Chest Pain Healed

Travis had been in the hospital for a week, while doctors tried to determine what was causing his chest pain. His EKG's and cardiac enzymes were normal. Yet he developed classic cardiac chest pain and shortness of breath with the slightest exertion. A positive stress test was the only objective piece of evidence they had.

They finally did an angiogram, which revealed 99% occlusion of the circumflex artery and 33% occlusion of two other vessels. The lesion in the circumflex was at a bifurcation of the vessel, making stent placement tricky.

They opted for a more traditional approach and scheduled him for 3-vessel bypass surgery. We were the transport crew that would take him to the hospital where the surgery would be done.

Travis had no real medical history. He'd always been healthy. The news of bypass surgery had him freaked out. They medicated him for anxiety and pain before we arrived, but he was still scared about the procedure that awaited him.

I was feeling extra bold this morning. (Maybe it was the 7-11 coffee) I told him that my goal was to have him healed before we arrived at the other hospital. He said, "You know, I was praying a lot last night. I really don't want to have this surgery." I asked if I could pray with him, and he gladly agreed.

I wanted to give him hope that he really could be healed, so I shared a few healing testimonies. Each one made him more hopeful. We also needed to treat the pain he was having. Although he was on a nitro drip, he had 5/10 chest pain as we departed. A few milligrams of morphine eased it up a bit.

I continued sharing testimonies with him, then I placed my hand on his shoulder and commanded his arteries to be healed, opened and cleared of all occlusions. I spoke peace and health to his mind and body. It seemed to help as his anxiety level decreased the more we talked.

Just before we arrived, his chest pain went back up to 5/10. I gave him a choice between prayer and morphine. He was satisfied to let me pray over him, so I commanded the pain to leave. After the first time, it went down a little, and even more after the second time. After commanding it to leave the third time, all the pain was gone.

The look on his face was priceless.

I told him it was all about faith and explained that my my faith could get him healed, but his faith would keep him healed. I told him about the realities of spiritual warfare and that the enemy would probably bring the pain back, trying to convince him he wasn't healed. I told him to continue believing that he was healed, regardless of how he felt. "Resist the enemy and he will flee from you."

Travis was grateful that a stranger introduced him to God's power and love. As I left him in the ICU, he said, "You know, this whole experience really gives me a lot to think about."

That's the main point of divine healing. When the kingdom of God lands in your front yard, it's supposed to make you think differently about the issues of life, death, God and eternity.

I'm not sure that his arteries were healed. I believe they were, but only God knows. And by now, so do Travis and his cardiac team. I can just imagine them looking at a clearly open circumflex artery that had been almost completely occluded 24 hours earlier. I imagine Travis has a better understanding of God's ways.

I've said it before, but it's worth repeating; anyone can do this. I'm not a special person. Four years ago I didn't believe in divine healing. But now it's an almost daily reality for me. It could be for you too. Step out in faith and believe that God want's people healed. He's in a good mood. Be a blessing to others. Release God's power and love into their lives.

Here's a short video that explains the pathophysiology of a heart attack: