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Once you've gone throught the belief systemand buy into the whole thingyou start to believe in allthe fringe benefits... like healing. Time to accessorise that amazing tongue trick with the other gifts, signs and fruits. Perhaps that dickyknee can be replaced... perhaps the fatty tissues bringing death closer can be slowed down? Of course you could start eating properly and exercise, but a quick fix and the prayer line would make it all a whole lot easier.Ah yes, throw away the Rosary beads and take two tonguesand see me in the morning if Cancer still persists. Guaranteed it is that life will change dramatically and sometimes an ailment is actually 'healed' and the pain is gone. You can reallign your life and make resolutions fuelled by an amazing overnight healing that we can all suppose came from God above

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when my brother (now 11) was born, he was diagnosed as severly epileptic, one of the worst cases these doctors had ever seen, to cut a long story short mum and dad prayed and fasted for a week, and when they went back to the doctors there was no sign of epilepsy. this isnt just something that just goes away, especially when the person having the fits is having 6ish fits a day. i believe that he was healed, and that it was by god.

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I wonder what would have happened if they didn't fast? Or pray for that matter? Always makes me wonder. Prayer should really be unnecessary when there is an all-knowing, and all-powerful God. Suppose a famous and gifted doctor happened to be your friend and that he had the ability to cure any sickness known.

Now suppose you had a baby that became desperately sick in the presence of this super-doctor, what would you expect him to do? If the baby is choking, for example, you would expect him to help out and save the baby from dying. You wouldn't expect him to ask you first if you believed or had faith that he could cure your child before he was willing to help. You'd expect the super-doctor to act as soon as he sees it choking.

Ok, let's also say that this doctor could stop cancer in all children, anywhere in the world, before it occurs. You'd expect him to do it... because he's "good." But if he does do it, then you wouldn't expect there to be any cases of children getting cancer. If the super-doctor has this ability, then he shouldn't wait for anyone to ask him. We would expect him to act out of pure goodness asap!

Similarly, an all-good guy God wouldn't want anyone to suffer. He would know who would suffer ahead of time, and prevent it before it happens and there wouldn't be any need for prayer in the first place, especially if it's used to heal the sick and stop suffering. I'm sure there are many and various theological theories as to why God has such a messed up system. Seems pretty random to me.

Why people put trust in hope 

For most of my life, I believed in healing, the fundy pentecostal Revival way. I witnessed what I thought were miracle healings, cures from cancer, restored lawnmowers(!) and the like.  I hear lots of nice stories from other people that sort of remind me of what it's like talking to people convinced they've seen a UFO or a ghost. I've learned a lot about why people believe in answered prayers, even when it's completely illogical. Every single case of a supposedly answered prayer that I've witnessed can be explained by one or more of the following:

• False assumptions
• Bogus information
• wishful thinking

In DOC we trust...

Many "sick conditions" get better on their own because the body has mechanisms to relieve itself (e.g., fevers, high blood pressure, colds etc). Other supposed illnesses that we are told cannot be healed naturally possibly can be. The medical profession is often confounded by our body's ability to bounce back from inconceivable situations. Again, all these factors make it very simplistic to call a miracle what is more likely the result of human error about a prognosis or a diagnosis.

there are many cases in which a doctor might tell a patient that he or she has an incurable illness from which death will occur within a short period of time. At the end of this period, the patient is not only alive, but much better. This turn of events will usually be attributed to a divine healing. Yet the patient may overlook the fact that the doctor's diagnosis may have been wrong in the first place. Yep, these 'miracle' healings occur in and out of churches all the time.

Evenif you recovered from a deadly illness more quickly and better than expected, you still can't know if it was God. The most ya could say is that the recovery was accomplished through an unknown process. Many healings that may appear supernaturally miraculous may be due to very natural processes which have not been recognised or studied previously. Indeed, one can draw up a long list of phenomena that were unknown 100 years ago but are deemed perfectly natural today. In fact, most believers in prayer have received conventional medical treatment, and so one cannot eliminate the possibility that it was the medical treatment, not the prayer, that actually had a beneficial effect, even when such an effect might be unexpected.

Peer group agreement

Another reason for the belief in healing among Christians is the wild and wacky 'event' type church services where healings are given 'life'. The psychology of the miracle seeker is also a factor. If the pastor asks the patient if God has healed them, they are likely to say "Yes," even if their symptoms say the opposite. Many times, people will say that they have been healed because they really believe that eventually God will heal them. Don't want to admit your faith isn't up to scratch.

In response to the title of this thread, I would like to tell the story of my healing as it happened to me last August at a camp in the Vancouver branch of the GRC. It's a long post but if you want a short version, here you go:  Last summer my foot was healed in less than 8 hours after I either sprained it or broke it, and it happened when I prayed.

