Program #109
Daniel turned his head on the pillow trying to focus on the light coming through the window. Returning to consciousness took longer now, like rising from the ocean depths. He wondered how long he had slept. Searching for the clock on the sterile wall, he noticed the fixture slumped in the visitor’s chair. Raising himself slightly, he struggled to recognize his sleeping guest.
“Jack?” he whispered.
The rumpled mass roused himself and yawned. “Yeah.” He stretched. “Good thing you were asleep when I got here, I needed a nap. I came in on the red-eye flight from L.A., I’ve only got twenty-four hours and then I have to be back.”
Daniel settled back onto the pillow. “Why are you here?’
Jack rubbed his head to jolt himself awake. “Your wife called last night, midnight your time, said she’d been keeping watch here for days without any sleep and the doctor had just sedated her. I told her I’d catch the next plane out and voila, here I am.”
“Does the staff know you’re here?” Daniel continued to whisper.
“Yeah, the nurses keep checking on me.”
“Nobody is supposed to stay in my room more than ten minutes.”
“Daniel,” Jack smiled, “I have special favor with God and man.”
The emaciated patient turned his face away from his visitor. “I’m not doing so well. They don’t expect me to last through the week-end.”
“That’s why I came. I’m not willing for you to die just yet.”
“You don’t have much choice.” Daniel turned and smiled at his friend.
“No, but you do.” Jack returned the smile.
Then Daniel’s smile turned to a frown. “I’ve tried everything, you know I have. We seemed to be making such progress and then it all collapsed.” Pain set his jaws, his body stiffened for a moment and then he let out a low moan.
“Pain bad?” Jack felt helpless.
“It’s better now that they’re dripping morphine into me, but yes, it’s bad.” Daniel licked his lips and asked for a drink of water. Jack helped him and sat back down.
“Remember when I was here before?”
Daniel nodded and closed his eyes. “Keep talking, I have to rest my eyes a bit.”
“It’s been almost six months now. You had just gotten the diagnosis, had laid out a natural healing program and were raring to go. You were going to go to an herbalist, slash, chiropractor, twice a week, a masseur every day, a psychologist and I don’t remember the rest, except I really questioned the ozone shots.”
“You thought I was crazy,” Daniel rolled his eyes open. “I guess you were right.”
“There’s nothing wrong with the course you took, but do you remember what I spoke to you about?”
“Sure,” Daniel closed his eyes again. “You wanted me to try Jesus. Now it’s too late for Him, too.”
“It’s never too late for Jesus, Dan; remember, He’s the guy that raises people from the dead.” Jack paused, “Did you do any of those confessions I gave you?”
“I tried, but it seemed so senseless to me. Whenever I popped a vitamin or ate raw veggies I felt like I was putting healing into my body, but to say those confessions seemed useless. I’m sorry to disappoint you.” Daniel’s voice trailed off.
“Look, buddy,” Jack sat on the edge of his chair. “Speaking the Word of God over your condition brings life into your body. The Word of God is powerful and it’s anointed for healing.”
Daniel lifted his hand to stop Jack from speaking. “I believe you, Jack, but there is something more important I want you to talk about. Last time you were here you talked about a sinner’s prayer. I brushed you off then, but I’m dying now. I’ve had time to think. I was wrong. I am a sinner. I never have been perfect anything. Jesus is perfect everything and I want Him. I want to say that sinner’s prayer. I want Him to be my Lord.”
Flooded with relief Jack took his friend’s hand and led him through the life-changing prayer. Together they acknowledged God’s power in raising Jesus from the dead. Out loud Daniel proclaimed Jesus as his Lord. The Spirit of Jesus, filling Daniel with the life of God, also filled the room.
The two lifelong friends, holding hands, cried like babies. The tears, dropping on the pillow, ran into Daniel’s ears. Jack awkwardly dabbed at them with a towel, “I don’t make a very good nursemaid.” He confessed.
Daniel smiled and feebly tried to help, “But you make a great friend. Now I can die in peace.”
Jack sat back down. “Hey, buddy, now you can really live. Now you can ask God to heal you and those confessions will bring life.”
