Why Won’t God Heal Me? 3 Things to Consider

It’s been over 10 years.  

10 years since receiving a diagnosis that changed my life. 10 years since the doctor spoke those life-altering words, “It is a chronic condition.” 10 years of trying every diet, supplement, program, etc.

10 years of praying that God would heal my body . . . only to continue to struggle with this.  

And if I am completely honest, while at times reading God’s word can be encouraging . . . at other times reading about all the miracles throughout its pages can be a bit disheartening.  

I mean, there are so many examples of God healing people in Scripture that it makes me wonder: why won’t God heal me? 

How do I ask God to heal me?

For some reason, it seems to be a lot easier to pray for God to change our heart, character, or life situation than it is to ask Him to change our physical health. 

Perhaps this is because physical healing is more tangible than inward healing.

So, if God doesn’t answer our prayer to heal us . . . His silence is much more obvious.  

This is why it takes courage to pray for physical healing.  

And why the Bible calls us to pray in faith. 

Faith is the confidence that God can do what He says He can do.

After all, He created our bodies, so it would make sense that He can heal those same bodies.  

But faith is also having confidence that God will do what is right. That He will work everything according to His perfect plan. Even if we don’t understand.   

Asking God to heal us starts by praying in faith, choosing to believe that God can heal us from anything . . . if He chooses to. 

How do I activate God’s healing power?

While God is not some cosmic genie in the sky waiting for us to do the right thing in order to activate His healing power, throughout the Bible, there are many times when healing took place after certain things happened.  

Such as: 

1) The laying on of hands. Many people were healed when others prayed for them while laying hands on them. (Luke 4:40, Acts 6:6, Acts 9:17, Acts 28:8, Mark 6:5) 

2) Being anointed with oil. James tells us that if we are sick, we should go to the elders of the church and ask them to pray over us and anoint us with oil. (James 5:14) 

It doesn’t hurt for us to try these things when we are diagnosed with an illness or are facing a health issue.

But we need to remember at the same time that these things aren’t a perfect recipe for getting the answer we want.  

How do I pray for my body to heal?

It also doesn’t hurt for us to pay attention to how we are praying for God to heal our bodies. When we pray for healing, we should: 

1) Pray in the name of Jesus.

Jesus tells us to pray in His name. This doesn’t mean that by praying in His name we will automatically get what we want.

What it does mean is we are praying in His authority, asking God to act on what we are praying for, and that we are praying according to God’s will.

Praying in Jesus’s name means we are praying for what would honor God and bring Him glory. Which gives a whole new meaning to this phrase. (See John 14:13-14 and 1 John 5:14-15)  

2) Be specific.

Tell God exactly what you want Him to do for you.

Yes, He already knows . . . but He also tells us we need to ask Him.

He often waits for us to pray in faith before He decides to move on our behalf. (Matthew 7:7) 

3) Declare God’s authority over your health issue.

This is a great way to boost your faith because it reminds us God created our bodies. He knows every inch of them. And He is in complete control over them. 

Declaring His authority over our bodies and health issues helps us to remember that He is in complete control.

And He will do what He knows is in our best interest . . . for our good and His glory.

We may not always understand. But we can choose to trust in His plan.

4) Listen.

Sometimes during prayer, the Holy Spirit reveals things we need to take care of in order to be healed.

Such as unconfessed sin. Bitterness. Unforgiveness. Or something else.  

He may even prompt us to connect with a specific person or seek treatment from another doctor.

After all, God created doctors and nurses with a gift for helping people heal. And sometimes rather than healing us Himself, God chooses to use others to help us heal.   

We need to pay attention to the promptings we receive . . . God may be trying to tell us something.  

Can God heal anything?

Since God created everything . . . it would make sense that He can heal anything. And we see examples of miraculous healings all the time.   

There are stories of people being healed of cancer, AIDS, and other life-threatening illnesses. Or stories of people being brought back to life or surviving seemingly impossible situations such as drowning. 

So, we know God can heal anything.  

But . . . we don’t know if He will.  

Will God heal me?

To answer this question, we need to look at an interesting story in the Bible where a leper comes to Jesus and states, “If you are willing, Lord, you can make me clean.” (Matthew 8:2) 

It is interesting that he puts this clause on Jesus’s healing of his illness by saying “if you are willing”.  

