By Brenda Groves
The Post Newspaper Contributing Writer
When I was around 7 years old I tagged along with my Dad and a friend of his to watch a local football game. At one point, my Dad’s friend found a $10 dollar bill on the ground and gifted it to me.
Now there were a couple of teenage girls sitting behind us, and while my father was distracted in conversation with his friend, one of the girls tapped me on the shoulder and whispered that she had dropped the money, and it belonged to her.
Immediately I handed the $10 over to her, they giggled and took off. Even at that young age, I sensed I had been played the fool. I didn’t lose the money, I recall my Dad telling me to “hang on tight to it,” and I remember clamping my fist around it. My eyes were glued to that treasure for sure.
So, I couldn’t lose my gift but, as it turned out, I could be talked out of it.
Well, recently I was reminded of this unpleasant experience when I read Pastor Kenneth Hagin’s account of two women who attended another Pastor’s church many, many years ago.
Both women were diagnosed with stage 4 liver cancer, with only a few weeks left to live, according to the doctors.
Both women were prayed for in the church, and both were miraculously healed. All their symptoms disappeared.
Yet, over 15 years later only one of the women was still alive. The other woman had gone several months with no symptoms of the disease, but one day she stood up in church and stated, “I want you all to pray for me, those symptoms of cancer have come back on me.” Well they prayed, but sadly she allowed doubt and fear to take that advantage and rob her of God’s best for her life. She grew steadily worse until a short time later she died.
And according to the Pastor of her church, “When the doctors performed an autopsy on her, they couldn’t find any trace of cancer in any way, shape or form in her body. Her liver was just as perfect as anyone else’s liver. They couldn’t find a trace of cancer. They don’t know why she died.”
Pastor Hagin went on to say, “A miracle began in her life, yet she was robbed of the best that God had for her, because of doubt. Doubt robbed Peter of the best God had for him. Remember, Peter was a man who walked with Jesus. He was part of the inner circle that followed Him. Yet Peter was robbed of God’s best. I wonder how many more of those who walk with Jesus are robbed of the blessings God intended they should have.”
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.” James 1:17
“For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.” Romans 11:29
You can’t “lose” a healing, but you can be talked out of it. The Devil is a liar and a deceiver, manipulator and con artist. But he cannot do anything to us without our complete consent and cooperation. (And as much as we believe, we cannot force our belief on someone else.) There is so much more to be said here, but it is on my heart to express the goodness of God, and His willingness to see each person healed, whole and complete, because Jesus already paid for us to receive the best God has to offer.
“For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.” Mark 11:23
Contact Brenda Groves at: bkgroves1996@yahoo.com
Contact Brenda Groves at: bkgrove1996@yahoo.com
