I believe there’s a lie we are vulnerable to across the globe right now, where we look at our limitations because of COVID and believe that we can’t do anything. I think we need to face that lie and repent. It’s not true that we can’t pivot and find a way to do Kingdom advancing stuff within the limitations, still abiding by the rules. We need to spend time listening in prayer to God, asking how we can pivot.
One area my tribe has been able to pivot is to train people in healing prayer—both physical and inner healing—from a distance over Zoom. And as we’ve trained and they’ve prayed for one another, also over Zoom, God has healed in significant ways at a distance.
We see in scripture that God heals at a distance. There are a number of times where Jesus healed from afar. Consider the centurion, who asked Jesus to heal his servant, but to not bother coming to his home to do so. He recognized that Jesus could just speak the word and his servant would be healed. And he was. This current season with Zoom being our primary platform of connecting with each other is just a modern way to experiment with that reality. Looking back through my career of prayer ministry, I can tell you stories of healing at a distance, but it’s been escalated this year.
Here’s just one of many examples of virtual healings I’ve witnessed recently.
I led a training on healing with Novo staff a few months ago. The training followed our typical training format: teaching time, lab time (where participants practice what they’ve learned about healing prayer), and debrief. I’ve taught on healing hundreds of times, and this was just like all the other training-times, only it took place over Zoom instead of in person.
During our debrief following the lab time, one man shared how he’d been experiencing pain in his back for a long time. He was prayed for in the Zoom breakout session by other training participants and had a tangible measure of healing from the pain in his back.
Then a woman shared that she had injured her neck and back and had been in a lot of pain. After prayer the pain was diminished; it was completely gone on one side of her neck, and almost gone on the other side. “It just feels like it’s loosening up,” she said. “I’m basically pain free.”
There was a second woman who had shared a tangible physical need with her lab group and been prayed for. She didn’t notice relief for her physical issue, but while they were praying they discerned that a curse was impacting her, causing her to believe something that wasn’t true. Together as a circle of friends they broke the curse, and it lifted something off of her that was tangible. She felt like it was an inner healing.
The other thing in that online training that was really fun for me as a teacher was the breakthrough in learning that happened for several people. It was fun to hear Novo staff—even folks who had been through my trainings before—saying, “This is the first time that I’ve ever thought of this,” or, “I went to prayer and experimented with this for the first time.” Even over Zoom it was more than just head knowledge. Because we could experiment and reflect, there was new obedience and stretching in prayer that took place. And people didn’t stop there; they went off and put what they’d learned into practice with others immediately.
The Good News Is Message and Ministry
I practice praying for healing and teach others to do the same because when you examine the ministry of Jesus, you’ll find a supernatural component to everything he did. There was always a sign that would point back to the truth of his message, that demonstrated the reality of it. “The Kingdom is now among you. Here’s an illustration: There’s no sickness in heaven. I touch this person’s body and they’re healed.” Declaration followed by healing, or a healing that led to declaration.
When people were hungry, Jesus didn’t just preach a message, he also fed them. He took care of their needs. There was a message, but there was also a ministry; there was a declaration and a demonstration.
Likewise, when Jesus sent his disciples out to declare the good news of the Kingdom, they were meant to care for people, to communicate the good news with relevance through deeds. “Heal the sick who are there,” he instructed, “and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you’” (Luke 10:9).
If our first fascination is Jesus, then we will model our ministry after him as well. That means a ministry of word, deed, and power. The power component isn’t just for charismatic people—it’s for all of us who follow Jesus and want to be like him.
During this time of pandemic I’ve been prayer-walking every day, and if I have the chance I’ll ask people if I can pray for them. I believe it’s Jesus’s heart for people to experience his love by the ways he shows up in their lives—often, I hope, through healing. When people encounter Jesus’s peace or healing during prayer they will ask me, “What was that?” It’s an easy lead-in to declaration.
The powerful ministry impact and healings we’ve seen over Zoom convince me that there are many ways we can pivot in ministry during this time. We all need to take on the challenge, listen to the Holy Spirit, and find creative ways to continue to care for people and share the good news. Instead of viewing the pandemic as an excuse to stop trying, we need to make the most of every opportunity. Jesus is still ready to show up in power in people’s lives. We just have to be willing to partner with him.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Bill Randall is the Director of Pioneering Initiatives for ChurchNEXT and helps lead Novo toward understanding the supernatural reality of the Kingdom now among us. His recently published book, The Life Jesus Made Possible: Embracing the Kingdom Within Our Reach, is available on Amazon. Bill is relentless in his conviction that embracing supernatural reality is essential for releasing the potential for authentic gospel movements among the nations. Bill and his wife Jill live in Boise, Idaho. They have three married kids, five grandkids and five grand-dogs.