Christian Living
The book, ‘When the Doctor Says No’‘ (published November 2019) is basically a narrative of my walk through a health challenge and how the Lord walked me to victory. It is a short read, however the truths, knowledge and wisdom in it will last a lifetime.
This book is an expanded compilation of a short blogpost series I shared in 2017. Below I share the 3rd blogpost of that study series which was edited and fleshed out into chapter 5 of the book.
I trust God that this will bless you.
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In part 1, we looked at how medicine helps restore and maintain health. Medicine has helped prevent so many a deaths, restored many to life and given hope to many. However, medicine is limited.
There are times when the doctor says to you; ‘sorry, I cannot help you’.
The Bible tells us that every grass withers and fades away. Man and all man-made things are like grass; they wither and fade away…..
“The voice said, “Cry out!” And he said, “What shall I cry?” “All flesh is grass, And all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades, Because the breath of the Lord blows upon it; Surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.”
Isaiah 40:6-8 NKJV
All flesh is grass. The people are grass. Grass withers and fades away. Man is grass. Man made Medicine. So man and medicine are grass. They both fade (fail), wither and are blown away. They can’t stand or remain forever.
But the Word of God stands forever!
I therefore posit that medicine is man-made, is grass and so can fail (sometimes against the best intentions of those who administer it). But God and His Word can be trusted fully.
Jesus Christ tells us in Matthew 24:35;
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but My Words will by no means pass away” .
I think it’s wisdom then to be plugged into an immortal life source.
In part 2, we looked at 10 awesomely fundamental things to know to help us get a ‘Yes’ out of a doctor’s ‘No’.
So we have built up our faith going from part 1 to 2 of this blogpost series, but the Bible tells us;
“Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” James 2:17
If you are reading this and thinking; ‘Oh! what ‘works’ again? ‘Did Jesus not do all the work?’ ‘Didn’t the Bible say we were saved by grace and not works?’ or you say; ‘I am incapable of doing any work as am immobile, too weak, etc’. This is not works in that sense. Your faith is dead without works.
“It is the same with faith. If it is just faith and nothing more—if it doesn’t do anything—it is dead.“
James 2:17 ERV
If you say you Believe then you must Act.
Imagine if when Jesus got to Lazarus’ grave with all His faith, that He just stood looking at the tomb…..I tell you, dead Lazarus wouldn’t even turn in his grave. Imagine again, that God Almighty (Jehovah) left the earth with all its emptiness and formlessness, I am pretty sure we wouldn’t have the earth we’re living in right now. Jesus Christ had to do some work Himself to save us. Try carrying a 300+ pounds (136Kg) crafted cross! ……..ain’t no joke.
So, we’ll now begin to consider some ‘works’ we need to do to continue to enjoy victory in our health.
Make a paradigm shift in your thinking
This is the purpose of the 10 fundamental knowledge base discussed in part 2. Change your mindset, your outlook on life, and change your health and life experience. Put the report of The Lord concerning your health/life, above any other; a doctor, a hireling pastor, relation, etc. His word says we were healed by the stripes of Jesus Christ. Believe it!
Think life. Never consider dying an option. Banish every thought about dying as swiftly as it crosses your mind. Do not brood over dying.
I find that when I think that I am strong even if feeling physically weak, strength begins to build up in me. So think like God your Father and call the things that be not as though they were.
Put together a faith Confession and say it regularly
Based on your new understanding of your identity, the will of God for your health, what Christ did for you to stay in health, etc, write down a word-of-God-based faith confession. Resist the temptation to be emotional and write only things that are founded on God’s word.
My confession was something like this;
I Grace Obomanu, I am born of God. Therefore, I am a citizen of Heaven. There is no sickness or disease in Heaven none can stay in my body. My body is the temple of the living God and not a den for sickness. I belong to Jesus Christ. Bought by His precious blood. Healed and saved. The Same spirit that raised Christ from the dead is alive in me and it quickens my mortal body. Resurrection power is alive in me. Jesus Christ lives in me and He is life, so I have the life of God in me. The Lord is my Strength, my Song and my Salvation. I am victorious. I am born of God and I overcome the world including sickness and disease. etc etc
It took me at least 30 minutes daily to read through my faith confession. Many times, I did it more than once a day. And then I would recite Psalm 91 over and over again in addition to reading a few other healing scriptures.
