A most comforting truth is that reorienting thought to God’s enduring goodness forwards healing. At first, this change of thought, this kind of prayer, may not seem plausible, or even logical. Someone might ask, “Shouldn’t prayer be relegated to changing what we see, hear, and feel?” It might seem reasonable to leave our thoughts completely out of it other than to petition God to change our bodies, to improve other people, to inflate our bank accounts, or to increase our longevity.
Jesus, however, revealed that a divinely instituted change of thought is the whole of successful prayer. When, for instance, he was told about a girl who was dying, he didn’t inquire about physicality—the symptoms or the length or type of the ailment, her environment, and so on. He turned in prayer to God, addressing simply what was fearfully believed about the girl. His declaration recorded in Luke indicates his focus: “Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole” (8:50).
Even the appearance of death did not deter Jesus from his dedication to God. He prayerfully corrected that false belief with God’s truth about this girl as His permanent spiritual creation. A little while after, she arose healed.
