THE HEALER

             The infant’s bedroom is pitch-black. Six month old Phillip Holtz is sound asleep. Later into the night at 3:37 am little Phillip’s eyes open. The pain is in his face. He cannot breathe. His arms and legs kick with all that he has. The tears roll down his face onto the crib mat. He opens his mouth and screams. But his lungs are full of fluids. There is only silence in his voice. His parents, Jim and Linda Holtz, are down the hallway sound asleep. Phillip fights for his life for another two minutes. His arms and legs slowly quit moving. Phillip dies at 3:41 staring into the pitch-black.

Linda awakens. The sun is beating in through the bedroom windows. It’s Saturday morning. She looks at the clock and it says 7:13. Phillip has never slept through the night before. She is proud her son has done something as simple as sleep all night. But then red flags pop up in her mind. She needs to check on Phillip now. She looks at Jim and he is still asleep. She gets up and heads down the hall to Phillips room. She opens the door and looks in, she sees Phillip looking up at the ceiling.

“That’s mommies big…”

Linda stops in mid-sentence. She moves closer to the crib. Phillip is not moving. Fear grips at her soul as she reaches down and touches Phillips head. He is cold and his body feels like stone. He is lifeless. She starts to weep and shake uncontrollably as she searches for a pulse. Nothing; She grabs Phillip and brings his mouth to hers. Linda tries to breathe life back into her son. After a while she lays Phillip back in the crib. She falls to her knees and screams his name over and over.

            “PHILLIP!”

            Jim is in a deep sleep. The dream he is having is so real. The forest is dark and rainy. He’s fifteen again and he’s lost in the forest. He yells for his father. The dream turns and he’s an adult now. He is still lost but now he yells for his infant son Phillip. Jim asks God to help him find his son. He hears someone screaming Phillips name. The dream fades and Jim awakens. Linda is down the hallway screaming Phillips name in utter agony. Jim jumps out of bed and runs down the hallway. Jim slams through the doorway and Linda is on the floor. She looks at her husband and her world she lives in now is turned upside down.

            “He’s dead!” Linda screams.

Jim rushes to the crib and picks his son up. Phillips eyes are open but there is no life. Jim brings Phillip close to his heart. Calm comes over Jim that he does not understand. Later he will know and understand, it was the

Spirit of God. Jim lifts his son to the Heavens and talks to God.

            “I lift to you my only son. You have given him to us and now you have taken him away.” Linda stops weeping and watches her husband.

            “We live by your word and your commands as a family.”

            “I come to you with a pure heart and love for you and your Son Jesus.” Now Linda has her hands up praying to the Father.

            “Your word says if we ask and have no doubt you will answer our prayer. I ask you now with no doubt in my heart. Give me the gift of healing so I can bring our son back to us. But your will be done, Father.”

Jim lays Phillip back in the crib and falls to his knees and weeps.

After a short period of time, the tears stop and Jim feels the presence of God all around him. He believes God has heard his prayer. Jim gets up and reaches down and puts his hands on Phillip’s head. He speaks loud with confidence and authority.

            “I heal you, Phillip in the name and power of Our Lord Jesus Christ!”

Jim speaks with renewed strength in his voice. “Come back to us Son!”

Jim slowly pulls his hands away from Phillips head and sees some fluid

start to seep out the sides of his son’s mouth. Phillip slowly opens his mouth and starts to spit out the fluid. Linda snatches her son up and cleans the fluid from his nose and mouth. After this Phillip starts to cry. Linda and Jim sit on the bedroom floor, holding each other and weeping with their son. Later, still on the floor with Phillip asleep in Linda’s arms they talk about what has just happened. They vow to tell no one what God has done for them and their son Phillip. But vows have been broken before.

A year and a half has slipped by. Phillip is two now and a healthy toddler. Walking and getting into everything. Jim and Linda always talk about what happened that night in Phillips room. It’s like it all happened only a few days ago. They know God gave Jim a very special gift that night of healing. Jim feels the gift is still with him. He can feel the Holy Spirit all around him. The strongest is in his hands and in his heart. Now he feels God calling him to heal. At first, it was just a thought. Now he feels it in his soul. He must do what is right for God the Father. Jim must heal the sick when the spirit calls. Jim must fight against the fear and doubt that creeps into his mind.

