I believe there is strength in numbers against the enemy and I believe in the power of prayer . Give someone hope when they are healing from loss .

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grams spring from two major beliefs: that true stories
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Guideposts Outreach strives to fulfill our mission by
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Copyright © 1978 and 2008 by Peale Center for Christian Living. All rights reserved.
All Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, King James Version.
Printed in U.S.A

3. C O N T E N T S
This booklet is dedicated
to our doctors, nurses, and pastors
who help us experience
the healing power of God.
1. Jesus Heals and Doctors Heal..................4
2. Scripture for Healing...................................12
3. Healing Insights...............................................17
4. Healing Affirmations..................................24

4. 54
HERE is healing going on around us all the
time. It is a constant process.
This healing often comes about through the
agency of doctors, surgeons, and nurses. Sometimes
it comes through the spiritual work of ministers and
priests. It has also been accomplished through the
prayers and the faith of simple believers. And in not a
few instances, it results from the joint application of
scientific medicine and religious faith.
On one occasion, I was a speaker on the convention
program of the American Medical Association. The
vast hall was filled with doctors from across the nation.
Over the platform stretched a large banner with these
words, “Medicine’s Proclamation of Faith.”
More than 5000 leading medical men applauded
their association president, a highly respected physi-
cian, as he stressed the relation­ship between faith and
the science of medicine. They supported his further
assertions that, when a person is sick, he should see his
doctor, but he should also see his pastor. Obviously, the
physicians present shared their association president’s
belief that God is vital in the healing process, or, as
a famous doctor once put it, “I treat the patient; God
heals him.”
The high place of the doctor in God’s healing min-
istry is indicated in Ecclesiasticus (Apocrypha, NEW
ENGLISH BIBLE) 38:1-10:
Honour the doctor for his services, for the Lord
created him. His skill comes from the Most High, and
he is rewarded by kings. The doctor’s knowledge gives
him high standing and wins him the admiration of
the great. The Lord has created medicines from the
earth, and a sensible man will not disparage them.
The Lord has imparted knowledge to men, that by
their use of His marvels He may win praise; by us-
ing them the doctor relieves pain and from them the
pharmacist makes up his mixture. There is no end to
the works of the Lord, who spreads health over the
whole world. My son, if you have an illness, do not
neglect it, but pray to the Lord, and He will heal you.
Renounce your faults, amend your ways, and cleanse
your heart from all sin.
1
Jesus Heals and
Doctors Heal
T
Dear Lord, in my illness I know how important my
doctor is to me. Thank You for him, for his kindly spirit
and his competence. Do not let him become tired and
worn by his many responsibili­ties. Grant to him the
grace to heal me and all of his patients. Keep our good
doctor in Your loving care. Amen.

5. 76
Jesus Heals a Paralyzed Man
Matthew 9:1-8
Jesus got into the boat and went back across the
lake to His own town, where some people brought to
Him a paralyzed man, lying on a bed. When Jesus
saw how much faith they had, He said to the paralyzed
man, “Courage, my son! Your sins are forgiven.”
Then some teachers of the Law said to themselves,
“This man is speaking blasphemy!”
Jesus perceived what they were thinking, and so
He said, “Why are you thinking such evil things? Is it
easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get
up and walk’? I will prove to you, then, that the Son
of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So He
said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, pick up your bed,
and go home!”
The man got up and went home. When the people
saw it, they were afraid, and praised God for giving
such authority to men.
Jesus Heals Ten Men
Luke 17:11-19
Jesus made his way to Jerusalem, going along
the border between Samaria and Galilee. He entered
a village and was met by ten men suffering from a
dreaded skin disease. From a distance they shouted,
“Jesus! Master! Have pity on us!”
Jesus saw them and said to them, “Go and let the
priests examine you.”
On the way they were made clean. When one of
them saw that he was healed, he came back, praising
God in a loud voice. He threw himself to the ground
Jesus Heals the Sick
The person of faith who believes in the Holy Bible,
God’s Word, is bound to believe in the power of Jesus to
heal. And that Jesus heals today is underscored by the
statement, “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today,
and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). Jesus has not changed;
He healed then and He heals now.
The American Bible Society published a booklet
entitled To Heal as Jesus Did.* With permission, I
quote from this booklet to show how the Master healed
both the physical body and the tortured mind. And, of
course, much body sickness results from ill health in
mind or soul, or in both.
Jesus Heals Many People
Matthew 8:14-17
Jesus went to Peter’s home, and there he saw Peter’s
mother-in-law sick in bed with a fever. He touched
her hand; the fever left her, and she got up and began
to wait on Him.
When evening came, people brought to Jesus many
who had demons in them. Jesus drove out the evil
spirits with a word and healed all who were sick. He
did this to make come true what the prophet Isaiah
had said, “He himself took our sickness and carried
away our diseases.”
* Reprinted by permission of American Bible Society, N.Y., N.Y.
Scriptures quoted are from Good News for Modern Man, the New
Testament in Today’s English Version.

