22 Feb My Messianic Miracle: Francis

In the month of December 2015, I suffered what Indonesians call “mata ikan” a.k.a wart. As this issue is quite common and easily curable (it wasn’t my first time having it), I didn’t expect it to cause me excruciating pain or major inconvenience. This was not the case.

The wart was located in the heel of my foot, known in medical terms as a plantar wart. Each time I walked I was in extreme pain and the only way I could have any mobility was through the constant consumption of painkillers. To add to my frustration, no matter how much I peeled the skin, it regenerated in a blink of an eye as my body repaired itself. It became impossible for me to walk normally.

After suffering for over 2 months, I heeded a friend’s advice to do laser treatment around Chinese New Year 2016. According to the doctor, the wart had grown too deep and an intensive beam was necessary. The estimated recovery time was 4 days. Even 2 weeks post-treatment, the agony persisted.

I cried out to the Lord as I longed for supernatural healing. I held on to the Word in Isaiah “by His stripes you are healed”. I believed that Jesus, the Messiah and chosen one, who healed the sick, cleansed the leper and raised the dead, could heal me.

I am not anti-medical treatment, I believe that medical and technological advances are also a gift from Him. But deep down, I felt that trusting what the doctor told me rather than what the Scriptures say about divine healing would be taking the easy way out (in my case). For a long time, I struggled to accept that this miraculous healing was only exclusive to those who lived in biblical times. Jesus said that we would do even greater things than He, and even our modern medical treatment surely pales in comparison to the miracles we see in the Bible.

Close to giving up, I looked for a third opinion – a podiatrist advised that the virus location was beyond the laser treatment and the only option was surgery. This would cost me at least 6,000 SGD. He tried to convince me that this was the only solution, and that the pain would be unbearable as long as I put off surgery. I met yet another podiatrist who also recommended treatment but at a lower price. Knowing that I would be covered by insurance, I was so close to going ahead with the treatment. All I wanted was my life back.

But there was no peace. A voice kept telling me to wait upon the Lord if I really wanted to experience the power of healing prayer. I was torn between surgery and the desire to experience supernatural healing.

I made an appointment for my surgery. The day I went to the clinic, my soul stirred up a great sorrow of how I was about to give up my faith in divine healing. Though the pain persisted, I decided to remain steadfast in my trust in our healing Father. It was a Thursday when I cancelled the appointment and the excruciating pain remained with no sign of letting up. On Friday and Saturday, the situation was no better.

I cried out to the Lord during this time of affliction and He reminded me of the story of Sadrakh, Mesakh and Abednego, three Hebrews who put their trust in the Lord even at the risk of Him not saving their lives. A voice asked, “Will you still love me even if you are not healed?” It was a tough question, but I answered “Lord you know my heart, my desire is to love you through the good and the bad.” On Sunday night, I had no idea how, but I managed to do household chores without experiencing any pain. Finding it hard to believe, I went to work the next day without any painkillers and the excruciating pain was no more.

I have a long way to go when it comes to exercising my faith in the Lord, but for the very first time in my life I see the verse “by His stripes you are healed” to be so real.

Back then I always thought Raphael was a Latin or Spanish name even though I was familiar with Jehovah Rafa (God/The Lord who heals). To my surprise, Raphael is Hebrew. Rapha, derived from the same Rapha used in Jehovah Rafa, and El for Elohim. I named my second child Raphael Emmanuel Lee, born 28 January 2017, because I have a great hope that we will experience healing, revival and the Lord’s greatness.

Francis