Three months later, Jim pulls down the driveway in his 99 Chevy Blazer. He slows, then stops and looks at the snowman in the moonlight. Earlier in the day, Jim and Linda had Phillip in the front yard playing in the snow. Jim smiles to himself now as he remembers the fun they had as a family. The carrot has fallen from the face of the snowman. It lies in the snow by the snowman. With the blazer idling Jim’s mind takes over. He thinks back to the night Phillip died again. God with his grace and unfailing love brought Phillip back to life. Jim snaps back from his thoughts and looks at the snowman. He thinks what their life without Phillip would have been like. He knows in his heart the snowman would not be here. One thing can change our lives forever. Jim looks out the windshield, the snow is coming down slowly. He pulls out of the drive and heads a couple of blocks over to Congress Expressway. Then Jim heads north to Victoria Hospital. At the hospital Jim is a nurse on the night shift.

Jim slows the Blazer down to fifty. He can feel the back end getting squirrelly. Its 2:30 in the morning and the traffic is close to none. He’s five miles from the hospital. He looks in his rearview mirror and sees the white car coming up fast. Jim stays in the left lane and the car flies by him on the right. Jim looks over and sees it’s a car with young teenage girls in it.

He thinks that they need to slow it down. Jim reaches down and turns on the radio. Then Jim hears the tire blow on the car with the girls in it. He looks up in time to see the car veer to the left and then violently to the right. There’s no control now as the car starts to roll off the highway and flips in to the ditch. The car lands on its wheels to Jim’s amazement. He rips the cell phone out of his jacket and calls 911. He pulls up and sees the front end is smoking. Jim jumps out and runs down the ditch to the car. The front windshield is broken out and glass is everywhere. The driver looks the worst. She is breathing heavy and spitting out blood. Her chest was crushed into the steering wheel. Jim gets the driver door open and reaches to feel for a pulse on the girl in the passenger seat. He finds her pulse and it’s strong. Jim prays she is just knocked out. The girl in the backseat is okay but wide-eyed and in serious shock. She is the only one in the car wearing a seat belt.

Jim works his way to the back doors but they’re stuck shut. One of the windows is shattered out. He reaches in and unbuckles the girl in the back.

“Are you alright? Is anything broken?”

She turns and looks at Jim but cares nothing about herself right now.

            “Are my friends a live?”

“They’re going to be fine. Let me pull you through this window and get you out of this car.” Jim knows the driver is dying as he speaks. He pulls the girl from the back seat and tells her to go to the street so the ambulance will see her. The girl stumbles up to the highway. Jim looks in on the driver again. The blood is still running out of her mouth but now she is not breathing. He pulls her eyelids up. Her eyes have rolled to the back of her head. Jim is a nurse, not a doctor. He doesn’t know what to do, so he prays.

            “God please help me here. Give me your power to heal like you did with Phillip.”

It has been snowing lightly for hours. The snow just stops. Jim steps from the car and looks into the night sky. The night wind comes from the north and slams into Jim. He is able to stay on his feet. Jim is not afraid for he can feel the presence of God in the wind. The wind leaves just as fast as it came. Jim feels God all around him and in him. Jim takes his gloves off and throws them to the ground. He reaches in and puts his hands on the driver. “I heal you in the name and power of Our Lord Jesus Christ!”

Like before, there is no doubt in his voice. Jim commands this with power and faith in God. The Spirit tells him to lay hands on the passenger, too.

He repeats the same with her as he did with the driver. The passenger has a concussion and is paralyzed from the neck down. Jim knows, none of this.

He can hear the sirens in the distance now. The driver starts spitting out the blood. Jim pulls her out of the car. He sits her on the ground and slaps her on the back. She spits out the rest of the blood. He knows she is fine now for she is crying. He looks over and the other girl is climbing out the driver’s side door. Jim helps her over to the other girl. They hold each other. Jim asks the two if they are all right and they nod yes. He kneels beside the two girls. “God was with you tonight.” The two girls look at the car and cannot believe they’re still a live. They thank Jim for all his help.

He smiles at them. “I’m just glad you’re safe.” Now the paramedics are coming down the ditch with the third girl. Jim hears the fire truck pull up.

The paramedics know Jim from the hospital. They ask if anyone is hurt. The three girls say their okay. The paramedics look the girls over and can find nothing wrong with them. But there’s blood all over the driver and the car.

A fireman comes over and asks how the driver is doing. They tell him she’s fine and she escaped without a scratch. The fireman looks in the car and sees the steering wheel is bent.