This shows us that sometimes the answer to the question, “Why hasn’t Jesus healed me?” . . . is because He is not willing.  

Which is a tough pill to swallow.  

But perhaps God knows something we don’t.  

Why does God not heal everyone?

There are many times in the Bible when God allows people to suffer from health issues. 

• Job endured painful boils all over his body. (Job 2:7-10) 
• Timothy appeared to suffer from stomach issues and frequent ailments. (1 Tim. 5:23) 
• At the pool of Bethsaida, there were many people in need of healing. And yet Jesus only healed one of them. (John 5:1-18) 

But there is an even more interesting case where God chose NOT to heal someone. 

Why didn’t God heal Paul?

Paul was a man God used in mighty ways for His Kingdom.

He wrote most of the New Testament. Planted many churches. Discipled many believers. And even proclaimed the gospel in front of some of the most prominent people of that day. 

And yet Paul had a thorn in the flesh.  

(Which many scholars believe could have been a health issue like poor eyesight or headaches. But it could have been something else as well . . . we simply won’t know this side of Heaven.)

Paul begged God three times to take this “thorn” away. And yet this was God’s response to his plea: 

“Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.”

-2 Corinthians 12:9 NLT

God chose not to heal Paul. Saying His grace was all Paul needed to live with this “thorn”. 

But how could God’s grace be enough? 

When you pray for healing and it doesn’t come.

It’s hard to cope when you pray for healing and then feel the bitter disappointment when it doesn’t come.

Perhaps you are in this place right now.

You’ve prayed for years. Cried out, “Help Me, Jesus” through your tears.

You’ve done all you can do. Tried everything you can. And yet nothing has changed.

And you have begun to wonder: “Why is God taking so long to heal me?” 

While there may be many different reasons for God not healing someone. And while we won’t really understand His reasons until we get to Heaven someday . . . I would ask you to consider three reasons here. 

Perhaps in His grace: 

1) God is healing you . . . just not physically.

It’s easy to think only about your physical body. But God is much more concerned with your character than your comfort.  

What if He is using your health problems: 

• To reveal character issues you need to deal with. 
• To reveal idols you turn to in your discomfort rather than turning to Him. 
• To help you grow in your faith while becoming stronger mentally, emotionally and spiritually. 

2) God hasn’t said “no” to healing you . . . just “not yet.”

The truth is while God may choose not to heal you in this life, He will heal you . . . in the next one.

Once you enter Heaven, you will receive a new body. One that functions perfectly.  

And all the sorrows and trials of this life will fade away when you finally see Jesus face-to-face.  

3) God has plans to use this . . . for His glory and your good.

The devil wants to use your pain and suffering to distract you, disappoint you, and dishearten us. He wants to use it to harm you.  

But God wants to use it for good.  

For His glory. And for the good of others. 

“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good.”

-Genesis 50:20 NIV

God won’t allow anything to come into your life that He won’t use for your ultimate good. (Rom. 8:28)

So, perhaps the reason He isn’t willing to heal you is because He is going to use your health issue in some way to bring glory to His name.  

And to put you in the perfect position to comfort others. 

“He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.”

-2 Corinthians 1:4 NLT

Why is God not healing me?

When you wonder, “Why is God not healing me?”. . . you can choose to remember the truth that sometimes God is healing us. Just not in the way we expect Him to.

And then you can choose to: 

Live with confidence and thanksgiving.  

We can be confident that God CAN heal us. We can be confident that He WILL heal us . . . either in this life or the next. And so, no matter what happens we can live with confidence and thanksgiving for God’s good plan for our life.  

If He heals us . . . we can praise Him. 

And if He doesn’t heal us . . . we can praise Him. 

So go ahead.  

Pray with bold confidence. Ask God to heal you. Believe He can. But then open your hands and surrender it all to Him.  

Entrusting yourself to the will of the One who loves you, is for you, and will never leave you . . . no matter what.  

If you found this encouraging, then please share!     

Be sure to check out these articles, too!

• Living with Chronic Illness . . . And Jesus
• Coping with Chronic Illness: 7 Ways to Thrive
• How to Pray for Healing