Tom Fischer Healing (East Coast Style)

This is my friend Tom Fischer on the streets of Philadelphia demonstrating the power of God and sharing the message of the gospel with a group of skateboarders.

Who Will Be Healed Today?

As I drove to work I wondered...

Who will be healed today?

God has been doing more miracles lately when I ask people if they want prayer. It's not an occasional thing anymore, but a lifestyle.

We checked the rig and went in service on a slow morning where everyone seemed to be in quarters.

...would it be someone with a foot injury?

...or back pain?

Our first call was for a woman who fell while attempting to cross the busiest street in town. She didn't make it far. We found her lying half on the curb and half in the street in the pouring rain. We quickly put her on a backboard and in the rig where it was dry.

I got her medical history and asked what happened. She was walking with a cane because she has decreased feeling in her right foot from neuropathy. She couldn't feel the irregularities in the sidewalk and tripped. She had an appointment to see a specialist the following day. He would do a procedure on her foot and she'd be using a walker after that.

I asked if I could pray for her foot to be healed. She said, "Get over here and take my hands. Let's get this done!"

I placed my hand on her foot and commanded it to be healed. I told the nerves to come back to life and spirits of disease to leave then asked if she felt anything. She said she could feel the swelling in her foot going down and in a minute or two it felt normal in size, but she had numbness in her foot. I commanded the sensation in her foot to be restored. She felt a wave of sensation going down her foot and the numbness was leaving.

Lying on a hard yellow board in the back of an ambulance, I can only imagine what was going through her mind.

I looked in her eyes. "In case you didn't know it, God really loves you."

I didn't need to tell her. With tears of joy streaming down her cheeks, she softly said "I know He does".

Who will be healed today?

The choice is ours. If we don't lay hands on the sick, the answer is 'nobody'.

47 Days In a Coma

This is the heart warming story of a woman named Lindsey. Shortly after the birth of her fifth child, she was admitted to the hospital with bleeding from her uterus. Two surgeries later, she wasn't doing much better. Her condition deteriorated and she was placed on life support. When all medical efforts to save her life failed, the power of prayer ignited her family. Her doctor confesses that her recovery was nothing less than a miracle.

Miracle In The Ambulance

I've waited two years to write this story.

My adventure down the rabbit hole began with a book written by a cardiologist who prayed for his patients and saw some miracles. I happened to pick up the book at a Goodwill store.

It challenged everything I believed about God.

Did God still heal people today?

Would He do it through me?

Would I have the guts to ask my patients?

Would they want me to pray for them?

Would He actually heal someone in the ambulance?

Would anyone be crazy enough to believe it really happened?

I've had so many dreams about healing people I've forgotten most of them. I've probably prayed for a thousand patients and haven't heard back from more than one or two. I've seen unexplained changes for the better in critically ill patients that made me wonder if God was healing them. But I can't say that one patient has been healed miraculously in the ambulance yet.

Today would be different.

We responded on what would be a boring call for most of us. A little old lady with the flu.

How exciting.

I suggested that there wasn't anything the hospital could do for her, but my objections were overruled. She was going with us. While loading her in the rig, I got her medical history. She was pretty healthy except for severe scoliosis, arthritis and a torn meniscus in her left knee. It was the torn meniscus got me excited.

About a month earlier, I prayed for a young woman at a grocery store who had the same problem. I saw her in a wheelchair leaving the store and asked if I could pray for her. After a few minutes of prayer she was healed. Having done it once, I believed my little old lady would be healed, too.

I told her about the healing at the store and asked if I could pray for her. She was delighted. She had limited range of motion in her left knee with severe pain when she flexed the joint. I had her relax and placed my hand on her knee and commanded it to be healed. I asked if she felt anything. She said it felt very warm. I didn't have to ask her to flex the knee, she did and her jaw dropped open. All she could say was "how did you do that?" She had full range of motion with no pain. She grabbed my hands and thanked me repeatedly. After a short celebration in the back of the rig, I asked about her back. She told me about the chronic back pain and that she used to be 4 inches taller than she is now. I asked if I could pray and she agreed, so I placed my hand on her back and commanded it to be healed. She felt heat going down her back. She was on the way to having that healed, too. She talked about the goodness of God all the way to the hospital.

About a hour after dropping her off at the emergency room, we responded for another little old lady who tripped and fell.

How exciting.

