestyle.
Week 6: Recapping the whole course in 13 minutes.
LoveFirst Coast 
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