“But I’m so far gone. I feel like my life is ebbing out of me already.”
“Let me read something to you,” Jack reached for his Bible, opened it to Galatians 3:13 and read, “Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law….” Then he flipped back to Deuteronomy 28:61, “Also every sickness and every plague, which is not written in the book of this law, will the Lord bring upon you until you are destroyed.” Dan, this is the curse of the law.”
“I don’t get it,” Dan whispered.
“Listen, buddy, breaking God’s law had terrible consequences, but Jesus paid for our consequ3ences. We don’t have to be cursed anymore. You have Jesus in you now, so His healing power is also in you. However, it doesn’t work automatically. You are in charge of your own life and body. What you have to do now is get your whole being to agree with the Lord’s healing.
It’s like the salvation you just experienced. Your whole being had to accept it. It couldn’t be only your mind that received Jesus, your heart had to receive Him as well. Now healing is yours to receive. You’ve got to get your mind, your mouth and your heart to believe it, to speak it and to receive it. Here’s what I want you to do.
Mutter, even if it is a bare whisper, these words: ‘According to Galatians 3:13, I have been redeemed from the curse of the law. According to Deuteronomy 28:61, cancer is a curse of the law. Therefore, I am redeemed from cancer.’ Will you do that, Dan?”
Daniel gave a slight shrug, “Why not? I have everything to gain and nothing to lose.” They rehearsed the verses a few times to make sure Daniel had it memorized. Then they asked the Lord to give Daniel complete and total healing, and they thanked the Lord for redeeming Daniel from the curse of the law.
With more exuberance than a sickroom called for, Jack said, “Great! I’m going to grab some chow. Suddenly I am starving, and then I’ll check back with you.” He left the room hearing Daniel begin to mutter softly to himself.
Looking over the buffet line in the hospital’s cafeteria, Jack opted for the local beanery where he ordered sirloin tips and homemade noodles. He beat the Friday lunch crowd, but they started straggling in as he read the morning paper over coffee. Reluctantly, he finished his espresso and relinquished his table.
Returning to the cancer ward of the Good Samaritan Hospital, an officious nurse stopped him and warned: “Don’t sit in his room. Stay in the waiting room. I think you overtired him this morning.”
“What do you mean?” Jack asked.
“He hasn’t asked to be turned, he didn’t tell me when his morphine bottle ran out, and he seems to be mumbling. That’s not normal for a man in his condition. If you are going in there, just say hello and come right back out.”
Jack fairly skipped down the hall and opened the door. The Presence of God was so thick in that hospital room that Jack, not wanting to disturb the work of the Lord, simply shut the door. It amazed him that the nurse could not sense the Presence of God in there. He went to the waiting room and found he had the place to himself. Not caring what the staff thought, Jack lifted his hands to God and praised Him and thanked Him for Daniel’s complete and total healing.
Later, a young, harried attendant entered Dan’s room and then reported to the nursing station. “The patient in bed 319 seems to be in a catatonic state. He keeps whispering something about being redeemed from cancer. His lips are so chapped I put some petroleum jelly on them.”
“Did he respond to you?” the officious nurse asked.
“No. He didn’t seem to know I was there.” The young one responded.
“Keep checking on him every fifteen minutes. We may have to call his physician.”
What seemed like hours later, the attendant returned again. “Nurse, you’d better come look at 319. His skin is turning a funny color.”
Jack followed the two women to the door of Daniel’s room. He heard the voice of his friend loudly proclaiming, “According to Galatians 3:13, I have been redeemed from the curse of the law. According to Deuteronomy 28:61 cancer is a curse of the law. Therefore, I am redeemed from cancer.”
To every question the nurse asked him he replied with that proclamation. His skin did look funny. No longer emaciated, his arms seemed bloated, his face rounded, and his lips full and chapped. Jack began to panic. What was happening to his friend?
The nurse returned to the station, dialed the phone, explained the conditions to the doctor, nodding at his explanation, and motioned to Jack. Hanging up the phone she said, “If you want to say goodbye to your friend you’d better do it now. The throes of death seemed to be on him.”