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I was scheduled to give a sermon at the morning meeting, and I had gone to my mother's Caravan to change and have some breakfast beforehand.  As I exited the Caravan, I placed my left foot on some uneven ground and rolled my foot so that the sole of my foot was facing up towards the sky and I had all of my weight on the base of the bones of my lower leg for a moment.  I heard and felt things (bones?) crack and pop all at once.  Needless to say, the pain was excruciating and I ended up writhing on the ground rather quickly.  Paster Ivermee from Australia arrived shortly thereafter and laid his hands on me and prayed in tongues and in English.  However the pain remained at that time.  I went on with the sermon, limped around a bit, but really tried to stay off my foot as much as possible for most of that day.

I spent much of the afternoon in my mother's caravan, and when I tried at about 4pm to walk, the pain seemed much worse than before.  My foot at that time was badly swollen and extremely bruised, and it certainly felt like I had at least sprained it, if not broken it.  Now I had been taught that if you don't get healed right away, that the person is lacking in faith, so I got mad at myself and decided that I was going to pray until it was healed.  So I made my way to the prayer tent, and prayed on my knees in tongues for about 30 minutes.  At that point I thought: "How can I know if it's healed if I'm not using my foot?" so I started walking around the small prayer tent step by step.

The first step was, to my surprise, not very painful and I heard some popping and cracking.  The second step was even less painful, accompanied by more popping and cracking.  In all, the pain lasted about 4 or 5 steps and the cracking for about 5 or 6 more after that.  Once the sensations had stopped, and I could walk normally, I began jumping up and down on my left foot, and it was fine.  Then I ran around the small tent, and that too was fine.  I was amazed, and delighted at the apparent miracle that had just transpired.

I must say that while I could walk, run and jump without pain or hindrance from then on, the swelling and terrible bruising remained for some time afterwards, a little more than a week if I remember correctly.  I actually liked that because for the next few days I would show people my foot, and then jump and run around to show that it was healed, even though it looked really horrible.

Now it's true, I didn't seek out any medical help, I saw no doctors and had no examinations at any hospital, so the only form of record for the injury is my own memory and those that saw my foot at that camp last year.  But I do believe that it was a healing from God.  Sure, it's possible that was simply mind over matter, or my body simply healed itself, but I wonder why my body would have chosen that particular step to start popping things back into order, and not the several-dozen others that I had taken earlier that day in extreme pain?  I don't know, but I choose to believe it was God, or at least something supernatural and powerful that we humans do not fully understand.  I guess that sounds to me like a description of God.

I have no illusions that I will convince anybody that it was an actual supernatural healing, but I thought I would share the experience with you just the same.

Many "sick conditions" get better on their own because the body has mechanisms to relieve itself (e.g., fevers, high blood pressure, colds etc). Other supposed illnesses that we are told cannot be healed naturally possibly can be. The medical profession is often confounded by our body's ability to bounce back from inconceivable situations. Again, all these factors make it very simplistic to call a miracle what is more likely the result of human error about a prognosis or a diagnosis.

 

I do see where your coming from with this, as im now a pretty cynical bastard myself, and that medical "miracles" do happen as doctors have not yet learnt everything and the body still has these amazing resources etc. altho that being said, when i was "fellowshipping" in RCI there was a man going along there who had been there for many years. He had an operation when he was younger and had his left ear-drum removed. After being with the RCI for a good few years he one day decided to pray about it. He did, and he can now hear out of that ear, even tho there is no ear drum.

I know your probably just going to turn around and say that this guy was lying or that it was just another thing that can "just happen", but i think it was more than that.

I havent been to RCI meetings for about two years now but i will never forget that story.

 

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I do see where your coming from with this, as im now a pretty cynical bastardmyself, and that medical "miracles" do happen as doctors have not yet learnt everything and the body still has these amazing resources etc.

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Miracles do happen... it's just that they always seem to happen to other people... bizarre things are reported all the time around the world. The bloody crop circles confuse the hell outta me.

I've read of ear-drum miracles from a lot of different people. I need an ear miracle myself... severely... I hope one would come my way for my ears. I really do.. if I do get one, you'll hear from me.