6. 98
at Jesus’ feet and thanked Him. The man was a Sa-
maritan. Jesus spoke up, “There were ten men who
were healed; where are the other nine? Why is this
foreigner the only one who came back to give thanks
to God?” And Jesus said to him, “Get up and go; your
faith has made you well.”
Jesus Heals a Blind Man at Bethsaida
Mark 8:22-26
They came to Bethsaida, where some people
brought a blind man to Jesus and begged him to touch
Him. Jesus took the blind man by the hand and led
Him out of the village. After spitting on the man’s
eyes, Jesus placed His hands on him and asked him,
“Can you see anything?”
The man looked up and said, “Yes, I can see people,
but they look like trees walking around.”
Jesus again placed His hands on the man’s eyes.
This time the man looked intently, his eyesight re-
turned, and he saw everything clearly. Jesus then
sent him home with the order, “Don’t go back into
the village.”
The fact of healing was so important to Jesus that if
all references to the healing ministry were clipped
from the pages of the New Testament, it would severely
emasculate the Holy Book.
My friend Rev. Dr. Laurence H. Blackburn, in his
book God Wants You to Be Well, points out that one out
of every seven verses in the Gospels refers to healing
in one way or another. He also stresses that there are
48 instances in the Gospels where Jesus healed people
individually and 18 where He healed en masse. The
Gospel is indeed good news about healing for you and
those dear to you.
Dear God our Father, through Your loving kind­ness
I affirm, in faith, that You are now placing Your hand
of healing upon our loved one. You know our concern.
Know also of our love for You and our faith that You
will grant restora­tion and recovery to this one who
is so dear to us. In Christ’s name. Amen.
Jesus Heals Today
InmytalkattheAmericanMedicalAssociationmen-
tioned earlier, I told of a healing experience in which I
participated some years ago as a pastor. I was serving a
church in Syracuse, N.Y., and was awakened one night
by the persistent ringing of the telephone. Snapping on
the light, I noted that my bedside clock registered 3 a.m.
It was the voice of a friend and associate, a prominent
doctor, that came through to me.
“I am with a patient, Mrs. .You know her,
of course. She is very ill.” He described the medical
situation, stating that he had taken all the prescribed
steps that the condition indicated.
“Even so,” he continued, “she does not respond.
While treating her medically, I have also been seeking
help and guidance in prayer. I feel guided to ask you
to come to my patient’s home and join me in applying

