"I Watched That Lioness Spirit Step Forward..."

Dear Saints,

    The core of Hannah’s beauty lies in her intensity!  Yes, at 19 years old, she’s very attractive with long light brown hair and lean grace, but it’s the strength of her focus that arrests you.  At odd moments in a conversation, sometimes even when she laughs, you get a glimpse of this agile and tenacious mind that’s at rest there, like a lioness in repose but poised to lunge in strength and power at the slightest provocation.  

    How fear could be an issue for Hannah was beyond me.  But it was.  Early on, doctors diagnosed OCD, and her family had struggled with its manifestations for years.  Paralyzing dread over germs drove Hannah to wash her hands until her palms parched and fingers bled.  An upset stomach could rob her of sleep for days.  Houses with pets were off limits to her unless she clothed herself in layers, insulating herself against possible contamination.  Unfamiliar places unsettled her, and unfamiliar bathrooms were out of the question.  Hannah and her mom recognized that this thing was constricting Hannah’s life and relationships, as well as strangling long-term hopes and ambitions.  They wanted Christ to set Hannah free.

    Hannah and I spent the better part of two days together.  There was nothing uncertain about her yearning to be healed.  She focused like a laser on the Word of God, her mind whirring over vocabulary, attacking and digesting new  concepts, then bounding ahead to suddenly exclaim some newly realized truth while I was still building the introduction.

    On the second afternoon, I stepped out to meet an old friend and his wife.  Talking at Taco Bell, I discovered that my friend’s wife, Wanda, was floundering physically.  Her thyroid was wrecked, provoking spells of overwhelming exhaustion and crippling insomnia.  And back trouble?  Pain spiked in her back and hips, ignited simply by bending forward to pick something up or rising to stand from a seated position.

    I called back to Hannah’s and was told, yes, I could bring them there for prayer.  In Hannah’s kitchen, I explained that I personally would NOT minister, but that God would heal Wanda through Hannah’s voice and hands.  Was Hannah up for that?  Absolutely.  I watched then as that lioness spirit stepped forward in untested but easy confidence.  With little coaching, Hannah asserted her identity as a daughter of the Most High God, a “warrior princess” in His Kingdom.  For several minutes over Wanda, Hannah boldly spoke forth Scripture about God’s goodness, healing and authority, ending authoritatively with “Now be healed.”  It happened.  With knees locked, Wanda bent over several times and effortlessly slapped the tile floor.  That night, Wanda later reported, she slept easily and deeply for six hours until her cat woke her up.   Symptoms associated with her thyroid have disappeared, and she’s beginning an exercise program to rebuild her strength.

    Wanda is healed, but the greater work, I think, rests inside Hannah.  A powerful revelation of her own spiritual identity, indeed, as a warrior princess has broken the grip of OCD and fear over her life.  What a profound privilege to share in that experience!  I thank you for that!  Thank YOU for making it possible for me to serve in this capacity!  Thank you for partnering with us in Faith & Freedom Ministries!





Dave & Debbie Diamond