Healing Prayer Initiative Targets Hospital Patients
Like clockwork, patients, family—and even medical staff—gather for healing prayer in the Penn State Hershey Medical Center chapel every Friday. And God is also showing up.
Abby Abildness, president of Hershey Aglow Lighthouse and founder of Healing Tree International, has led a team of prayer ministers in a weekly healing prayer service there for the past six years. Healing Tree International is a local non-profit organization that networks churches and leaders from around the world to bring positive change to the nations.
“Combining healing prayer with medical care can bring God’s healing care to society around the world,” says Abildness, who received supernatural healing from endometrial cancer 32 years ago. Abildness took God at His Word that He is, indeed, the God who heals according to Exodus 15:26. Now, she’s taking that Word—and the power of prayer—to those in need.
Here’s how it works: The hospital makes an announcement over the PA system every Friday at 11:45 a.m. that a healing prayer service is taking place in the chapel. When patients, family members (and sometimes hospital staff) arrive, a team of prayer ministers is there to meet them. They simply ask for prayer for divine direction or wisdom in making the right healthcare choices. According to Abildness, lives are transformed and healings take place.
On the eve of the National Day of Prayer, a new book is heralding the power of healing prayer in medical care. “Healing Prayer and Medical Care” chronicles the true stories of miracle healings and transformation. Abildness hopes the book will inspire others to work with their local hospital or clinic to hold healing prayer services.
In her new book, Abildness shares a blueprint for establishing a healing prayer ministry in a hospital or medical setting. She reveals how the community of Christian believers and medical professionals can work hand-in-hand to achieve total healing, which is, as she calls it, “God’s Original Healthcare Plan.” As she sees it, this pattern of healing is a continuation of the joint ministries of Dr. Luke and the apostle Paul in the Bible.
Healing Tree International, headquartered at the historical Londonderry Inn Bed and Breakfast, is located near Hershey, Pa. The Christian Broadcast Network, CBN, will be on site May 11-12 to conduct interviews and document the healing miracles at the Penn State Hershey Medical Center and the Londonderry Inn. In the spirit of the “Luke 10 Good Samaritan,” who took the wounded to the inn for healing, the Londonderry Inn offers healing prayers weekly on Wednesday morning, and quarterly healing weeks for those who need concentrated intercession for medical recovery.