7. 1110
faith to this critical situation.”
This doctor, I may add, was one of the most highly
respected men in his specialty, a scientist of impeccable
qualifications. He was also a man of profound faith, a
believer in every sense of that term.
Joining the doctor in the sick room, I found the
patient, who had been in a coma for many hours. The
doctor suggested, “Let us try to reach her at a deep
level of consciousness, and stimulate in her the desire
to live. This, together with the medical steps I have
taken, may perhaps bring about a healing.”
The doctor sat at one side of her bed, I at the other,
and the nurse, who happened to be a member of my
church, stood at the foot. We all prayed silently, then
aloud. This was interrupted only by necessary medical
and nursing procedures.
Then something extraordinary occurred. The doctor
quoted several Scripture passages directed, he said,
to the patient’s subconscious mind. He nodded to me,
“You quote some Scripture aloud.” When I ceased, he
resumed. Then I took over, suddenly realizing that I
was quoting passages almost verbatim that I really did
not know all that well. It was amazing.
Then the doctor said, “I can’t understand it, for
Scripture is coming to my mind that I’m sure I never
committed to memory.” Both of us had, of course, read
and heard them often.
This spiritual treatment continued for three hours.
At daybreak, the patient suddenly stirred, looked at
us, and a faint smile passed over her face. She closed
her eyes and began breathing normally.
“She has come out of the coma,” said the doctor.
“She is sleeping peacefully.” He took her blood pres-
sure and listened to her heart. “All the signs are good,”
he said wonderingly, “indeed, very good.”
Later on, my friend was obviously deeply moved.
He said, “I will never forget this, nor will you.” Then
he added, “God has been here tonight.”
The woman was healed and Dr. Gordon Hoople was
right: I never forgot what happened and I never forgot
him, either. He was a doctor, and there are many of
them, who knew that all medi­cine is God’s medicine.
Some of it is in pills, some in liquid. Some is taken by
mouth, some by in­jection. Some healing is by surgery.
Some, by prayer, faith, and affirmation.
Heavenly Father, as I lie here in my sick bed, the days
go by slowly, but the nights seem endless. How I long
for a good sound sleep. Please help me to relax and to
be calm. Touch my eyelids with Your kindly sleepiness.
Grant to me the deep rest that will help me to get well.
I claim the promise, “He giveth his beloved sleep”
[Psalm 127:2] Thank You, dear Lord. Amen.

8. 1312
WAS so intent upon the healing episode just
described, while it was in process, that I did
not make notes of the Scripture passages used
by the doctor and by me. But shortly afterward, I did,
I believe, recapture most of them. Though it has been
more than 40 years since this incident occurred, I’ve
recalled some of them and listed them in this booklet.
In cases of sickness of yourself, of loved ones, or
of friends, I earnestly suggest that you carefully use
these powerful healing words, for they may indeed
prove to be God’s medicine for you, as they were for
that desperately ill woman of whom I wrote.
If you will faithfully memorize each of the following
vitality-producing Scripture passages, allowing each
to seep into your conscious mind and from there into
the deep unconscious, you will have released within
yourself an amazing healing force.
Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art
thou disquieted within me? Hope in God: for I shall
yet praise Him, who is the health of my countenance,
and my God. —Psalm 43:5
My presence shall go with thee, and I will give
thee rest. —Exodus 33:14
The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are
the everlasting arms. —Deuteronomy 33:27
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He
maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth
me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul:
He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His
name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley
of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for Thou
art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of
mine enemies: Thou anointest my head with oil; my
cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall
follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in
the house of the Lord for ever. —Psalm 23
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His
benefits: who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who
healeth all thy diseases. —Psalm 103:2,3
2
Scripture for Healing
I
Dear Lord, thank You that we may place this one who
is so dear to us in Your loving hands. You love our
loved one as much as we do, and we affirm that the
healing grace of Jesus Christ is now being granted
in full measure. And for this we are thankful. Amen.

9. 1514
Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind
is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee.
—Isaiah 26:3
Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He
shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.
—Psalm 27:14
What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee.
—Psalm 56:3
He giveth power to the faint; and to them that
have no might He increaseth strength. But they that
wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they
shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run,
and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
—Isaiah 40:29,31
For I will restore health unto thee, and I will heal
thee of thy wounds, saith the Lord. —Jeremiah 30:17
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall
find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for every
one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth;
and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
—Matthew 7:7,8
According to your faith be it unto you.
—Matthew 9:29
Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy
laden, and I will give you rest. —Matthew 11:28
And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer,
believing, ye shall receive. —Matthew 21:22
If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him
that believeth. —Mark 9:23
But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With
men this is impossible; but with God all things are
possible. —Matthew 19:26
What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe
that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.
—Mark 11:24
I am come that they might have life, and that they
might have it more abundantly. —John 10:10
If ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ye
shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
—John 15:7
If God be for us, who can be against us?
—Romans 8:31
For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life,
nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things
present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor
any other creature, shall be able to separate us from
the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
—Romans 8:38, 39
My grace is sufficient for thee: for My strength is
made perfect in weakness. —2 Corinthians 12:9
And the peace of God, which passeth all under-
standing, shall keep your hearts and minds through
Christ Jesus. —Philippians 4:7
Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have
entered into the heart of man, the things which God
hath prepared for them that love Him.
—1 Corinthians 2:9

10. 1716
And as many as touched Him were made whole.
—Mark 6:56
Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders
of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing
him with oil in the name of the Lord: and the prayer
of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise
him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall
be forgiven . . . . The effectual fervent prayer of a
righteous man availeth much. —James 5:14-16
Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for
you. —I Peter 5:7
NE of the truly God-touched men whom I have
known was a Canadian scientist, Dr. Albert E.
Cliffe. For years, he taught the largest Bible
class in Canada. Dr. Cliffe became ill, indeed sick
unto death. His doctors exhausted all medical means
to save him. One of them said, “It is now up to God,
and this man has great faith.”
Lying alone in his hospital room, Dr. Cliffe calmly
committed himself to God. “If Your will is to take
me home, Father, so be it, but if Your will is for me to
live, I will serve You to the best of my ability, for as
long a time as You may grant to me.” Peace came to
his mind followed by an overwhelming sense of being
loved. Then came a feeling of profound joy, followed
by a surge of new strength.
Joyously he realized that healing was taking place.
In time, he recovered his health and ever thereafter
witnessed to the fact that all medicine is God’s medi-
Dear Lord, thank You for my nurses. No matter how
much they do, they do not seem to get annoyed or
irritable. Grant them strength for their work, and
bless them, dear Father, with Your loving care. May
they realize that they are Your loving servants. Amen.
3
Healing Insights
O

11. 1918
cine; some administered by doctors, some by spiritual
therapy, in a unity of health and healing.
I have great respect for Dr. Cliffe’s insights and
quote some of them in the following paragraphs.*
The Ministry of Healing
Jesus healed all the sick who came to Him in faith,
believing; and as He is the same today and forever,
that healing power is still available to those who
will believe. There is no doubt but that this is simple
Christian teaching . . . .
This power of healing is being demonstrated every
day and can be proved by any Christian who will
believe. The doctor says nature heals the wounds of
the body—restores new cells, builds new blood, etc.,
and this healing depends upon your nervous system,
the seat of which is the brain—the mind.
There is no doubt whatsoever but that the mind
controls the body—in fact, your mind controls your
life. Therefore the Christian believes that the spirit
of God uses the natural agents in the body to bring
about healings of all kinds. The faith of the patient
in the doctor has a great deal to do with the rapidity
of the healing, and those who have studied the mind
say that the power of a patient to get well depends on
his positive thoughts.
Nothing is impossible with God. Sometimes we
get cases of really religious people who are unable to
get a healing regardless of their prayers, and this is
due often to the unbelief of those around them. Jesus
Himself could do no mighty works when the people
did not believe and, for this reason, He told certain
persons to tell no man of their healings.
God is the fountainhead of healing love—Jesus
Christ as the administrator of the healing Grace, and
the Holy Spirit as the power of God manifesting in our
bodies and filling us with the life of Christ.
God-divine mind is everywhere; and whenever
we tune in with this mind—in faith—praying, be-
lieving that we are now receiving—we get the most
wonderful results. Distance makes no difference to
God’s power.
In sickness, keep on thanking God for the healing
which is now taking place. The greater your faith—
the greater your positive approach to it—the greater
your measure of the healing.
If a specialist tells you that you are suffering from
an incurable disease, his verdict is a terrible one to
you at that time. Your mind is filled with fears and
will become fixed therein until it can be overcome
with an idea of greater power. The promises of Jesus
have greater power. We are taught that Jesus bore our
burden on the Cross—the burden of your incurable
condition; therefore it has no right to defile your body,
the temple of God. But this depends upon a personal
experience with Jesus Christ. It is most essential to
have this personal experience with the Living Christ.
No matter how well you live up to the law of your
religious life, if you have not learned to know Christ
through the power of the indwelling Spirit—your faith
will break down. You must be instinctively conscious* From the book Lessons in Successful Living by Albert E. Cliffe.
No longer in print.