I instantly linked this woman. She had a beautiful Scottish brogue. I asked where she was from and she said, Glasgow. She gave us a sad history of a misdiagnosed injury to her left leg. She'd developed severe pain in her lower leg and was told she had shin splints. They never bothered to take an x-ray. She began physical therapy and the pain got worse. She had another exam and an x-ray they realized she had a fractured tibia. The pain in her lower leg and ankle was so bad she wouldn't let anyone touch it.

We got her loaded. I got down next to her and explained what happened on the previous transport. She was so glad to have me pray she almost kissed me. I placed my hand on her leg and invited the Holy Spirit to join us.

Her hands went up in the air immediately and she began praising God.

Very loudly...

In the ambulance....

I'm so glad my supervisor wasn't there.

In less than a minute the pain was almost gone. She said it was a 1 out of 10. I kept praying, thinking I could make it leave completely.

She kept praising God, louder and louder.

We dropped her off at the emergency room. I have no idea what she told them. I never want to find out.

So far in this little adventure, I've been keeping the healing thing a secret. (There hasn't been much to tell anyway) But if it keeps going like this, it won't be a secret for long.

Evangelism 101 - Overcoming Fear

My friend Joel Jackson did a short message and demonstration on overcoming fear in street healing and evangelism. Check it out.

Cancer Defeated By Prophetic Declaration

This is the testimony of a man whose mother was healed of uterine cancer. He made a declaration of healing over his family and God honored it.

Why We Lose Our Healing

If you've seen someone healed by the power of God, chances are you know someone who also lost their healing. In this video Pete Cabrera discusses the problem of how we lose our healing and how to get it back. The short story is this; it's a battle. The powers of darkness that bring sickness and pain don't stop their assault because someone told them to leave one time. When someone is healed, the enemy often brings the pain or sickness back.What are we to do? The same power that brought healing the first time will heal it returns. Rebuke it and command it to leave in the name of Jesus. If it comes back, do it again. Stand on the promises of God.

Prophetic Hot Tub

My wife and I spent a romantic weekend alone to celebrate our anniversary. Jesus went along and made our vacation nicer than we expected. This is the third story of how God touched people that weekend.

Early in the morning, my wife and I decided to soak in the hotel's hot tub. But we weren't alone. A family of four children and their mom were there. The two youngest children who were about 10 years old were in the hot tub with us. As I rested, God gave me a vision for the boy. I saw him building things with Tonka trucks. Then I saw large yellow construction equipment like backhoes and bulldozers. It seemed like God was telling me the boy likes to build things. I began a conversation with him about breakfast then asked if he likes to build things. He said he did. That led to a conversation in which I told him that God would probably open doors for him in construction. He was surprised that I knew this information, but was glad I shared it with him.

I gave his sister a similar word about her love of dancing. God showed me a vision in which she appeared as a young lady of about 20 years old. She was moving gracefully as a ballerina. I suggested that God may bless this endeavor if she pursued it. She was happy but surprised to hear this coming from a stranger.

Their mother was amazed at the fact that I knew these things about her kids. We sat with her and talked about prophecy and the healings we’d seen that weekend. Eventually she asked if we would prayed for her vision to be restored. She’s was far-sighted.

Then she asked me to pray for her older son who had symptoms of a cold. To be honest, I didn’t expect a cold to be healed by prayer. It seemed off limits for some reason. But I prayed with the same faith as all the other times this week. The boy told his mother (Jessie) that his nose, which was sore and runny felt a lot better after I prayed for him.

Before we left she had me give her oldest daughter a word. I saw her windsurfing off the coast of an island like Hawaii (which turned out to be her favorite place). In the vision I saw that she had confidence on the board and the look of determination. She was moving fast. Then I saw the front of a thin boat, like a kayak and a paddle going through the water. I gave her some insights from this vision and she was encouraged by it. Her mother said it described her very well.

Earnestly desire the best gifts, especially that you may prophesy.....

You never know who will be blessed.

He Has Anointed You

This little video profoundly impacted my life. The song reveals a simple yet amazing truth; we have been anointed to heal the sick, bind up the broken hearted and bring freedom to the captives. Through the actions of a handful of normal people like you and I, cities and nations will be changed. Darkness will become light. Despair will become hope. Hatred will become love.

Thanks to Heather Clark for the music and the folks at Extreme Prophetic for their loving obedience.