Jack started to protest the verdict when both he and the nurse turned to look as they heard reverberating down the hall, “I am redeemed from cancer! I am redeemed from cancer! I am redeemed from cancer!” Daniel was walking toward them, tubes hanging from his arms. He came and stood in front of them, to all appearances, in full health.
Daniel’s healing stirred the surprised hospital staff. Every doctor and nurse on duty came by his room to see the living miracle before he checked out of the hospital. “Wrong diagnosis” was written on his chart. Everyone knew that divine power had healed him, but the Good Samaritan Administration passed by and would not acknowledge the Physicianship of God.
Jack drove Daniel home, teaching him worship songs along the way, both of singing and shouting praises to God. They pulled into the driveway behind his father’s car filled with relatives leaving for the hospital. Daniel’s wife got out of the car and fainted. His father burst into tears.
Daniel rushed to his wife and knelt beside her. He lifted her partway up and began patting her cheeks. When she did not respond, he picked her up and headed for the house. Daniel’s father fairly roared, “You can’t do that. You’re sick. You’re dying.”
Jack burst into laughter and ran to open the front door for Daniel. The gaggle of relatives, left outside bewildered, finally wandered into the house and Jack told the story of the day’s miraculous occurrence. Daniel’s father was the first to speak up. “If Jesus can do that for my boy, I want Him to be my Lord, too.”
Daniel’s wife said, “I am so grateful God returned my husband to me. I want Jesus to be my Lord. Jack will you lead all of us in the sinner’s prayer?”
Jack led them, saying the words, each family member repeating after him and giving their hearts to the Lord. They enjoyed a hallelujah time for the remaining part of the day. They took Jack to a fine restaurant, loudly announcing to all the other patrons what God had done for them. That evening they put him on the last plane headed for L.A. and everyone returned home eternally changed.
My friends in the listening audience, if you are born-again, you have this same divine power of God residing in you, waiting to rise up to meet your every need. The requirement for its use is to believe in the Presence of Jesus in you and to trust Him to use His power for you. Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.
Daniel turned his head on the pillow trying to focus on the light coming through the window. Returning to consciousness took longer now, like rising from the ocean depths. He wondered how long he had slept. Searching for the clock on the sterile wall, he noticed the fixture slumped in the visitor’s chair. Raising himself slightly, he struggled to recognize his sleeping guest.
“Jack?” he whispered.
The rumpled mass roused himself and yawned. “Yeah.” He stretched. “Good thing you were asleep when I got here, I needed a nap. I came in on the red-eye flight from L.A., I’ve only got twenty-four hours and then I have to be back.”
Daniel settled back onto the pillow. “Why are you here?’
Jack rubbed his head to jolt himself awake. “Your wife called last night, midnight your time, said she’d been keeping watch here for days without any sleep and the doctor had just sedated her. I told her I’d catch the next plane out and voila, here I am.”
“Does the staff know you’re here?” Daniel continued to whisper.
“Yeah, the nurses keep checking on me.”
“Nobody is supposed to stay in my room more than ten minutes.”
“Daniel,” Jack smiled, “I have special favor with God and man.”
The emaciated patient turned his face away from his visitor. “I’m not doing so well. They don’t expect me to last through the week-end.”
“That’s why I came. I’m not willing for you to die just yet.”
“You don’t have much choice.” Daniel turned and smiled at his friend.
“No, but you do.” Jack returned the smile.
Then Daniel’s smile turned to a frown. “I’ve tried everything, you know I have. We seemed to be making such progress and then it all collapsed.” Pain set his jaws, his body stiffened for a moment and then he let out a low moan.
“Pain bad?” Jack felt helpless.
“It’s better now that they’re dripping morphine into me, but yes, it’s bad.” Daniel licked his lips and asked for a drink of water. Jack helped him and sat back down.
“Remember when I was here before?”
Daniel nodded and closed his eyes. “Keep talking, I have to rest my eyes a bit.”
