Emphasis Preaching Journal

Some expect God to perform a healing when they pray for a person. We want him to wave his hand over the sick, but in our gospel Jesus goes through a little ritual with his fingers and his spit. Why do we tell God how to do his thing? I had a healing service using the Occasional Service Book from Synod, and a member came forward who was to have heart surgery the next week. We prayed for him, but he was not healed instantly. When he was in the operating room, there was another doctor visiting that day who told about a procedure called angioplasty that he had just perfected back east. It was far less invasive and our member was home in a day. That doctor's unexpected visit, we felt was a miracle. We can't tell God how he is to perform his healings! So don't try!