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Proclaim the glorious deeds of the Lord
David Curry, who is 70 and the leader of a small intercessory prayer group in Stockport, explains how the Breath of God Ministry of Healing and Prayer started and some of the amazing answers to prayer the group have received over the last few years.
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Unfortunately as time went on priests had become rather scarce for the healing ministry, and so it was decided that we must start to be more involved, ourselves. To gain encouragement, I asked various people from different healing groups if they had any testimonies of healings? From three major ministries, the answers were disappointingly NIL on record. Thus we decided that we would set out to get our own testimonies. We wanted to prove to anyone who would listen that God is still at work, and we felt determined that we would raise up His Holy Name. When people were desperate for prayer and someone would say they would pray, was that the end of the story? We would continue to pray until we had answers, and then we would carry out the second part of this equation, which often seems to get overlooked, we would PRAISE and RAISE UP GOD’S HOLY NAME, and speak GRATITUDE! Book of Intercessions started When I took over the leadership of the group in January
2005, and I outlined our intentions to Canon Vincent Whelan, the Dean
at Shaw Heath, nearby. He sent me a beautifully written blessing and
we are so gratefull to be under his authority. In March 2005, two of
us pilgrimaged to Fr Zlatco Sudac, the wonderful stigmatist priest from
Krk in Croatia. As soon as he anointed us, we knew we were, “in
business”. In June 2005, we started a large “Book of Intercessions”.
Every intercession which is entered in our book is numbered, dated,
and a note made of who lodged it. Then we enter the name of the person,
or institution of those needing prayer, and as much detail as possible
about the condition and the outcome hoped for. It is this description
against which I can measure the eventual outcome. We try to keep a certain
discretion about the prayer requests.Some people are prayed about quite
openly. Others will be referred to by their first name or their situation,
such as “the man lost in Africa”. By the end of July ‘05, I began to note that answers were arriving. I began to list positive results, closures, and some were actually miraculous. One of our members has re-christened the book as “The Book of Miracles”. Following are a small selection of our answers. 1. A lady spoke to one of our group about her husband in long term hospitalisation. She said his severe, long term physical condition was not expected to change, but what really upset her was the man’s sheer despair, blackness, negativity, complaints. She said it was so bad that his attitude infected the whole ward. She said everyone who went near him seemed to feel, and carry that air of utter defeat, and dejection. Darkness seemed to radiate from him. So she was told he would be entered in our book and that people pray every day at 3pm, the Hour of Mercy. At tea time the next day, this lady phoned our member. She said she had visited the hospital at 3.10pm, and she was AMAZED at the change in that man. She said that he was bright and positive and accepting of his state, he was just a person of light and warmth. Total change. Praise God! 2. A man who was atheist visited me one day and told me his mother in law had been given 24 hours to live. I secretly put her in our book for prayers.Three months later, the doctor called in this man with his wife and apologised for causing them such distress. He said in all his years as a doctor, he had never failed in judging approaching death. He had seen the signs so many times. He said she was now eating well, and sleeping O.K. and he added he was totally amazed. “Tell me,” the doctor said, “Is anyone praying for her?” The couple came racing up to my house, and both stood there, atheists, and asked, “Did you put “Mum” in that “book” you were telling us about?” I said,”You don’t have to ask to go in our book, of course I put her in.” Now, the atheist keeps visiting me to ask about Jesus. He now visits his mum and all the time he is there, he reads a Gideon bible. 3. When a lady had a small operation she came out of hospital later in the day. Some time after, she was distinctly unwell and seemed covered in bruises. Returning to the hospital to see the specialist, he instantly admitted her again and in no time she went into a coma. She had contracted a flesh eating virus. On 24 December 07, she was given the last rites and was expected to die. She was entered in our book. Doctors had cut infected flesh away and they knew she would die, so it came as enormous amazement to them that she will be coming to see us at our prayer group next month! 