Why are there so many sick christians today?

[Brother Bob]

xd and Claudia; can I tell you how it has been with me. I pray and lay hand on others but me myself have been cut up so much some times I could scream but I learned to go on with what God has let me have and try to be content. I have had two heart surgerys. I have had two carotid surgerys on both sides of my neck. I have had a double hernia surgery with mesh put in my stomach to hold me together. I have had other surgerys too but some time ago. If you saw me you would think I never had a sick day in my life for I go like I have never had a sick day in my life and I give God praise everyday for what I have left of this old body of mine. I know He is not going to give me a new body here but He has kept me going. I am still able to Pastor a church. I do research work on titles and coal research. I build computers, I do whatever it takes to keep my mind off of sickness and busy. I know that God has extended my life and I think it is because I do go and work for Him. I preach a lot funerals for families. I visit the sick at hospitals, nursing homes and private home and I always give God the Glory. Maybe sometimes he has granted your prayer request and you did not realize it. You got up this morning didn't you. You probably have your families and many many blessings of God. The best is yet to come and one day He will give you that too. I can assure you with not only what I have read but from His Spirit that when you do have to leave here you will not be alone for He said I will never leave you and I will never forsake you. Healing? He healed your heart and He may have delivered you from death today and you did not know it. Maybe you went a different way that you started and escaped death because He was watching over you. I don't know what your sickness or troubles are but He does and He will give according to His will. You continue on praying for help and healing for He loves for you to do that for in doing so He knows you really love him. May God Bless you both,

BBob

 

[xdisciplex]

Hi Bob!

This is in fact something I don't understand. There are people which pray for others and they are healed but when these people become sick themselves then they get a surgery. This is something I never really understood. Does God sometimes prefer it if somebody gets a surgery or would God always prefer to heal?

I think the worst thing is simply when you're sick and learn how to deal with it and then you hear christians on TV or on a sermon saying that nobody has to be sick and that God wants to heal and so on because this makes you feel even worse. There are so many wild theories out there which have the potential to really hurt people. Once somebody said to me that if you learn how to get along with a disease then God will not heal you because you get along with it. How silly is this? Trying to cope with a disease is normal. Does God prefer it if christians cry all day and are miserable because of their disease?
Or when you see those preachers on TV claiming "getting healed is truly as easy as getting saved..." then it's really upsetting. The problem is that when you hear these things then you even get mad at God and think that since he doesn't heal you he doesn't love you as much as he loves others. This stuff can totally mess you up.
I don't think there is a healing method such as simply claiming your healing and then God has to act upon your command, as if God was a robot or servant.
You can mess a sick person up completely and make the person feel like she has no faith at all, this is easy. All you have to do is ask something like:

Do you think God wants you sick? Do you really believe this? And then you quote Isaiah 53:5 to the person.

Then the person will most likely say no.

And then you ask: Then why are you still sick?

And then the person thinks that the only reason she's still sick is her lack of faith. Or maybe the person will even start to doubt that the bible is true.

This is really dangerous stuff.

 

[Claudia_T]

Brother Bob,

Would you please pray for me?

I'm incapable right now of going to work for others, and I dont really have a family.

About all I can say is that I did get up in the morning but Im wondering what use that is.

I thought maybe God was trying to make me realize alot of things and I did realize them. But now Im wondering if this is ever going to be over so that I CAN go out and work for others. I want to more than anything in the whole wide world. I want to start a brand new life.

But I have to have my feet working so that I can.

Just so you will know what to pray for... here's a short description...

My husband hates Christianity. I didnt know that when I married him. He said he is leaving me. So when he told me that I started pacing around the house for about 4 hours or so and when I was doing that.. the next day my foot started swelling. Now its happened to the other foot as well.

If I try to sit down like at my computer or on the couch or in a car... I cant do it for more than a couple of minutes at a time and my foot turns a purplish color... and pressure builds up.

Like I said, now its in my other foot too.

So basically I have to either lie down or walk around and walking around isnt easy..

You dont realize how much you need to sit down till you cant do it anymore. Its wrecking my whole life... I cant do anything.

