Signs and wonders

I just attended a seminar on "Types of Healing" by Bob Canton over last weekend and was blown away by what I witnessed. Here is a man anointed by God to perform miracles of healing, just as Jesus did when He walked the earth.

Bob shared his story of how he did not think he was worthy of the task he was called to initially but continued to let the Lord lead and is now travelling the world over, making the Gospel come alive by demonstrating Jesus' love, mercy and compassion through healing, telling everyone that the kingdom of God is here and now, bringing glory and honour to God by drawing people to Jesus and salvation.

My takeaway from the weekend is that God uses ordinary people, wounded healers (as Henri Nouwen would call them) to carry out His will. If we are able to avail ourselves of the Holy Spirit that resides in us through our baptism to cultivate a praying, discerning heart, receive the sacraments frequently and develop a listening ear to what God wants, then you and I, we, can perform miracles that bring healing.

We don't have to look for "signs and wonders" (preached by "false prophets") but instead "signs and wonders" will follow us.

As we live in a world where scientific and technological advances have explained away the wonder and awe of God's creations; and look increasingly for external signs of God before we deign to believe, this was refreshing - a challenge to live up to my faith.

Faith is a gift from God and one that is fuelled by an interior life nourished by the discipline of prayer. According to the Gospels, faith heals and makes us whole while St. Paul reminds us to "walk by faith, not by sight".

Despite the miracles I witnessed this weekend, my faith in God is no more or no less than when my life was in shambles and I was caught in a downward spiral of emotional hell.

My faith is not reliant on events or people. It just is.

Through grace, the grace of conversion, a deep inner conviction born of the felt presence of a loving God and the ability to soldier on even when the wells of faith run dry.

The weekend has caused me to wonder about the depth of my faith and how I live it out actively in my daily life.

And I resolve to love more boldly, more richly and more fearlessly for faith without love is nothing*.

* Read 1 Corinthians 13