A God Experience with My Son

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up....You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." {Deut. 6:5-7,9}

I received a phone call yesterday informing me that my son was having problems walking. He had some type of foot injury and was asking for one of his parents. I gathered all of my things and picked him up to take him to the doctor. While on my way to the school, I thought about taking him by our church building first to pray over his foot. My decision was to pray and see if God would heal his foot instantly and he could return to school. If the healing did not take place, I would take him to the doctor and we would proceed.

When I met Hayden in the hall, immediately my faith was challenged. It was all he could do to put pressure on his left foot. I actually put him on my back and carried him to the truck informing him of what I intended to do. I said, "Do you believe that God can heal your foot?" He said, "Yes!" I then asked him "Why?" He answered, "Because God is all powerful." On the way to the PBC sanctuary we had a conversation about God and how He revealed Himself as "God - Our Healing" (Jehovah-Rophe). With worship music playing in the vehicle we sang "Let the light of Your face shine down upon us, and let us feel it."

When we got to building, we finished the song and proceeded to the altar. I asked our Youth Pastor to join us in praying for Hayden's healing. We put on some worship music, grabbed the anointing oil from the table, placed some on his foot and our hands, and prayed for God to touch him. When we finished praying, I asked Hayden to stand up, walk around, get on his tippy-toes, and even run. Here was my son who couldn't stand to put pressure on his foot when we walked into the building (carried him in) running around the sanctuary. I asked him if his foot hurt and he said that there was a little "twinge" of pain. Long story short, I asked him if he still wanted to go to the doctor or return to school. We decided to have lunch together and the decision would be made afterward.

While we were eating I asked him if he "felt" anything while we were praying. Here's what he said:
"I felt 'like' Presence."
Me: "What do you mean?"
Him: "While you were praying, I kept hearing 'You are healed. You are healed."
Me: "Did you 'feel' anything else?"
Him: "It felt like God was pulling knives out of the bottom of my foot and when you finished praying all the knives were gone."
Me: "So what do you want to do?"
Him: "I want to go back to school."

There may be some of you that would condemn my logic of thinking here, but I decided that if my son wants to walk in faith then I'm going to join him. What he heard and felt was God's confirmation in the heart of a child. He had to walk in faith especially since he was still feeling a "twinge" of pain but that is exactly what he wanted to do. When I took him to school, he told his teacher that he went to see the "Great Physician." My heart almost exploded. I came home and the Lord spoke to my heart and said, "Do you realize what you just taught your son?" I had taught him to trust God for everything - EVEN healing. Can you imagine a generation of young people who choose to walk in faith rather than what they see? Can you even conceive the thought of children who lay hands on one anther believing God for something great?

It's not wonder that Moses taught the children of Israel that they should teach the children and talk of God's commands constantly. We are to integrate his principles into everyday life and even write them upon the doorposts of our homes. In this way, we will carry faith in the ONE TRUE GOD to another generation.

I'm excited about the next phone call I get from the school when my son says, "Dad, I want you to take me to the 'church' to pray over me." It will be another opportunity to experience God with my son.