A Healing Place
by Michael Simon
Nov/Dec 2010
Recently I was asked to pull together information about Francis MacNutt's ministry over the years. As impressive as it was, it really paled in comparison to the great love he has for God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. He exudes their love. Among those he served and taught were the leaders of the Presbyterian Church in Scotland, Lutherans and Baptists in Germany, and Pentecostals in the United States. Near the end of 2008, the Catholic Church sent priests from around the world to one place to receive training in healing prayer. That place was Jacksonville, Florida and the teachers were Francis and Judith MacNutt. Although I am not a priest, it was the first year I ever experienced a Christian Healing Ministries conference. I was there meeting with the Board of Directors concerning the position of Director of Development. After our time together they suggested that I poke my head into the conference. When you listen to people who come to Christian Healing Ministries for prayer or to an event, there seems to be the same commonality that I experienced that day. At the time, I merely recognized that as I stepped in, I felt an amazing peace come over me. I sat down and didn't want to leave. What do you call that? In a recent conversation with Eleni, my friend and a friend of the ministry, she said she could identify some of what makes CHM unique. Here are her words:"I was reading a devotional and meditating on Bethany, the place that Jesus always retreated to after being besieged in Jerusalem. He loved to go to Bethany because it was a place where He could be himself, where his friends (people he loved — Mary, Martha and Lazarus) always welcomed him, had intimate fellowship with him, listened to Him and waited for Him to teach them (Mary at his feet), believed in Him, and worshiped him. I thought that because of all those factors, it was the place where God was able to raise the dead. As I meditated on these thoughts I heard the Holy Spirit say…that is CHM."
"How true is that? CHM is a place where Jesus can be himself, is always welcomed, is loved and worshiped, where there is great faith in Him, where the people wait on Him, listen for His voice, and obey. All these things together make it possible for God to raise the dead there…I thought this might be relevant to the concept of the new Healing Center…"That is our great hope and understanding of what God wants to do. He has been indicating that CHM is to build a place for anyone to come and experience safety and God's healing love — a haven. Francis had a dream of a square of light where whenever anyone stepped in the square they were healed. That square symbolized the healing center. Now we also know what it will look like. We are beginning to go to communities around the country to show the full set of renderings and share the complete vision. I look forward to being with you and sharing this magnificent dream which is soon to become a reality.
What an exciting time this is for the staff, volunteers, donors, and friends of CHM! There is so much happening in ministry at CHM each day and the coming center is a part of the picture. In these difficult times, more than ever we see people needing a place to come and be refreshed, set free, and energized. More than ever, Christians are seeing God answer prayers and bring healing. Our alumni have such incredible ministries, and we see more prayer ministries budding and growing in churches where a faithful few have been patiently and diligently sowing seeds. One of my favorite things about this ministry is that those I meet or speak with who are friends of CHM are such wonderful people. You can immediately tell they love the Lord. Let's celebrate Jesus for who He is today. Let's say to Him, "Lord, we want you to be free to be who You are, completely, in Your fullness. We adore You for who You are. We just want to be near You. Thank you for loving us right where we are, for who we are today." He doesn't judge us. He just loves us! What a gift. God bless you and may God's healing love flow through you today!
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Michael Simon is the Director of Development for CHM. |  |