12. 2120
of His presence at all times—so that you can act with
assurance that He will take care of all your problems
and ailments.
I was fully convinced of my religious faith all my
life; but not until I really opened my heart to God did
I know God as I know Him now.
Faith is within the reach of all men, and it is His
spirit which gives us the awareness of the reality of
the unseen.
Health is the law of God’s kingdom and depends
upon the observance of His commands entirely—
therefore the maintenance of health means a strict
obedience to God. To receive divinely given health,
we must be determined to live each day dependent
upon God and content to leave for tomorrow the
problems of that day. Live a day at a time.
God is always glorified by healing—we must be
most grateful to Him for such—and must repay in
service to God and to our fellowman when we have
been healed of sin and sickness. It is but human nature
for people to want to be healed from their pain, so
that they may go about their daily work. We must be
willing to accept the fact that we are healed for God’s
greater glory, not just our personal desires.
Healing through the Grace of God is not too hard
to believe—but you must be willing to get right with
God first. It is the will of God to deliver His children
from all evil in soul and body—He is the fountain and
Jesus Christ is the channel through which the healing
love flows to us. Christ—the Christ in you—and your
faith in Him alone enable you to receive the healing.
The Healing Power of
Right Thinking
One of the best curative forces of all is that of a
healthy mind. When the mind produces “sick”
thoughts, the very real danger is that such thoughts will
externalize themselves in bodily reactions. The mind
has an extraordinarily powerful influence on physi-
cal states. The effort should then be to have a normal,
healthy mental attitude toward yourself.
Ralph Waldo Trine, in a well-known book,* gives
some helpful insights:
Full, rich, and abounding health is the normal and
natural condition of life. In the degree that we live in
harmony with the higher laws of our being, and so,
in the degree that we become better acquainted with
the powers of the mind and spirit, we will give less
attention to the body—no less care, but less attention.
* In Tune With the Infinite, published by the Bobbs-Merrill Company,
Inc., Indianapolis, Ind.
Dear Father, I earnestly commit my life to You. I put
myself completely into Your loving hands, with faith
and without fear. No harm can ever come to me from
You. Whatever Your will may be for me, help me to
practice acceptance. I pray for renewed health and
for longer life, and if such be Your will for me, I will
be humbly grateful. And for this divine and gracious
favor, I will rejoice to serve You to the end of my
days. Amen.