Te Luo Yi	Topic : Why isnt healing manisfest for all at the GRC?	19/09/2006 12:26:53 PM
	As with most Xian churches, not just the GRC, if their god were a doctor then he would have his licence revoked.  He doesn't seem to be very good at healing and his hit/miss ratio is very poor. The followers advertise that 'GOD HEALS' and then when people come along to meetings, etc, they come up short.  Show me someone with a healing testimony that modern medicine couldn't have done just as well or better.  New heart?  Re-attached limb or fingers and toes?  Nah, it is always headaches, back pain, colds and flues, cancer, other disorders.  Things that medical science can well (at least attempt to) treat.  It is a simple fact that modern medicine is far more reliable and heals more people than the GRC god. If a doctor advertised that he could heal and let as many people down as the GRC god then he would be on A Current Affair, have his practice investigated by medical boards and consumer groups, and be run out of town.  Hang on, there's a new angle of attack David. They should advertise this way at the next healing campaign: GOD CAN HEAL...but usually doesn't.

i had one real miraculous healing and it wasnt in the revival centers.

i injured my back when i was 14, during a limbo competition with my sister lol always funny when having to explain how i hurt myself . anyway i fell to the ground and couldnt move my dad picked me up and put the bones back into place and prayd for me.

from that point on i had pain, sometimes worse than others. i had something called siatica where a nerve gets pinched by the bones in the back.when i was pregnat with my son (think giant baby lol) i had to go to an ostio once a week so i could walk esp in the later part of the pregnacy.

14 years later i was prayed for in a healing line from that point on the pain was gone and it has never come back- despite my addiction to 6 inch heels

and thats why i dont do the limbo lol

its also why you should always have vidio proof.... i won that competition damn it!!! but my sis insisted i had cheated so to prove her wrong i not only did it again i went even lower- to this day i am the rightfull owner of the title limbo queen

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REPLY TO Break Free: despite my addiction to 6 inch heelsHey Break Free, Im really hoping your female right about now!!!

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damn now i wish i could say i wasnt lol

no im definatly female- well last time i checked anyway.... hmmmmmmmmm maybe i should check again..... never know what might happen when you not looking

This excerpt illustrates what I've been posting on the subject:

Excerpt (Click here)

(The) introduction is to help show that I was very active and believed that I was indeed, a "True Christian." And that's why when I had a miracle, I was extremely grateful, but not overly surprised. My god was a mighty god, after all, who reigned from heaven on high. Miracles were a normal part of my theology.

My daughter was running/toddling around our apartment, and in her clumsy exuberance, crashed headlong into the pointed corner of our coffee table. Her half-dozen teeth were crushed backwards into her face, blood was gushing everywhere, and her two young parents were hysterical. Her face was a wreck.

At the hospital, the doctors told us there was nothing anyone could do. Her teeth would probably fall out. All they could offer, they said, was something for the pain and to stop the bleeding.

So, with our now deformed-mouthed little girl, we went home, laid hands on her, and prayed to the Lord of Hosts to heal our whimpering baby.

The pain medicine made our daughter groggy, so we put her to bed. When she awoke the next morning, her teeth were perfectly straight, and except for a small scar where she'd bitten through her lip during the fall, she was completely healed.

It was a miracle. God had healed our daughter. We spread the news far and wide, and used that experience to testify to the living reality of our God.

That was 15 years ago. About seven years ago, I started to severely question my faith. I eventually left Christianity and started this website.

So, what about that miracle?

In the last couple of years I've noticed that when our daughter sings, her face lacks symmetry. This doesn't seem to affect her ability for music, but it is somewhat distracting to the people watching her sing. I took her to an orthodontist for an opinion and found out that one side of her jaw is longer than the other. The only way to correct the problem, he said, was to break her jaw and re-set it. When it healed, hopefully, the two sides of her face when singing would appear more symmetrical.

I asked what would have caused such a problem. He replied by asking if she'd had a hard fall when she was very young.

"The coffee table!" I thought.

The doctor explained that what probably had happened was that my daughter had damaged the jaw during the fall, which stunted the growth on one side. He assured us there was nothing anyone could have done, and there was no way to know the extent of the damage until our daughter grew up.

We told him about her teeth being bashed into her mouth in the fall, and how the teeth had straightened over night. He said that things like that were not uncommon. The healing powers of the body, especially a young body, were amazing at times.

What is my point with this little personal introspection?

Many Christians hang on to their faith based on some personal experience that they consider to be miraculous. I know Christians frequently do this, because I was one of those Christians. Typically, the so-called miracles are fairly minor events, events that could be easily explained by any number of natural causes. I know this, too, because my miracle mentioned here is a prime example.

For those Christians who are sure that Christianity is true because someone was healed of a backache, or someone babbled in an unknown tongue, or some old lady left her wheel chair for an hour or two, or something equally routine, I challenge that person to ask why amputees never grow new limbs. Ask why people who have lungs removed, never grow new ones. Ask why all the so-called miracles of healing by Almighty God are so easily mimicked by the natural healing powers of the body.

Believing is nice. It gives a wonderful feeling of being watched over and protected, but it's all a lie.

Read more...

In this scientific experiment, it is totally proven that prayer is awesome, and God exists!

The numbers don't lie...