People with a past (1)

“There was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up. But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, ‘Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity.’ And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God” (vv. 11-13 NKJV). This woman couldn’t walk right because she had been bound by “a spirit of infirmity” for eighteen years. That’s a long time to struggle with something. And during that time, she had come to church and received no help. Then Jesus “called” her to the forefront. Why didn’t He just heal her in her seat? Here are two reasons: (1) God wants us to exercise faith and act on His Word. When you live with an unsolved problem for a long time, you start thinking, “This will never change.” So before God changes your circumstances, He changes your mind and enables you to see new possibilities. This is called “faith.” The Bible says, “Without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him. For whoever would come near God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him [out]” (Hebrews 11:6 AMPC). Today God wants to see you moving toward Him. (2) God wants us to invest in our own deliverance. When you have an investment in something, you value and protect it. That way, when Satan tries to bring the problem back, you say, “No, I don’t receive that. That’s no longer who I am. I’m a new creation in Christ.”