Newsletter for 9/28/06-
Guidelines for Praying for
Healing
Guidelines for Praying for
Healing
Good Morning,
We had some interesting feedback from our newsletter last week and I would like to do a follow up to that thought.
It is God’s Will for us to be Healed, Ministered to and Blessed. If it wouldn’t have been, He wouldn’t have let His Son
pay such an awesome price to provide for it.
When our team ministers to someone, we fully expect them to be healed. If we pray for favor for someone, we fully
expect them to later share a testimony of blessing with us. If we give a prophetic word to someone, we fully expect
them to realize that the Lord is speaking to them exactly where they are at. If we work with you or your church, we
expect you to go out and minister in the same faithful expectation. This is not about us or our team, but this is about
the promises and expectations that the Lord has bestowed on the church (not a church). All of that being said,
please allow me to share some reasons that someone might not see victory.
One of the things that we see quite often as we minister healing to people is that sometimes people will get healed
and later receive back the malady that they were healed of. This is not unlike receiving back sin after being
delivered of it. I mention this because we regularly see people get healed and are able to do things that they have
been able to do for years, but then at some later time receive it back.
This is much like alcoholics that count how many days, months and years they have been sober, always afraid that
they will fall back into it. Aren't we glad that Christians don't count how long they have been saved, always afraid that
they will "fall off of the wagon." However, many people are willing to receive their sickness or sin back into their life at
a later date after being healed or saved. We must take authority over these things. When we receive healing
whether it be from sickness, disease or even an addiction, you are healed!!! You no longer have cancer (It was
never YOUR cancer anyway!!). If you get healed of an addiction, you don't have to be afraid of going back to it, you
are the only one that can decide to do it. So don't!
It is also possible for those that are ministering to not be as prepared as they should be. Let me clarify that the gifts
the Lord gives us are not based on us. Gifts are given without repentance, but our ability to be tuned in and operate
in these gifts by the guidance of the Holy Spirit can be hindered. The Lord will often reveal to us HOW to minister to
someone. Whether it be taking authority over sickness or the enemy, or if it be commanded the body to become
well. It always takes something on the part of the recipient. Some are unwilling to receive the healing. We have
attempted to minister to people that didn't want to be healed but came forward because of peer pressure. We call
this a spirit of infirmity. They gather some of their personality and character from the malady. It is who they are. I will
share more on this at a later date.
Sometimes, the people ministering have no intention of getting plugged into the Holy Spirit but just want to operate in
their own power without Him. This doesn’t work very well. Please see the "Sons of Sceva Deliverance School" (Acts
19). These gentleman had seen the Apostle Paul operate in power, but not his own. Paul operated in the authority
of The Holy Spirit. If we operate in our own power, we will likely go home beaten bloody and naked like the Sons of
Sceva. Not a pretty picture. I am sure that their dad Sceva, a well known spiritual leader in their time, was not well
pleased with them! (By the way, who goes out looking for a demon possessed person???)
Secondly, maybe the person ministering is praying for healing and Jesus didn’t. I have not been able to find a single
scripture where Jesus “prayed” for someone to be healed. He always commanded healing. Because of the authority
that He had through the Holy Spirit, He commanded the body to come into subjection. Or He would order the enemy
out of the person. This is another topic, but He did NOT pray prayers of blessing on them and talk about how great
they were. He dealt directly with the problem. He is our example.
Thirdly, we try to put rules on somebody getting healed. Like salvation. Jesus never told someone that they needed
to get right with the Lord (salvation) before healing them. He always healed them first and then they came to
repentance. In the case of the woman at the well, He spoke a word of knowledge over her then she came to
repentance. It is by His kindness that we come to repentance.
I wanted to share some of these thoughts with you, so that you can hone your gifts. Pastor John Wimber who really
was one of the fathers of the movement that we are in today, prayed every Sunday for people in his church. He did
this one and a half years without seeing any results. At the one and a half year mark, he got the breakthrough. By
then, many people had left his church. Obviously, the Lord had not left. Let's do what the Lord has called us to do
and not care what man thinks. If we do, the Lord will bless it!!!
Working while it is still day,
Pastor Jeff McCracken and the Kingdom Power Now Team www.kingdompowernow.com
PS We will be having our next bi-weekly Bible Study at Rainier Assembly of God on 10/7/06 at 6 pm in the fellowship
hall. Please feel free to come. All are welcome!!