Police officer Craig Hoffman pulls up to the scene and gets out. He sees the fireman and the paramedics around the smashed vehicle. His stomach turns at the thought of death. He’s told the people involved are fine as he walks to the scene. The girls are standing now talking with everyone. Craig wonders how anyone can be fine after a wreck like this. Officer Hoffman looks outside the vehicle and then searches the inside. He sees the blood and the bent steering wheel. He finds no drugs or alcohol. But this whole scene makes no sense to him. The car looks like it went through a demolition derby and there’s blood everywhere. But no one is hurt. Officer Hoffman walks over to girls and asks what happened so he can fill out the accident report.

The driver explains about the passenger side tire blowing out and how she lost control and the car started rolling. Then she remembers the guy over there pulling her out of the car. Hoffman questions the other girls and gets their accounts on what happened. Then he talks to all three.

            “This is a really bizarre accident. All this blood and all this damage and no one is hurt. Anyone have any thoughts on this?”

The one girl looks back at Jim and then back at the officer. She speaks and she’s shaking from the cold.

            “I think God was with us.”

Officer Hoffman wants logical answers for what happened but he can find none. He smiles back at the girl. “Maybe he was.”

The paramedics put the girls into the ambulance. They will take them to the hospital and have a doctor check them over just to be safe. Officer Hoffman walks over and questions Jim. They shake hands and he listens to Jim’s story. He writes down Jim’s statement. There are still no answers on all the blood from the wreck. The officer asks Jim one more question.

“How can you have such a terrible wreck with blood everywhere, there’s not even a scratch on one of the girls?”

Jim looks into the eyes of Officer Hoffman and the snow starts to fall again.

            “It’s like the old saying; God works in mysterious ways.”

Officer Hoffman just looks at Jim for a couple seconds and shakes his head. He tells Jim he can go for now. Jim walks up the ditch to his Blazer. Jim’s heart is beating a hundred miles an hour as he drives to work.

Everyone has left the scene except Officer Hoffman, he stays down by the car waiting for the tow truck to show up. The snow stops again and the night is an eerie calm. Out of nowhere a strong wind comes from the north and slams Officer Hoffman up against the wrecked car. Then as fast as it came the wind is gone. The snow slowly starts to fall again. Officer Hoffman looks into the night sky and a shiver rolls up his spine. In big letters he writes on the paper work “GOD” with a question mark. Then he crosses out God and puts Jim’s name. Later he will see what he can find out on Jim Holtz.

            Jim pulls up to the hospital and parks in the back of the parking lot.

He is shaken badly by what has just happened. Jim is still floored by the power of God that flows through his hands. He has witnessed another miracle tonight, like he did with his son Phillip. God has given Jim a tremendous gift of healing. A part of Jim feels he is not worthy of such a gift. Jim grabs his backpack and locks the Blazer. He walks to the entrance, the hospital doors slide open and Jim feels the warmth of the heat. Jim takes the elevator to the third floor. He goes into the washroom before he starts his rounds. He looks at the man in the mirror and starts to shake all over. Jim had no doubt when he laid his hands on the girls that God was going to heal them. He should be fist pumping and praising God in prayer. Instead Jim feels sick, useless and weak. Jim kneels in the bathroom and asks God to give him wisdom and strength.

            Most patients try to stay awake to see Jim and his smile. They know when a smile is real and the fake smile is cold. Jim brightens this place that some call hell on earth. He works on the cancer floor of the hospital. But tonight the patients will lift his spirits and bring a smile to his face. After his night rounds Jim stops at the nurse’s station and asks if anyone wants anything from the snack machine. Everyone says they’re fine. He tells them he will be back in a minute. It’s 4:11 am and Jim takes the elevator to the basement. The elevator opens and Jim walks to the snack machines. He reaches into his pocket and searches for some quarters. He notices the blind man with his walking stick sitting in a chair down the hallway. He has never seen the man before. He wonders why the blind man is sitting down here in the basement. Jim puts the quarters in and presses the letters. The candy bar falls to the bottom and he pulls it out. Jim turns to leave but stops. He turns back to the blind man and talks loud enough for him to hear.

            “Would you like something to snack on?”

The blind man smiles and turns his head toward Jim.

            “No thank you Jim, but thanks for asking.”

