Ever misapplied a bible verse? I have, specifically a verse on doubt. Here’s the verse:

Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.

Mark 11:23

With this verse in mind, I had prayed for healing for a friend. I thought to myself, if I do not doubt, then they will be healed, right?

Right after a prayer it is typical for me then to question if they were or were not healed. But rather than question if they were healed or not, I decided through my own misapplication of Mark 11:23 that even questioning in my mind if they were healed or not is a form of doubt, and they would not be healed.

Over the next couple of hours I tried to hold in my head the idea that this person was healed and any time I doubted they were healed I then forced that idea out of my head and instead told myself they were healed. As you can imagine, this is completely exhausting.

I do not suggest this course of action.

Was this person healed? No. Did my floundering about doubt after the fact have any impact on the healing? Unlikely. Did I tire myself out unnecessarily? Yes.

I have seen miraculous healings and most of them come alongside with a simple prayer. My suggestion is to say the prayer, believe and hope for healing, and see what happens after.