“It’s been almost six months now. You had just gotten the diagnosis, had laid out a natural healing program and were raring to go. You were going to go to an herbalist, slash, chiropractor, twice a week, a masseur every day, a psychologist and I don’t remember the rest, except I really questioned the ozone shots.”
“You thought I was crazy,” Daniel rolled his eyes open. “I guess you were right.”
“There’s nothing wrong with the course you took, but do you remember what I spoke to you about?”
“Sure,” Daniel closed his eyes again. “You wanted me to try Jesus. Now it’s too late for Him, too.”
“It’s never too late for Jesus, Dan; remember, He’s the guy that raises people from the dead.” Jack paused, “Did you do any of those confessions I gave you?”
“I tried, but it seemed so senseless to me. Whenever I popped a vitamin or ate raw veggies I felt like I was putting healing into my body, but to say those confessions seemed useless. I’m sorry to disappoint you.” Daniel’s voice trailed off.
“Look, buddy,” Jack sat on the edge of his chair. “Speaking the Word of God over your condition brings life into your body. The Word of God is powerful and it’s anointed for healing.”
Daniel lifted his hand to stop Jack from speaking. “I believe you, Jack, but there is something more important I want you to talk about. Last time you were here you talked about a sinner’s prayer. I brushed you off then, but I’m dying now. I’ve had time to think. I was wrong. I am a sinner. I never have been perfect anything. Jesus is perfect everything and I want Him. I want to say that sinner’s prayer. I want Him to be my Lord.”
Flooded with relief Jack took his friend’s hand and led him through the life-changing prayer. Together they acknowledged God’s power in raising Jesus from the dead. Out loud Daniel proclaimed Jesus as his Lord. The Spirit of Jesus, filling Daniel with the life of God, also filled the room.
The two lifelong friends, holding hands, cried like babies. The tears, dropping on the pillow, ran into Daniel’s ears. Jack awkwardly dabbed at them with a towel, “I don’t make a very good nursemaid.” He confessed.
Daniel smiled and feebly tried to help, “But you make a great friend. Now I can die in peace.”
Jack sat back down. “Hey, buddy, now you can really live. Now you can ask God to heal you and those confessions will bring life.”
“But I’m so far gone. I feel like my life is ebbing out of me already.”
“Let me read something to you,” Jack reached for his Bible, opened it to Galatians 3:13 and read, “Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law….” Then he flipped back to Deuteronomy 28:61, “Also every sickness and every plague, which is not written in the book of this law, will the Lord bring upon you until you are destroyed.” Dan, this is the curse of the law.”
“I don’t get it,” Dan whispered.
“Listen, buddy, breaking God’s law had terrible consequences, but Jesus paid for our consequ3ences. We don’t have to be cursed anymore. You have Jesus in you now, so His healing power is also in you. However, it doesn’t work automatically. You are in charge of your own life and body. What you have to do now is get your whole being to agree with the Lord’s healing.
It’s like the salvation you just experienced. Your whole being had to accept it. It couldn’t be only your mind that received Jesus, your heart had to receive Him as well. Now healing is yours to receive. You’ve got to get your mind, your mouth and your heart to believe it, to speak it and to receive it. Here’s what I want you to do.
Mutter, even if it is a bare whisper, these words: ‘According to Galatians 3:13, I have been redeemed from the curse of the law. According to Deuteronomy 28:61, cancer is a curse of the law. Therefore, I am redeemed from cancer.’ Will you do that, Dan?”
Daniel gave a slight shrug, “Why not? I have everything to gain and nothing to lose.” They rehearsed the verses a few times to make sure Daniel had it memorized. Then they asked the Lord to give Daniel complete and total healing, and they thanked the Lord for redeeming Daniel from the curse of the law.
With more exuberance than a sickroom called for, Jack said, “Great! I’m going to grab some chow. Suddenly I am starving, and then I’ll check back with you.” He left the room hearing Daniel begin to mutter softly to himself.
Looking over the buffet line in the hospital’s cafeteria, Jack opted for the local beanery where he ordered sirloin tips and homemade noodles. He beat the Friday lunch crowd, but they started straggling in as he read the morning paper over coffee. Reluctantly, he finished his espresso and relinquished his table.
