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Why hasn’t God ‘healed’ Joni? Do you think she doesn’t have enough faith?

I remember reading in Joni's book about her views on God before her accident. She admitted that she was not a strong Christian and, at first, she was devastated that such a horrendous thing could have happened to her. But as she grew in her acceptance of the condition of her body and her faith grew because of what had happened - and this is a very important part since a "normal" human reaction would have been to curse God and hate him for "doing" this to them - she stopped asking, "Why me?" and started saying, "Why not me?".

She also spoke about where she would have been in her spiritual life had God NOT allowed this trial in her life. It is in finally grasping that critical point, that all who suffer in this life as Christians realize the GIFT God has given to them. They, we, understand that God does have a purpose and plan for us and that our suffering IS part of his wondrous plan - a plan that has eternity in view.

There are many out there who refuse to accept God might actually want to allow affliction to stay. They have been convinced that the "healing" God said that Christ's suffering brought us is physical in nature when it is obvious that it cannot be that. The atonement gave us spiritual healing - our SOULS have been healed - and at the resurrection, our bodies will also experience a total and complete healing from all sickness, suffering AND death because we will be given glorified bodies like unto Christ's glorified body. Our corrupted and mortal flesh will put on in-corruption and immortality and we WILL live for eternity with our Savior. The atonement enables us to live for eternity in Heaven with God - that is the healing Christ's suffering bought for us.

Some like to quote God's promises to the Israelites when he brought them out of Egypt and into the Promised Land and promised them a life without diseases and a land flowing with milk and honey. And he most certainly had the power to do so but, because of their disobedience and grumbling distrust, the majority never saw that in their lives. What God promised to Israel at that time is NOT a promise he repeats to anyone else. Sure Scripture says God's promises are without repentance and God is no respecter of persons, but they forget that there were conditions placed on the people of Israel and, had they obeyed God, he WOULD have fulfilled his promises to them. Therefore, the promises of "no diseases" and "land flowing with milk and honey" were definite promises to specific people under specific conditions. We are not the nation of Israel coming out of Egypt, so the promises to them do not apply to us. Now, obviously, some other promises DO apply to us today, but as far as a guarantee that God WILL heal all OUR diseases, no such thing was ever promised.

That leaves us to understand that although God DOES heal, sometimes God allows suffering and sickness, trials and testings, persecution and, sometimes, martyrdom, and, in order to grasp the meaning behind this, we have the New Testament Scriptures to guide us. We can look at the lives of the Apostles and the early Christians and realize that God had a higher purpose for them and He also does for us today when he allows these things in our lives. No one doubts that God can't heal whoever he chooses to and many people have experienced miracles, but when he chooses NOT to, then we know there is a purpose and we discover an even greater miracle.

Joni is an incredible woman whose strength of faith is amazing but, had she either never been stricken or been healed by a "faith healer" early on, we can only guess about where she would be today. Her victory and her testimony is that she rejoices in what God has allowed her to suffer because it was by that suffering that she has been able to be such an instrument for God's work and because of the relationship she has with the Lord that she KNOWS she could not have had any other way. I do not think she has given up the hope that God could still make her whole, but, if He doesn't, she has the strength through Christ to be the woman God wants her to be exactly as she is. Her life is a powerful testimony to the world of the truth of Christ's love and sacrifice for us and her crown in glory will be filled with the stars of all those she has led to Christ because of her faith. God does not lie, he WILL work all things together for our good, and Joni is living that truth!

I’ve been thinking a lot about a lot of this healing stuff and what the whole problem is with the healing and signs and wonders movement, and it occurs to me what my argument against it is going to be.

When I go in faith for prayer for healing and it doesn’t happen, there are really two options. One is to praise God for the strength to carry on and continue to trust Him anyway, figuring that His grace is sufficient for me and when I am weak, then (in Him) I am strong,

OR....

The charismatic movement way, and that is to try to figure out why I didn’t get the healing. Is it me? Do I not have enough faith? Generational curses? Sin in my life? yada, yada, yada.... Or to blame Satan and try to figure out why he’s attacking me. Are there strongholds in my life? Sin? Generational curses? etc......

Now, it finally occurred to me what the big problem is. My way, of accepting the not being healed, leaves me free to praise God and continue to trust Him in faith. It keeps my eyes ON GOD and I have peace in the situation through trust in Him.

The other way takes my eyes off God and puts them on me or Satan. There’s stress and strife and worry and fear and guess who’s getting all the attention? It sure isn’t God. It’s on me, or even worse yet, Satan.

I’ve decided that anything that gets my attention off God isn’t of Him and does not, and should not, deserve my time and attention.

If the charismatics are correct and healing is part of the atonement, which I really do think that it is, since we are not saved by works, we are not healed by works. We ask in faith and leave the answering of that to God’s sovereignty.

I have not yet realized the fullness of my salvation that I do have in the spiritual reality. I can live with not realizing the fullness of the healing that I also have in the spiritual reality.

I can live in peace with trusting God. I’ve been reading Hebrews 11 lately and twice in there is says that those commended for their faith DID NOT receive the promises but died in faith believing for what they saw afar off but did not yet have. NOT the charismatic name it and claim it way.

I live in faith, believing in and for the spiritual reality which exists and have peace in it while still stuck in this world.

And that’s a lot of what faith is. Believing what exists that we can’t see but know to be true because God told us. When we have what we’re believing for, then it won’t be by faith anymore because we will have it and it will be by sight.

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

And yet......

Hebrews 11:13 These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.

Hebrews 11:39 And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised,....

Hebrews 12:1-3 1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

God has used this food intolerance in a mighty way in my life. There's nothing quite like staring your own mortality in the face to cause you to pursue God with your whole heart and soul and mind and get your eyes of the world. This world has no more grip on me and I refuse to obsess with it, even in the realm of getting my own healing. I will give God the glory for the strength to deal with it and lose the *Woe is me* pity parties.