And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. Ephesians 5:2
Nine years ago today, the Lord miraculously healed me of fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome (declared a miracle by my fibromyalgia physician). For about 15 years, I was a walking pharmacy … pills to deal with the pain, pills to make me go to sleep, pills to wake me up, pills to counteract the side effects of the other pills.
Bright lights, loud noises, and strong fragrances bothered me. My husband, Keith, stopped wearing cologne during those years.
Most department stores place the perfume counters at the main entrances. I had to hold my breath, walk like a racer past the perfume counters (not easy for a fibromyalgia patient), and hope that I walked far enough to avoid a whiff of fragrance.
I feared getting into an elevator. At times, I was on the verge of a flair by the time the door opened, and I could escape the heavy perfume.
Fear, pain, fatigue, hopelessness, and brain fog vanished on November 21, 2010.
Then came the lessons.
A few weeks ago, Keith and I traveled with a group of students to Europe. We visited several countries and businesses. One of those businesses was Galimard Parfumeur en 1747 in Grasse, France. We entered the building, and the fragrance was bold and heavenly.
No holding my breath this time. No anxiety.
In contrast, I was breathing in deeply, smiling.
When we returned to the bus, I realized that this visit was another confirmation of God’s healing, His miracle. Praise the Lord!
In a few weeks, a fragrant liquid was produced.
9 Lessons Learned
- Our Healer still heals today. God told Israel, “I am the Lord your healer” in Exodus 15:26. From time-to-time, the prophets healed, and Jesus healed blind eyes, deaf ears, lepers’ spots, and feverish bodies. He even raised the dead. God used the apostles to heal, and He uses you and me to heal, James 5:14-15. Peter writes that by Jesus’ stripes, we are healed … healed of our sin and healed of our sicknesses, for Jesus bore our sins and our diseases on the cross, Isaiah 53:5. Finally, all will be healed. Revelation 21 tells us that every tear will be wiped away, and there will be no pain.
- Our Eternal Father heals in His perfect timing. Isaiah writes that those who wait, or hope, in the Lord shall renew their strength. Some receive healing on earth, and all who are His followers receive healing in eternity. The Father impressed upon Keith and me that He would heal me. That was two years before He healed me. Two years of thanksgiving and pressing into the Lord.
- Our Omnipresent Lord is with us. Psalm 23 tells us that even in the valley of the shadow of death, God is with us. The Psalmist reflects upon the presence of God in Psalm 139. The Psalmist writes, that wherever he goes, God is with him. Whether he ascends to heaven or descends into the depths of Sheol, God is with him.
The Lord was with us as we talked with our doctor after the healing.
He brought Keith home from a work-related trip just in time to take me to the hospital for emergency surgery (side effects from the fibromyalgia drugs got the better of me that day.) In all of the trials, God was present and carried us when necessary. - Our Comforter directs our focus. Jesus told His disciples that when the Holy Spirit comes, in addition to convicting the world of sin, righteousness, and truth, He will guide the followers of Jesus into all truth, John 16:13.
Some of the sweetest times I had with the Lord were those nights when I couldn’t sleep because of the pain. I would go to the couch, open up the Psalms, and prayerfully read. David cried out in anguish, sometimes frustration, sometimes anger, and he recounted his troubles to the Lord. Many of the Psalms begin with anguish and end with praise because David took his eyes off his troubles and placed them on the majesty of God. - Our Source of Strength hears our prayers. Psalm 4 and Psalm 28 assure us that the Lord hears our cries and that He is our strength.
Keith and I prayed for years for healing. Our prayers changed from begging to thanking, and on the night of the Lord’s healing, my prayer changed again, “I don’t care about healing anymore, I just want more of You!” That night, God healed me, AND He continues to give me more of Him. - Our Sustainer gives us other believers to support us in times of need. The church prayed for Peter when he was in prison, and he showed up at their door, Acts 12:5. Paul frequently asked for prayer and told the church that he was praying for them, 2 Corinthians 1:11. Paul also writes that we are to encourage one another and build them up, 1 Thessalonians 5:14. We are to pray for one another, James 5:16.