Returning to the cancer ward of the Good Samaritan Hospital, an officious nurse stopped him and warned: “Don’t sit in his room. Stay in the waiting room. I think you overtired him this morning.”
“What do you mean?” Jack asked.
“He hasn’t asked to be turned, he didn’t tell me when his morphine bottle ran out, and he seems to be mumbling. That’s not normal for a man in his condition. If you are going in there, just say hello and come right back out.”
Jack fairly skipped down the hall and opened the door. The Presence of God was so thick in that hospital room that Jack, not wanting to disturb the work of the Lord, simply shut the door. It amazed him that the nurse could not sense the Presence of God in there. He went to the waiting room and found he had the place to himself. Not caring what the staff thought, Jack lifted his hands to God and praised Him and thanked Him for Daniel’s complete and total healing.
Later, a young, harried attendant entered Dan’s room and then reported to the nursing station. “The patient in bed 319 seems to be in a catatonic state. He keeps whispering something about being redeemed from cancer. His lips are so chapped I put some petroleum jelly on them.”
“Did he respond to you?” the officious nurse asked.
“No. He didn’t seem to know I was there.” The young one responded.
“Keep checking on him every fifteen minutes. We may have to call his physician.”
What seemed like hours later, the attendant returned again. “Nurse, you’d better come look at 319. His skin is turning a funny color.”
Jack followed the two women to the door of Daniel’s room. He heard the voice of his friend loudly proclaiming, “According to Galatians 3:13, I have been redeemed from the curse of the law. According to Deuteronomy 28:61 cancer is a curse of the law. Therefore, I am redeemed from cancer.”
To every question the nurse asked him he replied with that proclamation. His skin did look funny. No longer emaciated, his arms seemed bloated, his face rounded, and his lips full and chapped. Jack began to panic. What was happening to his friend?
The nurse returned to the station, dialed the phone, explained the conditions to the doctor, nodding at his explanation, and motioned to Jack. Hanging up the phone she said, “If you want to say goodbye to your friend you’d better do it now. The throes of death seemed to be on him.”
Jack started to protest the verdict when both he and the nurse turned to look as they heard reverberating down the hall, “I am redeemed from cancer! I am redeemed from cancer! I am redeemed from cancer!” Daniel was walking toward them, tubes hanging from his arms. He came and stood in front of them, to all appearances, in full health.
Daniel’s healing stirred the surprised hospital staff. Every doctor and nurse on duty came by his room to see the living miracle before he checked out of the hospital. “Wrong diagnosis” was written on his chart. Everyone knew that divine power had healed him, but the Good Samaritan Administration passed by and would not acknowledge the Physicianship of God.
Jack drove Daniel home, teaching him worship songs along the way, both of singing and shouting praises to God. They pulled into the driveway behind his father’s car filled with relatives leaving for the hospital. Daniel’s wife got out of the car and fainted. His father burst into tears.
Daniel rushed to his wife and knelt beside her. He lifted her partway up and began patting her cheeks. When she did not respond, he picked her up and headed for the house. Daniel’s father fairly roared, “You can’t do that. You’re sick. You’re dying.”
Jack burst into laughter and ran to open the front door for Daniel. The gaggle of relatives, left outside bewildered, finally wandered into the house and Jack told the story of the day’s miraculous occurrence. Daniel’s father was the first to speak up. “If Jesus can do that for my boy, I want Him to be my Lord, too.”
Daniel’s wife said, “I am so grateful God returned my husband to me. I want Jesus to be my Lord. Jack will you lead all of us in the sinner’s prayer?”
Jack led them, saying the words, each family member repeating after him and giving their hearts to the Lord. They enjoyed a hallelujah time for the remaining part of the day. They took Jack to a fine restaurant, loudly announcing to all the other patrons what God had done for them. That evening they put him on the last plane headed for L.A. and everyone returned home eternally changed.
My friends in the listening audience, if you are born-again, you have this same divine power of God residing in you, waiting to rise up to meet your every need. The requirement for its use is to believe in the Presence of Jesus in you and to trust Him to use His power for you. Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.