When the world news is consumed with the COVID-19 global pandemic, it’s a great time to talk about staying healthy on the mission field! God’s eternal Word remains just as true and powerful as ever. Our covenant with God guarantees us healing and divine health through Jesus Christ. Praise God forever!
I learned so much about faith and ministry from Brother Kenneth E. Hagin. He used to say that he refused to talk about sickness. He only spoke about the health and healing God provided for us through our redemption and His Word.
One of the great challenges of the COVID-19 situation is, everyone is talking about sickness. The news is full of it. Social media jokes about it. The law says we have to wear masks to slow its spread. People have been laid off because of it.
Of course, we obey the laws. But we must exercise ourselves not to become sickness-conscious. We can watch the news for a few minutes to get information. Then we can turn it off, open our Bible, and restfully meditate on healing scriptures. If we’ll stay full of the Word of God, there will be no room for sickness in our lives. We’ll know we are full of God’s Word when we are full of life and peace and joy.
STAYING HEALTHY ON THE MISSION FIELD
Staying healthy on the mission field is much like staying healthy in the United States, but there are a few differences.
• Overseas, the food is different. Sometimes foods are richer than what we’re used to eating. Or they may just seem strange to us. Foreign government regulations are usually different from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. They might allow more bacteria in meat than we’re used to. We can avoid certain foods, but not everything.
• Sometimes there are kinds of pollen in other countries different from those in the U.S. We might be able to do some things about this in the natural, but God’s divine help is by far the best!
• A foreign country may have good medical care, but it’s always different from what’s familiar to us. We have to learn the best place to go and how to pay. Then we must try to explain the ailment and buy medicine in a foreign language.
None of these things is a big deal. But they are details we often don’t think of.
Here’s the point: On the foreign field, as at home, there’s nothing better than knowing how to take advantage of the healing Christ has purchased for us. We don’t have to be perfect at this to do missions. But it’s sure wonderful to know that Jesus our Physician is with us wherever we roam. And we can receive healing from Him anywhere, anytime.
With this in mind, here’s how to be in a better position to receive healing and walk in divine health.
LEARN TO BE A GOOD GARDENER
According to Mark 4:3–20, we Christians are farmers, or gardeners, and God’s Word is the seed. We can reap a harvest from whatever is in the Bible if we’ll learn to be good spiritual gardeners.
If we know how to tend our spiritual garden, we can experience God’s best for us. However, as with a natural garden, we must do something every day to reap a full harvest. A garden must be planted, watered, fertilized, weeded, protected from pests, and so forth, to reach its greatest potential. And bringing fruit to maturity takes time. We don’t expect to see tomatoes the day we plant the seed. Generally, the same is true in our Christian walk.
To live in divine health, we must plant seeds of healing in our spiritual garden and tend to them daily. One of my Bible school instructors said, “Only what you do every day will make a lasting impact on your life.” Find a way to feed your spirit on healing each day. Here are a few suggestions.
• Read and listen tobooks and recordings on healing by Kenneth E. Hagin. These includeHealth Food Devotions, Healing Scriptures, and God’s Medicine.
• ReadDaily Healing Bread from God’s Table by Nancy Dufresne.
• Study the Bible on healing.
Whatever means you choose, the key is to do it daily. Even spending 3 to 5 minutes each day makes a huge difference, and it’s easy to make it up if you miss a day.
TENDING MY OWN GARDEN
To plant and tend my own spiritual garden, I’ve been using Health Food Devotions each day for over 4 years. (And to grow my faith for finances, I’ve also read one page daily from How God Taught Me About Prosperity by Kenneth E. Hagin for almost 3 years.) Then I make a confession every day based on what I’m reading. I occasionally miss a day. When that happens, I just double up the next day.
I very rarely see a difference from one day to the next. But I’m healthier and better provided for than I have ever been. And I’m convinced things will only get better, because I’m going to keep gardening!
I’m reading these books over and over, but they never get old. God continues to speak to me through them. After all, we plant tomato seeds over and over to get an abundant harvest of tomatoes. Why not plant the same healing and prosperity seeds over and over to get an abundant harvest of health and provision? How much more do we want divine healing in our lives than tomatoes!
Now suppose you plant healing seeds and tend your garden of health faithfully each day for two months and you feel sicker? Does that mean it isn’t working? No! Just keep gardening! God’s Word is incorruptible seed (1 Peter 1:23). It has to bring a harvest if you won’t give up (Galatians 6:9)! I didn’t really notice a difference in my own life until I’d used Health Food Devotions for about 9 months. Then I suddenly realized I felt awesome! Praise God!
This simple practice of tending to our spiritual garden each day is a great first step toward unlocking the blessing of divine health. It will cause us to live a much more blessed and healthy life. And of course, that will make our time on the mission field more successful and more fun!