Keith was in the Air Force for 22 years; consequently, we moved all over the world. I lost track of a high school good friend, Emily. One day after I had been healed, she found me via Facebook. We renewed our friendship. She did not know about my fibromyalgia and the Lord’s healing. After we had talked several times, she said, “You’re going to think I’m crazy, but I’ve been praying for you all these years – that the Lord would heal you.” She told me about a dream she had, accurately describing a time that I was in the hospital. For 40 years, she prayed for me without knowing the details but knowing that the Holy Spirit had prompted her to pray. I had the pleasure of telling her that her prayers were answered and that the Lord had healed me. She is now in heaven, and I can’t wait to see her. I needed her prayers and the prayers of others. I needed Keith’s support as a caregiver. We need each other. - Our Almighty God requires us to be courageous. After Moses died, God told Joshua that He had given the Promised Land to the Israelites and that Joshua was to lead them into the land. God told Joshua to be very courageous because God was with him, Joshua 1:9.
After the Lord healed me, a friend asked me, “What if Sunday night was a placebo, and the symptoms come back?” It took courage to talk to the doctor and agree on what medications to start cutting. It took even greater courage to stop taking those medications. It came down to the question, “Do you believe God?” God rewards those who step out in faith. - Our Great Equipper prepares us for amazing ministries. Preparing good works for His children to accomplish and equipping them for work that they would never have thought they were qualified for is the delight of the Lord, Ephesians 2:10. Sometimes, the equipping involves pain and trails. But we are to count it all joy because trials produce endurance, and endurance makes us whole, James 1:3.
I count it all joy now that I endured fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue because I understand pain and can relate to others who are enduring pain and trials. God orchestrates divine appointments for me on an increasing frequency They usually involve conversations about coping with trials. - Our Promise Giver requires us to possess His promises. God told Moses that when the Israelites crossed over the Jordan into the land that He had given to the Israelites – the Promised Land – that they were to possess it, Numbers 33:53. Possessing it would require battles. But the battles were God’s battles. He promised Joshua that He would be with him wherever he went, Joshua 1:9.
God gave me healing, but there were naysayers, even nurses, who said the healing was just a placebo effect, and that my fibromyalgia would return. This may sound odd … I was scared. I knew how to be sick, but I did not know how to be healthy. It was up to me to believe God and walk in faith as I actively possessed health.
Six months after the Lord’s healing, I climbed half-way up the Great Wall of China. Half-way because the bus was scheduled to leave. Impossible in the condition I was in on the day of healing. I hope to return to climb the Great Wall fully and run on top of it praising the Lord.
They who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31
I am constantly blessed by the fragrance of God’s promises and the lessons they bring.
My prayer
Abba Father, we are overwhelmed by Your majesty, Your artistry, Your lovingkindness, and Your presence. Thank You for all that You are, all that You do, and all that You enfold. Your holiness and grace astonish us, and Your goodness and compassion captivate us. Thank You for Your great and precious promises. Help us to learn how to possess them for your honor and glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
What promises from God have you possessed? What did you learn?
Please share in the Comments Section below.
