When Healing Doesn’t Come

After my Mom passed away in 2009 we divided up her many Bibles that she used. Mom wrote in her Bibles and many times as I read what she’s written I imagine the hours she spent reading and studying God’s word.

One thing Mom has written over and over in her Bibles is this prayer. Heal Jonathan! Jonathan is my nephew (my sister’s oldest son). But what happens when healing doesn’t come?

Jonathan has moderate to severe hearing loss and has to wear hearing aids. Mom being the typical grandmother wanted more than anything for Jonathan to be healed. She worried like any of us would, that this might be a stumbling block for Jonathan in life.

But God had a bigger plan. He was going to use Jonathan’s hearing loss and through it God was going to be glorified.  

I love the song by Laura Story called Blessings. Here are some of the lyrics:

We pray for blessings,We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things

‘Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You’re near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

Oh how I wish Mom was here to see Jonathan now! To see how God is using him even without healing Him. God is faithful even in our suffering.

A few Sundays ago Jonathan sang at our church and it was such a blessing, I want to share it with you.

Have you seen God glorified through suffering in your own life? 

Praying you have a blessed Sunday!

 

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  1. Thank you for sharing Johnathon’s life with us. Thank you for sharing the heart of a godly grandmother with us. And thank you for sharing the even bigger heart of an awesome GOD with a beautiful plan!
    Blessings and prayers,
    andrea

  2. OMG ! I also am a Grandmother, as was your Mother. I can only imagine her pleas. My Dad lost his hearing in WWII on the bomber guns. I prayed for years for his healing, which he received for a short time after a surgery but over the years he lost it again. Guess I didn’t specify to the Lord that I wanted it to be permanent !! This was amazing !! This young man is going to be a very powerful servant for the Lord. Many blessings on him ! Thanks for sharing this amazing testamony !

  3. I can’t help but think that God has healed him, just not in the way that we think of healing. He is using Jonathan to bless others through his amazing voice and the testimony this wonderful child can share. Praise God!

  4. why is the whole church not standing up and praising the Lord?! I would not have been able to contain it! what a beautiful voice and a blessing!

  5. Beautiful post Cyndi!! Thankful that our God knows best…. Jonathon is a sweet boy and I get goosebumps everytime I hear him. I’m sure your sweet Mom is smiling down at him, happy with what she sees, even with his hearing impaired. 🙂

  6. I so enjoy hearing Jonathan singing! Oh, how proud you all must be! I stumbled upon your site and heard him singing, so I keep checking in! 🙂 How Great Thou Art was one of my hubby’s favorites. I feel like I was “led” to your site. Thank you. Thank Jonathan.
    Pink Hugs,
    Dee

  7. Watching and hearing your nephew sharing his gift, I couldn’t help but think he kinda reminded me of a young Tim Tebow. And like Tim, God will use Jonathan to share his faith and gifts with others in his own special way. Thank you for sharing. You know Grandma is proud! God bless you all.

  8. Absolutely beautiful post! Thank you for sharing. Your nephew’s singing is so amazing. God is awesome!

  9. Oh he’s healed, just not in the way you think!!! And your Mom sees him, and knows that her prayers were answered!!! He is an inspiration! The whole family is! God is great!

  10. I was redirected here by your sisters blog and find myself amazed by your son. My brother also has a hearing loss – severe to profound. My mom fought for years for him to get a regular education and be treated like a regular child. Today he is an adult with a degree in computer technology and a good job. What a blessing to see your son praising God in song despite his hearing loss! (One thing my brother cannot do is sing) 🙂 May he richly bless those around him with his message of God’s greatness.

  11. Thank you Cindi for your wonderful posts! I have been so touched by you and your sisters’ blogs especiallly because I found you both not long after I lost my mom in 2010. I was just flipping back over some of your older posts and discovered something I didn’t know about you…you are a dental hygienist! So I had to give a shout out from a fellow hygienist in beautiful Colorado Springs! I am in awe of the gifts God has given Jonathon…not by might, not by power but by My Spirit….!!! Amen!

  12. Thank you for sharing this and for making my whole day. May God bless you and your whole sweet family forever. Much love to you.

  13. Oh, Cyndi. I’m so glad they gave him a standing ovation. He just has the most beautiful voice. I love his confidence. I’m sitting here in tears. I prayed over him as he sang. I was supposed to have hearing aids as a child. My mom just kept praying and praying and it didn’t happen at once but I got my hearing back and never had to have them.. Just to be able to listen to him is a blessing for me and a confirmation that your prayers can be answered if the Lord chooses to. He definitely is doing just fine singing as he is now though! Many blessings to you and your family!

  14. I follow both yours and your sister’s blogs and I have heard Jonathan sing before. The thing that I love the most about his worship is that it is apparent that he doesn’t just SING IT, he GETS IT. I read in a book once (and I’d love it if I could remember which one…but I can’t) these simple words: “God wastes NOTHING!”. Not a tear, not a handicap, not a pain, not a heartache. Thank you so much for sharing.

