I was just speaking to this person whose mother is sick with a form of cancer. I asked this person: “have you prayed for your mother’s healing?” Afterwhich, I received this look from her as if I said something shocking.
“Can I do that?” This Christian friend asked.
Sadly, this is a common story I encounter in counselling work. I’ve come across Christians who put themselves down with negative speech such as:
“I am not qualified to pray for healing.”
“Who am I to command the disease away?”
Some of them simply hold their peace as if confused on what to say. They know the power of prayers, but they do not have the confidence to pray and call forth their healings and blessings. It is as if the people who come here for counselling help are the ones who have been lied to by the world by making them believe that they have no choice and no power against the abuses and challenges the world throws at them. It is a lie that Christians have to grow up as meek and weak people who are easy targets for the bullies of the world.
God wants His children to mature in spirit (and person) so that they can be in charge of their lives. Come to think of it, who can help and minister to the poor if there are no empowered spirits? Have a look below on how God reacted when He found Moses whining to Him about the Egyptian army cornering him and the Israelites against the sea:
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on.
Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water
so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.
Exodus 14:15-16
The Lord is telling Moses to man up and exercise his authority!
Even Jesus was disappointed at His disciples’ weakness when they weren’t able to cast away the demon from the child:
“You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied,
“how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.”
Matthew 17:17
When the disciples asked The Lord on why they couldn’t drive out the demon, Jesus told them: “Because you have so little faith” (v20). To offer my personal translation, Jesus was telling them: because you guys spent your time in fear and whining that you overlooked the power from Me! The disciples focused more on the problem than the glory and good of God.
It is not because God is bothered by our petitions, it is more that He wants us to stand up on our own in faith, being the true children of God. He wants us using the gifts that He has bestowed on us and to not just merely whine to Him as if He has not yet died on the cross.
For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity,
but of power, love, and self-discipline.
2 Timothy 1:7
In Christian Counselling, we focus on restoring The Christian’s identity in Christ. In Christian counselling we have to keep reminding the people we help on the truth that: GOD HEARS THE PRAYERS OF THE RIGHTEOUS (Proverbs 15:29) and that is why our prayers are powerful and effective (James 5:16). Now, this will be difficult if we are not conscious of the cross of Jesus Christ; hence, most of us need to meditate on the cross first and let that mustard seed sink in once again: that Jesus Christ has died for our sins and has made us righteous to The Father. Now, speak out your prayers in faith and power in the name of Jesus Christ!