Sunday Blessings

This morning I went back for healing prayer after communion. My ear has been feeling worse the past few days, and I’d had a particularly bad night with a lot of fluid build-up. All during morning worship and teaching Sunday School, I’d been feeling frustrated with how congested it was feeling, and how badly I was hearing.

Two lovely folks from our congregation prayed for me, one of whom happens to be a bishop. He anointed me and laid hands on my ear while he prayed. During the closing song at communion, I could feel my ear begin to pop (which it usually only does when I move my head way back into a certain position) and I could feel the fluid levels start to go down and the ear start to open up. After church, I mentioned to my husband and daughter that it was much better. The fluid is definitely still there, but I was amazed and blessed that the ear opened the way it did. And though I’m still struggling, it’s been better all afternoon that it has been for the past few days.

My daughter grinned at me and said “wow, prayer!” when I told her. Later this afternoon, she asked me how I was doing and I said the ear was still not as full of fluid as it had been. She asked, “Can I pray for you?” I told her of course, and she laid hands on my ear and asked God to help bring the fluid down.

Actually, she first said, “Please help bring Mommy’s ear down--” Then she giggled a little and said, “I mean the fluid, not her whole ear.” Because we are a silly family, after the Amen, my husband said something teasingly about how funny it would be if my ear started sliding down my neck. I laughed and said I was glad that God was wise and would know not to do that. Then the sweet girl, who has been studying ancient history all year, said, “Actually, that sounds like something the Greek gods would do – if they were real.” I agreed, and said something like, “That’s true, because they often were rather sly and not--” and into my slight pause, the sweet girl popped up with “godly.” We all agreed and had a good laugh again.

So much encouragement in just a few small encounters, conversations, prayers. The encouragement of being prayed for, and helped toward healing, by others in the body of Christ. The encouragement of seeing my daughter spontaneously copy the prayer practices modeled before her. The encouragement of realizing once again the joy of knowing the true and living God, who is never sly or manipulative, but holy and full of delight in doing good things for his children.