Healing At The Car Show

It was a hot summer day, so we decided to visit the car show. My wife and I love old cars. My dad took me to antique car shows and race tracks when I was a boy. He built hot rods with his brothers in the 50's. His was a '35 Ford 5 - window coupe. They put studded tires on them in the winter and raced them across frozen lakes. (And they call firefighters crazy for going into burning buildings)

My dad taught me a lot about fixing cars. I've never made a serious attempt to restore one, but my wife and I have a dream of one day restoring an old piece of American cast iron. I saw a few cars that were for sale at the show, but they were just a little out my price range.

As we rode the shuttle van from the parking lot to the casino, where the show was being held, I talked with my wife about who we'd find and what they would be healed of.

I can't help it. He's taken over my soul and become who I am. He lives in me. I'm not the man I used to be. I love seeing people healed and watching God on the move.

As we walked up and down between rows of beautifully restored classics, I was looking for someone with a cast, splint, immobilizer or in a wheelchair.

I'm not gonna lie.... the '41 Willys got my attention for a while. It was for sale. But I wasn't buyin'.

My daughter and I were having fun looking at the cars together, when I saw a woman limping through the crowd with a leg immobilizer on. I thought I'd found who I was looking for. But she was walking toward the main entrance of the casino and before I could get there, she and her sister vanished inside. Rats!

After a few hours in the hot sun some of my family took refuge in the beer tent. My daughter and I found shade in the food tent next door. After a bite to eat, I joined the rest of the group in the beer tent.

We talked about the cars we'd seen. I pointed out the purple and yellow Willys to my wife and told her it was for sale. As I turned around to find another car to show her, I saw the woman with the leg immobilizer sitting at a table directly behind me.

It had to be a divine set up.

So we went for it.

I got her attention and introduced my family then asked about her injury. She had torn ligaments and tendons and open sores from a moped accident. I told her about some of the healing stories we've seen. She let us pray over her leg. The pain was 5 out of 10 at the start. She said she felt tingling almost immediately. I commanded her ligaments, tendons, nerves and muscles to be healed while my wife prayed in tongues. In a few minutes she said all the pain was gone. This woman was a believer. She was very grateful that we asked to pray for her.

As I left the beer tent to meet my daughter, she pointed to a girl about 10 years old sitting in a wheelchair with soft cast on her leg. My daughter was grinning from ear to ear. I went over and introduced myself then asked how she hurt her leg. She had the same exact injury that the other woman had. I pointed to her and said she had just been healed then asked if I could pray for her leg. She agreed. Her pain was 3 out of 10 when I started. She immediately felt tingling. In a minute or two her pain level was down to 1 out of 10.

I saw Ryan Rhoades point his finger at a woman in the hospital then he made the sound of a gun being fired. The woman jumped but didn't see what he was doing. I did the same thing to this girl's ankle. The moment I said, BANG, she flinched. And with a startled look on her face, she said "Hey, How did you do that? It's all better!!" I told her I didn't do anything, Jesus did it. Her grandmother began to tell her about the stories of Jesus healing people that she knew about from Sunday School. We thanked them and went our way.

All the cars we saw were once just average cars for their age. A little rusty, a little worn out, dripping oil, and not running like they should. Someone came along and purchased them. But in buying them, the goal was total restoration. Lovingly replacing everything broken and making something beautiful is what restoring cars is all about.

The divine mechanic has the tools and know-how to fix every broken part of our lives. He has an endless supply of new hearts and other parts to replace the bitter, failing ones we carry around. He's the master mechanic laboring continually, rebuilding us into a perfect re-creation in His image.

Christian Cults In The Electronic Age

What do you think of when I mention the word 'cult'?

For many of us, names like David Koresh, Jim Jones and Joseph Smith come to mind; those mysterious men of the past who led well-meaning people into religious error. In the world of modern magnetic personalities, today's cult leaders have a new face and a new agenda. No longer a man who leads people with unorthodox teaching, today's cult leader is more likely to preach the cross of Jesus and teach on the triune God. They also don't pass out poison Kool-Aid, but if you follow them long enough, you may end up in an early grave from exhaustion. Take a short quiz and see if your hero is leading people down a crooked path.

1) Do you follow the teaching of someone with a public forum or ministry that you consider to be particularly insightful, inspiring or gifted?

