The Word of God will forever remain as a testament to the powerful ministry of Jesus Christ. While His divine role as Lord and Savior will continue to impact this world until the earth passes on, His brief period of in-person ministry also gives us an inside look to the divine nature of who the Son of God is and how the Spirit can move within the physical realm. Through actions like teaching, casting out demons, forgiving sins, and conducting miraculous healings, Jesus showed us a tiny glimpse of what the kingdom of God can do when it intersects with our world. Yet apart from His miracles, we understand that many of Jesus’s actions were not conducted solely because of His divinity. After all, many of the apostles and disciples went on to execute similar healings, exorcisms, spirit-filled teachings, and other power encounters that contributed toward the establishment of the early church. Rather, Dr. Terry Wardle postulates in his book Healing Care, Healing Prayer that Jesus’s ability to accomplish these moments of ministry was instead based upon the intimate relationship that He had with the Holy Spirit.
Our Role in Inner Healing Prayer
This spiritual truth is something that we can be excited about as well. Indeed, if the disciples were able to facilitate powerful moments such as these, then, by extension, we too have the same potential when we make efforts to minister alongside the Holy Spirit within our own respective ministries. One such ministry opportunity that we might be able to take part in is what Dr. Wardle describes as “inner healing prayer,” or where “a caregiver partners with the Holy Spirit and humbly positions themselves to be an instrument of His powerful touch.” By doing so, the caregiver is able to facilitate “an encounter with the Living Christ, precisely where the broken have been severely wounded and deceived.” He goes on to explain that “inner healing prayer is a ministry that brings a broken person before the Healing Lord, where they can experience love, acceptance and freedom. The caregiver has the privilege to serve as a bridge that joins a ravaged heart with a Ravished Heart.”
Catered Ministry Through Groups
By being in a small group, individuals can get to know one another over a longer period of time and cater transformative prayer to each members’ specific needs. Wardle agrees, explaining that inner healing prayer is best applied when we can see and identify the interrelationships that are occurring within the life of the hurting individual. Oftentimes such connections can be made in our groups as we engage in the type of heartfelt conversation that builds one another up and encourages one another to remain accountable. It is here why we had initially explored what small group members and small group leaders can do within the journey of inner healing. When small group members and small group leaders first take the time to exhibit a tangible Christ-like love and acceptance toward a fellow group member in the physical realm, it can help to create a wider roadway through which the Holy Spirit can transmit the same level of care within the spiritual realm as well.
Being Conduits for the Spirit
Prayer in this type of group environment is not simply just a list of things that are brought to God. Rather, the prayers offered within this setting can be similar to a Romans 8:26 “sigh too deep for words,” where those in the group who may have experienced inner healing in the past can take on the role of the “wounded healer” and intercede for those who are currently in need. Wardle describes this as the essence of inner healing prayer, where it is “a ministry of the Holy Spirit that moves through a Christian caregiver and brings the Healing Presence of Jesus Christ into the place of pain and brokenness within a wounded person.” Let us serve one another and be a blessing by helping our fellow group members take one step further in the journey of healing. Let us be instruments for the Lord and invite the Holy Spirit into our group settings so that He is no longer impeded by any obstacles. Let us partner with the Spirit by encountering Him within this powerful ministry of inner healing prayer.
