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The Power of Prayer by Richard Holmes, Ph.D.

Is it possible that God directly heals people? Does it really happen? I believe in the power of prayer and that God can and does heal us in many different ways. Most of us who have been exposed to church grow up thinking that it is something that you do on Sunday mornings as part of a passive ritual. I want to challenge you to take a leap of faith and believe that prayer can be powerful and transformational.

There are many different types of prayer and healing including repentance, physical healing, and even deliverance, but I would like to focus on inner healing for emotional problems. This is a natural extension to the work done in counseling. In counseling sessions, work is often done collaboratively to help determine and understand the root causes of unhealthy patterns of behavior and how to address emotional obstacles.

Why is prayer important? As Paul states in Romans 7:15, we cannot understand our own behavior. We fail to carry out the things we want to do, and find ourselves doing the very things we hate. If there is a deep emotional wound, often intelligence and will power is not enough to solve our problems. We are deeply affected not only by what we do – our own sins and mistakes – but by what happens to us through the sins of others and evil in the world. When we are depressed or highly anxious, we often do not experience inner peace and joy or fully experience God’s love.

The basic premise of inner healing is that Jesus can take the memories of our past and heal us from the inner wounds that remain active in our lives and fill us with His love where we may feel empty or scarred. It is God’s desire to heal us of those psychological hurts that prevent us from living with the inner freedom we should experience as children of God. In prayer for inner healing, the idea is to bring to light the people, things, and situations that have hurt us and ask the Lord to heal the binding effects of the hurtful incidents of the past.

Whether you are a committed Christian, struggling with your beliefs, or seeking God for the first time, take a leap of faith and allow the therapists at Pike Creek Psychological Center to guide you on your journey of growth and self discovery. Stay open to the idea that God wants to do a mighty work in your life!

Take the next step. Call for an appointment.