God Will Arise

One night after a prayer/care meeting, my prayer partner and I were talking about things that had happened in our lives during the previous couple of weeks when we had not seen each other or had a chance to chat. He mentioned that a man in the church was discussing with him as to why someone in need of emotional healing could not just have hands laid on them and believe and receive their healing through those means, like physical healing. He repeated to me the couple of different things that he had said to answer the question; pointedly, that a person pushed down painful events and these wounds are mostly hidden and may need the discernment and love of a fellow believer to help them. The potential for spiritual warfare in these prayers also seem to highlight the wisdom of having other believers around.

On the way home that night, though, I continued to ponder that specific question. Although I knew the ministry to be true, I wanted to find a Scripture that would precisely answer the question for me. Sometime after that, the Holy Spirit guided me to one Scripture. Proverbs 18:14 says, “the strong spirit of a man sustains him in bodily pain or trouble, but a weak and broken spirit who can raise up or bear?” (Amplified Bible). As I began to process this verse, an interesting concept came forth to me. Because our born-again spirit knows the Word of God and believes that Jesus bore our sicknesses in His body, thereby, we were healed by His bruises. Therefore, we sustain or withstand through a physical sickness or infirmity, because we stand on the Word of God and receive healing. Yet, the verse goes on to ask, “but a broken spirit, who can bear or lift it up?” This seems to imply that a wounded spirit can be more difficult to bring to life and restoration and can have both physical and spiritual influence on the person. The book of Proverbs is full of verses that speak of a wounded spirit affecting the body through disease or pain. A child’s spirit and heart will go in the direction that it has been shown, even if that direction is deceptive. But, through prayer, the spirit that was taught fear, rejection, and hatred can receive faith, love, and fellowship. A strong spirit that can easily receive from the Lord is a by-product or fruit of ministry that comes by removing hindrances that limit our faith toward God. From my own experience, this faith walk is easier after receiving prayer help and ministry. Before, He was there, but seemed distant and too far away to have intimate relationship. There was a demonic barrier between me and Him. My wounded spirit, with arrows of rejection in it, would not receive His intimate presence. But, as I saw Jesus, filling voids and healing memories, my heart responded and received His love and care.

Another Scripture that I believe shows the need for specific ministry is the parable that Jesus told in Matthew 18:23–25. It speaks of a man who had received mercy from the king, was forgiven his debt, but turned right around and threatened punishment for someone who owed him. In verse thirty-four, it says, “and his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors” (KJV). Because of his acts of no compassion and no forgiveness, God allowed tormentors to pursue him. This is a picture of the born-again believer who has received the mercy of the King of kings but will not allow it to continue toward those who owe them. Walking in unforgiveness allows demons to pursue and afflict us. Sometimes people are living this principle out because they harbor unforgiveness in the secret place of their heart and may not be consciously aware of it. The tormentors hinder their prayers. In verse thirty-five, Jesus pointed out the importance of forgiving from our hearts. I believe this to include forgiveness from the mind, forgiveness from the will, and forgiveness from the emotions. You can reason out and want to forgive, but if we do not forgive from our emotions, we will continue to allow those wounds to influence us through the emotional ties to those people. Just because someone utters, yes, I forgive you, does not necessarily mean that it came from all the realms of the heart and soul. Just like the spirit is saved but the soul remains unrenewed, so we can potentially forgive in our spirit but carry resentment in our soul. Heartfelt forgiveness has corresponding action that follows it. This principle is brought out in Matthew 6:15: “But if you do not forgive others their trespasses, their reckless and willful sins, leaving them, letting them go, and giving up resentment, neither will your Father forgive you your trespasses” (Amplified Bible). This type of forgiveness cannot be achieved without the help of the Lord. Leviticus 19:17 and the prophet Jeremiah also spoke about hating or imagining evil against another in your heart. The root of bitterness can be difficult to see without the working of the Spirit to graciously dig up and uproot these areas in our lives.

After receiving counsel of the Spirit, we may be able to easily receive what we need on our own. Depending on our condition and level of faith, we should not be afraid to acknowledge that we are not as much of a dynamo as we may hope we are. Better and permanent results are more likely obtained through specific prayer ministry and the aid of a prayer partner (Galatians 6:1-2). Also, Paul said in 2 Corinthians 13:1, “in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established” (KJV). The Greek word for “word” in that verse is rhema, specifying a spoken word. Take the things that you believe God has revealed to you and allow that word to stand up to the discretion and discernment of another Spirit-filled believer. Go back to the example of Peter in Matthew 18. One moment he had revelation knowledge from God; yet, later he was challenged by Jesus as speaking the ideas of the enemy. I continue to praise God for the couple that ministered to me. Sometimes I sure missed the essence of what God was saying and doing; meanwhile, their interaction with the Spirit can edify the counselor as they observe the anointing of God and the supernatural manifestations of the Spirit operating in their lives. Although we try to do things on our own, Jesus has a church and a body that has many members to function as a unit as they are dependent on each other.