Actually, God's most perfect will is NOT to heal us; God's plan is to prevent disease with Godly responses and Godly ways of life. "My people perish because of a lack of vision (purpose, destiny, hope.)" (Hosea 4:6) I am amazed that some still say that God made them sick to teach them something. Well then, if God gave you the illness, then don't go to doctors!! Don't pray for healing if you believe that God wants you sick! What do you believe about your heavenly Father? There are about 150 references to healing or curing in the Bible. Of course, if you choose to believe that God will not heal you today, don't worry, He won't!

The First or Greatest Commandment is God's Master health plan. Deut. 6:5 says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart ... love thy neighbor ... as thyself. (So often, instead of being able to love ourselves, we are blocked by self-doubt, self-hate, self-rejection, self-accusation, etc. etc.) Thus we are unable to love our brothers well because we do not know how to love ourselves. (1 John 4:20) If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen." NIV

There are many spiritual roots to our inability to love. Many families are intact but the children are still basically fatherless. Many who are married are actually spiritual widows or widowers. Jesus prayed that we would be one. (John 17) Yet some are well adjusted in spite of these challenges. Some learn to respond in healthy spiritual ways rather than to react negatively, becoming bond slaves to their own unhealthy reactions. Its not what is done to us, but how we react to stress and trauma that makes us sick. Some are able to release the situation or individuals to God and some carry resentment, bitterness, jealousy, rejection, fear, judgments etc. like a ball and chain all their lives. Jesus taught us to pray, "It is written ... " to tear down personal strongholds.

It is separation on three levels that destroys our immune systems, resulting in spiritually rooted illnesses or SRI. a) Separation from God. (Father God doesn’t love me like ___.) Lie: God is trying to teach me something. b.) Separation from self. (Do you like yourself?) Autoimmune disease usually has roots of self-hatred or self-bitterness. c.) Separation from others. (Is hurt just a memory or do you still carry the emotions of hate or resentment or bitterness?)

Healing begins with making peace with God, self and others. You can begin to prosper body, soul and spirit as you renew your mind. (Rom.12:1) When the church attacks itself it is opening the door for spiritual autoimmune disease in the whole church body. Bad roots grow bad fruit, both in individuals and corporately.

Here are some blocks to healing and spiritual roots to illnesses:

a) Strife (even while praying and fasting) God blocks His ears. (Isaiah.58)

b) Blaming others for our sinful reactions vs. taking responsibility.

c) Fear that prevents love, power and a sound mind. (l Timothy 1:7)

d) (l Corinthians 11:30) Many are weak, sickly and die because they do not discern the body rightly.

e) Roots of bitterness spring up to trouble you and defile others. (Hebrews 12:15)

f) "Eye for an eye" living (addressed by Jesus in Matthew 5:38-44)

g) Cursing yourself: "This is killing me! I am sick and tired ..." James 3:10

h) Grudges, resentments, ought against our "brother" prevent worship in spirit and truth. (Matthew 5:22)

Many today are still settling for substitutes for healing and palliative care even though adverse reactions to prescriptions are the 4^th cause of death. Side effects can be worse than the illness; i.e. Blood pressure medications and Prozac can cause impotence which certainly does not help one to feel better about himself! Our discernment and conscience has been dulled by medications. We have emphasized "nutrition" more than resolving our conflicts, maintaining right relationships and repentance for our negative reactions. These issues have left negative residue in our lives that block our path to healing and health.

(Proverbs 17:22) A merry heart does good like a medicine but a broken spirit dies up the bones. God's plan is healing broken hearts, delivering us from captivity, healing our illnesses and setting us free from bondages. (Isaiah 61) Where did this plan break down? You might ask yourself, "Who broke my heart? When did I begin to be separated from myself, others and God? What is blocking my ability to love?"

Looking for the spiritual roots in the Bible, we find that there is cause and effect in the spiritual realm just as there is in the natural realm. Just as laws of gravity are impartial, so are spiritual laws. We reap what we sow, unless we repent. What we condemn, we reap more of - more and later than we sow.

Although we are not saying that all illnesses have spiritual roots, here are some examples of some conditions that CAN have spiritual roots vs. just natural causes:

heart attacks, aneurysms, strokes, hemorrhoids, varicose veins, epilepsy, cancer, leukemia, ulcerative colitis, Crohn's, diabetes, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriases, histamine disorders, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, MCS-EI, allergies, asthma, breast cancer, ovarian and prostate cancer, PMS, osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, addictions, anxiety, stress, fear, panic disorder, alcoholism, dissociative disorder, SRA, STDs, acne, colic, irritable bowel syndrome, hypo- or hyperthyroidism and depression.

(Please come to see us at Cross Walk Life for ministry for the possible spiritual roots to these physical illnesses. They are too numerous to list here.) Mental health issues maybe more easily traced from spiritual issues to physical symptoms. i.e.

a.) Depression causes a reduction in the production of seratonin

b) Chronic Depression - may have roots in lack of self-esteem, anger, often due to a lack of nurturing in childhood that leads to a deficiency of seratonin.

c) Paranoid Schizophrenia - malfunction of neuro-transmitters: imbalance of seratonin, dopamine and nor-epinephrine.

d) ADD - deficiency, low self-esteem, rebellion, occult

E) Migraines - guilt, self-hatred, fear and anxiety, imbalance of seratonin, histamine, swelling of blood vessels, presses sensitive nerves

f) Hypertension - cell wall rigidity, vasoconstriction, fear, anxiety

Regardless of the illness, the answer is the same: get into agreement with your creator! Recognize the root, repent of your negative reactions, renounce the lies, release truth, and resist the temptation to block your own health again!

PLEASE CONTACT US and invite Jesus, the Spirit of Truth to heal you.

Click tear down personal strongholds for a scripture prayer strategy.