Living constantly in the presence of God can heal us of our old wounds, and even our physical illnesses. Emotional, spiritual, mental, physical needs are all the same to the father. We know that God is able to heal instantly, but there are also occasions when he heals us over a long period of time. We can be healed both immediately by his power and gradually through our relationship with him. At times, the Lord is developing our capacity to walk in power and authority. And on these occasions, when under the guidance of his will, we pray the prayers of authority and faith, and we see immediate results. At these times, too, our prayers are accompanied by a special gift of faith, healing, or miracles, and we can be amazed at how heaven comes to earth in those moments.
Still, there are other times when we enter a process of healing that seems to be in line with God’s desire to redevelop our relationship with him. We are not ill or wounded because our relationship with God lacks depth. God himself is not mean to us; he does not deny healing for the sake of building relationship. Rather, the father simply uses what is available to touch and deepen us in difficult moments.
In our situations, the love of the father is profound enough to upgrade our image of him, so that we may know his nature and Lordship in a more realistic manner.
Healing through relationship is a process because the Lord is developing our patience, endurance, and steadfast trust. It is the keeping power of God that increases our faith and brings us to a new level of perception, relationship, and, ultimately, revelation. He nurses us as we pray in faith and learn to abide in the shadow of his wings. He does not always deliver us from the valley, but he does always walk through it with us.
God is our keeper and loves his role in watching over us and teaching us to abide in confidence. We learn to trust the father as we actively listen to the one whoever lives to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7: 25), and learned to walk with the comforter. It is vital that we allow the Holy Spirit to develop this role in our lives. We can be weak and find God’s strength through comfort, as well as through joy.
In the valley, in the process of restoration, renewal, and finding physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual health, we learn how best to fight. In this instance, the weapons of our warfare are thanksgiving, praise, trust, and rest. Sometimes we inherit the promises of God immediately, but, at other times, it comes through faith and patience.
Even if God’s power is not demonstrated immediately, his sovereignty will always come through progressively. Power and process is designed by God’s will. If it is process that he chooses to heal us in, we must wait gradually on the Lord and remain attentive to his voice and bound to his loving nature.
Words of knowledge may come through others about our circumstances. Sometimes these words are accompanied by another gift of faith, healing, or miracles, and we are set free. If not, they are gods’ encouragement for us to continue praying and believing in the process of divine life. The prophecy may carry the certainty of God’s ultimate will, giving us confidence. We can craft them into a prayer to use daily, knowing we are praying God’s will and therefore the answer to our dilemma.
Freed from the tyranny of our current condition, we are now released in heart and mind to pursue the other purposes of God in our circumstances. What else does he want to do apart from our ultimate healing? Is our healing a part of a wider restoration and renewal? Is the Lord taking us into a deeper place of abiding love and intimacy? He knows the plans he has for us, in every situation, to give us a future and a hope! What is he planning in that beautiful heart that loves us so amazingly? What grace will come our way, what wisdom and insight may open the eyes of our heart?
This is the path in the process of enlightenment which enables us to fully know God and to be known, (Ephesians 1: 15-23). We use what we are exploring and discovering to pray with certainty and to formulate our own Psalm of thanksgiving. David’s intentional, written out praise-or as we now call them, the Psalms-were what enabled him to become a man after God’s own heart.