10 responses to “9 Years Healed! 9 Lessons Learned”
Hi everyone on this forum. I just wanted to say that I became a Christian at age 41, I was late in faith and I had not lived a life that glorified Him so I was over-awed that I had a chance to change to become more pleasing to Him and humbled in repentance towards Him plus I tried to pour love on Him to make up for the 41 years where I had not known him completely personally. I adored Jesus Christ and cried tears on tears that He was crucified for my sins. I read and re-read Scriptures trying to be more pleasing and learning how to live but I struggled with Bible verses that outline judgement and began to fear that I wasn’t pleasing Him, that I hadn’t changed enough and I started to think maybe He was going to send me to hell, that He would really burn my soul forever. I always repented everyday and apologised for wrong thoughts and sin but then at age 44 severe fibromyalgia began suddenly one day. It developed so severely that I immediately required medications to control it which then led to requiring liquid morphine, everyday for years. Sadly for me, whenever I think about Jesus and God I associate all the terrible pain I’m now in with the same period of my life as my time of faith. The Bible describes God as a Father, a giver of good gifts, satisfying the desires of His people. I really wanted Him to be my Father in heaven too, but after seeking Him all my life and then finding out He existed very late, the following years of excruciating pain have changed me in mind, heart, spirit and body and I now have a very difficult relationship with Him because of this. I avoided becoming medically dependant before serving Him and I believed He could heal me. My own mind tells me this is not what is promised to believers and if I am not healed and delivered by His crucifixion, then maybe I’m not forgiven too??? This doesn’t feel like forgiveness would feel and restoration to me. I think I believed wrongly of God that He would burn people forever, that He is probably in essence all kind and good. Even knowing this I am struggling with why in His goodness He continues to allow this to happen to me. I also know personally 4 other Christians who have severe fibromyalgia as well. All of them have pulled away from public meetings and service and now keep a personal faith instead. Certainly the advice of the author – who is healed, who praised His Name and believed is better advice as She is gladly healed now. I wish the author well. Peace and love xx with hugs xxx
Dear Someone, my heart goes out to you. Please email me at karen@possesshispromises.com, and I will be glad to talk with you, pray with you, and listen. The pain of fibromyalgia is real and devastating and consuming. Please do not retreat from other Christians. We are a family, meant to encourage and help each other. Together, we are the bride of Christ. God still heals today. Sometimes it is in this life and ultimately, all His sons and daughters will be healed when the new heaven and earth are created. Job also struggles with why God allowed Satan to take away his children, his possessions, and his health. Please read Job and pray that the Holy Spirit will reveal God’s nature to you through Job’s suffering and ultimate restoration. I will be praying for you and your friends. Don’t give up. God loves you and will never leave you. Karen
Our love for God is not meant to be conditional on what he can do for us. Also it sounds like your past caught up with you and it is your own guilt and self flagellation, coupled with getting fibromyalgia that has caused you to think of God in the way that you would think of yourself. However you would behave is nothing to do with how God would behave, think back to your past for that evidence. Therefore why assume he will behave as you would now. Through I am ill with fibromyalgia and other things and having a lot of hard times in life through no fault of my own, I found God and I never ever blame him for anything or expect anything of him. Due to my attitude I’ve been able to evolve and mature and learn so much from these awful experiences. True faith is when you walk with God in good times and in bad. Assuming he will make your life easy is loving him with conditions attached. I love God. Not because of anything other than he is my loving father. I trust him and so I don’t question him. I just pray in gratitude for everything he gave me despite the fact that I don’t feel I deserved it because I wasn’t a perfect person. I had a lot of bad experiences in my life but I made mistakes here and there that felt like big ones. But he still gave me things that I didn’t deserve even before I knew him. I didn’t feel I deserved to be a Mum, that I wasn’t good enough but he gave me them and I grew into a person who lives life devoted to them and God and good living. I became someone better that I was through being given something I didn’t deserve. So maybe going through trials I don’t deserve will lead me to even greater things because I discovered so many things through my illness that have made my life better. Right now after many years with this and also cfs/me and prolapsed discs in my back I have realised that my insomnia could be helped by altering the times that I choose to drink coffee and I have also realised that I could choose to do some stretches and have a go at doing some yoga or Pilates rather than just pop pills straight away and I’ve discovered that when I am extremely tired I should rest and that’s a good thing because I’ve learnt to rest which is good for my as I also have bipolar disorder and BPD so I get manic in my mind but the body can’t keep up. So now I’m learning to meditate and pray and rest. I don’t drink alcohol or smoke and I eat better and I’m about to give up sugar. So if I get healed then wow what a healthy person I will be. So fibromyalgia will have made me healthier in the long run. So what I’m saying is, see the bigger picture and ask yourself why you deserve to be healed just because you finally believed. Wow if only things were so easy for Jesus. No, he had to suffer on this earth and that suffering gives us forgiveness but it doesn’t promise good health on this earth. This earth is not heaven is it. If I get healed then great, wonderful. But if I don’t get healed I will live my life with love and faith and I will just be happy to know God. Isn’t that the truest way to live God. Unconditionally. Maybe you have more to learn, in fact I’m sure of it. Ask God to forgive your recent feelings and anger and start again without any expectations. God loved Jesus his son and even he had to endure. Not for us to be pain free but for us to be forgiven. So I think you ought to accept the harsh realities of planet earth, love God unconditionally and live your best life in your current circumstance. Also imagine Gods pain looking down on all the suffering he sees humans do to each other. Maybe there was a time you caused God pain through the way you treated someone? But you out a timeframe on how quickly you should be healed. But you took half your life to live God. So be patient and stop wanting all the time and start being thankful for what he has given you and that you get to be in heaven because of Jesus and stop being paranoid about hell. If that is your focus then it’s not really on living God. It’s on getting healed and not going to hell. I never think of that stuff, I just think about how much I love God, how I can be my best me and how thankful I am for the good things and also the good things that come out of the bad. You are missing out at this point.
