“Although I wait for healing and restoration, I do not wait alone. We have the spirit of Christ with us always.”- Ann Swindell
“I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor honors him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.”- John 14:16-17 (ESV)
In Chapter 9 (“Waiting with Grace”) of Still Waiting, Ann Swindell admits that she daily longs to be healed. And still, she receives God’s grace. Thus, Ann hasn’t received the grace of healing. However, she experiences the grace of God’s presence.
Most noteworthy, the author adds, the Bleeding Woman twice encountered the grace of Christ’s presence. First, she touched Jesus and received physical healing. But, she also received grace as she looked Jesus in the face and told Him her story.
Because Jesus knew the Bleeding Woman came to Him in faith, He sought her out. In addition, he offered her His presence and acceptance. Also, Jesus acknowledged her existence as well as her suffering. Ann explains how we daily experience the indwelling presence of Christ. She states:
“What grace! This is the great grace we have been given; we don’t have to wait for an encounter with Jesus once in a lifetime or once in a year or even once in a week. For those of us who believe in Jesus and have given our lives to him, we have the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit every moment of every day. What grace God would live within us. In our delight and our sorrow, in our joy and our pain, we are never alone.”
Today’s question: How do you receive the grace of Christ’s presence as you await healing and restoration? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “The recipient of extravagant grace”
