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Testimony of Healing from Jesus
Bert and Felcia Bradley of Santa Monica, Ca., sent out their Christmas cards with a letter. In it they said: "We are all blessed with good health, including Felicia who continues to outwit the medical profession with her prayer group."
Felicia, the mother of three boys and one girl, has been fighting a battle with cancer. Her condition was first discovered at St. John's hospital in Santa Monica. Following the diagnosis, Felicia underwent six weeks of cobalt treatment.
"I was shocked," she said. "I remember biting my lip and saying, 'Oh God! How could you do this to me.'"
However, despite it all, Felicia and her husband Bert, a convert to Catholicism contined going to mass and Holy Communion at their parish church, St. Paul's in West Los Angeles.
It was around this time that Felicia and Bert, both members of the Christian Family Movement and seven other couples decided to attend a charismatic mass at Loyola University, Los Angeles. They went there as members of the Christian Family Movement seeking to learn more about the charismatic renewal in the church. However, they were not impressed.
"It seemed far out and weird, what with tongues (glossalalia) and the atmosphere," Felicia recalls. It may have been fine for some people, but not for us. Time passed and Felicia went for another bone scan test at St. John's Hospital. This time the scan showed "positive," thus indicating that cancer would probably develop in her rib cage and numerous spots along the spine.
"I really became upset," says Felicia. "Being a registered nurse myself , I knew the vast implications. My doctor told me to se an oncologist, a cancer specialist.
"I became frightened, despondent, wondering how many nights I had to live. I asked God, 'How could you do this to me?' I thought I had about a year to live. That's what I gave myself. I remember waking up at nights crying. One evening my husband said to me, "Felicia, do you want to make everyone miserable because you're sad about dying? Why don't you just live it out with joy and make everyone happy.' Those words were a real help to me."
Meanwhile, stories of healings taking place through the praise of God at Charismatic prayer meetings began reaching her. She heard from a friend that a person with cancer had received prayer at a charismatic prayer meeting in Long Beach, Ca. and subsequently had been healed.
In Arizona, her cousin Lucile related an incident about a priest who prayed to God and his cancer was healed to the point where he could function normally. "I was desperate," confesses Felicia, "And these stories gave me a new ray of hope."
Once again she decided to try the charismatic prayer meeting. This time the prayer meeting was held at a neighborhood parish. St. Monica's in Santa Monica. Felicia tried to pray for herself but found it very difficult and cried. The prayer meeting was held at St. Monica's High School. It was attended by about 60 persons from many Christian denominations, but mostly Catholic.
Felicia went first to the charismatic mass celebrated by Father John Duggan S.J., and afterwards went to the prayer meeting with her husband. She stayed only 20 minutes. "I completely rejected it again," she says.
But, Felicia persisted and went back again a month later. Then she started going weekly and took the Life in the Spirit seminar, a once-a-week teaching explaining the charismatic renewal and culminating in a renewal of one's baptismal vows and rededication of one's life to Jesus Christ as Lord.
"I went through the seminar, but with many doubts," Felicia recalls. So, she went back and took the whole seven-week course all over again and as she describes it, "got pretty warmed up the second time."
During here time attending the Santa Monica prayer meeting, Felicia also began receiving personal prayer for her cancer condition. At St. Monica's a personal prayer-healing team of about 10 people prays for individuals privately in the high school classrooms. Two or three persons from the team pray for one person at a time using the laying-on of hands.
"It was a marvelous experience," says Felicia. "It was sort-of a release and comfort to have praying for me. I could feel the warmth of the prayers and the hands and I sensed a feeling of light."
Gradually, Felicia's attitude began to change. She began to accept here situation and where God had her. She began to hope for a healing. She began to have more strength and to become busy and happy again. While attending the prayer meeting at St. Monica's, Felicia continued to see her doctor every three months. "It got to the point," she says, "when I could go to the doctor's office and smile before going in and say, "I know you have everything under control, God! I knew I was going to be okay."
The x-rays and lab tests continued. The reports showed "no further advance." This was good, but the danger of cancer was still very real.
Then something wonderful happened. During a prayer breakfast, Father Patrick Crowley of Los Angeles gave a talk and then afterwards prayed and said someone was being healed of cancer of the spine. Says Felicia, "He pointed in my direction and said 'stand up' but I didn't because I was not sure. However, I felt he meant me. Father then said, 'I want that person to go and see a doctor."'
The following Friday at St. Monica's Felicia again received personal prayer and during it she was told the Lord was healing her of something. "I got excited," she says, "but was told to remain calm. Again, I was instructed to see my doctor," She did.
The test results came in and showed a change - the bone scan was normal. "It was absolutely marvelous," says Felicia. "My doctor said with my x-rays of two years before I should have had a lesion (a sign of cancer) by now. He said the normal bone scan was a surprise. I told him it was the Lord and he said, "Yes perhaps it's true, prayer does work."
Felicia told her husband Bert. He was thrilled. She told here prayer meeting. They responded with: "Praise the Lord!"
Besides the physical healing, Felicia says she has been blessed by God in many other ways too. "I've never known God, Jesus Christ, like I know him now," she says. I love to pray. I know that God hears me. I enjoy reading the bible. I love to go to mass and Holy Communion. I feel great.
Jesus Christ is the Lord