Dear Gem, “So encourage each other and build each other up.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11a
You are correct that true love for God and for others is unconditional. Have you responded in an encouraging and loving way?
I am glad that you are taking every opportunity to be healthier and to focus on God’s blessings. One more step that I suggest is to ask the Holy Spirit to reveal your heart towards others. Please count the number of times “I” appears in your response. Are you a light on a hill shining God’s love and truth upon others?
“Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven.” [Luke 6:37 NLT]
Yes, we are to point out how a brother or sister might need to adjust, but always in a loving manner. If you were the recipient of your response, would you consider it loving encouragement or judgment?
May the Lord pour out His lovingkindness upon you, so that it spills out onto others.
Karen
Thank you for sharing. Powerful truths regarding waiting on God with a thankful heart while suffering from a debilitating illness. I too am struggling with FM symptoms and considering quitting a job I love, but demanding more than I can currently offer. I know and pray God can heal me. I need strength and wisdom while waiting.
My dear Ana, God can and does use adversity, pain, and suffering to make us stronger. I know it doesn’t feel like it. God can heal you. In His time. After I received God’s word that He was going to heal me in this life, we continued to trust in what He had impressed upon us and He healed two years after we knew He would heal me. But I gave up. God has a plan for you, and it is good.
Father, You are Ana’s Healer. Nothing is impossible for You. You know every cell in Ana’s body. You planned good works for her to do, and she is Your masterpiece. But like Job, she’s struggling with the “why.” Like me, when I struggled. Bless her, Lord, with complete healing. May she be a light to others, pointing them to You. Father, fill her with Your peace and comfort, and draw near to her, so that she becomes aware of Your presence. We look forward to what You will do in Ana’s life. She wants to honor You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Ana, please let me know how you are doing and if you would like to email privately. Feel free to email me at karen@possesshispromises.com. I’ll be praying for you. Karen
Hi Karen! I was prompted by the Lord today to search for testimonies on healing from Fibromyalgia. Thank you for sharing your testimony. All glory and thanks be to God.
I have been praying for healing from fibromyalgia, among many other health conditions that I have, and have been waiting on it for 8 years now. Please pray for me. It seems that I have been called to step forward and become a doctor but this illness makes it seem impossible to do so. I am seeking for confirmation, and I am hoping to receive it in His Mighty Name.
Thank you again. Sending all my love and light to you.
My dear Angel, Thank you for reaching out to me. God orchestrated this meeting for a reason. Father, I pray that Your healing touch will rest upon Angel. Renew Angel’s strength so that she can rise up on wings like eagles’. May she run in the path that You have set before her and not grow weary. Empower her to take Your right hand and walk with You without fainting. Pour out Your All-Knowing Wisdom upon her and show her the works that You have prepared for her to accomplish. Cause her to bring honor and glory to Your name, In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Angel, be strong and very courageous. Pray that God will shut the doors that He does not want you to step through and open the door that He wants you to enter. It will take courage, but He has great plans for you, plan for good. May you rest in His peace and joy. Karen
Amazing and great lessons!
Gary, May God make you aware of the miracles that He has performed in your life, and may that cause you to rejoice and praise His name. Sometimes, we are blessed with big miracles, and sometimes, they are small miracles. The important thing to remember is that they show us that God is working in our lives because He loves us. May you bask in that love as you give thanks this week. Happy Thanksgiving! Karen