13. 2322
In your thoughts and in your conversation, never
dwell on the negative side. Don’t talk of sickness and
disease. By talking of these, you do yourself harm and
you do harm to those who listen to you. Talk of those
things that will make people the better for listening
to you. Thus, you will infect them with health and
strength and not with weakness and disease.
Never dwell on the negative. To dwell on the
negative side is always destructive. This is true of
the body the same as it is true of all other things. The
following words from one whose thorough training
as a physician has been supplemented by extensive
study and observations along the lines of the powers
of the interior forces, are of special significance and
value in this connection:
“We can never gain health by contemplating
disease, anymore than we can reach perfection by
dwelling upon imperfection, or harmony through
discord. We should keep a high ideal of health and
harmony constantly before the mind.
“Never affirm or repeat about your health what
you do not wish to be true. Do not dwell upon your
ailments, nor study your symptoms. Never allow
yourself to be convinced that you are not complete
master of yourself. Stoutly affirm your superiority
over bodily ills, and do not acknowledge yourself the
slave of any inferior power.
“Like produces like the universe through. Hatred,
envy, malice, jealousy, and revenge all have chil-
dren. Every bad thought breeds others, and each of
these goes on and on, ever reproducing itself, until
our world is peopled with their offspring. The true
physician of the future will not medicate the body
with drugs so much as the mind with principles. The
coming physician will teach the people to cultivate
cheerfulness, good will, and noble deeds for a health
tonic as well as a heart tonic; and that a merry heart
doeth good like a medicine” [Proverbs 17:22].
The health of your body, the same as the health
and strength of your mind, depends on what you
relate yourself with. This Infinite Spirit of Life, this
Source of all Life can, from its very nature, admit
of no weakness, no disease. Come, then, into full,
conscious, vital realization of your oneness with
this Infinite Life, open yourself to its more abundant
entrance, and full and ever­-renewing bodily health
and strength will be yours.
The whole matter may be summed up in the one
sentence, “God is well and so are you.” You must
awaken to the knowledge of your real being. When
this awakening comes, you will have the power to
determine what conditions are externalized in your
body. You must recognize, you must realize yourself,
as one with Infinite Spirit. God’s will is then your will;
your will is God’s will, and “with God all things are
possible” (Matthew 19:26).
Dear Father, sometimes unreasoning fear and panic
paralyze my spirit. But You have said, “Fear not.”
Help me to trust myself completely to Your healing
hands, and to rest in Your great love. Amen.

14. 2524
N important method for keeping the mind
healthy that will have residual healthy effects
upon the body is the practice of affirmation.
What you affirm continuously and with faith
tends to be accepted in consciousness first by the con-
scious mind. If the affirmation is persistent, the idea
will pass into the unconscious, where it will give direc-
tion to the entire personality, including the body. As the
late Dr. Smiley Blanton, a famous psychiatrist, used
to say, “God presides in the subconscious.” Therefore,
an affirmation, being a positive form of prayer to God,
stimulates power in the inward state that is manifested
in the outward state to produce well-being.
An impressive example of the health and healing
power of affirmation was that of Lawrence Townsend,
who lived a vigorous, healthy, and happy life to age 94.
He had a distinguished career in the foreign diplomatic
service of the United States. The last post he held was
Ambassador to Austria. And he really looked like an
ambassador. He often came to my church: stately, erect,
vigorous, healthy.
He had a home in Florida, and I went to see him
there one time and had lunch with him. I asked, “Law-
rence, how come, at your age, you are so healthy and
vital and your mind is so sharp? You are a happy man.
What makes you this way?”
“Every day of my life,” he explained, “I renew the
life-force within me. I turn to the great God who cre-
ated me and I ask Him to recreate me. And then I go
out to commune with the sun, with the sea, with the
rain, with the snow, or with the wind. I am a child of
earth, and a child of God. Come out back with me.”
That day, the sun was intermittent and it was rather
cold. He took me to a shelter he had built in his garden.
It had no top, but was closed on four sides. He took me
inside and said, “Strip to the waist.” I did as directed,
and he did likewise. Then he said, “Stand tall. Stand
as though you were against a wall trying to touch it at
as many points as possible.” I discovered that, by so
doing, every organ seems to fall into place.
So standing tall, he said aloud, “Heavenly Father,
dear Jesus, we are now dropping from our minds every
unworthy thought, every sinful idea, every dark and
unlovely thing. We are now filling our minds with the
glory of God, with the love of Jesus, with the love of
man, with faith and hope and courage. The life-force
is now coursing through body, mind, and soul. And
we are strong, happy, healthy sons of God!”
4
Healing Affirmations
A

