It was a cold rainy day as my daughter and I drove to the ladies church banquet where I was asked to be part of the prayer altar ministry. We were already running late due to rush hour traffic and the pouring rain. To tell you truth, I didn’t want to go but I pushed forward and made a decision that I was not going for myself but for my daughter and I believed that someone else would be there that I could pray for and minister to.
We arrived late. The banquet room was filled with ladies from all walks of life. We ate dinner and heard the speaker, who taught a message and sang songs. Then came the altar call. I made my way with the prayer team to the front of the ballroom near the stage. They asked for anyone who had not received Jesus in their heart to stand. Immediately, I was drawn to a tall, thin, dark haired woman. It was like a light beaming down upon her from heaven for me to see. I knew right then in my spirit that she was the reason why I was supposed to be at the banquet.
After the ladies said the salvation prayer, the prayer team escorted the women to another room where we could talk to them and pray for their needs. As everyone was making their way out of the banquet room, this woman walked right out alongside me. This is what I call a divine appointment from God. As we walked side by side, not saying a word, she appeared so withdrawn, her facial expression emanated fear and devastation. Tears were streaming down her face as we walked into the garden room and sat down. She began to tell me that she came to the ladies banquet all by herself, not knowing one single person and when she heard the altar call she knew that she had to stand. This beautiful young woman, I will call her Anna, proceeded to tell me that she had a husband and three young children and had just been diagnosed with an aggressive breast cancer. In just two days, she was to have a double mastectomy and was extremely scared for her life. Anna was a registered nurse at a big hospital, so she knew first hand all the complications that could occur from this surgery and how many patients take this diagnosis as a death sentence.
I began to tell Anna what the Bible says about healing and how God had healed members of my family and me, over and over again. We prayed together for healing, peace and strength. I explained to her how important it was to read what the Word of God has to say about healing to build up her faith for the surgery and recovery.
In Proverbs 4:20-22 it says
My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart; For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh.
We exchanged contact information and that very night I emailed her 101 scriptures on what God’s Word says about healing. I sent Anna some encouraging emails after her surgery and through her recovery process but unfortunately our lives got busy and months past, and I didn’t hear from her. Then I received an email saying that she wanted to take me to lunch and share her testimony of how good God was to her through this whole experience. We met for lunch and she was so excited to tell me all that had happened. Anna said that God not only had brought her through the surgery but she didn’t require any treatment that her oncologist had prescribed. She said every time fear would try to creep in she would take out her Bible and the 101 healing scriptures and meditate on them day and night and the fear would leave and her faith would grow. Anna went on to explain that not only did God bring her victoriously through the surgery but she had an amazing breakthrough. She was able to get a blood screening to determine if she would even need aggressive treatment after the surgery. It came back negative. No aggressive treatment required. She was overtaken by God’s goodness! But the story doesn’t stop here as our God is a big God and always does more than we can ask or believe. Anna’s oncologist didn’t offer this blood screening to his patients and was treating all of them with a very aggressive treatment. Anna presented this blood screening to him and had such a huge influence that her doctor adopted this blood screening protocol and is now saving a lot of his patients from going through unnecessary aggressive treatment.
It reminded me of how God always does more for us as it is written in Ephesians 3:20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
A year went by since Anna and I had first met, at that first annual Ladies Christmas banquet, where she was alone and desperate for a miracle from God but this year’s annual banquet was a celebration! This time Anna, my daughter and I attended together, along with a group of her friends. As we sat at our table with Anna smiling and laughing, I was overtaken by God’s goodness and in awe of all that He had done for Anna in the past year.
A life, a wife, a mother, a friend forever changed by the gospel of Jesus Christ. Transformed and healed by God’s Word, God’s goodness, God’s power, God’s amazing love, and faithfulness. It was a truly a celebration for all of us sitting with Anna, it was a whole new season for her. Completely healed and restored from cancer. God turned Anna’s situation around, and to Him be all the glory!