Jim goes to speak but stops. He walks up to the blind man. “How did you know my name? Are you even blind?” The blind man’s smile gets bigger now. “I have been blind for all of my life.” “I cannot see the things of this world.” “But I can see the things not of this world.” “And you asked how do I know your name?” “I know everything about you Jim, everything.” “I know how you broke your pinky finger in eight grade playing dodge ball.” “I know your first car was a 1971 ford mustang.” “I know through your faith  God brought your son Phillip back to you and your wife.” “And I know how you healed them girls tonight.” “I know how much you love God and his Son Jesus.” “But you must press forward on what you are doing for God.” “Just remember Jim doubt is not from God.”

“God has faith in us, it’s when we have faith in him we can do all things through him, Jim. Put all your trust in God and His Son.”

Jim is floored by what he is hearing, but his mind is sharp. He looks at the dark protective glasses the blind man is wearing. “It sounds almost like what I have read in God’s word.” The blind man smiles again. “Could be Jim, could be. I want to ask you a question, do you believe in angels?” Jim does not answer the question but asks his own. “Are you an angel from God, blind man? How do you know so much about me?”

The blind man smiles brightly. “Not fair, Jim, you have to answer my question first.” Jim grabs a chair and sits in front of the blind man. “I have never seen an angel but I do believe in them.” The blind man tells Jim every mortal has an angel. “The one that walks with you, is in continual battle for you. Never resting, never wandering to and fro, but always guarding.” “Always ready to protect Jim.” “Remember, Jim, we all have help from God, but fear and doubt are not from God.” The blind man smiles at Jim and shakes his head. “You know what , Jim, maybe I will have a candy bar.” Jim gets up and walks to the snack machine. “You want a Snickers bar?” No answer, Jim turns and looks down the hallway. The hallway is empty.

            Jim pushes the door open that says “Men’s lockers”. He walks to his locker and takes out his Bible from the top shelve. The talk with the blind man has rocked his being. The man was there and then gone like the wind.

Jim’s mind races for answers, but at the same time the blind man has brought peace to his soul. Jim opens God’s word and finds the verse he’s looking for right away.

Hebrews 13:2 “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.” Jim closes the Bible and puts it back in the locker, then pulls his cell phone out and calls home.

It’s way too early to call home but he has to tell Linda about the accident and the blind man.

            Three weeks later, Marie Hernandez walks over to the coffee maker and pours herself another cup. She drinks it straight black. The bags under her eyes are dark and heavy. She has not slept well since her son’s accident. The apartment floor is cold on her feet even with her slippers on.

She takes her coffee and sits at the kitchen table. Maria picks up the cross with the chain and kisses it. There is no off button for the tears, they just flow at will. She reaches for a tissue and wipes her sore eyes. Maria prays for healing for her son, Alberto. The phone call a week ago drained the life out of her. Alberto fell three floors on the construction site. Her baby, now a grown man, is paralyzed from the neck down and in a coma. The doctor gives Maria no hope. The injury to the spinal cord is too severe. To cut Alberto open would be certain death. The only hope is that he comes out of the coma with no brain damage. Maria gets up and walks to her son’s old bedroom. Everyday she finds something small in the room and takes it to the hospital to her son. Every day she opens Alberto’s hand and puts the object in it. Maria looks around the room then kneels at her son’s bed and clutches the covers. Then she prays to God.

“I have nothing left in me, Father. You are my only hope now, God. I ask that you bring my son back to me. I ask you for healing, my God.” Maria gets up from the floor and takes an art ribbon off the pegboard. She puts the ribbon in her pocket, puts on her coat and gloves. Maria pulls the Lincoln out the drive and heads to Victoria Hospital.

            Maria sits at her son’s bedside and places the art ribbon in his hand. She touches her son’s face gently and kisses his forehead. There is no response of any kind from Alberto. Maria stays for hours in the hospital room and prays continually for healing. At 9pm and Maria puts her coat on and tells Alberto how much she loves him.

            “I will see you in the morning, my beautiful son.”

She leaves Alberto and goes home to loneliness and emptiness.

            Later that same night Jim comes down from the third floor to the second floor of the hospital. The elevator doors open and Jim steps out with paperwork for the nurses. Jim walks down the hallway but slows down as he passes door 211. He feels God calling him to this room. He walks past and goes to the nurses’ station and talks to the nurse on duty. He gives her the paperwork and walks back toward the elevator. This time when Jim comes up on door 211, he stops. He faces the door and looks at the numbers. He looks down at his hands, Jim feels the power of God flowing through him again. He knows he has to go in. Jim looks down the hallway and no one is around.