I have been to 3 orthopedic doctors but to no avail. I have had to practically beg them to do any tests. When the lady at the blood clot testing place asked me what my symptoms were and what the doctors had done about it she couldnt believe it. She said it sure didnt sound like they were doing much for me in light of what my problem was.

I have had to put up with these doctors treating me like it must all be in my head because when I got to the doctor's my foot doesnt turn purple if I sit down. I am guessing that it has something to do with a vascular problem.. veins or arteries. Right now Im thinking maybe it is tarsal tunnel syndrome which is just like carpal tunnel syndrome like people get in their wrists if they do lots of computer work. But only I think instead of pinched nerves it is pinched veins or arteries. Someone told me the other day that that is definitely a possibility.

And FINALLY after begging my family doctor to do an MRI xray it was found that there are abnormalities in my foot... (they only x rayed one of them) .. either a fracture or a bad sprain... not sure yet but I have scheduled a appointment with a whole new doctor now and will show him the MRI results.

I chose this new doctor because over the phone when I called one night at the hospital and he was the doctor on call for emergencies.... when I described my problems to him he said it sounded like something vascular to him... So Im thinking at least he seems to have more sense than the others.

At least now I dont have to put up with them acting like this is all on my mind anymore since now I have the MRI results. I think I have tarsal tunnel syndrom like I said, because I can feel pinched nerves or veins on the insides of both my ankles and on the outsides too, which I believe is cutting off the circulation. The fracture or whatever it is .. I think is because of my original injury which happened on my left foot which apparently never got fixed properly.

Im really scared half to death, I want to get them to hurry up and figure out what the problem is... Im going to beg this new doctor to do an Arteriorgram which is injecting dye into your arteries so they can see where the blockages might be. And a Doppler Sound test too I want done.

Anyway this has been going on 4 months now. Its like everything was going on pretty much ok and then I woke up one day and my whole life fell to pieces.

And like I said... okay.. I learned lots of things and re-dedicated my life to God and want more than anything in the world to be able to go out and work for God but thats hard to do without feet and without being able to sit down.

Not to mention this has been triple difficult with these doctors acting like its all in my head and with a husband who couldnt care less and I have to worry about him leaving me all at the same time.

Bob, please pray for me? I have prayed so much I ust dont know what to pray for anymore.. I have cried so much I have just about cried myself out.

Claudia

 

[Claudia_T]

Bob,

I also want to tell you THANK YOU for the encouragement, it means so much to me that you would take time to write it for xdisciple and me

 

[Brother Bob]

I don't think faith has anything to do with your sickness or death. I do think faith has something to do with God hearing your prayer. I think because Adam sinned in the beginning brought these things upon us. I have never never blamed God for my sickness or not getting healed. I have seen faith healing work by the laying on of hands by me and others but we didn't do anything it was God because we obeyed and it was His will. These fellows on TV are using Gods words to make money here on earth and they have already received their reward. The laying on of hands is solemn thing with meekness and prayer and not with show. God said there were those who love to stand on street corners in robes well I think that is the TV fellows. If someone prays for me I want it done without fanfare and with meekness and sincerity in faith believing on both the Elder and the sick. God knows we need physicians and I think He gave them their knowledge. It could be even His way of answering your prayer for He said "they that are not sick need not a physician" therefore they that are do need one. I layed hands on a man 4 years ago on Kidney dynalisis and he hasn't been on it since. (know I spelled that wrong) It wasn't me but God. Sometime I lay hands on people and God may not heal them but answer in a different way such as giving them strength to bear what ever is wrong with them. Sometimes there is a sickness unto death and even though God could heal most times He don't for death is a miracle too. When we get so sick here someone else has to lift us, feed us take care of us, God will let us die. We always have to trust Him no matter what. Never ever trust those fellows on TV for they all are after money and their money will perish with them. Lack of faith would certainly play a big part for if we didn't have faith we certainly are not going to be healed but we know our own hearts. God hasn't made me well but He has let me live all these years even though I am sick and for that I shall never cease praising Him. Please never doubt yourself or God but keep trusting not only in God but yourself too for if you don't trust yourself then who will? I wish I had some easy way of telling you but who has known the mind of God and He knows when we need to be healed and when we don't and there is a purpose in all things.

Hope I haven't made it worse for you.

Blessings,

BBob