15. 2726
It is the truth, a great truth—that the life-force is
within you, and it can cleanse and heal you. As I saw
Lawrence standing there that day in positive affirma-
tion, I said, “I feel great!”
“Of course,” he said. “And if you keep this affirma­
tion going, you will feel great every day of your life.”
Think health; pray health; affirm health; practice
health; believe health—as a child of God, created by
the Heavenly Father and re-created by Him also. “I
will restore health to you, and your wounds I will heal”
(Jeremiah 30:17, RSV), whether of the body or of the
mind or of the soul. So says the Lord God Almighty
who created you and the Lord Jesus Christ who heals
you. So in His name now, receive healing.
the night, God took him home.
His morning ritual was to stand, as he put it, “reach-
ing for the ceiling with the top of my head,” meanwhile
breathing deeply of the fresh air, the windows being
fully raised no matter how low the temperature. He
would then praise and admonish his bodily organs, for
all of which, he declared, he had the deepest respect.
He would affirm, “I praise you, O Lord, for my won-
derful heart, strong and sturdy, that regularly beats
rhythmically at normal rate. And you, O heart, never
forget God made you and He made you good, so go on
doing your job as your Maker intended.”
He would then speak to each organ of the body, af-
firming that each was performing efficiently. He saw
himself as a well man. He pictured or imaged health.
John Riley was a lovable, loving, believing child of
God, a man who believed that his body was a fine
instrument made by God and, therefore, perfect. He
constantly affirmed that perfection.
The Imaging Prayer
There is a deep tendency in human nature to be-
come what we habitually imagine or image ourselves
as being. The mental image persistently held in the con-
scious mind will presently, by a process of intellectual
and spiritual osmosis, sink into the deep unconscious.
Affirmation deeply believed and regularly performed
strongly tends to produce the health condition that is
imaged.
Heavenly Father, You are the Creator and You are the
Re-Creator, as well. Please re-create in me the health,
the strength and the energy You gave me when You
created me. Give me the healing grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ and make me well again. Amen.
Dr. Riley’s Affirmation
A particularly helpful affirmation of health
and healing was taught to me by Dr. John Riley, who
was reputed to be the oldest practicing physician in
New York State. Dr. Riley, a member of my church,
maintained vigorous health well into his 90s. In fact,
he never was ill. He went to sleep one night and, during

16. 2928
There is a divine power that directs the cells and
functions of the body and heals and renews every ele-
ment that needs healing. This divine power is God at
work, maintaining and sustaining life and strength in
the body. As St. Paul says in Acts 17:28, “In Him we
live, and move and have our being.”
I knew of a man who was terribly wounded in the
war. Indeed, he could not walk and the general sup-
position was that he would be incapacitated the rest
of his life. But his mind was not wounded. It was
strong and his faith was vital. He began to image or
picture himself as a whole person, as he was before he
received his battle wounds. He never saw himself as in
his present state. When the nurses were not with him,
he would slide from his bed to the floor, attempting to
stand, only to fall on his face.
As a former champion basketball player, he remem­
bered how to visualize a shot going directly into the
basket, how unerringly he could make nine out of ten
perfect baskets. Why would not the same visualizations
of a perfect body invoke God’s healing! He imaged
physical perfection. His mind never deviated from the
picture of himself as a whole man once again.
He struggled for two years but, ultimately, the power
of the affirmative and imaging prayer produced the
strongly visualized result. There is immense power
in affirmation, imaging, and spiritual visualization.
Suggested Affirmations
A leaflet entitled The Art Of Healing Prayer* has
been a blessing to me. Three principles are involved in
healing: (1) Positive Thinking (2) Speaking the Word
(3) Behold­ing Health.
Positive Thinking
Positive Thinking is a definite step toward heal-
ing. God has given man the power to think, and his
thoughts can either hinder or put him on the for­ward
path. If you have let your thoughts dwell on sickness
and ill health, it is important to change the pattern
of your thinking. You must refuse to let thoughts of
inharmony and negation enter your mind. Center
your thoughts on God; think about God and His heal-
ing, cleansing, vitalizing life flowing in and through
you. Let go anxious, fearful thoughts, for they keep
you from thinking about wholeness and perfection.
Remember that God created you in His image and
likeness. His life and health fill every part of your
being. Every cell is alive with energy and vitality.
Remember that the organs and functions of your body
were created to work together in order and harmony.
These are the kinds of thoughts that comprise “posi-
tive thinking.”
* Issued by Unity School of Christianity, Unity Village, Mo.

