In his blog “How do you worship God?” Tim Mitchinson describes how he prayed when in great pain. The result of his prayer was the wonderful discovery that “Christian healing is not only the outcome of worship; it is worship itself.” I know you’ll want to read Tim’s whole article which was first published in the Peoria Journal-Star on September 13, 2017.
People all over the world worship God in many different ways. For many of us, worship includes maintaining a consistent awareness of God’s presence and love, and having an impact on the world by living from that basis. It includes words and deeds of kindness and grace.
As we humbly learn more of God and recognize Him as a constant presence–the presence of infinite Life, Truth and Love–moments of inspiration often result in the healing of physical illness. So, Christian healing–feeling the love of God that heals disease and sin–can be an increasingly important and reliable outcome of our worship of God.
For instance, recently I woke up feeling quite ill. I was tired, in pain, and felt burdened by a day of job and family responsibilities. I struggled with getting the kids off to school, then sat at my desk, and before beginning my day of writing, I opened a tract of inspirational articles. I quietly prayed with each sentence, hoping to just feel inspired and unburdened. One article quoted this from the Bible: “…the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” (James 5:16).
This Bible verse was a reminder to me that turning to God in a time of need was a good thing – availing health, joy and salvation. In other words, instead of thinking of myself and my ailments, I needed to recognize a greater adoration, love and wonder of God. After an hour, I realized I had better turn on my computer and get to work. As I rose from the chair I’d been sitting in, I realized I felt well. As a matter of fact, I felt great. I was not only physically well, but mentally clear, full of love and joy, and extremely grateful to God.