It is clear from happenings in my life that God has a time for everything. Since my hospitalization contrary to expectations I have not gone to be with the Lord. Instead I have gained in some areas and gone back in others. A few weeks ago one of my Methodist preacher friends came by to visit. I had not seen him for several years. I had been scheduled to speak in his church when I got sick. He showed up when he said he would, and brought with him a little black box. I knew what it was, for one of my students at the seminary had brought one to show me after I taught about the healing power of the Eucharist. I commented when he took it out that I knew what it was. He then told me that he wanted to celebrate communion (The Eucharist) with me anoint me with oil and pray for my healing. I have had many prayers, and probably survived my pneumonia and heart failure because of them, but this time more happened.
My illness had been stable with little improvement, but after his visit I imperceptibly began to improve. My shortness of breath decreased, my swollen legs were less swollen, the depression I felt lifted and I was able to function much better. My diabetes that had been out of control for months suddenly stabilized at a much lower level. Elizabeth commented that I was better, but I could not believe it for several days because the degenerative diseases I have do not usually remit, yet here I was improving mightily. That is not to say that my leg strength improved, nor did my arthritis, but I have been much much better.
My wife and I pray each morning for one another and that has been enormously comforting, but not healing. As a physician I always want to know cause and effect in disease, but there was no medical reason for my improvement, unless it was the prayers. In my years of studying prayer I have always been impressed with the repetitions of certain principles. One is to pray unceasingly. Another is to pray fervently, and another is to listen carefully. One can always find formulas for praying, but the best definition I have read is that prayer is a conversation between to person who love one another. Thus we do not have to use King Jame English for him to hear. We do not have to rattle on with meaningless babble. We do not have to pray to impress others with our ability to pray. Jesus said that persons who did so received there reward from those who said, "My, My Doesn't he pray beautiful prayers. Pastoral prayers don't do much for me, for they do not express what is on my heart. Paul could, however, say in a few words prayers that were about things that are, or ought to be on our heart (Colossians 1:9-12).
My father was a real Christian. Every night he would read a chapter or so in his bible. Then go kneel beside his bed, and pray for fifteen minutes. When I became a Christian I asked him what he prayed about. He said, "I was praying for you, your brother, and your mother. We all came to Christ, I at 44 my brother at age 42 and mother at age 69. God does answer prayer. We had a prayer meeting made up of students and residents. that met weekly. We kept a record of our prayers, and by periodically finding out whether the prayer was answered. We found that 65% of the prayers were answered positively, for 20% there was no answer, an for 15% there was a negative answer. The most amazing thing was that we prayed up 5 babies. Five wives had been barren for 4 to 8 years. After we started praying for them they were all pregnant within a few months
As prayer has changed me it changes others, and changes things too.
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