He opens the door and steps in. Jim’s heart races to another level.

The light is on in the corner. Jim looks down at the young man lying in the hospital bed. He pulls the paperwork off the end of the bed. He reads the name on the sheet, Alberto Hernandez. Then he reads the conditions, coma and paralyzed. Jim hangs the paperwork back up. Jim looks at Alberto and asks God to give him strength. Then without hesitation Jim lays his hands on Alberto’s chest. He closes his eyes and speaks out loud.

            “I heal you, Alberto, in the name of Jesus Christ the Son of God. You are healed, Alberto!” 

Jim opens his eyes and slowly lifts his hands from Alberto’s chest. He turns and heads for the door, Jim prays no one will be in the hallway when he steps out. Alberto’s eyes slowly open as the man walks out of his room.

When the door shuts, Alberto’s eyes slowly shut too.

            The next morning, Maria walks through the hospital entrance with flowers in a glass vase. Today, she will put a flower in her son’s hand. Today, she will pray for healing again. Everyday she prays for healing. She will never stop praying, she believes God heals. She pushes the up button and the elevator opens. Inside Maria pushes the 2nd floor button. The door opens and she walks to her son’s room, 211. She steps in quietly and looks at her son, his eyes are closed and there is no movement. Maria walks toward the window to put the flowers on the ledge. Alberto’s eyes open and he sees his mother.

            “Hi Mom.”

Maria stops like she has hit an invisible wall. Her son has just spoken to her. She goes numb all over, the flowers and vase crash to the floor. Maria turns and her son is smiling at her. Now Maria is paralyzed and cannot speak. “How long have I been here, Mom?”

 She cannot speak, but God has answered her prayers. Finally Maria breaks from the shock, and hurries to her sons’ side. Maria kisses her son and weeps on his shoulder. Alberto caresses his mother’s hair. “I love you, Mom.” She tells Alberto how much she loves him. Then Maria shakes and weeps and holds on tight to her son. “Alberto, you can move your arms. God has healed you, my son.” The two hold each other and thank God for the healing miracle. Alberto buzzes the nurses’ station. The nurse is shocked to see Alberto out of the coma and sitting up. Alberto asks if he can get a soda to drink. She rushes over and checks all his vitals and then gets on the phone to his doctor. The phone rings four times and the doctor picks up. “Doctor Thomas, you need to get to Alberto Hernandez’s room right away, He’s sitting up asking for a soda!” After six hours of testing, the doctor’s can find nothing wrong with Alberto. He is released.

            Six months later, Jim and Linda back the Blazer out of her parents’ driveway. Her parents will watch Phillip today. Linda is a bride’s maid in her dearest friend, Michelle’s, wedding. The wedding is at Michelle’s parent’s house in the country. Forty-five minutes later Jim pulls the Blazer into the long driveway that leads to the farmhouse. The wedding will be outside today down by the pond. The place is in chaos getting everything ready. Jim stops and lets Linda out, he pulls down at the Northfield where there’s parking. Jim gets out and looks at the farmhouse. The Holy Spirit slowly starts to flow through his body. Already something is calling him to the house. Everything is set up for outside. Jim and some of the other men help the elderly down the hill to the wedding seats. Jim looks back at the farmhouse. Jim sits in the back row. The wedding will start soon. Jim makes eye contact with Linda and smiles. The bride makes her way down the hill. Now all the attention is on the bride and groom, but Jim looks back at the old farmhouse. He has to go up there. He gets up and walks up the hill to the farmhouse. No one has even seen him leave. 

Jim opens the backdoor, and walks in. The place is empty. An eerie feeling comes over Jim. Everyone is down at the wedding. For some reason he knows where to go. He walks through the house as the old floor creaks. Jim makes it to the white door that leads upstairs, and pulls the door open. It’s loud in the silence of the house. The steep steps creak and scream until he gets to the top of the stairs. Jim looks down the hallway. There is only door closed. He knows this is where he needs to go. He walks to the door and reaches for the doorknob and slowly opens it.

