Bible Belt Blogger (whose site I lost for a long time and recently discovered again) writes about a story told at Oral Roberts’ Funeral:
Pentecostal televangelist Marilyn Hickey preached the sermon at Oral Roberts’ memorial service today. And she shared an insightful story about her faith and ministry, laughing while she told it….
She said the first time that she preached at an Assembly of God Church, she commanded a man in a wheelchair near the back of the sanctuary to stand up and walk. But the man didn’t budge. So she hollered at him again: Stand up and walk. But still he did not move. So a third time, she thundered: Stand up and walk. But still no movement.
About that time, the pastor of the church stepped to her side and whispered: “Mrs. Hickey, he’s not going to stand up and walk. He has no legs.”
Oh, the story brought laughter to Oral Roberts’ memorial service. And Hickey laughed along.
BBB’s Frank Lockwood’s response was profound:
I didn’t laugh, however. I’ve seen too many self-proclaimed faith healers use desperately-ill people as props over the decades. And if Hickey’s Almighty God is incapable of healing legless men, he isn’t much of an Almighty God.
I had two responses to this story:
- When I posted this on facebook, a woman who identifies as deaf wondered why people believe that “healing only means having senses and limbs that function “normally”?”
- I remembered that last month a youth told me about a friend who is missing a limb, and was told by her pastor that she was made “wrong” on earth and she would be made “right” in heaven, if she got there.
His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"
"Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.
John 9:2-3
I was born with a hole in my spine, causing me to have no use of my right leg. I was also born with a condition called Hydrocephalus, which necessitated the implantation of a shunt at birth. This, compounded by the fact that I was born half a generation after my two brothers and I, led me to question 'what the *bleep* am I doing here, anyway?'
Then it dawned on me (before even reading the above passage): I know very few people with spina bifida (the aforementioned hole in my spine) who are older than me. If I'd been born chronologically closer to my two brothers, I might not have survived.
To top it off, from the ages of 13-26, I suffered from what I'm pretty sure was clinical depression, although it was never *clinically* diagnosed. It's my personal belief (and I speak only from personal experience. I have NO authority to speak for others, of course.) that the state of being suicidal is a lot like alcoholism: you never stop being suicidal, you just count the days since you last thought of it. It's been so long since I seriously thought about it that I've lost track.
It wasn't until about 3 weeks after I started going to church again – I accepted Christ when I was 8-ish, but left the church because hanging out with my dad at the flea market on Sunday morning was more fun – that I was able to break out of that depressive state.
God bless you, Jeremy.
Wow, pblaauw. Thanks for sharing a bit of your life with us. I particularly like your insight into the state of being suicidal…I know several people who would agree with your assessment.
Do you have any specific reactions to televangelist faith healers?