17. 3130
Speaking the Word
Speaking positive, faith-filled words helps to
establish you in the consciousness of the healing
life of God mighty within you, mighty within every
person. If you are praying for your own healing, you
may wish to take the word life and repeat it over and
over. Say to your body: “Life, life, life.” Say this until
you actually feel it!
Then take the word strength, and repeat it over and
over in the same way. Say this until you actually feel
new strength filling your whole being. Then go on
to such words as health, wholeness, and perfection.
Direct these words to the part of your body that needs
healing. As you speak positive words over and over,
you will find yourself looking for good results, and
you will also find yourself having faith in the words
you speak.
Affirmative prayer calls for more than just repeat-
ing words of life, strength, and healing. You must
believe in the power of the spoken word, and you must
pray until you feel an inner quickening; a stirring up
of the life that is within you.
A short prayer statement can be helpful, because
it can be quickly called to mind. Choose one such
as: “The healing life of God is mighty in the midst
of me,” or, “The life of God within me renews and
heals my body,” or, “I am restored by the healing life
of God flowing in and through my body.” Speaking
positive words and affir­mations helps you to center
your thoughts in God, and to become steadfast in the
realization that the healing work is being done.
Beholding Health
As you pray for health, behold God’s perfect
manifestation of life and health. Instead of focusing
your attention on the condition as it appears, try to
keep your thoughts centered in God. Trust Him and
know that His will is life, health, and strength. Look
for evidence of His will being made manifest in mind
and body.
After you have followed the prayer steps outlined,
take time to feel the power of God stirring within you;
know that this same power is within every person.
Believe that God is doing His healing work now. Feel
God’s presence within you, lifting you up, and filling
your heart with the deep and abiding assurance that
all is well.
Prayer takes practice. Establish a routine of fol-
lowing the steps of positive thinking, speaking the
word, beholding healing. This means watching your
thoughts constantly. Do not think about the condition
that needs healing. Think about God and His power to
heal. Then speak the healing word. Affirm over and
over words of life, health, and strength. Then follow
through by visualizing health. See the one who needs
healing as being filled with life, energy, and vitality.
See him whole and perfect. Steadfast prayer and faith
in God are sure to bring results.
Concluding Affirmation
By positive thinking and by positive faith, I stir up
the healing, re-energizing power of God in me, and
health begins to fill my mind, my spirit, and my body,
and to make my loved ones whole. Praise the Lord.

18. What Has This Booklet Said?
The basic thoughts of this booklet, and we believe
in them with certain faith, are as follows:
1. God gives life and God sustains life.
2. God heals body, mind, and spirit.
3. God is the Creator. God is also the Re-creator.
4. God’s medicine is administered by His servants,
physicians and surgeons, through scientific
know­ledge.
5. God’s medicine is administered spiritually
through His servants, pastors and deeply spiri-
tual men and women.
6. Scripture held in mind has healing power.
7. God wants you to be well.
8. To be well, keep in harmony with God, for in
Him we have our being.
9. Always take a positive view of yourself as
healthy, vital, vigorous; the power of the healing
God working in you.
10. Think health, pray health, talk health, believe
health, praise God for health and healing.
11. Let positive affirmations bring healing for your
loved ones and for you.
32
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ones. From success in a job, to the safe
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The power of prayer has been proven to
produce miracles. Let us pray for you.
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