We had some interesting feedback from our newsletter last week and I would like to do a follow up to that thought.
It is God’s Will for us to be Healed, Ministered to and Blessed. If it wouldn’t have been, He wouldn’t have let His Son
pay such an awesome price to provide for it.
When our team ministers to someone, we fully expect them to be healed. If we pray for favor for someone, we fully
expect them to later share a testimony of blessing with us. If we give a prophetic word to someone, we fully expect
them to realize that the Lord is speaking to them exactly where they are at. If we work with you or your church, we
expect you to go out and minister in the same faithful expectation. This is not about us or our team, but this is about
the promises and expectations that the Lord has bestowed on the church (not a church). All of that being said,
please allow me to share some reasons that someone might not see victory.
One of the things that we see quite often as we minister healing to people is that sometimes people will get healed
and later receive back the malady that they were healed of. This is not unlike receiving back sin after being
delivered of it. I mention this because we regularly see people get healed and are able to do things that they have
been able to do for years, but then at some later time receive it back.
This is much like alcoholics that count how many days, months and years they have been sober, always afraid that
they will fall back into it. Aren't we glad that Christians don't count how long they have been saved, always afraid that
they will "fall off of the wagon." However, many people are willing to receive their sickness or sin back into their life at
a later date after being healed or saved. We must take authority over these things. When we receive healing
whether it be from sickness, disease or even an addiction, you are healed!!! You no longer have cancer (It was
never YOUR cancer anyway!!). If you get healed of an addiction, you don't have to be afraid of going back to it, you
are the only one that can decide to do it. So don't!
It is also possible for those that are ministering to not be as prepared as they should be. Let me clarify that the gifts
the Lord gives us are not based on us. Gifts are given without repentance, but our ability to be tuned in and operate
in these gifts by the guidance of the Holy Spirit can be hindered. The Lord will often reveal to us HOW to minister to
someone. Whether it be taking authority over sickness or the enemy, or if it be commanded the body to become
well. It always takes something on the part of the recipient. Some are unwilling to receive the healing. We have
attempted to minister to people that didn't want to be healed but came forward because of peer pressure. We call
this a spirit of infirmity. They gather some of their personality and character from the malady. It is who they are. I will
share more on this at a later date.
Sometimes, the people ministering have no intention of getting plugged into the Holy Spirit but just want to operate in
their own power without Him. This doesn’t work very well. Please see the "Sons of Sceva Deliverance School" (Acts
19). These gentleman had seen the Apostle Paul operate in power, but not his own. Paul operated in the authority
of The Holy Spirit. If we operate in our own power, we will likely go home beaten bloody and naked like the Sons of
Sceva. Not a pretty picture. I am sure that their dad Sceva, a well known spiritual leader in their time, was not well
pleased with them! (By the way, who goes out looking for a demon possessed person???)
Secondly, maybe the person ministering is praying for healing and Jesus didn’t. I have not been able to find a single
scripture where Jesus “prayed” for someone to be healed. He always commanded healing. Because of the authority
that He had through the Holy Spirit, He commanded the body to come into subjection. Or He would order the enemy
out of the person. This is another topic, but He did NOT pray prayers of blessing on them and talk about how great
they were. He dealt directly with the problem. He is our example.
Thirdly, we try to put rules on somebody getting healed. Like salvation. Jesus never told someone that they needed
to get right with the Lord (salvation) before healing them. He always healed them first and then they came to
repentance. In the case of the woman at the well, He spoke a word of knowledge over her then she came to
repentance. It is by His kindness that we come to repentance.
I wanted to share some of these thoughts with you, so that you can hone your gifts. Pastor John Wimber who really
was one of the fathers of the movement that we are in today, prayed every Sunday for people in his church. He did
this one and a half years without seeing any results. At the one and a half year mark, he got the breakthrough. By
then, many people had left his church. Obviously, the Lord had not left. Let's do what the Lord has called us to do
and not care what man thinks. If we do, the Lord will bless it!!!
Working while it is still day,
Pastor Jeff McCracken and the Kingdom Power Now Team www.kingdompowernow.com
PS We will be having our next bi-weekly Bible Study at Rainier Assembly of God on 10/7/06 at 6 pm in the fellowship
hall. Please feel free to come. All are welcome!!