 2) Does that leader promote the idea that the church has lost it's focus and that He's been given an assignment from God to re-establish it?

 3) Does the leader claim to have a special revelation, anointing or mantle of authority given to him that qualifies him in a special way to restore God's original purpose for the church?

 4) Does this leader discourage people from learning from other leaders?

5) Do you encourage others to follow this leader?

 6) Do you meet with friends who follow the same leader and read or listen to his messages?

 7) Do you distribute the materials prepared by that leader to others? (mp3's, podcasts, videos, internet links, books, etc)

 8) Do you find yourself frequently quoting this leader?

 9) Does the leader come under criticism from other Christian leaders on a regular basis?

 10) Do you find yourself defending the leader or his teaching before others?

 11) Have you lost friends over your support of the leader and his ministry?

 12) Do you know people who followed the leader then left and have been criticized for leaving?

 13) Does the leader promote any type of activity that he believes is necessary to remain in right relationship with God?

 14) Do you wonder if your spiritual activity is good enough to please God?

 15) Have people familiar with the ministry ever used words like brainwashing, indoctrination, legalism, performance, or similar words to describe the teaching or activities of the group?

If you answered yes to most of the questions above, you may be following someone who could be considered a cult leader.

The Leader
Cult leaders don't wake up one day and decide they're going to start a cult. The ones I've observed seem to be oblivious to what they're doing. Most of them may actually have good intentions. They seem to have wounds from past encounters in the church. In dealing with the pain, rejection or disillusionment they start a campaign to set things right. These leaders are always visionary people, with a goal of either re-establishing something lost, or bringing to the church something new. From a wounded soul arises a need to be publicly justified. The driving force behind their movement is a bruised ego. These men and women are genuinely gifted and inspiring individuals with a quirkiness that others find admirable.

Though I follow the teaching of different leaders, the ones I follow have one thing that sets them apart from those I would consider to be cult leaders; they're all accountable to someone else. The model for church leadership involves different people with different functions providing a system of checks and balances. Whether elders and bishops or apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers - all church leaders should function in relationship with others to keep egos in check. Without exception, cult leaders believe they are accountable to no one, except God. They resist correction or instruction from anyone.

The Follower

Though some may not know God, followers of modern cults may be genuine disciples of Jesus, who are saved by grace. Many embrace a biblical world - view. Unlike cults of the past, many followers today are likely to be refugees from evangelical or charismatic churches. Having been poisoned by mainstream Christianity but not wanting to give up on God, they believe they've found a better path. Sometimes critical of the mainline church and it's lack of enlightenment or it's laziness, they have a strong need for accomplishment and acceptance and like the social involvement of the new group's activities.

Loyalty
The leader demands obedience to what he believes is the call of God. He expects loyalty to the group, it's vision and activities. Followers study the approved teachings and know them well. They refuse to entertain ideas contrary to the teaching of the leader and tend to engage in long arguments in defense of that position. Loyalty among these groups is deep. When a member leaves the group they tend to be treated as a traitor, losing the friendships they had inside the group.

Controversy

I'm a person who enjoys discussing controversial subjects. God is doing some amazing things these days, much of it dripping with controversy. Seeing life from another's perspective can be healthy. The give and take builds healthy relationships. But with cult leaders there is no give and take. They tend to be rigid and unyielding in their position. You'll find little compromise among their followers.

The Internet has given a new spin to fringe Christian movements. The controversial teachings that were once closely guarded secrets are now widely publicized on blogs, websites and social networks. Public debate is inevitable with teaching that flies in the face of conventional Christianity. Members tirelessly defend the group's position against anyone who questions it. If the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle and willing to yield, a swirling vortex of arguments and accusations may be an indicator that something is wrong.

Exclusive Teaching
Cult leaders have a set of unique ideas they expect their followers to know and follow. The teaching revolves around what they've learned through special revelation or their own life experiences. In general, they disdain the teaching of others, referring to them as erroneous, unenlightened, unbiblical, apostate, or in some way unworthy of serious consideration.

In developing their material, leaders nearly always have a biblical basis for their teaching. Some are excellent bible scholars. But in every case, they'll manipulate scripture to support a new doctrine. Some take an obscure passage and make a major teaching out of it. Others deny the validity of certain passages. Often they point to the passage in question and claim it wasn't in the original manuscript, being added later or they question the translation. Cultic teaching always deviates from the word of God in some way.