4. A woman with deep depression was totally unable to do any normal work. She was “useless”, black, negative, defeated to the worst level I ever heard about. She was using all kinds of therapies; medical drugs, herbal remedies, psychologists. Her home and work life were abysmal. So we started to pray and by degrees it was obvious that she was brightening up. Quite soon afterwards, she was letting some of the therapies go, and finally she became well again, bright as a little button. Good testimony. ------ BUT, that wasn’t all. God sent an additional blessing, some months later, she said she was so impressed by the prayer power that had been so clearly demonstrated to her, that she had started instruction, and was received into the catholic church at Easter 2008. What a bonus! 5. A man lived with his wife and three little infants in a tied cottage. After a very serious works accident and resultant long term treatment, it was impossible for him to resume his old job and he was asked to leave the company house. Even though desperately seeking other accomodation, nothing could be found and pressure to get out for this little family got tougher. One day, he was told that he and his wife and the three little tots had to be out by Friday. They were desperate. By Wednesday, a man called and said he had seen a house that would be just right for the family, and the rent would be affordable. An answer to prayer. It was a dream house and they moved in just in time. Nice testimony. ------ BUT, God had a little extra solace. Only a very few days after this, the new tenant who had moved into that house called to see him. He asked, “Are you the family who moved out of that tied cottage? Only you moved out just in time. There has been a land slip and the house is now waterlogged and the whole building is condemned, it will be demolished. You are a very lucky family.” Thank you, Lord Jesus, for putting such a big smile on my face. Fifty nine pages of answered prayers Starting with a first list of testimonies in July 2005, I had estimated that over 35 months, I must have done at least one close-typed, A4 size list of answers per month. After doing a mega filing job, I did an actual count and after 46 months I am now on page 59 of testimonies, closures, positive outcomes, positive reports, and MIRACLES. As at 12 May 08 we have 1158 intercessions listed. Many of them multi- requests, and we have reported 662 answers to prayer. We have about 15 people who may attend the prayer group. As it is only one hour per month, in between meetings, I send a newsletter to them all to maintain contact. I have also made contact over the course of the last 3 years, with 50 powerful prayerful people, and I have invited them to become “Prayer Partners” at a distance. From Brighton to Glasgow, and even in Eire and America, people phone or write or email. They are so uplifted by what we do and the testimonies we give of what God is doing in the lives of people, as well as in their own lives. It gives people a sense of such hope that there is prayer power that continues until there is an answer. Prayer power includes whole communities of nuns, friars, and penitants. I am cheeky enough to shang-hai them into supporting the group. Reluctant they may be at the outset, but they soon get keen. The Breath of God is very much present with us. Originally I had thought of calling us the Gideon Group, because that is what we are, a tiny little band of prayer warriors. The oldest is 90. She prays all day. What a bonus! We have no music ministry. We play an appropriate hymn or two from CD’s and silently “Soak” in the beauty of the words and harmonies. We are an all Christian group. Apart from Catholics, and including distant members, there are Anglicans, Methodists, a Quaker, a Salvationist, a Baptist. Even the two atheists over the road are looking keen. At a recent meeting, I concluded by asking that we dwell on the part of the “Our Father” which says. “Thy Will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.”, and what that means to us? I went home and turned on the TV to a Christian programme just in time to hear a minister say. “The greatest of all Charisms given us by the Holy Spirit, is the Charism of INTERCESSORY PRAYER. This is because it is due to Intercessory Prayer, that the Will of God in Heaven, may also be done on earth.” ------ Amen and Amen. ------ Thank You, and Praise You, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We lift up your Mighty Name.
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About
18 months into retirement I began to make a novena about where my life
was going from there. An answer came very quickly, and in no time, the
Good Lord had engineered that I officiate at a Catholic prayer group which
had been presided over by an elderly Methodist couple. They had been arranging
Healing Masses but at the age 80, they decided to hand over, and I was
the one God pushed forward.