Standing in the front yard at age 12, I looked up to the heavens with tears on my face, and asked God to save my hearing or help me accept a future of limited hearing and possible deafness. That was after being diagnosed by five hearing health professionals.
In 1976, I was leading a ladies’ bible study in my home, and we always closed each session by sharing our prayer requests. On this particular day, my heart was heavy regarding my impending deafness. When I shared my feelings, one of the ladies encouraged me to attend a revival service that offered prayers for healing. It was a different denomination than my church, and I admit I was a little skeptical. Yet, I wanted so desperately to be able to hear that I was willing to go.
When I walked through the sanctuary doors that night, I prayed, “God, if you are here and have something for me, let me know it’s from you.” My hearing loss was moderate to profound, so I sat on the front row watching the evangelist and his wife. As a team, they shared a rousing sermon about salvation through Jesus Christ, and my heart was touched as was everyone’s in the congregation. This was a passionate revival.
They invited those with pain and afflictions to move forward to the front for healing prayers. I watched the evangelist pray and touch each person on the stage. Some of them fell down, and several claimed to be healed. I prayed in my heart, “Lord, I have the faith to move this mountain. I believe I will hear normally again.” I stepped up, and he cupped his hands over my ears, prayed for me to hear, and touched my forehead. He did not push me down, but I fainted at his touch and fell on the floor. Two people standing behind me broke my fall and helped me up in a moment. I later found out that was referred to as being slain in the spirit. To the current day, I don’t understand that part.
We stayed until almost everyone had left the service, and my friend asked the evangelist to pray for me again. She told him we didn’t want to leave without my healing. He stepped off the stage and came to me performing the healing ritual again. Afterwards I sat for a few minutes and finally decided we might as well leave.
I went home disappointed, put both hearing aids on the nightstand, prayed hard but desired God’s will above all things. When I awoke the next morning, I laid there a few minutes listening and hoping the silence would bring forth sound, but I still couldn’t hear.
Sending up my earnest prayer to accept God’s decision knowing in His time I would hear again, I put my hearing aids on and got out of bed. I believed I would hear with new ears in heaven, but about 20 years later God opened my ears to hear. When I experienced some dizziness, I randomly selected an ear specialist in my PPO directory. At the end of my visit with the ear doctor, he told me about cochlear implants. I remember his last words on that first visit, “We’re going to put you back into the hearing world.”
In September 1995, I had cochlear implant surgery on one ear. In February 2008, thirteen years later I had the surgery on the other ear. God answered my prayer in His time, His way.
