Oxford Healing on the Streets

Every Saturday afternoon, a group of Christians from Vineyard, Emmanuel, St Aldates and other churches offer prayer for healing to passers-by on Cornmarket. This activity is replicated by hundreds of churches across Europe now following the model of 'Healing on the Streets'.

 
Since we began in November 2008, we have seen God touch many lives. Almost every week someone is healed of their physical problem, and many are touched by the love of God as we pray for their emotional, financial, relational and mental needs.

Here is a list of some of the conditions that have been healed either completely or partially to our knowledge: Bad backs, bad shoulders, tennis elbow, damaged hands, neck pain, partial deafness, migraine, acute headache, hip pain, knees, ankles, sore feet, blood disorder, breast cancer, liver cancer, sore throat, anxiety, grief.

God has blessed this ministry tremendously, so many people are touched by Him there on the chair, even if their physical needs are not met immediately, God speaks to them in their spirit and they leave blessed. One young girl who was prayed for to experience God's love, afterwards she got up and told her friends “if that is what God is like I want to go to church!”.

Sometimes God heals “as they go”, a man with pains in his leg received prayer, left, then came back 20 minutes later exclaiming his leg had never felt so good! Others return weeks and months later to acknowledge healing. We always give unbelievers a letter that says who we are and a “Why Jesus” booklet so they can follow up their encounter with God. We know of a couple of people who have received healing who have committed to follow Jesus, and who knows what God has used or how He will use their healing experience as part of their journey of faith. For example, last summer two Australian men stopped, one had a sore throat, the other a sore back. Both were instantly healed and they went on their way with their Why Jesus booklets.

It’s our privilege to see Jesus work in these peoples lives, sometimes the presence of Jesus is very real on the street as healing takes place and we experience great joy and freedom. One man sat down barely able to breath due to an asthma attack. After a few minutes of prayer by the team he exclaimed that “it has gone” and he was able to breath. The difference on his face was literally breathtaking!

Another testimony is when a team member engaged in conversation with an elderly lady who had recently lost her third husband. She explained that all her husbands had died and she believed it was  because God was angry with her. The team member gently explained that Jesus had taken all her sin on the cross and so God was no longer angry with the lady. Tears flowed as they prayed for God to make this real in her heart and she left smiling.

If you want to join the team or find out more about Healing on the Streets, contact hots@staldates.org.uk. Training courses are available periodically in the south of England.