In addition, God may just give you one word that will be an anchor through your challenge. Mine was Psalm 118:14.
“The Lord is my Strength and Song, and He has become my Salvation.”
For every feeling of weakness= I drew Strength from The Lord
For every scary symptom= I believed The Lord would save me from it.
And overall, The Lord is my Song (Victory).
Essentially, all I needed to overcome is in The Lord and He already made it available to me.
My role? = Believe and keep moving. This season would pass.
Now, I have to say this; ‘don’t be too weak to say your faith confession because spurs your faith‘. There were times that all I could say was; ‘Father, I call you faithful’, and His faithfulness would carry through the darkest night.
If you shut your mouth, you will shut down your life.
Put on the whole armor of God
“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil”
Ephesians 6:10-11 NKJV
You may also consider writing this up as a faith confession (with your name in it) and read it out loud daily. Doing this always made me feel like a well-armored soldier
Mine read something like;
I put on the whole armor of God; The helmet of Salvation; and I declare that I am saved by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The Breastplate of righteousness: and I declare that I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. There’s no wrong in me. I have right standing with God my Father. So no accusation against me is valid. I guard my waist with the truth of God’s word: declaring that God’s word is true. I am Healed. I am victorious. I am Strong. I am perfect and complete. I shod my feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace and with the sword of the spirit; I pull down every imagination of darkness condemning every tongue that has risen against me in judgment. And I have my shield of faith in the faithfulness of my Father to deliver.
The armor of God is actually meant to be protective (that you may stand in the day of trouble). But God won’t penalize anyone for putting them on in crisis ?
Expose Yourself to life
We already established that the word of God is LIFE and it is immutable. So, you do not let a day go by without exposing yourself to this life. Study your bible and listen to good messages on God’s word. For me, I love to study the word directly myself. I open my Bible and expect God to speak to me and He does. He always gave a reassuring word every time. And sometimes, He sent me word through my Pastors. God always sent me a word that kept me going. But to get that word, I needed to expose myself to it.
Remember the Lord’s covenant-Break Bread Regularly
Some people have become quite religious about the communion. They believe the communion is sacred and should be administered by only certain persons. Of course the communion is sacred, but Jesus Christ commands us to do it as often as, in remembrance of Him. You cannot be so regular about this if it becomes a religious ceremony.
“..This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 1 Corinthians 11:25
Every time we partake of the communion, we remind ourselves, the devil of the sacrifice of Jesus and we proclaim what Christ did for us. We stand on the Lord’s side.
Personally, I remind the Lord about His covenant of health, deliverance, salvation, peace, wealth, fulfillment of purpose and every good thing He has promised me in His word.
Jehovah is careful to keep His covenant.
“My covenant I will not break , nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips.” Psalm 89:34
Get Moving, Go to church
My Pastor often used to say, ‘if you say you are healed, get off your bed’. And you know, that can be some work of faith…..
You may want to flip that and consider what you get……days, weeks, months, and maybe years (if you are still alive) of lying sick on a bed!
For me, there were 3 important things about going to church;
a. I expose myself again to God’s word. And God always sent a word, halleluyah.
b. I plug myself into life. Meet and relate with the living.
c. I am forced to give someone a smile. Sometimes it may be someone who had no idea about my health challenge that needs help. I make efforts to help and by so doing exert myself.
Again, my Pastor taught me, that the devil tend to isolate brethren going through a health challenge, selling them a lie that they are weak, tired and cannot move. That gives him more time to continue keeping you down. Naaaaa! Get up and get moving in Jesus Christ name!
Now, I recognize that there may be times when getting up and moving may truly be difficult or maybe your body really needs rest. Point here is; take a step every day towards getting yourself off a sick bed. You are not sick, you are healed! Your body is simply challenged, and thank God it’s your body because you are a spirit and you are healed. So move!.
Lay hands on your body
The day I got the revelation that I have been saved, healed and made rich, my excitement knew no bounds. I remember we’d just finished evening fellowship and I was practically skipping round my house celebrating this new revelation.
My spirit was created perfect, without sin, sickness or death. God’s very life was infused into my spirit. So if I am born (again) spiritually without sin/sickness, and my body is diseased, I simply lay my hands on my body and command sickness to leave. My spirit rules. And did I really do that? Many times! And it did bring some relief all the time.
