Fear Is Not My Future

The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.” Luke 10:7 (NIV)

This week’s devotional is a bit longer than usual, but it has been an incredible week.

Let me start with this simple statement: I believe in the power of Jesus’ name.

The Bible tells us the name of Jesus is above every name: “Yet it was because of this that God raised him up to the heights of heaven and gave him a name which is above every other name, that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow in heaven (angles) and on earth (men) and under the earth (demons).” (Philippians 2:9-10 TLB)

Beings from all three realms must bow to the name of Jesus! How comforting to know as believers his name is powerful and beyond our understanding. I don’t think anyone has fully comprehended what this means in our world or our lives.

Pastor and founder of Bethel Bible Institute E.W. Kenyon writes “When Jesus gave us the right to use that name, the Father knew all (it) would imply when breathed in prayer by oppressed souls; and it is always His joy to recognize that name.”

These words took on new meaning for me recently.

In early October, I was diagnosed with breast cancer, joining nearly 300,000 women who will hear that news this year alone. It’s never an easy statement to swallow, but even before receiving my pathology report, I realized I would face this new journey with steadfast faith and peace. 

Why?

Because I was at peace with the knowledge of God’s promises and what He says in His Word. I remember saying out loud, “Lord, I know you’ll use this for something good. Fear no longer rules my heart – You do!”

I did my due diligence, meeting with a number of doctors including my primary care physician, an oncologist, and oncological surgeon, and a radiologist as my medical team insisted I would require radiation following surgery.

What a blessing it was not living in fear while awaiting the details of my diagnosis. As I researched nontraditional methods and options, I continued taking care of myself, boosting my immune system with supplements, and daily prayer. I was determined cancer would not be my story even though, as so many people know, it does take over some part of your life, if not all of it.

Amazingly, God’s timing is never accidental. The day before my doctor called me with the news, I had started a new position with an amazing non-profit focused on faith, work, and leadership where I can use my passions to help others. Trust me when I say, this was not a coincidence. 

God had a plan indeed. Even though my diagnosis was not caused by God, I knew He would use it!

From the beginning, I also believed with my entire being I would receive supernatural healing in the name and authority of Jesus. I started reciting scripture out loud, claiming it, with the authority that was given to me by the name of Jesus! Here are just two of the passages I made part of my daily prayers:

• “Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and your cup of joy will overflow” (John 16:24 TLB).
• “And whatever you ask in My name, this I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.” (John 14:13-14 NASB).

According to Scripture, we have the right to ask for healing, protection, and more in the name of Jesus Christ.

The Lord also led me to two books, both classics in the healing of believers through the authority of Jesus‘ name: Healing the Sick by T.L. Osborn, and Christ the Healer by F.F. Bosworth (both books are available from the All Things Faithful bookstore and included in the products section below).

In his pioneering work Christ the Healer, Bosworth states that confession, which is an affirmation of a Bible truth we have embraced, means believing with our hearts and repeating with our lips God’s own declaration of what we are in Christ. Simply put, confession is faith’s way of expressing itself.

And so, I continued praying and was told to hold fast to the confession of the absolute integrity of the Bible.

I was told to hold fast to the confession in the work of Christ in all its phases.

I was told to hold fast to the confession that “God is the strength in my Life.”

I was told to hold fast to the confession from Isaiah 53 that “It was our sickness that He Himself bore, and by His wounds we are healed.”

I prayed these truths out loud and had trusted prayer partners lay their hands on me to heal me in the name of Jesus. As I felt the heat of my body filled by the spirit, I knew God’s healing was working through me and my beloved prayer warriors of Faith. It was powerful!

Keeping guard over my words and actions was important, not giving the enemy the glory of talking about the cancer more than the healing. I was determined not to go there, lest I lost my healing through doubt or fear. It wasn’t easy!

Earlier this week, I had surgery to remove the mass of cancer and the surgeon took some of the lymph nodes to determine the stage of my cancer. Only two days later the results were everything I had prayed for – no spreading, and completely cancer free. Or in my words, I was healed by God! Glory be to God …Hallelujah, Hallelujah! My doctors were a little surprised, but I wasn’t because I knew God ‘s promises were true. They are for EVERYONE!

Of course, I realize this is only my story and may not be the case for others. My heart grieves for them. I hope to write more about healing at another time, and why some people are not healed. In the meantime, I highly recommend the two books I mentioned to anyone wanting to know more about this topic for themselves or for loved ones.

I’ll close with this. Jesus’ name has never lost its power. It’s crucial we understand that reading and meditating on Scripture must fill all places of our thoughts and prayers to avoid the trap of fear, which is never from God.

Believe, receive, and conceive that God is for you and will use everything for His good – before, now, and forever.

May God always guide your path.

René