The Persecuted Few
While not universal, today's leaders often point to some real or perceived persecution they've endured. They may suggest you'll likewise be persecuted for following them. The common perception of persecution provides an experience the group can rally behind.

Diets
Oddly enough - nearly every cult will establish some teaching on diet that's out of sync with mainstream Christianity and the teaching of scripture. Today's groups also have much to say on what you should or shouldn't eat. Some advise you to eat certain foods or supplements. You can even purchase them from the leader at a price. Others either require fasting or deny the biblical basis for fasting. If a leader takes a hard position on what you should or shouldn't eat and when, ask questions.

Two ErrorsThe two errors the church has dealt with historically are legalism and gnosticism. Legalism is the idea that God's grace is not enough to keep you in right standing with Him. Gnosticism is the pursuit of esoteric knowledge outside the natural realm.

The New GnosticsGnosticism has been around since man first walked the earth. We've always desired to know the deepest truths of the universe. But there's the nagging problem of discerning between knowledge and truth. They're not the same thing. There's no shortage of people today who claim to have received special knowledge that will enhance your life. But, there's usually a price tag attached and what they give you is often a pile of rubbish. I'm as fascinated by the supernatural as anyone. But I'm surprised at the lack of discernment the church has in evaluating supernatural experiences and so-called higher knowledge. The problem is that some have jettisoned reason and scriptural revelation in favor of the spiritual, regardless of where it leads them.
Performance Groups
Paul's letter to the church in Galatia addressed the fact that after he brought the gospel of grace, men came after him teaching that grace was good, but they needed more to remain in good standing with God; obedience to the law. There will always be leaders telling us we need to do something to please God.

While many fringe groups today agree that the blood of Jesus is enough to pay for our sins. Those same groups also suggest that you may not be a true disciple without meeting their definition of discipleship, which always includes something you must do.

Every cult based on performance has some work that needs to be done. Following one of these leaders will always be a busy life full of doing this and going there. Long time followers suffer physical and mental exhaustion from pursuing the nebulous goal of reaching as many people as possible. It's a game of numbers. If you make contact with so many people, you're a 'good disciple'. You become a hamster in a cage that never rests. If not, you're labeled as lazy and disobedient.

Experience
I consider myself to be a Christian mystic. I've had some 'interesting' spiritual experiences. (All of them with biblical precedent) I generally keep them to myself, but I share some with a few trusted friends. I'm not trying to teach others to experience them. I'm not doing anything to seek them but asking God in our time alone to develop a deeper relationship with Him. When I experience something new I ask God about it, search the bible to find what it says on the matter and take it to friends for their advice. It's a safety net that will hopefully prevent me from falling into gnostic error.

Lately I've struggled with the notion that I should be praying for more people. I've wondered that if I don't lay hands on someone everywhere I go are my efforts good enough to please God? I've come under the influence of people promoting the agenda of works - based acceptance by God. I know better than to believe this stuff, but it's crept into my life ever so slowly.

I have friends who've been in the healing ministry for years who have lived under constant guilt when they didn't have time to honor all the requests to pray for "just one more cancer patient." If they take a weekend off to be with family, they worry that people will die. They avoid friends for fear of being asked to pray for another person. They dread opening their e-mail. They've felt intense pressure from leaders to perform at the highest level of efficiency every moment of every day. They live under constant guilt.

There's a subtle deception taking place in all this. It's the idea that we can't be wrong as long as we're do something good. I'd suggest that our motives and relationships are more important than we think. I'll leave you with a few questions to ponder:

If we lead others into deep spiritual knowledge, but in doing so cause them to fall into darkness, how have we helped them?

If we're healing people to collect a pile of testimonies, how is God glorified in what we're doing?

If we see people as mere 'targets' for our ministry, are we truly revealing Jesus to them?

If we suffer a nervous breakdown and alienate our friends and family from years of frantically doing the work of the ministry, who wins in the end?

Satan is a cruel task master.

Be wise as serpents and gentle as doves.

(And keep sending me your prayer requests - I haven't come close to being overworked yet!)

Torn Achilles Tendon Healed

Sarah is a runner who was sidelined with a torn Achilles tendon. She went through physical therapy and conventional medical treatment but still wasn't able to run. Shorty after being healed at Bethel Church, she was off and running again.