  15. I too will say a prayer for your son, Sheila. My youngest, too, is a stutterer. He has made GREAT strides in Speech Therapy over the past couple of years but, even more than that, he has learned that He is of value regardless of his influency. I have seen his confidence SOAR and am so thankful for that.

  16. I have a son with special needs and feel like God truly blessed me by allowing me to be his mother. As any mother I pray for complete healing but know that God has a plan for him and I must just believe. I am brought to tears every time I hear this song because my son has many many trials in his life ( he nevers quits or complains just keeps going with a beautiful smile) and I pray they are mercies in disguise. Thank you for such a wonderful post today. Very touching and meaningful.

  17. Popped over from Traci’s and loved this post. We have seen God’s power through our suffering in ways we could have never imagined. Our sweet girl was born with a rare brain disorder (and after many months of CTs, MRIs and etc) and we were told the deficits of her brain were far too significant to ever hope for normalcy in her life. My precious father in law was losing his cancer battle at the time (the time I found Traci’s blog) and though we all prayed for his healing…it came through his gift of life with Jesus. But the Lord was PRESSING me and my husband to BELIEVE in His word. To believe that the power of His hand was limitless and we began to plead for the Lord to speak life into her sweet brain by his MERCY. We lost a lot of friends (and even family sadly) during those early months bc most thought we were in denial or jus tplain nuts bc God “just doesnt work that way anymore”. But the Holy Spirit kept pushing us to believe Jesus was the same yesterday as he is today and to be FOOLS for the sake of Christ (my father in law’s encouragement from 1 Cor). The hardest 3 years of my life…and there are still many years of milestones to plead he grants her. Her story is just beginning! We tearfully walked her into preschool at our church this last week because she is developmentally age appropriate by the graciousness of the power poured out by the merciful hand of Jesus for her! Here is her story if you want to see it (that our church did a few months back 🙂

    http://vimeo.com/31768311

  18. My all time favorite hymn by a truly gifted singer with God’s hand upon him. As Jonathan sang, God was in my little home office with me….me humbled and lost in His presence….He smiling. Thank you for posting! I follow Traci’s blog and zipped over right away.

  19. Thanks for sharing. I have 3 kids and my youngest has special needs. God has blessed our family with giving Lexi to us. It is an honor and privilege to raise a special child for our heavenly Father. Although I would love for her not to have challenges, God has special plans for her and He has already shown us some of those. He doesn’t make mistakes and His plans are always perfect. So we trust in Him and His timing. I’m sure Jonathan brings your family joy as well. What a blessing it is to have him in your family 🙂
    Have a great week and again thanks for sharing this with all of us

  20. God is faithful Nikki! I’m so sorry about the loss of your mother on Thanksgiving. I know the holidays will be difficult this year. Thankfully it does get easier.
    Blessings,
    Cyndi

  21. Oh Sheila I have already prayed for your sweet son! There is nothing that breaks our hearts more than to see our children struggle. But God has a special plan for your son. Praying God will use him in a mighty way!
    Blessings,
    Cyndi

  22. I have 6 grandchildren, and we have a Johnathan. As a mother and grandmother I fully understand your mother’s plea for healing. My 11 year old grand daughter has had diabetes since she was 6… it breaks my heart but we see God’s hand in so many ways. I also lost my mother last year on Thanksgiving day…believe me your mother knows and smiles at Jonathan victories!

  23. God is moving and working through this young man. He has touched my soul with his song today!
    God Bless You and Jonathan!
    Amy

  24. Listening to this precious child and am covered in goosebumps with tears in my eyes. What a Blessing!!!
    Thanks you so much for sharing.
    What a Blessing of Joy was gifted to that Congregation and now Blogland!
    Listening to the Blessings…
    Gee

  25. I watched this in the car on the way to church this morning and it had me in tears! Jonathon is such an amazing little guy! So glad you posted! I also meant to tell you that I loved your hair video!!

  26. I love this song too Cyndi! My 11 year old son struggles with stuttering & it just breaks my heart sometimes. We pray that God will take this from him, but realize that He may choose not to. We know He has a plan, and that His plan is perfect and that He’ll be glorified through it. It’s so hard to see your child struggle, and other kids can be so mean sometimes. Would love for you to say a prayer for him, if you think of it and wouldn’t mind. I love your blog…it’s always so encouraging. Have a blessed Sunday!

  27. The final verse of this song always makes me cry and today was no exception! What a wonderful way to prep my heart for church. Jonathon’s influence is stretching farther than he knows.

  28. Thank you so much for sharing this. I’m new to your blog and have enjoyed reading your posts! This post was exceptionally beautiful. Definitely what I needed today!

  29. I have heard Jonathan sing before, as I follow your sisters blog, too. He is such a wonderful, talented young man.
    Indeed,” how great Thou art.”