Have you ever had an experience that completely changed the way you look at the world? And I don't mean in the cliche, oh-my-gosh-what-a-trip experience, but an event that makes you realize that your idea of reality is wrong? Well, I had one of those experiences on Saturday night.
Before I moved to Chicago I regularly attended church at Christian Life Assembly (Lancaster Blvd and 30th St East). This last weekend, CLA held a "Firestorm" meeting that was billed as a "healing service". I don't know about the readers of this blog, but I was more than skeptical - I was downright cynical that anything would happen. I didn't attend this meeting to be healed or delivered or anything positive, but to cast a skeptical eye upon these guests. The service was nothing extraordinary, and I didn't really find any holes in their theology or their explanations of miracles and the possibility of miracles happening today. I believe that God can still work through people if he wishes, but I hadn't seen it and I know some really "religious" (for lack of a better term) people, fellow believers that I look up to for wisdom had never had this happen to them.
At the end of the sermon, the main speaker and his team of about ten students stood up and gave an open invitation for anyone to come to the front to get prayed over. So, me and Kathy walked up to the front. I can't explain why I felt the urge to get prayer, but I definitely felt like I should go up there. I reasoned, "What's the worst that can happen?" One of the students came up to Kathy and explained she would like to get healed. Kathy explained to her how her neck's been in constant pain for years, her back's misaligned, her hip has been really bothering her, she had tendonitis in her knee and her right achilles tendon has been very painful as of late. So the woman prayed for her and asked Kathy, "Do you feel anything?"
Kathy moved her neck from side-to-side, bent her knees, moved her ankle in a circle and replied, "No, I don't feel anything. That's the weird thing. I was in pain two seconds ago!" I looked at Kathy with an are-you-nuts look...I thought she was pulling my leg here. She looked up at me and couldn't contain her excitement. "Alex! Oh my gosh, I have no pain! This is great!" Ever the unbeliever, I was happy but not quite yet to throw my towel in the ring. I asked her throughout the night, "Do you have any pain now?" "No! This is so awesome!"
Not to repeat myself, but I always believed God could work miracles and heal people as He wished. But it was never going to happen to me, or through me. I was wrong. It happened to my wife; and I'm a believer.
Come to Christian Life Assembly one Sunday and see what all the fuss is about.
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A placebo is a medicine or preparation which has no inherent pertinent pharmacologic activity but which is effective only by virtue of the factor of suggestion attendant upon its administration. The substance may be ingested, injected, inserted, inhaled or applied.
"Subjective bias can also be unconscious, where the patient believes he is improving as a result of the attention and care he has received."
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