“These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink anything deadly, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will get well.”
Mark 16:17-18 AMP
I recently took advantage of this awesome provision by our Father. One of the strange symptoms I had was difficulty remembering things. Attempts at forcing myself to remember would seem like pushing against a wall. Like a brain block. So few weeks ago, I remembered to use my hands! I laid my hands on my head and declared that my brain works perfectly. It’s amazing how this has worked so well. I no longer feel like my head would burst because I am trying to remember something. Praise God.
Identify a Faith/Prayer Support Group and keep in touch
This can be your Pastor, leader, or other respected brethren in your local Church. The Bible tells us in James 5:14
“Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.”
It’s really encouraging to know that some group of persons are praying for you in your time of challenge.
Identify your purpose in life and invest in it
There’s a God-given purpose for everyone. Find it and instead of spending your time crying over your health, invest time and energy here. Help someone, help a group of persons, start blogging on God’s word, visit a homeless children home, go to work, even if it means explaining to your boss that it is just a step of faith so you are not overloaded or overworked. For me, this step gives you a focus on the future. How then will you die when you are thinking about the future with God and people at the centre of it?
Something I realize about God that encouraged me to take this path. God kept showing me things in my future! In fact, initially I didn’t get it. I was almost furious with Him. I thought; ‘Father just show me things about overcoming this challenge.’ But when I understood what God was saying, which I understood as; ‘I have a plan and a future for you, Grace, you are victorious over this challenge, in fact, this is nothing‘, my hope for the future increased.
10. Modify your lifestyle
Reconsider the impact of your life choices on your health.
a. Rest: I heard God clearly say to me; ‘Grace, I created the world in 6 days and Rested on the 7th!’
Recently, I was listening over a discussion and I heard a young single lady planning a restful weekend considering that she’d had a busy week!
Huh? I rarely make such plans! I just keep going.
Rest is so vital to well-being and it’s an investment everyone should make.
b. Choose healthy habits: Certain habits (alcoholism, smoking, etc) may further compromise your health. Ditch them.
c. Choose healthy diet: I keep telling myself; ‘Grace, your Father recommended a diet regimen for you, switch to it.’ I have not! But it’s right there in the Bible; eat more vegetables, fruits and greens….
“And The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; ” Genesis 2:16
“and out of the ground the Lord God made every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food.” Genesis 2:9
“...and vegetation for the service of man, that he may bring forth food from the earth.” Psalms 104:14
“…please test your servants for ten days, and let them give us vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then let our appearance be examined before you……..And at the end of ten days their feature appeared better and fatter in flesh than all the young men who ate the portion of the king’s delicacies…” Daniel 1: 12-15
Re-evaluate your preferred diet plan and make a healthy choice always. Science has shown that plant-based foods are healthier than too much of foods from animal sources.
d. Clothing: The purpose of clothing is to cover up one’s nakedness. So stay covered and warm. I published an interesting article on God’s idea of clothing, as I understood it… Fig Leaves or Tunics of Skin.
e. Exercise: The Bible tells us that bodily exercise profits little (1 Timothy 4:8). It’s probably this ‘little’ that has been shown, medically, to contribute to health and well-being. I think everybody should incorporate some form of exercise into their daily program. Of course if you’re ill, it is wisdom to talk it over with your doctor before starting. Start little and aim to shift the goalpost (target) with time.
f. Take your Medications if you need to: If you feel you have not built up your faith to the point you can go without prescribed medications, please take them. But do not give up on enjoying God’s best provision of Life and Health for you.
So, here we are!
We have some work to do to continue to enjoy what God has already provided for us. The 10 fundamental knowledge base in Part 2 (Chapter 4) help build up our faith but then we must act based on what we believe; that we are healed.
Now, I must add an 11th point to the above listed 10 points. …
Seek the Wisdom of God
Through the years, I’ve come to realise that many times Christians accuse the devil falsely where our health is concerned. I’ve done so in the past myself. This I say because sometimes God reveals to us something we might need to do differently or start doing etc in order to stay in health. This may be totally unrelated to drugs or any such thing. So stay sensitive to God’s Spirit and walk in wisdom.
Stay healed and blessed.
Don’t give up on God because He is counting on you to overcome whatever challenge you are experiencing presently and then become a support for others.
Blessings & Love Always
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