If you haven’t read the first part of my story of being healed from headaches, you can find it here. You see, I was a doubter when it came to healing. Maybe that’s why I have been slow to share my own story. The skeptic in me said “give it time, we’ll see if it’s for real.” Then God healed me from migraines in October 2009. Well, two years later I can say, I gave it time, and it’s for real.
As I described in my previous post, I had headaches for most of my life. Various people prayed for me, and I sought medical treatment. In the fall of 2009, I was at a Catch the Fire conference, and people who suffered from migraines were specifically prayed for. About a week later I attended a Christian ministry retreat called Cleansing Stream, where people were praying through specific spiritual issues. One of the teachings that weekend was how ungodly beliefs can distance us from God. Even if you live a Christian life, little lies can creep into your mind and hang out there. An example of an ungodly belief in my mind was “God doesn’t care about me as much as He cares about _____.”
Mike and I believe that ungodly beliefs toward God can hinder healing. Although I have been a follower of God for most of my life, I sometimes struggled with the thought that God doesn’t care about me (that is just one example). I repented of that issue and asked Him to forgive me for thinking of Him wrongly and began to fill my mind with God’s perspective and truth that weekend. He does care about me! God does have good things in store for me!
I also realized that I had a victim mentality when it came to headaches. My thinking had been something along the lines of “well, I’ve always had headaches and people in my family always have headaches, so I probably always will.” That is not God’s way of thinking. You don’t have to be just like your ancestors! That was a pivotal weekend as I turned away from old habits and began to “renew my mind” and think more from God’s perspective. I believe that prayers that weekend contributed toward my healing.
Something significant changed in my health in October 2009. The migraines and headaches I had battled for 12+ years decreased steadily, and I documented this on a calendar. It was not an instant “never had another headache” healing. But I don’t have migraines any more, and the headaches that do come are nothing like they used to be. I took some practical steps along the way but, without a doubt in my mind, God healed me.
I can tell because year later I found myself not needing or using any migraine prescriptions (only the occasional over-the-counter pain reliever).
Two years later I still have the occasional mild headaches. But I have taken 1 migraine prescription medication in the past 12 months (instead of many per month as I used to). I no longer wake up with a headache (maybe twice in the past year, and it didn’t last all day). I don’t have the feeling of “my head being on fire.” I don’t feel like a nail is being driven into my skull. Little tension headaches come from time to time and they always go away with sleep. I can think more clearly; I feel better overall, and my life is fuller and better!
In early 2010, a few months after I was prayed for and my headaches started to decline, Mike and I had lunch with a wise older couple who encouraged me with God’s promise that God had begun a good work in me and He would be faithful to complete it. I was still having some bad headaches then, and I see such a drastic improvement since that point.
In an email I wrote to The Chix in January 2010, my half-done testimony ended with “Overall the headaches are improving, and the Lord seems to be continually restoring my faith in Him.”
The turning point was clearly October 2009 (when I received prayer at Catch the Fire and when I dealt with the ungodly beliefs and received prayer at Cleansing Stream). Two years later I can undoubtedly see that I was healed. A loving and powerful God has allowed me to be free from that physical affliction. Although the healing was gradual and not instant, it is real, it is life-changing, and it is good!
For me the healing came as a result of persistent prayer, specific prayer, and dealing with (repenting of and turning from) my own sin and disbelief. My faith has really been renewed – if God can do this for me, what can He do for others? I am more confident in praying for healing for someone else because I know firsthand it is possible. When I face other physical problems, such as difficulty conceiving a baby, I can respond in faith that if God can take away those headaches, He can heal anything. The headaches weren’t just hurting my head, they were hurting my faith. The relief I now have from migraines has freed me up physically so that I can live a fuller life!
If you have read this far, and you are battling a health issue, especially headaches, I want to encourage you! Don’t give up; keep asking God – because He still heals.
(I originally wrote this post in the fall of 2011 for "the Chix blog" - and I wanted to re-read it this month as I've faced some health issues. Remembering where I've been also builds my faith as I ask God for healing in the area of fertility.)
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