On EDTS outreach in 2016, my team spent most our time in mountainside villages sharing the gospel and distributing Bibles. We hiked from one place to the next; gathering those who were willing to listen. One morning, we were asked to visit a woman who was considered “crazy” by her community. Her husband requested we pray for her since no doctor had been able to explain her condition. For the past two years, she had been confined to her home where her 70-year-old husband cared for her.
When we approached their home, we could hear the faint shouts of the woman. She repeated, “Kukura, Kukura, Kukura…” the native word for “dog.” As my team and I gathered outside her kitchen, we could see smoke from a fire she was burning inside. There were pictures of idols covering the walls of their house and it was obvious this couple was willing to resort to anything to be healed. Unfortunately, our first visit was pretty unsuccessful. The woman was agitated by our presence and unwilling to leave her kitchen . She even began throwing items out the door at us to encourage us to leave.
We later discovered she had fallen out of a tree two years prior and suffered from severe head trauma. However, it was apparent this woman was suffering from more than a physical ailment. Though we weren’t able to offer much at the time, her husband requested we come back in a few days.
A week later we returned.
The woman remained shouting nonsensical words but allowed a few of us to enter her bedroom. We all began to pray…and in the moments to follow, I’m not sure I have ever experienced Jesus’ presence so strongly. It was as if he was actually standing there with us.
I was struck by God’s compassion for the woman.
I was struck by God’s compassion for the woman and could almost feel his pain over her situation and his desire for freedom in her life. I can’t remember how long we stood in her doorway but all of the sudden there was a change. As I had been praying, I had noticed a sharp, silver color in her eyes. I had even had a hard time looking at her directly. But, when she sat up in her bed, her eye color shifted and a soft blue appeared.
The woman slowly moved from her bed and began walking towards the door. She sat in a perfect beam of sunlight on her front porch. It was as if she had literally and spiritually stepped into the light. Her shouting subsided and she was still.
Sadly, we were never able to communicate with this woman but it was evident she had experienced some sort of peace in that moment. I believe it was from God.
The reason this experience has stuck with me so vividly is because it so clearly testified to the bondage of the flesh versus the power of God. Although we did not see this woman’s sanity restored, I still believe that God has all authority to have done so.
I will never be able to explain why he didn’t bring complete healing that day but what is more important is that this woman had an experience with the King. To be whole is to be with Him. Our flesh will remain broken as long as we remain on this earth but until we reach heaven’s glory, we can place our hope in Yahweh Rophe, “the God who heals.”
We will be made whole and healed completely.
Even if your situation isn’t as dramatic as this woman’s, my prayer is that you would be given a renewed perspective. In this life, we face suffering of all kinds but know that your suffering is not in vain. One day we will see God face to face and we will be made whole and healed completely. Let’s wait expectantly for this glorious day and look forward to eternity with him…
If you want to know Jesus more and learn how to place your hope in “the God who heals,” come join us for a Discipleship Training School (DTS)!
Revelation 21: 1-5 “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.’ And he who was seated on the throne said,
‘Behold, I am making all things new.’ “
