The Lord's Healing Peace

This week, Anne Greene, LoReey Peery, Mary Manners, Marianne Evans and I continue our Caravan Blog Tour with blogs on how the Lord has healed our lives.

He heals us in many ways, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. In my story, Tender Touch, my heroine has the gift of physical healing. The idea for Lacy and Royce’s story evolved over time from some personal experiences as a young Christian. But for me, the most important healing I’ve received from the Lord is spiritual.

My parents came from different religious backgrounds. As a result, I bounced from church to church, never really belonging or staying too long. We attended a church during my teen years with a very vital youth program. I desperately wanted to belong, to be a part of that group. I remember lying awake at night, saying, “Lord, if you’re out there, take me, zap me, change me! Do whatever you need to do so I can walk forward and be saved.”

I said that nightly for months but the conviction to go forward never came. After a difficult confrontation with the pastor of the church, I very boldly announced to my parents that I would never go back.

My parents began the search for another church but in my heart, I gave up. Since God had not answered my pleas to zap me, I decided He did not exist. And if He did and those were His people, I wanted no part of Him.

For ten years, I was an atheist. During that time, I met and married my husband and we had two children. As a young mother with my future ahead of me, I found myself depressed and suicidal. At times, I was so fearful of eternity without my loved ones, that I would run through the house, grab my babies and cling to them until I could get back into control.

I finally decided that there was no hope for me. I knew God didn’t exist but that was not a fate I was going to allow my children to have. I was going to take them to a church and raise them as Christians even if it meant a life of hypocrisy and lies for me. I was willing to do anything to prevent them from living in fear as I did.

We found a church and began to attend. I took classes, read and asked questions. The Lord didn’t zap me. He did something better. Moment by moment, day by day, he filled me with His presence and at long last, I felt peace.

After a lifetime of walking in faith, I still feel His greatest healing gift to me is that peace.

May the Lord fill you with healing presence this Easter. God Bless.

Check back later this afternoon for LoRee Peery's moving story!

Tanya Stowe

Tender Touch

TanyaStowe.com