The room is musky and the smell of body odor fills his nostrils. A middle-aged man is sitting in a chair looking out the window. He doesn’t even acknowledge that Jim has come into his room. For fifteen years, John has sat in this room looking out the window and not said a word to anyone. For fifteen years, he has been taken care of like an infant. For fifteen years, John has been in his own world, on a mind journey. Fifteen years ago John overdosed severely. John is thirty-one now. All these years, the family have prayed for healing. All these years, the family have read God’s word to John. Michelle has dropped many things in her life just to spend time with her older brother. She wanted so badly for John to be in her wedding today. Jim walks the length of the room and looks down at John. The man doesn’t move, just looks out the window. Jim pulls a chair over and sits in front of John. He takes John’s hand and holds it.

            “I don’t know who you are, but God does. And God loves you so much.” Jim feels the warmth again run through his body to his fingertips.

Jim closes his eyes and prays. “I heal you in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jim looks up and John’s eyes are closed, his chin is resting on his chest. Jim leaves the man and goes downstairs. Jim sits in the living room and thanks God for everything.

He knows the man upstairs is healed. Five minutes later, John opens his eyes and lifts his head. John’s heart races as he looks around, he’s back from the world of being lost. He sees the real world around himself again. John looks out the window and sees God’s beauty in the sky and the fields. All the memories start to flood back. He remembers his family has always been with him. Deep in the back of his mind he could hear and understand some things. For fifteen years, he tried to get back to a normal state of mind, but he could not break the dark barrier. Now it’s broken and he is finally free. John walks over and looks at himself in the mirror. He does not recognize himself. He will have to get to know this older man looking back at him. John sits on the edge of the bed and thinks. Things come back slowly at first and then the flood gates open. Somehow, He knows it’s his sister’s wedding today. John looks out the hallway window down at the pond. The wedding is starting, John goes to the bathroom and washes up and combs his hair back. He shaves and brushes his teeth. John goes to the closet and puts on the best clothes he can find. He must get down to his sister’s wedding. Downstairs Jim hears the man up stairs walking around. A smile covers Jim’s face. He leaves the farmhouse and walks back down the hill.

            John walks down the steep stairs slowly holding on to the railing. It’s like starting a new life over. Everything is so clear now and new to his sight. He looks at the pictures downstairs on the wall and starts to weep.

He knows God has healed him. He thanks him with his heart. He wipes his eyes and looks around. John remembers all the prayers now. He opens the backdoor and walks out. John breathes in the summer air and looks around. Reaching the hill, he looks down and sees his parents and his sister in her beautiful gown. The tears run from John’s eyes and his legs grow weak. He falls to his knees and sobs. Michelle tries to listen to the preacher, but she cannot focus. Something in Michelle’s heart is telling her to look elsewhere. She turns around but everything looks fine. Then she looks up the hill and sees the man on his knees. At first she doesn’t recognize the man dressed up with his hair combed back. John stands up and looks down at his sister. The wedding stops in silence as the bride’s eyes swell in tears. She looks at her parents and squeezes the arm of her soon- to- be husband.

            “It’s John!”

 Michelle kicks off her shoes and grabs the train of her wedding dress and runs. John smiles when he sees his sister running toward him. The two stand face to face and look at each other. John reaches over and holds his sisters’ hand. He loves his sister so much.

            “Hi, Sis.”

She jumps into her brother’s arms and hugs him and kisses his check.

            “You’re back, John. You came back to us. I missed you so much!”

John’s parents rush to their son and the four hold each other in the summer sun. The father kisses his son’s forehead. The mother weeps in joy and praise to God as she holds and kisses her son. Their son has been with them everyday, but has been lost on a very long journey in the darkness. John has returned home now. Later John will tell them all about the man who came into his room and pulled him back to the light.

            “Welcome back, Son! We missed and love you so very much!”

Later when wedding starts up again, John stands up with the bride and the groom. Today the prayers of this family were answered. They believe God has answered their prayers. Sometimes prayer is answered right away. Sometimes it takes fifteen years. Sometimes it takes a healer. The winds come down from the north and rush through the wedding. Jim and the people that know God feel his presence in the winds. John closes his eyes and lifts his hands and lets the winds touch his whole being. Then as fast as the winds come, they leave to another place.

Linda reaches over and holds Jim’s hand as they pull down the drive and leave the old farm house. For ten minutes the ride is quite then Linda pulls Jim’s hand up to her face and kisses it.

“I know you healed John.”

Jim looks at his wife and smiles, “Jesus did, I was just there with Him!”

Healer noun

A person or thing that heals.

Wayne Roe

2015