READ: 1 KINGS 19:3-8; MATTHEW 9:20-22; REVELATION 21:4

Pain and illness are terrible results of the Fall, which is when sin and death entered the world. Whenever we or someone we know is affected by an illness, God wants us to pray for healing in faith that He will heal all believers in one of three ways: natural healing, supernatural healing, or ultimate healing when Jesus comes back. Jesus, who is God, is at work in all three types of healing, and we see examples of each type in the Bible.

In 1 Kings 19, Elijah is suffering from utter exhaustion to the point of having suicidal thoughts. In this case, God uses natural means to solve his ailment: sleep and food. Unfortunately, not all illnesses can be cured by a snack and a nap (but those things certainly don’t hurt!). God also uses doctors, counselors, and modern medicine to bring about incredible healing using natural means. When we pray for natural healing, we can thank God for the gifts He has given to the people administering treatment and pray for wisdom in forming a treatment plan.

Jesus uses supernatural healing in Matthew 9 when He heals a woman without any medical intervention (see also, Luke 8:43). God brings supernatural healing several times throughout the Bible with the end goal of guiding someone to trust in Him. Often, He heals in this way to deepen our faith—to show He is undeniably in control. When we pray for supernatural healing, we can do so with bold faith, knowing that God is certainly capable of healing in inexplicable ways, and that He is at work whether supernatural healing is His plan for a particular person or not.

Lastly, Jesus will heal all believers when He returns to make all things new and resurrect us from the dead. As Christians, we might not experience full healing now, but we can know that Jesus will bring an end to our pain and suffering. On that glorious day, we will have perfectly healthy bodies, minds, and souls through the power and promise of Jesus’s death and resurrection. Until that day, never stop bringing your pains and illnesses to Him in prayer. He loves us so much. He sees, He cares, and He will act in His perfect timing. • Taylor Eising

• Have you ever seen natural or supernatural healing? What was that like for you or the person being healed?

• Why does Jesus care about our health?

• Why can we always have hope in Jesus, even when we are surrounded by pain and illness? (Romans 8:19-39; Hebrews 4:14-16)

The Lord nurses them when they are sick and restores them to health. Psalm 41:3 (NLT)