November 07, 2005

Imagine that

I was thinking about the attitude of Christians toward the role of imagination in our lives. I grew up in a dysfunctional fundamentalist environment that considered imagination something that smelled of the smoke of Hell. It took me years to recover from some of that garbage.

The evangelical church seems to be more balanced now about the role of imagination, and in some circles the church is eagerly embracing creativity and imagination as a means of expressing biblical truths.

Some years ago, I thought about how I might use my imagination to enhance my own spiritual life. It started when I heard the old riddle: "What's the difference between a Christian and a non-Christian? A Christian gets up in the morning and says, "Good morning, Lord." A non-Christian gets up and says, "Good Lord, it's morning."

I wondered what might happen if I made that a practice in life. Would it change anything if my first conscious act upon awakening was telling God good morning? I mean, I spend a lot of time talking to myself, and to people I can't see, so why not God? At least he listens to me.

Well, I tried it, and to my surprise I found that it did, indeed make a difference. When my initial focus was on God, somehow it started my day in a way that gave me a better outlook on the world.

Then, after some time trying this, I wondered what it might look like from the other side of the sky. You know, what happened in Heaven when I said, "Good morning, Lord"? Of course, there is not a lot of scripture on the subject, but I found a little, and then I used my sanctified imagination to fill in the blanks.

So, when I woke up (not every morning, I must confess) and would tell God good morning. And on the screne of my imagination, I would see Jesus perking up when he hears my voice. He breaks into a big smile of delight, leaps from his throne -- that's the one at the right hand of the Father, you know -- and RUNS over to the edge of heaven. He leans over the guard rail, beaming, looking...

Wait a minute. Is something wrong? Guardrail? You never heard of a guardrail in heaven? Well, OF COURSE they have guardrails. How would it be if Jesus fell ran over, and in his excitement slipped, and fell out of heaven? It would never do. OSHA would be all over the place. So they have guardrails.

So anyway, Jesus is leaning over the rail, beaming down at me, saying, "AVI! I'M SO GLAD TO SEE YOU! I've been waiting all night for you! Let's go skip rocks or something. Let's go hang out together and just talk!"

And you know, it changed my whole day.

Posted by Larry Baden at 12:39 PM | Comments (1)

August 26, 2005

Healing Rooms

NOTE:

The healing rooms discussed in this post are NOT associated with Theology Website, and we do not have further information on them. There are some links in the article that lead to other sources about healing rooms. Interested persons should investigate those links. Thanks.

Yes, Healing Rooms, but not the type where they yell "HEAL!" and then slap you on the forehead waiting for you to fall to the ground. No, these are local prayer ministries staffed by church-appointed individuals who believe that God answers prayer. Despite the imagery the name "healing room" might conjure, these ministries are grounded in James 5:14-15 which sets forth the church's role and responsibility to offer prayer in faith for believers in need of physical or spiritual healing.

You may be suprised to learn that there may be a Healing Room in your area. Whether or not you find this comforting will likely be wholly contingent upon whether or not you are currently well and healthy. But as was recently made apparent to me, there is an entire population of people whose illness or condition lies beyond the remedy of medical science. Most often it is these people, with no other recourse, who desparately seek out God's deliverance. And so undoubtedly for some, the fact that there is a place where you can go where people take seriously the spiritual efficacy of "prayers offered in faith" is indeed comforting and of use.

Zion Healing Rooms

Wait a minute!

Okay friends. Before you get all spooked out on me here or conclude I've lost my theological marbles, just follow along a minute.

When you hear about "Healing" in the Christian Church...

When you hear about "Healing" in the Christian Church what comes to mind? For a vast majority of us the image of an overtly charismatic preacher slamming people to the ground with a palm to the forehead cannot be avoided.

But there is another, more biblical model for Healing found in James 5:14-15:

Is any of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.

When was the last time you went to the church elders for prayer? Likely never. Why not? Because, simply put, you have never been desparate enough.

People seek God's healing when they realize medical science can offer no cure or no comfort. When confronted by life and death issues where doctors can only shrug their shoulders or offer antecdotal advice, people instinctively seek a higher power. Just as there are few atheists in foxholes, so there are few atheists with terminal illnesses. We all turn to our Creator for comfort when no other comfort can be found.

So imagine that you are in such a life-threatening situation and you are seeking prayer for your healing. Where would you go? To your church elders? Perhaps so, but you can't ignore the fact that this prayer for your healing must be, and I quote, a "prayer offered in faith". Whose faith is important here? Isn't the faith of the person praying also implied here? In other words, don't the elders also have to believe in divine healing, not just as a theoretical possibilility but as a practical and anticipated means of seeing you whole again? The answer is yes, the faith of the elders is crucial in this matter. If those elders do not believe in or truly expect divine healing as a result of their prayers, they are incapable of "prayer offered in faith".

So then where do you go?

Healing Rooms

The current notion of Healing Rooms started in 1999 in Spokane, Washington. Building upon the legacy of John G. Lake, whose charismatic ministry had a dramatic impact on the Spokane from 1914 to 1935, a large network of pastors decided to revive Lake's original Healing Room wherein those seeking prayer for healing could come and have others pray for them. In 1999 Spokane reopened Lake's Healing Room at the very location of the original.

The notion quickly caught on as churches throughout not only the US but abroad excitedly participated in this ministry of prayer. In addition to Healing Rooms in nearly every State of the USA, there are now Rooms in Australia, Canada, England, France, Germany, Holland, Northern Ireland, Israel, Korea, Malaysia, Norway, Scotland, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Zambia.

The Healing Rooms are staffed by volunteers who are recommended or appointed by their pastors to participate in this ministry. Those recommended/appointed are individuals who are wholly given to a life of prayer and who fully believe in God's ability to heal and forgive. Participating local churches financially support their local Healing Room which then remains open and free-of-charge to any person seeking prayer. It is an interdenominational ministry and those staffing the Healing Rooms represent a wide swath of churches in that geographical region.

And then there's you

I have twice accompampanied a friend who was recently diagnosed with a serious illness to the Healing Room in Zion, Illinois. While there I was able to meet some very dear folk who truly care that those in need are prayed for. And yes, they indeed believe that God answers prayers. I got seriously ministered to in the waiting room just chatting with John, a quiet man in his late 70's who volunteers as staff. He reminded me of a spiritual grandfather. I also spoke at length with Pastor Binny Ramos of the Zion Revival Center whose wife Hope manages the Zion Healing Rooms. Through my discussion with these people, I could see clearly that a sincere passion for the ministry of prayer was the driving force behind this operation. It does not represent fringe theology or radical charismatic optimism, but rather a wholly biblical expectation that a "prayer offered in faith" is indeed effective.

My friend's personal search has been very much like the scenario I described above. When she approached the elders of her church, the pastor confessed they had never done that (ie, the prayer of James 5:14) before, but that he would speak to the elders about it. She then began church-shopping for a congregation more familiar and experienced with prayer for healing, but the effort involved in locating a church wherein she felt comfortable and felt the sincereity of ministry proved quite substantial (she is still searching). When she heard about the Zion Healing Room, it seemed to be precisely what she was looking for.

So I don't know what this might mean to you, but I felt that this is indeed something you should know about, either for yourself or for someone you know is seeking the spiritual prayer of believers. Here's a list of Healing Room locations in the US and abroad. Here's the rather meager website of the Zion Healing Room. And if you want to learn more about the relationship of John G. Lake and his legacy to the Spokane Healing Rooms you can look here.

Posted by sdf at 05:45 PM | Comments (11)